The birth of New Humanity and the demise of Old Humanity.
It was simply a matter of the old being weeded out. Not through genocide or war, but through a process of gradual replacement in places no one noticed. After all, the Zorks had a higher reproductive rate. I expected the transition to New Humanity would be complete before my dynasty even fell. By then, foreign blood would likely be mixed in as well.
In the first place, there were already quite a few potential Female Zork Spies out there. On top of that, the blood of the Fairy and One-O-One would be added to the mix.
Yeah, Old Humanity was finished. It felt a little bittersweet. After all, I was a prime example of an Ancient Species genetic throwback myself.
A Wet Nurse was assigned to Selene-chan. Honestly, there had been some hellish back-and-forth behind the scenes to make it happen.
First, we had to keep the hostile factions away from Wifey. I didn't want the child to be assassinated or abused. That led to the question of which ally would be best for the job.
The first candidate pushed by the factions was Isono's Sister. She had the track record of raising Isono, after all. But Wifey was dead set against it. The sister had a small child of her own, and forcing a mother and child apart was a situation that hit every one of Wifey’s personal traumas. Wifey’s argument was sound. This rejection didn't reflect poorly on Isono's Sister’s reputation at all.
Next, the military faction tried to wedge in one of their young ladies. I wondered if a high-born lady would even be okay. It made me uneasy. However, since we had already turned down Isono's Sister, we accepted her. I figured as long as we didn't make her the leader of the Wet Nurse Squad, it would be fine.
Right, there wasn't just one Wet Nurse. The position was far too important for that. If she really was going to be the wife of the child Claire and I would eventually have, she would be the next Queen of Chronos. We had to build a team for this.
The military faction pushed even more personnel on us. This time, it was Saijo-kun's Older Sister.
She was a widow whose husband had died in the Zork War. She was the widow of an officer who had died fighting gallantly, and her younger brother-in-law was a hero of the Zork War—a genius swordsman who had become an Imperial Guard Knight for the Galactic Empire Emperor at a young age. On top of that, he was the champion of the All-Galaxy Humanoid Fighter Championship. She herself was deeply loyal to Wifey. I didn't think anyone could refuse her. She was hired.
Then, the real problem came after that.
"I shall go."
It was my mother. Leo's Mother had found herself with too much free time because my second brother, Big Brother Sam, was far too competent. Having finally grown tired of having nothing to do, she joined the fray. And she had the gall to contact me over a private line. That damned old hag.
"Denied."
"Leo! What is that attitude to take with your mother?!"
You’re my stepmother! I wanted to retort. But while I might have been mostly left to a child-rearing robot, it was a fact that she had raised me. I hadn't been abused. There had just been the occasional Iron Fist Sanction. I had been a brat, so that was probably unavoidable. Even now that I was a King, I still got clobbered by Pigetto and Katori-sensei.
...Hmm, excluded. I decided to keep out old-fashioned hags like her.
"Is that wise, Lord Groom?"
"I’m excluding that hag, no matter what."
"Then why not make her the Chief Wet Nurse and put her in charge of shift management and paperwork?"
There was that option!
"My mother is great at that stuff! She used to handle the estate’s practical affairs in my father’s stead!"
And so, Leo's Mother was appointed as the Chief Wet Nurse. I would never let her touch the child, though. Saijo-kun's Older Sister seemed like a gentle person, so I hoped she would do her best.
Then, Wifey and I held the interviews. I also had Saijo-kun and Yuri-chan come along as advisors. Melissa and Rikochi were there too. And of course, Claire, who was quite closely involved. The Fairy and Selene-chan were watching the broadcast simultaneously.
Saijo-kun's Older Sister arrived in a suit. Was she the professional career-woman type? Actually, she was more like a Takarazuka-style lady. Man, she was incredibly sharp. Her movements were magnificent.
"I am Reika Saijo."
Wifey was staring in admiration. Rikochi was scribbling notes with a serious expression. You’re planning to use this as material for your manuscript, aren’t you? Saijo-kun looked away, while Yuri-chan was delighted, chirping, "Sister Reika!♪"
"Leo, it seems that once I became your wife, 'normal' stopped coming my way..."
"I’m truly sorry about that..."
"A-Ahahaha! It looks like things will be fun when I have a kid with the Ninja Captain!"
Melissa was howling with laughter. Your turn is coming up next year, you know!
"I’m Leo Kamishiro, King of Chronos and current lackey to Saijo-kun. Good to meet you."
"I am Galactic Empire Emperor Veronica."
"Wait, His Majesty Leo! What do you mean 'lackey'?!"
Saijo-kun, dressed in his military uniform, snapped at me.
"I mean, Saijo-kun is the strongest pilot in the galaxy~"
"That’s only because Your Majesty got out of your machine and started a fistfight with Katori-sensei!"
"Fufu, I apologize for my brother."
Reika smiled beautifully. Looking at her resume, she apparently had a Master’s degree in Early Childhood Education. We definitely had to hire her.
"I have a secret mission for Saijo-kun's Older Sister."
Her expression changed instantly. "A secret mission...?"
"Do not let my mother get involved in the education or childcare."
I spoke with a hollow look on my face.
"Pardon?"
"She’s a hag who dumped my entire upbringing onto a robot. She’ll have a bad influence, so please exclude her at all costs. To be specific, keep her buried under mountains of paperwork."
"...Is she not Your Majesty’s mother?"
"It’s fine. I’ve already given up on her."
Hah. I could only laugh.
The selection continued. Melissa's family didn't have the spare personnel to send anyone. I had a few people introduced from Ren’s side. I wanted the child to get used to the Beast Race. It was important for her to recognize that such people existed.
On top of that, we brought in Riko's Relatives. They were from a district known for excellent education. I had high expectations for them. Plus, they were distant relatives.
Furthermore, we assigned a Female Zork Spy as a guard. They were the type who had once been middle-aged men but maintained their unwavering pride as Space Marines. Incidentally, they spent their spare time as idols, streamers, or models. If I thought about it too much, I’d lose.
The baby seemed smarter than a normal child. After that, I just had to let nature take its course. I gave her a somewhat difficult educational toy as a gift.
A Euclidean Geometry Construction Set.
It was a tablet-based toy where you performed constructions using ruler and compass functions. The definition of "toy" seemed a bit lost here... and the target age was for upper elementary school students. Was this really okay?
"She is showing a profound interest in it," Reika Saijo replied with a hollow look of her own.
Me? Hah! I was a sailor! You can't plot a course without knowing geometry. Even so, I only managed to solve about half of the practice problems.
In any case, she seemed brilliant. This was bad... I had a feeling that, right from the start, I wouldn't be able to keep up with my cute Niece’s conversations.