That was when I realized a terrifying fact.
Wifey was out of commission due to childbirth.
Claire was also out.
Ren was out as well.
And Kevin was out, focusing entirely on her duties as a doctor.
My combat strength was being whittled away at an alarming rate. Without Wifey and Kevin, our total attack power might have dropped by more than half. If a battle broke out now, things would be disastrous. Leonidas-kun’s addition had bolstered our numbers, but he was hardly a replacement for the missing heavy hitters.
Or rather, Leonidas-kun himself was currently on the injured list.
War was out of the question. I simply couldn’t command a fleet.
That was the harsh truth. I was terrible at commanding while staring at a tactical board. My performance at the Commander level was pathetically incompetent. I could handle being a field captain or a national monarch, but I wasn't the kind of player the situation required.
I just wasn't the Strategist type.
On the other hand, Wifey was a natural at fleet command. It was only because she had handled the fleet that I’d managed to stay alive this long. I mean, there were plenty of people at my general level—people who could do the obvious things reasonably well. But there was no one like Wifey, who could seize victory from the jaws of an overwhelming disadvantage.
Even Brother-in-law Thomas—a man of exceptional talent who had survived commanding a legion of incompetent fools who refused to listen—couldn't match her.
I was stuck.
I felt a wave of pessimism wash over me. I’d better not go picking any fights. Being bellicose at a time like this was a surefire way to get the rug pulled out from under me. I had to move cautiously.
Today, alongside the Chronos Religion, I was scheduled to present a letter of appreciation and announce a joint venture.
First came the letter of appreciation.
"Your prayers for my cousin... I am most grateful. Thanks to them, the surgery was a success and Leonidas is recovering well."
I had been told not to smirk, so I did my best to act high and mighty. I felt like I was going to bite my tongue.
"Therefore, I would like to propose a joint venture!"
It wasn't actually that special. While digging through some archives, I’d found a book explaining the funeral rituals of the Parcion Religion. It had likely been compiled by a Researcher a long time ago. Like many specialized academic works, it had been forgotten and left to gather dust in a university basement, which was presumably how it escaped the Locust Terrorist Attack.
When I showed the book to the Chronos Religion, they found the rituals were compatible with their own, save for some slight differences in phrasing. Was it like the stylistic variations in funeral rites between different sects of Buddhism? I didn't really know. It wasn't that I’d stopped thinking; I’d looked into it and still didn't understand. Expecting me to grasp the nuances was asking for the impossible.
Anyway, they told me with great confidence, "We can do this too!" so I had them try it out in Parcion on a trial basis. Since the original rituals had been lost so long ago, the citizens of Parcion accepted it with a simple "I guess that’s how it’s done" attitude.
Thus, I launched a project to perform Parcion Religion-style funerals throughout the territory. I wasn't telling anyone to convert to the Chronos Religion. In fact, I had given strict orders not to proselytize. It didn't matter... their numbers would likely increase on their own if left alone.
I hadn't banned them from holding events, either. I’d told them they were welcome to host community exchange events, like a Farmers' Market or a morning market in front of the temple. The know-how for running non-religious businesses through religious organizations was the exclusive domain of the Gaming Monks. They were all fired up about the collaboration with the Chronos Religion.
After that, it was just a matter of how much market share the corrupt Parcion Religion could maintain. It probably wouldn't go completely extinct, but I expected its influence to dwindle through its own incompetence.
With that, the announcement of the joint venture was over.
Phew... I was exhausted.
I went back to the Palace, changed my clothes, and was sipping some mineral water when the internal broadcast chimed.
Ding-dong-dang-dong~♪
An emergency broadcast? Wifey’s voice rang out.
"Lord Groom! Ren has been transported! Get to the hospital right now!"
"Dowaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"
I rushed outside in a panic.
"Your Majesty! Your jersey! You're still in your jersey! Please change!" the Imperial Guard and the Lady-in-waiting shouted after me.
"Dowaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"
I scrambled into clothes that wouldn't bring me shame and dashed back out. I even remembered my leather shoes. While we raced toward the hospital, a stylist tried to fix my hair in the back of the car.
It was the usual hospital. Wifey and Claire remained on standby at the Palace. When I arrived, Kevin was there to guide me.
"How is she?" I asked.
"She’s fine. In the Beast Race, the timing of childbirth often fluctuates wildly."
"But Ren's belly wasn't that big."
"Beast Race fetuses are small," Kevin explained. "They grow rapidly after they're born. It's an evolutionary trait to ensure the mother has the longest possible window where she’s still fit to fight."
I’d heard about it before, but actually experiencing it was something else. They didn't teach you this kind of thing at the Officer Academy. I felt the full weight of my ignorance.
"Is it a natural birth?"
"No, we're opting for a safe Caesarean section. Relax. Everyone on the team is a veteran."
"Kevin... can I be honest?"
"What is it?"
"I'm so anxious I think I’m going to die. Can I go throw up in the toilet?"
A mille-feuille of worries was piling up in my gut, making me feel physically ill.
"You're not the one giving birth!" she snapped.
"Easy for you to say! Unlike Wifey and the others, this just happened out of nowhere!"
"Just deal with it! Stand tall!"
Phew...
"Suematsu-san and the others are on their way," Kevin added.
"They're being way too proactive!"
Then my brain glitched again. "I haven't practiced the Lamaze technique or anything!"
"We're doing a Caesarean section, so you won't need it! Calm down!"
My head was spinning.
"Just sit here and wait!"
"...Yes, ma'am."
I slumped onto the bench. Let me tell you, the moment I sat down, my legs started shaking uncontrollably. I’d stopped doing that as a kid after being corrected by the child-rearing robot and my mother's fists, but now my knees were bobbing at high speed. I wanted to pace the halls.
Empty... I must become empty...
“Hah-hah! I’m Kawagon! Give me a potato and I’ll dance for joy! Yay!”
Wait, no! I snapped back to my senses.
Outside, the world was flashing with light. Zashiki-warashi and Himorogi-chan were having some kind of spiritual "fever" celebration. Seeing the phenomenon, the local residents were starting to gather.
...Wait. Someone was already setting up a stall. The Chronos People were far too resilient.
Hold on—I saw Kawagon-yaki, Kawagon roasted yams, Kawagon cotton candy, and Kawagon popcorn. It was a full-blown festival. Did they even have business permits for this? I wasn't joking; if a mass food poisoning outbreak happened, I’d be the one getting blamed for some reason!
And why were fireworks being launched in the distance? People were overflowing into the roadway, celebrating like it was a national holiday. Had they prepared all of this in anticipation? It looked like quite the party.
"It seems His Majesty is truly loved by the people," the Lady-in-waiting whispered with a smile.
The commotion was a bit too much for me to process. They were even airing a special program on TV. Strangely, the sheer absurdity of it all actually started to calm me down.
And so, I waited. I have no idea how much time passed.
"Your Majesty, this way, please."
I’ll give you the result first. My children were born safely.
An Elderly Woman was the one to give me the details. "They are healthy babies, each weighing about a hundred grams."
"...Is that really okay?"
"They are Beast Race, after all. Please, see for yourself."
She showed them to me on a monitor. Oh my... they looked like tiny kittens. I couldn't even tell the boys from the girls yet. But they were adorable.
"Beast Race children are born in beast form," the doctor explained, "but they gradually take on human form over the course of about a year."
"Is it because... being smaller makes it easier to hide, increasing the survival rate?"
"You are well-informed. It is very heartening to see a father with such understanding."
"Understanding?"
"Regrettably," she said, her expression darkening, "in marriages involving the Beast Race, it is not uncommon for parents to refuse to raise their children once they see them in this form. This applies to both the fathers and, sadly, the mothers who bore them."
Hearing that, I finally understood the gravity of the situation. I hadn't realized it was such a deep-seated social issue.
I see. For the sake of my own children, I couldn't leave a problem like this unresolved.
I wasn't joking anymore. I felt a real fire ignite in my chest.