I had a meeting with my little kittens through the glass, a necessary precaution to prevent any risk of infection.
Ren had them nestled against her stomach in a cloth contraption that looked like a baby carrier. Tiny cats were squirming around inside.
They were my children.
When I waved my hand, Ren waved back at me. She seemed to be doing well.
I had to protect them from those names—the ones based on that famous gag manga about sextuplets.
I was ushered out after only five minutes. That couldn't be helped, I suppose.
However, the real hell began the moment I stepped out of the sickroom. Rest assured, it was the kind of hell you could still laugh at.
First, a message arrived from the Chronos Ministry of Internal Affairs. They wanted me to decide on the right of succession to the throne. I intended to hold a meeting and seek advice from Claire, Melissa, Ren, and even Wifey on this matter. I knew that the Beast Race would cause an uproar over successors, but... what was I supposed to do about this?
Since I had plenty of time, I planned to take it slow and decide after consulting the Chronos Religion for advice as well.
Now, that part was expected. The true essence of hell started from here.
I received a message from the representative of the Beast Race Federation, who worshipped Ren as their Great King—or rather, it was from the Chief Retainer on Ren’s side. It was a confirmation message asking, "One of them will be appointed as the next Great King, correct?"
Well, I suppose so, but... I replied with, "Ren has her own thoughts on the matter, so please wait a bit."
I expected a formal petition would be sent my way later. In truth, the Beast Race Federation was a powerful group with significant political influence. By now, they had become arguably the largest lobbyist group around.
As expected, a massive number of Beast Race people who had been denied citizen registration had been discovered. Since they multiplied so easily, there was no way their population was as low as previously reported!
Just as I was racking my brains over that discovery, Helga introduced me to the Beast Race population in Parcion. There, too, were many people who hadn't been allowed to register as citizens. Honestly, I was starting to hate the previous administration of Parcion-kun more and more...
Because of that, I had formed the Beast Race Federation as a liaison council for the various tribes. Right... my understanding was that it would just be people with dog or cat ears, and the occasional bear, deer, or rabbit ears.
But for some reason, the Beastman Nations of the Battle Dome joined in as well. Wait a second, your countries and races are entirely different!
What, so you want to make me your king too? You want to become Children of Chronos? Give me a break!
Why meee?!
I mean, I wasn't even popular in the Beastman Nations. I heard they resented me because I chose to protect the survival of the Pruon.
Then, the Turtle Person representing the Beastman Nations spoke up.
"To begin with, public opinion was divided even regarding the extinction of the Pruon. Furthermore, we have heard you are welcoming a Lepsitolian as your queen. Who could possibly hate a wise king who aims for the equality of all people!"
That idea hadn't occurred to me at all. I mean, of course I didn't intend to discriminate, but I just hadn't thought about it from that angle.
"Um, what about the story that I'm hated for not slaughtering the Pruon?"
"Recently, thanks to propaganda from Chronos, more people have come to correctly understand that it was mental derangement caused by illness."
"Moreover, due to projects like the construction of schools and hospitals, the standard of living has improved remarkably. The people are deeply grateful to Lord Saria and Lord Leo. There are even those who say the two of you are messengers of the gods."
Come to think of it, I did do that—the joint venture with Saria.
It was a perfect relay point located right on the border with the Galactic Empire, after all. It naturally followed that building a parts factory for spaceships there would be convenient. And since we were building a factory, we had to give something back to the region. No matter what you do, you're going to cause some level of local disruption. The factory creates jobs, so a large number of outsiders move in, and so on.
So, partly for propaganda purposes, we built schools and hospitals. We even set up communication facilities that received broadcasts from the state-owned media of the Galactic Empire and Chronos. We established recycling facilities and other infrastructure, too. Of course, we employed the locals.
It was a bribe, but so what?
People get in trouble because they bribe those in power. If you distribute a bribe thinly and widely across the entire population, nobody complains!
But it wasn't a base or underhanded method. To begin with, if it were a land where you couldn't get anything done without bribing the local influential figures, I would have abandoned it.
Right, Magellan, Ozen, and you folks from Parcion? You lot should reflect on your failures. If I truly reach the limit of my patience, I’ll cut you off for good!
It was quite unexpected that my popularity had skyrocketed in places I didn't even know about.
"We beastmen also wish to welcome you as our King."
"Wait a minute, please stop right there!"
This was bad. I mean, it would be fine if my children decided on it themselves when they grew up, but the weight of me deciding it now was too heavy.
"It is a heavy decision. Please understand that I cannot give a light answer."
"Understood."
The correspondence ended. My face was practically wrinkling from the exhaustion.
"...Help me, Fairy-san."
"It's your partner, Fairy-san, here! Um, I've already sent the contents of the petition and the conversation logs to the relevant parties."
"Fueeeen! I don't want my kids to have some heavy mission or anything like that!"
"I have a reply from Ren-chan. Let's see... 'I'll kill them.'"
"Gyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!"
I’m telling you, I don’t want this either! I don't need a future where conflict is practically a certainty!
I mean, I’m already facing the problem of what the order of succession for the Chronos throne should be! I thought it would be fine to spend years discussing it after Wifey and Claire's children were born.
I mean... they're my kids. I'm sure there’s bound to be one who’s such a hopeless idiot that I’ll have to say, "Yeah, this one just isn’t cut out for it..." It wouldn't even be a matter of how they were raised, just that their innate nature isn't right for the job.
But if that’s not the case, and it’s Claire’s child... oh, I see, then the problem of Beast Race discrimination would surface.
Uwoooooooooooooh! My head hurts!
"Fairy-san, what do you think I should do?"
"If even Leo-kun, who possesses political abilities on a supernatural level, doesn't know, then I certainly don't."
"Fueeeen!"
A king is a lonely thing. Someone once said that, but I’m going to cry to everyone around me! I don't get this at all!
To begin with, I wanted the King of Chronos to be a single-generation role anyway! My plan was to do it for a few years until things stabilized, then shout "Arrivederci!" and run away!
I am perfectly satisfied being the Lord Groom to Her Majesty the Galactic Empire Emperor! Even if I got divorced and kicked out of the Kamishiro Group, I was planning to become the old guy who runs a food truck!
I must protect them... my children... I must protect them from the punishment game known as responsibility...
After that, I went to see my children again.
"It’s your daddy-waddy~" I tried saying, but it seemed their eyes hadn't opened yet.
"Your Majesty. Please make sure they memorize your scent properly."
I put my hand in and let them sniff it. So that’s why I wasn't supposed to wear any perfume. Once they had memorized the scent, my visiting time was over.
I was kicked out.
Papa is sad.