But before the Saint Operation began, there was an important matter to discuss.
Currently, several factions were vying for dominance within Wifey's fleet.
First, the 【Association for Doting on One-oh-one】.
This group viewed One-oh-one as the ideal little sister or daughter. Its membership was diverse and disjointed, but it included every humanoid Zork. They considered it the ultimate form of existence to watch her from a distance, making sure she was properly fed. In short, they were perverts.
Next was the 【Association for Raising Tatiana】.
Their goal was to take Tatiana—who had held her chopsticks in a fist when she first arrived—and mold her into the perfect noblewoman and little sister. The core members consisted of the military faction, the flower arrangement club, the tea ceremony club, and the koto society. They were meticulously managing their "hate levels" to ensure she didn't grow to dislike them, all while polishing her into a lady who could be presented anywhere without embarrassment. The group was packed with people who loved "nurturing" sims and middle-aged men and women with daughters of their own. In short, they were perverts.
And then, a third faction had emerged.
The 【Association for Making Memories with Shiyun】.
This group saw Shiyun as the ideal little sister. Their goal was to encourage her after all the tragedies she’d endured and help her create lasting memories. To them, "youth events" were sacred. They were the type of people who wanted to burn brightly through the fleeting moments of life. Its ranks were filled with athletic types and middle-aged observers who stood in the background with their arms crossed. In short, they were perverts.
Meanwhile, Wifey, Claire, and I belonged to the 【Let’s All Get Along Faction】. Nina-san and Kevin were in the 【I Want the Three of Them to Eat Something Delicious Faction】. Melissa and Ren were in the 【Leave Them Alone, They Have Privacy Faction】. We were all classified as heretics by the rest of the fleet.
Looking at it that way, Ren really did have a cool personality.
"Is something the matter, Lord Husband?"
Ren, dressed in her maid uniform, poured me a cup of tea.
"No, I was just thinking about how cool you are, Ren."
She acted playful sometimes, but at her core, she was philosophical and composed.
"It is only because I was never permitted to take an interest in things," she replied.
In the Galactic Empire of the Maro Era, where discrimination was rampant, she couldn't show her true self as a noble's daughter, but they couldn't exactly leave her uneducated, either. Through the Duke-type’s influence, she had been destined to be married off as a second wife to some random lower-ranking noble.
Furthermore, while she was part of the Beast Race, they were known for being "high-maintenance"—boasting incredible physical capabilities and high IQs, but suffering from poor fuel efficiency and high caloric needs. The Beast Race were enhanced humans designed for hunting dangerous organisms. You couldn't hunt if you were stupid. There was a prejudice that the Beast Race was clumsy, but Ren had originally been a mechanic. It was pure discrimination based on nothing but bias.
The Chlorella group, on the other hand, was incredibly resilient against hunger and disease—an adjustment meant to allow survival in harsh environments with low food production.
Since Wifey took over, discrimination had been officially abolished. Forget the Zorks; we had to conduct diplomacy with aliens from beyond our galaxy. We didn't have time for internal bickering!
Besides, from the perspective of the Chlorella-treated or the Beast Race, people like us were... honestly, just an inferior species. We were the ones being tolerated and humored.
Wifey’s policies were generally well-received. Or rather, while prejudice still smoldered beneath the surface, the resistance had been crushed, so it didn't come out into the open. For now, at least. I had a feeling it might all explode during our children’s generation.
There was still discrimination against colony citizens and former pirates, and the most terrifying "bomb" of all was the Female-type Zork Problem. Even if the Empire officially announced they were no longer enemies, people wouldn't just believe it. It was a problem that could blow up at any time.
Apparently, Wifey wanted to resolve the Beast Race issue by force by making Ren my wife. She also seemed to have a long-term plan to weave a narrative where 【Every Imperial Citizen is My Descendant】 by marrying my direct lineage into every ethnic group in the Empire.
Wasn't that a bit too long-term? She was already deciding the fates of children who hadn't even been born yet, like marrying my child with Wifey to Eddie’s kid. Also, don't you dare sneak Kevin and One-oh-one into the "wifey candidate" list!
Regardless, despite my minor grievances, I loved Ren.
"I love that side of you too, Ren."
"Lord Husband? I shall hug you then."
"I'm diving in!"
As we were flirting, the door slid open. Wifey walked in, catching us in a full embrace.
"Mm."
She wanted a hug too.
"Yes, ma'am."
I gave Wifey a hug as well. What on earth was I doing? I tried to regain my composure.
"So, Wifey, what's the news?"
"Lord Groom, I have a proposal."
"I most humbly refuse."
"At least listen. It’s about Shiyun."
Ren brought over a cup of tea for Wifey.
"You're making her Emperor, right?"
"I will appoint regents."
"Well, she definitely needs specialized consultants."
We were currently rushing to cram the basics into Shiyun's head, but there was still politics, economics, law... far too much to learn. This was the downside of a monarchy. The burden on the leader was just too great.
"Isn't that fine? Military, law, diplomacy. Are you hiring a Latarnian consulting company?"
"No, I shall ask someone with very little conflict of interest."
"Oh?"
"Myself and the Lord Groom."
"Huh?"
"The Lord Groom and I shall resolve it."
"You mean we're taking over the country!?"
Here came the headache! Taking over a country just meant pouring in a mountain of cash to build it up, only for them to hate you in the end. The right move was to deepen trade while supporting Taikyoku Nation's domestic industries.
"Umu. It shall be a Great Alliance of Battle Dome, the Ogre God Nation, Latarnia, and Taikyoku Nation, centered around the Lord Groom."
"Wait, what? Taikyoku Nation is one thing, but why Latarnia?"
"Do you truly believe this ends with the Ghouls?"
"Well, I'm sure some freak who gave the Proone and Ghouls intelligence is going to show up eventually..."
"Latarnia is convinced of that as well."
So that was the play.
"What are you even expecting from me?"
"The military and diplomatic prowess that annihilated the Zorks and Proones and cornered the Ghouls, perhaps?"
On paper, it sounded like I did all that, but the reality was a bit different. I’d only really been active during the Zork War. The victory over the Proone and Ghouls was mostly thanks to the biologists.
"It was the Lord Groom who decided to rely on those biologists. Regardless, we shall defeat the Ghouls! Once that is done, I will ask you again."
"Saying it like we've already won... you're triggering a flag..."
Ren, who had been watching in silence, finally spoke up.
"Do you believe we will lose, Lord Husband?"
"Nah. No warrior goes into a fight planning to lose. But the tide of war depends on the Saint Operation."
Ren’s expression softened into one of pure devotion.
"Then let us fight. We can worry about the rest once we are victorious."
Putting the Great Alliance aside, I suppose we’d just have to fight for now. Just as I reached that conclusion, Wifey’s expression darkened.
"I need you to show some enthusiasm, Lord Groom... The 【Association for Making Memories with Shiyun】 is on the verge of exploding."
"That's the problem!?"
"One-third of the fleet is about to split! It is a catastrophe, is it not!?"
O-oh.
Why were our crises always caused by ridiculous nonsense? The other day, I thought we were going to be wiped out by an overproduction of strawberries and tomatoes.
We really were a bunch of weirdos."