I ate the pizza Nina-san had baked for us.
I also had some udon. The noodles were quite firm.
It was a total carb-fest, but it hit the spot for someone with Japanese roots.
Next time, maybe I should bake some Kamishiro-style tortillas from my family home. Since meat was hard to come by, I could use soybeans for the filling.
I also had some of the bread supplied by my Wifey.
That’s right—my Wifey’s Galactic Empire Style bread had exploded in popularity. She was rapidly expanding her shops across the Ogre God Nation, Latarnia, and the Taikyoku Nation.
The Milanese-style sandwiches—apparently, if it was brown, it was considered Milanese-style—were incredibly delicious.
Nina-san’s pizza spread included Margherita, Bolognese, and... pineapple-on-pizza. The so-called Hawaiian pizza.
Wait, she had brought out something that was bound to cause a controversy!
Predictably, a hideous struggle broke out between the pro-pineapple and anti-pineapple factions.
As far as I was concerned, as long as it tasted good, anything went.
"Hey, you! Pineapple on pizza is an absolute blasphemy!"
"Shut up! I don't want to hear that from people like you who put peanut butter on everything!"
"Exactly! My father always said a thin crust is the only way to eat pizza!"
"You're wrong! A thick, doughy crust is the ultimate ideal!"
I munched on my Hawaiian pizza while watching the idiots from the corner of my eye.
It was yummy.
It was about that time, anyway.
Sure enough, Nina-san approached them with a sweet smile.
"If you don't like it, don't eat it. If you're going to complain, I won't cook for you again!"
And there it was—the one-hit kill.
"A-Ah, yes! Nina-san's cooking is the absolute best!"
Regardless of gender or rank, everyone shut their mouths and started eating.
Idiots! There was no way a creature existed in this world that could defy Nina-san.
...Well, Lady Claire was probably the runner-up.
In the first place, Nina-san was the only one who could make fashionable Western-style food. Neither Kevin nor I could hope to match her quality. If Nina-san ever got into a bad mood, a full-scale rebellion would likely break out. And that was an atmosphere I simply couldn't handle.
"Hey everyone, once we harvest the buckwheat, what should we make?"
Personally, I wanted Edo Soba with jet-black broth. Pure buckwheat... was a bit difficult, so I’d settle for an eight-to-two ratio.
"What are you, a retired old man?"
While the guys were heckling me, Claire’s eyes began to gleam.
"I want to eat... Hegi Soba."
"Now that's a tall order!"
Hegi Soba was a specific type of soba mixed with a seaweed called funori. Even Eddie, who hailed from the snow country, looked like he was craving it.
"I don't think I know the recipe for those noodles, ya know..."
The two of them slumped in disappointment.
Hey, don't look at me. It's impossible. Truly impossible!
"I'll just have some sent from home..."
I figured as much.
That conversation had taken place yesterday.
Today, I was spending some quality time flirting with my Wifey. We were enjoying a bit of husband-and-wife time together at our home in Chronos.
Go on a date? Hahaha!
There weren't any entertainment spots yet. Even the first branch of Count One-Two-Three was only scheduled to open next month near the Palace.
The Ozen Alliance was being quiet, so I figured today would be fine. I mean, really, those Zen Divine Race guys... always trying to pin their crimes on other people. Isn't that the height of cowardice? I was starting to get genuinely annoyed.
I discussed these things with my Wifey. There were some conversations that could only happen in the privacy of a couple's bedroom—it was just abnormal that both of us happened to be national leaders.
"What’s the word on Claire?"
"Geez, you’re talking about another woman right in front of me?"
Wifey gave me a playful chop.
Nice comeback!
"Claire is working her tail off with her eyes on the prize of white rice. Long live Lady Claire!"
"Calm down!"
But the rice from the Taikyoku Nation was just different! And the stuff from Latarnia was the type you had to boil. During trade negotiations with Latarnia, they asked, "Is it really that delicious?" so I shared some of our battleship rations. They immediately leaned in and said, "Please, we must buy this," right down to the rice cookers.
Shi-yun was already a captive of our rice as well.
Actually, let’s be precise—even our rice wasn't actually that great. Military rations were usually the cheapest grade. It only tasted good because of the technological power of our rice polishers and cookers... but it couldn't compare to true brand-name rice.
I wanted to eat brand-name rice like Date Masamune turboR or Imagawa Yoshimoto Marty. Our entire fate rested on Lady Claire’s shoulders. If she failed, I was certain we’d hit a rebellion flag.
"If Claire is the one governing, then it should be fine. I understand. On my end, I shall officially appoint Claire as the Governor of Magellan... let me see. I’ll make her a Duke-type."
And there it was: the Duke-type appointment. Between their positions in the Grand Duchy of Chronos and the Empire, everyone was becoming quite high-ranking.
"Every last one of them complains that they don't want a promotion. It’s quite a chore forcing them to be great."
"Well, I didn't want to become important myself. Besides, the word 'colony' just sounds bad to people."
"True. In the end, it’s effectively the same as an invasion... Chronos is one thing, but the situation with Magellan really makes no sense."
They picked a fight and then collapsed on their own. They were no different from a fraudster staging an accident. And yet, we were the ones being scolded by the Ministry of Internal Affairs! We didn't even know what was going on ourselves...
"The real issue is the Ozen Alliance. If the 'Mainland' the Ghouls mentioned is Ozen, then it’ll all be over once we destroy them."
"There you go being bloodthirsty again. I’d like to resolve things through a peaceful talk if possible."
I really did want to settle things through discussion.
But then, a message arrived while we were in the middle of our couple’s time. A correspondence course arrived from the Chronos Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
I had nothing but a bad feeling about this. I responded to the transmission with a grimace.
"Archduke Leo. The Ozen Alliance has requested a meeting. They are also requesting mediation for a conference with Her Imperial Majesty, Emperor Veronica of the Galactic Empire."
"I see. Wifey, is that okay with you?"
"Umu. There is no problem at all."
And so, we began the necessary coordination before the meeting.
That night, the meeting began in a rush. The opponent was the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ozen, who had ignored every previous request for a meeting until now.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs appeared to be an Ancient Person. Hmm. Not an Ancient Person, but a Zen Divine Race. However, the nation of the Zen Divine Race was supposed to be elsewhere. In other words, the Ozen Alliance was a colony of the Zen Divine Race.
What a nasty setup.
"Our Ozen Alliance protests your invasion of Magellan."
"Is that all you wanted to say?"
That was the same line the Ozen Ministry of Foreign Affairs had been repeating for ages. It was a bit late for that.
"They are our friendly nation. We cannot overlook your treatment of Magellan."
"We already know that your relationship with Magellan was no longer anything resembling a friendly nation."
The President was dead, so we couldn't hear the story from him, but the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' records showed that Magellan had been clinging to Chronos and had no real ties left with Ozen.
"No... however..."
"Does the matter of Magellan have anything to do with the 'Mainland'?"
The Minister of Foreign Affairs' face contorted with rage.
"Do not prattle, brat! You and your cursed blood!"
So, those were his true colors.
Wifey let out a cold, sharp laugh.
"Insulting my husband’s blood, are you? Very well. Let us settle this on the battlefield!"
Everything was going according to plan. I figured it would depend on Ozen's move, but I hadn't expected them to be so overtly hostile right out of the gate.