Chapter 48

I can only sigh and smile at the sight in front of me. As I thought Sonia would be a doll when my mother got her hand on her. When we were still on duty, she did not have time to spend with Sonia, but now, she takes the Homunculus for herself.

"Gwyn has become a father~ Uwahhhh~ I'm a grandma now~ I'm still young~ But she is so cute~ What should I do?~."

And there she goes. She is still in her thirties. She is still young, but many women in this world get married just after their first menstruation. This so-called tradition still lasts to this day because of magic.

Survivability from giving birth is higher than in medieval times on Earth. On Earth, people realize that early pregnancy is not good for both the baby and the mother and start to get pregnant after they reach a certain age.

This world did not have that. Magic makes giving birth easier and safer. Growing up is another matter, but that is not the problem here.

With giving birth safer and easier, people will get married when they get their first puberty. Lucky for me, nobility has little leeway in this matter, but I still need to get married soon. I had never heard of someone married above the age of twenty-five. I have heard someone married the second time when they reach the age of twenty-five, but I never heard someone get married the first time when they reach the age of twenty-five.

"You are still young, mother. You don't need to worry about getting old. You can be a grandmother and young at the same time."

"You think so?"

She gives me a pouting expression. How can this MILF be this cute?!

"I know it, mother."

"Ohhh~ Look at your papa; he is a great person, right?"

She looks at Sonia, who is currently munching a cookie.

"En. Papa is great."

"Awww~ You are so cute."

I am about to say something, but before I can do that, the door opens, and father and Rachel enter the room.

"Ah, it looks like your mother is still hugging her, as you said, Rachel."

"Of course, my niece is the cutest, after all!"

Oh, right. Rachel got so proud that she became an aunty. When my mother had a tea party yesterday, she kept bragging to other girls her age that she had become an aunty.

"How is it, father?"

When he takes a seat, I quickly ask a question I want to ask him.

"The alliance is done. We are now an ally of the Luzia Kingdom. On paper, it is an alliance between Luzia and Gipan kingdom, but the truth is that they make an alliance with us."

"That's good."

After Hilda had stayed for three days here, she decided to send a letter to her father offering an alliance between us. When she returns home, my father orders four dozen guards to accompany her on her journey home with a convoy of goods, mostly food, as a gift to them.

Hilda's father sent a letter two days ago asking for an alliance with the king. The agreement says that the Luzia Kingdom will give a discount to the people of Japan Kingdom each time they buy something from their kingdom. However, there are a lot of hidden clauses and words that make sure that only the southern people will benefit from this alliance.

I don't know what is inside that agreement, but by the look of it, my father is satisfied with it. Unlike other lords, I know he will make something that benefits the Luzia Kingdom.

"With this agreement, we will get a discount for any metal we buy from them. Not only that, but we also get a massive discount for their workers. They are even willing to give us some of their blueprints. The biggest one is their sewer system and railway system."

"Really? That is huge."

The Luzia kingdom is known for its engineers and architects. Their land is a hotspot for earthquakes, so they master the art of architecture. Their unique magic makes their building very durable and can withstand earthquakes. The [Solomon's Wisdom] told me that it is magic that can expel the earthquake's force away from the building.

I need to see them cast it to copy or understand it further.

"Yes. In exchange, we also keep giving them a discount when they buy food from us. As long as we have an abundance of food, they want us to give them a discount. We can reject it, and they will understand."

"What about a military alliance?"

"Sadly, they did not want that. They did not trust the north not to move their army near their border. However, when one of us is in an emergency where a mutual enemy attacks us, we can send an army to help."

"I see. This is an excuse so we can send a relief army to help them and vice versa. However, with how the north thinks, they will never send something to the Luzia kingdom. They only want to ask but never give."

"Yup. With this, peace can be maintained, and the threat of the south can be managed."

"Speaking of the south, I hear something disturbing."

After I say that, I can see my mother and his expression change into serious mode. I can see him nod.

"Yes. The other lord noticed that many of Gokuya's scouts were wandering around the border. Their number is not small; we catch twenty of them entering our territory and encounter at least a hundred of them just outside our territory. What makes matters worse, we cannot kill them unless we want war. We don't want to give that warmongering country an excuse to start a war. They have been quiet these past years, and I have a feeling they are honing their claws to prepare for a great war."

"They are even willing to go through the dead zone just to gather information, huh?"

He nods and gets take a map out of his pocket.

"They are coming from here, here, and here."

He points to three points on the map, relatively safe places to go through and big enough for an army to march through—a perfect place to invade us. However, there is something that bothers me.

"Something is bothering me. If they know this place, they should also know that we know this place, right?"

"That's right."

"Then why do they keep sending scouts in this area? Checking the terrain? They have gone through this place before. They should have books about it somewhere inside their castle. Why do they only focus on these places?"

I can see my father frown at my question and look at the map with a frown.

"You are right. There is something wrong with their movement. Instead of going through the border, we encounter their spy in or around that area. We never encounter them outside that area… I see… I see what they want to do. They make us focus on these three points that we ignore the other one."

He quickly gets up from the couch and says.

"I need to write something."

He quickly walks out of the room, leaving us behind. My mother looks at the door sadly and says.

"Why can't they leave us alone? Can't we live in harmony?"

I walk toward her and give her a light hug. I can see Rachel and Sonia also doing the same. On Earth, there is a saying: Earth will only find peace when no intelligent life is alive. It looks like it still applies in this world.

I hope that we still have time left to enjoy this peaceful life.