Prologue: The Night Before New Days

— Late at night on the 1st day, 4th month, 1548th year, Continental

Calendar —

"...I feel kind of uneasy," I mumbled to myself, alone in a dark room.

It had happened just today. We held the coronation and wedding

ceremonies, making me officially the King of Friedonia, and Liscia, Aisha,

Juna, Roroa, and Naden into my wives and real family. With all of the

ceremonies complete and the unveiling event for the general public over,

there was now a great feast underway celebrating my rise to the throne and

marriage.

It was a large-scale event, but it was fundamentally a celebration being

hosted by the royal family. My vassals who had been attending weddings

throughout the city joined us, and it made for quite a lively event.

...Actually, even as we were now heading into the second day of it, it was

still ongoing.

This room was distant from the great hall where the event was being

held, but I could still faintly hear the riotous good time being had by all. I

had been there myself not long ago, but Hakuya approached me and

requested I take my leave before midnight. It might seem strange that I, the

host, was being driven out, but he said that was how these things worked.

"It is also your duty to increase the number of royals, sire," he'd told me

with an over-serious look on his face.

I guess that meant he wanted me to make the most of our first night of

married life. My partner for the night, Aisha, had been thrown out of the

party along with me. I was never going to forget the smirking faces, or

desperately-trying-not-to-smirk faces, of my retainers as the two of us left

together. I wish I could just crawl into a hole.

It seemed it was traditional to make a show of, "We're going to go work

hard on the baby-making now," and have the retainers pledge their loyalty

to the royal family and all of our progeny.

"Ho, ho, ho. Work hard for our country."

"I know my daughter has her shortcomings, but please, be gentle."

That's what my fathers-in-law Albert and Wodan said. It seemed they

had both drunk heavily, and were in an ecstatic mood... I didn't know how

to respond.

The first primary queen, Liscia, had already left early to put Cian and

Kazuha to bed, so Roroa would take over as host once we left. Hopefully

she wouldn't get too carried away, but... Well, Juna was around, too, so it

would probably work out fine.

I was sitting on a bed while I thought about all that.

This was Aisha's room. Because she was a warrior, the room gave a

generally spartan impression, and the walls were decorated with shields and

other equipment. Though, the head of the mannequin which bore her light

armor was adorned with a cat ears headband I had seen before. There was

also a teddy bear I had made sitting next to her pillow, and other girlish

touches here and there. The room really was a good reflection of who Aisha

was.

Then the door opened, and Aisha entered, fresh from the bath.

"P-Pardon me," she said, a little shyly, as she sat down next to me.

Her long, silver hair which was always tied back was down now, and

wet, making her somehow feel more feminine than usual, and making me

feel highly conscious of her. Her current dress made a massive impact, too.

Aisha was wearing nothing but a short bathrobe. Her ample bosom, usually

restrained beneath a breastplate, pushed back against the fabric, and with

her healthy thighs peeking out, too, I had trouble deciding where it was

okay to rest my eyes.

"Um... Sire..." Aisha said, shrinking into herself a little, as I struggled to

find my words. "P-Please... take good care of me tonight."

"Y-Yeah..."

When Aisha subtly leaned in closer to me, I put my arm gently around

her shoulder. I had been through this with Liscia before, but I still felt tense,

worried that she might not want me to be her first. Though, if I was uneasy,

Aisha must have been even more so.

I figured we should talk a little, if only to ease the tension.

"You're so beautiful..." I gasped. "I never knew that outfit would look so

appealing."

"R-Really?" Aisha stuttered, looking down at her robe. "Before, when

the princess and I tried to approach you in these outfits, you only slept next

to us. I worried that perhaps Your Majesty thought it looked unseemly..."

Worried...? How could she be? How silly. She was more than attractive

enough. I was already feeling a bit lightheaded. Honestly, I'm amazed I

managed to restrain myself after seeing Aisha like this last time.

"It's alluring. It's a wonder that I was able to keep a level head last

time."

"You were awfully depressed at the time, sire."

"Yeah... It was just after some bloody things happened, too. But if I

hadn't been so down, I might have given into my lust and attacked the two

of you. Though I'm sure you'd have beaten me back."

"I-I wouldn't have," Aisha said shyly. "Ever since that time, I've been

prepared to offer myself to you, body and soul..."

It was so cute the way she acted shyly like that, I hugged her tight. Her

supple muscles were slightly hardened with tension, but she had a feminine

softness, too. While savoring that sensation, I whispered to Aisha, "Today,

we became king and queen, husband and wife. Starting tomorrow... It's not

that far off, huh? Soon, our new life as royal partners will begin."

"Sire?"

"If I'm being honest, I have my misgivings. There's no room for excuses

from now on. I'm not provisional, or a candidate, or anything like that

anymore. Our kingdom, our family, and our children all rest on our

shoulders. We have to take responsibility for all of them ourselves."

Why am I letting myself sound so weak at a time like this? I wasn't

entirely sure of that myself. But I felt very strongly that I needed her to hear

this. Then Aisha reached out and stroked my back.

"We will bear that burden with you. I am sure Lady Liscia, Madam Juna,

Madam Roroa, and Naden feel the same. We are husband and wives, after

all."

"Aisha..."

"I am not that smart," Aisha said, a smile spreading across her face.

"But I have confidence in my stamina, so please allow me to support you in

my own way, Darling."

I felt something come over me. I lay down, still holding Aisha tight. My

head was already filled with desire for her, but... then, suddenly, a thought

popped into my head.

"...Hey, Aisha. Can I ask you for just one thing?"

"What might that be?" Aisha was a little bewildered by my sudden

return to calmness.

"Um... When we do the deed, would you mind if I forbid you from

hugging me? No putting your hands around behind me like this."

When I put my arms around her to illustrate, Aisha's eyes widened in

surprise. "Huh?! Why do you ask that?!"

"The last time you gave me a bear hug, it scared me hearing the way my

bones creaked. If you gave it to me at full strength, I wouldn't last a second.

If you broke my spine, and I became an invalid, it would be a serious

issue."

Sure, they told me producing children was one of my official duties, but

if I became unable to do any of my other duties in the process, it defeated

the point.

"Urgh... It's unfortunate, but I understand," Aisha said, accepting it once

I explained about the risk of spinal injuries. "In that case, please, sire, hug

me lots instead."

When she asked me that, with upturned eyes... it was incredible.

"Of course I will," I said, placing a kiss on Aisha, then got on top of her.