/
Chapter 80- Mother-in-Law’s Black-hearted but Gentle Thoughts
I wake up with my body shaking…… it was late last night and to be honest, I’m still sleepy.
“Good morning, Luke-sama.”
Apparently Iris has come to wake me up because it’s time for my morning walk.
Even though I’m at the Duke’s mansion, of course I’m still on the diet menu!
“Fa–good morning Iris, what time is it?”
“It’s almost five o’clock. But it’s raining this morning, so I’m thinking you should take a walk at the Duke’s indoor training area, is that alright with you?”
“Yeah, that’s fine… I mean, it’s hot and heavy….”
Diana was sleeping right next to me. When I turned the sheet over, I saw that she was naked. Hati was on her stomach.
“I’m hot and heavy again because of these guys. …… [clean].”
“Diana, did you take off your clothes again?”
At any rate, I was sweating in my night wear, so I clean up with [clean], including everyone else.
The magic of [clean] is convenient, as it cleans up in an instant without showering.
Hati’s fluffiness and Diana’s soft skin are both pleasant, but as the summer progresses, it becomes hotter.
It is said that one of Diana’s dreams is to take a nap with me since she was a Drake, and above all, it is hard to say no to her who is sleeping happily.
But if it continues day after day like this, I’ll have to come up with some countermeasures.
Iris may have gotten used to seeing this everyday, and she no longer scolds Diana. Or perhaps she has given up?
“Wake up, you guys! Why does Hati sleep on top of you every time, Get up, it’s time for us to take a walk.”
≪Master, Iris…good morning.>>
“Yeah, good morning.”
“Good morning, Navi-chan.”
Hati jumped up when she heard we were going for a walk, but Diana said she was going to sleep until breakfast.
“Did Luke-sama continue that work last night after that?”
“Yes, I was working a little late, so I’m still a little sleepy.”
Iris came to my room once last night around 9:00 p.m. to check on my plans for the day, but this girl seems to sulk if I’m doing something when she’s not around.
She said she wanted to observe because she might get something out of it, even if it is about [alchemy magic] or [grant magic], which Iris hasn’t mastered.
“Be sure to call me when you make the shampoo!”
I guess the amount I gave to Iris and the others is already low….
“I’m planning to make the shampoo today, so you will help me then, right?”
“Yes, of course I will help you.”
When I went to the indoor training hall, I found Emila, Anna, and Lara, the three sisters, practicing swordsmanship in the corner. Come to think of it, Luke and his siblings in my memory were also doing morning training. Luke wasn’t very skilled in swordsmanship, though, because he was always running away to water the medicinal herbs and flower beds.
“Good morning everyone.”
“Good morning, Luke-sama, Iris, good morning.”
“Oh! Emilia greeted me normally!”
“Good morning, Luke-niichan!”
Lara-chan, you’re so energetic this morning!
“Good morning. I didn’t think you were training or anything.”
Anna’s a bit of a jerk this morning, isn’t she?
And before you know it, Emilia is mooching off Hati…. Nice work Emilia!
“Speaking of which, I was waiting for Lara-chan to come over for another sleepover last night, but you didn’t show up.”
“I slept with Emilia last night.”
“I see, you were spoiled by your sister who came back after a long time. That’s good.”
“I asked her and she agreed to sleep with me.”
She was cute, beaming with happiness as she recalled last night!
I’m going to separate from the three sisters who are receiving training in swordsmanship from the lady knight. The main thing I do is diet.
It was a mistake to go to the training ground.
In addition to Emilia and the others, there were other young knights training on their own.
Naturally, when I, a prince of a great country, go there, the knights are delegated.
Even so, they looked at Iris, who was running alongside me, with fond eyes.
Well, I understand how the knights feel.
It would be strange not to look at Iris, who is 18 years old and cute, if she were running with her breasts pouting!
“Luke-sama, are you going to run instead of walking today?”
“It’s a training ground. The knights are going to laugh at me for walking around here and if you’re worried about the naughty looks of the knights, you can wait.”
“Fufu, thank you for your kind consideration ♡”
Saying that, Iris moved to the corner of the training ground. I knew she didn’t want to be looked at sexually.
『Master is raising Iris’s likability all over the place even without Navi’s advice…. It seems that the likability of the three sisters who were watching Master’s response right now has also increased a little. 』
“Anyone can tell when you’re running around with such a disgusted look on your face.”
『Even though they are knights, the ones that are there now are apprentice knights in their teens and early twenties who have just graduated from knight school. It seems that they are concerned about Iris, who is close to their age. Especially the two unmarried knights are trying to find a way to talk to her. 』
“Then, should I let Iris go home first?”
『 Now that you are away from Iris, some of them are thinking of going to talk to her. It would be a nuisance from Iris’s point of view to have someone who wants to pick up on her. Iris has been working for a while as a maid in the duke’s house and it was rumored among the unmarried knights that Iris didn’t have a fiancée. 』
A wife with good capacity and the ability to use restorative magic. For a knight who is constantly wounded, Iris would be a superb marriage partner.
“Iris, I think a bachelor wolf is targeting you, so why don’t you go back to your room first and prepare some tea?”
“Unlike the town’s ragamuffins, they don’t get involved in any strange ways, so I’ll be fine.”
“But it’s troublesome to deal with people who try to pick up on you, isn’t it?”
“At that time, this is what I’m going to say to them: “It’s disrespectful to pick up on a lady maid while His Highness is training!”
She said it in such a volume that a nearby knight could hear her.
One of the knights who was aiming at Iris quickly dropped his face.
“Ahahaha. Is that so? Then I’ll ask you to stay with me until the end.”
It was indoors, so it wasn’t very wide, but I ran about 20 laps inside, exhausted, and digested the usual push-ups, sit-ups, and sword strikes.
*********
I headed to Sasha-san’s room to pick her up for breakfast.
“”Ah! Good morning, Your Highness Luke. Thank you for yesterday. It was very delicious…””
The caregiver girls were in the room and were making Sasha-san’s morning appearance. Apparently, they had grilled frog meat last night, the first time they had eaten it cooked with herbs and peppers, and they thanked me for making it so delicious.
They told me that in their family farm, they usually use only salt.
“That’s good to hear. And you shouldn’t be working yet.”
“But I don’t have a fever, and I don’t feel sick anywhere.”
“The treatment is working. But you’re losing strength, and you should rest for a few more days until you’re completely healed.”
“I understand. I’ll go back to my room and rest.”
“Yes, you should. Oh, by the way, about the dismantling of the frog you mentioned yesterday, I got permission from the chief maid, so can I ask you to do it today?”
“Yes. I heard that from the chief maid this morning.”
The girls had nothing to do after changing the sheets and cleaning the room after Sasha-san left the room.
Until now, Sasha-san’s condition had been quite bad, so they had to take care of her meals, toileting, vomiting and vomiting blood, etc., so she was always in her room, but now that the two people who were bedridden have recovered, there are now three caregivers. They know they have too many caregivers, and they are afraid they will be left alone.
I think they would feel more at ease if they’re given something to do.
It would be better to tell Duke Guile, who will be back today, and have him decide where the girls will go as soon as possible.
“I would like you guys to wait outside the room for a moment, please. I need to speak to Luke-san.”
What is it? Sasha-san let everyone out of the room except me, including Iris.
“Luke-san, I was told that a high-level healer is coming here today with the masters, under your direction.”
“Yes, Sasha-san. You have recovered to a certain extent and can completely be healed with a single high-level recovery spell. It will take a few more days for me, but if I leave it to the high-ranked magician, I can return to the academy tomorrow with everyone else.”
“I would like you to heal me, Luke-san….”
“???”
You want me to heal you?
It’s not like you’re in love with me or anything. Is there a reason?
“You have a reason, don’t you?”
“Yes…. I want you to treat not only me, but also the labor cough patients that you suggested earlier and collected from the territory.”
I didn’t want to spend time on that kind of thing, and I know it’s conspicuous, but I’ve taught viral treatment to the main temple officials—knowing that it would stand out.
『I see that Sasha does not want Master to see the wicked side of the nobles, but she dares to get herself into the mud and  give advice for the sake of Master’s future. 』
“What do you mean? I don’t understand. 』
『She wants to leave the result that “Master completely cured Sasha”, who had an incurable disease. By doing so, she seems to think that not only her daughter and Guile, but also the masters of the vassals who serve the Duke’s household will be evaluated. The same is true for the treatment of those who have been gathered in one place. The people gathered there are mainly from factions related to the Duke’s family with a few from rival factions and neutral factions, and it seems that they are trying to use this opportunity to sell their favors. 』
“Wow, it is indeed nobility wickedness. But I also understand that it’s for my own good. I, a man of ill repute from another country with no achievements, have never had a better opportunity to quickly gain allies in this country. 』
“Oh, so that’s what you’re thinking, that you want to make a good impression by overturning the bad reputation that I have in this country. By having me make a complete cure, you can gain the trust of your vassals and bring in the factions at the same time. ……”
I dare to say the information I got from Navi in order not to make Sasha say something she is reluctant to say.
“…… That’s exactly right. I’m sorry for taking advantage of you. I’m really sorry…”
“Don’t be sorry. I think it’s a proposal with enough merit. So, I’ll treat you myself.”
“Thank you, Luke-san. I would like you to take me with you when you do that, is that possible?”
“The disease itself is not a problem, as the [air shield] will not allow you to pass it on to others, nor will you catch it, but with your declining physical strength, it must still be hard for you to be active for long periods of time, right?”
“I will do my best! I’m sure that my going there will give hope to those who are close to death from incurable diseases when they see me actually getting better and walking around. I’m also worried about my friends who don’t return [calls] or even [e-mails] anymore….”
I wanted to get the trouble over with, so I went to the mansion where they had gathered in that one place in the morning and treated them.
Some of them were in pretty bad shape, so it was probably a good thing that I went there in the morning.
Sasha-san seemed to be reunited with her tea party friends for the first time in a long time, and they were happy to hug each other while lamenting each other’s emaciated appearance.