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"Um! Raimondo-sama!"
"...Leandra-jou. What is it?"
While I was almost unilaterally waging a psychological warfare with Baltzer-shougun, Leandra-jou called out to me, gauging the timing when the conversation had settled down.
"Um, Raimondo-sama! Won't you please get engaged to me!!"
".........Huh?"
I stopped moving at the unexpected words.
Engagement? What is engagement?? Oh?
"Hmm... Lea, do you like Raimondo-sama?"
"Yes! I didn't know it was Raimondo-sama's room. But that's very rude, right? But Raimondo-sama never blamed me! He was very gentlemanly. So, if I'm going to marry, I want Raimondo-sama!"
Engagement, it's really that engagement after all.
Hey. Stop making a face like Baltzer-shougun is convenient.
You were done by me until just now, right? Stay the same careless Baltzer.
Don't plot. Don't suddenly become strategist Baltzer.
Stay a muscle head.
"Raimondo-sama, how about it? It's me saying it, but my daughter is quite clever. I think she'll get along with the wise Raimondo-sama. What, marriage is still in the future. Why don't you just become engaged for the time being?"
I know Raimondo. If he agrees to that, eventually, even when he becomes an adult, he'll say, "Well, don't say such things," and eventually get married.
Like hell I will.
Also, I want you to have a belly-to-belly probing between the Maya faction and the Karina faction.
I want you to leave me alone.
Therefore, I need to have Leandra-jou herself rethink.
However, if I were to throw harsh words at Leandra-jou here, I wouldn't be able to withstand Maria's gaze and my heart would break.
So, I gently take Leandra-jou's hand and make a sad expression as much as possible.
"I'm sorry, Leandra-jou. I can't be your fiancé."
"I see........."
"Yes. It's not that you're bad. It's because being with me will cause you trouble."
"That's not true. I, I don't mind any trouble if I can be with Raimondo-sama!"
Leandra-jou desperately clasped my hands with both of hers.
I immediately and gently unclasped those hands and took a distance.
"No. It's no good. I, I don't want to involve anyone anymore."
The point is to make a slightly tearful face.
"Raimondo-sama...!"
Leandra-jou also looks at me with a sad expression.
Maria, who witnessed such a children's love drama, is blushing while wearing a slightly sad expression.
Cyrillus-sensei also wears a sad expression, but also a determined and reliable expression as if he has made up his mind.
Baltzer-shougun is, well, that. He has a subtle expression because he is the one who is eagerly trying to involve me in a troublesome situation.
But probably, he's thinking that it'll be fine if he protects me?
He doesn't seem to care that much.
Therefore, I need Leandra-jou herself to give up!!
If the adults won't give up! I have no choice but to have the child! The person herself give up!
"Leandra-jou. If, if you still like me when you grow up, please say it again at that time. But at that time, please let me reply to you today."
"Raimondo-sama!"
"I'm a man too. I want to say things like that myself. I'll become strong enough to protect you by the time I grow up."
"Yes!! I'll be waiting! I'll also improve myself so that I can protect Raimondo-sama!"
She's a very strong girl.
I think she's a well-bred child to confess to her first love in public, and to improve herself for my sake without blaming me even though she was practically rejected.
No, really. I'm not good enough for her.
"Then, Leandra-jou. Again, if there's a chance. Baltzer-shougun, I'll excuse myself."
"Then, I'll send Maria-dono and Raimondo-denka to their room. Baltzer-dono, excuse me."
Cyrillus-sensei, who gave instructions to other guards with his finger, approached my side.
After confirming that Cyrillus-sensei was by my side, I waved lightly to Leandra-jou and Baltzer-shougun and turned on my heels.
Neither Leandra-jou nor Baltzer-shougun took a courtesy and stopped me, so I don't have to do any more belly-to-belly probing.
"Um, Raimondo-sama. Was that okay?"
Maria asked that while walking towards the east corridor.
"What do you mean?"
"About Leandra-sama. Duke Baltzer, Gerald-sama, is the leader of the Karina-sama faction nobles. There are also Federico-sama and your other brothers. Wouldn't it be better to ask the Karina-sama faction for protection?"
Cyrillus-sensei seems to have the same idea, and is waiting for Maria's words while making a difficult face.
"Yeah. I'm a good bait for both the Karina faction and the Maya faction right now, right?"
"Raimondo-denka, please don't say it that way."
Cyrillus-sensei reproached me for the blunt word "bait", but it's the truth.
Perhaps knowing that, Cyrillus-sensei couldn't spin the second phrase.
"But it's the truth, right? Both the Karina faction and the Maya faction are desperate to capture me in order to eliminate the uncertain factor that I am. Right now, I am, I alone, the one who can drag Federico-aniue down from the position of crown prince. But what about in a few years? Jean-niisama will become the leader."
Jean-niisama is still weak now, but he is still in his growth period. Jean-niisama will surely become stronger as his body grows from now on.
Jean-niisama, who has elven blood, will surely have stronger magic power than anyone else among the brothers.
If I can't be used, the next target is Jean-niisama.
Compared to me, who has memories of my previous life, Jean-niisama, who is just a child, is in danger of being rolled around by adults, whether it's the Karina faction or the Maya faction.
They won't interfere with John-niisama or me, so marry this daughter, or something. I won't allow that.
In contrast, I have a chance of winning as long as the other party still underestimates me as a child.
"Until Jean-niisama finds a way to escape on his own like John-niisama. That's all I need. Anyway, I'm going to change my appearance and disappear when I enter the academy, and I can't compete with the real old foxes, so my deterrent power will only work until then. So, I won't hesitate when that happens. I'll do what I want to do."
Methods like today can only be used while I'm a child.
It's only while I'm at an age where it's thought that there's an adult, "someone," behind me, you know.
When I reach an age where I can understand things to a certain extent, there will be a full-scale probing of the belly, and I don't feel like I can handle the old foxes then.
But at least until then, I'll protect Jean-niisama.
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