Chapter 490
Suddenly, my first father-in-law and mother-in-law showed up and left without even having a meal.
“Since you’ve come all the way to the capital, why not stay and rest for a bit? This place may not be as good as your estate, but it should be comfortable enough.”
Their unexpected early departure left me a bit bewildered. I thought my father-in-law, who dotes on Mar, might stay at the mansion for at least a few days, but instead, he left just a few hours after arriving.
“That’s enough. I’ve checked that Mar and the grandchild are doing well, and if we stay at the mansion, the servants who should be focusing on Mar will just end up exhausted.”
“But there are servants dedicated only to Mar—”
“And this summer is not about Mar.”
“…Understood.”
With his firm refusal, I couldn’t do anything but nod. When my father-in-law is that resolute, there’s no point in trying to persuade him further.
As he said, this summer’s main event is not Mar but Trixie. If my father-in-law took root in my mansion during this time, it would likely draw attention and congratulations away from Trixie. He probably wants to avoid any hard feelings with the other duke.
“Well then, I’ll take my leave. We’ll meet again as family next time.”
As I stepped back, my father-in-law shook hands with Trixie.
In that greeting, Trixie smiled softly. Until now, my father-in-law had treated her with great respect, so the fact that he bowed and shook hands was quite significant. This was a declaration that he sees Trixie as not just the “Duke’s Extended Family” but as “son-in-law’s wife.”
That must surely be pleasing for Trixie. She had been subtly concerned about the convoluted family tree due to her age, but it seems like that tree was beginning to normalize.
“Yes, when that time comes, please feel free to speak comfortably.”
Trixie, holding my father-in-law’s hand, made a difficult request with a smile.
‘Speak comfortably,’ huh?
At Trixie’s words, my father-in-law’s eyes twitched slightly. Just shaking hands must have taken a great deal of courage, so how brave would he have to be to speak casually to the Duke?
But it can’t be helped. Since my parents, who are already in Tailglehen, have been practicing speaking informally to Trixie, my father-in-law is probably now stepping into a new world too.
So, I believe it will work out somehow.
*
It goes without saying, but magicians are basically considered a rare resource.
First off, there aren’t many people who can sense and manipulate mana, and among those, only individuals with enough wisdom to understand magic can walk the path of a magician. As a result, even the United Kingdom of Yuben, known as the Magical Powerhouse, possesses only about 0.1% of its total population as magical power. This 0.1% is even considered a bit inflated.
However, while it seems small in terms of percentage, the overall number of magicians spread across the continent isn’t that small.
Moreover, the countless associations formed by these magicians across the continent are overwhelming.
“This is a gift from the White Night Study Group. We sincerely congratulate His Grace the Duke on his marriage and wish you a path filled with light ahead.”
“The Operant Siblings have sent a large amount of potions. These are newly developed items from the Duchy of Operant, a small token of goodwill as a senior magician.”
“On behalf of the Magic Council, we’ve sent artifacts and—”
All of these countless associations were sending gifts.
It’s maddening. With the treasures screaming from the gifts already coming from friends in the Empire and club members returned to their home country, now, things from all over the continent are pouring in.
Yeah, I get it. It’s their respected elder in the industry, a well-known figure, getting married, so they want to send something. After all, who wouldn’t want to avoid being the one who didn’t send anything when everyone else did?
But shouldn’t these be sent to Trixie’s territory? Why are they all arriving at my mansion? Could it be that since Trixie is living with me, they sent them to the actual residence?
‘Still, it would make more sense to send them to the Duke’s estate rather than a personal mansion.’
What a lack of consideration. Although this mansion was once the residence of a marquis, the value of the land is too cheap compared to the Duke’s estate, so their treasury must be much larger simply due to the scale of the castle itself.
It’s incredible that these magicians, who are supposed to be seekers of truth, could forget such a simple fact. I’m disappointed in my husband, the Duke, for this.
“Um, Master.”
As I was lost in thought, admiring the flow of gifts, the butler cautiously approached.
“There’s no more space to accommodate them.”
“Already?”
At the butler’s words, I involuntarily furrowed my brows. It’s obvious that many gifts still haven’t crossed the border yet, so hearing that our treasury is already filling up is a big problem.
“The treasury is already full, and we’ve been using empty rooms as temporary storage, but that’s not enough either.”
‘Ah.’
Then I realized not just the treasury but the mansion itself was filling up.
This is serious. If there are no more leftover rooms, where on earth will we put them?
“Just place them in the garden for now, and when they stack up enough, teleport them elsewhere.”
After a brief moment of thought, I came up with a luxurious solution. If these wretched magicians are going to send all sorts of parcels to my residence, I’d be glad to become the Krasius Logistics Center.
Luckily, with Tailglehen, Weiridia, and Servette, there’s plenty of space available. Each of those is larger than my mansion, so if I mobilize those three locations, we should be able to handle the volume without any problems.
The only issue is that I’d need knights… I mean, magicians, to constantly move these countless gifts around.
“Don’t worry, I’ll ask Trixi to lend me some magicians.”
“Yes, understood.”
In a pinch, I can just call on the magicians from the Magic Tower.
This isn’t for my own selfish desires; it’s to ensure the gifts sent to their Duchess are moved safely, so they shouldn’t mind.
Moreover, among the treasures that have already settled in the treasury, there are quite a few gifts sent from the Magic Tower. If they have any sense of guilt, they’ll rush over even if they have busy obligations.
‘Being bombarded with gifts is a new experience.’
I’ve never experienced something so rare in my life.
*
Soon, Carl’s second wedding will take place as well, and it’s actually going to happen twice.
The first ceremony is to be held at the Katoban Duke’s villa within the Servette territory. I was puzzled at first, being surprised that they were holding the wedding at a villa instead of the Duke’s estate, but then it made sense since the bride was born there. What could be more meaningful than starting a new family where one was born?
After that, they plan to hold a ceremony within the species protection zone in the elf residential area. It seems the second bride has elven blood, but as someone deeply scarred by humans, she couldn’t bring herself to come to the Empire. Thus, they decided to have two wedding ceremonies.
As Carl’s mother, I’ve committed to attending both weddings. Honestly, if the second bride’s family was hesitant, I would’ve refused to attend the elf residential ceremony, but thankfully, they expressed desire to meet their grandson-in-law’s family, allowing me to participate.
I’m extremely grateful. The person, who seems to bear deep wounds within her heart, is willing to accept us humans. So I was choosing gifts that she would find appealing—
“Excuse me. I’ve come on behalf of the Mage Duchess and Count Tailglehen.”
“……”
I got swept up in the gift pile meant for my daughter-in-law first.
“This is a gift for the Duchess, but she requested you to feel free to use anything you might need, as what belongs to her soon becomes the property of her mother-in-law.”
With that being said, I stared blankly at the pile of gifts stacked in a corner of the garden.
‘There are so many!’
Way too many. And in addition to the magician bowing towards me, more and more magicians were coming into view.
All of them were bringing gifts that seemed to be on par with the pile already placed in the garden.
“It may be an excessive gift for this incompetent mother-in-law, but please extend my thanks.”
“Yes. I will certainly relay your message.”
My head spun for a moment, but I managed to respond calmly.
A little, no, a lot excessive, but this is a gift from the prospective bride. If I were to refuse this, I can’t even begin to imagine how hurt that would make her.
Thus, despite the pressure, accepting the gifts is my only option. Besides, she likely doesn’t want to burden someone who is far younger and higher in status than I.
‘… A child.’
I couldn’t help but chuckle. It’s reached the point where I’ve started referring to my future daughter-in-law as a child in my own mind.
Indeed, people adapt over time, no matter how foreign the environment. Alternatively, perhaps it’s because she treats me as someone above her that I’m relaxing my heart.
Had she been acting like a duke in front of me instead of a daughter-in-law, I would’ve forever been stuck in tension.
‘What a good child.’
Considering she’s been a duke for over a hundred years but hasn’t thrown tantrums because of her power, I’m quite impressed.
Of course, people might be careful when around a duke, but even accounting for that, she’s remained a quiet child. One could say she’s quite distant from the authority of the duke.
‘Maybe being called a duke was a shackle for her.’
Reaching that bittersweet conclusion, I couldn’t help but smirk. For a child who lost her family and became absorbed in magic, the name of duke must have been a colossal restraint. It would block anyone from approaching her and keep her from getting close to others.
I sincerely hope that from now on she won’t have to live shackled by that name. Even when Carl eventually departs from this world, the child born from their union will be there alongside her.
“Now, let’s move them. We can’t leave precious items out in the sun.”
“Yes, my lady.”
I then turned and instructed the attendants. We cannot leave the precious gifts from the lovely daughter-in-law lying out in the sunlight.
*
One day after the Krasius Logistics Center got underway…
“Master.”
“Yeah, butler. Why?”
“…The lady has said that there isn’t enough space for the gifts anymore, so you should cease sending them.”
“……”
One of the three pillars I relied on just collapsed.
‘Damn it.’
Now only Weiridia and Servette remain.
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