Chapter 334
Engagement 3
...Somehow, I managed to escape...
No, I was talking alone with Marquis-sama in the reception room of the Bozes family, but Iris-sama and Beatrice-chan, who had been out, came back, so the conversation was cut off.
Even Marquis-sama, who said that it was just the two of us, couldn't force a woman from another family to say her age in front of Iris-sama and Beatrice-chan.
......I was saved......
However, Iris-sama will be told the fact that I am an adult as soon as I return.
Then the party thing will become a reality.
And the fact that the host is Marquis-sama means that he's also the one who selects the invited guests.
......What kind of arbitrary selection of people is going to take place? Now I'm scared!
But really, what purpose is the party going to serve?.....
There's no possibility that it's a party to choose my fiancée, right?
Considering the current political situation in this country, I don't think that Marquis Bozes intends to marry me off to another family as quickly as possible. Of course, marrying outside the country is out of the question.
It will take me and the people I brought with me, the Shipbuilding Three Musketeers, etc., to build the large ships, to research and develop rifles and grenades, miniè guns or breech-loaded rifles, ship's equipment and tools, and all the rest of it.
I am fluent in New Continental languages and know technical terms related to shipbuilding, so I can be an interpreter when complicated problems arise.
So, since it's Marquis-sama, I'm sure that other countries, other factions, and even those of the same faction, would not want young men near me.
No, to begin with, no matter how much my guardian Marquis-sama is, I am the head of an independent noble family, so Marquis Bozes have no right to decide who I marry or force me to get engaged, right?
That is interference with other noble families and is an act of overreaching.
If they find out I'm an adult, then they don't need to be my guardian anymore, right?
And if push comes to shove, I can tell the king, "I'm in trouble because he's forcing something selfish against me, Viscount Yamano". If I ask the king to remove him as my guardian, it will work out somehow.
Although, if I asked for help, nobles from other factions would criticize the Bozes family and move to defend me. It's the pattern that Marquis Bozes-sama was worried about.
No, I'm not looking for a fight with Marquis Bozes-sama.
But being forced to marry against my will is a different story.
Does a daughter of a noble family marry for the sake of her family, not of her own will?
No, it's "according to the judgment of the head of the family".
......And I am the head of the Yamano family, not Marquis Bozes-sama.
That's right, my engagement and marriage will be decided by me as the head of the family. As a custom in this country, that should be the way it should be.
......So what is Marquis Bozes-sama trying to throw a party for in the first place?
-One.
To make it widely known that I still have no intention of getting engaged, let alone getting married.
Ah, of course, Marquis-sama probably wouldn't announce that I've already reached the age of adulthood...
-Two
He's going to set up a dummy to make people think I already have a partner and make them give up.
...However, as Marquis-sama said, if the engagement is later canceled or dissolved, there is a possibility that the person himself or his family name will be damaged.
This seems to have a big impact on me, especially as a woman...
-Three
Make people think they don't want to marry me in some way.
The downside of number two and number three is that after a number of years when I decide it's time for me to get married, I run the risk of having no one to marry me.
......That's bad, isn't it......
No, does it matter if I'm getting married on Earth, and not in this world?
Umu mumumu.......
"What the heck!" (Sabine)
Sabine-chan, you look angry.
"Mitsuha-neesama, you're supposed to marry Onii-sama or Luchen, right?" (Sabine)
"No, that's news to me! In the first place, I've never even spoken to your brother, His Royal Highness, the Crown Prince, as far as I'm concerned!" (Mitsuha)
"...Then, with Luchen! In that case, I'm the older sister, and Mitsuha-neesama will be the younger sister..." (Sabine)
"Oi! Oioioioioi!!" (Mitsuha)
I tipped off Sabine-chan that Marquis Bozes was going to force me to do something related to my engagement, without mentioning my age, and as a result, it took a weird turn.
No, just as I thought, Sabine-chan would be vehemently opposed to any mention of my engagement or marriage......
Marquis Bozes-sama is weak against the king, and the king is weak against Sabine-chan.
In this game, it would be "Sabine-chan is weak against Marquis Bozes-sama", but in reality, Sabine-chan is stronger than Marquis Bozes-sama.
......In other words, Sabine-chan is my invincible trump card.
So, naturally, when I tried to make Sabine-chan my ally, this happened.
"No, too early, it's too early! For the time being, I just want you to crush this engagement-related topic!" (Mitsuha)
Yes. That's all I'm expecting from Sabine-chan right now.
"By the way......" (Sabine)
Ah, Sabine-chan's expression and the way she speaks...
This feels like a disaster!
"Mitsuha-neesama, how old are you now?" (Sabine)
"Gee~h!" (Mitsuha)
You little~!...
......That's right, there's no way that the smart Sabine-chan didn't notice something that even Marquis Bozes-sama perceived!
"When I first met you, I was shorter than you, about 15-16 centimeters... and now..." (Sabine)
Sabine-chan puts her hands over her head and mine and compares them.
Sabine-chan is a little smaller than the average height for her age, but...
"Right now, I'm about to catch up...
So that means......" (Sabine)
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa~ah!!
"Mitsuha-neesama, you haven't grown at all since then, have you?... That means that when we first met, it's possible that you weren't as old as you looked......" (Sabine)
"Give! Give! Give-give-give!!! You're a woman too, let's not talk about age! Specifications are not good!!" (Mitsuha)
I waved my hand around and forcibly interrupted Sabine-chan's words.
However......
"...Are you actually already around 300 years old?..." (Sabine)
"Am I a witch or an elf! Contain yourself, Sabine-chan!!" (Mitsuha)
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