“Master. His Highness the Fourth is here to see you.”
“My brother!?”
When I was reading in the inner garden in the late afternoon of the following day, I was surprised by a visitor who was announced by Cecily, the reception maid.
“Yes”
“Lead him in.”
Cecily bowed and left the room.
A few moments later, my brother Henry, whom I hadn’t seen in a long time, came into the room.
I stood up and bowed lightly to him.
“It’s been a long time, brother. What’s up with the sudden visit?”
“I am here for work—– a Decree.”
I was even more surprised and knelt down on the spot as if it was a spinal reflex.
Decree – that means, an Imperial Command.
“I’ve heard that Syria has produced new water suitable for direct consumption. And I want you to urge Cabinet Minister, Henry, to have it transported to the summer resort.”
I looked up, Brother Henry was smiling at me.
“Prepare the water.”
“Understood.”
I called my maid and asked her to give a message to Don, who was in another room in the outer garden study.
His Majesty must be referring to the special water.
I’ve ordered twelve barrels of it to be packed for transport.
It was not something I could prepare right away, so I turned to my brother.
“I’ll have them prepared. Please wait a moment.”
“Umu.”
Saying that I sat down facing my brother.
“You surprised?”
“Well, no. It’s not unusual for water to be transported. Even at the royal palace, water from the Beryl Spring is always transported and kept on hand for tea.”
“Yes. Water from Beryl’s Spring. It is said to be the best water in the empire for brewing tea. It’s so precious that it’s only used for His Majesty’s own drinking and as a reward for his ministers. It’s going to be the same as that. That’s great, Noah.”
I was surprised at how quickly His Majesty heard.
It hasn’t been that long since the Special-Grade Water was made available.
And yet, he’d already heard about it.
As expected of His Majesty, his ears are as frightening as ever.
Of course, I couldn’t say such a thing.
“The water has low levels of miscellaneous substances, so I think it will be ideal for His Majesty’s recuperation.”
“Yes, His Majesty should be back on his feet soon.”
“Oh, there’s one more thing.”
“Another one?”
“You can read this one yourself.”
Brother Henry took out an imperial edict from his pocket and handed it to me.
I opened it and read it from the beginning.
It contained commendations and rewards.
As a reward for this incident, my son – my eldest son, who is not yet even conceived – has been given a title.
The son of the Emperor is born a Prince, but the son of a Prince is not born with any special title.
His Majesty gave him a baronetcy before he was even born.
“What a blessing.”
“Quite incredible, Noah. It’s been decades since a member of the royal family has received a baronetcy …… before birth.”
“That’s about right.”
I searched my memory for something like that, but couldn’t find it.
“The Water System in Almeria is well developed. It’s at a level where it doesn’t need any modification. It’s been an amazing transformation in less than six months since you entered the fief.”
“I intend to do it all sooner or later.”
“Is that so!?”
My brother’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Yes, it will be better for the health of the people and easier to maintain the water supply. Every year some people die during maintenance. That’s the first thing we want to eliminate.”
“You always take care of people, don’t you?”
“It’s in my nature.”
“As expected.”
With a crack, the door opened and Audrey came into the room with several maids in tow.
Audrey came in front of Brother Henry and bowed in the manner of a noblewoman.
“It’s been a long time, my brother-in-law.”
“Yeah.”
My brother simply nodded.
It was a simple nod, so simple that it seemed almost casual.
Although not as much as the emperor, the inner garden of the prince is operated in the same way as the inner palace.
Even though he was her brother-in-law, he was a man other than her husband.
It is the common sense of the royal family not to talk more than necessary, although they are allowed in the inner garden.
” Looking well.”
He said to me.
In such cases, it is normal to converse through me.
“And …… you’ve become a proper wife in a short while.”
He said with a satisfied look on his face.
Audrey was handed a number of things by the maids.
Tea sets, tea leaves, and hot water.
The maids handed them to Audrey, who made the tea and served it to me and my brother.
This is her job, which cannot be left to the maids.
Seeing Audrey doing it quietly, my brother was satisfied.
“Please.”
He took the tea that Audrey had made and sipped it.
“Umu, excellent.”
My brother said, still staring at me.
“You’re both doing very well for such young people.”
He seemed to be very satisfied.
☆
After Brother Henry left, I went to the study in the outer garden.
In case His Majesty actually liked the product after drinking it, I would have to decide in advance about the transportation of the product for regular delivery.
As I arrived at the study, the door opened from the other side and Don came out.
“Ah! Noah-sama. I was just about to call for you.”
“Yes. …… What’s the matter?”
Don seemed to be in a panic.
“Please come in.”
I nodded and walked into the study.
There was a boy on his knees inside.
He looked at me with a sobbing face, turned around, and slammed his head down hard on the floor.
“My Lord! My father, please save my father!”
“…… What do you mean?”
“Have a look at this.”
After closing the door, Don held something out to me from the side.