"Well, I guess I'll just have to work a little harder tonight."
He murmurs in Matkal's ear. Her breathing is labored. I had a feeling that tonight was going to be a long night.
I pull myself away from Matocal and lay her down on the bed again. Her eyes are still open and she looks at me strangely. This is the kind of expression that a woman who always maintains a firm posture gives only to me. It makes me feel happy.
Matocal, on the other hand, seems to have sensed that something is about to start, because her pattern is different from mine. However, he seems to be a little anxious because he doesn't know what is going to happen. He has his hands on my pajamas and won't let go of them.
"Let's see ......, here, like this, like this ......"
"Uh-uh. ......"
"Here ...... this and ...... here ...... that."
"ku...... ku......"
"Are you okay? Do you want me to stop?"
Matkal keeps looking at me with red face and moist eyes. It seems that he is all right.
"Now we just need to go to ......."
"Kuhaha! Ugh, pfft!"
"Slowly ......"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, ah, ha, ah ......"
...... Matocal raised his voice for the first time. He usually grits his teeth and holds on, but he seems to be a little confused by the sensation for the first time. Then, when I thought her whole body was shaking a little, she slowly got up and grabbed the chest of my pajamas tightly with both hands.
"Mat......?"
Matocal is lying on her face, breathing on her shoulders. Her ragged breathing echoes in the bedroom.
Suddenly, Matkal puts pressure on my hands and roughly pulls off my pajamas. The buttons of my pajamas scatter and the sound of them hitting the floor is deafening.
"......!"
The next thing I knew, I was being put in Matkal's arms. She was on top of me roughly. I hugged her body tightly again.
I was so excited.
"...... are you okay?"
"...... yeah."
Matkal lay on top of me, muttering in a small voice. His fiery behavior of a few moments ago had been replaced by the meekness of a puppy.
"......How did you like that?"
"...... nothing."
"Should I not do this anymore?"
"...... leave it to me."
"Is that a yes?"
"...... sometimes."
I continue speaking while gently stroking Matkal's hair.
"Do you think Almond and the others will come back tomorrow?"
"Yes. ......"
Matkal spoke slowly, as if he were chewing a piece of food, about the problems facing the Lamaron Empire. The following is a summary of what he said.
The emperor is in command of the Lamarong Imperial Army, and all decisions must be approved by the emperor. Naturally, the emperor also has the right to appoint personnel, but in reality, many decisions are made by the nobles surrounding the emperor.
For this reason, the upper echelons of the Ramallon Imperial Guard are often filled by people who have the authority of the nobles, and most of these people are not very competent. Therefore, the junior officers are in charge of covering up for them.
Such a system can somehow function in peacetime, but when an emergency arises, it is fragile and crumbles. That was the main reason why Ramalon lost so much to us. Koenig was a good commander-in-chief over Caries, but he was surrounded by so many yes-men that there was no one to stop him from running amok.
The one who was trying to change the system was the General, Caries. He was trying to make the Lamaronian army a meritocracy and to raise capable men to the rank of generals. However, the nobles were strongly opposed, and it took a lot of effort for Almond to assume the position of Commander-in-Chief.
It is only natural that the nobles would want one of the two sons of the current emperor as the next emperor. Both of them have more noble views, and it would be easier for the nobles to have their opinions heard. This is the concern of Caries and Almond.
Although they are currently holding the army together with the involvement of Prime Minister Madril, it would be difficult to maintain the current system if any of the three were to lose their positions. If this happens, they say, it will be difficult to stop the nobles from running amok.
Even though Agartha is now a part of Agartha, it is only on the surface, and the old system is still in place inside. Many of the nobles are basically self-serving. Even under the present circumstances, many of them think that they should break away from Agartha and become independent, and attack Agartha or Heedata. One wonders how they can dream such a dream, but alas, it is the reality.
Matkal says that the Prime Minister, Madrin, is a politician who can see the future in spite of his appearance. Perhaps in his mind he is thinking of the Lamaronian empire a hundred years in the future.
"By putting Falco on the throne, the dissatisfaction of the nobles will blow up. Rather, that is what Madeline and Almond are after. They want to flush out the discontent that has infested the aristocracy and the military and drain it of all its pus."
"And create a new Lamaron Empire. ....... But by doing so, those three will be in mortal danger.
"I'm sure you're prepared for that. The three of them......, especially Almond, must be confident that they will survive even if that happens."
"Well, you're tough."
"I hear that the man has been organizing an SS unit to guard his person since he became commander-in-chief. Their number is increasing every year. He has taken in some of the most promising men in the army, and their fighting ability and excellence are quite impressive."
"That's just like Mato. I didn't think you knew that much. But why did you hesitate to tell me?
"You don't have to talk to me to know."
"Well, you know. I don't think I want Falco in a place like that.
"You don't like it, do you, Mr. Linos? ......"
"No. Who would want to put their son in such danger? Falco is the boy I gave my precious master's name. I want to keep him with me a little longer and watch him grow up.
"He may be a little restless, but I am sure he will become a man of character. I will bring him up.
"Yes, I do. Restless ....... I don't think so, but if you are, you really are a master's son.
As I say this, I think of the image of my mentor in his day. Indeed, he was an impatient master. That was when I had just begun my training. That was before Eril came back. He had flames in his hands and was opening his mouth to me.
"Linos, we're going to start training now."
Before he could finish his words, fireballs were shooting out of his hands at me. Naturally, my wards were not up to the task, and I fell to the ground with severe burns all over my body.
"I will shoot fireballs from both hands, and you must ward them off in all directions. ...... warding is slow! What are you doing, for God's sake?
It was the moment when I made up my mind to keep warding for twenty-four hours, whether my master was there or not. I still vividly remember the heat of that moment. I can't help but let out a smile.
Suddenly, I felt the coldness of Matocal's body in my arms. It seemed that the sweat was making my body cold.
"Mat, you must be cold.
"No, that's not ...... true."
"I'm sure you will."
Saying this, I lay Matocal down next to me and cover my body with a blanket. I put my left arm under her neck and my right arm on her stomach.