Contium—Him, Him, and Her

The procession arrived safely in Contium.

The city of Contium was the seat of a countship that had not seceded from the Empire.

The Count of Contium often described himself as a fool who was talented at business but hopelessly dull when it came to politics,

and perhaps the Empire had decided that, even if it granted Contium certain privileges, it was better to keep it under the imperial wing than allow a separate independent domain to arise at such an important strategic point,

so the Imperial Family and Contium had maintained a close partnership for quite some time.

To strengthen their mutual interests, Blanc planned to remain in Contium for quite a while, and during that time, the others were given leave in rotation.

Fulcare had, naturally, arranged for his leave to coincide with Vieta’s, and Vieta went to find Fulcare on the very first day of her leave.

“How do I look? Does it suit me?”

“You look fine as you are, too. Drawing stripes on a pumpkin doesn’t turn it into a watermelon.”

“Captain, you’re saying I’m a pumpkin? How could you say something so hurtful….”...