My Wife Waited in the Wheat Fields - Chapter 41: Journey to the Capital (5)

PR: Cursed

“…You wish for the war to be longer? Pardon me, but I don’t know if I’m understanding you correctly.”

Kasha said, slowly.

It seemed uncomfortable to him. Thus, Edward answered, suppressing the rising tension.

“You heard me correctly. And the reason why is exactly what you’re thinking.”

“Are you that obsessed with money, trying to prolong the war just so you can rake in more money?”

“I’m planning something that will require just as much money.”

Edward had thought about this long and hard.

About how much he would reveal and how much he would keep hidden.

About how much he would tell Kasha without offending him and how far he could trust him.

He finally spoke up.

“I’m working on the next generation of weapons.”

“…The next generation?”

“Something even greater than the bolt action, a flamethrower.”

Kasha’s scowl deepened.

It was understandable. It had been his own bolt action that had wrecked Kasha’s knee in the first place.

How could he take it positively if they were going to be used against him next?

‘But…’

Hiding the fact from him wouldn’t have helped with the negotiations.

Edward pursed his lips diligently.

“If you get involved, the war will end too soon. I want this war to go on for another three years or so. I need that time to develop the weapons, test them on the field, and coordinate the dispersal of them, and I can only do that when we’re still in a full-scale war.”

The West was now a powder keg on the verge of explosion.

Four kingdoms had fallen with the disappearance of Kasha, the protector of the beggars. Following that, six out of the seven strongholds were now concentrating their forces on their respective fronts.

The moment any of them moved, blood would be spilled.

There would be no negotiations.

Even though Edward himself was the first to flaunt his friendship with Ygret and the Demon King Zerdia, but as long as there was a difference of opinion between his and their nations, if they entered the battlefield, they too would fight to the death.

In such a situation, if Kasha were to extend his hand to help one side, unpredictable variables would crush all of his predictions.

“I’m not asking you to help Armin. I just wish that you would enjoy your time in retirement some more.”

Edward thought it was a gamble worth taking.

‘He’s a devoted husband.’

Given his sudden emotional reaction when they were talking about his wife, and the fact that he always appeared as a gentle lamb in front of his wife, this was a plausible assumption.

‘So now…’

He’d have to go into negotiations firmly.

He wasn’t going to ask for it outright.

He didn’t know what Kasha was thinking, but that was the plan so far.

“Let’s just call it a negotiation. I was thinking of offering you shares in my company.”

Kasha’s fingertips twitched.

Edward gave a small inward gasp.

‘That worked?’

This was unexpected.

The Kasha he’d known was a man who wasn’t too greedy for money.

That was the only thing that could explain why he had sided with the now-dead Four Nations, even to the point of dying.

The Seven Strongholds had promised him vast sums of money and various statuses to bring him into their hands, but he had resisted their demands to the end.

So why would he waver on that opinion now…

“How much?”

“One percent. I can’t give you much. My share of the company is barely enough.”

“Do I have to be the recipient?”

Ah, this.

Edward’s eyes lit up.

‘I’m sure now, it’s a certainty that he’s a devoted husband.’

“Well, I can give you the share however you wish. I’m sure your lovely wife…”

“Goldsmith.”

With a thump, Kasha’s fingertips tapped the table.

However, the impact was anything but playful.

“Fuck…!”

Edward gulped at the sensation of his throat being squeezed.

And none of it was physical.

‘My heart…!’

He had stretched mana like a thread, wrapping it around his throat.

Only Kasha could do this.

“T-That…!”

“Your head’s too high. Pretending to know everything isn’t a good habit.”

“Guh…!”

Edward suddenly felt resentful.

Wasn’t he the one who’d indirectly mentioned his wife first?

Why should he have to suffer such violence then when he had only been responding to him?

As he gazed at Kasha with pleading eyes, the grip on his life was finally loosened

Kasha’s face crumpled into a frown, as if he was troubled by something.

“That…”

“Is that all you want?”

“Well…?”

Polite words involuntarily come out.

Being alone in the same space as the formidable Kasha was indeed a nerve-wracking experience.

Edward calmed his breathing and spoke to him.

“…You can take your time. From the looks of it, you don’t intend to disappear anytime soon.”

There was no rush.

He’d come all this way just to see his intentions for himself.

Besides, Kasha seemed quite content living with his wife.

‘I don’t think he’ll be returning to the West anytime soon.’

So it would be a good idea for him to maintain a favorable stance by being a little more supportive of this.

Kasha let out a long, huffing sigh before turning his gaze to Edward.

His eyes were uncharacteristically sharp.

“…As you say, it’s not something I can answer right away. I’ll have to think about this further.”

Kasha stood up from his seat.

“And.”

Shiver–

Goosebumps ran up Edward’s spine.

Kasha’s mana was creeping up on him again.

“I may sound presumptuous, but please consider my words. I hope you don’t show any more interest in my wife. It would be quite uncomfortable for you if someone else who knows about this matter were to appear.”

The tone of his voice was quite clear.

Edward forced a smile and said.

“If you’d like, Sir, I can proceed with a gagging procedure. After all, we didn’t come here to fight, did we?”

“Just please don’t provoke my emotions. You know that well, don’t you?”

“You don’t have much patience, do you?”

“I’m glad that you understand.”

Only then did Kasha smile softly.

As he was handsome, his gentle smile left a favorable impression.

If there had been no knowledge of his identity, it would have definitely felt like that.

“There’s someone waiting for me, so I’ll be on my way. This meeting today was unpleasant. I hope we never have to meet again in the future.”

“Oh dear, are you sure about that?”

“I’m leaving.”

Bang!

Kasha left the room.

At that moment, Edward completely relaxed his tense body and buried himself into his couch.

“Hahahaha!”

He had thought that he was going to die.

At least now, Kasha was probably confident that he wouldn’t get into trouble while hiding his identity….

“Damn that old man’s personality.”

Edward chuckled.

If this encounter had made anything clear, it was that Kasha was Kasha, even if he was hiding his identity.

And the good news was that he wasn’t going to be making any immediate moves.

For a moment, Edward thought about Kasha’s wife.

‘She must have either committed many sins in her past life or received too many blessings. Otherwise, why would someone like that bow down and be by her willingly?’

Well, it wasn’t something he should ponder now.

Turning, Edward pressed the bell.

“You called?”

Entering the room was the attendant who had served Elric and Tyria earlier.

Though he had been acting as an attendant, he was actually Edward’s direct, personal assistant.

Edward smiled.

“Bring me a change of underwear please.”

“…?”

“Underwear to change into please. Actually, panties. Yes, panties.”

Edward gestured to his lower half with his hand.

“I’m wet.”

He had wet himself.

His body hadn’t been able to withstand Kasha’s mana.

His attendant looked at him with sudden contempt.

“Are you still wetting yourself at 33?”

“It just depends on the circumstances.”

“Can I quit my job?”

“No, you can’t.”

“I want to take a vacation.”

“No, you’re just trying to escape.”

The assistant’s face fell.

Edward said, still smiling.

“Bring it to me.”

The secretary’s fists clenched.

‘I was shaken.’

The moment Edward White had told him not to return to the battlefield, it had shaken him to the point of embarrassment.

Elric was shocked by the realization.

‘I don’t want to leave?’

Did he want to stay in Yubin?

‘Yes, it’s my home, so I suppose that’s natural.’

And it wasn’t like he didn’t like the peace.

Even with that answer to his realization, Elric didn’t feel any better.

The thought that there was more to it than that nagged him.

He was overwhelmed with confusion.

Thud–

By the time he returned to his seat and opened the door, Tyria was coming back to her senses.

No, she still didn’t look quite right, perhaps it was due to her motion sickness.

She looked up at Elric with resentment.

“…Where have you been?”

“I was just checking to see if the dust has settled.”

“Didn’t you say there would be no terror attacks?”

A chuckle escaped his lips.

It was as if all the thoughts that had been cluttering his head for the last few minutes had been erased.

“Perhaps I jumped to conclusions. I apologize, but aren’t you glad it worked out?”

She stiffened, looking as wary as ever.

Elric smiled coolly and sat down beside her.

“We’ll be there in three hours, I think.”

“We’re taking a carriage on the way back.”

“Um, do we have to?”

“…”

The resentment in Tyria’s eyes deepened.

There was also fear in them.

And, for some reason, he felt that she looked charmingly innocent, and Ellic was caught in a strange sense of admiration.

Still, the words came out of his mouth.

“Very well, let’s take a leisurely carriage ride back.”

“What an excellent choice.”

Tyria closed her eyes tightly.

She tried to assume her composure again, but it was too late.

Elric had seen too much of her new self.

His gaze followed her.

And Edward White’s offer flashed through his mind again.

‘…Later.’

He would think about it later.

It wasn’t an offer that he could answer right away.

Elric sank back into his seat, his frustration growing.

He drifted off to sleep, and when he awoke, he found himself looking out the window at the capital’s cityscape.