Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
Chapter 191: The Arrival of Mother
While Rest and Yuri were making their way east across the plains, back in the western frontier village, Viola and Primula were meeting with a certain individual.
“It’s been a while, my dear daughters.”
“I-It’s been a while. You seem well, Mother,”
Viola stammered.
“When did you arrive here, Mother?”
Primula asked, her tone calm but cautious.
The visitor to the cottage where the Rosemary sisters lived was none other than their mother, Eilish Rosemary.
Despite being the mother of two grown daughters, Eilish’s youthful appearance made her seem much younger. Sitting with her legs crossed and a smile on her face, she observed her daughters with a composed air.
“I’m relieved to see you both looking well. Now then… where is my son-in-law?”
By “son-in-law,” she naturally meant Rest. Viola answered with a polite tone.
“Rest has gone to the eastern plains. He’s assisting the Lavender Margrave family’s daughter with a monster extermination request.”
“I see… So, my son-in-law has ties with the Lavender Margrave family as well. How impressive—just as I’d expect from someone worthy of our family.”
Eilish said with a proud smile.
Her admiration for Rest wasn’t surprising. A lover of strength and power, Eilish held Rest, a formidable mage, in high regard. While this approval pleased Viola and Primula, it also filled them with unease.
“So, Mother, what brings you here today?”
“Yes, Mother, it’s unusual for you to come personally. Did something happen?”
“Ah, yes. I nearly forgot.”
Eilish said, pulling out a stack of papers and tossing them onto the table.
“What’s this?”
Viola asked, frowning.
“It’s a list of potential mistresses for your husband. I’ve narrowed it down to about twenty candidates.”
Eilish announced nonchalantly.
“M-Mistresses!?”
Viola and Primula exclaimed in unison, their voices full of shock.
“You understand the concept, don’t you? Concubines.”
Eilish replied as if discussing the weather, flipping through the pages.
The documents detailed names and backgrounds of various noblewomen, from branches of the Rosemary territory to other prominent families. The candidates ranged from widows in their thirties to young girls barely over ten years old.
“I was planning to show these to your husband directly, but since he’s away, I’ll leave the selection process to you. As his wives, it’s your responsibility to manage his concubines properly.”
Eilish added with a matter-of-fact tone.
The sisters were left speechless.
What kind of mother encourages her daughters to arrange concubines for their husband? Apparently, this kind. They knew all too well that Eilish was someone who disregarded such conventions entirely.
“Just so you know, neither you nor Rest have the right to refuse. Especially now that he holds such vast lands as Count Clover.”
Eilish explained.
Rest had been granted a large expanse of territory in the northern Sabnock Plains—so vast it even exceeded the holdings of the Rosemary territory itself. This concentrated power was a political concern.
(So this is to distribute his influence… Giving him concubines ensures his territory and power are spread among their children, preventing any threat to the royal family.)
(Over generations, their descendants will blend into the royal and central nobility, ultimately serving the crown as a separate lineage from the Rosemary family. That’s the plan, isn’t it?)
As noble daughters themselves, Viola and Primula understood this logic. They had grudgingly accepted that such measures might be necessary. Rest’s unparalleled magic power was a national asset, essential in countering threats from the Eastern Empire and the northern barbarian tribes.
Even so, emotionally, it was hard to stomach.
“Honestly… I can’t help but wonder why Father married you in the first place, Mother.”
Viola muttered under her breath.
“Viola, that’s a strange thing to say.”
Eilish replied, raising an eyebrow.
“Well, I was just wondering if you encouraged Father to take mistresses as well. You do seem to believe that exceptional mages should leave behind as many descendants as possible.”
The sisters’ father, Albert Rosemary, was the head of the Court Magicians.
In his generation, he was considered the most skilled mage of all.
If one were to apply their mother’s philosophy, it would be strange for Albert not to have had any mistresses.
“Ah, about that,”
Eilish began with a rare frown, crossing her arms and pursing her lips.
“Albert can’t father children.”
“W-What?”
The sisters exclaimed in unison.
“Shortly after you two were born, he caught a severe fever. It happened during a campaign against the northern barbarians—apparently, some sort of malignant disease afflicted him. While he’s still capable of… the act, he lost the ability to produce children.”
Eilish’s tone carried uncharacteristic frustration.
“If not for that, we could have had seven or eight more children. What a shame,”
She lamented.
“I-I see,”
Viola stammered.
“That explains it,”
Primula added, her expression twisting between discomfort and understanding.
Ad
Albert and Eilish were an unusual pair. Their personalities and ways of thinking couldn’t have been more different, yet they shared a strong bond as husband and wife. It had always been a curiosity that Eilish, who believed in having many children, only bore Viola and Primula.
“I even considered having another man father children and raising them as Albert’s, but he cried when I suggested it, so I decided against it.”
Eilish said with a shrug.
“You made the right choice, Mother,”
Viola said firmly.
“Yes, we’re relieved we don’t have any half-siblings.”
Primula agreed.
The two sisters exchanged uneasy glances before nodding to each other in mutual understanding.