Heaven's Mandate Is Mine

Higashino Makoto stopped in his tracks, feeling a twitch at the corner of his mouth.

What's going on with my luck in love today?

"... Akeno, am I seeing things?"

Are you seeing things?

What is that?

Princess Lusha.

What is she doing?

"Bath."

"Why is she, a princess, bathing here?"

"I overheard people talking at the tavern earlier; she had a fight with her father and secretly slipped out."

Higashino Makoto looked at her, and she looked at him.

Panic filled his red eyes, then turned to shame, and finally to a kind of anticipation.

"Mr. Higashino Makoto... you... what are you doing here?!"

"Just passing by."

"You... you saw it?"

"Um."

Lusha's face turned bright red, and she covered her body with her hands.

Don't be nervous, I won't do anything to you.

"But... but..."

"No buts."

He turned around.

"Get dressed, I'll be waiting for you."

A rustling sound came from behind. After a moment...

"Okay... okay."

Higashino Makoto turned around.

Lusha stood by the stream, her long white hair cascading over her shoulders, her red eyes looking at him, her golden tan skin, and the garment with the prominent slit in the center, the eye-catching "gap" still there.

Her face turned as red as if it were about to bleed.

"Mr. Higashino Makoto."

"Um."

"Will... will you take responsibility?"

"What are you responsible for?"

"You've seen my body... According to the rules... you must marry me! This is... the rule of the royal family."

Does your father know?

"Have no idea."

Higashino Makoto looked at her.

Princess Lusha.

"Exist."

"How old are you?"

"Seventeen years old, almost eighteen tomorrow."

Does your father know you're bathing outside?

"Have no idea."

"That's good. Go back, get a good night's sleep, and forget about it tomorrow."

Lusha bit her lip.

"No... I won't forget... I'll remember... I want... I want you to take responsibility..."

I will not take responsibility.

"Why?"

"This is your fault, isn't it?"

"But... but, I've been completely seen."

"Alright. How about you come with me and leave the Re-Estize Kingdom to live in the Demon King's castle?"

Higashino Makoto casually made up a condition, not thinking the other party would agree.

"Good."

"I knew it... You said yes?"

"Right!"

Listening to Princess Lusha's resolute words, Higashino Makoto felt increasingly uneasy.

I've never encountered such an outrageous advance towards me before!

So I decided to change the subject and go back to examine what exactly was going on with my situation.

"Where are the two little ones?"

"They're still in the library; they didn't come out with me."

After thinking for a moment, I realized I was being a bit paranoid.

There was no harm in it, so I readily agreed.

"Alright. Go back and talk to your father about this. Think it over carefully. If you're really willing, come find me at the Demon King's Castle."

"Good!"

Higashino Makoto looked at her.

"Alright, go back now. Your father will worry."

She took a deep breath and wiped away her tears with the back of her hand.

"Higashino, no... my husband. I will definitely come to find you."

She turned and walked deeper into the woods. Her long white hair shimmered softly in the moonlight, and her petite figure gradually disappeared into the darkness.

Akeno stood behind Higashino Makoto.

Back in the Demon King's castle, Higashino Makoto began to examine his unusual behavior.

And the answer was found very quickly.

"Because I saved this world, the world is thanking me, and fortune is tilting in my favor."

He looked up at the crescent moon in the sky.

The energy gathered above his head into a huge cloud, silvery-white with a faint golden glow, almost invisible in the moonlight.

But he could see those people...

Mermaid, Knight Commander, Princess.

Their appearance was not accidental; rather, it was "arranged" by the world.

Arrange for them to appear before him, arrange for them to develop feelings for him, arrange for them to "give themselves away" for free.

"Mr. Higashino Makoto, you don't like this?"

"It's not that I dislike it. Or rather, who wouldn't like a beautiful girl throwing herself at them?"

"Then what about you?"

"It just feels a bit too deliberate; I don't really like being told what to do. But..."

Akeno looked at him, her purple eyes flashing with a complex light.

Higashino Makoto turned around and walked towards the royal city.

Akeno followed behind him.

The moonlight shone on the two of them, casting their long shadows on the grass.

"Akeno, remember to let me know ten years from now. Come fishing at the beach. I need to find that mermaid."

"What do you want with her?"

"She'll be an adult in ten years, of course I'll marry her."

Akeno was taken aback.

"You weren't just --"

"She's a child now, but she won't be in ten years. The world is making its arrangements, and I'll just go with the flow."

"So you just said you don't like being told what to do—"

"I don't particularly like it, but that doesn't stop me from accepting it. Why not take advantage of a good thing that's offered to me?"

Akeno chuckled softly.

You really are--

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

Higashino Makoto continued walking forward.

One by one, the lights of the distant royal city began to illuminate the city.

That was yet another night for him in this world.

He knew that Ultina would come to him tomorrow, and after sobering up, filled with a determination to repay her kindness, he would agree.

The mermaid will wait for him, wait for him to marry her, she will not marry anyone else.

Princess Lusha wouldn't give up either; although she wasn't his favorite type, he certainly didn't dislike her.

It was all arranged by fate.

Everything is moving in a positive direction.

Higashino Makoto had a premonition that whatever he wanted to do in this world would go very smoothly.

Whether it's building a harem, establishing Re-Estize Kingdom, or anything else...

This is what "protagonist's fate" means.

This is destiny bestowed upon me.

This is because when the time is right, heaven and earth lend their strength.

However, Higashino Makoto does not intend to stay in this world for too long, nor does he plan to accept his destiny.

This world is too weak, yet it suits my taste perfectly.

Higashino Makoto knew that if he stayed here for a long time and enjoyed all of this, his original ambition would likely be completely extinguished.

"Hmm, this world is too dangerous. Let's seal them away after we've eaten Ultina and the little princess."

When I get bored someday, I'll come back to this world and write a book called --

The <Guide to Interracial Customs> is ready!