☀️ Arselia and Akonia

- You're such a sweetie, - Narie said, hugging her daughter close. Her chest was smaller than Sonata's, and even smaller than Ayano's, - I love you more than anyone in the world. Well, after Anuzish, of course.

- Effo... Pwofu... Luvvi smoffyat... - she could only mumble incoherently in that position.

- You know, you did well, - the dark-haired empress suddenly said to her, - you said some good things, and you held yourself very well, but what touched me most was the reaction of some of the townspeople. You could see that they knew you and had a good opinion of you.

- Thank you. I thought my words sounded a bit cliché, but... they were all sincere. Almost all of these people are my friends, acquaintances, and colleagues. Although, you know that. I hardly deserve the kindness they showed me, so I was very happy. I... I had to restrain my emotions, because if I had let them show, it would have seemed fake, - she blushed, sighed, and pushed the strange thought out of her head.

And about the coven, - she turns to the fair-haired empress, - before that, I would like to somehow reward the boys for their successful mission. This time, Ayano's friends and mine did most of the work, but each of my students did well and promises to become a worthy warrior of Akonia. I think something memorable would be best, so if it won't cause a scandal, I suggest artifacts that belonged to one of the criminals, Adrian Spite. Or maybe you, Ayano, have a better idea? You seem to know them well now.

- I know some of them, but not all of them that well. Some of them certainly have their own interests, but it shouldn't be a secret to you that the best gift, if not for all of them, then for most of them, would be you? - she makes a Suzumena-like gesture. - Some kind of special time together, perhaps. Although they would prefer it not to be in a group format, but that would lead to obvious and unsolvable complications... You and them haven't managed to get together and spend time in Risserlande, and they haven't seen you in a long time. Under normal circumstances, I would suggest a small vacation... but not to the hot springs, I hope you understand. But... - she sighs. - In our situation, with the unaccounted aggressors and the phantom Bruno-shinpu, that's out of the question. So, maybe... uh... hmm. An event like a picnic has proven to be effective in bringing good friends together... - she absentmindedly stroked her hairpin. - But for the same reason, it won't be possible to hold it outside the city - unless it's somewhere in the suburbs. Maybe somewhere on the grounds of the villa? However, that seems like a waste today. There are so many fun festival celebrations in the city - I haven't had time to figure out what's available yet, but I'm sure I can find some entertainment for you and the little ones. In Nihon, that was always a working option. Well, and the artifacts... If it's acceptable, they can also be given out. So that the young people have a positive reinforcement, both material and, uh, spiritual. Some of them are problematic, and they need to understand that decent service is not only a whip, but also a carrot, which they would be deprived of in any other circumstances. They have a very serious and responsible job ahead of them, and they need to be as loyal to the crown as possible. ...But some of these artifacts seem a little more dangerous than others. So, uh, if you give them out, you need to distribute them wisely among the guys. I wouldn't want any of the reckless ones to get something suboptimal. True, there are eleven of them.