As always, planning is key when it comes to big matters.
I wasn’t the type of fool who would just sit in a corner, praying and hoping that the children would come to me first and propose.
No, I began to systematically draw up a roadmap for my marriage to them.

'In this country, adulthood is usually recognized at the age of 16. So, maybe I should aim to get engaged right after their coming-of-age ceremony. For Charlotte, it’s still three years away, so I’ll move slowly during that time…'

The coming-of-age ceremony for the youngest, Charlotte, is still three years away.
Legally, adulthood is recognized at the age of 19, meaning there are still about six years left.
Although that seems like a long time, I can't afford to just sit idle in the meantime.

I need to constantly advance the relationship, laying the groundwork for engagement to ensure a stable path to marriage.
If I procrastinate for five years and then rush through the last year, I might not achieve anything.

Of course, if I intended to "force" the marriage on them, none of these efforts would be necessary.
If I suppressed them severely,
cut off all opportunities to interact with the opposite sex,
and made them entirely dependent on me,
then achieving the goal of marriage would be incredibly easy.

But that isn’t my ultimate goal.
The end result of a distorted love without freedom or connection is only destruction.
This is a lesson I learned from playing countless dating sims.

'Sigh. No event is as good as a birthday. Since I don’t know the exact dates yet, well... Charlotte and Yulia’s birthdays are a secret, so I’m prepared to wait up to a year until I know them. For now, I’ll start with Yuri’s birthday and try to make progress.'

There are still so many unknowns, so I can’t create a detailed plan.
All I’ve decided so far are vague things like when to get the children enrolled in the Imperial Magic Academy or when to get engaged.
I’ll have to keep refining the plan as I go.

For now, I’ve decided to be satisfied with this much.

"Uncle, uncle!"
"What is it? Why the rush...?"

Then, bang!
The office door slammed open with a loud noise.
The moment I heard Charlotte’s cheerful voice, my hand moved faster than light and quickly covered the notebook where I had written the roadmap.

Then, Charlotte came charging toward me, as if she was about to climb onto me.
She was about to knock my chair over, so I immediately grabbed her waist, lifted her, and set her down on my lap.
What could be so urgent to make her act like this?

Looking at Charlotte’s innocent face, I couldn’t help but chuckle.
Indeed, she was far too young to be discussing marriage.
This was the moment I realized just how far-reaching my long-term plan was.

"Uncle, are you going to marry us?"
"...!?"

I nearly coughed out in surprise.
Charlotte... Has she awakened telepathy or something?
I looked down at her, trying my best to remain composed, but Charlotte just tilted her head in confusion.
She didn’t seem to have any idea of what I was thinking.

Phew. It was just a coincidence that the timing matched up.
It was such a perfect moment that I almost accidentally spilled my long-term six-year marriage roadmap.
I won’t be caught by such a shallow trick.

I managed to stay calm and responded without showing any disturbance.

"Wh-what do you mean all of a sudden?"
"Why are you stammering, uncle? You sound all flustered."
"I’m not stammering. I’m perfectly calm. There’s no reason to be flustered. But why did you ask such an unexpected question?"
"Uh... What did I ask again?"
"...?"

Charlotte fumbled, grabbing her head and groaning to remember.
Did she forget already?
I couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity.

"You asked if I was going to marry you."
"Oh, right! So, are you going to marry us? Yes or no?"
"...?"

At first, I thought I hadn’t heard her correctly, but no, I had heard right.

Out of nowhere, she asks if I’m going to marry her.
Just as I was about to analyze the intent behind the question, I suddenly realized I was making a critical mistake.

'She’s just a child asking about marriage. The fact that I’m taking this so seriously is the problem.'

Does Charlotte even understand what marriage really means?
Does she grasp its significance or the meaning of romantic relationships between men and women?
It’s highly likely that she doesn’t.

So, the "marriage" that Charlotte is talking about isn’t the same as the "marriage" I’m planning.
So, discussing "marriage" as I understand it would be a foolish move.
To bridge the gap in our understanding, I decided to act a bit childish.

"Well, what is marriage anyway? I’m not really sure myself."
"Hehe! Marriage means a man and woman live together for life!"
"Why?"
"Well, because you want to live together forever, right? Because you love each other?"

So this is what Charlotte thinks marriage is.
That’s about the right level of understanding.
Given her upbringing, I can be thankful that she doesn’t have any completely distorted ideas.

"What about you, Charlotte?"
"I’ve said it over and over, but I... I like you, Uncle! I... I like you!"

Charlotte stammered as she shouted, avoiding my gaze.
Was it just me, or did she seem a bit embarrassed when she said she liked me?

"Really? So, do you want to live with me forever?"
"Yes, yes, yes! Of course! It has to be you, Uncle!"

Kuhhh...
I almost shouted out in joy, but I clenched my eyes shut and held back the urge.
But it was still joyful.
However, I can’t take Charlotte’s words at face value.

How many opposite-sex people has Charlotte even known well before now?
Right now, she says she can’t live without me, but once she grows up, meets more boys her age, and goes to school, her feelings may change.
Ah, imagining that suddenly made me feel melancholic.
I really don’t like the thought of Charlotte getting distracted by someone else...

"Well... yeah. I like you too, Charlotte."
"So, that means you’ll marry me, right?"
"Don’t you think you’re too young to get married?"
"If you make me wait, you’ll grow old!"
"I’m not that old. I can wait."
"Then, you’re going to wait, right? You promise? You have to promise here! I might change my mind later, so promise!"

Suddenly, Charlotte extended her pinky and held it out to me.
I also extended my pinky.
We shook our pinkies a few times, then Charlotte laughed in satisfaction.

"Seal it! Quickly!"

That’s not all.
Then she extended her thumb and demanded that I do the same.
We pressed our thumbs together tightly, sealing the deal.

"And a signature!"

That’s not all.
After pulling her hands back, she spread her palm and began writing something with her index finger.
Then, showing me her hand, I also signed with the Vermont family’s signature.

"Next, a copy!"

That’s not all.
Charlotte rubbed her palms together, and finally, after what seemed like an eternity, she was satisfied and pulled her hands away.
Is it finally over?

"You promised! No changing your mind later!"
"Right. I’m an adult, so I have to keep my word."
"Huh? What about me?"
"You’re just a kid, so you don’t have to keep your promises. If you change your mind later, I’ll just cry with a broken heart, but there’s nothing I can do."
"That’s unfair!"
"Not all contracts are fair. So when you’re making a deal, make sure to read the fine print. Understand?"
"Yes! I’ll make sure to check thoroughly!"

Charlotte smiled brightly.
She stretched out her hand and rubbed her cheek against it, as if she were petting herself.
After a while, when my arm started to hurt from holding her, Charlotte finally hopped off my lap.

"Make sure you keep that copy safe! I’ll check every day to make sure you’re keeping it safe!"
"I understand."
"Hehe! I got you to promise!"

Skipping happily, Charlotte left the office and closed the door behind her.
The office was left in a cold silence as if nothing had happened.
And then, finally, I could laugh.

"Hehehe..."

[The evil god, 'Kali', finds your laughter rather disgusting.]

I could finally release the joy I had been holding in.
In her childish mind, with her half-baked knowledge of marriage, it was a contract that could be easily broken at any time.
Still, a promise is a promise.
This was a step forward in my long-term plan.

I held the contract, with the promise, seal, signature, and copy, and I couldn’t stop thinking about it for a long time.

...

"Promise! I got it! Uncle said it! He’s going to marry us!"
"...?"
"...?"

Charlotte, still unable to control her excitement, continued jumping around.
Yulia and Yuri didn’t know how to respond, frozen in place for a moment.

"We heard everything..."
"Hehe! Now, both of you have to believe me! How about it? There were no lies in my words, right? And Uncle really wants to marry us, right?"
"..." "..."

Charlotte, her confidence soaring, looked like her shoulders might touch the sky.
Yulia and Yuri let out a deep sigh, exchanging glances.
Their eyes seemed to reflect the same thought.

'Aslan really does see us as children, doesn’t he…?'

Does Charlotte really believe that promise was serious?
Aslan was just humoring her.
By tomorrow, she might forget the whole thing.
To Yuri and Yulia, it seemed like a lighthearted, playful promise.

'We’re not even seriously being considered for marriage yet.'

And with that realization came a surge of irritation and anger for Yulia.
She felt frustrated...