"Ah?" Manuel was stunned at first, then belatedly understood something.
She was urging him to marry, right? But shouldn't that be the job of the heads of their respective families? Oh, he understood. Was she worried he would break off the engagement and was rushing to make it a done deal? What a joke, how could that be? Even setting aside emotional factors, just the fact that she was a Palaiologos family princess meant he couldn't possibly be dissatisfied with the engagement. Plus, Barbara wasn't lacking in intelligence or looks, and her personality was quite compatible with his…
Thinking of this, Manuel said seriously, "Barbara, don't worry, the marriage will definitely happen."
"Then, my dear Little husband, can it be now, immediately, right this instant?"
"Ah, well, let's wait a while, until most things have settled down…" Manuel tried to change the subject.
"Manuel, you're not going to war again, are you?" Barbara deliberately looked at him with a blank expression.
He was anxious. What should he do if his fiancée guessed what he was about to do? Manuel gave an awkward smile, then shifted his gaze elsewhere, stiffly changing the subject, "We're not even eighteen yet, it's not good for our health to do that kind of thing too early…"
"Ah? Listen to what you're saying. It's perfectly normal to get married at 12 in our era." Barbara was directly amused by his words.
"Huh?! But if you marry too early, won't you miss out on experiencing maturity? What's the point if it's flat!" Her words directly hit Manuel's 'sore spot,' making him unconsciously blurt out such absurd words.
"!" Barbara's dark eyes widened instantly.
"That's right, that's how it is." His mind clouded, Manuel went all out. Blushing, he glanced slightly at Barbara's chest, hinting at her with a somewhat awkward look.
"Don't look. It won't get any bigger no matter how much you look. My growth period is over." Barbara replied to him with a merciless look and tone.
"Don't say such things! Although small isn't entirely out of the question, for Barbara's to not grow bigger or something… at least wait until…"
"Don't act crazy here, like an immature child. Wait, wait," Barbara mercilessly interrupted Manuel's outrageous statement, then noticed certain parts of his words, "Manuel, you wouldn't happen to like young girls, would you?"
"How can you falsely accuse me like that? Although small is also very cute, I'm not a lolicon, hey!" Manuel's face turned bright red.
"Huh? What's a lolicon? Could it be!" Barbara, who had been shocked by his absurd statement for a while, looked at her own chest with some disbelief, then her eyes gradually dimmed, "So that's how it is? I understand, my dear Little husband is actually a pervert…"
"No, I'm not! What exactly did you understand?!"
"No, this won't do. All the young men and women in the city will be in danger. I can only kill Manuel and then commit suicide…" Barbara completely ignored his excuse, her eyes losing their luster as she started to babble.
"What are you talking about? Your words are dangerous…" Manuel looked at his fiancée, whose eyes had lost their luster, his eyelids twitching. "By the way, weren't we supposed to be discussing marriage? How did it turn into us exchanging crazy experiences…"
"Oh, right," After he reminded her, Barbara's expression instantly returned to normal, and she began to steer their conversation back to the main topic, "Just a reminder, you were the only one acting crazy at first. Alright, let's talk seriously. Why don't you formally marry me? Our engagement was set years ago, could it be that…" Barbara's eyes suddenly lost their luster again, "You don't like me? Or are you like those knight novels say, do you like to go to those frivolous pleasure houses to find women who are available to everyone, to do that kind of thing instead of with your future wife?"
"You have the nerve to say that to me… And what kind of knight novels do you usually read? They're so harmful! Besides, I personally don't like those places. I don't want to get sick, and I haven't done that kind of thing with anyone yet." Manuel said, feeling quite helpless and a little embarrassed. But seeing her expression, which had already lost its luster, he could only straighten his own demeanor and posture, and began to seriously explain from a certain angle why he had been delaying the wedding:
"Barbara, the situation in Theodoro and its surroundings is actually not very clear right now. Although by seizing Genoa's former Black Sea colony, the Principality can now be considered a Black Sea power… never mind, let's just say it's a Black Sea power. But the situation along the Black Sea coast still hasn't changed much; the fragile geopolitical landscape remains as usual.
"Why am I telling you all this here? Because our marriage, no matter how much emotional factors it carries, is essentially still a political marriage. And a political marriage is closely related to the surrounding situation."
At this point, Manuel took a deep breath, looking at his fiancée with some guilt. After a moment, he spoke evasively, "I'm sorry, Barbara. Before Theodoro took Theodosia and these lands, my idea was the sooner we formally married, the better. But now the Principality is at a crossroads for its future. I… I don't want to drag Theodoro into the quagmire of Constantinople through this marriage."
There was another reason Manuel didn't say: after formal marriage, the two would be completely bound together, but before the basic foundation was established, he didn't want Barbara to take risks with him.
After he spoke one of his true thoughts, he closed his eyes, waiting for Barbara's rebuke. But what greeted him was not the angry shout or disappointment he imagined, but her warm body temperature.
Barbara hugged Manuel gently, "There's another reason you didn't mention, isn't there? Remaining only engaged to me clearly has far more disadvantages than advantages for you personally. If you married me, and something unexpected happened, you could escape with me to Constantinople. But if we're only engaged, if something unforeseen occurs, then only I would be able to get away. Engagements can be changed, but after marriage, without the Holy Father's permission, the destinies of the two must be completely bound.
"You said you didn't want to drag Theodoro into the quagmire of Constantinople, but right now, neither Constantinople nor Theodoro really needs the other, at least not until the Ottoman threat reaches the Theodosian Walls. If that's the case, then where does this talk of a quagmire come from?
"Moreover, on the night you woke up from your serious injury this year, didn't I say—I want to enjoy more time with you. Marrying you, no matter how it ends, I will have no complaints. On the contrary, that would be the happiest.
"So, let's get married. Choose an auspicious day, and then, before the Holy Father, let's tie our destinies together." In the end, Barbara replied to Manuel's recent words, and at the same time, her body began to heat up unconsciously.
"Mhm." After a long time, Manuel, who was feeling a little warm from the embrace, finally nodded, agreeing to marry. However, based on his understanding of another timeline, he cautiously added, "Although, Barbara, Constantinople is a quagmire right now."
"What? Constantinople is not a quagmire…"
And outside this room, the two personal maids who were supposed to serve Barbara, having accidentally overheard most of their conversation, finally breathed a sigh of relief. Amber said somewhat relaxedly, "Both Highnesses are so mushy. Good thing they're not my parents, or I'd be unlucky."
"But Amber, they are our masters," Laila reminded her expressionlessly.