The Demon Lord's Bride (BL)
Chapter 308: Parental duty does not wait until you have your own child

Chapter 308: Parental duty does not wait until you have your own child

At what age do people usually get married in this world?

I realized I hadn’t thought about it much. In the first place, I never considered myself a minor, not even when I first met Natha. and if we go by human standards in this world, I was already an adult. But I was also a druid, and I took the name of the royalty.

Would that mean the law of druid applied to me more?

Ugh...so complicated.

It would be whatever if we had nothing we wanted to gain from the druid tribe, but there was something we pursued, so we wouldn’t be able to just ignore it if they demanded something--including raising concern about his age.

Ah...as I took out the big jar of candy from the storage ring, I thought to myself that politics truly wasn’t my forte.

I opened the lid and transferred a candy to my mouth. At a time like this, sweet was indeed the best to soothe the knot in the brain.

"Jade want one too!"

I looked down to see the green eyes looking at me with sparkles, tiny hands grabbed the edge of my sleeves. "Oh? It’s not like you to not immediately jump into the jar,"

Jade looked down and pursed his lips. "Jade can’t jump in this form..."

Pfft--how adorable. But still, holding himself from sticking his hand inside the jar was a remarkable show of patience for Jade. "Good job for being patient. Now, can you ask me a little nicer?"

The green eyes blinked and Jade tilted his head slightly in ponder. "Master, can Jade have a candy?" he asked, and when he saw me just staring at him without any movement, he added quietly. "Umm...please?"

"Good boy," I patted the green hair and put two pieces of candy on Jade’s palm.

The little boy gasped in disbelief. "Two?"

"Because Jade is such a good boy today," I told him with a proud smile.

Jade giggled and climbed onto my lap before putting both candies in his mouth. So I would be fair, I gave Ignis his fire mana stone too, which I bought earlier in a material store. Seemed like the mana stones here tasted richer than the ones sold in other realms.

"Master, candy not very sweet," Jade commented, but it didn’t deter the little boy from enjoying the indulgence in his mouth.

And Jade was right; it wasn’t just the candy, but all the food here was less stimulating in flavor, the kind of stuff Natha preferred in his meal. They were still good though, just a bit different. And being different did not make them bad.

"It still tastes good, right?"

"Mm!" Jade nodded energetically.

But it seemed like it wasn’t just Jade that thought the candy was good. When I looked up and swept my gaze across the park, I was met with a lot of light golden gazes, staring at the big jar of candy on my thigh. Some stole glances as they walked and played, and some even stopped and blatantly stared.

It was...cute?

I turned toward the two elves beside me. "Would it be a problem if I give them candies?"

"You may do that if you want, Your Excellency," Issa replied with a small smile on her lips, so I guessed it was fine.

I put the candy jar aside and lifted Jade off my thigh to the ground. "Jade, would you go and share the candies with the other children?"

The green eyes widened. "But...Jade’s candy?"

"Does Jade like the candy?" I asked, caressing the green hair gently. Jade nodded and I continued. "You know, when I taste something good, I want Jade and Ignis and Natha and the others to taste it too, because I feel happy when I eat them, and I want others to be happy too."

Stroking the chubby cheeks, I smiled at the little boy as I recalled all the times Jade gave me mental images of things that the little bird liked. "Jade always showed me the flowers you liked, right? Isn’t it because you want me to be happy? Are you happy when you show me those flowers?"

"...mm, Jade happy when Master happy."

"In that case, can you share the candies with them? I think they will be happy, and I’m sure Jade will feel happy," I put the big jar of candy in his hands. "Besides, you can still buy some more later."

Jade looked at the children in the park, and then looked back at me. I gave him an assuring smile, and Ignis flicked its tail on his shoulder. "Okay!" the little boy finally nodded with a bright smile, and ran to the nearest group of children while hugging the candy jar

.

The children were surprised at first, but immediately took the offer with bright faces. The other children started to get sucked into the first group and slowly, a crowd of children formed around Jade. I was worried it would overwhelm the eight-month-old boy, but thankfully, Ignis was there to order the children to make a line.

See, it’s fun--I laughed when Jade’s giggles could be heard where we sat, and even Irra chuckled from that. When I turned my head toward them, I saw both elves looking at me with mysterious smiles.

"What?"

Issa replied softly. "Your Excellency is quite good with children."

"Do you think so?" I never particularly thought I was good at it--I mean, I was still confused about how I should educate Jade on certain things. But I did spend a lot of time in the children’s ward, even after I was moved to a regular VIP one. "I used to play with children a lot in the past."

Yeah...I had a lot of attachment to the children’s ward. I liked seeing them looking all cheerful even while they were sick. A lot less depressing than the regular ward, honestly. Looking at Jade and the other elf children reminded me of that--of a nice, bright future.

I had no idea what their actual age was, but they looked like elementary school students. Their curious eyes stared at Jade with interest, tugging into his clothes and hair gently. "Those children...do they go to school?" I asked my two guides.

"Basic education is compulsory in their juvenile years. There are subjects they need to pass that will grant them a diploma to be used when they want to apply for work, or advance their studies at the Academy," Issa explained to me with an eagerness as if she had been waiting to brag. "During elementary education, they can also choose other subjects that aren’t compulsory, and explore those subjects as much as they want."

"Oh?"

That in elementary education? How long did elementary education last in elvendom?

"There’s no time stipulation for their education; they can start as early or as late as they want, and stay in school for as long as they want," Issa said as if she heard my thoughts.

"Oh? That’s kind of nice," my eyes widened at that freedom. That meant they could start from the moment they could speak, or even later on, when they were of old age.

"Unfortunately, we can only make education free of cost until they turn thirty, after which they have to bear the cost themselves,"

Ah...so, while there was no stipulation about age, only those considered in their adolescent received free education. I guessed the policy was made so they would take the courses when they were still young.

"Then...what happened after they past thirty but can’t afford it?"

"They can still apply for relief or a scholarship, although the process is a little bit complicated," Issa smiled wryly, perhaps worried I would think the elves were stingy.

"Well, it’s not like money grows on trees," I shrugged--which was especially true because the money here was still made with metals.

Issa blinked and rubbed her chin at my words. "Money does not grow on trees...that’s an interesting thought."

"Is...is it?" I scratched my cheek awkwardly. I guessed it wasn’t a known phrase in this world. "Ahem--but it’s nice nonetheless, that you give them the freedom to pursue what they want."

The human realm, as far as I know, only taught the working class how to write, read, and count so they could work earlier. I guessed it was a difference in philosophy derived from the difference in lifespan.

"We believe that one would perform better in something they are passionate about," Issa added rather proudly.

"That’s nice," I nodded in agreement. "There’s also joy in just pursuing as much knowledge as you can get in this world."

"That is true, Your Excellency."

I stared at the children that were now pulling Jade to play with them. "Do you think their parents will let them choose what they want, though?"

"Pardon?" Issa tilted her head to look at me in surprise.

"I mean...I saw a lot of cases when the parents wanted their child to be one thing, and forced that child to pursue it instead of what the child actually desired," I said. "You know; maybe because they have unfulfilled dreams, or they want their children to have a better job and better status than them...things like that."

"I see," Issa pondered about it for a few seconds. "There might be cases like that," she agreed, before adding with an amiable smile. "Still, the Great Mother taught us, Her children, that we are supposed to be free; and that we, as a part of nature, should let fate draw its course."

Her smile grew wider as she followed my gaze, looking at those children playing in the park with me. "So parents should not forsake their children just because they want to be something different."

I leaned back and remarked dryly. "Then why did you do it?"

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