Episode 10

**Hey, How About Getting on the Bubble** (そうだ、バブルに乗ろう, *Sō da, Baburu ni Norō*?) is the tenth episode of the Anime. It was aired in Japan on March 15th, 2022.

## Synopsis

The matters between the Earthworld princes surrounding Mealtars is settled thanks to the clever plan by Wein. However, another problem arises when he receives an invitation from the King of Soljest. Therefore, Wein must travel through the vassal state of Marden whose leader Zeno seeks to ask him to marry her.

## Summary

Wein expresses his thanks to both Caldmellia and Gruyere Soljest for taking in the Mealtars refugees. They then negotiate the matters of whether the Levetian army shall assist in retaking Mealtars. On the off chance they refuse and they leave, the Mealtars citizens would fend for themselves and offer to purchase the surplus of supplies the Levatians have on hand at three times their cost. To sweeten the deal even further, a monument and temple would be erected in honor of their deeds once the war was over. Internally, Caldmellia wants to reject the proposal and torment Wein, however, this fails as Gruyere accepts it on the behalf of the two. His decision was made on his military power and background, which he deduced the battle would end in negotiation between the two Earthworld princes. In the chance of fallout, they'd force the Mealtars army to join them to fight against the empire. To that point, Caldmellia agrees to only sell the surplus, but their army will stay on stand by, until the Mealtar army has retaken the city. Wein agrees and shakes on the deal.

News of this transaction reaches Bardloche who receives a report that the Mealtars have taken arms and are currently marching toward them. Watching from afar, Wein tells Lowa that her older brother would not dare attack the army as that'd diminish the profit they would receive in the end when the city is overtaken. As Bardloche orders a message be sent to his brother, Wein suggests Lowa contact his brothers to hold a group meeting.

That evening, with Cosimo present, Wein and Lowa hold a meeting with Bardloche and Manfred to talk about the attempted assassination of Demetrio. After reviewing what's known about the assassination plot a bit, Wein reveals that Demetrio was the mastermind behind the assassination plot. He then goes on to explain the motive of Demetrio's own assassination plot and Lowa corroborates the claim. In light of these accusations, Cosimo claims that Mealtars had no knowledge of this and has banned any future association with Demetrio. Given the circumstances behind the situation, both Bardloche and Manfred concede.

The following day, Lowa and Cosimo, have a chat about the prior day's fiasco involving Manfred and Bardloche. Internally, Lowa notes that due to the recent change of events, Mealtars is now firmly ensconced in her faction. However, she is aware that not everyone in the city is on her side, which made her realize that strength is not omnipotent. Cosimo also details that the reason why Wein wanted to help Mealtars so much was in favor of his younger sister Falanya.

Back at the Natra Kingdom, Wein laughs aloud about his victory in Mealtars, until Ninym tells him to cut it out. So Wein then gloats about the major boost in their finances due to their accomplishment in Mealtars. Ninym then points out that Wein once plotted to sell the Natra Kingdom, but that has since changed since the kingdom is more financially stable and will enjoy this to the max. There's also the fact that the Marden Kingdom is now aligned with Natra, although the remaining eastern lands are in an unfavorable position with them. Ninym then brings up the fact that Marden would financially equal their kingdom within ten years and could declare independence. Right when Wein declares that another trading partner is needed to prevent such a thing, a retainer reports that an envoy from Soljest has arrived.

Zeno is soon informed by her retainer Jiva that Wein will arrive in Marden as he needs to cross their land in order to reach Soljest. Although Zeno wants to reinforce their allegiance with Natra, Jiva suggests that they readdress the disparities in their relationship. This would allow them to extract some concessions, but Zeno shows some disapproval towards that proposal. When asked what exactly did Jiva have in mind for concessions, he answers that Wein would marry Zeno, which surprises her. Despite him not giving a clear answer due to his prior commitment to Soljest, he wouldn't give an answer outright. However, it'd be in their best interest to propose it then to get their foot in the door. Considering the proposal, Zeno leans in favor of it as it'd help raise their standing with Natra, but only if Wein accepts it.

Meanwhile, Wein is riding on his carriage with Ninym whose hair was dyed to cover her natural hair color to Marden. They talk about whether or not Wein will marry Zeno or not, but he states that he wishes to stay single and will avoid the subject as much as he so can. At the Marden castle, Wein is greeted by Zeno and Jiva and immediately, Wein is overtaken by Zeno's bosom. During dinner, they discuss business involving the Delunio Kingdom's protest of goods. Zeno notes that the kingdom is very conservative, their king is quite young and most of the political matters are handled by their prime minister Sirgis. Furthermore, Sirgis is patriotic and an ardent follower of Levetia and seeks to purge foreign influences while preserving the kingdom's culture. Hence, Sirgis must hold a fair amount of resentment toward them. Wein advises Zeno to not take the matter seriously as the news was sent via letter and not in person. Zeno agrees to the advice and ends the conversation there, which irks Wein as he was expecting the marriage proposal to be brought up. This is later brought up in Wein's room and Wein believes that Zeno will definitely bring it up tomorrow.

The following day, under her masculine guise, Zeno shows both Wein and Ninym around the Marden city, and the final destination is the bronze statues erected in the central plaza. Wein brings up the fact that one day Marden can declare its independence because of its booming economy, however, Zeno declines as they enjoy being under Natra's leadership. The two then sit on a bench and discuss matters of bloodline and how unfair and partial it is. The focal point of the conversation is that all nobles came from commoner roots and that even a commoner could one day become a noble or even royalty. Moved and overwhelmed by the wise words that Wein spoke of whom though that Zeno would propose to marry him. However, due to her being overwhelmed with matters of her state, that'd be ill-advised.

Despite, Zeno not proposing to the Wein, she accepts the fact that she's not Queen material and happily hopes to continue supporting Natra, it's then that a retainer appears before Zeno and Jiva to inform them that Sirgis has arrived.

## Character

Characters in order of appearance.

* Wein Salema Arbalest
* Caldmellia
* Gruyere Soljest
* Cosimo
* Manfred Earthworld
* Bardloche Earthworld
* Lowellmina Earthworld
* Demetrio Earthworld
* Falanya Elk Abralest
* Ninym Ralei
* Zeno
* Jiva
* Sirgis (Mentioned)