Editing MaruMA:Doujinshi2:Story2.4

===There's Christmas in Shin Makoku too?===
Originally Published: Knecht Ruprecht
This version: NEWTYPE 2007 SPRING

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Walking through the castle's hallways, is the femme fatal mother, queen Lady von Spitzberg Cäcilie. By her side is Shin Makoku's most beautiful person Lord von Christ Günter .

They're so upset that, without realizing it, they're running rather than walking.  Not wanting the other one to beat them, they stop each other with their shoulders, walking side by side. They're walking so fast that if this were a race they would surely set some sort of record. Each of them are tightly holding onto a twig with leaves in their hands, which bends in their fists.

"How mean, Günter! I'm the one who heard about it!"

"Cherie-sama, don't you not only have three sons of marriageable age, but also  as many lovers as stars are in the sky in foreign countries!? On the other hand, I'm devoted to His Majesty. Please allow me to take care of this matter!"

"Oh, but you see? Within the country, I'm His Majesty's pure-hearted and beautiful devoted maiden. "

That was well said, for someone who has had many experiences in life. This place is the Blood Pledge Castle, in the capital city of Shin Makoku. They had only just welcomed winter, and the snow was already piling up.

Since the year begins in early spring, there were no EVENTS during winter.

Nonetheless, not only was the BODYGUARD and protector Lord Weller in the castle, but also, Lord von Bielefeld Wolfram who should have be studying about many different things in his uncle's territory.

All of them, felt a variety of different things for his Majesty the 27th Maou, Yuuri, who was also in the castle.

"Conrad!"

The voice of the man and woman harmonized perfectly, calling out to the young man who was standing. He was stirring the coal in the fireplace, retrieving the chestnuts that he had placed there before. 

"What is it?"

"Don't ask 'What is it?' ! Why didn't you tell me about this important piece of information?!"

"That's right Conrad.  I can't believe you kept such a secret from your mother! I won't forgive you."

While still holding the fire hook, Lord Weller directed his brown pupil to those two people. Even Wolfram, who was peacefully sitting on a rocking chair which was originally Yuuri's with an open book , looked up at his older brother, urging him to reply to his mother's words.

"I don't know what you're talking about....."

"Impossible. The girl that you're close friends with, the one who works in the kitchen. What was her name? Her cheeks are pink and she's really cute. I heard it from her."

"Ah! Are you talking about Effe? She recently remembered a recipe for lamb and grape wine, but she still can't make it properly, so she asked me to keep it a secret from everyone."

"It's not that, Conrad! "

The gorgeous educator interrupted him by stamping his foot in frustration. 

"That's not what this is about. We're talking about the information regarding an important seasonal event that takes place on Earth where His Majesty was brought up."

"A seasonal event?"

"Aan, enough, I can't take it anymore! Conrad, we're talking about Christmas! KU-RI-SU-MAa-SU!"

"Christmas? .... Ah! The event at the end of the year. What about it?"

Her dazzling curly golden hair swung from side to side as Cherie-sama cutely shook her head. 

"I heard there was a really nice tradition. On Christmas Eve, if two people are standing under a twig they must kiss."

"Now that you mention it, there is such a tradition."

He tilted his head  trying to remember the short time that he spent in that world. Indeed now that he heard about it again, such a custom existed. And he also had a feeling that he had mentioned something like that to Effe. Something like a convoy of lovers waiting, who became more and more passionate and happy as they got closer to that moment. He had indeed commented such a silly thing while making small talk.

"On Christmas Eve.... on the day of the celebration....  if you stand under a mistletoe, you have the right to kiss the person next to you. I had forgotten about it. But, yes, certainly, such custom exists."

"Right!?"

Günter and Cherie-sama simultaneously tied the twigs they were holding onto to their foreheads. They were supposed to be.... mistletoe twigs.

Conrad was confused, wondering whether this was something good or bad.

"That's not precisely .... how it works"

"But, in this way, if he's standing in front of me, he would be standing underneath the twig for sure, right?"

"I will not lose to you, Cherie-sama! I too, Günter, in this way, will become a  twig-mazoku."

"Mother"

The third son who had been silent until now, closed his book in an unnaturally loud fashion.

"Who are you ... going to kiss?"

"'Who', you ask? Isn't it obvious? "

She kept pressing the twig to her forehead, even though it was tied.

"His Majesty. His Ma-jes-ty ♥ "

"Which means.... that you are completely disregarding the fact that I, Yuuri's fiancé, am here, and you're thinking about kissing him?"

When people talk about us, they... Conrad muttered to himself while looking at the ceiling. People call us the three brothers who are nothing alike but since blood is thicker than water, some of our ways are indeed similar. For example, when Wolfram's anger reaches its peak, there's this rumbling threatening sound, as if the earth was shaking. Since the time it takes for him to explode is really short, people around him can't really tell, but when the eldest son is repressing his emotions, you can indeed hear the same sound.

"Regardless of how much I love you, mother, I can't forgive you for ignoring my existence and my love for Yuuri! No, in fact, it's 'because' you are my mother, that I can't forgive you! "

He slammed the book that was in his hand, and his beautiful face twisted with rage as he entered the fight.

"Yuuri used the old tradition of slapping the cheek to propose to no-other than me!  Mother, even you know that, right!?"

"Of course, I was there when he did it. If you two formally bind your love to one another in marriage, I'm planning to be right there at the ceremony to witness it. But, you know Wolf?" 

The queen put her index finger to her lips, and winked charmingly.

"That and what we're talking about now, are two completely different things. If you monopolize his Majesty who's so beautiful, you'll end up being punished by Majesty Shinou."

Separating mother and child, the teacher cried bitterly. His voice was completely different.

"Cherie-sama, Wolfram you too, calm down! You're not handling this like adults!"

"You are the most childish of us all!"

"Wait a moment! Mother, Wolfram, Günter, why are you getting this frantic over a simple kiss?"

If you see this from Conrad's point of view, who had stayed for a short time in America in the world where Yuuri was brought up, a kiss on the cheek was an normal way of greeting someone there. If you see this from the point of view of an unpopular Japanese high-school student, the interpretation would be completely different. But since Yuuri wasn't there to place any objections, Conrad was the one leading in that room.

"All three of you need to calm down. In the first place, do you even know why this Christmas event is held in the first place?"

"I don't know"

"Actually, me neither...."

It was expected that the Queen and the teacher would look a little bit apologetic about not knowing; only the third son Lord von Bielefeld, said 'that has nothing to do with me', arrogantly.

"All right, listen. In the world where His Majesty was brought up, Christmas is a traditional religious event. On Earth, there are many religions, and there are many types of gods, and among them, there's one called Jesus Christ..."

"Christ!?"

Everyone looked at Lord von Christ Günter at the same time.

"D-Does it have anything to do with me?"

"No."

"Conrad .... you don't need to say it so flatly...."

"I was saying, that Christmas is the celebration of the nativity of Jesus. So to speak, if you follow the tradition of kissing on the lips, or kisses, you'd be celebrating a festivity for the god of another country. We, in order to live as proud mazoku, can't split our hearts in two. Wouldn't it be outrageous to forget about the Shinou's will by getting all worked up about a festivity for a pagan god? That's what I wanted to ask you all."

It was strange for him, who usually smiled in a discreet good-natured way, to fold his arms and lean back slightly while speaking in a consciously intimidating way.

"If after knowing what the event is about, you still want to make a fuss about the kiss under the mistletoe, then I have to assume...."

"Love conquers all " 

Where's Hound dog? Where's Kohei Otomo singing those lines?<ref>Band: Hound dogs, Singer: Kohei Otomo, Song: FF  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIGuKnKZ1lo</ref> Her young and tight cheeks, that one wouldn't be able to imagine someone the age of the Sexy Queen could have, flushed.

"Everything else is powerless in the face of love. There's nothing more important in this world than love."

"How wonderful, Cherie-sama! It seems like the years haven't taken the best of you."

"Oh, no! My beautiful years have simply accumulated for a long time."

"When it comes to love, no one can surpass mother."

The second son wasn't even able to finish saying 'hey, hey, wait!' when the other three quickly formed an alliance, forgetting all about the pagan festival to honor a god from a different world, admirably overcoming the rivalry among them. In the eyes of the united front, only Conrad was the enemy.

"So now, Conrad, won't you tell us about the things you do for Christmas?"

"What you do for Christmas... well, before putting up a tree and giving out presents, you have Christmas carols, worshiping God, and uhm... Christmas cards..."

The three prisoners of love with shining eyes really couldn't care less about the Christmas Eve traditions.

".... It seems you only want to know about the kiss under the mistletoe right?"

Conrad sighed as he dropped his shoulders and took the little twig that the queen was still pressing against her forehead. Since Günter had tied his really well, the twig wasn't moving an inch.

"Indeed if two people are standing under the mistletoe at the same time, even if they aren't lovers, tradition states that they can still kiss. However you can't tie the twig to your own forehead. It has to be here."

He extended his right hand pointing to the top of the door frame.

"You have to put it as a decoration about here. In that way, any two people who cross the door have a CHANCE, right?"

"I see, in that way, it would be equal and competitive."

"That's right. Everyone's equal in the eyes of Love."

"Which means that there are winners and losers, right?"

Seeing all three of them selfishly deciding that, made him feel sorry for Yuuri. A man, a man, and one who was really old. On top of that, he couldn't even pick.

"There's something I want to ask you, what kind of feelings do you want to confirm from his majesty....?"

"Since he's only a child, he can't take the initiative"

"I can't have a man reject me "

"At least once, I'd like my dreams to come true"

The three of them answered in three different ways, but in the end they were saying the same thing. In other words " just to do it".

"Well, I need to go get something to fasten this so, for the time being just wait calmly."

"You're not just saying that, planning to escape, right Conrad?"

Wolfram put one foot forward as if he wanted to be praised for beating him to the punch.

"No way. If after I leave you start making your own rules, that would be unfortunate for his Majesty, wouldn't it?"

"Then, it's okay."

After taking a long time, Conrad returned with the string and metal fixtures, and hung the green twig on the highest part of the door in the living room.

"This is the official mistletoe. Günter, the one tied to your forehead doesn't count. Don't annoy his Majesty by simply standing in front of him trying to get a kiss"

"I- I know that already!"

He seemed to panic for a moment, as it seems he was expecting he would be able to do just that.

Conrad got all three of them as far away from the door as possible, and they were so close to the fireplace they were almost falling into it. Then, he drew a straight line on the marble decorations and the beautiful stone floor.

"All right, everyone has to be standing behind this line. Once his Majesty starts walking down the hall, I'll make a countdown and when I say so, you can all start running at the same time. Then whoever gets to the door at the same time as Yuuri, is the winner. How about that?"

"A-and whoever wins can take the hot lips of his Majesty as a prize, right?"

If you're this excited about it now, what will happen next?

"Cut it out, Günter. You have a position to think about! You are the educator of Yuuri, the king. Your social standings are different..."

"I don't need to hear that from you! If you're thinking about social standings, putting aside the fact that a year ago you were the Royal Prince, right now you and I have the same social standing."

"I'll say it again, I'm his fiancé."

"Even if you're his fiancé, if your love doesn't progress, he's much better off with someone who he can trust no matter what, someone he confides in"

While trying to separate the super gorgeous man and the super good looking youth, the average looking second son felt like crying.

"Stop it you two! Günter, that's not how an adult should behave, right?

Well, actually both of them were really old.

"In any case, just stand behind the line and wait for my signal to START. All right? Did you understand?"

"Uhm... I have a question"　

Cherie-sama raised her hand next to her face. If one were to look at her, it would be impossible to believe she could be that cute at her age.

"Is there something that you don't understand, mother?"

"No, I understand the rules. But, you see, what will 'you' do?"

"Do about what?"

Looking like the incarnation of Venus, the queen, Lady von Spitzweg Cäcilie used her charming smile that could make anyone but her own sons fall madly in love with her, to ask her question.

"Conrad, don't you want to kiss his Majesty's lips?"

This was dangerous.

If they were not mother and son, he could simply stay quiet, right? But if during an interrogation one stays quiet, even an innocent person is seen as guilty. Luckily, Conrad is her son, and since she's his mother, she doesn't count as a woman. But no matter how sexy she looks while asking this question, you really can't feel that she's old enough to know any better.

"I don't particularly have such feelings.  Well now, Your Majesty the Queen, wouldn't it be better if you took off those high heeled shoes?"

"It would, wouldn't it? Ah! But no, we weren't talking about that. So, you are really not interested in participating? Don't go off crying all by yourself later."

"I won't, of course. And by the way, Christmas is not a match or a contest."

But even so, Cherie continued murmuring" I still think that I'm right", In that case, if it was me who could not participate I'd be crying...", when suddenly they felt footsteps approaching down the corridor. Everyone suddenly went quiet as if a bucket of water had been dropped on them.

"Reaaally clean, how clean?  Completely clean ♪"<ref>He's singing this to the tune of Silent Night.</ref>

Yuuri was in a thickly-wadded large-size kimono, carrying bathtub GOODS next to his chest, with a towel hanging from his neck. He seemed really happy. To be honest, you couldn't call this 'old fart'-looking person a TEEN, even if only to be polite.

However.

"After the ofuro he sure is sparkling and shiny."

" Oh! Shouldn't we worship his dazzling face?"

"The color of his wet hair is fascinating"

"He was in the middle of a song. His Majesty is so lovely!"

All of them were rotten<ref>She's using the same rotten as the one for 'rotten girl'.</ref>.

When he noticed an array of people, he waved with his wet towel.

"Eh? Why is everyone standing over there? And on top of that in a straight line?"

The hearts of the three people waiting silently started beating faster. Conrad was looking at the time. It was still too soon, if he didn't wait a little bit longer this would not end well.

Yuuri kept approaching. The hearts of three people were racing.

"What are you doing, leaving the door open? All the heat from the fireplace is gonna go to waste."

"On your marks!"

"Say, what are you doing?"

Clop clop.

"Get set"

Clop, clop, clop, clop.

"GO!"

The twig hung on the doorway shook.  Six legs ran across the living room trying to make it to the door.

"Uwah! Is this a three people, four leg race or something!?

........... But faster than them were the four legs coming from the other side of the corridor, who reached Yuuri from behind.

"A-a horse?"

Black as the night, and with a sturdy body, the lady snuggled to her master, right under the mistletoe.

"Ao"

It was the black, wonderful, mischievous mare he rode when he first entered the capital, who smiled just like Ed<ref>Mister Ed.</ref>. Reuniting with her after a long time, Yuuri started stroking her wide neck.

"Wah, Ao! It's been a long time! How have you been? Do you have money? Did you make any new friends?"

When are you coming home? Wait, that's Sada Masashi<ref>A singer, and here's the song : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rEaOXJup2Zw</ref>.

"A-a horse... why?"

"Well, she was the first one to reach his Majesty and stand under the mistletoe with him. I guess it's the horse's WIN. Look, instead of kissing him, she's licking his whole face."

"Ugyaa, enough you! Even if you miss me a lot, gyaaaa it's all sticky! I just got out of the tub! "

As the horse's tongue was covering him in saliva, Yuuri was half crying, half laughing. On the other hand, the people who were aiming for the kiss, were stunned and couldn't accept what had happened.

"Why is there a horse here.....?  Who has the key to the stables?"

With both of his hands turned into trembling fists, Günter looked up and towards Lord Weller, the only one who wasn't depressed about what had just happened.

"You didn't Conrad... a moment ago... when you left the room"

"Did you open the door to the stables!?"

With a smiling face that wouldn't accept complains, he blocked the words directed at him.

"I guess I forgot to check if it was closed, huh?"

"Ugh.... ugh... Co-Conrad..."

"For the time being, wipe your nose."

"I don't accept this!"

His beautiful Vienna Boys' Choir voice changed completely. Wolfram was shaking his fist. He was ready to accuse Ao saying he won the race to get 'the tossed on the gravel Yuuri', no, I mean Yuuri, unfairly.

"I don't accept this! It's unreasonable to think that such a horseplayer should benefit from Christmas!"

"Even if you say that Wolf, the most important figure of Christmas, Jesus Christ, was born in the manger of a stable (for horses)."

"That has nothing to do with this!  It's horseplay, horseplay<ref>Horseplay as in a prank, something foolish, or something to describe someone who fools around. Cherie says that the horse wasn't fooling around, that she really loved Yuuri.</ref>!

"It's not horseplay."

Wolfram, who was so frustrated he couldn't deal with it, turned around to see his mother. His lips stop after the 'mo' in 'mother'.

"It's just that, that horse loves his Majesty so much"

"Even if you say that..... mother....."

"No, Wolf."

She said the lines decidedly and they echoed twice as much due to her beauty.

"Love conquers all! " 

Out of the five people there, only one of them, Conrad, thought " I wonder about that",  but he was not as insensitive as to purposely say something like that outloud at the time. Making her dazzling blonde curls swing, Cäcilie raised her chin.

"Everyone's equal in the eyes of Love. Mazoku or horse, it doesn't matter."

".................."

"Dobyyuugyaaaaa"

With the ORIGINAL scream that was heard, everyone, those who agreed with Cherie-sama and Conrad who wasn't sure, Wolfram to whom his mother was telling this to, and Yuuri who was being licked and bitten, everyone stopped for a moment.

"What is it?"

"The plant, the plant, the plant!!! What is this thing!? S-s-s-s-someone help me!! help me!"

"Günter"

The twig that was attached to his forehead started growing and it headed towards the ceiling.

"What is it Günter? Is it a complicated majutsu?

"N-n-n-no, your Majesty!"

He started turning blue out of fear as his skin was being covered by the vine. The leaves had increased by 20 percent. To try and obtain sunlight the vine started to move around making a rustling sound.

"Ah, the plant has started to take over. This is actually not an average mistletoe but a parasitic type of mistletoe."

"Don't sound so relaxed, Conrad"

On Earth you could never encounter such a fun... frightful situation involving a parasitic plant.

"Don't get any closer Günter, it's contagious, right!?"

"How cold! You won't catch it! You won't catch it, so please Wolfram, burn it with your flames!"

"But if I do that, you'll burn too"

"Say Günter, what is this? A new type of after dinner entertainment?"

Conrad took the fire hook from the fireplace, and pressed right in the middle of the root of the plant. Then he removed the growing plant from Günter, the host.

One of the maids who was walking by, stopped to look at the frightening festival of a different country, and then went on to tell all of her friends about it. After this and for a while, Lord von Christ Günter was secretly called by a nickname.

........................ Mistletoe guy.






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==References ==
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