@facelessman97
Those are definitely valid reasonings. I can see, and even agree with them. I mean, I can kinda try and justify them, but they are still pretty valid.
Mostly I would be defending Freya, though. The other two? Yeah, dropped the ball.
Aura had stated right away that she wanted to marry him because of both his bloodline and because of her country's view of women in power and how he would not be able to oust her.
While I can see how, after years living together, they would develop feelings, there was indeed not enough work done through the story with them together for that.
And the other characters, mainly Zenchirou, kinda suffer for that.
Zenchirou is reactionary at best. While he does have his moments of good thinking he seems more of a drone of Aura than his own person.
I think it is a cultural thing, though. Zenchirou is japanese, and at least in their media they portray their loyalty to their bosses and work structure to an obsessive point sometimes.
How many isekai/reincarnation mangas are about people that died of overwork?
At least Aura is a good boss. Sure, he is not being given the sedentary life he was promised, but that's because he was kinda competent thus promoted to a life with more responsibilities but also more rewards.
That said, we once again missed much with how their relationship developed. Or had the development skipped.
With his refusal to take concubines even after she said it was not just alright but expected, if it
was just a contractual marriage this would allow him to look into a girl he was actually into to take as one.
And maybe push Aura into jealously and into investing herself more into proving herself as the main woman, actually becoming a character instead of a hot body and a concept of queen we mostly only see in small scenes now.
Freya... well, indeed her introduction kinda wedged into the story the idea of harems at all.
But I guess they kinda needed to add them, and her.
Without focusing much on the pair's relationship, and their internal problems apparently solved, they needed an edge into international issues.
The reasoning of a magical tool for safer birth is kinda iffy to me, after her having a first child already. If I remember right he was just being a worrywart?
But adding court and courting issues to the equation improves things. And I very much doubt Lucrezia would have been the best choice to use to open those floodgates.
And yeah, her reasoning for falling for him is kinda flimsy.
But... I guess you may not agree but for me it helps her that, unlike Aura, we actually see her accompany him and learning from each other. She is actually trying to get into his life and work her way inside.
She is what we wanted Aura to be, in all but the fanservice scenes.