The next morning...
"So..." Framea drawled, raising an eyebrow at her brother as she glanced over at the little white-haired girl sitting quietly at the breakfast table. "...you have a kid now. Not expecting one on the way, of course."
"Well, it's a long story," Rimuru replied with a shrug as he took another bite of his omelet. "But basically, yes. Aurora here is our daughter. We adopted her yesterday."
"Well, brother, you sure move fast," Framea muttered under her breath, shaking her head as she turned her attention fully toward Aurora. After giving the girl a quick once-over, her expression softened into a warm smile. "Hello, Aurora. I am Framea, this lovable idiot's sister, and I suppose that makes me your aunt."
"Hello." Aurora gave her a polite little wave and a small smile, but she couldn't help staring at Framea for a moment longer than she probably should have. 'Framea...' she thought to herself, unable to shake the strange feeling that had settled over her as she couldn't help but see how uncanny the resemblance was. This woman looked almost exactly like her best friend from another world, someone she had shared countless memories and experiences with. Seeing that familiar face sitting right in front of her was already strange enough, but the fact that this Framea was now supposed to be her aunt made the whole situation even more surreal.
On the other side of the table, Framea noticed Aurora staring at her and tilted her head in confusion. "Uh... Aurora? Is there something on my face?" she asked, instinctively reaching up to touch her face.
Hearing Framea's question, Aurora immediately snapped out of her thoughts. "No! Sorry. It's nothing," she quickly replied, shaking her head before adding, "I just think you look pretty," with an innocent, childlike sincerity.
Framea froze for a moment, clearly caught off guard by the unexpected compliment, before her face lit up with delight. "Aww! You're so sweet!" she exclaimed with a beaming smile. "Thank you, Aurora. And you're cute too," she added warmly before reaching across the table and gently patting Aurora on the head.
"By the way, just so you know, I'm adopted into this family too, just like you," Framea added kindly, with a soft smile. "So if you ever need anything, or if you happen to feel out of place on some random rainy day, just come to me. Your super-duper strong and knowledgeable aunt will give you a three-star-rated solution to any problem you have!" she finished proudly, flashing Aurora a grin as she flexed her squishy arm, which had not a single visible muscle in sight.
"T-t-thank you," Aurora replied with a small smile, though she couldn't help feeling secretly amused by just how familiar Framea's cheerful personality and warmth toward the people she cared about felt, despite the obvious differences between them. That familiar attitude of doing anything and going to any lengths for the people she loved was already very clear to Aurora from her new aunt's words.
Meanwhile, Rimuru, who had been watching their interaction from the corner of his eye, couldn't help but shake his head in mild amusement. Somehow, the way things had turned out didn't disappoint him at all. Of course, he knew that Aurora meeting the people she had been close to in her old world would make for some interesting interactions, but he had also been fairly confident that none of those meetings would turn out negatively. After all, he had based Framea's personality, along with those of the other girls' counterparts, closely on their real personalities. Because of that, Aurora should have a much easier time connecting with them in this world, even if their lives and circumstances were completely different.
With that out of the way, the conversation gradually settled down, and the three of them returned to their breakfast while Aurora continued eating her omelet, occasionally glancing between Rimuru and Framea as she quietly listened to the two siblings talk.
"Oh, by the way," Rimuru said, suddenly remembering something. "Where's Moana this morning?" he asked Framea after taking another bite of his breakfast.
"Oh, she's at Veldora-sama's house," Framea replied as she squeezed some hot sauce onto her plate. "She's making sure he cleans the place."
Rimuru paused mid-bite for a moment before raising an eyebrow as an amused smile slowly formed on his face. "Oh? That sounds amusing. Tell me more."
Shuna, who had been listening to their conversation from the kitchen, couldn't help but join in. "It seems Veldora-sama's misfortune was that Lady Moana happened to visit him last night, right before the maids came to clean his house," she explained with a quiet chuckle. "Apparently, what she found wasn't exactly what one would call an acceptable living space."
"Yeah, I was with her, and you should've seen the state of the living room," Framea snorted, rolling her eyes as she recalled the mess. "There were snack crumbs scattered all over the floor, manga piled up practically everywhere, and all sorts of other things left lying around. It looked as though the room had never experienced the touch of a broom in its entire existence."
Meanwhile, Aurora, who had been quietly listening to their conversation, looked up as Shuna approached the table carrying another freshly made omelet. "Here you are, Lady Aurora," she said as she stopped beside her and respectfully held the plate out to her.
"Oh, thank you," Aurora replied politely as she accepted the omelet.
"You're very welcome," Shuna said, giving her a warm smile. "And remember, you don't have to be shy about asking for anything you like. If there's something else you'd like to eat, just tell me without hesitation, alright?"
"O-o-okay," Aurora nodded, still trying to get used to being treated with such care and consideration, especially by her father's subordinates.
"Good," Shuna said before turning her attention back to Rimuru and Framea. "Anyway, from what I heard, Moana was both furious and embarrassed when she saw the state of the living room. So, first thing this morning, she stormed off to find Veldora-sama and gave him quite the scolding before dragging him back to their house."
"And you know the best part?" Framea grinned impishly while leaning forward. "Veldora-sama didn't even try to argue or fight back against her. He just allowed Moana to drag him off with a completely defeated expression on his face."
Upon hearing that, Rimuru immediately burst out laughing. "Of course that happened!" he said, shaking his head as he tried to imagine the scene playing out in his head. "I've already told Veldora that he needs to start acting more responsibly now that he has a daughter to look after. I told him he can't just spend all his time reading manga while neglecting everything else in his life." He eventually managed to calm himself down before adding, "But seriously, you'd think having Moana around would've taught him that by now."
"Well, apparently not," Framea replied, taking another bite of her omelet. "Although, Velzard-sama looked pretty entertained and proud of Moana," she added with a snort.
"Of course she was," Rimuru said, rolling his eyes as a knowing smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. "That said, maybe this will finally do the trick and serve as a proper wake-up call for him," he added with a shrug. "If nothing else, having his own daughter around might finally convince him to take better care of his belongings and stop treating his house like some kind of storage room for snacks and manga."
Aurora, meanwhile, listened to their conversation with growing curiosity. After all, she had only been here for a short while, yet she was already getting a glimpse into the rather unusual family she had apparently become a part of.
Just then, a cheerful hum drifted down from the hallway, followed by the light sound of footsteps coming down the stairs, and a moment later, Milim appeared, practically skipping her way down as she happily hummed a tune to herself. But the moment she reached the final step, her eyes landed on Aurora, and she abruptly stopped in her tracks while Aurora noticed her arrival as well and looked up from her breakfast, looking right back at the pink-haired girl.
For several seconds, neither of them said a word as they simply stared at each other until eventually, Milim slowly approached the white-haired girl, studying her with an increasingly puzzled expression. She couldn't quite put her feelings into words, but she was certain there was something about Aurora that felt strangely familiar. And it made no sense to her, especially since Milim knew with absolute certainty that she had never met this girl before.
There was also something else that Milim couldn't quite explain as she wondered how and why simply looking at this girl filled her with an inexplicable sense of warmth and kinship, as though she were standing in front of someone who was somehow incredibly close to her. It was a bizarre feeling, one that Milim couldn't remember ever experiencing before. And yet, at the same time, every instinct in her body was practically screaming that the harmless-looking little girl sitting at the table was the most terrifying existence in the entire world.
Honestly, none of it made the slightest bit of sense to Milim, to the point that she even found herself questioning whether her own instincts had somehow malfunctioned. 'Huh? Did my instincts break?' she wondered, staring at Aurora for another moment before quickly dismissing the thought. After all, Milim trusted her gut feeling, and despite sensing absolutely no hostility from Aurora and seeing nothing remotely threatening about her, Milim still turned toward Rimuru with a confused expression and asked, "Rimuru, who is that?" while pointing toward Aurora.
"Oh, her?" Rimuru asked, looking at Milim before glancing toward Aurora. "That's Aurora. She's my daughter."
"Oh, that makes sense," Milim nodded to herself before suddenly freezing as her mind caught up with his words, and she whipped her head towards him. "YOUR DAUGHTER?! What the hell do you mean by your daughter!?" she exclaimed, and before Rimuru could even react, Milim suddenly appeared beside him, grabbed him by the shoulders, and began shaking him violently. "HOW?! WHEN?! WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME?! HOW DID YOU SUDDENLY GET A DAUGHTER?!"
"Milim, stop shaking me!" Rimuru groaned as his head bounced back and forth. "It's a long story!"
"I don't care if it's a long story! Explain!" Milim demanded as Rimuru did his best to pry her hands away from him.
Watching their antics, Framea immediately burst out laughing at the ridiculous sight, while Shuna simply watched the two of them with an amused smile. Aurora, meanwhile, couldn't help but giggle softly as she watched Milim mercilessly shake her father around like a rag doll. Despite the amusing scene unfolding before her, however, her attention soon returned to Milim, and a warm yet slightly melancholy smile appeared on her face as she couldn't help but see a familiar presence in Milim's silhouette, stirring memories deep within her.
Her thoughts immediately drifted toward her other half, the one who had once been the closest existence to her in the entire world, the one she had once longed for above all else, to the point that thoughts of her had consumed nearly every corner of Aurora's mind. Fortunately, that was no longer who she was, and she had grown beyond those feelings and learned how to live as her own person, separate from the existence she had once defined herself through. Even so, seeing Milim standing right in front of her inevitably brought some of those old emotions back to the surface, and Aurora quietly lowered her gaze toward her breakfast, allowing the melancholy to linger for a brief moment before taking a slow breath and gently pushing it aside.
Meanwhile, Rimuru finally managed to pry Milim's hands away from his shoulders and held her firmly by the shoulders, keeping her at arm's length. "What the hell is wrong with you?!" he demanded, staring at her in disbelief. "Why are you suddenly so upset about me having a kid?!"
Milim froze at his question, opening her mouth as though she were about to give him an answer, only to pause when she realized that she didn't actually have one. Honestly, she hadn't really thought about why she was upset in the first place. She had simply gotten caught up in the moment and acted on her initial reaction without stopping to question it. "Uh..." she muttered awkwardly before rubbing the back of her head with a sheepish smile. "I... don't know?"
Rimuru stared at her for a long, painfully silent moment before finally asking, "You don't know?" with a completely deadpan expression.
"I got carried away," Milim replied cheerfully, as though that somehow explained everything.
"You..." Rimuru sighed, shaking his head.
"Hehe..." Milim stuck out her tongue and giggled innocently before turning her attention toward Aurora, deliberately avoiding the increasingly exasperated stare of her beast friend.
Milim then approached Aurora once more, but this time, there was none of the strange caution she had shown earlier. Instead, she stopped in front of Aurora and gave the little girl a huge, cheerful smile. "Hello! I'm Milim, Rimuru's best friend! And since you're Rimuru's daughter, that means I'm your aunt! And not just any aunt, either. I'll be the best aunt you could ever have!"
"Hey!" Framea, who was sitting across the table, immediately shot to her feet and protested Milim's outrageous claim.
"Huh?" Milim glanced toward Framea in confusion, tilting her head to the side.
"I'm saying, how can you possibly be the best aunt when Rimuru's actual sister is sitting right here?!" Framea pointed toward herself with an offended expression.
"Oh, that's easy!" Milim replied confidently, pointing her thumb at her own chest. "Because I am the best at having fun!"
"That doesn't even make sense!" Framea rolled her eyes before turning toward Aurora. "Don't listen to her, Aurora. This so-called 'fun' aunt of yours doesn't even have a real job to call her own, and she won't be able to buy you any fun gifts..." As she spoke, an imaginary animated arrow appeared to strike Milim directly in the heart, "...unlike me, your real aunt, who not only has a very important job but also knows the best places to have fun in all of Tempest," she added proudly, lifting her chin while rubbing underneath her nose with a smug grin.
"You..." Milim puffed out her cheeks like an angry hamster as she glared at Framea. "That's so mean!" she complained, stomping her feet against the floor in childish indignation.
"I'm just stating the facts," Framea replied, folding her arms across her chest with an unbearably smug smile.
"Take it back!"
"No."
"Take it back!"
"Nope."
"Frameaaaa!"
"Milimmmm!
"Frameaaaa!"
"Milimmmm!
"Frameaaaa!"
"Milimmmm!
"Narutoooo!, Sasukeeee!"
"What!?" Milim and Framea turned toward Rimuru, who had suddenly shouted out some weird names before quickly ignoring him again and going right back to glaring at each other.
Meanwhile, Aurora watched the two of them bicker for a few more seconds before realizing that, if they continued like this, there was no telling how long they would keep arguing over something so silly. So, with a small sigh, she pushed herself out of her chair and stepped between them.
"Um... you don't have to fight over me," Aurora said softly, causing both girls to immediately fall silent and look down at her. "I don't want you two fighting because of me. And isn't it possible for both of you to be my best aunts?" Aurora gave them a sweet smile before continuing, "Can't you just share?"
Her words seemed to work like magic because the moment they heard them, Milim's angry expression softened, while Framea's smug grin gradually faded away. Neither of them wanted to upset Aurora, especially when the little girl was looking at them with such an earnest and pleading expression.
Then, after a brief silence, Framea finally extended her hand toward Milim. "Fine," she muttered, her expression still carrying a hint of reluctance. "Best aunts together?"
Milim glanced at the offered hand for a moment before letting out a small sigh. "Fine. Best aunts together." She reached out and took Framea's hand, accepting the compromise.
The two girls shook hands, officially sealing their little agreement, while Aurora's face immediately brightened. She let out a quiet sigh of relief, happy that the two of them had finally stopped fighting... at least for now, anyway.
Rimuru, who had been watching the entire exchange from nearby, couldn't help but shake his head with an amused smile. Seeing Aurora step in and effortlessly bring two powerful women to an agreement made him feel that the title of "Dragon of New Beginning" he had given his daughter wasn't just for show.
After that little comedic incident between Milim and Framea finally came to an end, the atmosphere around the table quickly returned to normal, and everyone went back to enjoying their breakfast. Thankfully, the rest of the meal passed without any further incidents, allowing them to eat in relative peace.
Once everyone had finished eating, Framea reluctantly prepared to leave for work, knowing that she still had responsibilities to take care of, which meant she couldn't spend the rest of the day with Aurora. However, just before she left, she couldn't resist shooting one last glare in Milim's direction after the pink-haired girl deliberately provoked her by sticking out her tongue with a smug grin.
After all, unlike Framea, who actually had an important job involving quality testing in a rapidly growing nation like Tempest, Milim had absolutely no responsibilities in Tempest and more free time than she knew what to do with. That meant she could spend practically the entire day with Aurora, something that, in Milim's mind, gave her a considerable advantage in their newly established competition with Framea. The ribbit-girl, on the other hand, could only huff in annoyance before finally heading out, leaving Milim standing there with a smug, victorious expression on her face.
Rimuru, however, had no intention of getting involved in their childish antics. Instead, he decided that today would be a good opportunity to kill two birds with one stone. First, since this was Aurora's first full day in Tempest, he wanted to show her around Rimuru City and help her become familiar with the place she would be calling home.
Second, he wanted to take the opportunity to explore the city himself and see how everything was progressing. After all, despite being the ruler of Tempest, he had never really had the chance to properly look around, what with everything that had been happening in his life. So today, he decided to take things at a slower pace, explore the city alongside Aurora, see everything it had to offer, and get a better sense of what was working well and what could still be improved.
With that in mind, Rimuru and Aurora soon headed outside together. However, just before stepping through the door, the little girl shyly approached her father and reached for his hand, gently taking hold of it. Rimuru glanced down at her and smiled softly before giving her hand a gentle, reassuring squeeze. The simple gesture seemed to ease whatever nervousness she had been feeling, and Aurora let out a quiet sigh of relief before returning his smile. Meanwhile, Milim, completely oblivious to their little exchange, happily tagged along behind them.
******
While Rimuru was enjoying some quality bonding time with his daughter, far away in the Otherworld, Feldway, General of the Original Angels and leader of the Phantom Race, stood in silence before a devastated battlefield, with the crumbling Spooky Palace looming in the distance as a grim backdrop, serving as a stark reminder of the colossal failure that had unfolded here.
At the moment, however, he could only grit his teeth as he glared down at the subordinates kneeling before him as his patience finally snapped, and he couldn't help but yell in disbelief...
"What the hell do you mean by 'someone took the World Destroying Dragon away?'"
To be continued...
******
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