Chapter 13:
Farewells and Changes
ON THE DAY we planned to depart, a visitor came to our mansion first thing in the morning.
It was Ghislaine. And she'd brought three wooden swords with her. She didn't explain the purpose of her visit, but she didn't really need to, either. Eris and I both took a wooden sword, got dressed, and headed out back.
The mansion's backyard was relatively large, but it was also full of flowerbeds, which made it feel a bit cramped. Still, we had enough space for our purposes.
Eris and I faced Ghislaine with our swords in our hands. A blearyeyed Sylphie looked on from a chair a short distance away. The maids, who were already hard at work, were shooting puzzled glances our way as well.
"Let's begin the training session."
At these words from Ghislaine, Eris and I brought our swords to our waist and bowed.
"We're ready."
Ghislaine nodded briefly and raised her sword. We followed suit.
"All right. Practice swings first! One! Two!"
Eris and I swung our swords in time with Ghislaine's shouts and movements. In the early-morning silence, our wooden blades sliced audibly through the air.
My swings were slower and less clean than those of Eris or Ghislaine. But Ghislaine wasn't yelling criticism at me. Back in the day, she used to shout things like "Keep your arms in tight!" or "Watch the tip of your sword!" every time I practiced with her.
Maybe she wasn't going to bother today.
"Rudeus! Stay focused!"
"Right!"
Apparently, I'd jumped to conclusions.
Still, she wasn't saying anything about my stance. I guess I had that part down solid, at least. I had been practicing my swing and the basic forms on a regular basis for many years now, so I suppose I'd improved significantly.
"198! 199! 200! Stop!"
After we'd been going for a while, Ghislaine abruptly cut us off. There was sweat glistening on her forehead, and the same was true of Eris.
Two hundred wasn't that many swings. But they'd used all their strength for every single one of them. It wasn't about the numbers. Still, they weren't breathing hard or anything. Neither was I, for that matter. The practice swings were just our warm-up exercise.
"Forms next! We'll begin with Swift Wind!"
"Yes!"
Eris and I lifted our swords again and began to practice set motions of the Sword God forms. I didn't hesitate; these were the fundamental movements of this style, and I knew them by heart. I'd even taught them to Norn back in Ranoa. Since my marriage to Eris, I'd also practiced with her almost every day.
"All right! Stop!"
Once we'd worked our way through all the basic forms used in training, Ghislaine called out to us again.
"Pair off!"
At these words, Eris and I turned to face each other. This was a command to begin practicing with one of your fellow students. In most cases, this involved one student repetitively attacking the other in a specific manner.
In kendo, at least, you were supposed to have the less skilled partner take the role of attacker; but we always had Eris swing at me instead. That was how we'd done it back when we were kids, and we stuck with it after our marriage. It just felt more natural that way.
"Begin!"
"Raaaah!"
As soon as Ghislaine gave the signal, Eris went on the offensive. She was sticking to the standard practice forms, so her movements weren't impossibly fast. Her sword moved just slow enough to allow me to respond. And she stopped her swings at the last moment when they would have struck me.
Of course, the Sword God Style didn't teach you how to do that. When we were kids, she was constantly smacking me when we practiced. But things were different now. She'd learned a lot since then.
"Alternate!"
When we switched roles, my attacks were totally ineffective. I didn't have to worry about stopping my sword; Eris took care of that for me just fine. The difference in our skill level was obvious. I could have put up a slightly better fight by relying on my Eye of Foresight, but I didn't activate it. I hadn't gained this power back when we were in Fittoa, so I wasn't going to use it. Not this time.
"All right! Stop!"
At Ghislaine's command, Eris and I lowered our swords.
Normally, the next stage would be a freeform sparring session. Putting me up against Eris without my magic or Demon Eye wouldn't make for much of a contest, of course…
To my surprise, Ghislaine turned to me and jerked her head. "Rudeus, step aside and observe!"
As I moved out of the way, Ghislaine stepped forward into my place. I backed away another five paces and kneeled on the grass.
Facing off against her student, Ghislaine brought her sword behind her waist. "This will be the last time, Eris."
"…Right."
Nodding, Eris lifted her own sword high above her head. It was a stance she never used when practicing with me. Ghislaine would be "drawing" and attacking in a single motion, and Eris would be swinging downward with all her might. It made for quite a contrast.
The world seemed to stop moving entirely, and time itself slowed to a crawl. Cold sweat trickled down my back. I couldn't shake the feeling they were holding real swords in their hands.
That moment seemed to last an eternity. But then there was a small gust of wind.
This time, there was no formal signal.
A loud smack reverberated through the air.
They'd moved too quickly for my eyes to follow. All I got to see was the end result.
Eris and Ghislaine were standing with their swords outstretched at each other. The only real difference was that Ghislaine's blade had been broken at the base.
Eris' sword was slightly bent, but it was pressed to her master's neck.
"…"
"…"
The two of them stayed in that position for a moment, then slowly pulled their weapons back. For some reason, Eris had a little scowl on her face.
Her expression solemn, Ghislaine nodded to her student. "That concludes our training session."
"Thank you very much!" I shouted, bowing from my seated position.
When I looked up again, Eris still had her head lowered. She was biting her lip, her forehead was all crinkled up…and her cheeks were trembling.
"Well then, Lady Eris… farewell."
"Pl-Please take c-care of yourself, Master!" Eris looked up with tears swimming in her eyes, then bowed her head a second time.
Ghislaine didn't say anything else. She gave me one last meaningful look, then walked off without another word.
With that glance, she'd asked me to look after Eris for her. I felt very confident of that.
Rising to my feet, I bowed to Ghislaine one last time, bending deeply at the waist. She was the woman who had taught me the ways of the sword, and the woman who kept Eris safe for many years. I couldn't thank her enough for that. I really couldn't.
The instant Ghislaine passed out of view, Eris broke down in tears. She cried so loudly I think everyone on the block could hear her.
***
Later that morning, when it was time for us to leave, a large number of visitors stopped by to say their farewells to Sylphie.
Many of them were nobles from Ariel's faction who knew Sylphie as Silent Fitz. They hadn't even known she was a woman, and seemed quite surprised to learn she was married to me. That didn't change their respectful attitude, however. One by one, they briefly expressed their gratitude and then bid her farewell. Sylphie kept a smile on her face the entire time, but I could tell she was mostly just being polite. When it was finally over, she let out a long-suffering sigh and muttered, "This sort of thing really wears me out."
When Ariel's two attendants showed up, though, her face lit up with genuine happiness. I didn't know Ellemoi Bluewolf and Cleane Elrond very well myself, but they were close friends of Sylphie's. Their goodbyes were long and tearful, and involved a lot of promising to meet again someday.
Our last visitor was Luke.
He only stopped by for fifteen minutes or so. Now that he was both Ariel's right-hand man and the liege lord of an entire region, the man's schedule was getting busier by the day. But he'd found the time to slip away and say goodbye.
"Sylphie…take care of yourself, all right?"
"Yeah. I will."
He had a hard time looking Sylphie in the eye at first, however. I guess he was still feeling a little guilty. "I'm sorry about… the way I tested you like that, at the very end. After all these years."
"It's okay, Luke. I know how anxious you were. I'm still not sure what I would have done if you'd really tried to hurt Princess Ariel, either."
"Right… well, thank you."
"You're welcome. I'm not sure what for, though!"
"Hmm. You have a point."
They both cracked up at that.
After the laughter passed, Luke's smile turned slightly awkward, and he took a moment to consider his next words. They turned out to be a bombshell.
"Uhhh… Look, Sylphie. If you ever decide you can't stay with
Rudeus anymore, come find me."
I stiffened up like a board. Had he just proposed marriage? To my wife? While I was standing right next to her?
"What are you talking about?" said Sylphie. "I'm never going to leave Rudy, and it's not like I'd go marry you even if I did."
"I'm not talking about getting married. All I'm saying is…if you ever find yourself with no place to go, Elle and Clea and I will always be here for you."
Luke's voice sounded firm and sincere. That first line sure sounded like a romantic proposal, but maybe he really had meant it in a platonic way. Still, a few suspicious beads of sweat formed on his forehead. Had Luke been carrying a flame for Sylphie all this time? What happened to only liking busty women?
Well… maybe this was his way of warning me to treat her right, too. I did need to work on that.
"I don't think that's going to happen," said Sylphie. "But I'll definitely come visit you guys, at least."
"Of course. You're always welcome here."
"Thanks, Luke. You take care of yourself, too."
Compared to Eris and Ghislaine's farewell, this felt pretty lowkey. But it wasn't like they'd never see each other again, right? I had to imagine they were going to stay in touch, at least.
"Rudeus."
For some reason, Luke now turned his attention my way. What was this about? Did he want another duel or something?
"I'm sorry I was so suspicious of you on our journey here."
Oh. Well, I wasn't expecting that. "That's all right, Luke. I know my behavior was a little shady sometimes."
It was true that Luke had been misled by the Man-God. But I'd also acted in some genuinely suspicious ways—even though I knew there was a good chance Luke might be a disciple. I had to share some of the blame for the way things played out. "Anyway, it's your job to be a little paranoid, right?"
"I'm glad you see it that way." Scratching at his cheek, Luke offered me an embarrassed smile. "My offer stands for you as well, Rudeus. If that stick of a girl ever loses her appeal for you, come pay me a visit. We've got plenty of maids with curves in the right places."
"Luke!"
Flinching at the anger in Sylphie's voice, Luke chuckled softly.
"Only joking…"
And with that, he headed back to the horse he'd rode in on. The man really knew how to hop onto a pure-white steed, you had to give him that. He was born to play Prince Charming.
"Rudeus, look after Sylphie for us. Sylphie, take care."
With those final words, Luke rode away like there were damsels to be rescued.
The first time we'd met, I thought the guy was a total jerk. But if Paul had behaved himself, and we'd grown up together in the Notos family… maybe Luke and I actually could have been friends.
Sylphie and I watched him until he vanished around a corner.
We'd said all our farewells. Now it was finally time to head back home.
It had taken us a good month to get here…but fortunately, Perugius would be making our return journey a good deal briefer. At some point in the last ten days, he'd created a new teleportation circle in the royal palace. That would take us to his floating fortress, where we could teleport to the ruins just outside Sharia. From there, it would be a half-day's journey back to our front door.
Compared to our long, eventful trip out, this was going to be a total breeze. From now on, we could use the same route to reach Asura in a single day if we wanted to.
When I explained this to Eris, I discovered that she'd expected our journey back to take over a month as well.
"What the heck?!" was her reply. "I cried like an idiot over nothing!" Then she punched me.
Personally, I felt like it was a good thing that she'd done her big goodbye with Ghislaine. Geographically, they might be a mere day's travel away from one another, but they'd still gone their separate ways. I guess that beautiful memory had been spoiled slightly, though. Eris didn't cry too often, so it was a shame to think her tears had gone to waste.
At this point, it occurred to me that Ghislaine had probably jumped to the same conclusion as her student. Those two were pretty similar in a lot of respects, weren't they? One of these days, we'd have to pop up out of nowhere and surprise her.
Of course, Perugius would probably get irritated if we started breezing through his castle for no real reason, so it was probably best if we only used that route when we had some actual business to attend to.
…Come to think of it, though, it might be useful to have some emergency travel options of our own. Orsted probably knew how to draw teleportation circles, right? Maybe we could create more direct routes to Asura and the other major countries. Apart from the convenience factor, the Man-God wouldn't be able to destroy the circles if nobody even knew they existed. I made a mental note to pitch that project to the boss.
Since the use of teleportation magic was officially forbidden, we made a show of exiting the city before sneaking back in and heading to the palace. By the time we made it there, the sun was already setting; we decided to spend the night in the floating fortress.
Eris, Sylphie, and I shared a single room in Perugius' castle. We'd been a party of eight on our way to Asura, but only three of us were returning. That did put me in a slightly melancholy mood. I found myself gazing into the fireplace with Eris and Sylphie lying in the bed behind me.
Ordinarily we all took separate rooms, but for some reason they'd both wanted to sleep with me tonight. Maybe they'd been in the mood for some physical affection? Things hadn't worked out that way, though… Eris tended to get awkward and hesitant when it wasn't just the two of us. In any case, we'd taken one of the larger guest rooms and cuddled, but I had a tough time falling asleep and ended up slipping out of bed. With nothing to do in particular, I decided to just sit down and let my thoughts wander for a while.
It was a very quiet night. The crackling of the flames was the only sound I could hear.
As I watched the fire flicker, I found myself reflecting on the events of the last few weeks.
I'd won this battle. I'd beaten the Man-God. It felt fair to call this a complete victory, in fact—no one in our party had died, we'd dealt with all of the disciples, and Ariel had secured the throne of Asura. Yet somehow, I didn't feel especially happy or reassured. All I'd really done was follow a path Orsted had laid out for me. And as crucial as this battle was, it was only the first round in a long war. I was going to keep fighting battles like this from now on—stressful, murky battles where victory brought no real relief.
What had I even accomplished this time, really? Ariel had solved half my problems for me. I'd nearly gotten Eris killed. And I needed Orsted's help to deal with Reida. I wasn't seeing much ground for optimism there…
"…Rudy?"
As I was turning all this over in my mind, Sylphie stirred and sat up in bed.
"You're still up?"
"Yeah."
"It's the middle of the night, you know."
Her gaze had turned to the window; it was pitch-black out there. A few hours must have passed since she and Eris fell asleep.
"Phew…"
But instead of going back to sleep, she slipped out of bed and took a seat beside me—cuddling closely and leaning her head on my shoulder. I put my arm around her in return.
Neither of us said anything for a while. Sylphie's body was nice and warm. Hot, even. It almost made me think she might be running a fever or something.
As I studied the nape of her neck, she lifted her head slightly to meet my gaze. Her eyes were shining slightly in the firelight.
This felt like the part where I should kiss her, so I squeezed her shoulder a little tighter— "You know…"
And then she started to speak.
"When I quit my job as Ariel's bodyguard, it was like all the air went out of me."
Drawing back from my kiss, I nodded and waited for Sylphie to continue.
"All I could do was sit around and think: Wow. It's really over, huh?"
Something like relief showed on her face as she got those words out. Sylphie had been Princess Ariel's guardian for eight years—from the age of ten to eighteen. She'd spent her entire adolescence with Luke and Ariel. I had to imagine she was feeling a sense of loss right now.
I wasn't sure if I could fill this void for her. But maybe that wasn't my role to play in the first place. I was Sylphie's husband now. I wasn't her friend, and I couldn't replace her friends.
"But you know, Rudy, I did think this through beforehand,"
Sylphie said after a moment. "Up till now, I was so busy with Princess Ariel that I barely spent any time looking after Lucie. So I'd like to stay at home with her from now on."
I looked over. Her expression was more confident than I'd expected.
"Our baby's getting bigger by the day, you know? I'm sure she's going to need a lot more attention soon."
Sylphie paused for a moment to nuzzle her head against my shoulder. I reached out and ruffled her hair affectionately. Her head seemed a little hotter than usual, although I might have been imagining it.
"So I think I'll focus on taking care of her," Sylphie continued. "I want to be a good mother for a change, I guess."
I'd never thought of Sylphie as a bad mother. But by the standards of this world, I guess you could have called her neglectful. The only people who let maids raise their kids for them were nobles, and we were just an ordinary family.
Still, I wasn't from this world originally. Back in the place I came from, two-income marriages weren't unusual in the slightest.
"You know…if there's anything else you want to do, I'm fine with that too."
Sylphie was only eighteen. She was considered a full-fledged grownup in this world, but she was still very young. There was plenty of time for her to find new goals or chase her dreams. It's not like I wanted her to ignore our kid or spend all her time partying, but I felt like she could juggle taking care of Lucie and pursuing something else.
Then again, maybe I wasn't taking our responsibilities to our kid seriously enough. I wasn't exactly the world's best dad myself.
"Hmm… I'm not sure what that would be, though." Sylphie cocked her head to the side and looked up at me thoughtfully. "I did want to be more like Eris for a while, I guess."
"Really?"
What did Eris have that Sylphie wanted? The first words that popped into my mind were big breasts. I liked Sylphie's just the way they were, honestly. But if she really wanted to work on this, I could always give her a daily massage to stimulate— Come on, Rudeus. Let's try to take this seriously.
"Yeah. I mean, she's basically your equal, right?" said Sylphie. "You fight together. She watches your back, and you watch hers. That always made me kind of envious." She paused. "But after that battle with Orsted… and how things went this time… I think I finally put that behind me. I'm never going to be a match for Eris. Or for you."
I couldn't agree with that. Sylphie was a very talented mage in her own right. She wasn't on Eris' level in combat, to be sure. But what could you expect? Eris had devoted her entire life to mastering swordplay. And Sylphie had plenty of skills that Eris didn't.
"So I decided to give up on getting stronger, and find a different way to support you."
Oh. Now I was starting to understand. Sylphie wanted to watch my back in a way that Eris couldn't.
"And that led you to this stay-at-home idea?"
"Yep. It sounds Roxy wants to keep teaching at the University, so I'll look after all the kids for our family. I'll make sure they learn their manners, teach them what I know, and help them grow up safe and strong."
My feelings about her proposal were a mixture of gratitude and guilt. In all likelihood, I wouldn't be able to spend much time taking care of the kids myself. Our battle against the Man-God wasn't over yet. That meant Orsted was going to keep sending me on these missions, dispatching me to far-off places to fight his enemies.
"You okay with leaving that to me, Rudy?"
On the other hand…Sylphie had settled on this as her new goal. She'd found a role to play, and she was ready to move from one stage of her life into the next.
"Of course. I know you'll do a great job."
I felt overwhelmed with sudden affection for my wife. Sylphie was always cute, but right now she looked even more adorable than usual. Unable to control myself any longer, I leaned in and kissed her on the lips. She didn't try to pull away, so I let my hand slide down from her shoulder to her butt.
Sylphie's eyes opened wide with surprise, and she looked a little uncertain for a moment. But then she lifted her waist a little…
…and I froze like a warrior who'd met Medusa's gaze. I could feel someone watching me, but from where?
Oh. The bed.
Eris was awake, and she was looking our way with glittering eyes. I'm not talking about sparkly, happy glittering, either. This was more of an angry tiger scenario.
Why did she always just watch silently when she caught me with the other girls? It was mildly terrifying.
"Sorry. I guess we should just go to bed for tonight."
"Huh? Oh… Yeah, I guess you're right."
Sylphie and I headed back over to the bed and got in next to Eris. There was time enough for the romance once we got back home. Perugius might be spying on us, anyway.
"Come on, Eris. Don't ruin the mood like that."
"S-Sorry… But you were being all sneaky…"
"No I wasn't. You're always welcome to join in, you know? Want to give it a try?"
"You can't b-be serious. That sounds so embarrassing…"
Hmm. I felt like it would be more embarrassing for me than anybody else. Eris tended to put me in some borderline humiliating positions…
As I closed my eyes and listened to my wives whisper to each other, I felt a sense of satisfaction wash over me.
Sylphie had taken a big step forward in these last few days. She'd closed out one chapter of her life, and found a way to change herself. I needed to learn from her example. With her watching my back, maybe I could find a way to be less fearful of the future.
That was the last thought in my mind as I drifted off to sleep.
Chapter 14:
Home Again
THE MAGIC CITY OF SHARIA hadn't changed a bit in the two months we'd been gone.
Well, I guess a few buildings had been finished, and some repairs of the city walls were now complete. But that was really about it.
I mean, I hadn't expected much to change. Orsted had guaranteed the safety of my family, after all. If I'd come back home to find the city a smoking pile of ashes, I probably would have started up a labor union on the spot. I smiled to myself, picturing me and Ariel donning headbands and barging into the boss' office to demand a collective bargaining agreement.
Of course, the idea might have seemed less funny if something had happened in my absence. I guess I was feeling a little relieved to see everything the same as always.
We made our way through the city's streets and plazas to our home. The house looked just as we'd left it. It wasn't a smoldering ruin, encased in ice, or surrounded by magical thorns. Byt was wriggling around in the front yard as he photosynthesized, and Dillo was snoozing in his armadillo house. Everything seemed peaceful.
"We're hooome."
"Welcome back!"
As we opened the front door, I heard the pattering of footsteps from the back of the house. Within seconds, Aisha appeared and threw herself into my arms. That girl never got any less energetic.
"Where's my present?! You guys didn't forget, did you?!"
"Nope," said Eris, pulling a box out of her baggage. "Here you go."
Aisha popped out of my hug and accepted it eagerly. "Yay!
Thanks, Eris!"
She opened the box right away; it contained an oval ceramic trinket with a long handle covered in delicate engravings.
Aisha's eyes lit up with excitement as she examined it. "Oh! This is a hand mirror, right? I remember seeing these in Shirone!"
"That's right!"
There was a lot of fancy glassware available in Asura, probably because they traded extensively with the Begaritt Continent. Since our journey home was nice and short, we'd picked up a bunch of mirrors and baubles to bring back with us.
"Oh, it's beautiful… I bet it cost a bundle! Hee hee hee!"
"Heheh. Glad you like it!"
Eris looked very proud at Aisha's overjoyed reaction, but it was Sylphie who'd actually picked that mirror out. Eris had decent taste herself, but she always went for overly simple stuff like sturdy kitchen knives.
"Hmm… Wow, I really am adorable, aren't I?!"
Aisha spun around examining herself from various angles, giving herself plenty of compliments in the process. She kept right on going until Lilia showed up and clapped her upside the head.
It was kind of soothing, seeing my little sister so excited and full of life. I guess we'd made a good choice on that present.
"…Hi, Lilia. Anything happen while we were gone? Is everyone doing all right?"
Expressionless as ever, Lilia nodded slightly. "Yes. We're all safe and sound."
"That's good to hear."
I was fairly sure things were fine from the moment I walked in the door, but it was still a relief to know for certain.
"Oh, wait," said Aisha, her expression suddenly darkening.
"There is one thing, Rudeus. It's Roxy…"
What? What's wrong with Roxy?! Don't tell me she lost the baby!
Okay, no, calm down. Lilia definitely would have mentioned that. Maybe she's just a little sick? Or in the hospital?
"Uhm, she got a little tu—"
Aisha stopped herself in midsentence. Her eyes had turned to the doorway to our living room. Roxy was peeking out from behind the door with only half her body visible.
"Hey there, Roxy," I called. "We just got back."
At a glance, she didn't look sick or injured. More like the picture of health.
"Welcome home, Rudy," she replied… without emerging from behind the door. "I was honestly expecting you to be gone a little longer. Since you're back right on time, I'm guessing things went well?"
"Yep. Princess Ariel managed to come out on top."
She hadn't technically taken the throne yet, and there was still a chance we'd get word of her assassination in a few months… but it felt so unlikely I couldn't see much point dwelling on it.
"I see. That's certainly good to hear."
For some reason, Roxy still wasn't revealing herself. All I could really see was her face. But on closer examination, her cheeks looked puffier than usual.
Wait, did she get a little tubby? Is that it? Come on, Roxy! You're pregnant, it's totally natural! You need to put on weight for the baby!I mean, it's not like I'd mind you putting on some pounds in the first place. Eris probably weighs twice as much as you…
"U-Uhm, Rudeus?" said Aisha tentatively. "Roxy's feeling a little bit…delicate lately. Make sure to be really nice to her, okay?"
Well, I could understand that. She had to be anxious about her pregnancy, and now she had this sudden weight gain on her mind as well. And when my wife felt uneasy, it was my job to reassure her.
"I wouldn't say I'm feeling delicate."
"Why are you hiding behind the door, then?" asked Sylphie.
Slowly, reluctantly, Roxy shuffled out from her hiding place.
Her belly had gotten noticeably larger in the two months we'd been away from home. The baby was probably contributing a few pounds all on its own at this point.
Hmm. Maybe I was just seeing things, but I thought her breasts were bigger as well. Normally you wouldn't even notice them when she was wearing clothes. Today their presence was fairly obvious.
Was she producing milk yet? Would she let me take a taste?
Intriguing questions, which I'd have to look into at a later date. In any case, it seemed like the Migurd went through pregnancy more or less the same way humans did, even though they were technically
"demons."
"My body…doesn't feel like it belongs to me anymore," said Roxy. "My belly's all swollen, and I can feel the baby squirming around inside me… Everyone says there's nothing to worry about, but I can't help worrying…"
"Oh, I know what you mean," said Sylphie sympathetically. "I felt the exactly same way when I was pregnant. And of course, Rudy always has to run off somewhere when you're feeling anxious…"
I felt a stab of guilt. I'm sorry… I didn't have any other choice, I
swear…
"Sniffle… S-Sorry, Sylphie… Sorry, Roxy…"
"What? Oh. I'm not really blaming you or anything, Rudy." Smiling awkwardly, Sylphie avoided my teary gaze. "Uhm, I know. Why don't you two spend the rest of the day together? I bet that will make Roxy feel better. Is that okay with you, Eris?"
"Hm? Uh, s-sure…"
Eris kept glancing from her stomach to Roxy's. Probably thinking about what it might feel like when her turn came.
"Well, that's settled, then," said Sylphie briskly. "Rudy, you go spend some time with Roxy. I'll deal with our bags and everything…
Uhm, where's Lucie at the moment?"
"She's playing with Miss Zenith up on the second floor."
"Thanks, Lilia… Come on, Eris, you help too."
"Sure."
Without waiting for me to reply, Sylphie and Eris grabbed our bags and headed up to the second floor to start unpacking.
Following my marching orders, I headed into the living room with Roxy, where I found our pet Sacred Beast curled up by the fireplace. He let out a deep woof at the sight of me and trotted over, wagging his tail happily. When I petted his head, he started licking my hand. What a good boy.
Roxy and I settled down next to each other on the sofa. She was wearing loose clothing, and seemed to be curling up to hide the shape of her body. Maybe she was feeling self-conscious about her figure? I thought she looked pretty cute this way, though…
"Uhm, Roxy?"
"H-How were things in Asura, anyway? Since you're back right on schedule, I'm guessing it went smoothly."
"Didn't you just ask me that five minutes ago?"
Roxy seemed…flustered. You didn't see that every day. I wasn't sure what had her so agitated, but it was kind of adorable, so I didn't mind. Hopefully she wasn't going to be this cute all day. Eris and Sylphie had kept me busy in the capital, but with that big work trip behind me I was in the mood to let off some steam.
It was probably better not to push things in a sexual direction if Roxy was feeling this self-conscious, though. I was trying to be a considerate husband here.
Okay then, let's start off with something nice and gentle…
"Uhm… your belly's gotten pretty big, huh? Can I stroke it?" "N-No! Absolutely not!"
Wow, she shot that down instantly. I-I guess she's a little sensitive about her belly in particular? Okay, what about— "D-Don't touch my breasts, either."
Didn't even get to ask. Does she think I'm obsessed with breasts or something? I mean, I guess she isn't wrong, but still!
"They've been leaking this weird yellow liquid lately…"
"I see."
The same thing had happened with Sylphie. Probably meant her body was getting ready to produce milk. I would have been delighted to give her some helpful massages, but it seemed like that wasn't going to happen.
"Can I stroke your head, at least?"
Roxy responded to this by leaning slightly toward me. I ran my hand gently over her head, enjoying the silky texture of her hair.
Her belly and breasts were off-limits, and her head was okay to touch. Now I needed to find exactly where she drew the line. This might require a bit of trial and error. "How about your butt?"
"…W-Well, I guess that's all right."
Roxy blushed, but gave me her consent. I ran my hand along her bottom. It was nice and round today.
Gah. No. You're supposed to be doing the considerate thing, remember? Forget the butt! Think about the baby!
"Uhm… When I'm around the house, I think I'll try to spend as much time as I can with you."
"R-Really? You don't have to force yourself. Aisha's here to help me, and I know you have a lot of things on your plate."
"Yeah, but I know it's tough being pregnant. Maybe I can take you up and down the stairs or help you in the bath? Anything you want."
"The… The bath?!"
Roxy seemed seriously alarmed by those words. This was starting to get confusing. Her belly and breasts were off-limits, her head and butt were fine, and the bath was a danger zone? But why?
"That's right…" Roxy murmured. "You do like washing off my body, don't you…?"
Oh, I love it. Especially when you let me use my hands instead of a washcloth. I'll admit I sometimes lose all self-control halfway through, but that's just part of the fun, right?
"Rudy… You're going to find out eventually, so I think I should just get this over with."
"Okay…"
I could hear the defeat in Roxy's voice as she turned to face me, and her expression was deadly serious.
Hm? Wait, is there something actually wrong?
Maybe she'd found out the baby was sick. Maybe she'd heard it yelling "Call me the Great Emperor of the Demon World!" from inside her belly.
No, that didn't make any sense. Lilia would have told me if there was a problem that obvious.
What else could it be, then? Sorry, Rudy, it's not your baby? Was the kid going to pop out with cat ears and a tail or something? No, no, no… she wouldn't do that to me…
With a solemn expression on her face, Roxy began to unbutton her dress. Then she lifted it up to reveal her pale stomach. Her baby bump was now a full-fledged bulge, and her belly button was protruding slightly from its surface.
My first thought was cute. My second thought was adorable. Nothing else came to mind, honestly. I wasn't seeing any weird patterns on her skin or anything…
"Uhm… What's the problem here?"
"I-Isn't it obvious?"
Well, no. Or I wouldn't have asked the question.
"My… My belly button's sticking out now, right?"
Yes. Yes, it was. What did that have to do with anything, though? Having all that baby inside her must have pushed it inside out. It was supposedly a common thing for pregnant women.
"Yeah."
"It's… sniffle… It's ridiculous, isn't it?"
It seemed Roxy had some strong feelings on the matter. I was beginning to understand what Aisha had meant by "delicate." This belly button might seem like a trivial issue to anyone else, but for Roxy it was currently a major problem.
"…No. It's adorable."
"I heard that pause! You can't fool me that easily!"
"I'm not trying to fool you, Roxy. I like it just fine this way."
"Liar! I remember the first time you licked it. You said Bwheheh, your belly button is the best! Don't try to deny it!"
Surely I never said anything that creepy? Well, sometimes I did get a little carried away in bed. Maybe I did say it. I probably did, huh? Yeah, I definitely did. What a creep.
"Ever since that, I made sure to keep my belly button nice and clean. You must be disappointed to see it ruined like this, right?"
"It's not ruined, Roxy."
This time, I got my response off immediately. It wasn't like I had a fetish for innie belly buttons or anything. As long as it was part of Roxy, I'd lavish it with love no matter what. Even if she could fire missiles from it.
Oh, wait. Now I remembered. I'd licked her belly button on a whim during one of our baby-making sessions, and she got all embarrassed. It was fun seeing her squirm, so I started barraging her with belly button compliments…
"I'm not falling for this. You're all talk, Rudy."
Wow. She really doesn't want to believe me, huh?
"You want to convince me? Then prove you're being honest!"
"How am I supposed to prove that?"
The only thing that came to mind was formally establishing the Church of Roxy and delivering a passionate sermon on the matter to several hundred thousand true believers. That would probably take me at least a few days to arrange, so it wasn't an immediate solution to our dilemma.
Roxy pushed out her belly slightly in my direction. "Lick it."
"You don't mind?"
Quite the daring suggestion, madam. Was this really the only thing she wanted from me, though? It felt more like a reward than a test. Surely this was all a bit backward…
Bah. No need to overthink things! The Lord's will was plain.
All right, everyone. Hands together. Let's say grace!
Thank you, oh Lord, for this our food… I licked that belly button.
Leo had wandered over to see what we were up to, so I had to push his head out of the way first. But I licked Roxy's belly button.
In that moment, something moved inside her belly. It was a small movement, almost like a muscle twitching; but I could clearly feel it through my tongue.
Roxy must have noticed as well. She froze up, and met my gaze as I raised my head.
"The baby just moved."
"…I guess someone's saying welcome home to daddy."
I rose to my feet and ran a hand gently over Roxy's stomach. She'd objected earlier, but this time she didn't seem to mind.
Her belly was nice and warm. Wouldn't want it getting chilled, of course.
Roxy's embarrassment seemed to have melted away all of a sudden. With a tender smile, she reached up and placed a hand on top of mine.
"Thank you, Rudy. I guess Sylphie was right. I do feel a little better now."
Hearing that made me feel a bit relieved myself.
"Sorry to repeat myself, but… Welcome home, Rudy."
"Glad to be back."
I was home again, and all was well.
***
The next day, I went around town letting my friends know we were back. At this point, that meant Zanoba, Cliff, and Elinalise. I'd already seen Nanahoshi at the floating fortress a few days earlier.
I didn't have that many acquaintances left in the city of Sharia, did I? Everyone was going their separate ways. Even Zanoba and Cliff would probably leave sooner or later.
With that thought, I headed to my final stop of the day. It was evening, and the world had taken on an orange tint by the time I reached the graveyard.
It was a quiet place lined with rows of rounded headstones. Most people wouldn't choose to come here in the twilight, but things had just worked out that way… I'd spent longer than expected on my other visits.
With a brief hello to the groundskeeper on duty, I entered the grounds and headed to the grave I was here to see. The name Paul Greyrat was carved on its surface, and it still looked brand new.
I brought my hands together for a moment.
"Hey, Dad. Nobody died this time, either."
Placing on the grave a bottle of booze I'd bought in Ars and some flowers I'd picked up in the neighborhood, I started in on a quick summary of the most recent developments in our lives. I told Paul about Orsted, the Man-God, and the battles we'd fought in Asura.
"I got to meet your little brother for the first time. My uncle, I guess. He seemed like a pretty faint-hearted guy, but he did remind me of you."
I pictured Pilemon's face as I spoke those words. There was definitely a resemblance. They were totally different in terms of build and personality, but you could tell the man was Paul's brother. There was something similar about the set of their eyes, I think.
"He survived too. Your nephew risked his life to protect him. It made me feel a little envious."
Luke had acted to save his father, who would otherwise have been executed. Or that was what it looked like to me, at least… I wasn't there for the entire conversation.
Pilemon wasn't an admirable person, and we'd originally been intending to kill him. But seeing Luke's sheer desperation made me want to help him out. I'd ended up stepping in to offer some support.
"I had to murder someone this time. I didn't deal the fatal blow personally, but I tracked him down and attacked with every intention of killing him, and he died. I don't regret that, but it did leave a bad taste in my mouth."
It wasn't like this was the first time I'd killed someone. Similar things had happened before. But this one had really stuck with me. Probably because I'd heard Reida's story a few minutes earlier.
I took a few moments to reflect on everything that had taken place in Asura.
On the whole, the mission went well. We hadn't lost anyone we didn't want to lose, and we'd achieved our objective. Still, it had been a very close call. One small mistake along the way, and we might have lost someone. We probably would have won the battle anyway, but only at a terrible cost.
Yet We'd succeeded this time. Completely. There was no denying that. But I felt like there were plenty of lessons to be learned.
What if we'd managed to defeat Auber at the Red Wyrm's Whiskers?
What if Wi Taa had successfully escaped from our battle in the streets of Ars?
What if Orsted hadn't come running when Reida caught us in her Deprivation Field?
What if Auber hadn't carried the antidote for his poison?
You could drive yourself crazy asking questions like that, of course. Maybe it wasn't productive to dwell on all the details.
There was one thing I knew for sure, though: the enemy was still alive and well. We'd beaten the Man-God once, but the battle for Asura was only the first of many to come. This conflict was going to last for years. Decades. How long could I keep squeaking by like this before something went horribly wrong?
I'd gotten lucky this time. But I hadn't always been so fortunate, had I? I felt like my mistakes had cost me dearly in the past… even if I didn't think of it that way at the time.
Paul's death was a good example. Back then, I convinced myself that things had just worked out badly. And to be sure, I gave that fight everything I had. I made some mistakes and questionable decisions, maybe. But I still did my very best. That allowed me to believe Paul's death was unavoidable. I told myself it was just bad luck. A quirk of fate.
Was that actually true, though?
Could a bit of good luck have saved my father's life? Sure. He'd died at the very last moment, to that Hydra's final attack. The smallest of fortunate coincidences could have prevented that. Or even an unfortunate coincidence—like someone getting injured earlier, and forcing us to back out. Maybe if we'd found just one more person for our party…
Well, no point speculating about it. The point was: "luck" could always turn on almost anything. Did I have to keep tossing the dice like this? Flipping a coin and hoping for the best, with the lives of everyone I loved on the line? Many of us had come close to death in Asura. Eris in particular had been badly wounded and then poisoned by Auber. We'd come right to the very edge of disaster and barely survived. Next time, maybe we'd come right up to the edge of victory and die.
Was I willing to leave that in the hands of fate?
Sure, there was always an element of luck in life. Human beings had their limits and their weaknesses. It's impossible to control events completely. But when I looked back at my time in Asura, I saw room for improvement. What if I'd had a few more skills? A bit more combat prowess? A few local connections? Maybe I wouldn't have come so close to losing someone. Maybe there were ways I could have made things easier for us.
I had to try to figure out what I was lacking.
I needed to be stronger than this. I needed to hone my skills. I needed more allies I could turn to…
"…Then again, I feel like I was already working on all of that."
Regrets were just a part of life. There wasn't enough time in the day to do everything perfectly, and nothing was ever guaranteed, no matter what. My future self had been monstrously powerful, and his life was miserable; sometimes knowing lots of fancy spells wasn't good enough.
Still…I couldn't let myself get complacent just because things went well this time.
In my next battles against the Man-God, I wanted to win cleanly instead of barely squeaking by. I wanted to be powerful enough to keep my family alive. I wanted to keep them as safe as I possibly could.
I won't get careless.
That was a promise I'd made before, but it was one I meant to keep. If I ever started to forget about it, I could always come out here for a reminder.
"I'm going to do the best I can, Dad. Keep an eye on me, okay?" With those words, I turned and left the cemetery.
Extra Chapter:
???
ONE NIGHT, in a place whose name didn't matter, a local bartender witnessed something rather strange.
Specifically, he saw a man—a solitary drunkard.
This man had probably been barhopping for a while before he reached the bartender's establishment. He was already drunk by the time he walked in the door. But he kept on drinking anyway, until he was totally plastered. And then he still kept on drinking, until he vomited repeatedly in the bathroom.
Of course, this bartender had seen his fair share of alcoholics. He'd watched a few people drink themselves to death right in front of him, in fact. A drunkard like this was nothing out of the ordinary.
However—something odd happened late that night.
"Bweeh… Hmm?"
There were few customers left in the bar at this point. The bartender had been washing plates and thinking about closing shop for the evening. All of a sudden, the drunkard lifted his head as if he'd noticed something. His eyes were totally unfocused, and he looked half-asleep, but for some reason, he turned to face the seat beside him.
There was no one sitting in that chair.
"Hey there, man! It's been a while!"
The drunkard croaked out a greeting and tried to slap his invisible friend on the shoulders. His hand moved smoothly through the empty air, but he didn't seem to notice. He just kept right on talking.
"Aw, what's the matter, chief? You're lookin' pretty gloomy today. Go on, tell me aaall about it."
Deciding the man was just blathering like an idiot, the bartender shook his head and turned back to his dishes.
"What the… Hey, barkeep!"
The bartender glanced up again. The drunkard's bleary, unfocused gaze was wandering all around the bar.
"How's about you get this guy a beer too, huh?"
The bartender had no idea who this guy was supposed to be, but he wasn't going to refuse an order. He was just about to reply, when—
"The hell? Guess he wandered off somewhere. What kinda customer service is that, huh?"
The drunkard just decided he was nowhere to be found, and began loudly badmouthing him to his non-existent buddy. The bartender heaved a heavy sigh. He dealt with rambling drunks on a regular basis, but the ones who talked total nonsense could get violent sometimes. This man didn't look like much of a fighter, but the last thing he wanted at the end of long night was to spend an hour mopping blood and teeth off his floor.
Rather than flailing around at random, however, the man went right on speaking to the empty chair beside him. And as he listened, the bartender began to feel a bit unnerved. For the rambling monologue of a drunk, this…sounded a lot like one half of an actual conversation.
"Oh yeah? So, what… someone wants you dead?"
"Hah! Yeah, I bet you make yourself plenty of enemies. Hell, I'd probably hate your guts myself if I was seein' things from a different point of view. Good thing I'm such an easygoing guy, huh?"
"…What? You're asking me for a favor? Now that's downright unusual."
"Uh-huh. Look, the last time I did you a solid, things went real bad for me. You do remember what happened to my hometown, right?"
"You're sorry? Hahah! Man, that sounds weird coming from you. Must be a cold one in hell tonight!"
"Oh? It really that bad? Bad enough you need my help?"
"Hmm…"
"Well, sure. You've saved my bacon plenty of times. I did appreciate that heads-up in the labyrinth earlier, for the record."
"Yeah, didn't work out that great in the end, but that's on us.
We just weren't cut out for the job, I guess."
"Oh brother, here we go. I try to be nice, and you think I'm showing you my belly…"
"Fine. If there's something I can do, I guess I'll hear you out."
"…Oh? Hohoh."
"Knowing you, that ain't surprising in the slightest."
"So who's this guy who's after you?"
"Whoah! Now that's a scary name. Come on, man… are you pulling my leg or what?"
"Huh? What? How is he nothing special? Damn. Small fry, huh? Listen to you!"
"So what's the problem, then?"
"…Aaah."
"So that's how it is. Him too, huh? Hmm… yeah, that explains a lot, actually."
"Hm? Am I gonna help or not?"
"Well, I dunno… I kinda liked the kid, honestly…"
"…Whoa. Somebody's awful cranky all of a sudden."
"Damn, you're desperate, aren't you? I thought I was a worthless piece of trash. You want my help that bad?"
"Fine! Fiiiine! I'll help you out, man."
"So? What's the plan? I haven't seen him in a while, but he's damn good at what he does."
"Ah, let's hear it… Uh, a team? So you wanna gather up a bunch of guys like me?"
"Okay, right. Then what?"
"…Yeah, I think I get the idea. Dunno if it'll work out or not, but hey. Guess we'll give it a shot."
"Fwaaah…"
At this point, the man collapsed forward onto his table and started sleeping like a log. And the bartender, who'd heard every word of his "conversation," found himself thinking some unsettling thoughts. Had this man just made a deal with the devil? Was there some sort of profoundly evil thing sitting in that chair that only he could see? And was that thing going to creep up behind the bartender and whisper "You should've minded your own business" in his ear?
"Ridiculous." With a firm shake of his head, the bartender approached the sleeping drunkard and shook him gently by the shoulder. "Hey, buddy. We're about to close up for the night. Mind heading somewhere else to get your beauty sleep?"
After a few more vigorous shakes, the drunkard twitched and slowly pushed himself up off the table. "Muh…? Mm."
All of his manic energy seemed to have disappeared completely. Rising unsteadily to his feet, he took a few copper coins from his pocket and tossed them on the table. And then he staggered off toward the exit, zigzagging erratically as he went.
Almost looks like a puppet, the bartender thought as he dropped the coins into his pocket. Turning away, he headed back toward the kitchen…and then stopped as he heard the drunkard mutter something to himself. The man's voice was soft, but somehow the bartender heard him very clearly.
"Man, this sucks. But I owe him a lot, and the kid owes me… so if
I have to pick sides, I guess this is how it's gonna be."
It wasn't the voice of a demon. But it was a much colder voice than you'd expect from a drunk.
A shiver made its way down the bartender's spine. When he turned back toward the exit, however, the only sign that anyone had even been there was the faintly tinkling bell on the inside of his door.