I finished introducing my father and mother to everyone and we’d already eaten dinner.
My mother was currently enjoying the hot springs with my wives.
My granddaughter Saki was with them, so I bet she was incredibly pleased.
“Yamato, it’s not necessary to confirm, but I want to hear it directly from you. You have no intention of returning to Japan, do you?”
As I was drinking sake with my father in the living room, he brought that up.
I had heard that they came to pick me up, and for that, my father used his Caladbolg, my mother used her Failnaught, and the Seven Imperial Couples of Australia even used Excalibur and Calis, traveling through the corpse of the white serpent that had been where I went missing to the Helios Orb just to get me.
However, I had not only established myself in the Helios Orb but also gotten married and had children, so even my father couldn’t have predicted that.
Actually, if I recall their story, only about five months had passed on Earth since I went missing.
But it’s almost been two years since I arrived at the Helios Orb, so there’s a time difference here as well.
On top of that, my best friend, Mako, who had been missing for 25 years from my parents’ perspective, was still here in the same appearance, so it’s impossible to expect them to have predicted it.
“No, I don’t. It’s partly because I have a wife and children, but I’m more suited to the Helios Orb. It’s true that I have responsibilities now that I’ve become a noble called a Celestial Lord, but I accept that, responsibility included.”
“I understand. If you say so, Father will respect your wishes. But you’ll never see us again, and Mother won’t be easily convinced.”
That’s the problem.
Although my father said he would respect my wishes, my mother is overprotective and dotes on her children, so I believe she sincerely thinks I will return with them.
She might even insist on taking Prim and the others with us.
While I believe they could use powers equivalent to levels on Earth, they wouldn’t be able to use magic. More importantly, most of my wives would become beastmen or dragon-people on Earth, and they would undoubtedly attract strange stares. There’s even a possibility that some idiots would plot to use them for human experimentation.
I certainly don’t intend to take everyone to a world where even my current world is overrun with demons and yokai.
“I will find a way to persuade Mother. It’s not just me; everyone else has a position and responsibilities too.”
“Indeed.”
I don’t know if I can persuade her, but if I don’t, there’s a possibility they’ll take me back, so I’ll try to persuade her with my life on the line.
“So, you guys are planning to return next month, right?”
“Yes. Until then, Caladbolg and Failnaught will remain generated, so it will be a bit noisy.”
“My Lord, I believe I am quiet unless instructed otherwise?”
“That’s true, but perhaps it’s different when we’re drinking sake.”
I question my own common sense at the scene before me.
My father’s generated holy sword, Caladbolg, was drinking sake poured into a deep dish.
You might wonder how, but as my father dipped the tip of the sword into the deep dish, the sake was rapidly disappearing.
A sword drinking sake is a sight that exceeds all expectations.
“I cannot deny it, but I do not drink every day.”
“Well.”
My father and the others are scheduled to return in exactly one month.
Apparently, even with the four Engraving Divine Artifacts, only my father and mother can transfer to the Helios Orb, and they use more than half of the seals for it.
Strictly speaking, they could have brought a few more people, but then it would have been uncertain whether they could bring me back.
So, they decided to come with the minimum number of people, just my father and mother.
The seals for returning are expected to take about two weeks to recover, and since anything could happen in that period, they decided to allow a month.
In fact, immediately after transferring to the Helios Orb, they used threemythical-tier術式 to help me.
“Speaking of which, young man, wasn’t your sword broken?”
“Ah, me. Yes, it was broken. I’m planning to apologize to the person who forged it tomorrow.”
I was surprised by Caladbolg suddenly talking to me, but I wish he wouldn’t call me “young man.”
However, the content is a big problem for me, and I feel I need to apologize to Richard, who forged my Azure Silver Sword – Pale Green.
“Perhaps because it’s a different world, it’s surprising that metals that appear in games and stories on Earth are commonplace.”
“As are the names of the swords. It seems to be named after your previous life, my Lord, but even seeing the broken blade, it’s a fitting name. If possible, I wish I could have seen it in its unbroken state as well.”
My father and Caladbolg lament the Pale Green, and I feel the same.
I had used it affectionately for about a year and a half, and I could still use it even after evolving into an Element Human, as it fit perfectly in my hand.
I was getting used to dual-wielding it with Multi Edge and Wing Bit Liberator’s Wing Swords, but I regret deeply that my carelessness led to it becoming irreparable.
I had no choice but to focus on evasion to avoid the Divine Emperor’s Thunder Cage Dome; it’s true I didn’t have the leeway to look around, but I was definitely foolish to believe his talk of a one-on-one duel. It was, without a doubt, my carelessness.
“Believing the Supremacists was indeed your fault. They believe with all their hearts that they are absolutely correct. Because of that, they think anything goes, so breaking promises and feigning repentance before a surprise attack are commonplace.”
“I’ve learned my lesson. Though the price was high.”
Next time I face him, I will absolutely not believe the Divine Emperor’s words.
That’s why I paid such a heavy price, the Azure Silver Sword – Pale Green.
“That’s good. And then there’s the Thunder Cage Dome, wasn’t it? That’s an S-class countermeasure. It’s not a good match for you, Yamato. To counter it, you’ll need to further boost your basic abilities or develop a new S-class.”
The troublesome aspect of the Thunder Cage Dome is that it’s a physical attack with mass.
The Divine Emperor is an Earth attribute generator, and his armed magical tool, Life Reaper, was imbued with lightning, so I sense it has an effect of improving aptitude towards fire attribute術式.
He creates iron from earth, forms it into a sword, imbues it with fire and lightning, and deploys them in a 360-degree field as a makeshift barrier, then strikes the target all at once.
I can do something similar with the Ice Edge Javelin, but in the Divine Emperor’s case, it’s designed to inflict electric shock with the lightning, so it has the advantage of being impossible to withstand.
“Don’t worry, I’ll train you until you can go back. I can replicate that kind of術式 without needing new development. Besides, isn’t there also healing magic?”
My spine chilled at my father’s grin.
Being able to replicate the Thunder Cage Dome is amazing, and I’m grateful that my father will train me.
However, the mention of healing magic at that point confirms that I’m going to be torn to shreds, isn’t it?
No, I owe the Divine Emperor a great debt, and I need to gain strength to repay that debt.
My father and the others can only stay at the Helios Orb for one month, so if they use healing magic, even if an arm or leg is lost, it can be healed, which is undoubtedly a plus for me.
“Please!”
After a moment of hesitation, I uttered the words firmly.
Side: Prim
We are now in the hot springs with Yamato’s mother, Maoh Okasan.
My father-in-law was just a little taller than Yamato, but my mother-in-law is petite, about the same height as Marina.
However, she is level 217, and Mako said she is incredibly terrifying when she gets angry.
You wouldn’t think so just by looking at her.
I don’t intend to judge by appearance, but she seems to have a slightly childish personality, so I’m sure some fools will misunderstand.
“Whoa! This is amazing!”
“Isn’t it? You can enter anytime, 24 hours a day.”
“I’m envious!”
Mako also seems to have returned to her childhood ways, having met her best friend whom she thought she would never see again.
Although they are now in-laws, it doesn’t seem to matter much to either of them.
“Still, you’re 45 and have such beautiful skin.”
“I take care of anti-aging. I feel like my seals have been more active since coming to the Helios Orb.”
“I bet.”
I’ve heard my mother-in-law is 45, but with her youthful face, she looks like she’s in her mid-20s, maybe even the same age as Mako.
They were born in the same year, but there’s a 24-year age difference, but in the Helios Orb, high-class beings hardly age, and Ancient Class beings don’t age at all.
My mother-in-law is an Arch Class, a class seemingly above Element Class, so perhaps her magic is rejuvenating her skin age as well.
“Huh? Really?”
“Yes. My great-grandmother and Yuri’s great-grandmother are 108 years old, but they look to be in their 20s.”
“My great-grandmother is also 109 years old.”
“A hundred years old and still looking in their 20s…”
Sayuri-sama and Certina-san.
Indeed, those two are surprisingly youthful and energetic, just as they appear.
For women, evolution not only grants power but, more importantly, allows them to maintain their appearance forever, so many yearn for it.
“It’s very appealing, but I can’t stay here. Ah, can I give Saki-chan a bath?”
“Yes, please.”
“Thank you, Mana-chan.”
As I suspected, my mother-in-law intends to return with Yamato.
For us, parting with Yamato here would be agonizing, but it’s the same for my mother-in-law.
So, it’s difficult for us to bring it up, and this isn’t the place to discuss it.
They plan to stay for about a month, so we have to persuade her by then.
“You’re very skilled, Mother-in-law. You must have experience.”
“I’ve bathed children of my acquaintances, not just Yamato.”
As expected, my mother-in-law is skillfully bathing Saki.
It’s a portable baby bathtub that floats, so we can use it while we’re in the bath, and since it uses a Tenma Stone imbued with telekinetic magic, we don’t get tired even if we have to support Saki, who can’t hold her head up yet, for a long time.
A long bath is bad for Saki’s body, so we need to be careful about that.
“Girls are really cute.”
“Maoh, don’t you have daughters too?”
“I do, but that one is a tomboy. I wonder who she takes after?”
“You, Maoh. I won’t let you pretend you forgot what you did in high school, okay?”
“Ah, hahaha~”
Mako and I are bathing Saki while my mother-in-law is talking, but she seems to be at a disadvantage when it comes to stories from her student days.
Yamato didn’t get many details either, but Mako was her classmate, and more importantly, it was only a few years ago for Mako, so she probably remembers it clearly.
“Oh, Rika-chan!”
“Y-yes?”
“You’re due next month, aren’t you?”
“Yes, that’s the plan.”
My mother-in-law, as if escaping from Mako, spoke to Rika, who was heavily pregnant.
Well, she might be able to witness Rika’s childbirth, and it means the birth of a new grandchild, so perhaps she is looking forward to it.
“I’d like to be there if possible, but I don’t know if she’ll give birth by then.”
“That’s true. The due date is mid-April, but it’s often a few days before or after, and we’ll just have to see when the time comes.”
“Yeah.”
My mother-in-law looks disappointed, but it’s quite rare for someone to give birth exactly on their due date, and even if it’s a few days before or after, it’s usually only a few days, so it’s truly uncertain if my mother-in-law will be able to witness the birth.
“There, you’re all clean now, Saki-chan.”
“Dau~!”
Saki lets out a happy sound, perhaps because she’s been washed, and my mother-in-law’s eyes soften.
“Thank you, Mother-in-law.”
“She’s my grandchild too, so this is nothing.”
“Then I’ll get out first. Please take your time, Mother-in-law.”
“Yes, thank you, Mana-chan.”
Mana took Saki from her mother-in-law and got out of the bath before me.
Flam and I are due in September, so there are still six months left.
But in just that much time, I’ll be a mother too.
“Rika is coming soon, but Prim-chan and Flam-chan are also pregnant, right?”
“Yes, they’re scheduled for September.”
“It’s half a year away. Unfortunately, I won’t be able to meet Prim-chan and Flam-chan’s babies.”
My mother-in-law looks very disappointed, but I am too.
However, I can hear stories, so I should listen carefully.
Ah, maybe I can ask about Yamato’s childhood stories.
Everyone will probably be interested too.
