Entering a Company From Another World! – Chapter 306

A Message Posted Daily!

The year is drawing to a close, how is everyone doing?

Please enjoy this, our final post of the year.

The first thing we did upon arriving at the Party Room was to make cocoa.

We mixed cocoa into hot milk and then offered the mugs to the girls who were nervously looking around.

When they did, all of their faces lit up with the sweet scent of cocoa, and they drank with smiles.

In the meantime, we removed our gear and changed into our casual clothes.

Then, just as they finished drinking, I started the conversation.

“Um, I think your mothers will be here soon.”

Naturally, I was the one to initiate the conversation.

I bent my knees to match their eye level.

When they sat in a single line on the sofa, it felt even more, or rather, a little bit like I had a hand in their appearance, but Swella and the others looked like they had regressed, so it still felt off.

“Um, Helena, how old are you this year?”

“My goodness, Father, have you forgotten? I turned six on the seventh of last month.”

“Me too~ I turned six the day before yesterday~”

“I’m still five.”

“I’m still five as well.”

“I see, I see, that’s right.”

First, I asked Helena, who seemed to be the eldest, her age, and in turn, I found out all their ages.

I started with the easiest questions, but I wondered if they should be speaking with a slightly younger tone, considering they were around five or six years old. I tried to recall my own past speech patterns, but I couldn’t remember, so I told myself they were probably imitating their mother, who was taller than them.

As I knelt and our eyes met, the more we locked gazes, the stronger the feeling became that they might be my own children.

“Helena, is your hair color inherited from you, Jiro-san?”

“Yeah, it is. Ah, Maria, are those eyes like Senpai’s? They look a little sleepy.”

“I think Kasumi’s nose resembles Leader’s, gozaru.”

“Really? I think Claire’s nose shape is more similar.”

“Hmm, but I still think they all end up looking more like their mothers, eh?”

The others were casually appraising the children’s features, oblivious to my increasingly serious thoughts.

Normally, I would clear my head by smoking a cigarette or sighing, but I couldn’t do that in front of the children.

Fortunately, my smile was natural, unlike a forced one, but I was struggling to think of what else to ask. It’s surprisingly difficult to know information that a parent would naturally know.

“W-well then, do you know how old Father is?”

Even though I knew they would be born soon, it was strangely embarrassing to have them gently call me “Father.”

However, I also felt it would be strange to use “ore” or “watashi” when addressing children.

So, I deliberately used “otousan” as my personal pronoun.

“Huff!?”

As expected, two of them coughed.

Okay, Kaido and Minami, who snickered behind me, I’ll deal with you later.

“Hee!?”

I subtly signaled with my right hand behind my back, hidden from Helena and the others, and heard screams from behind me.

Helena and the others looked puzzled by the sudden reaction from Kaido and Minami, but I brushed it off as nothing, and they accepted it.

Then, they were desperately trying to recall the answer to my question. If I could find out my future age, I would know how many years into the future they came from.

This information would be useful in finding a way to send them back. So, I started gathering information, but…

“Um, were you around forty?”

“No, you were younger!”

“Um, I’m five, and Father is…”

“Fifty!”

Yeah, I couldn’t figure it out.

It’s true, children this age wouldn’t know their parents’ exact age.

Helena tilted her head, trying desperately to remember. Her gesture resembled Swella’s.

Maria denied Helena’s answer, but her unhurried demeanor was just like Memoria’s.

Claire was counting on her fingers, while Kasumi, likely answering on intuition, was as lively as Himik.

“I see, if you don’t know, then it can’t be helped.”

It was bonus if I found out, so it pained me to see them downcast because they couldn’t answer.

So, I gently patted each of them on the head, and that alone brought smiles to their faces.

“Jiro-san, do you happen to like children?”

“From what I’ve seen, I think so.”

“No, this isn’t a hint of being a lolicon, is it?”

“Min-chan, you need to learn. Even I can’t put up with any more added punishment.”

“Just so you know, I won’t be picking up your bones.”

“Gozaru!?”

Kaido, you understand perfectly.

Minami, I thought about giving you a hard time in the next training session, but it seems I can increase the difficulty by another notch.

“I’m getting chills!? A premonition!? Why, gozaru!?”

Minami, sensing something unsettling, hugged herself and anxiously looked around. I acknowledge her vigilance in sensing such ominous signs, but it’s already too late.

As I grinned inwardly and considered introducing the instructors’ homemade special training menus…

“Min-chan, you never learn.”

“That’s right. Every time she visits our home, she teases Father like that, and then gets put on a special training menu.”

Kasumi and Claire laughed joyfully, as if this was a familiar scene with Minami’s reaction.

“It’s no good, you’re calling her ‘Min-chan.’ She’s Minami-san.’
“But~, she told me to call her Min-chan too~. Only Helena calls Minami-san by her name, ‘san.’~”

“B-but…”

Helena offered a word of caution during this sibling-like(?) exchange, but it seemed she was losing ground.

“Are you going to let your future children call you ‘chan’?”

“Considering your age, that’s pretty bad, isn’t it?”

“I can’t be responsible for the future, gozaru!? That’s a false accusation!”

And it wasn’t just Helena who was indirectly on the defensive.

Minami, who had been called out by Kitamiya, Kaido, and implicitly by Katsu and Amelia with their gazes, shouted her innocence regarding the children’s way of addressing her. Well, I could understand both sides.

Some were astonished by Minami’s future actions of having children call her “chan” at least seven years later. If she were in her early twenties, she might barely

get away with it, but after that, it would depend on her appearance.

And from Minami’s current perspective, it was an unfulfilled act and defamation. I can understand why she would want to deny it by yelling like that.

The girls, as if accustomed to such exchanges, watched with amusement.

Well, it’s good that such a fun atmosphere has developed, but…

The girls who came from the future: Helena, a Dark Elf girl like Swella; Maria, a vampire girl like Memoria; Kasumi, a fallen angel like Himik; and Claire, a demon like Evia-san.
All those children are claiming to be my children.

Honestly, at first I was bewildered, but it’s not like I’m that troubled by it now.

The tension I was preparing for is no longer that strong; rather, I’m more concerned about genuinely pure things.

Time travel is something I’ve only ever seen in stories, like with a certain cat-like robot.

Realistically, the act of traveling through time isn’t something that can be brushed aside with the simple word “difficult.”

If that’s the case, it’s only natural to start worrying if I can send them back.

While I felt such unease, the girls were joyfully watching the scene of Minami and the others causing a commotion.

A chime then echoed in that space.

“Ah, this magic is Mother’s!”
“Ah, this magic is definitely Mother’s!”
“Hmm, I don’t really know, but if you two are here, does that mean Mother is too?”
“I believe so.”

The children, alerted by the chime, jumped off the sofas and ran towards the entrance.

“Ah, wait!”

Suella and the others were on high alert. I thought I shouldn’t let these girls rush at Suella and the others and stood up to head towards the entrance, but I couldn’t keep up with the surprisingly quick movements of the children.

“Ah, it really is Mother!!”
“Mother, we’ve been waiting!!”
“…”

Kasumi and Claire, who were running at the front, flung open the entrance, and I found myself witnessing two of them pouncing on Evia-san and Himik.

While I could understand Himik’s reaction, Evia-san’s surprised expression was something I had never seen before.

Not only were their physical abilities remarkable, but they easily caught the children, who were no less for it, holding them tightly and not once looking away from them.

There was no harshness in her eyes; rather, “bewilderment” would be a more accurate description.

“Um, what is the situation?”
“We demand an explanation.”

Suella and Memoria were the same.

Helena was nervously touching Suella’s grown belly while hugging her.

Maria, like a cat, was nuzzling her face against Memoria as she hugged her.

Instead of showing any aversion to this scene, they were, while bewildered, accepting it with their whole hearts.

“…I want to ask that too.”

When those two asked me why this had happened, I had no choice but to reply that I wanted to ask too.

Scratching my head, I guided them inside for the time being, and the party room, which had to accommodate nearly three times its usual number of people, felt a bit cramped despite its size.

However, I couldn’t afford to dwell on that.

With the girls happily hugging their mothers, I could finally proceed with the conversation.

“Yes, before we proceed with one topic, I would like to confirm: Evia-san, Himik, how did you ‘sense’ them?”
“Hmm, you wish to ask us first, Master?”
“However, it’s true that it might be easier to proceed with the story if we settle that first.”

Gathering tables and sofas, we created a space where everyone could talk, and Himik and Evia-san agreed to the first topic raised.

“There’s no mistake. This girl is my daughter.”
“Mine as well. There’s no mistake, Master.”
“And those two, there’s no mistake about them either.”

These two are a demon and an angel.

And demons and angels can sense and appraise souls.

Their surprise at the entrance was probably due to this.

That’s precisely why I confirmed the prerequisites first.

This was not a man-made scheme that occurred in modern times as initially predicted, but rather something else had involved the children from the future.

“???”
“????”

Naturally, the children, unable to understand why such a question was being asked, had question marks floating above their heads.

As sorry as I felt for the children, I had to make them understand for now.

And if it became confirmed that they were four biological children, there would be a way to act.

“Um, this is really hard to say.”

I stood up and knelt in front of the children, who were by their respective mothers’ sides.

Children are sensitive to their surroundings.

They are highly sensitive to anything unusual, dangerous, or unsettling.

These children were no exception; although they might not have fully grasped that something strange was happening, they were beginning to notice.

They clutched their mothers’ clothes tightly and waited for my words.

“It seems you’ve come from the future.”

And I conveyed this clearly to them from the start.

“Future~?”
“What do you mean? Do you understand, Helena?”
“…If it’s the future, that means tomorrow, so, um.”
“So we’ve come from tomorrow?”

Peeking out from behind their mothers, the children discussed amongst themselves, but they didn’t seem to quite understand.

That’s understandable; expecting a five-year-old child to understand and explain the principles of time would be difficult.

“It’s a bit difficult. Um. Father, I am your father, but I am not yet your father.”

Breaking it down for them was also difficult.

The children were even more confused by my explanation.

The word “father” was starting to feel like a gestalt collapse.

How should I explain this?

If the current situation could not continue, explaining it to them was essential.

However, even if I explained it, there was no guarantee they would understand.

Such an explanation would only cause further confusion.

“Haa, what are you doing? Don’t make the children anxious.”

As I was struggling to explain, Evia-san, who had gently picked up Claire, spoke softly to the girl, who was trying bravely to hold back tears with a worried expression.

“Don’t think about difficult things. It’s okay if you don’t understand. Be at ease, you are my daughter, and this is like a dream. When you wake up, tomorrow will come again. For now, just think about enjoying yourselves here.”
“Y-yes, I understand, Mother!”

I felt a sense of maternal love in that gesture.

My cheeks felt warm from that heart-throbbing gesture.

“That’s right. These children have done nothing wrong. You are undoubtedly my child, and you’ve just arrived a little early.”
“Precisely. Our long-awaited children have visited from the future. If we think about it calmly, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
“Indeed! In short, we should cherish the time with our daughters now!”

With Evia-san’s words, Suella and the others, as if a last bit of tension left them, began to gently stroke the children’s heads.

“If that’s the case, we can’t just leave things as they are. Now, my daughter.”
“Yes!”
“You should introduce yourself properly. Can you do that?”
“Yes! Leave it to me!”

In that flow of atmosphere, Evia-san easily drew out the information that I had been at a loss for.
In an effort to meet her mother’s expectations, Evia-san’s crimson hair fluttered as she grasped the hem of her clothes and bowed, somewhat awkwardly yet gracefully.

“My name is Claire T. Nordis! Daughter of Jiro and Evia!” she boldly proclaimed after raising her face.

Kaido and Minami’s applause at her introduction brought a satisfied smile to her face. However, her child-like request for Evia-san’s approval afterwards seemed to cost her points, as she received a gentle tap on the forehead.

“Now, it’s your turn to introduce yourself,” Amelia said.

“Yes, Mother,” Helena replied.

Gently nudged forward by Suella, she took a step forward and, after another elegant bow, said, “I am Helena T. Henderberg. The daughter of Father Jiro and Mother Suella. I look forward to working with you all.”

Though her introduction was a little nervous, Helena beamed at the applause and then scampered back to Suella, who praised her for doing well.

“Next, it’s your turn,” Suella said.

“Mmm, okay, Mother,” Maria replied.

The third to introduce herself rubbed her sleepy eyes but walked forward with steady steps. “My name is Maria T. Tris. My hobby is napping. Please treat me favorably~,” she said.

Her introduction felt characteristic of Maria, even though they had only met a few hours ago. She was always so relaxed, and that was just Maria’s way.

“And well, that’s me right now, but I’ll be more energetic when night comes~,” she added, as if remembering something, before concluding her introduction.

With a round of applause that held a hint of laughter, it was time for the final self-introduction.

“Come on, go on,” someone chimed.

“Okay!” Kasumi, whose energy seemed boundless, raised her right hand and began her introduction. “My name is Kasumi Tanaka! I look like a fallen angel, but! I love this name!!” Even though her words were somewhat surprising given her appearance, Kasumi flashed a sunflower-like smile that seemed to emit a “nipaaah” sound and high-fived Himik.

“Speaking of which, Minami, want to introduce yourself too?”

“Is this some kind of punishment?!” Minami emphatically rejected the idea, as if to say no thank you. Laughter filled the room, and after the introductions, they moved on to discussing future plans.

“Hey, Mother, I’m hungry,” Kasumi said.

“Oh, is that so? It’s already noon. Wait a moment, I’ll make something,” her mother replied.

“Okay! Oh, how about Neapolitan spaghetti!!”

“Hmm, making enough for everyone, that might be just right. Alright, we’ll have Neapolitan spaghetti today.”

“I’ll help too,” someone offered.

A loud rumble from their stomachs echoed through the room. Helena and Claire blushed, while Kasumi openly expressed her hunger. Maria clutched her stomach as if just realizing how hungry she was. Glancing at the clock, they were a bit past lunchtime. It was only natural the children would be hungry. At Kasumi’s prompting, Himik went to the party room’s kitchen with Kaenai. Pasta was in stock, easy to make for a large group, and wouldn’t take too much time.

“Evia-san, how about you?”

“Let me see,” Evia replied. Suella and Memoria would likely join them for lunch. However, she wondered about Evia, who was busy with work. After gently stroking Claire, who was clinging to her lap, she said, “I’ll partake. It’s not bad once in a while.” She agreed to eat with them. This meant it was time for some leisurely conversation.

“Hey, Uncle Kaido,” Kasumi said.

“Uncle?! Uh, what is it?” Kaido replied, wondering if his younger subordinate’s tone was appropriate even with a young girl. Since her mother had gone to cook, Kasumi seemed to have nothing to do and was staring intently at Kaido.

Kaido, who was still in his twenties, seemed slightly shocked at being called an uncle, but managed to respond flusteredly.

“What happened to your mustache?”

“My mustache? I thought I shaved it properly today.”

“Eh? I liked your mustache, Uncle Kaido! Why did you shave it?!”

Kaido, bewildered by Kasumi’s question, touched his chin, wondering if he had missed a spot. But Kaido, who was meticulous about his appearance, wouldn’t have any missed spots. His hand met smooth skin. Kasumi, however, reacted to the word “shaved” and looked disappointed, bringing both her index fingers under her nose and spreading them apart. At that gesture, Minami’s eyes lit up.

“Ah, you mean a Kaiser mustache?”

“Yes! That! Uncle Kaido used to say he took care of it every day for a mature look! It was so cool! Why did you shave it off!” Kasumi exclaimed. It seemed the future Kaido maintained a Kaiser mustache daily. Imagining him, a smile crept onto my face.

“Kikuraya and Amelia chuckled involuntarily.

“Hey, you two! Why are you laughing?!”

“No, I’m sorry. I just imagined it… *chuckle*”

“S-Sorry. It’s very charming~”

“If you think so, take your hands away from your mouths first!” Amelia exclaimed.

“That’s right! That mustache was really cool!” Kasumi added. It seemed my future daughter liked mustaches. A competitive spirit arose in me, and I found myself stroking my chin.

“Because! When Uncle Kaido uses magic, it glows! Like, *flash flash*!”

“BWAHAHAHA?!”

“Huh? My mustache glows?” Kaido asked in disbelief.

“Yeah!!”

There were all sorts of fantasy worlds, but I had never heard of a glowing mustache.

“So that’s what it is.”

“Evia-san, do you have any idea?”

Kikuraya, Amelia, and Minami couldn’t hold back their laughter at Kasumi’s statement and ended up clutching their stomachs. Kaido, the subject of their mirth, was stunned, never having imagined his future self would have a glowing mustache. However, Evia-san nodded in understanding, as she had some familiarity with the phenomenon of a glowing mustache.

“Female mages store magic power in their hair and use it as a trump card in critical moments. In men’s cases, some store it in their mustaches instead of their hair.”

“Why is that? My hair seems like it could store more,” Kaido asked.

“It depends on the bloodline, but men are also more prone to hair loss. Therefore, even if the volume is small, the future Kaido probably stored magic power in his mustache, which is certain to remain.”
Kaido, stroking Claire’s hair, speculated on his reasons for growing a beard as a way to improve his magic power shortage.
He accepted this with understanding, thinking that a future Kaido with a glowing beard would surely be popular with children.

“Is something wrong, Maria?”
“Hmm, well. Mother.”
“Yes.”
“Why did Amelia-san become so small~?”
“Small!? No!? I’m not small!!”

Children, after all, are pure. They honestly point out differences in their perceptions. Maria, Memoria’s future daughter, was no different. She seemed uninterested in the presence or absence of Kaido’s beard and stared intently at Amelia. When Memoria noticed this and asked, Maria pointed at Amelia and said she was small. Maria obediently lowered her hand after Memoria cautioned her against pointing, but her statement lingered.

The gazes of the Party Members and Suella’s group shifted to Amelia, who pressed her chest, her face slightly flushed. When asked to explain, Amelia looked at Maria.

“What do you mean, Maria?”
“Well, Amelia-san is tall, and her chest bounces, and she’s so big she can kick a giant’s head with a high kick~”
“……Huh?”

While it was possible this was a child’s exaggeration, Maria’s statement was still incredible. We involuntarily let out question marks and then stared at Amelia. Amelia stood at around 160 centimeters, an average height for a high school girl, with a slender build thanks to her regular exercise. Even as a half-American, her physique wasn’t like the tall American models Maria described.

“What happened, Amī?”
“I don’t know! I don’t know either!!”
“M-might it be that Amī-chan’s hidden potential is that great? Even with my eyes, I couldn’t see that far, Gozaru.”
“Ah, but Father told Mother that he always complained about men looking at him while drinking~”
“No!? What happened to my future self!?”

And truly, what had happened in the future? The idea that Amelia, so bright and lively, would say such things one day was startling. Helena’s memories were indeed a Pandora’s Box. From their perspective, they were simply sharing what happened, wanting to tell their parents. However, the content was quite precisely damaging to our past selves. Suella and Memoria nodded to Maria, unfazed by such revelations, while Evia-san let out an “Oh?” as if she had found an interesting specimen, showing no signs of stopping them.

“Claire, is there anything that caught your attention?”
Even worse, she seemed to be encouraging them to find more interesting stories.

“Hmm? Speaking of which, Mother.”
“What is it?”
“You’re a little distant from Father today. Did you fight? I always liked how close Mother and Father were.”
“Ah!?”
“……What!?”

However, this attack didn’t quite land with the child. When asked if her mother had noticed anything, Claire, desperately trying to recall, suddenly looked at the distance between me and Evia-san. Comparing it to a scene from the future, she pointed it out. Adding a gesture of hugging tightly, it was easy to guess what the relationship between future me and Evia-san was.

“I love being hugged between Father and Mother; it makes me very happy.”

Children’s innocence could be terrifying. Evia-san, who usually teased others, was now being teased. No, Claire had no intention of teasing. She simply voiced her wish for her parents to always be close, and the Party Members, excluding me who was working in the kitchen, were astonished. Suella and Memoria, without speaking, widened their eyes slightly and looked at their future daughter. And here, the difference in understanding Evia-san’s personality became apparent. If it were just my reaction, which I desperately suppressed, or that of Suella and Memoria, Evia-san might have overlooked it. However, the rest were in trouble. If a pheasant doesn’t sing, it won’t be shot. Kaido, Minami, Kitamiya, and Amelia, who openly reacted, were met with a cold gaze from Evia-san, their faces flushed, sealing their fate right then and there.

“……Hiii!?”
“……??”
“Ah, you don’t have to worry about it.”
“Yes, it’s nothing significant.”
“Here, Maria, come here.”

As I offered a silent prayer for the petrified group to live, I looked at Helena. Kasumi, Maria, and Claire had spoken about the future, and now it was Helena’s turn. She seemed curious about Suella’s growing belly, glancing at it every time we reacted. Eventually, her gaze turned to her mother, Suella, and she hesitantly placed her ear on Suella’s stomach, listening to the pulse of the life within. Suella smiled at the sight, gently stroking Helena’s head. The scene was so picturesque it could be framed, but the desire to see something frightening is difficult to suppress.

Kaido, Amelia, and Evia-san had shared stories about their future, and we had all taken some damage. While not earth-shattering, the revelations were about realities we couldn’t imagine for ourselves now. Kaido’s beard, Amelia’s physical and mental growth, and my passionate relationship with Evia-san. Rather than wondering years or decades into the future, the fact that such a future awaited us was astonishing.

“? Did something happen?”

Maria, half-asleep, clung to Memoria. After the story about Kaido’s beard, Kasumi went to Himik, who was cooking, and started chatting while watching her prepare food. Claire, meanwhile, pulled Evia-san’s hand and led her to a spot near where I was sitting, creating a gap for a person and settling in with a satisfied look. For now, we couldn’t get any more information from these three. Hearing about the future, even if it wasn’t crucial information, wasn’t something the people who weren’t present here would be indifferent to. Therefore, I was curious about what kind of story would come from her. The person herself, suddenly finding herself the center of attention, flinched, and blushing shyly, sat next to Suella.

“Um, everyone staring at me like this is a bit embarrassing.”
“Everyone seems to want to hear Helena’s story.”

“My story?”

“Yes, they’re curious about what you usually do.”

Suella stepped in to help her.

“What I usually do?”

Seizing upon Suella’s assistance, Helena considered what to say.

“Oh, speaking of which.”

“Did you think of something?”

“Yes!”

After a few seconds of thought, Helena seemed to have an idea and nodded towards Suella, looking like she wanted to be heard. Everyone else braced themselves, wondering what kind of story was coming.

“Yes! I’ve wanted to ask Mother something for a long time!!”

“Me?”

However, it wasn’t a story she wanted to tell, but rather a question to resolve a common doubt, and everyone was caught off guard.

The scene of a daughter asking her mother a question.

The content was utterly ordinary, and with the smell of cooking wafting from the kitchen, it seemed like the conversation was nearing its end as I watched the scene.

“What is it that you want to ask?”

Suella met the gaze of her earnest daughter, ready to answer.

“Um, you see, I want to sleep with you every day, but why is it that when I sleep with Father, I can’t sleep with you guys every other night?”

“………”

It was a very common, innocent question from a daughter expressing her loneliness. However, for the adults who knew the circumstances, the answer was incredibly difficult to provide.

“Ah, um, it’s not that I’m lonely at all. Um, when I can’t sleep with you, Mother Himik, or Mother Memoria, or Mother Evia sleeps with me, so it’s not like I want to trouble you, Mother.”

Helena, feeling Suella’s hesitation to answer immediately, realized it was a topic she shouldn’t have brought up and hastily tried to cover it. But the more they heard, the more everyone in the room understood the implication. Minami and the others gave me a wry smile and looked at me.

“To my future self, it’s fine that you’re on good terms, but you know… please let this feeling reach you.”

“Ah, that. I’ve also wondered, ‘Why is it like this, Mother, when I want to sleep with Father more?'”

“That’s…”

“I also find it curious, Mother. Why is it so?”

“………Indeed.”

Despite those earnest feelings, children’s curiosity is boundless. Only adults could understand the answer to Helena’s question. A child’s desire to alleviate their own loneliness, though earnest, was in a way unforgiving. Memoria and Evia carried the answers, but they knew they couldn’t reveal them. So, they naturally hedged their words, but children, to satisfy their curiosity, could wait indefinitely. When they grew impatient, they would incessantly ask “Why?” but would cling like a limpet and not let go. However, they might change who they latched onto.

“Um, why is that, Father?”

“Why~ Father?”

“Why is it so, Father?”

When their mother was at a loss for an answer, the questions turned towards me. Naturally, I had anticipated this. Suella, Memoria, and Evia’s eyes conveyed, “It’s up to you now.” How could I answer without piquing their interest, and yet satisfy them? “You’ll understand when you’re older”? No, that wouldn’t satisfy them. How could I answer the questions of these three? Should I try to deceive them? That was an option, but would these intelligent children believe it? After desperately thinking and enduring their questioning gazes, I came up with this.

“Well…”

“Yes.”

“Mmm-hmm.”

“Exciting!”

I paused, reconsidered if this was the best approach, and since I couldn’t think of anything else, I said, “…I’m training to become a father.”

I was really pushing the limits. Adults would undoubtedly grasp the implied meaning. But for children…

“Training to become a father?”

“Yes.”

“Does that mean Mother has to be there too~?”

“Yes.”

“So we can’t?”

“Yes, because it’s training to become a father.”

I was glad only my daughters were present. If I had a son, that sentence wouldn’t have crossed my mind. Depending on who heard it, it could easily be considered sexual harassment. However, for them, who lacked that kind of knowledge, they could perceive that the answer wasn’t wrong, but they couldn’t grasp the meaning. I had to utter such borderline words in front of the Party Members.

“Do you think that’s acceptable, Kitamiya?”

“If you’re talking about acceptable or not, it’s completely unacceptable. But I guess it can’t be helped.”

“Yeah, actually, it’s amazing you came up with those words. I couldn’t have.”

“Don’t mind, Jiro-san. Don’t worry about it.”

But I couldn’t let my embarrassment contort my face. After all, my daughters were right in front of me. Even though it was something improper, I had to act as if it wasn’t. My daughters kept repeating, “Training to become a father.” I had to say it, but it was tough.

“Jiro, you did well.”

“Good work, Jiro-san.”

“Thank you, Jiro-san.”

Evia-san, Suella, and Memoria offering their comfort was the least I could ask for.

“Master! The meal is ready? What’s with this atmosphere?”

“Yay, Neapolitan! But what’s wrong, Helena? What were you talking about?”

“Did something happen?”

Just then, the lunch was ready at the perfect timing, and I stood up silently.

“No, nothing. More importantly, let’s eat.”

I said to Himik, and she responded with an understanding nod, though her head was tilted in confusion.

Today’s word: The bells will ring soon.

If you found this interesting, please leave your comments, ratings, and bookmarks. And thank you for this past year. We look forward to your continued support for this work and Nana Shi Nanami next year. Happy New Year to everyone.

*The first volume of the novel is published by Hayakawa Bunko JA. It was released on October 18, 2018. The e-book version was released on October 31st of the same year. The second volume was released on December 19th. The third volume was released on February 20, 2019. The content includes revisions and additions to the material posted on Shōsetsuka ni Narō, with an additional unreleased interlude. Please check out the new releases as well!! A comic adaptation is being serialized in Kodansha’s “Young Magazine The Third.” We hope you enjoy that as well. We ask for your continued support for this work.*