Evia-san mentioned her father was impactful.
I couldn’t quite understand what that meant, but when I heard the man with the Kaiser beard boldly announce himself as “I am Kaden Nordis, the head of the Nordis family!!”, I understood that he was Evia’s father and finally grasped what Evia meant by impactful.
In a word, he was… intense.
“Hajimemashite, I am Jiro Tanaka, Evia-san’s boyfriend.”
For a moment, I was stunned by the impact… the man, clad in an outfit as flamboyant as those worn by singers at that certain year-end singing festival, was a demon. Still, I managed to introduce myself.
The man standing before me, with winding horns on his head that differed from Evia’s, sported what looked like a peacock’s extravagant tail feathers on his back. He had also adorned his entire body with illuminations that made me want to call him a Christmas tree, and he had dropped from above to make his entrance.
“Hoh! Not flustered by my appearance, are we? Truly, you live up to the Demon Lord’s trust in appointing you as General!!”
No, it was simply that my mind was too overwhelmed to keep up with the tsukkomi. My common sense automatically kicked in, urging me to at least offer a greeting. I was relieved that I hadn’t just stood there with my eyes wide and jaw dropped, desperately biting back the urge to tell him he should be on Kohaku Uta Gassen.
“I’m used to it.”
“Hahahaha! To think there’s someone else other than me who dresses like this! The world is vast! Ah, but you came from another world, didn’t you! Perhaps this kind of attire is commonplace in your world?”
When I said “I’m used to it,” I meant I had become accustomed to the instructors’ sudden invitations to drink, which felt like surprise attacks. Kaden-san, however, misunderstood and thought my flamboyant attire was normal.
If I were to say “Yes, that’s right” here, I couldn’t help but imagine what a bizarre world Japan would become.
“No, I am merely accustomed to being surprised. There are people who dress like Kaden-san, but they are extremely rare, and it’s usually for special occasions.”
“Kaden-san? That’s so formal! Why don’t you call me ‘Papa’ in a friendly manner! You’re the man Evia approves of, and I saw the General’s rank decisive battle the other day! If you’re that kind of person, feeling free to call me ‘Daddy’ is perfectly acceptable!”
“Then, Father-in-law.”
“Hahaha! You’re still quite stiff, aren’t you!”
As I held back a laugh, Kaden-san, who was surprisingly friendly, slapped me on the back repeatedly. Hidden by his flashy outfit, I hadn’t realized, but the underlying reality beneath the heavy attire was a well-trained, muscular body that allowed him to move with such agility. Even with his platform shoes designed to avoid stepping on his costume, he showed no signs of losing his balance. These blows to my back, which conveyed a sense of strength, felt like a sign of welcome.
“Father.”
“Oh! My apologies, Evia. Welcome home. You must have been busy with work.”
“No, it was convenient for me to introduce him to you.”
“Hahahaha! You’ll be free today and tomorrow, won’t you? I’d love to hear how you two met.”
“Yes, then please prepare some bitter drinks or strong liquor.”
“Hahahaha! Then I’ll have Eve prepare something. She was quite excited when she heard you were bringing your fiancé.”
“Come to think of it, where is Mother? I don’t see her.”
Evia, concerned about Evia-san, who was nearly choking, stepped between him and Kaden-san, stopping the blows. Even with a highly durable body, it was tough to continuously receive such blows. I conveyed my gratitude with my eyes, and she smiled with pleasure, then asked about the whereabouts of the other person I needed to meet.
“…Actually.”
The moment the topic was brought up, Kaden-san averted his gaze apologetically.
“Haa, I see. You couldn’t sleep, could you.”
Understanding the situation, Evia-san let out a wry smile and a sigh. Couldn’t sleep? Was it like a child who couldn’t sleep because they were too excited about a field trip?
“I heard Evia was returning, and I couldn’t sleep for the past few days, you see.”
As Kaden-san hesitated apologetically, a loud noise echoed.
“Late, late, I’m late!?”
“Madam! Rushing like this is unseemly! Please, move a little more leisurely and gracefully!?”
From the sound of her footsteps, I could tell she was running at full speed, something I occasionally did myself. The attendant was probably trying to hold her back with a loud voice because she was running at full speed, but she seemed oblivious.
Should I just pretend I didn’t hear this?
“Haa.”
Judging from the simultaneous sigh and the hand placed on their foreheads by both father and daughter, this seemed to be a normal occurrence.
“Um, she’s quite energetic.”
“Your kindness is a great relief. Well, that’s how it is.”
I offered a smile, indicating I wasn’t bothered, and Kaden-san, with a wry smile, said he was grateful. His wife was running towards me, perhaps uttering lines straight out of a shojo manga. However, she probably wasn’t holding a piece of bread in her mouth, and her husband was waiting around the corner. A new love wasn’t about to begin.
“I’m lーーーーate!?”
And then, a woman with flaxen hair burst through the door, demonstrating a daring maneuver of drifting in her heels.
“Evia.”
“What is it?”
“You were right. It was impactful.”
“Now that I think about it, I regret what I said.”
She wasn’t panting, but sweat glistened on her forehead. The woman extended both hands horizontally, making a gesture like a baseball umpire. Kaden-san, however, responded without mercy, mimicking the umpire’s signal for “out.”
“Safe!?”
“Out.”
I felt a sense of relief at their un-noble-like exchange.
“Is she always like this?”
“No, she’s usually more serious. Perhaps she heard you were from a commoner background and thought she didn’t need to maintain a noble demeanor, so she decided to relax a little.”
“She relaxed a bit too much?”
“Yes.”
But given her noble status, I had to confirm, and it turned out her friendliness had a reason. While her manners were a failing grade, I thought this might be acceptable.
“Um, nice to meet you. I am Eve, my wife. I apologize for my rudeness this time.”
The demon woman with wavy flaxen hair greeted me with a smile that made no indication of her earlier dramatic entrance.
“Nice to meet you, I am Jiro Tanaka.”
Thinking it best not to delve further, I politely returned the introduction.
“That was an impressive drift, Mother.”
“Gyah!?”
With Evia-san’s unsparing teasing beside me, I somehow grasped the respective positions of each family member. We then moved to the drawing-room, as we couldn’t stand talking at the entrance forever.
The Nordis family was a prestigious one, and as their territory indicated, their tax revenue was considerable. However, unlike Kaden-san’s attire, the room’s furnishings gave the impression that the money had been spent on the bare essentials, rather than the ostentatious displays of a nouveau riche.
“Oh, I’m so embarrassed by my behavior.”
“I told you so. You should have gone to bed early last night.”
Eve-san, covering her cheeks, was still mortified by her dramatic entrance. I could only offer a wry smile. Demons aged quite young externally. Eve-san looked even younger, to the point where she could easily pass for a high school girl. That’s why her embarrassed gestures, clutching her cheeks, suited her so well. Kaden-san’s gentle reprimands made their relationship look more like that of a father and daughter than a married couple. If this couple were on a date in town, I worried they might be reported.
Furthermore…
“Mother, I told you too, didn’t I? I said I was bringing my fiancé, so please don’t oversleep.”
“Ugh, but Evia-chan.”
Given her youthful appearance, it was incredibly strange to think of her as Evia-san’s mother-in-law. She didn’t resemble Evia-san much, making them appear more like senior and junior at school. Needless to say, it was unclear who was the senior. The current conversation also made me question who was actually older. Seeing Evia-san scold her, I couldn’t help but laugh at how natural it seemed.
“Well, Evia, that’s enough.”
“Mmm, you’re right. Why am I lecturing Mother when I came home to introduce him?”
“It’s a familiar scene for me, though.”
“Ugh, my dignity as a mother!”
It seemed Evia-san scolding Eve-san was a daily occurrence. That explained her natural demeanor. Eve-san wept sorrowfully. But then, Kaden-san smiled as if happy to see Evia-san after her return. And before I knew it, Evia-san was contemplating why she was lecturing her mother. They were certainly a unique family. However, it was also a family that exuded a warmth exceeding blood ties. My own family was also rather unconventional, but I could confidently call them family.
“Hoh, Evia had her eye on him since he joined the Demon Lord’s Army.”
“Wow! Evia-chan is interested in a boy!!”
Currently, for some reason, we were each sharing our subjective memories of how Evia-san and I met and built our relationship. It was quite fresh to hear each other’s thoughts at the time. When asked for my first impression of Evia-san.
“I thought she was beautiful and looked very capable at her job.”
I answered honestly, and Evia-san, flicking her tail against my back, was there. Conversely, when asked for my first impression.
“I thought he seemed like an interesting toy to play with.”
“Hey.”
“It’s the truth.”
I honestly uttered something devilish. Well, he was actually a demon, and I had seen his expression suggesting he might think such things. I couldn’t deny it, but what could I say to Evia-san, who kept flicking her tail to express her feelings? I was troubled with how to convey that it wasn’t like that anymore, and that I understood.
“Indeed, it appears you are nurturing your relationship properly.”
“It’s nice, being young.”
However, both Kaden-san and Eve-san seemed to understand from the atmosphere that Evia-san and I had a good relationship. The father in his flamboyant attire and the mother who looked like a high school girl. The couple were gazing at us as if they had found something heartwarming, but visually, their appearance was also quite striking. Especially Eve-san’s comment about being young – I wanted to object, saying she herself was quite young.
While we continued to chat in that lively atmosphere, being welcomed into the Nordis family, someone suddenly asked,
“By the way, what happened to Nord? I told him to be home as well.”
“Ah, Nord…”
Inquired about another absent family member, the in-laws exchanged troubled glances.
“Actually, his behavior has been strange since he returned home the other day.”
“His behavior?”
“Yes, whenever he comes home, he mutters nonsensically, seals his room with a barrier, and isolates himself.”
And then, ominous words were heard.
Today’s Word: Realization cannot be understood without experience.
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I am currently serializing another story, “Pandora Pandemic Panic.” The box of Pandora has been opened again, but we are fighting back with various activities at our secret base! Please check it out too!
