Chapter 45: A Few Months of Familiarity
“What!? Meileen is Maya’s wife!?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
After dealing with the Admos Soldiers, I introduced Meileen to Nara-kun on our way home.
I mentioned her name and that she was my wife.
“Huh… Wait, Meileen is a Demon Tribe, right? Where did you meet her? I mean, isn’t Maya her enemy…?”
Nara-kun seems to be a person with a strong sense of justice, just as Princess-sama had told me.
Earlier, he even apologized to Meileen for having defeated her kind in the war.
He must have thought that since I had vanquished the Demon Tribe King, I was an unforgivable existence to them.
However, Meileen shook her head, denying Nara-kun’s words.
“No. Kenta tried to stop my father and ended up saving me when I was nearly killed. He defeated my father in my stead… To me, Kenta is my benefactor.”
“Oh… Huh? Father? You mean…?”
“The previous Demon Tribe Nation King.”
After Meileen said that, Nara-kun froze in place.
Then, with a creaking motion like a rusty toy, he turned to look at me.
“…Wait? Meileen is a Demon Princess?”
“No, she was a queen since she ascended the throne once.”
“!?”
This time, he stood there with his mouth agape in shock.
“Eh? Huh? What?”
It seemed Nara-kun was thoroughly confused.
“Well, this isn’t exactly a conversation for walking. Let’s talk more calmly when we get home. You must have other things you’re curious about besides Meileen, right?”
When I said that, Nara-kun’s expression shifted from astonishment to seriousness, and he nodded.
So, as we passed through the forest and reached my home’s grounds, Nara-kun’s eyes widened again.
“Whoa… There’s such an open space deep in the forest… And that house…”
Nara-kun was staring at the two houses standing side by side.
“That’s our house and our friends’ house.”
When I said that, Nara-kun looked more surprised than ever.
“Maya had friends!?”
“What do you mean by that?”
This time, instead of a headlock, I put him in an iron claw hold.
“It hurts! It hurts! My head’s gonna split open!!”
I let go before I really did split his head open.
“Watch your words, okay?”
“…Yeah, sorry about that.”
…Looks like he’s really getting the hang of being a junior.
Was he always like this?
As I led Nara-kun closer to the house, the door opened before we arrived.
Out came Mona, who had firmly refused to accompany Ivern and the others during their evacuation.
Mona stepped out and bowed deeply.
“Welcome back, Master, Mistress. And…”
She raised her head to look at Nara-kun.
That Nara-kun… Oh, he was totally staring at Mona’s chest.
“Ah, this is the Summoner, Mitsuhiko Nara, who was fixated on Mona’s chest.”
“Hey!? What kind of introduction is that!?”
“Well, it’s the truth, isn’t it?”
“That was totally unintentional! It’s natural for my eyes to go there!”
“Even so, a grown-up should avoid looking, Nara-kun.”
“Ugh, that’s annoying…”
Man, he really has become a cheeky junior.
“Nara-kun, this is Mona, who used to be Meileen’s lady-in-waiting and is now a maid in this house.”
“Ah, Nara… Mitsuhiko Nara.”
“Thank you for the polite introduction. I’m Mona.”
“Mona, I need you to prepare tea for everyone, and… Nara-kun, do you prefer tea or coffee?”
“Coffee.”
“Then prepare coffee for me, Nara-kun, and Ivern.”
“Understood.”
As I gave Mona my orders, she bowed and headed to the kitchen.
After watching her go, Nara-kun suddenly turned to me.
“By the way, who’s Ivern?”
“The guy living next door.”
“Oh, the friend you mentioned?”
“…Now that you say that, I’m starting to doubt myself. He might be just an acquaintance.”
“Come on, Kenta. If you say that, Ivern will cry. More importantly, hurry up and go get him. I want to see Leon soon.”
“Yeah, you’re right. I’ll go now.”
I said that and tried to teleport, but Nara-kun spoke up again.
“Leon?”
“Our son.”
“…Huh?”
Leaving Nara-kun, who was frozen in shock again, I went to fetch Ivern and the others.
“Hey.”
“Whoa! You scared me!!”
I teleported directly to the room in the apartment managed by Mr. Bennett, which served as Ivern’s base in town.
Ivern was so startled by my sudden appearance that he fell back, which was pretty funny.
“Ah!”
Leon, who suddenly spotted me, crawled across the room’s floor to get closer.
“Hey, Leon. Have you been a good boy?”
As I lifted Leon, Yulia approached, holding Aira.
“Well, Leon has been a bit down since coming here. It seems he sensed that something dangerous was approaching his mom and dad.”
“…Is that so?”
Leon, whom I was holding, seemed to cling to me even more than usual.
…No, it wasn’t just my imagination. His grip on my clothes was stronger than before.
“…I’m sorry, Leon. For having such selfish parents.”
“Ah…”
I care deeply for Leon, but both Meileen and I put each other first.
That bond is unshakeable, but perhaps we have neglected Leon a bit too much.
As I held Leon tightly, Ivern spoke up.
“So? Given your demeanor, it seems you selfish parents managed to pull it off?”
Tch! He was just waiting for a chance to tease me.
“Annoying… Well, I managed to avoid a fight with Nara-kun. I dealt with the Admos Soldiers, though.”
“…I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that.”
“Better that way. Anyway, Nara-kun is at home right now. I want to talk with all of you together. So let’s head back.”
“Okay!”
“Sure!”
Yulia and Aira responded lightly, just like before, and came to my side.
As for Ivern, he was busy gathering the mess he had made in such a short time.
“Come on, hurry up. I’m leaving you behind!”
“Shut up! Then help me out!”
“Ah, I’d love to, but I can’t tell what’s mine and what’s already in this room.”
“I’m busy holding Aira!”
“Ah, ah.”
“Sure.”
Leon and Aira mimicked Yulia and me, making their own little sounds.
Seeing us, Ivern sighed and began tidying up.
The sight of him looked just like a poor dad forced to do housework on his day off.
There was a hint of melancholy in his back.
“Hurry up.”
“Shut up!!”
Before long, Ivern finished cleaning up, and together, we headed home.