Chirp chirp chirp—the sound of sparrows reached my ears, and I woke up.
"Mm… morning."
I stretched hard, my spine cracking and popping, and yawned.
"Aaahh…"
Glancing to my side, I saw a blue-haired girl sleeping bathed in the morning sunlight, her hair glistening.
She could well be called a goddess.
And beside her, a blue-haired baby was sleeping.
The child of god and man, Perseus.
No—my daughter, Lara.
And beyond that.
Under the bed, a white fur ball was curled up.
The Sacred Beast, Leo.
Now that official permission had been granted for her to transfer here from the Beast Race, she seemed to carry herself with even more dignity.
Probably because Linia and Plutena were groveling at her feet all the time.
Still, I thought she'd grown quite attached to Lara… but for Lara to be the Savior.
It was a shock, but I'd been able to predict it to some extent.
So my child was special, huh?
I could've been over the moon about it, but I decided not to let it show too much.
I couldn't play favorites with my children.
"Mm… ah, good morning,
Roxy woke up.
Rubbing her sleepy eyes, she sat up.
Her chest, swollen from pregnancy, was bared under the morning light.
No—I mustn't look with impure eyes, or I'd go blind.
But oh, my wicked gaze was drawn there as if pulled by a magnet.
Oh God. Please help me.
"Huh? Why is Lara here…? Did you bring her, Rudeus?"
Roxy looked down at her daughter sleeping beside her, still bleary-eyed.
Tilting her head, she gently stroked Lara's hair.
"She came in by herself last night. Don't you remember?"
"…Hmm?"
After everything had settled down yesterday, the two of us had gone to sleep, and Lara—rare as it was—started crying in the middle of the night.
Roxy, still wearing a half-asleep expression, had floated out of bed, led Lara into the bedroom, changed her diaper, nursed her, and soothed her to sleep before finally drifting off herself.
Leo had tagged along at that point, of course…
If she didn't remember, that was fine.
"…Mm."
Roxy gave a sleepy yawn.
"I'm heading out for morning training."
"I see. I have the day off today, so I'll sleep a bit more with Lara."
Saying that, Roxy flopped back onto the bed with a thump.
"Alright, good night."
"Good night."
Leaving Roxy behind as she immediately began to snore, I stepped out of the bedroom.
After changing, I stepped into the hallway.
On a whim, I opened the door to
Sylphie was still asleep.
She and Lucy lay side by side, sleeping peacefully with sweet, content expressions.
I'd given Lucy a nursery of sorts, but when it came time to sleep, she always ended up with Sylphie.
Maybe once in a while, the three of us should sleep together in the bedroom, lined up like a river character (川)?
Then again, my sex drive was pretty intense, and if I slept in the same bed, things tended to escalate…
I couldn't very well make love in front of a child who was already aware of what was going on.
In any case, I was satisfied by the happy sight and closed the door.
I also peeked into
Eris was an early riser.
She'd probably already gotten up.
"Mm… mm…"
But when I looked, there was a figure on the bed.
Both hands pressed against her face, trembling in small shudders.
Large chest, but not red hair.
Dog ears, and a dog tail, too.
Eyes that always looked drowsy were a little teary today.
"Oh, Boss… morning…"
It was Plutena.
After everything, she had come back with us to the magic city Sharia.
One person had been overjoyed at Plutena's arrival.
Eris.
When she saw Plutena, she'd licked her lips and said, "What a cute girl!"
Linia had been horrified watching that, but Plutena was the opposite.
"As expected of me, Boss. The Boss's wife took a liking to me right away."
She'd puffed out her enormous chest and looked at Linia with a smug expression.
The moment Linia saw Plutena's attitude, a mischievous glint appeared in her eyes, and she began flattering her.
"Wow, that's amazing, nya—to catch the eye of the Blade Princess herself. As expected of Plutena, nya. I'd love to learn from you, nya."
"Heh heh, you could never, nya~ Linia."
Plutena got carried away.
Wagging her tail, she approached Eris and let herself be stroked behind the ears, her tail praised…
She received an arguably excessive amount of physical contact, but being a dog-type, she just wagged her tail and murmured with a sidelong glance, "I'm such a sinful woman—my charm is enough to captivate even Boss's woman."
I watched this and wryly smiled.
Normally it would've been irritating, but knowing what was coming, all I could do was smile bitterly.
Eris apparently liked Plutena's attitude.
"You must be lonely sleeping alone—I'll come sleep with you from time to time!"
That was her offer.
Plutena accepted, thinking, "This is just a matter of time before I overthrow the top."
Unaware of Linia's snickering, Plutena began regularly spending the night with Eris.
And then, in the middle of the night, she'd be crushed in a bone-breaking embrace, resulting in this.
"Uuugh… my chest hurts…"
I cast healing magic on Plutena, who was in pain.
Her chest was as enormous as ever, but I was now the wise sage who had spent a night with Roxy, so it was no problem.
"Thank goodness…"
Accepting Plutena's thanks, I headed downstairs.
I went straight to the entrance and picked up the wooden sword leaning against the wall near the front door.
Stepping outside, I found Eris standing like a guardian statue in front of the entrance.
Arms crossed, feet planted wide.
Her large belly thrust forward.
She stood before the front door as though standing sentinel.
"Morning, Eris."
"Good morning, Rudeus."
Eris was in high spirits today.
It was obvious from her face.
Plutena's cuddling must have been really something.
Linia and Plutena currently lived together near the mercenaries' office.
It was a similar apartment to
Once an evening, they took turns coming by to check on Leo, then went out for a walk together.
They were nominally caretakers, but having them live in the house could cause friction with the family, so I let it be.
Eris had been calling them into her bedroom one at a time, using them as body pillows.
Linia was trying to escape somehow, but she couldn't get away from Eris.
At least not while she still owed that debt.
Watching them disappear into Eris's bedroom with desperate looks on their faces, I felt a twinge of jealousy.
I wished she'd invite me to the bedroom once in a while too.
I was part of Eris's harem after all—I wanted some affection too.
Would she hold me again once the pregnancy was over?
Wait.
Wasn't that backwards?
How strange—I was supposed to be the pillar of the household…
Oh well.
"By the way, what are you doing?"
"Thinking of names for the baby. A bold, heroic name is best, don't you think?"
Was this really something to do first thing in the morning, outside?
I'd thought she was standing guard or something.
"A bold name, huh? For a boy, that might be nice."
"Like Ars, or Aldebaran, or Carlman…"
"Those might be a bit too bold, don't you think?"
They were all names of past heroes.
Well, any name was fine, really.
If I picked something too old-fashioned, the kid might get teased.
"Have you thought of anything, Rudeus?"
"I'm thinking of names for a girl—Alice, Flann… something beautiful."
"You'd give a girl's name to a boy?"
Eris tilted her head in genuine confusion.
"If a girl is born and she gets stuck with a boy's name, that'd be pretty sad, wouldn't it?"
"……It's definitely going to be a boy."
Eris turned away with a huff.
Then I'd at least come up with a name that worked for either gender.
Maki, Kaoru… no, those were names from my old world.
I could think of it while running.
"Well then, I'm heading out for my run."
"Be careful."
Eris, lately, had more or less stopped doing her sword swings.
She was six months along now.
Maybe she'd developed a sense of awareness as a pregnant woman, or maybe it was just instinct.
She didn't give off a motherly vibe at all, but Eris was going to have this baby regardless.
Thinking about all this, I headed out for morning training.
--- When breakfast time came, the whole family gathered.
Lillia and
Zenis, sitting in her chair with a vacant expression.
Beside her sat
And next to her, Lucy sat on a chair, kicking her legs.
I told Lucy to sit properly with her legs together.
Across the table, Roxy was still looking sleepy as she breastfed Lara.
Lara, who had inherited her mother's drowsy expression, drank happily.
Eris sat as she always did—majestic and composed—while Plutena's head rested on her lap, being stroked.
Plutena, limp and passive, perked up the moment food was brought out, wagging her tail and sitting up straight.
I sat down next to Eris.
At the head of the table. The seat of honor, so to speak.
Not that such a concept really existed here.
But even though the table was big, it was starting to feel rather cramped.
We were running out of rooms too.
Lara would grow up soon enough.
No, by then, Norn might have already moved out.
What would she do after school?
Aisha would probably continue living at home even after becoming an adult.
"Norn."
"Yes? What is it, big brother?"
"What are you going to do after you graduate from school?"
When I asked, she looked at me with a bewildered expression.
"…I haven't really thought about it yet?"
"I see."
Well, she was still a fifth-year student and student council president.
She wasn't even an adult yet.
She probably hadn't thought that far ahead.
"Um, big brother?"
"What?"
"If I—this is just hypothetical—"
"Mm."
"Said I wanted to become an adventurer, would you be against it?"
An adventurer.
Norn, as an adventurer.
She could handle a sword fairly well, and her magic had improved significantly over the past five years.
She could probably make a living as an adventurer.
Maybe she'd heard stories about adventuring from
I was worried.
Knowing Norn, she'd probably trip up somewhere and die in some silly accident.
Besides, if a cute adventurer like her showed up, every man would flock to her…
Lately, I'd been seeing adventurers in trouble so often that all these bad images kept coming to mind.
"I wouldn't be against it, but I'd worry… Do you want to become an adventurer?"
"No, it's not that I want to. It just crossed my mind."
Norn shook her head.
Did she want to be an adventurer?
If she graduated from the
No—maybe she was looking for something other than money.
If possible, I wanted to respect her wishes.
"Thanks for the meal. I'm heading to school."
"Alright, be safe."
After finishing her meal, Norn grabbed her things and promptly left her seat.
Even on days when Roxy had off, Norn had student council duties apparently.
Tough kid.
After the family saw her off with "be safe," Norn headed to school.
"I'd say I'm against it—no way Norn could handle being an adventurer."
After Norn left, Aisha muttered casually.
"I think we should let Norn do whatever she wants. Wanting to do something on your own is really important, you know."
"I'm opposed. Norn is the precious daughter of Lord Paul and Lady Zenis. She should marry into an appropriate family and live a safe life."
"I'm all for it. Norn's swordsmanship still needs work, but adventuring is fun."
After Norn was gone, the family chatted back and forth.
Of course, no real decisions came out of this family discussion.
It was just conversation.
"Well, you can become an adventurer anywhere. If she really wants to do it, even if the family opposes, she could just quietly leave and do it anyway."
In the end, it was Roxy's unexpectedly weighty words that brought the morning meal to a close.
--- Leaving the house, I first dropped Aisha and Plutena off at the mercenaries' office.
Plutena had taken on the role of Deputy Director.
What she actually did was assist Linia—a secretary role, essentially—but her official title was Deputy Director.
In the director's office, wearing a black suit and sunglasses.
She didn't smoke, but she seemed to be enjoying herself.
Maybe I'd buy her a hat for the executives next time.
"Well then, do your best."
"Yessir, Boss!"
"Today we make a killing!"
"Don't do anything too shady."
After giving that warning, I received the member list from Aisha—a roster of the group's members.
Fifty names.
Among them, those particularly skilled at administrative work were marked.
I planned to show this list to
Then I'd interview them individually and ask the reliable-looking ones to help with office management and paperwork.
"Actually, couldn't I just handle that kind of work myself…"
That was Aisha's take, but it wasn't that simple.
She'd certainly deliver incredible efficiency.
But what if, in the unlikely event, she laid eyes on Orsted?
Or if, for whatever reason, the curse activated?
Aisha might end up opposing Orsted.
If she seriously opposed me being under Orsted's command, things would become incredibly difficult.
She lived a lazy life every day, but once she got moving, she delivered results fast.
By the time I realized Aisha was making moves behind the scenes, Orsted might already be at the bottom of the ocean.
Something like that could happen.
I was probably overthinking it, though.
"Aisha, I'm counting on you with the mercenaries."
For now, I'd leave it at that.
--- Leaving the office, I headed to Orsted.
He'd already been informed of my activities over the past month.
Putting Linia and Plutena at the head of the mercenary corps, and placing Aisha as their assistant.
He hadn't particularly objected to any of it.
"This is unprecedented—keep going."
If anything, he seemed amused by my actions.
He'd allowed me to place office workers in this office and had even selected two from the list, saying, "Either of these two would work."
Perhaps he had expectations of me.
"By the way, was putting Linia and Plutena in those positions really alright? It won't change history or anything, will it?"
"If, in the end, one of them becomes clan leader, history shouldn't change dramatically."
If one of them becomes clan leader in the end.
This time, Plutena had barely held on to her position as a candidate for clan leader—by the skin of her neck, literally.
Linia had been beaten down, but if she put her mind to it, she could probably replace Plutena as clan leader.
If it came to that, I could give her a serious boost.
"The moment you got involved with anyone, most of them had their fates significantly altered. So I can't say anything for certain."
That hit close to home.
But I'd just been living my life as normal.
Give me a break.
"Still, I never imagined my daughter would be the Savior. Did you know, Lord Orsted?"
"No. In the past, a different man was always the Sacred Beast's partner."
Lara apparently hadn't been born in any of the previous loops, so that made sense.
"However, from what you told me, the Human God was actively trying to prevent you and Roxy from ending up together. So I suspected the child would carry a strong destiny."
My daughter had displaced the original savior and taken that seat, in a manner of speaking.
"By the way, what would the original Savior have done?"
"He would have defeated the Demon God Laplace upon his resurrection."
"I see… Would it be a problem if the original Savior didn't become the Savior?"
"It wouldn't matter. For me as well, Laplace is someone who must be destroyed.
I owe the Sacred Beast and its partner for their help in the past… but they're not indispensable pieces."
In past loops, when I'd fought Laplace, they'd been powerful allies.
But now I could beat someone like Laplace with ease, so they were unnecessary?
"Does Lara also carry a fate of fighting Laplace?"
"Who knows.
But for the Human God, Laplace is someone they'd prefer to disappear.
The fact that they didn't prevent his birth means…
Your daughter must be a far greater obstacle to the Human God than Laplace."
Lara would be a key factor in defeating the Human God in the future.
That was just speculation, though.
This loop contained much that even Orsted didn't know.
"So Lara really will be targeted by the Human God going forward…"
That was my main concern for now.
The thought of my precious daughter being targeted was a source of anxiety.
But Orsted shook his head.
"That's exactly why I summoned the Sacred Beast. That beast's destiny is powerful—even the Human God won't easily lay a hand on her."
"Hah…"
"Furthermore, whatever happens, I have no intention of letting your family perish. So rest easy."
If Orsted was willing to say that much, I'd take what comfort I could.
I would do what I could do.
Just as before—I would prepare for the coming "next battle."
--- After leaving the office, I headed to the university.
I was still worried about Lara.
But worrying alone wouldn't solve anything.
Time to shift gears.
"Whew…"
Alright, shifted.
I'd shifted. It's fine.
Now then, how were
The Magic Armor could use better fuel efficiency too.
In its current state, only I could use it…
No—making it so fuel-efficient that anyone could use it would be a problem if the Human God's side captured it.
So which one to visit first?
My guess was that Cliff was already busy working on the second unit with
Those two somehow had a tendency to get going early.
Do it once in the morning, recharge during the day, do it again at night, recharge while sleeping.
That was probably their cycle.
Cliff's kidney deficiency might catch up with him soon.
Then I'd stop by Zanoba's place first, as usual.
At Zanoba's, I'd review the Magic Armor research progress and run experiments.
After that, tell him about the mercenary corps, then discuss the plan to recruit shop staff.
Once that was done, grab lunch and head to Cliff's place.
If there was a new prototype, I'd bring it to Orsted.
That was the plan.
After sketching out this simple schedule, I entered the research building.
"You idiot!"
A shout flew at me out of nowhere.
I wasn't about to deny being an idiot, but the ambush was rough.
The real idiot is the one calling someone an idiot.
"You know damn well, don't you?!"
I tried firing back, but obviously those words weren't aimed at me.
I quickly spotted the source. It was the landing between flights of stairs.
Five men and women were arguing there.
All of them were people I knew.
"This is practically walking to your death!"
The one shouting was Cliff.
Cliff had Zanoba by the collar and was yelling at him with tremendous ferocity.
Behind him, Elinalise held a baby with a troubled expression.
Zanoba gazed down at Cliff with cold eyes, utterly unmoved.
Behind Zanoba, Ginger looked weak, casting desperate, pleading eyes at Cliff.
At their feet,
It was a fight, but something was off about it.
Something had happened.
"Zanoba! Cliff!"
Climbing the stairs, I called out to them, and both turned toward me sharply.
Cliff's face screamed for help.
Zanoba was expressionless.
This was the first time I'd seen Zanoba wear such an insignificant, worm-like expression.
No—wait, I thought I'd seen it once before.
Where was that…?
"Master, perfect timing. I was just about to come find you."
"Rudeus, great timing—talk some sense into Zanoba too!"
They spoke simultaneously.
Zanoba, with an irritated expression, roughly shoved Cliff away.
It didn't look like he used much force, but the Saint's superhuman strength sent Cliff stumbling backward onto his rear.
Zanoba looked briefly apologetic at that, but without apologizing, he approached me.
His eyes, set slightly higher than mine, bored into me with a piercing gaze.
"…What happened?"
"I intend to entrust Julie to you. I purchased her with my own funds, but she was originally your slave, Master."
Zanoba said it flatly.
Before any of that—I wanted an explanation.
"Where are you planning to go, leaving Julie behind?"
"My homeland. I've received a royal decree to return."
A royal decree.
So an order from the king.
But then why was Cliff so opposed?
It wasn't like he had to leave right away—he could wait six months for the graduation ceremony.
"My brother Pax successfully staged a coup d'état.
He killed our father and elder brother and seized the throne."
"…What?"
Pax—that Seventh Prince, the one who'd captured Lillia?
He'd succeeded in a coup… and taken the throne?
He became king?
"It seems other nations are eyeing us, wanting to invade while the kingdom is weakened by civil unrest.
They want me to return and shore up our defenses.
So I'll be heading out for a bit."
Zanoba said it as casually as if he were popping out to the convenience store.
But in those words, I somehow understood.
The "next battle" had come sooner than even I had imagined.
Chapter 199: The Next Battle — End Next Chapter: Chapter 200: Youth Arc — Zanoba Arc