Volume 1 Chapter 32 Family
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
(Yuuta’s POV)
The next morning, it was drizzling a bit.
It really matched my mood right now.
Mr. Agohige’s caravan, with Ms. Akari and Melon on board, should arrive at the merchant guild before noon.
I planned to head to the merchant guild early and wait for their arrival.
Now, sitting on a park bench, getting a little wet, I was thinking about when to go when Puruun came walking over with an umbrella.
”Ah, good morning…”
I called out to her.
”What are you doing here? Did you spend the night out? You’re all wet. Make sure to change before you go to the merchant guild. I’m going ahead.”
”Ah…”
As I started to walk back home, Puruun stopped me.
”Yuuta. You talked to Aaa-aaa last night, right? She told you why she’s been running away and that you recommended she talk to me… that I would definitely support her if she opened up… And Aaa-aaa said to consider that you were also thrown into this mess and had your hands full… But I’m still trying to sort out my feelings, so I’ll keep it cool today… please help me out.”
”Ah, thanks.”
With that, Puruun headed to the merchant guild first.
* * *
(Puruun’s POV)
”Eh! PurPur? Is that really you? You look completely different… is it really you?”
When I arrived at the merchant guild, Ms. Humari rushed over to me, excited.
”I’m sorry for worrying you. The military’s information control has been really strict, and I couldn’t contact anyone at all. But I finally got in touch with Yuuta 3 days ago, and I managed to get through all the obstacles…”
”Wow, that’s great. I heard rumors that several guards died related to that princess’s defection, so I was really worried.”
So, I’ve heard from Lady Claudel that many people have died.
But I haven’t been told who exactly…
I guess I was lucky.
On my way to Ilman, I was almost caught by pursuers several times, but thanks to the protection of the necklace and the wild strength I’ve built up until now, I managed to rush to Lord Mihail’s place.
And there was Lady Asuka.
The princess and her attendants were watching my movements closely, following behind, and while I was dealing with the pursuers, they took the chance to sneak into Sir Mihail’s place, planning to enter Ilman from the very beginning.
I don’t know who they are, but the shadowy figures that headed to other regions are, in a way, true decoys…
Anyway, after a while, Yuuta also arrived at the merchant guild. He’s changed his clothes properly.
Soon, the sound of many horses’ hooves and the rolling of wheels got closer.
──They’re here!
Ah, it’s been a year and 4 months.
It’s been so long…
Melon, I wonder if you’ve grown a bit.
And Mama Akari… oh, how should I face Mama Akari when I see her…
The carriages started to enter the square one after another and lined up as they stopped.
First… oh, it’s Mr. Agohige. He’s the first to get off and greet everyone.
Ms. Sharlin is behind him.
But, I’m sorry, Mr. Agohige, greetings will have to wait!
Yuuta pointed towards the carriage, as if saying we should hurry.
* * *
(Yuuta’s POV)
”Ah, it’s Yuuta! Yuuta, it’s been a while!”
A loud voice came from the other side, and someone ran towards us.
Huh? Ellulu?
Ellulu jumped on me.
”Ah, it’s Yuuta, Yuuta! This smell, no doubt about it! Wait, is that you, Puruun? Wow, I didn’t recognize you with your hair so short. Is that the trend in the city now?”
”Hey, Ellulu. What are you doing here?”
Puruun asked in surprise.
”Hey, it’s a greeting, right? I told you, I’m going to study fashion in the Royal Capital. That’s why I’m here! Well, I got here a bit earlier than planned.”
”Oh, I see. So, Ellulu. Where’s Melon? And Mama Akari?”
”Ah, they’re over there. Resting at a table in the shade near the carriage. The journey was pretty tough, you know.”
”Got it. Thanks. We’ll chat more later. We’re heading over now.”
Saying that, Puruun ran towards the carriage with me.
Oh, there are 2 people at that table.
The one standing is… ah, isn’t that Melon? Hasn’t she grown a lot?
Then, sitting next to her is Ms. Akari?
Puruun quickened her pace.
”Huh? Could it be… big sister? Ah, I knew it. Big sister cut her hair! Oh, and Yuuta is here too! Big sister! Yuuta!”
Noticing us, Melon ran over.
”Ah, Melon! I’m so glad you made it safely! I missed you!”
”Yeah, big sister. Me too…”
Puruun and Melon hugged each other with tears in their eyes.
”So, MelMel. Where’s Ms. Akari?”
”Ah, she’s at that table. But she’s a bit sleepy, so let’s be quiet.”
”Okay, got it.”
Ms. Akari must have fallen asleep from the fatigue of the journey, I thought as I approached her.
But wait? Ms. Akari is awake and waving at me.
Is she just too tired to move?
I got a bit worried and rushed over, and Ms. Akari whispered to me.
”Yuuta. Long time no see!”
”Ah, Ms. Akari. Are you okay? Do you feel unwell?”
”Ah, Yuuta. Shh. If you speak too loudly, you’ll wake her up…”
Huh? When I looked beside Ms. Akari, there was a big basket, and inside, a baby was sleeping. Oh, that’s why we need to be quiet.
”Ah, I’m sorry. I didn’t notice. What a cute baby! Whose child is it?”
”Yeah, this kid is… our child, you and me!”
”Huh?”
”Before Yuuta left for the Royal Capital, we loved each other a lot, right? This is the result of that love!”
”Huhhhh?”
”Haha, sorry for surprising you. But I had no way to tell you… it’s a girl!”
Oh, wait a minute. My head is spinning… I’m about to freeze up.
But then, a loud voice came from behind me, where I was frozen.
”What’s this! Come on, enough is enough! This is downright disgusting. I’ve had enough! I’m going home now. You guys can do whatever you want from now on.”
The one who shouted was Puruun.
”Huh? What’s wrong, big sister?”
Melon also seemed confused.
Ms. Akari was also surprised. The baby started crying due to the loud voice.
”Huh? What’s going on? What happened?”
Even Ellulu ran over to us.
”I told big sister about Yuuta’s baby, and she suddenly got angry… I’ve never seen her get so angry.”
”Well, I guess it was a mistake to bring him here without telling anyone. I also told PurPur to become Yuuta’s mate…”
Ms. Akari said apologetically.
”No, no, Puruun knew that Ms. Akari and Yuuta were mates, and it was Puruun who told them to mate before going to the Royal Capital. There’s no reason for jealousy now that the love has borne fruit…”
Ellulu confronted me, having made the correct analysis.
”Sorry, Ms. Akari. Puruun found out yesterday that I and Ms. Akari were a fake couple.”
I explained the situation to everyone.
We all hung our heads in shame, and Mr. Agohige and Ms. Sharlin approached us.
”Well, everyone. Are you done with your emotional reunion? Huh? You don’t seem to be doing very well, do you?”
”Well, there was a little misunderstanding… Puruun got angry and left.”
”Hmm… well, that’s life; sometimes, these things happen. But you are a strong family bound by a strong bond. Don’t worry! Mr. Yuuta, now that you’re a papa, you can’t just hang your head; you have to be more responsible.”
Mr. Agohige encouraged us, and Ms. Sharlin continued.
”That’s right, Yuuta. Your daughter is a lively one, and I wasn’t bored at all during the journey. We practiced sword fighting together… haha, just kidding. That’s the part where you laugh. Oh, yes. I’ll return this to you. It’s the Gregory knife. Well, I didn’t have a chance to use it this time.”
The two of them left, saying they would greet the others and talk more later.
So, I’m a father now. I haven’t quite grasped the reality of it yet, but I must be responsible; otherwise, my family will be left stranded.
”Well, let’s go home.”
I said, and as I was about to head back to my home in Downtown with Ms. Akari and Melon, who were carrying the baby’s basket, Ellulu stopped me.
”Oh, Yuuta. Wait! Can I stay at your place too?”
”Huh?”
”Well, Puruun seems to be busy with other things, and I feel a bit sorry for asking, but I need to save money for my stay in the Royal Capital… Can I stay with you until my own room is ready? I’ve already gotten MelMel and Ms. Akari’s approval.”
”Oh, Yuuta. I’m sorry, but EllEll has helped me so much since we left the village… .”
”I know the house is small, but we can all sleep together. If you want, I can even sleep next to you. I don’t mean to take advantage of your kindness, but please!”
Hmm. There’s one more reason for Puruun to be angry, but at this point, I guess it doesn’t matter.
I told everyone that there was already someone else staying at my place due to certain circumstances and asked them not to be surprised.
When we arrived home, Puruun was back, hiding under a blanket on the bed, and Aaa-aaa was worriedly by her side.
”Oh, everyone, nice to meet you. I’m Asuka. I’m staying here for a while due to some personal reasons. And Mr. Yuuta, these people are all from Tokura Village, right? If that’s the case, I think it’s best to explain my situation properly so that I don’t cause any trouble later. Is that okay?”
There’s no problem with the princess herself wanting to do this.
Everyone was shocked to learn that Aaa-aaa was the Fourth Princess; Ms. Akari even bowed down, saying, “Hehe.”
”Well, this place is certainly small.
If I sleep with Yuuta, we’ll merge into one, won’t we?”
Ellulu said playfully, and Aaa-aaa’s face turned red up to her ears.
”But, I see. Moving is not an option due to the princess’s involvement…”
”Huh? But what if I rented a place somewhere? That wouldn’t be suspicious, would it?”
”Oh, that’s right. Of course, you came to the city to study from a remote village, so you would need to find a place to live. But what should we do? Puruun would know…”
At that moment, Melon, who had been listening to the conversation, suddenly stood up, walked over to the bed, and pulled the blanket off Puruun’s head.
”Come on, big sister. This is a job only you can do! Think properly for the princess!”
”No… I won’t do anything…”
Melon slapped Puruun’s cheek.
”Come on, stop moping. Yuuta wasn’t taken by Mama Akari; he was always Mama Akari’s. Knowing this, big sister fell in love with Yuuta! And even if Yuuta’s true mate is Mama Akari’s daughter, the love you two have built over the past three years is not fake. Don’t you understand that?”
”But…”
Puruun whined, and Melon hugged her tightly.
”We’ve had so many difficulties before, haven’t we? With our mother, Imenji, and the travel expenses… Every time, we thought it through and worked hard together. So don’t worry, big sister. Let’s think this through together again. I’ve grown a lot, and I’ll work hard with you…”
”Waahh! Melon!”
Puruun clung to Melon and cried.
”Haha, I didn’t know MelMel was like this.”
It seemed that Ms. Akari and Ellulu were also shedding a few tears.
Puruun seemed to calm down after crying for a while.
”Um… Mama Akari, I’m sorry. I called it disgusting, but Melon is right. I won’t doubt your love for Yuuta anymore. And Ellulu, thank you for the great idea. Let’s put it into action right away. I think there’s still an empty room in this apartment, so that’s the easiest option. Don’t worry about the rent… I’ll get some money from the princess’s supporters.”
”Wow, lucky! MelMel worked hard, so I think I’ll try a little harder too.”
Ellulu stood up.
”Huh? What do you mean, ‘try harder’?”
Puruun asked suspiciously.
”Well, Yuuta, stand at attention!”
”Huh? Me?”
I stood up.
”Don’t you have anything to say?”
”Huh? Me? Well, I’m just glad that Puruun has calmed down…”
”Shut up! I knew you were stupid and insensitive, but I didn’t expect this… You really have no tact, do you?”
”I’m being talked to like this for no reason. What have I done…”
”Do you still not understand? Ms. Akari was looking down and walking with her head bowed the whole way from the merchant guild here!”
”Oh!”
”Have you finally realized it, you blockhead? This child is yours! Why don’t you hold her? Why don’t you comfort Ms. Akari? Why aren’t you showing more joy? MelMel said your love is not fake, but this doesn’t look convincing!”
”Oh!”
This is probably what it means to have scales fall from one’s eyes. I had overlooked the most important thing as a human being, as various problems had piled up.
”Ms. Akari, I’m sorry… I’m really immature… Thank you. Thank you for giving birth to my child… Thank you for bringing her this far.”
”Yuuta, it’s okay. It seems like you had a tough time. But I’m glad you said that. I was quite confused about whether to have her or not. But… I’m glad I did.
This child was born at the beginning of this year, and I was going to ask you to name her, but Nameless was a bit of a handful, so MelMel and I decided to name her. Her name is… Karin.”
In our world, the word “karin” means “gathering” or “connecting.”
”I see. Karin… In our world, it’s the name of a tree with beautiful flowers. It’s a nice name.”
”Well, papa… hold her.”
Ms. Akari handed sleeping Karin to me.
She’s so tiny and light. She was brought here in that carriage, and it took four months.
Melon, Ellulu, Ms. Sharlin, Mr. Agohige… They must have all helped. I am so lucky.
”Hey, Yuuta. Can I hold her too?”
When I handed Karin to Puruun, she woke up and started crying loudly.
”Huh? Maybe I’m holding her the wrong way. There, there.”
”Oh, Puru. Can I hold her next?”
”Haha, what a lucky girl to be held by a princess.”
Melon, who was poking Karin’s cheek, also had a smile on her face.
That night, our family gathered in the Royal Capital.
I couldn’t help but feel that, with everyone’s combined efforts, we would be able to overcome any challenges that came our way.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
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