Chapter 94.1 - Volume 10 (1/2)
From here on too, Hakumei will enjoy myself while discharging wild idea bit by bit, and it will make me happy if you readers can keep accompanying me.
「……Wake up. Wake up, Hajime.」
His dozing off awareness was led to awakening by a soft voice and a gentle shake. Because of the brightness seen through the back of his eyelids, he could tell the curtains had been opened. It was morning, and the sun was insisting on its presence.
「……Don’t mind me. Go on, ahead.」(TN: Here Hajime is using a line like a hero who will stay behind so other can escape safely)
「……It’s no good using clichéd line like that. Breakfast will get cold. So wake up.」
He tucked himself into the bed like a bagworm and tried to take a journey into the dream world, this man who was trying to journey to the dream world with a voice that was going to disappear anytime, was the eldest son of this household――Nagumo Hajime. And then, the one who was making a troubled smile to such Hajime even while kept urging him gently to get out of the bed, was Hajime’s beloved vampire princess that came from another world――Yue.
Yue sat down beside the bed and she gently stroked the black hair of Hajime who was curling in to himself. Her slender fingertips caressed through Hajime’s hair, combing them down. And then, her eyes squinted affectionately and she quietly brought her lips toward Hajime’s ear.
A small *chuu* sound resounded and Hajime twitched in reaction. Perhaps enjoying that reaction of Hajime, Yue’s look was increasingly bursting open in happiness, next she held Hajime’s earlobe into her mouth. Hajime once more twitched in reaction. Yue kept playfully nibbling then. And Hajime kept twitching from that.
Yue separated her lips from Hajime’s ear with *chupa* sound before she opened her mouth while blowing a feverish sigh on Hajime’s ear.
「……If you don’t wake up……Hajime will be the breakfast.」
「I’ll wake up.」
It was a lovely speech, but there were his parents downstairs, other than them there were also the freeloaders and his daughter. Making a ruckus complete with moaning sound 「aah-」from morning would be problematic in various meaning. The neighbors too would be guaranteed to look at him later with grinning expression saying 「oh my」. Therefore, Hajime pushed aside the futon with a snap and woke up.
「Good morning, Yue.」
「……Nn. Good morning.」
Hajime’s hair that was curling up here and there was fixed attentively by Yue using her hand as comb. Since the morning the atmosphere of the two was already teeming with mushiness. It even felt like the morning sunlight brightly shining in through the window was growing dim in reservation from these two’s lack in prudence.
Hajime who was exposing a dazed waking up face which was unthinkable if it was at the period when he was journeying the other world Tortus, was narrowing his eyes toward his lover that was caressing his head in front of his eyes. While he was at it he was also running his gaze through the surrounding relaxedly.
Inside the room, seventy percent of it was buried in bookshelves and the books and the games that were put there, and then there were a desk and reclining chair, a good quality desktop PC, and also a closet between the bookshelves. A window was attached at the wall that was facing south, a navy blue curtain the same color with the bed was hanging over it.
(…..I’m still feeling that this room is ‘nostalgic’. it must be because the experience at the other side is too strong. If I still feel like this after going home for a year, then it might take a half more year to be able to live without feeling anything is out of place.)
Hajime sighed a bit inside his heart. And then, he clenched his left hand repeatedly as though to ascertain it. That arm didn’t shine with dull metallic gleam, its appearance was that of a normal human arm. It had elastic skin and slight mark of suntan similar with his right arm.
Furthermore, Hajime also gently traced his right eye with his fingertip. There, he didn’t feel the sensation of eye patch that was in the process of becoming his trademark in Tortus. Far from that, there wasn’t even the bluish white shine that was the trait of god crystal. The eye’s appearance was a dark brown eyes that looked like the eye of a normal Japanese as expected.
「……Nn? Hajime, what’s wrong? It feels uncomfortable?」
Yue noticed Hajime’s state, she then brought her face closer until their nose tip almost touched while tilting her head. The sweet fragrance that tickled Hajime’s nasal cavity made him got slightly bewitched while he shook his head.
「No, there is no discomfort in both my arm and my eye. Thanks to Yue and others’ cooperation, the artificial skin and the artificial eyes are all in extremely excellent condition. No one would notice as long as they don’t get scanned in detail at hospital. If I have to say, perhaps I’m feeling discomfort from this situation where there is no discomfort.」
「……? Hajime feel discomfort from the appearance of your body?」
「Yeah. After all the experience over there was just too dense. The metallic arm, the crystal eye, and also the white hair, all those were already me. That’s why, rather than calling this appearance getting back to normal, it feels like that I changed again. Well, it going to be really bad if that kind of unknown automail and strange crystal eye get discovered in this modern earth, so that can’t be helped though.」
While smiling wryly, Hajime tapped on his left hand using his right hand. The artificial skin that used metamorphosis magic had reproduced a splendid skin texture, making the one touching wouldn’t be able to sense the existence of metallic artificial arm hidden behind it.
The one who accomplished this was Tio. The technique of Tio that was the only expert in metamorphosis magic among his comrades, added with Hajime and Yue’s help, remade the artificial hand smartly and disguised it as a normal arm in outward appearance and texture.
Also, Hajime’s artificial eye was something that was remade using creation magic, while his hair color was due to Kaori’s regeneration magic returning the hair color to before.
Of course, for Kaori whose hand had reached to the territory of time intervention, if she used regeneration magic seriously then it was possible she could even restore Hajime’s altered body to normal human body. Whether it was his loss of limb or his change due to eating monster, all of those could be reverted if Kaori just returned Hajime’s body to its previous state.
But, Hajime didn’t wish for that. Actually, by returning to earth, things like tough body was unneeded, but for some reason it felt like turning his body to how it was before was like making light of his journey at that other world. And above all else, he couldn’t be growing senile first and left behind Yue who would be living for a long time.
In the end possessing a monster class body where it wasn’t even definite that it had life span was in agreement with Hajime’s own wish. By the way, if they were using Yue’s secret technique of apostle creation, then the problem of life span could be resolved to a certain degree even if they were using their original normal body, so Kaori and others also didn’t view this matter as a problem.
「……Nn. Personally, there is no problem for me because I can enjoy various Hajime. Rather I feel happy.」
Yue said that and gave kisses in turn at Hajime’s left shoulder, right eye, and his head. Every single action of Yue was overflowing with affection.
At that day, after they established the method of going home, since that day when Yue was proposed under the great tree of [Haltina Sea of Trees], Yue’s expression of love was increasingly became polished. She had never been seen without the ring that was fitted in the ring finger of her left hand, and when Yue saw the matching ring that was fitted in Hajime’s left ring finger, an aura of happiness would be scattered in full from her.
「Speaking of that, what about Yue? Have you get used with the world over here?」
「……Nn. There are still a lot of things, that I don’t know, that I am not familiar with. This is really, a different world. There are a lot of unbelievable things……. But, it’s fun. Every day is fun like opening jack-in-the-box.」
「I see.」
「……Nn. Besides, I will be happy anywhere if that is a place where Hajime is. Mother-in-law and father-in-law are also really kind. They treasured me like their real daughter, it feels really happy. Everywhere in Hajime’s world, is filled with happiness.」
「I, I see……somehow, it feels hot even though it’s morning huh.」
The gaze of Hajime who ate a straight punch of love was wandering around. Yue who understood that Hajime was being shy chuckled 「Nfufu」while snuggling at him like a cat. Hajime’s hand was subconsciously moving and gently caressed Yue’s fluffy hair.
An atmosphere that was overflowing with sugar content was running rampant since the morning. Yue quivered her long eyelashes while quietly closing her eyelids, her faint pink lips were pushing out to Hajime. Hajime easily surrendered seeing that obviously coaxing pose. His face was approaching near……
「Geez~, Yue-oneechan! Is Papa still not awake nano!?」
The one who opened the door of the room loudly with a bang while entering with a huff was a five years old girl who puffed up her flat chest. She was Hajime’s daughter Myuu. However, now her emerald green hair became emerald blond, while her fan shaped ears that were the trait of merman race had changed into small and cute human ears.
The cause of the change was the illusion that was created by the ring artifact hanging down from Myuu’s neck. The artifact was something excellent that surprisingly could reproduce even the touching sensation, so even if Myuu’s ear was touched the person touching wouldn’t feel the texture of fin, but the sensation of human ear instead. And so, Myuu’s appearance was completely that of a beautiful little girl with blond hair.
The moment that Myuu energetically entered the room, she pointed her finger at the clichéd childhood friend morning scene which entered her eyes and raised a protesting voice「Aa~~!」.
「Geez-, Yue-oneechan! I always told you every time! Doing that to papa right from the morning is a no-no! Why aren’t you protecting your promise nano!」(TN: Here Myuu said ‘me-‘ to Yue. This is the way people in Japanese scolded their naughty child or pet, it’s like saying ‘bad’ with scolding tone in English, though I translated it into no-no here.)
「……uu. Tha, that is because Hajime is……」
「Blaming others is no-no!」
「……au. I’m sorry.」
Toward Myuu who pointed her index finger at Yue’s nose while saying 「Bad-」, Yue could only dejectedly hung her head down regardless of her big sister status.
It had been about a year since they moved into earth. Recently Myuu who had grown up remarkably was acting really proper and strict. When all the onee-chan who often became hopeless character that couldn’t read the atmosphere when they got entangled with Hajime, like Yue right now, Myuu would remonstrate them with ‘Bad’ like this.
Actually, in order for Myuu to become used with this world quickly, and also because it was desirable for Myuu to have education in good taste, she was then enrolled into a nursery school about two months ago, but it seemed that in the school Myuu became awakened as ‘onee-san’ for some reason.
There was the factor of how based on her age she was included in the senior group in school, but additionally there was also how she had been piling up experience that should be too dense for a mere infant. She had been kidnapped, auctioned, traveled through desert, struggling through a scene of carnage at the devil king castle, and even participated in a legendary decisive battle. Looking from the point of view of such Myuu, the children the same age with her who were born in peaceful country like Japan were as expected looked really young and naïve.
Thinking ‘I have to be proper and strict!’, she imitated the outrageous onee-chan group around her and her mother that was overflowing with kindness, like that she acted too helpful toward the other kindergarteners……when she noticed, she had became the trusted and beloved leader of the kindergarteners.
However, her call of 「Gentlemen! And ladies of Myuu’s friend!」when she was gathering the kindergarteners, or how she said 「Right now is exactly the time to blaze our soul!」when encouraging a child that felt down, or how she showed a fearless grin when there was a child that looked uneasy, those actions that looked a little bit unlike a kindergartener were conspicuous so the teacher there reported it to Nagumo household……regarding the state of Hajime when he received that contact from the teacher, let’s just say that he was rolling around on the floor for real at that time.
「Really it’s my bad, Myuu. Come on, I’ve already waking up here.」
Yue who possessed the absolute dignity as the legal wife toward the other wives was seriously feeling down from getting scolded by Myuu. Hajime sent a glance at such a Yue while crawling out from the futon. Myuu listened to Hajime’s words and nodded, she then faced Hajime and reached out both her hands.
「Myuu? What’s with those hands?」
「Papa, Myuu want to be carried nano.」
Even though she was scolding Yue just now, but right after that Myuu demonstrated a spoiled kid request. Yue went ‘hah’ in shock and moved her gaze to Myuu. Her eyes were clearly narrating her dissatisfaction 「Even though I was scolded when acting spoiled……」which was looking a bit lacking in maturity.
Toward that, Myuu said,
「Mama said, 『When Yue-san pulled back, immediately act spoiled(attack)』, like that nano.」
「……I’m going to speak a bit with Remia.」
Yue became enveloped with faint golden light, right after that she became adult mode. And then, in order to speak a few words with the mother who taught woman battle tactic to a little child, Yue silently, but quickly exited from the room.
And then, Myuu who kept holding her pose asking for hug directed a shuddering gaze toward Hajime who was left behind. This little girl in front his eyes was steadily mastering the lesson from the seniors around her. From here on, just what kind of growth this beloved daughter would show him after accepting the teaching of the women who had one or two peculiarities Hajime wondered……