Chapter 50.5

MaouMuji Chapter 50 . 5: Childbirth

TL: kizen

ED: Filip

It has been ninety days since the end of the year festival, and I guess it’s about time for the weather to start warming up soon . Suzuran came to town as per our usual arrangement and while we were in bed, she told me .

「That thing that comes every month didn’t come this time . I probably have a child in my belly」

Because of that, we decided to be prudent and just let Suzuran stay at home while I come and visit . I told the boss of Suzuran’s possible pregnancy so I asked if I could go back to the village for a short while . When they heard that, I was taken to the bar and we had a grand celebration .

「So that’s why the two of you been flirting this whole time . You finally going to have a child huh! You did it when you went back for the end of the year festival right? Why did it take this long!」

「Wellー, we didn’t have money and we don’t have our own house yet and I didn’t want us to just be barely sc.r.a.ping along without any savings . That’s why we had to wait for a while」

「Y-you also had to add Latte-san into that consideration」

「……ahー, that’s true, isn’t it? My stomach sure had a hard time during that time~ . It only took a single punch there from Suzuran before she forgave me then they bonded after making a promise between women . Hmー, it would be more appropriate to call it a pact I guess . Well, whatever .

Then, there’s also the fact that one of our friends from the same generation back in the village had a kid with her partner . She was one of Suzuran’s friends as you would expect . Because of that, she and her other friends started wanting one too . It might have been enhanced by me going to the frontlines but her pestering reached the critical point by the time the end of the year festival came . Eventually, I yielded to her demands and that ended up making Suzuran a happy wifeーーー Yay!」

That sullen atmosphere was immediately turned around . After saying that, I drank the entire cup of beer in one go .

「How enviableー . I also want one of my own~」

「Kitsune, don’t you have a girl you frequently visit in Sweet Memory? What happened to that?」

「There’s no hope in that in the first placeー . She only wants to wring me out you know?」

After saying that, he also drank his beer in one go .

「So, how is Suzuran-chan right now?」

「I was told 『I’m going to hit your face if you’re not here in the village by the time I gave birth』」

「That’s pretty scary」

「I feel like I might really die this time」

「That’s probably true」

It’s unusual for me but I was already contented with getting to feel drunk to this extent so I went back to my apartment . There, I found Latte waiting for me .

「Welcome back~ You know, I’ve been thinking that I also want a child of my own soon… Is that alright~?」

「Hmー . Why are you asking something like that all of a sudden?」

「It would be rude if I had a child before Suzuran-chan right? Now that Suzuran-chan has missed her time of the month, she should be pregnant right? That’s why . We can’t~?」

It’s unfair if you tilt your head like that okay…… Well, I pretty much already knew that’s what she was aiming for though .

「Yeah yeah, just not today since I’m drunk, okay? Also, you’ll probably go wild so we can’t do it here . Because of that, you should make arrangements to reserve an inn at the red light district and let me know when so that I can leave that day open . I’ll pay for accommodation fees」

「Hmm~ . It probably won’t be a safe day for me in about 5 days~ . I also want to do it a day before and after that so I want you to leave open a total of 3 days」

「Wait a minute, let me just make things clear, are we going to go there after work? Also, are we staying there overnight?」

「Kyaー! Can we really stay overnight~? Caam-kun is unexpectedly amazing, isn’t he~? I thought that you could only do twice every round but to think that it was actually still not enough……!? Iya~n」

「I’d be good with the same arrangement as the end of the year festival you know?」

「I’d be happy if you accompanied me for three days straight after work」

「Okay, I got it」

◇

Fifty days after that, Latte came to me and said .

「My time of the month has been quite delayed and I kinda feel terrible as well . My stomach feels queasy~」

She’s probably experiencing morning sickness . I have never seen Suzuran like that though . She just kept on eating meat like usual . Well, I guess that might just be because they both have their individual differences when it comes to pregnancy .

Latte told me she wanted to go to the village so a few days before our departure, she started vacating her room above a bar in the lower-cla.s.s district that she has been residing in and temporarily place her luggage in my room . She says that it’s because she wants to live together with Suzuran .

I wondered if that’s really alright at first but it doesn’t seem like I have anything I need to worry about . They even had a secret agreement once again without me noticing it . I’m sure I won’t get to hear any more from her than this .

「I’m only going to bring the necessary things this time so I’ll leave it to you to bring back the rest a little at the time」

「Got it . Well, looking at the all of Latte’s things, I think that it will only take me 3 roundtrips to bring them all」

「I left a few on my underwear so I’ll let you use them if you get lonely okay?」

「Yeah yeah . Thank you very much」

「Muー how insincere~ You’re absolutely not going to use it right~」

「I might use it you knowー?」

「Yeah right . Well then, let’s go~」

「Now that I think about it, have you told Celesso-san about this?」

「I already did while Caam-kun was working~」

「How about your close friends at your previous work?」

「I told them over tea during one of their days off~」

「That’s good then」

「What about Caam-kun? I’m sure that you’ll receive complaints from Torene-san when you come back for not leaving any sweets while you’re away」

「It’s fine if she still has complaints while she’s eating but I’m pretty sure she’ll just remain silent」

「That’s true isn’t it~? It would be bad taste if they still complain even though you went out of your way to make them~」

After that exchange, we started to depart with a lot more luggage than usual .

PaiSlash are the best .

◇

I’m almost done transporting all of Latte’s stuff to Beryl so all that’s left is to clear up my own things . That said, I don’t usually buy anything aside from the necessities so that didn’t really pose any problems .

I feel bad for Suzuran, Latte, and the others but I can’t go home yet because ten days worth of rent would just get wasted . Thinking that now should be the right time, I finished up saying my goodbyes to my workmates . I also started saying my goodbyes to the residents of Clinochlore but that didn’t end smoothly like expected .

「Give me cake before you go home」

「Uhm…… Pudding, please」

「I’m good with whatever sweets you make」

「Since it will be the last time, I’m going to use all of the ingredients I have okay? Just so you know, it’ll get dried up over time and I’m not even sure how long it will last」

With that, I started making a large number of sweets for them the next day . I made a lot for them to stock up so I’ll just pray that they won’t get an upset stomach…… Particularly with the pudding .

◇

「Well then, thank you for taking care of me until now」

「Feel free to come over whenever you have the time . Just think of it like visiting your seniors」

After saying that, instead of immediately going back to her room like usual, the landlady accompanied me to the entrance to see me off .

Wait, was she actually someone who’s pretty old? Just how much older is she!

「It seems like you made some cakes for us to eat when you’re no longer here……this is troublesome isn’t it? I don’t know what time that girl’s work starts after all」

As expected~ . Since I told them that pudding gets so easily spoiled, it was already gone by the morning of the next day . I don’t know what those three were thinking eating all of them like that . I also heard Celesso-san’s voice coming from the kitchen so she probably joined in as well . They had a pudding party in the middle of the night so all four of them are lying down on the kitchen floor holding their stomachs in pain .

After that, I left Clinochlore .

Ahー, there’s the gatekeeper next . He’s known about this for a while now but I’m not really sure what to say .

「I’ll be staying at our village from now on」

「Ou! Let’s have a drink whenever you’re here okay? Later」

That was unexpectedly easy .

◇

Five days after I came back to the village, I started working as a counselor for the village chief as well as a kind of handyman for the village .

Once I got home from work that day, I found Suzuran sleepily staring at the evening sun by the window . She had a smile on her face and looking at her other hand, she was rubbing her belly .

Noticing me, we had the usual .

「Welcome back」

「I’m back . 」

I felt the urge to rub her belly as well so we both did that leisurely . When Latte came home from work, she said .

「Ahー, how unfair~ . Touch mine too~」

Because of that, I also rubbed hers too .

As for Latte’s job, she was in charge of feeding the animals and milking the cows .

『I’ll keep at it until my belly gets a bit bigger okay~』

I’m not really sure if that’s just because it’s different in this world or if it’s because the women are strong but I wish she’d take on a safer job at least . I’m sure working as a receptionist would suit her well . There’s no guild in this village though .

They took turns cooking dinner before I came back but now that I’m here, I try to do it wherever possible . As for the days when I come home late, Latte makes it in my stead . The reason for that is simple . If we leave it to Suzuran, she’ll only make meat dishes . Because of that, we restrict the meat dishes we make . After Suzuran has finished setting the table, we started eating .

「「「Let’s eat」」」

For today, I boiled vegetables rich in beta-carotene and chicken tenders to turn into a salad . As for the dressing, I just used lemon juice, salt, and pepper to break down the fats . I found some beans in this world for the first time so I decided to cook it together with chicken meat without the fat and tomatoes seasoned in salt .

I was really surprised when I asked what they’ve been eating before I came back so I made sure to improve their eating habits . Of course, this is for the sake of the children . I mean, they told me that the majority of their meals just consisted of chicken meat after all .

For the sake of the child in their bellies, I added various nutritious ingredients as well as reduce the salt content of their meals a bit . However, since Suzuran hates vegetables, she would not eat anything but meat . She reluctantly ate the tomato and bean dish but she refused to even touch the salad .

「Suzuran, Just because I’m serving you vegetables doesn’t mean I hate you . I don’t really mind the lifestyle you’ve gotten used to of just eating meat and bread up until now . However, you have a child growing in your belly right now so I’d really appreciate it if you ate it」

She sent me a terrifying glare but I can’t yield here .

「This food will help the child in your belly grow . Suzuran might not want it but the child needs these kinds of food . Whatever you eat goes all throughout your body so that goes to the baby as well . That’s why, please eat it, okay?」

After I said that, Suzuran looked really displeased as she started eating the vegetable salad with a sour look on her face but then her expression changed into a happy one when ate a lot of the chicken meat from the tomato dish to remove the taste . Isn’t clearly showing your preferences a bit too much?

As for Latte, she was eating her bread by steeping it into the stew . Well, I guess eating it that way also makes it delicious . I mean, even I used to steep my sliced bread into corn soup .

After our meal, I served them some caffeine-less barley tea . For some reason, warm drinks are popular here so that really helps since I don’t have to worry about their bodies getting cold .

I’m a man so I don’t have a lot of knowledge about them but I’ll do as much as I can if it’s for the kids .

「Caam-kun, today’s meal was bland as well . Can’t you add a bit more flavor to it?」

「It would be bad for the child in your bellies if we use to much salt . That’s why please just endure it for the sake of the children」

「Unー . Okay」

Suzuran is already satisfied getting to eat meat even if it has a thin taste however, it seems like Latte is unsatisfied .

◇

It’s about time to start the harvest but Suzuran is close to giving birth as well . Suzuran’s belly got even bigger and she now frequently feels the baby moving . Because of that, I try to stay as close to the village as possible so that I can immediately come back if something happens .

This time, I went with Wurst to the bar .

「Shall we try making one barrel of wine that’s so sour it’s undrinkable?」

While we were discussing that, the fox-eared old man who was out of breath entered and shouted .

「Caam! Suzuran-san is going into labor!」

「Haa!? But she wasn’t having labor pains this morning you know? This is bad Wurst!1 Thanks old man!」

After saying that, I used body strengthening and ran with all of my strength . However, even if that magic strengthens the body, it doesn’t affect the heart and lungs . This is starting to look bad as expected .

When I bust in through the door, I saw my parents and in-laws restlessly moving about . Even though Latte’s belly was also quite big, the stout cat-eared midwife showed no indication of doing anything herself and just kept giving out instructions .

「Caam! Hot water!」

The angry roar of the midwife reverberated . I’m not sure how long they’ve been waiting for that so I just went ahead and filled the tank in the bathroom and take the necessary amount from there . That way, we can also add water to it if we need to reduce the temperature .

「Caam! Stay by Suzuran’s side, ma.s.sage her back, and say something to rea.s.sure her! That’s the only thing men can do during childbirth after all!」

「Yes!」

I sat by her side and started ma.s.saging her back .

「Caam」

「What is it?」

「After this… Give me plenty of meat……okay? Also, headpats」

*Haaa haaaa* She was breathing heavily while covered in large beads of sweat .

「Okay . I got it so just go to the most comfortable position for you and think of things that can help you relax」

「Birds . Pigs Deer . Sheep . Cows . Wild boars . Rabbits . I’ve heard that you can eat snakes, frogs, and bats as well」

Why are those all animals with edible meat!? Just how much do you want to eat those? While I was thinking that, I started stroking her head .

「You can eat snake and frog meat so I’ll try making it for you after this……」

「Promise?」

「I got it so just make sure you’re comfortable」

She could now keep up with the conversation so she has most likely calmed down .

「Nnnー」

Together with that groan, she grasped my hand with all her strength . Her grip was really tight that I thought my hand would break . It was already a miracle that my hand did not break with how strong Suzuran is but a bruise appeared on my wrist after a while .

Ah, even though I know nothing about it, I’m sure it won’t be long now . While I was thinking that, the midwife pulled me away from Suzuran .

「From now on, the men are not allowed in here! If any of you come in, I’m going to douse you in hot water!」

「Yes!」

*Bang!* She shut the door . That oba-chan is really scary .

「Son, you were also driven away by that person huh? You should thank her later okay?」

「Yes」

「Oh yeah, it seems like Suzuran’s going into labor . Well, there’s nothing for us men to do from here on out」

「That’s true . When I was in Caam position, I just kept pacing around because I had nothing to do」

「Me too」

「You’re pretty calm aren’t you son?」

「Well, panicking here wouldn’t do any good after all . I can only believe and wait」

「I see . It’s embarra.s.sing that my son is calmer than I am」

「That’s right Hail, you should follow my example」

「Right . You mean I should imitate you nervously shaking knees?」

「That’s better than aimlessly loitering around the door right?」

At that moment, the door suddenly slammed open .

「You guys are so noisy! If you’re going to panic, do it a bit more quietly!」

*bang* She once again vigorously slammed the door .

That midwife sure is scary .

If I had to guess, an hour has probably pa.s.sed . We couldn’t hear anything but a distant groan-like scream up until now but it was immediately followed was a cry that came from a baby . However, the door hasn’t been opened yet . Is it because of the placenta?

A while after that, the midwife came out holding a baby covered in a clean towel .

「It’s a cute girl who resembles her mother . Look at that horn!」

She said that while showing the baby to me . After that, we were finally let back into the room and the first thing that caught my eye was a crushed pole . I wonder if that was prepared to help her endure the pain . And by crushed, I don’t just mean there’s a neat hand mark on it, I mean that it’s literally crushed . If I continued what I was doing earlier, my arm would probably look like that right now .

While I was looking at the crushed pole, the midwife gave the baby back to Suzuran then gave me a pat on the back .

「Go ahead . You can get closer」

「Thank you very much」

After saying that, I approached Suzuran .

「I’ll leave her name to you . For the time being, why don’t you carry her?」

I haven’t received anything as important as this so while I was holding my child who still can’t hold her own head up, tears started falling . While I was quietly sobbing, Suzuran lightly hit my thigh and said .

「Get your self together, Otou-san」

That made me come to the realization that I’m already a father so I sobbed even more .

While I was crying, Licorice-san took the baby from me and left the room . When I lied down by Suzuran’s side, she asked me .

「Where’s the meat?」

「Sorry . Suzan will have to wait a bit longer okay?」

「Liar」

She said that while smiling . She has an even gentler expression than usual which made me think that Suzuran has now truly become a mother .

◇

「Caam, It seems like milk still comes out even with small b.r.e.a.s.t.s」

I let out a m.u.f.fled laugh when she said that as she was breastfeeding the baby .

「I was really worried about that for a long time now . Why are you laughing?」

「No, it’s nothing . It’s good that it comes out right?」

「Un, So, what should we call this child?」

「Let’s see . What do you think about 『Lily』?」

I took it from Lily of the Valley which is what Suzuran’s name means .

「Sounds good」

「Right? Actually, that name has something to do with Suzuran’s」

「How come?」

「That’s what Suzuran means in the language of a country that’s far away」

Lily of the Valley is too long so I’ll just settle for 『Lily』 like the other flower .

「Hmmー . So we both have the same name」

「There are a lot of Demonkins with the same name right?」

「That’s true…… Hey, Caam」

「What?」

「Do you want to drink? The other side is not being used」

She tilted her head while asking me that . That’s not really fair now, is it?

「……that’s a really attractive proposal but I’ll have to decline . I don’t want to use up Lily’s share」

「Just let me know when」

「Yes yes」

After saying that, she held up Lily and started patting her back to make her burp . The way she did it made her look like a mother who’s completely used to this .

She was a really strong, taciturn girl when we were kids but now she somehow managed to turn into such a reliable mother . Well, I guess I’ve turned into a father as well .

MaouMuji Chapter 50 . 5: Childbirth

TL: kizen

ED: Filip

Sixty days before the end of the year festival, I was finally able to persuade Latte with my tears to stop working .

「Geezー . I still wanted to work harder a bit more though~」

She said that while puffing her cheeks .

Morning ten days before the end of the year festival, I saw Latte looking like she’s in pain and dripping in cold sweat . I thought it was a sign of her going into labor so I ran towards the midwife Oba-san’s place .

After I told her the symptoms, she said,「Let’s go to your house!」then went ahead while leaving all of her equipment that she prepared in advance for me to carry .  When I caught up, she was breathing heavily as she shouted .

「Caam! The hot water! This is already your second time so you should know what to do!」

「Yes!」

I couldn’t help but just say “yes!” this time again as expected . After that, I just continued to respond to Latte’s demands until she went into active labor .

「Nnー, Ma.s.sage the area around my waistー」

「Here?」

「Un . That’s it . Thanksー」

I wonder if it’s actually that painful that she has no leeway to give her usual peppy reply .

「aAArghー」 She groaned even louder .

「I feel horrible . There’s this concentrated pain by the side of my stomach . It feels I’m getting p.r.i.c.ked by a needle」

「I see . Sorry, I can’t really comprehend how painful it actually is」

「Nhー . It’s a similar feeling I had when I still had that time of the month . Put your hand on my belly~ Ma.s.sage it~」

I put my hand on her belly then gently rubbed it .

「Ughーー Aaarghー」

「Are you alright?」

I asked worriedly but then the midwife came in and threw me out . She really incredible in a lot of ways as expected .

「Son, it’s your second wife that’s giving birth this time but are you still able to keep calm?」

「A little I guess…… But still, even if you say that it’s my second time, it’s still Latte’s first childbirth so I’m a bit worried」

「Is that so……?」

「But still, I’m really glad that father and mother, as well as Ichii-san and Licorice-san, has treated Latte like she was your own daughter」

「I see……」

「Well of course . She loves you together with Suzuran after all . Also, seeing her makes me feel like Suzuran got herself an older sister」

「Umu, she makes my wife happy as well because it seems like we have a daughter of our own . Well, she’s pretty close to our age though」

「Father, Ichii-san . Thank you very much . Even though I’m completely worthless, you still let me take another wife aside from Suzuran」

「Oi oi . I told you, you shouldn’t mind it . I told you that I know some guys with multiple wives right? Well, I guess I didn’t think that you’d be one of them though . At any rate, you are Suzuran’s most precious husband so don’t sell yourself short」

「Thank you very much」

「Hey! You guys are noisy!」 *bang!*

She’s still as scary as ever……

After a while, we were startled hearing a shrill voice coming from inside of the room . I was about to storm inside but father grabbed my shoulder and told me to calm down .

「Mother was like that too you know? That’s why don’t worry . The only thing you can do for her now is to be kind to her after she gives birth」

「Yes」

Just like when Suzuran went into labor, the midwife came out with the baby shortly .

「It’s a healthy boy . It looks like he inherited traits from both parents seeing that he has a beautiful ash grey hair」

「I can’t thank you enough」

「It’s fine so go ahead and take him」

「Yes」

I still can’t say anything else but that as expected .

As I entered the room, I once again noticed the pole that was used to hold on to . However, it still looks normal this time . It’s only Suzuran who made the pole end up in that state I guess .

「Ahー, Papa . I did my best you know?」

「Congratulations . You now have a baby boy」

「I already heard it from the midwife . His ash grey hair is the combination of mine and Latte’s you know? It even looks silver depending on how the sun s.h.i.+nes on it」

After saying that, I gently laid our son beside Latte .

「It’s trueー . So pretty~」

She had a smile that’s as bright as the sun before but now it has a much milder feel to it like setting sun . Do women change like this as well? I’m a man so I don’t know but it seems like Latte has become a mom as well .

Three days after that we had the time to settle down, Latte asked me .

「What should we name this child~? Are you going to name him something that has to do with my name like Lily-chan?」

「Let’s see…… How about 『Miel』?」

「Fufu, it’s a girl’s name . Is there a reason for that after all?」

「There is . Latte’s name means 『Milk』 in the language of a country that’s far away after all」

「Eh~ . Really~」

「There are a lot of countries where things are called differently you know? Anyway, 『Miel』 means honey over there . It’s tasty when you add that to warm milk right? That’s why I thought that name would be compatible with yours」

「Fufun~ . A mother and child having good compatibility is kinda indecent isn’t it~? Well, it’s fine if that’s your reasoning . There are only a few people who know that that word means honey right? If so then I think it’s a lovely name」

Latte agreed with that name with a really gentle smile .

◇

As I was staring at Latte who was smiling while nursing, she asked .

「Does Papa want to drink?」

I wonder if the rest of the husband group gets asked this question as well . It was a really attractive proposal but I somehow managed to refuse .

One night several days later, I gathered the three idiots at the bar in order to ask .

「First of all, congratulations for Miel-kun’s safe birth」

「「Congratulations」」

「Thanks . So…… Let’s get down to business . While Suzuran and Latte were giving their child some miruku(milk), they asked me 『Want to drink?』 . I honestly didn’t know what to do . I couldn’t help but be curious if you’ve been asked that as well so I made sure to gather just us men to ask ……Speak honestly . Were you guys asked that by your wives as well?」

「Ah, yeah」

「Nnー」

「Un, she asked me you knowー?」

It seems like everyone was asked that . Did they also entertain that proposal? I’m really curious, to be honest .

「Did you drink it?」

「Yeah . It was a bit embarra.s.sing though」

「I was interested in the taste so I just drank a bit」

「Nnー, I was forcibly made to drink it」

Speck seems pitiful……

「I seeー . I guess I should also try just to know the taste . I don’t really remember anything from when I was a baby after allー」

「That’s true」

「Ahー that’s right, At this rate, it seems like all of our children will start attending school in the same year . Let’s make it so that both parent and child get along with each other okay?」

「Ou」「Yeah」「Un!」

After that, we had a light drink then went home before midnight .

◇

A baby crying at night it awful . I want to decrease the load on my wives as much as possible so I make sure to deal with it however, I can’t breastfeed as expected . Refrigeration technology doesn’t exist and there are no milk powders in this world so I can’t just put it in a container to use for those times . I could just make some ice with magic to preserve it but I’m worried about how clean the container actually is so I just did not bring up that idea .

After they give the children their milk, I told them,「I’ll take care of the rest so you can go back to sleep . Thanks」 . Then, once I finish checking the kid’s diapers, I go back to sleep .

I’m in charge of cooking and laundry as well . There were small signs of them having the maternity blues but I made sure to consult with both of them and rea.s.sured them that 『A child is not just raised by their mother but instead by both of the parents』 so that they can get over it .

Because I did that, it didn’t take that long for their anxiety to pa.s.s .

◇

I thought that it was about time for us to feed them baby food soon so I made some porridge in a milk pan and started giving it to them bit by bit . Because of that, Suzuran tried giving her daughter some salty dried meat that has been chewed into paste so I had to stop her . I gave her a thorough explanation about why that was a bad idea but she became unexpectedly sad so I had to follow up with that as well .

◇

Rather than from time to time, either one of my parents and in-laws would come to see Lily and Miel pretty much every day . I’m really thankful that they treat both of them equally, it’s just that, that sternly terrifying Ichii-san kept saying「It’s grandpa you know~」in a voice that I’ve never heard from him before . I just decided to remove that from my memory to preserve his dignity .

◇1

The children were now energetically crawling about and grasping at things as they learned to stand up one year after they were born . Their field of activity has now expanded so we’re at a period where we can’t take our eyes off of them .

Half a year after they were born we were already giving them porridge instead of milk . For some reason, Latte really liked that dish to the point where she would eat up Miel’s leftovers . She even asks for seconds so I started making bit more .

As for Suzuran, she was trying to feed Lily some salt-dried meat that she chewed on until it became paste so I once again gave it my all to stop her . She told me that she wants her to eat meat no matter what so I boiled some chicken tenders, shredded it, then added it to the porridge .

They could only say simple words back then but now that they’re one, they can already say short phrases and we could more or less understand what they’re trying to say .

They should start weaning soon so I started giving them pureed apples and milk cookies that are not that sweet . The wives of the three idiots also requested for those so I made some for them as well .

It would have been troublesome to do it every time they would ask so I gathered them all in our house to teach them . Out of all of them, Mir was the only one who burned her cooking because of her clumsiness . As expected of a deplorable beauty, she never fails to meet my expectations . It couldn’t be helped so the next day I called Sc.h.i.n.ken and taught him instead . He was even better than Kuchinas.h.i.+ but he was no match for Tryapka-san as expected . He’s probably the versatile type who’s able to do whatever you teach him .

While saying that it was for a woman’s pride, Mir asked me to teach her again but she only improved a bit so I just told her to ask Sc.h.i.n.ken to teach her so that she won’t ask me again . Even though he’s the husband, he turns into a wife at home . Even if Suzuran, Latte, and Sc.h.i.n.ken don’t mind it, I do okay?

「Ara, I knew that you were good with your fingers but I didn’t know you could make sweets as well . It would have been better if you were born as a girl」

Even my mother, who doesn’t look like a grandmother at all with how young she looks, is saying that . I wonder if she wanted a daughter .

By the way, the words they could say before were「Papa」「Mama」「Granpa」「Granma」 . One time while I was holding Lily she said, 「Meat~」 . When we both looked at Suzuran, she just averted her gaze . Just how much do you plan to educate her when it comes to meat?

◇

Once they got a bit bigger, we let them play with the chicks and ducklings that Suzuran was raising in our backyard . Latte also lets them play with the livestock at her workplace whenever she takes them there . Their resistance will deteriorate if we become overprotective after all . We make sure that they thoroughly wash their hands after playing though .

Miel doesn’t like touching the large animals so I wonder if he’s afraid of them . In Lily’s case, she’s pretty bold considering that the animals she plays with are all looking troubled because she hits them . Sorry about that, animals .

Incidentally, Miel likes the rabbit that we’re raising to eat so much that if we leave him alone, he’ll chase after it to hug it . That’s why I think he’s only afraid of large animals .

It really is happiness to be able to raise the children healthily . It would be nice if this happiness continues forever . 2

~Idle Talk~

The wives’ afternoon tea party

「Hey, how are your husbands doing? Wurst hasn’t really been doing that much to help me you know?」

「As for Sc.h.i.n.ken, it seems like mother and father in law told him 『You’re a gentleman so you should make sure to lighten the burden on the woman』so he’s been busy with a lot of things . Mother also said some things to him so he now helps in looking after our child in the middle of the night」

「Speck is even more of a mother than me . If I had to say why, it’s because he notices even the smallest of things . I’m really thankful for it though」

「Caam is really trying his best」

「I seeー . You told us that he was making meals for the children’s sake from the time she was still inside your belly after all . You just have to give the child milk when she’s crying at night and he takes care of the rest . He even does the cooking and laundry and the weaning food he makes is pretty fancy as wellー . He even lets us consult with him on some things . He prioritizes us and our children even though he’s tired, doesn’t he~?」

「It’s just that, he gets really mad whenever I try to give our child some dried meat」

Suzuran-chan nodded and mumbled a few words then drank her tea .

「Well of course . Giving a baby such a salty thing……」「Such a hard thing……」( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)「It’s a bit……」

Everyone did not agree with her sentiments .

「However, I would like it if even Wurst follows their example . Caam made these cookies for the children right? He would gently comfort me but he won’t do the cooking and laundry at all . I’m envious of the two of you, you know?」

「That’s true isn’t it? Who would have thought he would be this faithful . If Suzuran wasn’t around, I would have taken him for my own」3

「Yeah . He was really diligent when we were still going to school so there were rumors going around about him being slightly eccentric but…… Where did he learn how to do all of those things I wonder? Did he get that knowledge from the town?」

「You might be on to something you know~? I’ve heard from my senpai that she was taught by him how to make simple cookies with just egg whites as a gift after you guys moved in you know~?」

「Has he made something like this before going to town?」

「No」

「Thought so」

「He really is a mystery isn’t he?」

As they continued talking, everyone stuffed their cheeks with the cookies Caam-kun made while drinking tea .

~Idle Talk 2~

A tea party several days later at the bar

「Oi, Caam . It’ll make me feel embarra.s.sed if you’re too nice to your wives you know?」

「You even made these cookies for the children……」

「We won’t be able to measure up to that you know?」

「Huh? I’m just being normally kind as I give my wives the maximum amount of care and making stuff with the children in mind okay!?」

「That’s the problem though」「You’re the only one who thinks that’s just natural」

「Eh? Isn’t that a good thing?」 [TL: This one is probably Speck]

「Aren’t you guys way too harsh even though I’m trying my best?」

「Because of that, it’s Caam’s treat today」

「Oh come on!」