HPDBC Chapter 132 – Time Continues
Chapter 132 – Time Continues
Chapter 132 – Time Continues
— Leon Anemoi Greyrat —
The year was now K428, and I had found myself as a 23-year-old man, now with a light stubble on my face, and six children to my name.
As it turned out, my wives quite liked the slightly more rugged look on me, although the kids always complained of how prickly it was, especially when I gave them kisses on the cheek and forehead.
Anyway, with winter nearing its end as we entered the fifth month of the year, it also meant that two of the Greyrat family children had reached the age of five, marking their first birthday celebration.
Alaric’s had already happened nearly two months ago now, where Paul, Zenith, and Lilia had set up a party with the neighbourhood kids, as well as my children that were his age.
A crying Alice, sleeping Emilia, and a Roana that was just learning to speak wouldn’t exactly be the best company, after all.
We got my youngest brother a few things from each of us, with Eris getting him a short sword with a dulled edge, Roxy and Sylphy getting him a book, and from Ariel and me, we got him a pretty good set of model creation tools from the capital.
As it turned out, my little brother had quite the interest in buildings, so with our present, he could go from happily looking at them to actually making some miniature designs of his own.
While at the moment it was simply his main interest, perhaps in the future he would end up being an architect. Luckily, our family’s comfortable situation meant that all the kids could pursue whatever career they wanted without worry of failing.
And then, a month after that celebration, there was Lana’s fifth birthday, where we had a bigger party as many of Rudy’s friends came over, as well as Sara’s from both the university and her adventuring days.
Lana still didn’t have a specific interest quite yet, unlike Aria with her magic and Anna with her swordsmanship, but she would probably start looking into different pursuits soon at Rudy’s behest, as he wanted her to try lots of things before finding her path.
But I wasn’t too worried about her.
She was smart and optimistic, and from how she thanked me so earnestly for the pendant I got her, she was quite good at valuing things.
Maybe she would end up as a collector? A merchant?
I wasn’t sure, but it was fun to think of how she would end up.
Either way, aside from the birthdays, my time since returning home had been quite calm, save for revealing my return to certain people.
First, it was Ruijerd, and wanting to calm the likely guilt he felt, I teleported over to the Superd village where he was quite relieved to see that I was alive.
Then, after him, it was the kingdom that was notified of my return, although in that case, my passing had only come from vague rumours and only a few of Ariel’s confidants knew the truth of my assumed death.
But with Ariel revealing me to the public as the newly-appointed fourth ranked power, all those worries were quelled, and it also served as a show of force that any enemies that wanted to attack the Kingdom of Asura would need to be strong enough to contend against one of the higher ranked world powers.
And of course, with me revealed as the fourth ranked power... there was also that matter.
The news of Laplace’s death, that being done at the hands of our small group, which was now being named the new ‘party of heroes’, had spread throughout the world as fast as the merchants could reach.
While usually such a claim would be thought of as nothing but a fairy tale, with Perugius confirming it to the public, it was treated as the truth, only to be confirmed further by the change in the world power rankings, at least by those who knew about them.
Thankfully, even with our new status as the heroes that defeated Laplace, Rudy and I’s lives hadn’t been too affected, and more importantly, Ruijerd Superdia’s name had been circulated as a member of the party.
While the years of instinctual discrimination against the Superd’s had not been completely removed, at least now, when the name of their race was brought up, people were thinking of Ruijerd as the one who finally put an end to Laplace first, rather than the fear of their past actions.
Quite the big change.
And with Ruijerd beginning the initial steps to open the Superd village to the world, I could only hope that his people’s reputation would be renewed.
And then, there was of course the discourse about the enigmatic Dragon God finally making his mark on the world... even if he didn’t fight that much.
But either way, hearing that through his apostles would surely anger the Man-God, who had... still not made a move ever since the Asura Kingdom debacle.
Orsted had originally theorized that he saw my death due to Laplace and simply let fate take its course, but knowing now that it wasn’t the case... just what could he be planning?
The most probable explanation would be him gathering influence in different countries, but with Ariel’s spies and diplomats spread throughout the civilized world, we knew that this was most likely not the case.@@@@
Unless... he was aiming for a smaller, elite force.
It made sense, as anything less than an Emperor-ranked threat would be useless on a battlefield with Orsted and I, but still... just who could match up to us?
A part of me did want to find out and take down the problem before it came up, but then again, staying here was the best place to be, as I wouldn’t need to worry about my family being threatened while I was gone.
And even if I did go out to explore the world and counteract the Man-God’s scheme, I would have no clue where to start, and would probably end up wandering around uselessly.
Besides... I wanted to spend more time with my family-
“Eep!” I shouted, feeling something cold brush against the back of my neck as I sat up straight in surprise.
“What’s with that? Is this really the famed Elemental God?” Roxy teased with a light giggle, moving to stand beside me as she held a cup out. “Here. It’s Philip’s new batch, and he wants us to try it.”
Ah... right. Philip’s new endeavour.
While he had remained as the university’s advisor ever since coming here, it seems that he had felt unfulfilled with only that, and in the last year, he had started up brewing as a hobby.
I guess that was a result of getting older?
I mean, I could see myself getting a few other interests after the children grew older and the Man-God was dealt with.
“I see...” I said, hesitantly taking the ale as I pouted towards her. “And what was with that? Trying to scare me?”
“I just thought you were quite lost in thought, so I took the chance presented to me,” Roxy said, pushing me against the chair as she took a seat on my lap. “So? Do you wish to share with me, husband?”
It was dangerous, to have her look up at me like that with such an innocent face... it made me want to take her upstairs right away.
“It wasn’t anything serious... just wondering what I should do now,” I said, taking a hesitant sip.
Smooth... but still a bit too bitter for my taste.
Father did say that I would end up liking ale and beer the more I had it, but still... I preferred mead at the moment.
“Nothing serious... really? Would thinking about ‘nothing serious’ make you unable to sense me opening the door?” she asked, narrowing her eyes.
I guess his position as a husband and a father had forced him to change.
“I see...” I mumbled before my eyes widened.
Wait... the motivation... did it have to be through family?
And Orsted did mention that the Man-God could grant powers to his followers...
“Nina... does the word ‘Man-God’ ring any bells?” I asked, having stood back up to stare into the woman’s eyes.
“Uh... no? Why?” she asked, visibly confused.
“Then... has your husband acted oddly recently?” I continued.
“Well... ever since Eris left, he started focusing on getting stronger and... um... seducing me,” she said as a blush appeared on her cheeks. “But anyway! He’s still the same old Jino. Although... Father did end up leaving the Sword Sanctum, even though he wasn’t killed in the duel...”
The former Sword God left?
Why?
But... if Jino was apparently unchanged, and his motivations truly had to do with romance...
Well, I couldn’t be sure of anything, but perhaps I should consult with Orsted about him being a possible apostle.
And Gal Farion as well, I suppose...
“And do you know where your father has gone?” I asked.
“Not really,” Nina replied with a shrug. “He said he wanted to ‘rediscover his sword’, whatever that meant, and has been missing ever since. But in my opinion, I think he’s just upset that Jino grew from a Saint to defeating him in just a year.”
I see... well, thoughts for later, I suppose.
“Eris should be returning soon, so please treat yourself as you wish in the meantime,” I said, watching as Nel and the kids awkwardly began to introduce themselves.
That was, of course, until a certain someone broke the ice.
“Whoa! You have hair like me! That’s awesome!” Aria cheered, greeting Nel with a wide smile.
“Umm... yeah, it’s from my mother...” he replied, recoiling slightly from her energy.
“Same! Mama has blue hair too!” Aria replied as she walked up to the three-year-old, obviously towering over him due to her age, before suddenly being pulled back.
“Aria... don’t crowd guests... you’re too much for most people,” Anna replied.
“What!? How mean!” Aria replied, looking over to me. “Dada, tell her she’s wrong!”
Oh dear... another sibling fight to deal with...
I could only thank every deity in existence that these two troublemakers didn’t make use of their impressive power for their age whenever they did so.
“Just... give him some space, Aria... why don’t you introduce your siblings to him first?” I said.
“Ah! Okay!” she said, a cheerful smile on her face as she looked back down at the younger boy.
Honestly... but it was that cheerfulness that made me so proud of her, especially from what Roxy and Sylphy told me about her during my time away.
She was a strong girl... if a little overbearing.
“They seem lively,” Nina commented with a smile. “And that red-haired one is awfully quiet for being Eris’. I thought that he would be the source of trouble.”
“Surprisingly, Ars is simply a ball of joy,” I said, watching as my only son giggled at his two sisters’ antics. “Though, I can only imagine how puberty will go-”
Ah... they were here.
“Hey! Leon, we’re back!” Eris voice resounded from the basement.
“Huh?” Nina voiced, confused.
Wait... I forgot... she didn’t know about those teleportation circles, did she?
Well... I could only hope she didn’t really care.
“Ariel and Sylphy are coming home a bit later, but... wait,” Eris said, widening her eyes as she came up the stairs. “Nina? The hell are you doing here?”
“W-Well, you always said I could visit, right?” Nina replied, crossing her arms.
“I’m not against it, I just thought you would send a letter first,” Eris said, walking up to her with a wide smile. “Anyway, it’s good to see you! Are you staying for a while?”
“Just a few weeks, if you’ll have us... I just wanted to get out of that place for a small visit,” Nina replied with a smile. “And it’s good to see you... I see that you’ve found your happiness.”
“Heh... yeah, you could say that... but ‘us’?” Eris said, her gaze moving to the living room, where Anna was slowly getting Nel involved in their little game, as a flash of recognition appeared in her eyes. “Huh. Damn... so, did Jino finally grow some balls?”
“Haha! Yeah, you could say that. He even went as far as to beat up my father to do so!” she said.
“No way! Here, I need to feed Alice, so come on upstairs. I’ll show you all the rooms, and you can tell me all about what I missed!” Eris said, taking Nina’s hand with an excited smile.
“As long as you tell me everything that happened, too! Honestly... I don’t hear much of the outside world, but becoming part of the royal family of Asura? That’s something else!” Nina replied.
And then, the two went upstairs, their cheerful voices growing muffled as they continued to chat.
“I... guess they’re having fun, huh? It’s nice to see Eris with a close friend that isn’t one of us,” Roxy said, coming out of the kitchen with a tray. “Although... that Nina woman completely forgot about the tea.”
“I can bring it up to them,” I said, leaning down to plant a kiss on her forehead. “That aside, they must have been travelling for a while. Do you mind adding their clothes to the wash?”
“Of course,” she replied.
But still... it was nice to see an old friend... even if they weren’t mine.