517 Technicians and Parent-Child Time.

"An underwater Golem, huh? 'Conductor Maestro' would have been good at that, but he’s a misanthrope and a recluse. He’s left human settlements and no one knows where he is now."

The guest, 'Professor,' stroked his white beard while speaking in a troubled tone.

This wasn’t 'Babylon,' but the Doctor’s workshop located at the very edge of the castle grounds. Why the edge, you ask? Because there’s a chance it might explode.

"It’s not that hard to make a Frame Gear capable of fighting underwater. But compared to something specifically designed for underwater use, it’ll inevitably fall short in performance. And the 'Ark' is likely the latter. It’ll be a stopgap measure, I think."

They placed a model of a Frame Gear equipped with a screw-mounted backpack, a multi-torpedo pod, and a hand anchor on the table with a thud.

Hmm, it looks like they’ve managed to make it capable of fighting underwater. Well, that’s exactly what it is, but still.

"So, we’ll have to build it from scratch... How long will that take?"

"Since it’s a custom machine with no base design, it’ll take a while. But if we’re building something, maybe an Over Gear would be better than a Frame Gear."

An Over Gear? Do you mean the beast-type Frame Gear that uses the 'Crown' of Noir and the other Golems as its core? Why?

"It’s obvious, but humanoid forms aren’t suited for swimming. A form modeled after aquatic creatures would be more convenient in many ways."

Elka, the engineer, answered my question. Now that she mentions it, that makes sense. A streamlined shape would naturally move faster through water than a humanoid form.

"Plus, you can still mount Frame Gears on it. If we’re building it, should we go with a fish type?"

Kuhn, who had been listening to our conversation with great interest, couldn’t hold back and chimed in. In response, the Professor crossed his arms and tilted his head.

"Hmm, that’s a bit cliché, isn’t it? Maybe something like a turtle with coral could be interesting. It’d be easier for Frame Gears to mount."

"What are you talking about? A shark type would be best here. It’d emphasize ferocity and cold-bloodedness..."

"Sharks have a bad image. A dolphin type would be cuter and more appealing. Definitely a dolphin type!"

The four of them went back and forth, debating the concept of the new machine. At this point, I could only watch from the sidelines. I couldn’t keep up.

"Ah, by the way, whose 'Crown' will be the core?"

Noir has the lion-type 'Leonoir,' Rouge has the tiger-type 'Tigre Rouge,' and Braun has the deer-type 'Dia Braun.' Are they going to assign it to someone else?

Elka answered my question casually.

"We have Yumina’s 'White' Albus, don’t we?"

"But Albus and Yumina are in a temporary sub-master contract, right? Can they even operate an Over Gear?"

Albus’s Crown ability, 'Reset,' comes at the cost of the contractor’s memories. That’s why we haven’t let Yumina form a full contract with him. We can’t risk something so dangerous.

"Even as a temporary sub-master, there’s no problem operating it. We’re not using the Crown ability, and since there’s no main master, there’s no risk of losing control."

I see. Then we’ll entrust the underwater Over Gear to Yumina. I wonder what kind of machine they’ll come up with.

"Separately, I’ll also think about an underwater Frame Gear. If we make it a mermaid type, the upper body can be built the same way as before. It’ll be a mass-produced model since we can’t reuse the custom Valkyria units."

A mermaid-type Frame Gear... and a mass-produced model at that. Well, with things like maritime accidents, the development won’t go to waste.

"We should also modify your Reginleif, Touya-kun, and the custom Valkyria units for Yumina and the others to perform decently underwater. It’d be inefficient for you all to switch to mass-produced units. But this can wait... So, Touya-kun, how about you generously fund this development..."

The Professor rubbed his hands together, grinning slyly.

Ugh. I know it’s necessary, but these guys really spend money like water.

As I made a difficult face, Kuhn tugged at the hem of my clothes.

"Otousama, is it no good...?"

Kuhn looked up at me with teary eyes. Ugh, guh!? Don’t be fooled! This is Kongming’s trap! Look, behind Kuhn, the three development maniacs are grinning from ear to ear!

"Try to keep unnecessary expenses to a minimum, okay...?"

"Thank you, Otousama!"

Kuhn jumped into my arms, and I hugged her tightly. Dr. Babylon, Elka, and Professor all gave me a thumbs-up with smug smiles. Damn it, they’re using my daughter against me.

"Now that that’s settled, let’s finalize the concept. I’ll handle the Over Gear, but who’s taking care of the mass-produced model?"

"Me! Let me do something too!"

Kuhn quickly left my side and ran over to the three of them. I feel a little lonely...

Anyway, I need to gather funds. Until now, I’ve been leaving the high-rank jobs to Ende, but I’ll have to take some for myself now. Ende’s newly married, so he deserves a break. He should spend some time with his family.

Well, I can’t say I’ve been doing a great job at that either...

◇ ◇ ◇

"Danna-sama, if you’re going to the Adventurer’s Guild, we’d like to come with you."

The next morning, Yae and Hilda called out to me as I was about to head to the guild to gather funds.

Apparently, they’re close to reaching gold rank. They’d be the fourth and fifth in the world. At this rate, more than half of the gold-rank adventurers will be from my family...

Hilda, in particular, is motivated since her grandfather was a gold-rank adventurer. The fact that my daughters, Yakumo and Frey, are gold-rank in the future is also a factor.

As a parent, I can understand their feelings. There’s probably some pride involved too.

Silver-rank requests don’t come often in Brunhild, but there are plenty of gold and silver-rank requests in adventurer’s guilds around the world. It’s a matter of location.

Ende and I can take on more jobs because of our teleportation magic, which is why we ranked up so quickly. The same probably applies to the kids, thanks to Yakumo and Yoshino’s teleportation magic.

A typical silver-rank adventurer has to travel for days to reach the site, complete the request, and then return. No wonder it takes so long to rank up.

If magi-trains become more widespread, that hardship might decrease.

Yae and Hilda probably plan to ask me to teleport them if there’s a request. As their husband, of course, I’ll oblige, but couldn’t they ask Yakumo or someone?

"Well, it’s a bit embarrassing to rely on our daughter to rank up."

Yae answered with a wry smile. Parental pride, huh? I can understand that.

"By the way, where’s Elze? I thought she was aiming for gold rank too."

Elze’s senior, Ende, is a gold-rank adventurer, so she’s been motivated to reach that rank as well.

Hilda answered my question.

"Today, Elze-san went shopping with Elna. They’re visiting Zanack-san’s store to look at clothes. She’s completely obsessed with dressing up her daughter now."

I was met with another wry smile. Ah, I see.

Each of my daughters receives deep love from their mothers, but Elze and Linze are particularly doting.

Yakumo, Frey, and Kuhn are the older group and have a more mature air about them. Well, they’re still kids, but they’ve outgrown the age of clinging to their parents.

Yoshino and Sakura don’t interfere much with each other, and Asia and Luu are more competitive.

Elna and Linne are the youngest among the current children, so they’re doted on more than the others.

Elze, in particular, is inseparable from Elna. Elna doesn’t like fighting much, so she doesn’t do combat training with Elze, but they’re often together otherwise.

Elze seems to adore her daughter and often dresses her up in cute outfits and takes her out.

"I never expected Elze to become the most doting parent. Well, Elna is incredibly cute."

"Parental doting number two is here."

"Frey is cute too, you know?"

Of course, Frey is cute. Yakumo and the others are all wonderful children, and I’m a lucky man.

"With this much parental doting, it’s going to be tough when it’s time to marry them off..."

"Guh!"

Yae’s words stabbed deep. I’ve been trying not to think about that.

Well, I know it’ll happen someday... but can’t we find a way to avoid marrying them off? Maybe drive away any guys who come near...

"Come on, stop thinking foolish things, and let’s go."

"The future looks troublesome."

"Guh..."

Pulled along by Hilda and Yae, we headed to the Adventurer’s Guild.

◇ ◇ ◇

"The silver-rank requests are here and here. No one has taken them yet. What would you like to do?"

In the reception room of the Adventurer’s Guild, Guild Master Lelisha handed Yae and Hilda two request forms.

"Hmm. A Thunder Dragon subjugation in the Kingdom of Palouf."

"This one is a Frost Giant subjugation in the Kingdom of Elfrau."

A Thunder Dragon and a Frost Giant, huh? For a typical silver-rank adventurer, these would be tough opponents, but for the two of them, it shouldn’t be too difficult.

Still, overconfidence is dangerous. Be careful.

"Don’t worry. We’ve been training daily under the tutelage of the Moroha-aneue."

I feel an incredible sense of security and a slight pity from that statement.

Just in case, I decided to give Yae a Lapis and Hilda a Ruby. Lapis can communicate with Thunder Dragons, so maybe they can resolve things peacefully. Ruby will protect Hilda from the cold in the snowy country.

I opened a [Gate] and sent them to their respective locations. Once they’re done, they can call me or use a summon beast’s telepathy to let me know, and I’ll pick them up.

After sending the two off, I turned to Lelisha.

"Now, about your request, Your Majesty."

"Yes, yes."

"Well, there aren’t any at the moment."

"Huh?"

No requests? No gold-rank requests? On a global scale?

"Ende-san took care of all the pending ones because he wanted to take a break for a while..."

"Ugh...!"

I know, I know. This is just me being petty. Ende just wanted to relax after getting married, so he cleared the backlog. He hasn’t done anything wrong. In fact, he deserves praise. Damn it.

"Is there any request that could earn us some money...?"

"It’s unsettling for a king to say such things. Well... There are signs of a Stampede in Roadmare..."

Lelisha spoke while flipping through a stack of papers with a troubled expression. A Stampede, huh? If left unchecked, villages and towns could be in danger. It’s a matter that needs to be dealt with immediately. But...

"Isn’t that something Roadmare’s adventurers should handle?"

"Yes."

"Then it’s no good..."

If I went and took care of it, the problem would be solved. But that would also take jobs away from Roadmare’s adventurers. This is tricky. Despite the difference in rank, we’re all adventurers.

In the case of a Stampede, there’s no time to leisurely collect materials, so the defeated monsters are usually left behind. The Adventurer’s Guild later collects them and distributes the rewards among the adventurers.

Of course, there’s a difference in rewards between those who contributed and those who didn’t. The guild has monitors among the adventurers to ensure fairness.

"But another Stampede, huh? They’ve been happening a lot recently."

"Yes. Whether they’re being chased by something or there’s another reason..."

There are various reasons for Stampedes, but the most common one is the invasion of a powerful monster.

Weak monsters, driven from their habitats, gather and flee, eventually turning into a Stampede.

Like with the giant turtle, Zaratan. Its appearance startled the monsters, causing a Stampede.

Back then, Zaratan had awakened from its slumber underground, leading to the Stampede. And now, Stampedes are happening all over the world. Is this a coincidence?

Zaratan is surprisingly timid for its size. Could it be sensing something that even it needs to flee from?

With the fusion of worlds, mana concentrations have increased, raising the chances of giant beasts appearing.

If such beasts become active, it’s no surprise that Stampedes would occur. But for them to happen simultaneously?

"If you find any traces of giant beasts near the Stampedes, let me know. I’ll deploy the Frame Gears."

"Understood. We’ll count on you then."

After all, it’s too much for adventurers to handle giant beasts alone. Better safe than sorry.

Well, that aside, my money-making plan has fallen through. What to do...

Is this the downside of peace? Well, it’s a good thing, but still!

I left the Adventurer’s Guild and wandered around town. Now, what to do...

"In that case, I’ll have to sell something or start a business..."

Hmm, for clothing, there’s 'Fashion King Zanack,' for food and drink, there’s 'Silver Moon’s Mika' and the café 'Parent’s Ael,' and for miscellaneous goods, magic tools, and ether vehicles, there’s Strand Trading Company’s Orba...

I also receive a portion of the profits from Zanack and Orba. There’s no point in competing with them.

I’ve completely handed over the reading café 'Moon Reader'...

Ideally, I’d like quick cash, but if something can bring in money over the long term, starting a business might be an option...

The real issue is the materials for the underwater model... Iron, mithril, orichalcum...

Should I just go and gather them myself? No, that’d be too much... Is there a place where I can get all the ores I need? Hmm, if only I had a mine...

Ah.

"There is. A country built on mining."

The Iron Country Gandilis. Most of the factory-made Golems on the western continent are said to use materials from Gandilis.

I’ll try negotiating with the king I met before to see if he can sell them to me at a discount.

If I buy in bulk, maybe I can get a discount.

"Alright, I’ll need to ask the Doctor and the others what materials we need."

I used [Gate] to teleport to the Doctors's lab in the castle.

◇ ◇ ◇

"Have you guys... been working non-stop since yesterday?"

"Huh? Yeah, why?"

The Doctor tilted her head as if there was no problem.

Well, she’s fine since she’s not in a human body.

But Elka and the elderly 'Professor' pulling all-nighters is no good. It’s bad for their health and beauty.

I also glanced at my daughter, who was standing beside them.

"W-Well, I slept! Mother came and dragged me to the bedroom!"

Good job, Linze. She’s always one step ahead. Though she did come here early this morning...

I wish I had that kind of energy... I let out a sigh.

"I came to ask what materials we need since I’m going to Gandilis to buy them."

"You’re going to Gandilis to buy materials? Otousama, I want to go too!"

Eh, Kuhn wants to go to Gandilis?

"That’s a good idea. Touya-kun probably can’t tell the quality of steel. It’d be bad if he ended up with subpar materials. It’s better if you go together."

Ugh. I may not know much about metal quality, but I can use [Analyze] to check for impurities, right?

"Otousama, it’s not just about impurities. For example, the amount of carbon in iron drastically changes its properties. High-purity iron has excellent plasticity, but..."

"Alright, alright. I’ll take you, I’ll take you."

Stop with the incantation-like words. What’s 'plasticity'?

"Ojousan, if you find any hidden gems, let us know."

"Don’t worry about the price. Just ask Touya-kun. He’ll probably 'fall' for it."

Hey, you two Golem maniacs! Don’t put strange ideas in my kid’s head!

This is bad. I’m going to Gandilis to buy materials at a discount, but if I end up buying expensive stuff, it’ll defeat the purpose. And I know I can’t resist if she looks at me with teary eyes. I’m sure I’d cave.

I need reinforcements... Strong reinforcements.

I secretly sent a message from my smartphone, turning my back to the excited developers.

---

"Why is Okaasama here!? Wasn’t this supposed to be parent-child time!?"

"My, what a cruel thing to say. I’m a parent too, so it’s definitely parent-child time."

Linze answered Kuhn’s flustered question with a calm smile. She looked at her daughter, who was making a face like she’d bitten into a bitter bug, with an amused expression. She seems to be enjoying this...

"Ugh... I was planning to ask Otousama to buy me two or three Golems..."

"Darling. You’re being taken advantage of, you know?"

Linze gave an exasperated look at Kuhn and me. Well, I kind of knew that...

But it’s a father’s nature to want to grant his daughter’s wishes. Though two or three Golems might be a bit much.

Well then, just as Kuhn said, let’s head to Gandilis for our family time together.