546: The Future Queen and Her Father

“Nguh…! This… guoooooo!?”

I let out a strange groan, clearly in pain, as Linne and Frey watched me anxiously from a distance. In both of my hands was a glowing orb of light, about the size of a volleyball.

“Otou-san, what’s with the weird face? What are you doing?”

“Who knows… Otou-sama’s strange behavior didn’t start today, you know.”

Their voices reached my ears. “Strange behavior,” huh? I’ll have you know this is a critical step in crafting a divine artifact…! Ah—!?

The moment my concentration wavered, the sphere of light burst apart, scattering into sparkling particles that rained down all around us.

“Another failure, huh…”

I slumped down on the spot, completely drained—not just physically and mentally, but my magic and divine power too had been sapped dry.

“Not really sure what’s going on, but… you failed?”

“Yeah… pretty much.”

I replied weakly to Linne, who tilted her head in confusion.

What I had been working on just now was the creation of a “Divine Core”—the most vital component in the making of a divine artifact.

This so-called Divine Core is essentially the power source of a divine artifact. You could say it’s like a battery.

You compress your divine aura to its utmost limit and transform it into a small core… but this is incredibly difficult.

As a divine being under the World God, my divine status is close to that of a high-ranking god, meaning my divine aura is extremely dense.

It feels like someone told me to keep folding a massive piece of paper in half over and over.

The first few folds are easy, but it gets harder and harder to fold further.

I remember seeing something on TV once—something like, if you fold a 0.1 mm-thick sheet of paper 26 times, it would surpass the height of Mount Fuji. Isn’t that basically impossible…?

In any case, controlling the power is hard. If I press down here, it bulges there. Press there, and this side pops up. I just can’t seem to condense the divine aura evenly.

Craft God—Craft-san—gave me homework: “You can’t even start talking about divine artifact creation until you can make a Divine Core.”

He also told me to choose the “vessel” that will become the artifact, but honestly, I haven’t decided on that either.

I still don’t know if that guy in the diving suit is using regular teleportation magic or if it’s some evil god-powered teleportation art.

So, I figured I’d play it safe and make a divine artifact that can seal teleportation.

But then, what’s a suitable “vessel” for sealing teleportation? That’s where my thoughts got stuck.

Like, say I make it into a bow, and its arrows prevent anyone hit by them from teleporting. That could work… but only if the user’s a marksman who can hit their target without fail. And if the enemy teleports before the arrow lands, it’s all pointless. They might even be riding a Cyclops.

Then I thought—maybe a piece of jewelry or a gem with an area-based effect like “seals all teleportation within range.” But with my current abilities, I can’t create an artifact that covers a wide area. Ten meters is about my limit.

Yeah… at that distance, wouldn’t a normal attack be more effective anyway?

What’s more frustrating is that I can’t use the artifact myself. I thought I could make something like a dagger that makes it so “whoever is stabbed can’t teleport,” and then stab the guy before he warps out using [Teleport]. Easy win, right?

Except, I made a miscalculation—I’m a god, so I can’t use divine artifacts. Neither can Yumina nor my other wives, since they’ve all become divine beings like angels.

I thought maybe Ende could use it, but he’s also a divine retainer—specifically of Buryuu Takeru, the War God—so that’s a no-go too.

Which means the list of people I can entrust the artifact to is shrinking fast. I’m against it, but the most suitable candidates are…

I glance at the children.

They’re demigods, born on the surface, and not my divine retainers.

They’re perfect candidates to wield divine artifacts… but as a father, I can’t help but hesitate at the thought of dragging them into battles against evil god apostles.

“…What’s wrong, Otou-san?”

“No, it’s nothing.”

I pat Linne on the head as she tilts her head at me, then stand up.

Mel, Ney, Rize—the Fraysian trio—they might be fine too, but since we’re dealing with divine power, the demigod children are clearly better suited.

The divine artifacts I make are apparently on par with what high-ranking gods produce, so the burden is too much for regular humans.

Normally, you’d tweak it to be usable by mortals, too… but I’m a rookie. There’s no way I can fine-tune something like that yet.

In that respect, my kids are demigods and have perfect compatibility with my divine power. I mean, they literally share my blood, so it’s only natural.

Well, in any case, before I worry about the vessel, I need to train until I can at least make the Divine Core.

“Alright, let’s give it one more go!”

I psych myself up and begin condensing my divine aura once more.

“Ngugugu…! Ngh… funununu…!”

“Yup. Still making weird faces.”

Linne’s innocent comment hit me harder than expected, and once again, the divine aura exploded and scattered all around.

Okay, I’ve reached my limit. My stamina’s gone…

“Haah… I’m beat… Let’s take a break…”

I plop myself onto a bench in the castle courtyard, slumping back against it.

I feel a little self-conscious about acting so lazy in front of the kids, but it’s too late to pretend otherwise.

They’re bound to see me being even lazier in the future anyway.

Even though I’m a divine being, making a Divine Core absolutely drains me—physically, mentally, spiritually.

This is the first time I’ve been this tired since becoming a god.

And for some reason, since it’s divine exhaustion, even [Refresh] doesn’t help… What the hell?

As I sit there, recovering, it seems Linne and Frey got bored and wandered off somewhere. Otou-san is… lonely.

While I was basking in the breeze on the bench, Yumina passed through the courtyard and hurried over to me in a panic. Huh? What’s going on?

“Touya-san! Touya-san! It’s urgent! Kuon is…!”

“What!? Kuon!? What happened to her!?”

I hadn’t seen Kuon at all since this morning—what happened!?I reflexively lifted my hips off the bench in surprise.

“Apparently, he’s out on a date today!”

“Huh? …Ah, I see…”

Hearing Yumina cheerfully say that, I slumped back onto the bench, all the tension draining out of me.What the heck, I was all worked up for nothing...

“Is it with Alice again?”

“Seems like it. Do you think those two are actually in love with each other?”

Yumina plopped down next to me, looking amused.In love, huh…? I mean, it does kind of seem like Alice is the only one pushing things forward.

“What do you think of Alice, as Kuon’s fiancée?”

“Aren’t you jumping the gun a bit? They’re only six years old, you know?”

I mean, sure, Kuon is a prince, and he’s going to inherit the throne one day, so choosing the right queen is important. But come on—they’re still kids. Technically, Alice wasn’t even born when we first started this conversation.

“It’s said that the fiancée of a crown prince should be decided early. That way, she can be made aware of her role and begin her education as a future queen from a young age.”

“I get what you’re saying, but still…”

It’s true that the queen consort, especially the primary queen, needs to have proper etiquette, culture, and social skills.

In my case, too, if it hadn’t been for Yumina, things would’ve been a lot harder. Hilda and Luu had that kind of education from a young age, so they managed okay. But Sue was raised pretty freely, and I think Yae, Elze, and Linze aren’t too great with that kind of thing either. They still avoid parties in other countries like the plague.

“But wait, is it really okay for Alice to be the main queen? She’s totally a commoner.”

“Says the commoner who married a bunch of princesses.”

Oof, that one came flying back like a boomerang.Well, yeah. I do believe status shouldn’t matter when it comes to love. Just… y’know, I wanted to double-check.

“If status is such a big deal, we can just make Ende a noble of Brunhild. That way, Alice would be the daughter of a noble—problem solved, right?”

“That’s some brute-force logic…”

Making Ende a noble, huh…?Would he even accept? That guy’s probably the type to scream, “I won’t become a noble just to marry off Alice!” or something.

“Then, how about we make Mel-san a noblewoman instead?”

“That’s still brute-force logic…”

Sure, if Alice’s mother, Mel, becomes a noble, Alice would be a noble’s daughter. But still…

Can you even teach Alice noble manners or etiquette? Wouldn’t it be like preaching to a horse?

“That’s why we make her aware of her future role from now on. Well, if she’s okay with being a concubine instead of the main queen, I suppose we don’t have to be that strict.”

Hmm… In my case, all my wives are considered main queens—there’s no concubine or secondary wife.I’d like Brunhild’s royal family to continue that… tradition(?), but if all the wives are equal, it could lead to a messy fight over succession.

I guess it’s okay to follow the usual “the eldest son inherits” rule. But if the older brother’s a fool and the younger brother’s a genius, the country could be doomed. It’s not that simple.

“Isn’t it still too early to tell if Kuon will take a concubine?”

“No way! Kuon-sama is so cool, so smart, and so kind—he’s the prince among princes! There’s no way he won’t be popular! Girls all over the world are going to fall for him! He might even marry someone better than you, Touya-san…!”

…Wait, she’s not joking. Yumina’s eyes are literally sparkling.I mean, sure, Kuon is a handsome kid…

But if he ends up marrying too many girls, that’s gonna be a lot to handle.I think even Kuon understands that much, just by watching me.

“As his future mother-in-law, I’ll have to get along with all his wives. I bet we’ll have so many grandchildren! They’ll all be so cute!”

“Whoa, whoa, slow down. You’re getting way ahead of yourself.”

Grandkids!?Our son hasn’t even been born yet. Yumina’s been turning into a total goofball whenever Kuon comes up lately.

People call me a doting parent, but… is this what I look like to others? Maybe I need to do some self-reflection.

Anyway, grandkids aside, I don’t plan on deciding Kuon’s fiancée anytime soon.

I’d much prefer he marry for love rather than some political alliance. And honestly, only Tokie-obaasama, the Goddess of Time and Space, might know how things will turn out in the end.

Alice might fall for someone else. Kuon might end up treasuring just one other person.If things ended in a broken engagement, both sides would be hurt.

And if that happened… Ende would absolutely go on a rampage. He might take down an entire country if he’s mad enough.

I do think it’s a good idea to teach Alice some ladylike manners though.Why not let her join our kids during playtime and slip it into their games? If we get Mel, her mother, to gently talk her into it, she’ll probably go along with it.

I’m pretty sure that’s what future me is thinking too. Probably.

◇　◇　◇

“Hey, hey, Kuon, look at this! Isn’t it cute!?”

“A carved wooden cat figurine, huh? The details are fine, and the finish is well done. It’s a great piece.”

Kuon gave his impression like that as he looked at the cat figurine Alice had picked up and shown him.

Perhaps because he himself also made things like dioramas, Kuon’s perspective on what was good or bad about an object was firmly rooted in the viewpoint of a creator. Unlike Alice, he didn’t judge based on whether something was cute or not.

“Bocchan, you’ve got a good eye. This piece was made by a woodworker who’s been rising in prominence recently in Mismede. It’s this price now, but I think its value will rise in the future.”

A clerk from the Strand Company approached the two of them. The clerk, a dog-type beastman, showed Kuon several other woodcrafts made by the same artisan. Even from Kuon’s perspective, every single one of them looked like the work of a top-class—or even beyond top-class—craftsman. It probably wasn’t a lie that their value would increase over time.

“This carved wooden bear... It’s incredibly lifelike. It’s almost divine…”

In truth, these works were made by the Craft God himself—Craft. So Kuon’s impression was quite on point.

That said, these were just pieces made for fun, so compared to the works he made when being serious, the quality was still several levels lower.

“I really want this bear…”

“Then why don’t you buy it? You still have the allowance His Majesty gave you the other day, right?”

She was referring to the time when they had defeated the long-extinct magical beast, the Marcocias, which had appeared through time.

Kuon had asked his father, Touya, to handle the auction procedures, and in return, he received a gold coin as pocket money.

In Earth terms, it was worth about 100,000 yen—a ridiculous amount of money for a child to have. But since they held far greater assets in the future, it actually felt kind of underwhelming.

Even so, it was more than enough to buy this carved wooden bear. But Kuon hesitated, caught between his desire and the lesson drilled into him by his mother, Yumina: Don’t waste money.

“Uuuuuh…”

“Then I’ll buy it. Oji-san, I’ll take this wooden bear!”

“Huh?”

“Right away. Thank you for your purchase!”

Before Kuon could say anything, Alice had already taken the carved bear to the counter and paid for it.

Then she handed the paper bag with the wooden bear inside to the dumbfounded Kuon.

“Here! A present!”

“Eh, um, ah… thank you…?”

Kuon found himself accepting it without thinking, as Alice handed it over so naturally.

Alice gave a small smile, then glanced at the cat figurine she’d been eyeing earlier.

Ah… so that’s how it is, Kuon realized. He took the cat figurine to the counter and bought it himself.

Then he handed the paper bag with the figurine inside to Alice.

“Here you go, Alice. A present for you.”

“Thanks, Kuon!”

It was a gift. He didn’t spend money on himself. Something bought to make someone else happy didn’t count as wasteful spending.

Kuon was impressed by how Alice had instantly read his hesitation and immediately acted on it.

His childhood friend had a sharp instinct for these subtle emotional cues. Whether that was calculated or just natural instinct, he wasn’t quite sure.

“Thank you very muuuch!”

The two of them left the Strand Company together. The figurines they bought were stored away using the smartphone’s [Storage] function.

“So, where should we go next?”

“Well, since that stupid sword guy isn’t around for once, I’d like to go somewhere we can relax~”

The "idiot sword" Alice referred to was none other than Silver, the 【Crown】 of "Gin" — Silver himself.

Currently, he was at Babylon's "Laboratory," staying with engineer Elka, under the pretext of an information exchange and maintenance session with Gold, the 【Crown】 of "Kin."

Since "Kin" and "Gin" were created around the same time, they were undergoing various tests on their similarities and attempting memory reconstruction through synchro-scan technology.

From Alice's perspective, this was a golden opportunity — the loud, bothersome third wheel was out of the picture. She planned to enjoy a date with Kuon to her heart’s content, without any distractions.

Kuon, too, was honestly relieved to get a break from the constant bickering between Silver and Alice over trivial matters. He thought today would finally be a peaceful one... or so he believed.

But Kuon had been feeling an intense gaze directed at him for a while now.

From somewhere in the shadows between buildings in the town, a strange feeling — not quite resentment, not exactly jealousy — but a heavy, focused stare was piercing through him.

Oddly enough, the gaze wasn't directed at Alice. It seemed Kuon was the only one who had noticed it so far.

Kuon discreetly glanced in the direction of the gaze.

The moment he did, a heavy sigh escaped his lips, and he pressed a hand to his forehead. He could tell — this was going to turn into a pain in the neck.

“What’s wrong, Kuon?”

“It’s nothing…”

Kuon hesitated, wondering how to explain it. As he stole another glance toward the source of the gaze, Alice followed his eyes instinctively.

“Huh? Otou-san?”

“H-Hey there, Alice! What a coincidence!”

From the shadows of a nearby building stepped out a young man with white hair and a scarf — Ende. His appearance was blatantly staged. Kuon thought it was a stretch to call this a coincidence, considering he’d clearly been tailing them ever since they left the shop, but he didn’t say it aloud. Too troublesome.

Still, Kuon gave a polite greeting.

“Good afternoon, Ende-san.”

“Ah, good afternoon.”

Ende replied with a smile, but his eyes didn’t reflect any warmth. Kuon didn’t react — he was used to this version of "Otou-san" even in the future.

“What’s this, Endemyuon? So, this is where you were. Hm? Isn’t that Alice? What’s going on?”

“Nei Okaa-san!”

From among the crowd, one of Alice’s mothers, Nei, appeared. She held a paper bag filled with fruit in her hands.

It turned out Ende had been out shopping with Nei. On the way, he spotted the two of them happily entering the Strand Trading Company, so he waited for them to leave and had been tailing them ever since. One wrong step and even a parent turns into a stalker.

“Good day, Nei-san.”

“Indeed, good day. Ah, so you were out with Kuon. Alice, are you enjoying yourself?”

“Yup!”

If someone had known Nei from before they arrived in this world, they’d surely think she was a different person — the way she smiled as she gently patted her beloved daughter’s head.

“By the way, Kuon. If you’d like, why not join us for lunch?”

“Eh? For lunch?”

“Yes. Once in a while, our family likes to host guests. Rise and Mel-sama also said they’d like to have a proper conversation with you.”

Kuon blinked in surprise at the unexpected invitation from Nei.

It was already past noon. Kuon had been planning to return to the castle with Alice for a late lunch.

While eating at a café or diner in town might seem like a simple solution, being just two children alone would draw too much attention — not to mention the risk of troublesome people getting involved. For that reason, Kuon had ruled those options out.

“Come on, Kuon! Our place is closer to here anyway.”

“Hmm…”

He didn’t really mind going for lunch. Still, Kuon cast a glance at Ende.

Though Ende kept his face neutral, Kuon noticed a slight tightening of his eyebrows.

He wasn’t outright hated, but Kuon was aware that Ende harbored a strange sense of rivalry or wariness toward him.

Of course, he understood that it stemmed from a father’s instinct to protect his precious daughter. He’d seen it plenty from other dads around him.

He’d even been asked to use the "Mystic Eye of Discernment" many times to scare off boys who approached his older sisters and younger sisters. Not that Kuon minded — he wouldn’t let any shady boys near his sisters either.

It was… troublesome, honestly. But it wasn’t worth refusing over. It was just a meal, after all.

“...Then I’ll take you up on your offer.”

Though Kuon still felt wary about Ende, he decided it wasn’t worth stressing over and accepted Nei’s invitation.