Mother is the World's Strongest! —Thud!
"Leah!"
The moment I got the text from Ga-eun's mom saying she was on her way, I bolted straight to the research building housing A-3 isolation room.
"Ha... seriously... please, please don't let me be too late!"
My mind was filled with just one thought.
I absolutely cannot let Mom meet Leah.
The instant they meet... Leah's in danger!
*
After sprinting nonstop for over ten minutes, I finally set foot in the research building where Leah was.
"Hoo... haa, what a way to start the morning."
《A-3 Isolation Lab》
This was the place handling stability checks for isolated ghost stories and analysis of their biometric data.
To enter, you needed biometric recognition, an ID card scan, and finally a personal item inspection—a brutally strict triple security process.
In other words, no matter how much of a regular Ga-eun's mom was, she couldn't get through here faster than me!
Even I, who's used to coming here often, take a decent amount of time with the procedure.
I didn't know the internal situation yet, but thankfully, there was no sign of any commotion.
Guess she hasn't made it here yet.
Beep.
[ID Card and Biometric Recognition Complete: Access Granted to Leah's Guardian, Yoon Si-hyeon.]
Clunk.
I stepped into the isolation room and mentally sorted out what I needed to do first.
Priority one: Do not let Leah meet Mom.
To achieve that, I couldn't let Leah out of the isolation room until the field trip program ended today.
She might feel a bit cooped up... but I have to avoid them meeting at all costs.
If I asked Emilia and Ga-eun to look after Leah and Mom separately, it should work out somehow.
...Or so I thought, forgetting for a moment that Ga-eun's mom always exceeds my expectations.
"Fnyaaah! L-Let go of this body, human!"
"Haaauu~ How can you be so pretty and cute~? Too cute, cute, cute~♡"
What the—? A dream?
As my eyes adjusted to the bright lab lights, the scene I saw was...
"Hot...! S-Si-hyun! This female human's been hugging this body and won't let go since earlier! Help, says this body!"
"Oh my, sweetie~ How'd you know Mommy was here~?"
"......"
Leah, buried in Ga-eun's mom's arms, getting smothered in kisses and cuddles.
Ha. Damn it, I was too late.
My worst fear had come true.
When Mom's 'switch' flips, even I can't stop her.
"Eeeeek!! R-Rude human! Don't touch this body, says this body!!"
—Flail, flail!
Leah thrashed her little body desperately to escape Mom's embrace, but it was no use.
If she could slip out that easily, I wouldn't have worried in the first place.
"Hehe, your name's Leah, right? Leah-chan~ Mommy has tons of cute clothes—wanna try some on~?"
"Th-This body likes the clothes Si-hyun dressed it in this morning! Doesn't wanna change, says this body...!"
Ga-eun's mom kept holding the protesting Leah, trying to braid her hair or change her outfit.
......In this situation, I had only one option.
"Eeeeek! Human! Stop nibbling my ears, says this body! No kisses on the cheeks either, says this body! And above all, let this body go, says this body!!"
"Haa, haa... J-Just one more minute! No, five more minutes of hugs~~"
"Kyaaah!!"
"Even Leah-chan's angry face is cat-like and cute~"
All I could do was hope Ga-eun's mom got her fill soon.
* * *
An hour later.
"Hic... sob...! Si-hyun...! That woman hugged and groped this body without permission! Uwuu... P-Punish her right now, says this body!"
"There, there. Poor Leah, you got such a scare, huh?"
"Uung...!"
—Pat, pat.
It took Do-jin uncle and Ga-eun joining in before we finally pried Leah out of Mom's arms.
This is exactly why I didn't want Leah meeting Mom.
Ga-eun's mom was kind and gentle, but she had one quirk.
She went wild for cute, lovable kids.
Some switch flips in her head?
When Mom's so-called 'cuteness switch' activated, she'd smother the target—will or no will—until she was satisfied, biting, sucking, hugging like mad.
That was her one and only flaw.
Smoochooo~
"Hoom... I didn't even get to put Leah-chan in a cute hanbok or maid outfit yet~"
Mom eyed Leah wistfully, smacking her lips with regret, index finger between her teeth, lips pursed in classic 'still-wanting-more' mode.
Maid outfit, huh? Mom knew her stuff.
Ahem.
"Mommy wants to hug Leah-chan more~"
"Ha, seriously, Mom! Fix that habit of losing it over cute kids. They don't like it."
"Hehe, my daughter~ Jealous much~?"
Mom grinned slyly and pulled Ga-eun into a hug.
We'd only exchanged brief messages lately due to her busyness—no real visits—but she looked exactly the same as always.
Personality, looks, everything unchanged.
Deep, dark black hair, slightly downturned eyes.
And contrasting that, blood-red irises.
She had the youthful beauty of a vampire progenitor straight out of a novel.
Kang Eun-ha.
No one seeing her for the first time would guess she had a grown daughter like Ga-eun.
Sometimes I wonder if she's a real vampire. Does all the aging go to me?
Feels like I'm the only one getting old.
"Anyway. You okay, Leah?"
"Uuu... To inflict such humiliation on this body, a mighty ghost story and knight. Si-hyun, who the heck is that rude woman?!"
Leah was still fuming, sniffling with teary purple eyes.
"See the pink-haired girl with fox ears over there? That's her daughter."
"Daughter?"
"Simply put, they're family."
"Family...? What does family mean, Si-hyun?"
The moment she heard 'family,' Leah tilted her head and stared up at me.
Had I never explained family to her?
Caught off-guard by the unexpected question, I calmly stroked the girl's head and answered.
"Family's the bond where you spend time together, look out for each other, and give strength."
"Spend time together... look out for each other...?"
Leah murmured, repeating my words, clenching and unclenching her tiny fists like she was pondering deeply.
—Grab.
Suddenly, she cupped my face with both hands, her purple eyes sparkling.
She had a question.
"Si-hyun, do you have family?"
She hesitated a bit, then asked if I had family too.
Not the traditional setup like Ga-eun, Do-jin uncle, and Eun-ha mom, but right now, I did have family.
Wonder how innocent Leah will take this, but whatever!
I hugged her tight and answered.
"Right here. My family."
"Where...?"
"Red hair, purple eyes. The girl who loves pudding tons. That's my family."
"......!!"
"We spend every day together. If you and I aren't family, who is?"
Her purple eyes widened in shock at the totally unexpected answer, staring at me.
Her cheeks flushed a bit too.
"This body had no idea Si-hyun thought of it that way..."
"Haha, glad you know now?"
As I explained family stuff to Leah, clack— Eun-ha mom, who'd been held back by Ga-eun and Do-jin uncle, slowly approached me and Leah.
"Sweetie~ Missed Mommy?"
"Haha, of course. More than that, Mom, you're still as pretty as ever."
"Mo. Mm. Y."
"Huh?"
"You promised to call me Mommy... but my boy's using that distant title again~?"
—Rumble.
Her blood-red eyes gleamed as she gazed down intently, like a beast hiding immense power.
She was strong, but... anyway.
"I'm getting older now, calling you Mom feels a bit..."
"Keep that up, and I'll hug and kiss you too~?"
"......Hahaha, I missed you too, Mommy!"
"Hehe, would've been nice if you'd called me Mommy sooner~♡"
Damn, I just can't rebel against Eun-ha mom. Imprinted from childhood?
As a twinge of self-loathing hit,
"Sweetie, Mommy has a favor to ask~"
Eun-ha mom beamed and requested I join the field trip program with her.
One mandatory part of the teen awakener experience: swordsmanship training, where she wanted me as instructor.
"Our boy's a genius with swords, even without awakening powers, right? Mommy thinks kids shouldn't rely only on abilities. I wanna show them you can be plenty strong with martial arts~"
"You could do it yourself, why me?"
"Hehe, think of it as Mommy bragging about her awesome son♡"
With Mom here, I'd have to stick by her side anyway.
Wouldn't want her causing another incident.
Instead of just agreeing, I added a condition.
"Mom, can I bring Leah to the field trip?"
"Oh? Leah-chan?"
"I'm her guardian, and she loves playing with swords."
Leah always nagged about wanting sword practice.
And in the fragment memory from yesterday, she'd been training in the dojo.
Sword practice might jog her past memories.
Safer than forcing her to remember.
"Mommy loves having Leah-chan around~"
At Mom's agreement to bring Leah, Do-jin uncle jumped in immediately.
"H-Hold on, honey! I won't allow it without the guild master's permission—"
"Oh? Do-jin, getting a bit uppity. Sit~"
Whoosh.
Eun-ha mom casually pointed her index finger downward.
The instant she did—
—Boom!!
"Kuh...! G-Ga-eun's mom...!"
—Rumble rumble!!
"Hehe, you'll permit Leah-chan coming along, right, Do-jin~?♡"
"N-No...! That's blackmail...!"
"Hoom~? Say it quick, or it'll hurt more?"
"Kuh...! F-Fine, permitted!!"
"Hehe, my hubby always makes everything twice the work when he'd approve anyway~?"
Shh.
As Eun-ha mom withdrew her finger, the crushing force vanished like it never existed.
I knew Mom was strong, but pinning down Do-jin uncle with one finger? Insane.
One of Korea's proudest powerhouses, Han Do-jin, fears his wife for a simple reason.
Kang Eun-ha is overwhelmingly stronger.
"Alright~ Shall we go together, sweetie? Leah-chan too~~♡"
"Hahaha...... Mom, you're as unstoppable as ever."
"Hoom? What~?"
"N-Nothing..."
Watching Mom bounce happily with her bright smile and uncle sprawled on the floor, I was reminded once more: marriage requires utmost caution.
But I married a cutie like Luna, so no worries there? Hehe.