Date

The setting of this novel is Earth in a parallel universe.

"Um... h-honey. First, please accept my bow."

"Huh?"

Areum was holding Ahee and Nahee when Hana approached, her face flushed red.

Back when I'd been looking after Areum and the others—when they were in third grade—how carefully had she looked after them? On top of that, she'd been renting a room at the house next door, Hyeon-ju's place, so we'd walked to and from school together nearly every day. She'd been a warm, affectionate teacher.

The young woman in her early twenties was now thirty-three. After becoming a slave to Hyeon-ju's mother, Sun-jeong, she had passed into my hands.

Hana must have had it rough. Holding on to her virginity all the way into her early-to-mid thirties... that couldn't have been easy.

Her voice was a little husky, but with those big eyes and that sharply defined nose, she was quite pretty. Whether it was good fortune with women or not, Hana was a beauty too. The sample size was small, sure, but she was more than enough to keep the bachelor farmers in the countryside up at night...

No offense to Jumi, but she's prettier than Jumi.

Bobby wasn't exactly someone who'd lose out anywhere she went, either.

If there was a flaw, it was that when I'd gone through Kim Hana's physical modification, piecing together her memories, I recalled an A-cup chest and thirty-three-inch hips—aside from her pussy, there hadn't been much of a figure to look at.

With the kids around, I checked their reactions, but they didn't seem particularly stirred. Maybe they already knew something.

When I stood up, the three of them pattered over and bowed at the waist to Jeong-mi and Ju-ae.

"Hello! I'm Lee Areum (Lee Ahee, Jo Nahee)!"

"Oh my!!!"

All three were adorable. The two identical twins were hard to tell apart, but their round eyes and features were already distinct, and Nahee, though she didn't have double eyelids, was quite cute in her own right.

Looks like they bought them new clothes?

The smell of new fabric, and the sight of the three of them lined up in matching white dresses like real sisters—it was simply heartwarming.

I went and sat on the sofa, and Jeong-mi and Ju-ae shifted the table off to the side for a moment.

Hana then stood right in front of me and took a deep breath.

"Teacher Hana. Are you really becoming my wife of your own free will? I'm asking you one last time."

"Yes... Of course, I'm a little confused about whether Sun-jeong brainwashed me or implanted something in me, but even that is fine in its own way. Either way, I've spent ten years waiting for nothing but to be held by you."

She'd served Sun-jeong as her superior for ten years, but the moment the hierarchy was set, she dropped all formality with her. I liked that.

I smiled.

Looking up at the ceiling with hazy eyes, smiling—I couldn't sense any falsehood from her.

"Then go ahead."

"Yes."

In that moment, her gaze was full of love.

So I met those eyes and focused on Hana, and she bowed with perfect grace.

A flood of memories with Hana passed through me. They weren't the memories of lovers, of course, but even the memories between teacher and student pile up plenty in the countryside.

"I, Kim Hana, am Kim Ian's slave."

But then time stopped. It shouldn't have.

Hana had already declared herself a slave over the phone and gone through physical modification, so time had no reason to freeze.

What the hell? I clearly heard the slave declaration over the phone and finished the settings.

But time had stopped, and when I looked around in shock, the three little ones were crouched down hiding off to the side.

"Are you kidding me!!!!"

I shouted, but no one could hear me. They stayed frozen in that pose.

The content of the message ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠seemed to be scolding me.

But Jini's voice was thick with laughter.

I wasn't planning to. Damn it—Wife rank.

But before my eyes, models of three adult women appeared.

"Huh?"

Ah!! Back in that other world... yeah, that was the case.

None of the three quite reached Hye-yun's level, but they had grown into celebrity-tier looks.

Calling those scraps of fabric bikinis felt generous—they were barely there. Maybe that was why their figures were so easy to make out.

"Whew..."

I found the twins' height a little lacking, so I pushed it up to 170 cm, and it barely cost any points at all.

Ah...

So they could live with confidence as women, I set them to D-cups and forty-one-inch hips, and injected everything I'd done for my other women except the erogenous zone settings.

I had so many points left over that I dumped them into aging deceleration, and the result was absurd—they would age at one-tenth the normal rate.

After their growth period ended, that is.

That's terrifying in its own way... If their growth finishes at sixteen... it'd take ten years just to look seventeen...

"I don't actually have to sleep with them, right?"

Ah... right.

Once the children's settings were more or less finished, the faces of the two people I considered the ringleaders of this whole mess floated up in my mind.

Simply bowing doesn't trigger an Absolute Obedience Contract. Not unless they say they're a slave themselves.

"Hyeon-ju, Eun-hui, those little—right now!!!"

"Ah... damn it... fine."

As long as I didn't look at these kids as women, it would be fine.

Soon time began to flow again, and I deliberately didn't look to the side. I heard the sound of them getting up while reading the room, and Kim Hana rose as well, looking embarrassed.

"So, Hana, are you staying the night?"

"No, honey. I have to head back down right away. I only came to drop the kids off and pick up some things."

"Ah... okay."

I felt the presence of someone settling onto the sofa, and I activated Soul Eyes, sweeping over the four of them to confirm nothing was wrong.

When I looked at Jeong-mi, her eyes were darting between the little ones, pupils trembling, so I gave a slight shake of my head—just enough for her to catch.

She nodded faintly in return.

"So you're heading down right away?"

"Yes. Unnie Hyeon-ju and Unnie Eun-hui are busy, so someone has to stay behind in Goesan and keep the two of them connected."

"Hmm... alright."

With a regretful look, Hana picked up a box and stood, and I saw her off to the front door.

She bowed her head politely and stepped out through the entrance.

"Today's date... want to hit the zoo?"

"What? Pfft... sure."

I'd planned to talk about Ju-ae and Hyeong-cheol in the back of the car.

And once that was wrapped up, I'd intended to take turns with Ju-ae and Jeong-mi for some happy time in the back seat. That plan had just gone out the window.

"You guys want to go to the zoo?"

"Huh? Oppa!!! Really?"

For some reason, Nahee was the first to answer, beaming.

Unexpected. I'd heard Hyeon-ju had chewed her out, but this wasn't the compliance of a scolded child.

Strangely, Nahee was genuinely delighted. It had been a long time since I'd seen her like this.

Hmm...

I nodded.

All three nodded back, and I brought Jeong-mi and Ju-ae over in front of the kids.

"These two are Oppa's wives. You can just call them Unnie."

"Huh? Oppa got married? Oppa!!! You said you'd marry us!"

Areum's face crumpled with pure injustice, tears welling up as she cried out.

"Uh? ..."

Granted, every holiday when we met, I'd mischievously ask, Want to marry Oppa? and listen to their answers—but that had been nothing more than teasing a child.

I hadn't expected the counterpunch to come back this heavy.

"You... guys are still too young. Oppa only takes wives once you're over eighteen."

"Then you'll take us later, right?"

Tears glistened.

Areum and Ahee looked up at me with wet eyes, and even Nahee flinched, fidgeting restlessly.

"Haa... Fine. If you still feel that way after you turn eighteen, I'll take you. But until then, I'm Oppa. Got it?"

"Oppa... me too?"

"Yeah. You too."

Nahee broke into a bright smile, and then the three of them hugged each other tight, squealing with joy. There was nothing I could say to that, so I looked over at Jeong-mi.

Jeong-mi and Ju-ae had been smiling—until their eyes met mine, and I caught them wiping the expressions clean off their faces.

"Oppa. Then what rank are we?"

"Huh?... What?"

"I overheard Auntie Hyeon-ju talking with Mom."

"Wh... what did you hear?"

Areum came over and clung to one of my legs, Ahee took the other, and Nahee wrapped her arms around both of them and pressed herself against me.

"We're not concubines, right? Right?"

I was so dumbfounded I looked at Ahee, who pulled a pouty face and kept locking eyes with me.

"You little pipsqueaks even know what a concubine is?"

"Someone who's not a wife. Someone who has to obey the wives."

My head started throbbing. I gestured Jeong-mi over.

"When Eun-hui and Hyeon-ju get here ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠later, you'll outrank them for a day, so make sure you punish them properly. These two clearly put ideas in their heads."

"Hohoho. Yes, understood. Just make sure they can't retaliate..."

"Got it."

"Oppaaa!!!! Hurry up. We're wives, right?"

The three of them grabbed my legs and shook them, and my skull pounded so hard my head was killing me.

But looking at the kids throwing their tantrum, I let out a sigh.

"Fine. But until you go to college, you call all of my women Mom. Got it?"

"Huh?.... Tch..."

Nahee made a little clicking sound, then looked up again and nodded.

Areum and Ahee reacted the same way, which only made my head hurt worse.

No way. Were these kids ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠always this sharp?

Hearing about wives and concubines, realizing their own mothers were concubines—I wondered if they'd been plotting something.

But I wasn't about to get into a power struggle with kids over commands and ranks, so I rubbed my temples and let it go.

It'll be fine. In ten years I'll basically be a guy in his thirties... no way they'll still like me.

I was consoling myself with that when Jini's voice ruined it.

Damn it...

"For today at the zoo, Areum and Ahee's mom will be Jeong-mi, and Nahee's mom will be Ju-ae. Think you can pull off the act?"

"Yeah, Oppa. Of course. Mom!!!"

Sharp little things. Just as I thought.

Areum was much more cheerful and energetic than Ahee, even though they were identical twins.

Ahee then ran over and threw herself into Jeong-mi's arms, and Nahee smiled and went to Ju-ae.

Ju-ae grinned bashfully and scooped Nahee up into her embrace.

"Our Nahee... you've really become my daughter, haven't you?"

"Yeah. Mom!!!"

Living in the same apartment complex, they must have run into each other often.

Jeong-mi and Ju-ae both looked a good ten years younger, so holding the kids like that, they genuinely looked like mother and daughters.

Heave—

I scooped Areum up into my arms, shook my head, and headed for the front door. Jeong-mi and Ju-ae followed, chatting with the kids.

"So today you're not Oppa, you're Dad?"

"Huh?.... Yeah. Call me Dad..."

Just like that, I became a father before I was even twenty.

Whether other people thought I'd knocked someone up young or just looked young for my age, I didn't particularly care—but something about it felt hollow.

In the underground parking garage, I handed the keys to Ju-ae for now and pulled Jeong-mi aside for a moment.

"Jeong-mi. Loop Hana, Yun-hui, and Ji-yeon in together and give them a heads-up so they can take charge of educating Areum and the others—and any kids born from now on. I want to say it now while I'm thinking of it."

Hana was a current elementary school teacher, and Yun-hui and Ji-yeon had been my high school math and art teachers. Between the three of them, I figured they could teach the kids well.

And if not, I could always just order them to give it their all.

"Of course. Our own child will be born soon too... Can I handle the PE side? Yoga?"

"Sure, whatever you want."

I smirked and headed toward Mi-jin's SUV. It was a big American model, so six people would fit with room to spare.