Chapter 337: A Harmonious Home (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 337: A Harmonious Home (4)
Lately, I’ve been living a life of unparalleled happiness.
Beautiful slaves and my adorable, bunny-like children who take after them. Women from all over the world, flocking here to become my slaves.
I assign them to their perfect roles to achieve the most efficient results. And on top of that, there's the entertainment, making full use of the city's facilities.
Everyone smiles, living happily without a care for the future.
It’s fun and rewarding. I’m actually living the tycoon game I once so desperately wished for.
It’s no exaggeration to say that in this moment, I am the happiest man in the world. I’m sure of it.
But just as they say human greed knows no bounds, there was one thing that still left me wanting.
“Mastah! Miho wants to eat Mastah’s essence!”
“I wanna grow up fast so I can serve Master like my big sister.”
“M-Me too… Hehe.”
My adorable daughters, the apples of my eye. The most precious beings in the world to me were born as slaves.
They say the child of a slave is a slave, but I’m their master. If I declare them free, they should be free.
But it didn’t go as I planned.
Because when my slaves heard my intention, they resisted fiercely, begging me to make their daughters slaves, even if their sons could be free.
I remembered having this conversation once before. I thought they were just talking back then, but I was sorely mistaken.
They cried, threw tantrums, and raised all hell.
You would have thought the world was ending.
In the end, I had no choice but to give in.
To let my own daughters become slaves.
They already bear the soul shackles.
Even so, I didn't give up. They might be slaves in name, but I could just raise them like normal daughters, right?
All I had to do was instill a normal way of thinking in them. Then there would be no problem.
But as you can see from the present, even that ended in failure. After all, my daughters call me Master, not Dad.
A father who can’t be called Dad, with daughters I can’t call my own…
“Haaah…”
“Papa… why are you sighing? Are you sick?”
Aria, worried about me, rushed over in a heartbeat.
Others might not notice, but as her father, I could tell. The slight downturn of her eyes was a sign that she was worried about me.
I lifted Aria onto my lap.
“I’m perfectly fine. It’s just that the thought of my lovely Aria leaving my side to get married someday already brings tears to my eyes.”
Aria was the only one of my daughters who called me Papa.
There was still young Irina, but considering her mother was Alfia, her future was painfully obvious.
You’re all I have.
“But… I want to marry Papa…” Aria said with a shy expression. This is why parents all over the world want daughters.
You don’t just become a doting father for no reason.
“Alright. Aria, you’ll live with me forever. That’s a promise, okay?”
“Okay…!”
Of course, I didn’t only have daughters. Though it was a close call.
“Father.”
A boy with crimson-black hair addressed me politely.
He was the first of my children to be born.
My eldest son, Soren, born to Narsha.
“What is it, Soren?”
“Mother instructed me to deliver these documents.”
Soren handed me a stack of papers nearly as big as his face.
I still remember how overjoyed Narsha was when Soren was born.
Coming from a noble background, she placed great importance on the firstborn son and had wanted a boy from the very beginning.
She had screamed with joy.
Soren took after Narsha and was exceptionally bright. He learned the basics of nobility—minor etiquette, manners, and deportment—without any difficulty.
Following Narsha’s teaching that a man must know how to protect himself and his woman, he was learning swordplay and even the workings of the merchant group.
He had now reached the point where he was assisting Narsha, who had recently given birth to her second child, with her duties.
It was an educational fervor that would put the most competitive school districts to shame.
Narsha’s plan was to raise her daughter as a slave and her son as a master. She surely intended to make him my successor.
It was a fine thought, but I couldn’t help but feel they were overdoing it. Narsha, however, was resolute, and Soren himself didn’t seem to mind at all.
In fact, he seemed to enjoy his studies.
Perhaps it was his calling.
He was Narsha’s son, through and through.
“You’ve done well.”
“……”
“Is there something else you wish to say?”
Soren fidgeted with his fingers, silently glancing at me.
I quickly caught on and stroked his head.
“You are always a great help to me. Thank you.”
“Yes, Father!” Soren replied energetically.
I was worried he was growing up too fast, but thankfully, he was still a child at heart.
Besides Soren, I had one other son, Yuri, known as the Saint’s son. Yes, the very same Yuri I had once summoned with magic.
His appearance and personality were identical to the Yuri I had seen back then. The only differences were that he called Elize “Mother” and me “Father.”
Yuri, while not as busy as Soren, was also leading a hectic life for a child.
Under Elize’s guidance, he was being raised as a clergyman.
Her goal was for him to become the next Pope, apparently.
At the same time, he was also being groomed to be the next leader of the Master’s cult.
Everyone was living such diligent lives.
*
Yuri.
The boy’s identity was already public knowledge.
He was Elize’s son.
The child born of the Saint’s virgin birth.
Since there was no way Elize, a Saint, would have relations with a man, this rumor naturally became the accepted truth.
Elize had evolved from the Church’s Saint to its Holy Mother.
Of course, the truth was that she was a Saint more carnal than holy, having shared her body with Karami in every way possible.
In any case, the important thing was that the world still revered Elize as the Holy Mother, and Yuri was her son.
“Yuri, there are countless people in this world who pray for a hand of salvation. That is true for both the Order of Balance and the Master’s cult.”
“Yes, Mother.”
“You must strive to become their savior. Just like the Master.”
“Yes, Mother. I’ll do my best.”
“Huhu, my dear, sweet son. You’re such a good boy.”
Elize caressed Yuri’s cheek with a loving touch.
Yuri smiled, his dimples showing. But a crimson light flickered in his eyes.
“Yuri, is it time for you to feed?”
“Ah, yes…”
As Elize’s child, Yuri was a half-vampire. He naturally required blood.
Unwilling to lose her humanity, Elize had refused to drink blood until she met Karami, drinking freshly squeezed cow’s milk as a substitute.
But one couldn’t live on milk forever. The day would come when Yuri, too, would have to drink blood.
If so, it might be best to start getting him accustomed to it now.
“Whose blood should you drink? Sigrid? No, she’s an artificial apostle, so that won’t do. It must be a pure, untainted child, untouched by the filth of the Church… Perhaps Iris? As a unicorn, she would be fine, but her true nature is a bit unsettling, which gives me pause…”
Elize pondered with a grave expression. A vampire’s first taste of blood was crucial.
The type of blood one drank determined their palate for the rest of their life. If he drank something strange, it could spell disaster.
Just last month, there had been a close call.
Miho had suddenly approached Yuri and offered a trade: “I’ll give you my blood if you give me your essence!”
She may be young, but she was still the daughter of a gumiho, and Yuri was a pure, innocent boy with almost no immunity to the opposite sex.
He had almost fallen for it.
The incident led to a huge fight with Rin, which was only resolved through Karami’s intervention.
It was only natural that Elize was being particularly careful.
Should I offer the Master’s blood? No, that’s not an option. The Master’s blood is mine.
No suitable candidate came to mind.
The best would be to be guided by fate…
Just as Elize had craved Karami’s blood, Yuri might have someone like that for him, too.
They would have to pass a strict screening, of course, but if it was what Yuri wanted, she could be persuaded to let him drink their blood.
“Yuri, is there any girl you’ve taken a liking to? If you just say the word, Mommy will help you.”
“Um…”
Yuri’s demeanor turned shy, as if he was embarrassed to be picking his ideal type in front of his mother.
Despite himself, he couldn’t fight his instincts, and his eyes began to wander. His gaze drifted out the window, toward the garden.
There, the ice princess and her daughter were arranging flowers. His eyes landed on the little princess, Aria.
As if by a twist of fate, Aria turned her head, and their eyes met by chance. Yuri quickly snapped his head away.
“Yuri?”
Noticing his strange behavior, Elize followed his gaze.
The moment she spotted Aria, she recoiled in horror.
“No! Not her!”
“M-Mother?”
“Of all the children, why Aria? Why her daughter? There are other girls, aren’t there? Lucia, or Lumia, or even Irina, for heaven’s sake!”
“Mother, they’re my sisters. And Irina is still a baby…”
“Absolutely not, I said!”
Elize’s reaction was vehement.
And just like that, Yuri’s first love ended before it could even take a single step.