The Idol Concept Meeting That Almost Broke Me
The idol concept meeting for satisfying the twins had dragged on longer than expected.
Although many concepts had been presented, none of them could be chosen. They were all such burdensome options that it was difficult to decide.
“What about this one? This time it should really be to your liking.”
Ha In-ha slid her finger across the tablet once more and held it out to me. Ever since the meeting began, she had been brainstorming ideas without a moment’s break.
It was an astonishing level of creativity. Yet from a certain point onward, it had started to feel like nothing more than a prank.
“...What is that?”
I asked, and Ha In-ha smiled faintly before answering with forced arrogance.
“It’s the ‘Magic Girl Dia Magical Beauty’ concept.”
“……”
My head spun instantly. I pressed my thumbs hard against the sides of my temples.
Two white gems on my chest... they were diamonds. I had no idea where to begin calling this bizarre sense of taste out of order.
I rubbed my temples for a while longer, then finally managed to speak.
“Frankly, is this not because you simply want to see me suffer?”
It was a reasonable suspicion. At first she had taken it seriously, but at some point she had begun shoving these strange concepts at me.
It had to be a joke. Otherwise she couldn’t possibly be sincere. How could someone actually like this?
“You don’t like this one either?”
Ha In-ha blinked several times, then erased the Magic Girl Dia... thing and began drawing again. This time the work was just as eccentric and striking.
I no longer had the energy to point it out. I lay sprawled across the table and watched the NIS agent’s drawing show.
Why was my figure in the picture so large? And I was wearing a dinosaur costume.
“What is that?”
I asked before the work was complete, but received no answer. The painter kept her mouth shut and only moved the mouse.
After a moment, she explained with a slightly brighter face.
“It’s the ‘Pink Saur’ concept.”
“……”
I stared straight into Ha In-ha’s eyes. A bewildered gaze returned to me.
She looked genuinely confused, as if she still couldn’t understand what was wrong. She really had been sincere.
I didn’t want to say anything harsh to someone working so hard. So I decided to judge more rationally.
“That’s enough for now.”
“Huh?”
Ha In-ha tilted her head in puzzlement when I heard my words, then her expression brightened instantly.
“You want me to use the Pink Saur concept?”
“...No.”
I had never seen her smile so brightly. I couldn’t bring myself to tell her to delete it right away, so I managed an awkward smile.
Thank goodness I had practiced maintaining a calm expression. I chose words that wouldn’t hurt her and spoke up.
“I’ve decided. I like all of them, but one stands out as particularly good.”
“Which one do you like?”
When everything felt equally unsuitable, I had to choose the least embarrassing option.
“I’ll go with the very first one you showed me.”
“The Pink Ice Princess?”
“...Yes.”
It was a princess concept modeled after the heroine of some old movie. Now that I thought about it, there was no simpler choice.
No, the word “simple” didn’t fit. Compared to the Strawberry Queen, the cute bunny girl, or the magic girl with gems on her chest, it was actually the best.
“This was the right choice, wasn’t it? I think so too.”
Unlike me, Ha In-ha looked extremely satisfied. A chuckle escaped me at the sight.
‘I can’t refuse her anymore.’
The result wasn’t anything special, but somehow she had done her absolute best to support me.
I was weak to such pure goodwill. One of the changes that had come with age.
“Your Holiness, will the idol performance be broadcast?”
“...Have you gone mad?”
No matter how pure her intentions, I couldn’t stomach this.
“It will never be broadcast.”
“Then... YouTube?”
“I hate it there too!”
It was already embarrassing in front of the kids; uploading to YouTube was unthinkable.
“Remember this. It will only be shown to the children, secretly. Do you understand?”
“Yes.”
Ha In-ha answered with a hint of disappointment. It was an odd reaction that made me uneasy.
***
After the meeting with Ha In-ha, I took a taxi home.
Because I had been so absorbed in the meeting, time had flown by. When I arrived home, evening had already fallen.
“You’re late.”
Seoyun met me at the door holding a slice of pizza.
“Were you eating pizza?”
“Yeah. Come eat quickly. It just arrived.”
“Understood.”
It was perfect timing since I was hungry. I kicked off my shoes and headed to the living room.
A low folding table had been set up, and everyone was gathered around eating.
Especially the twins were eating with great relish. The way they chewed with their small mouths was adorable.
But why were they ignoring their mother?
‘Am I just out of luck with the pizza?’
I felt genuinely hurt. I had prepared this event for the twins and they were acting like this.
“Oh, the Pope has arrived.”
At that moment Yong-yong-i, lying sprawled on the sofa and gnawing on the pizza crust, waved at me.
Even after I had forcibly tamed this evil dragon, he greeted me like this, while the girls didn’t even look my way. How could they do this even for something delicious?
I swallowed my resentment and stood still for a moment, then Liam gently touched the twins.
Only then did Erina and Evaila notice me.
“Mom, hello!”
“Hello~”
After their short greeting, they returned to the pizza. The shock doubled in intensity.
“……”
It was too rude to simply overlook. I needed to discipline them.
I walked over to the twins, squatted down to their eye level, and spoke softly.
“Erina, Evaila.”
Both girls reacted differently when their names were called.
“Why?”
Erina answered with a bright smile. A smart child, yet she was so lost in the pizza that she didn’t realize the situation.
Evaila, on the other hand, was quicker to notice than her sister.
“I’m sorry.”
The second child had already apologized before I even raised my hand to scold. Her eyes were already downcast.
For a moment my heart softened, but I decided to say what needed to be said. I couldn’t let the Pope’s daughters hear that they were rude wherever they went.
“Evaila, tell me what you did wrong.”
“Mom finished work and came home, but she didn’t greet me properly...”
At that moment Erina’s eyes widened beside me. Only after hearing her sister’s words did she seem to realize what she had done.
“Sorry.”
The first child immediately followed with a sweet smile. Her lips twitched because she wanted to scold but found the twins too adorable.
I barely kept my stern expression and gave them a sharp scolding.
“Do not laugh. Were you taught to laugh while being scolded?”
“...No.”
“Do not lower your head. Look me straight in the eye and maintain a proper posture. What kind of rude behavior is this?”
Scolding my beloved children made my heart ache.
I had done the same thing back in the other world. Discipline had always been my responsibility. After all, Liam could only play with them and didn’t know how to do anything properly.
Correct ethics and morals had been taught by the sect’s bishop, but everyday manners were my domain.
Back then I had taught them thoroughly, and sometimes the kids had even been shy in my presence. Just like now.
“As I have said many times, proper speech and behavior help form a good character. If you continue like this and cross the line, how much will your mother’s heart hurt?”
While I spoke, the twins obediently looked into my eyes. Erina looked like she might cry, and Evaila stared gloomily.
Both were holding half-eaten pizza, which somehow made me feel pitiful.
“Do you understand now?”
I had to keep the pizza from getting cold, so I decided to wrap it up quickly today.
“Then eat the rest.”
I left only that sentence and stood up.
The twins watched me carefully before eating the pizza slowly. Their expressions were no longer bright.
Seoyun and Liam kept glancing at me, unable to focus on their meal. The atmosphere had turned tense in an instant.
“I knew this would happen.”
Only Hecatrite said this calmly while chewing on the pizza crust.
Since I was here, the situation would continue, so I decided to leave.
“Oh... you should eat too, sister.”
Seoyun cautiously offered me a slice of pizza. I refused and went to the bedroom.
I flopped onto the bed and covered my face with both hands.
‘I’ll scold them after they finish eating...’
How heartbroken they must have been when I interrupted their meal. I had been too hasty. I couldn’t bear to stay still out of guilt toward the kids.
It was a regret. But there was nothing I could do.
I didn’t want my children to grow up as flawed adults. I wanted them to live doing what they loved while following etiquette.
A loser who needed to be taken care of could be enough as a hero before they matured.
“What are you doing?”
It was during one of my long self-recriminations when I heard the reason for my strict education of the kids enter the room. Liam had entered, holding Rohan, who looked exactly like him.
“...Liam.”
“Why did you call me?”
Liam came over casually and lay down beside me as usual. While he did, Rohan reached out and babbled at me.
I took the baby and hugged him, and my son smiled brightly. It was a smile that brightened the complicated thoughts in my mind.
“How are the kids right now?”
I stroked Rohan’s back while asking, and Liam, who had been grinning, poked my nose.
“The kids? Mom said she hates them.”
“...Do not joke.”
“Honestly, I don’t really know. I was just standing there silently.”
He must have looked depressed after being scolded by me. If I didn’t comfort him soon, he might start hating me, as he said.
I briefly imagined the scene.
‘Get away from Mom!’ — Erina fleeing from me.
‘Now I won’t play with Mom.’ — Evaila angrily telling me so.
Imagining their changed faces gave me a start. I sat up abruptly and shook Liam.
“Liam, prepare the welcome magic immediately!”
Emergency situation. To avoid the kids’ hatred, I needed to act quickly.
“What are you going to use it for?”
“I’ll perform an idol concert for them.”
“A concert?”
“Prepare the image I’m about to tell you to prepare right now.”
I couldn’t afford any hesitation. I immediately explained the ‘Pink Ice Princess’ concept Ha In-ha and I had decided on.
“……”
Liam listened quietly to my story. After it was finished, he tapped his own chest and said,
“Leave it to me!”
“...Tell me what you have to do.”
I asked because his voice was too bright to confirm he had understood.
Then the rascal suddenly hugged my waist and grinned.
“Didn’t you say you’d make me an elegant princess? I’ll handle it myself, so just wait and see.”
The moment Liam’s confident words reached my ears, I had a bad feeling.
‘He’s going to do something huge again...’
An idol performance for the twins was bound to become the worst black mark in my life.