[Translator’s Note: This is a translation of the Japanese text provided by the client. It has not been reviewed or edited for grammar, spelling, or style.]
Today, I’m in Tark.
It’s not exactly during the festival season, but there are things to take care of for Diane-san and Cosmos-san, so I’m here to wrap up those tasks while also exchanging with Cosmo Shop and the Onyx Maid Corps.
During the festival, we’re all too busy to handle things properly. It’s better to do it in quieter times when we can focus more thoroughly.
Plus, this time, I’m also looking for Kay-chan’s mother.
Even if I ask the head maid, she won’t tell me anything, so I’ll have to dig around directly. It’s unlikely that even here in Tark, a mother and child relationship would be kept completely secret.
I want to convey my intent to acknowledge her, and I also want to discuss Kay-chan’s education. It might be pointless, but…
If I leave it entirely up to her, there’s a risk of more of her daughters being influenced by strange ideologies. For the sake of the future, I need to make it clear that I want proper education.
So, with that resolve in mind, I was walking through Carlos-san’s garden when I was stopped by Diane-san’s daughter, Janet.
“Father. There’s something I want to ask you.”
“What is it?”
I’m not hiding anything—I’ve actually taken the initiative to steer things in a healthy direction, so I should be confident—but being caught while looking for a maid has left me flustered.
Janet looked up at her father with an unreadable expression and then casually pointed to the side.
At the end of her finger was a sand-colored tower about 50 meters tall.
“I always thought that tower had been there for a long time, but I heard it was built by you.”
“I’m not a stonemason. I just gave the orders.”
“Why did you build it? The Tower Emblem is supposed to have one horn, right? It doesn’t make sense for you, who sides with Onyx, to build something like this.”
That tower is named the “Horn of Tark” and has become a new landmark for Tark, practically serving as the new symbol of the Tower Emblem. Their office is even inside it.
As for why that happened… it was simply because Ashton, the minister, told me to do it.
“When you ask me why, I’m not really sure either. It was probably just some kind of deal with Onyx.”
“Are you really going to build something like that with such a vague reason?”
“Yes.”
That was built using dragons. Well, technically, by Lyra and the lizardmen who follow her in the surrounding area.
Lyra, with her dragon body, handled the rough physical labor, while the lizardmen worked efficiently under Diane-san’s guidance. They also brought in elf and dark elf construction techniques, and together they created something sturdy—equal to the collapsing tower of the “Tower Emblem” that once stood in Tark, yet strong enough to withstand even an unprecedented earthquake.
If such an earthquake did happen, Diane-san said it would likely destroy not just the tower but all the sun-dried brick buildings in the city first.
In these parts, buildings like that are actually the exception rather than the rule. If Tark were to fall, it would probably be from something like that.
…Well, more than anything, having a dragon build it was a powerful message.
It was a way of showing that Onyx could easily surpass even the “Tower Emblem” in terms of construction if they wanted to.
By generously handing over such a project to the “Tower Emblem,” they appeared to fully support them while at the same time emphasizing their absolute superiority by saying, “This is nothing compared to what we can do.”
Furthermore, by showing off the dragon, they effectively declared, “If you defy us, we’ll crush it in an instant.”
…Probably because Ashton, the minister, was more furious than Carlos-san had been when the “Tower Emblem” people caused trouble before.
Carlos-san simply showed his status as a ruler behind the scenes, but Ashton chose to instill fear much more intensely.
After all, he’s the one who originally taught his clan the motto, “Protect allies, reward friends, entertain guests, and kill enemies.”
He may have entrusted Carlos-san with leading the family for the sake of national politics, but he’s likely someone with an even more aggressive temperament.
…And that’s what I explained to Janet in a rather scattered manner. It was scattered because the source of my information is somewhat vague. Ashton, the minister, still gets worked up about strange things whenever he meets me and then gets scolded by his family and leaves. Even Carlos-san is basically the same, so it’s hard for me to gauge just how serious they are about what they do.
[Translate the following Japanese text to English. Paragraphs are separated by ”
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“So, the design is handled by Diane-san, and I didn’t do any of the construction work. She just told me to leave it to her, and then she was drinking beer because it was too hot outside, and before I knew it, it was built… So, whether it’s really something I can call my own accomplishment…”
”…As usual, Father is truly incredible.”
“What part isn’t incredible?”
“He’s fully aware that his grand project dominates the entire Tark, yet he talks about it as if it were just a casual side job. It’s the kind of work you’d want to brag about for a lifetime.”
“I was just drinking beer at the time, so it wasn’t even a side job… Besides, no matter how big the construction is, Carlos-san or Minister Ashton is the one who gives it meaning. Only when they do can that massive power truly bring happiness to people. I’m not really good at that kind of thing.”
I still occasionally borrow the Dragon’s power, and I’ve come to fully understand that it doesn’t always live up to its potential.
Of course, if it’s just about slaughtering monsters, all you need is a single command, and you get the expected results. But in the world of humans, it’s not that simple.
“Questions like ‘Who needs this?’ or ‘Isn’t there another way to deal with part of the problem?’ or ‘What does the fear of the Dragon moving even turn into…’—those are the parts that require meticulous planning, and without knowledge and experience, unexpected downsides tend to crop up.”
Normally, Diane-san and Irina handle the brainwork for me, so I don’t make fatal mistakes.
I’m always impressed by how they manage to prepare all that while also saying, “Take care of it,” to the Dragons.
It’s not like I can take much credit for it.
“Besides, I often hear about Father’s big projects wherever we go. The mothers are always boasting, ‘Father did this,’ but he never tells us anything about it.”
“I-I mean, if you ask me, I’ll explain. I do that now too.”
“Truthfully, if no one asks, I probably can’t even remember which achievements I’ve told whom about.”
“Huh? W-well…”
I can’t deny that sometimes it’s hard to keep track of hundreds of things.
As I hesitated, Janet suddenly looked away.
”…Sorry. That was a mean question. It’s just that I don’t know how to talk to Father without coming off like this.”
“Wait, what?”
Hold on, hold on. Janet, that’s a pretty big misunderstanding.
“I’ve never thought of you as annoying, ever!”
”…It definitely seems like he’s trying to keep his interaction with me to a minimum. He didn’t even invite me to the recent camping event.”
“Oh, uh… maybe he just wasn’t that interested… and it was about fire and blades, so he didn’t want little kids there…”
“Floria and Ryle are the same age as me, but…”
”…Honestly, I’m just frustrated he didn’t invite me. It’s not like I’m desperate to go camping or anything.”
“Well, you could’ve been a bit more diplomatic about it… My bad, but yeah…”
Janet, who’s both young and proud like Diane-san, excels in both studies and sports, was pouting childishly, and it was both frustrating and endearing at the same time.
…I kind of think bringing her along would’ve been a disaster.
Floria, too, has been a bit distant since she saw Father and the sisters having sex. And if I suddenly showed Janet something like that, she might not be able to talk to me for years.
When I told Diane-san about it, she laughed. “I don’t think you need to worry that much. She’s not the type to miss the point. She already knows how much her sisters and Father adore each other.” “That’s completely different from seeing them actually having sex!” “She’s never told me not to get close to the Palace. She’s a curious kid. I’m sure she’s seen pretty much everything you’re doing in the Palace.” ”…!?”
Here’s what I can tell you. Don’t be harsh with me. To you, I might just be one of hundreds, but to me, I’m your only daughter. I don’t want to see you suffer because you weren’t loved by your parents. “Do you really say that when there are kids who’ve already crossed the line into ‘love’?” “If that’s what she wants, then I’ll stand by her.” Even though he seems calm and collected, Mr. Diane has been heavily influenced by Selen and the others, hasn’t he? Mr. Ashton doesn’t want to see his daughters making careless faces while disrobing, so it’s a bit confusing that he’s allowed this here.
After that, I was sneaking around the mansion trying to gather information about Kay’s mother when I accidentally overheard Kay talking with Janet.
“So, you want to get closer to your master?”
“To you, he’s still your father. Why not call him ‘father’?”
“No, I’m a maid and a meat puppet before anything else.”
I wanted to call her out on that right then and there, but since she was sneaking around, I couldn’t.
“By asking me that, I assume you’re hoping to join our ‘Daughter Onahole Collection.’”
“Onahole…? What’s that?”
“It’s a tool for stimulating your master’s genitals and helping him ejaculate.”
This is definitely going too far now.
Thinking that, I stopped sneaking around and tried to walk over with big strides, but on the way, several maids grabbed me and dragged me into the servants’ quarters.
“What are you doing?! As a father, it’s my duty to protect Janet from ideological contamination!”
“Lady Janet is a sensible person. You don’t need to worry—she can distinguish between knowledge and ideology.”
“And we’re on Kay’s side.”
“I’d like it if you were on my side sometimes too!”
“Well, sir… At this point, with your roots in Polka and Talc, it’s already impossible to block her from sexual knowledge, isn’t it?”
“No, I’m not trying to block anything… I just want her to grow up while taking care of herself.”
I know my words don’t carry much weight when I’m being pushed around by Elen and the others.
I know, but I still want you to listen. I really just want to be a father to her. That’s all.