Having too many children is a common enough predicament in the countryside.

With nothing resembling entertainment available, the only joy in daily life lies in sexual dalliance with one's wives. The surrounding villagers see no harm in encouraging them to their heart's content, given the abundance of laborers and heirs.

Consequently, sprawling households spring up in no time at all.

Particularly among beastkin, where twins and triplets are par for the course, bearing children repeatedly swiftly results in families numbering dozens.

Isaac's situation is dire; since his wife is a pair of beastkin sisters, he soon found himself with roughly twenty offspring, a burden he admits is immense. Yet I could hardly admonish him to "hold back."

Indeed, the feline beastkin colony has already entered a baby boom.

Including those within the Cat Colony itself, my own children likely number over two hundred, more than doubling the original population of the colony.

When I voiced my genuine concerns to Irina, asking if we could truly manage this, she dismissed them with rather crude words: "No need to worry about raising them all. There are dragons on hand for that."

Regarding food, idle blue and silver dragons rotate duty patrolling near the Cat Colony, assisting in monster-hunting to ensure supplies are adequate.

As for clothing and education, direct trade with Elf Territory has been established, allowing for flexible accommodation. Children who have reached an age of understanding are welcomed into a private Polka Academy taught by Lorrie's staff.

While Lorrie admits the feline beastkin are capricious and difficult as rumors suggest, her faculty of elves and dragons, each possessing decades to centuries of expertise in their respective fields, are exceptionally competent. Indeed, among the kittens has appeared one displaying magical aptitude rivaling even Irina's own.

Though I suspect that lifespan disparity will ultimately prevent anyone from surpassing Irina, regardless of their talent.

"The fact that nearly everyone here is my child... a strange way to put it, but the reality feels hollow."

"I suppose none of them are children your father doesn't know about?"

"That's true, but still... two hundred people, man."

"Besides, this isn't even everything, is it?"

"......Yeah, you're right."

Standing with Claudio in the shadows behind Polka Academy's auditorium, I sighed wearily.

Of course, those too young to grasp their surroundings wouldn't attend school. And while Claudio is merely ten years old, being Hilda's son means his intellect far outstrips his peers; he has already mastered the core subjects through self-study and is treated as a graduate.

How different from Peter, who continues to chase only breasts without a care in the world.

By the way, the academy operates only during the six winter months when everyone is idle, closing for the summer so students can spend time in their homelands. It attracts children of elves and the offspring of courtesans, not just felines, drawing enrollees from Polka townsmen and Grandge as well.

Still, those showing up for the opening ceremony are almost exclusively my own children.

Especially the cats gather reliably, brought by dragons; moreover, having started as an extension of the church's educational outreach, they maintain a loose attitude, believing attendance at opening or closing ceremonies is optional anyway.

Though receiving full instruction brings no medals or honors—it hardly matters in the grand scheme.

On the other hand, there is a tangible benefit: lodging and meals are free while attending. Since my children constitute the vast majority of students, this policy inadvertently extended to external enrollees as well.

Half of their accommodation involves assisting at an inn we manage ourselves; the other half is staying at the Vaper Palace—but that wing is strictly limited to my own progeny.

For the boys, a fully nude paradise might prove too stimulating, so I strongly urge them to stay at the inn instead. While some argue girls should be treated differently, our female slaves replied, "It's mostly women here anyway, so shouldn't it be fine?" prompting me to nod along. Of course, undressing is not mandatory.

However, given the feline beastkin's carefree nature, they tend to strip naked without a second thought in any case.

In terms of upholding our policy of "no inappropriate acts with my daughters," this current situation feels terribly problematic. Should I leverage connections with the Baron and Kristi to establish another inn run by family members?

...But expanding the inn business too greatly risks entangling me in questions about who exactly I am.

After all, I am a blacksmith. The owner of Smison Arms. Business there remains stagnant, receiving almost no work from anyone outside the Crossbow Corps.

"Hmm..."

"I've always thought this, but Dad has quite the strange set of worries."

"Only because I'm such a weird dad... sorry about that."

With my lifestyle differing so drastically from other fathers', explaining myself to maturing children proves difficult, leading me recently to rely on the excuse, "I'm just a strange dad."

Being a weird dad means there's nothing wrong with having too many moms. Being weird explains why you might not understand how I earn my living.

And if being a weird dad allows making a newly arrived female slave of about fifteen years old my "mom"... well, that's pushing it even for me.

Officially, long-standing females are no longer classified as slaves but as wives, yet even now, they rarely cling to that distinction.

Broadly speaking, there is the status of female slave; upon bearing children or contributing sufficiently to be recognized as "adult," one earns the external title of "wife."

Recently, however, the number of female slaves continues to increase—despite my lack of intent to expand them, they keep multiplying on their own.

Honestly, I shouldn't be getting pregnant again with someone of Elenia's age. But unfortunately, my bad habit is that whenever I'm facing down a proactive one, I can't hold my ground forever. So I ended up impregnating her before I could even stop myself, and now they're throwing a congratulatory party for it. Honestly, out of all the kids around, only a few seem to accept me thinking, "Well, this is just you being such a weird dad; there's nothing we can do about it."

"I really want to be so proud of myself as a dad...", I muttered. "But, um... maybe it's just too over the top to really boast about?!"

"Hm... well, from my perspective, you're totally a source of pride, dad."

"Clau is such a good kid..."

My heart gives a little pang.

But seriously, how can a 10-year-old possibly find any good qualities in their father who's naked every single day, soaking in hot springs while dangling white pee from dozens of mommas' skirts? When I think it through myself, I can't imagine anything that would make someone proud.

"Everyone keeps saying that among the Dark Elves, claiming a guy has stronger sex drives than your grandfather is basically legendary status..."

"Hold on... wait, hold on. For a second, who exactly are 'everyone' talking about?"

"Hilda Mama, Cosmos Mama, Mira Mama, Noelle Mama..."

"In the Dark Elf cultural sphere, telling a 10-year-old that much stuff like THAT is way too much!"

Sex ed was coming WAY too early for you.
Or maybe, thinking back, I was the one who was lagging way behind? When I was ten, I didn't even understand what actual sex meant, so Apple basically left me high and dry with my natural awkwardness.

But seriously, how can these moms just casually tell a 10-year-old that their dad has super-strong sex drives or explain the details about grandpa's sex life?
"At least in Tarqu, if you say 'Andy the Son-in-Law of Onyx', everyone knows him," Clau said.

I think she means that type of "if you say it, people will point and laugh behind your back."

"I understand where this started, but I really don't want to hear you boast about stuff like that... What I mean is, first off, please make sure to find out what attraction is all about just between two people."
I patted Clau's head repeatedly while lecturing him.

Claudius has the face of an Elf-type male child, beautiful enough that he might easily be mistaken for a girl. Since his hair is a bit longer than the average boy, very few would probably figure it out if he dressed as a woman.

Anyway, girls are creatures who just like beautiful things. If such a handsome boy becomes a handsome young man, surely he'll become incredibly popular and live a much more favored youth than I ever did. But first and foremost, he needs to truly understand the basics of pairing off with just one person.

Having my own child suddenly go out trying to create a big harem like mine right away and getting their ass handed to them by some bimbos... that is far too much for me to accept.

"Hmm..."
Claudius frowned slightly upon hearing those words.
So you thought a harem was the basic way things worked from the get-go, did you?

"Actually, I think girls are more like... boys..."

My child let out a stunningly shocking whisper.

"......Eh?"

"Eh, uh, no, wait... actually, I think I meant boys or something?"

"......Oh, okay."

A flustered father.
N-N-nope. Think about this. Think it through.
Lady Hilda is currently a perfect wife and motherly figure, but originally she's a two-sword wielder in all senses. She's well-versed in the repertoire of messing around with girls too.

That generous worldview of that mother wouldn't ever deny her son's preferences, no matter what.
If Clau is as cute as he is, surely it shouldn't be difficult for him to find a boyfriend. Besides, it's "somewhat more like...". It doesn't mean he has zero interest in girls at all. He's just got a slightly wider range of strike zones than you would expect.

I am the very one who keeps this alien race, normally creatures I couldn't ever casually lay my hands on, as many female slaves as possible. So how can I criticize Claudius' broad direction of love?

"P-Papa is... um, yeah, he's not into that... thing either. Yes, well, Papa and I are different in terms of direction, but cats get so horny during the full moon that they end up doing erotic stuff with their own gender too..."

That's right. Homosexuality isn't abnormal at all.
We have people like that close by ourselves. I just didn't notice it around me because, coincidentally, most of the examples in my circle were female ones.

OK. It's settled now.

"......Thanks."
Claudius showed a smile like an angel, acknowledging my minority sexual preferences even while he was still flustered.

"Ugh... I get a little of what Hilda feels here. Even if Claudio has his quirks, you can't say cruel things to someone with that smile."

"As for using the backside, Tetes Mom told me all sorts of stuff about it... and Hil-da Mom once said there's actually quite a few folks in Talk who think it's fine. So I'm sure we'll end up getting a boyfriend one of these days."

"......Tetes..."

A complex tide of emotions rises within the female slaves who have gone overboard trying to make Claudio's surroundings perfect for him.

"It'd be silly to complain... ugh."

Among the children lately, Frena—Neia's daughter—is particularly vivacious.

At first, she tried learning swordsmanship from Neia but showed little talent; however, after taking dance lessons with Noor-san and Luchino, she began to improve spectacularly.

Her agility is certainly a gift inherited from her mother, as the nimble Dark Elf traces those lively dance steps flawlessly with her small frame.

Well, that's nice, but...

While she looks just like Neia, she has grown into an annoying little troublemaker who loves pranks: throwing eggs at people, stealing food, and then dashing off to hide in the alleyways of the city before anyone can catch her.

Grangy or Polka might be able to keep up and find her with some ease, but if she vanishes in the Capital or Talk, she's gone before you can even draw a breath.

Though dragons' hearing would surely locate her in no time, unfortunately, after being found out by this method several times, she learned from it and came up with her own spell to change her voice at age eleven—a wasteful display of genius that led her running all through the Capital just to prove how talented she was.

And ultimately, Neia, finally losing her temper, pursued her in deadly earnest using continent-class physical abilities, leaving legends behind in the Capital. But let's not dwell on that.

If only it weren't for this prankster streak, she'd be a good child... though maybe that's just parental bias.

Lately, whenever Frena leaves Grangy, Emma grows increasingly vigilant, and honestly, they're going too far...

"Pranks aside, she's gotten into the bad habit of using dangerous places as escape routes because she foolishly picked up acrobatic dancing. With her physical abilities, she'd run across rooftops and along waterways... which could end up becoming irreversible."

"...Yeah."

To say something became irreversible even after Polka's Spirit Spring or Breakcore's regenerative treatment was to say death itself. Humans can die from a simple fall down stairs if they land just wrong; it's certainly worse for children.

"We have to find some way to make her stop this soon!"

"But come on... how do we actually make her quit? 'Dangerous, so stop it!' is something Neia has probably told her dozens of times."

"What if we actually made things slightly painful for her..."

"...That'd be great if it was something minor..."

"Since she's already genuinely angered Neia once, doing nothing worse than that won't mean anything... It's hard to keep it 'light,' you know?"

Neia gets angry only when something really serious happens. If anything worse occurs...

"Hmm... maybe because Neia interacts with her so much, Frena isn't even scared of her? How about having another... like someone truly dangerous, say Lyra, scold her..."

"How can a child who routinely pokes dragons understand the sheer terror of Lady Lyra?"

"...I see. So in the end, she thinks dragons will hold back. Then maybe against someone else with a different kind of threat—like Tetes or Cosmos-san or Lady..."

"That's still just the fear of the adult world..."

"Hmm..."

It's hard to find an effective way to make this child feel fear, given how accustomed she is to terrifying beings.

What should we do about this...?

The one who solved it was, unexpectedly enough—or however you'd put it—Elenia.

"We just need to stop Frena from doing those gross pranks, right?"

"Well, yeah..."

"That sort of thing doesn't work no matter how hard adults try."

Elenia said this and took the challenge on.

Then a few days later, when Frena came to Polka, she boldly spotted her attempting some elaborate mischief in the middle of the town square.

"How long are you going to keep doing such tacky stuff? Aren't you too childish for someone your age? You're eleven!"

She cast down upon Frena with a look as cold as ice, giving it her all.

"Huh... n-n-no, what are you talking about, you too still..."

"After going through the trouble of learning a proper woman's dance from Mommy Noel, this country bumpkin girl can only do boyish games, heh?"

...A strategy to rub each other's egos?
It strikes me now that back then, I used to lump everything under "adults" as one category. At that age...
When you see someone merely as an object for teasing, it hardly matters how powerful or impressive they might be.
She's not "an object like that." She drew the line on my side and won't let me push past it unless I apologize properly.

...As expected, Frena took Elenia's provocation right into her trap.
Probably partly because they're relatively close in age as half-sisters, naturally aware of one another.
"Polka is even more country than Grandge! And you might act all grown-up, but you're nothing but a daddy's girl! You're the real kid!"

...Hey, watch it, Eli. Looking at what you've been doing lately, I can't really argue back.

But Elenia was completely cool about it.

"Kids only grow up to that level of thinking."

"...Hmph... I-it's annoying... just because we're older by one or two years..."

"I wish boys and girls both stopped getting obsessed with childish mischief around six or seven. Seriously, how much longer are you going to go on like this? Are you still being pampered by Mom?"

"M-mom is strict about it!"

Don't make such a big deal out of the moms, please. Selen's pretty spoiled herself. At least I've never seen her losing her temper... at you, anyway.

...It just now occurred to me that while Neia struggles with her puberty, she has a supportive Polka environment where mothers can share burdens together. Maybe I should be visiting Grandge more often.

Even though I drop by sometimes, usually the father role and mother role are both on my shoulders simultaneously.

"Besides... since Daddy doesn't take time to really pay attention to me, that's why I can say things like that, Frena..."

"W-what?!"

"Do everyone else tell you? That Daddy is special... And once you truly understand that meaning, you won't be able to act like a kid anymore...♪"

Elenia instantly wore an expression of sensuality and intoxication on her face, completely detached from the childish vibe around them.

Frena looked utterly confused at Elenia's unreadable demeanor.

"W-what are you talking about? B-but... I don't even understand why people find Dad so attractive..."

"Because that's all you've seen of him. Because you don't understand... You probably think he's just a goofy, lecherous old man, right?"

Elenia leaned in close to whisper at Frena.

"The real Dad is a man who makes everyone fall head over heels—Neia-Mama, sister Aurora, Mom Diane, and even the dragons. A man so magnetic that no matter how strong a woman you are, you end up wanting kids with him... Did you ever really stop to consider that such a man actually exists nearby...?"

"…………"

"...Heh. See? This is definitely what a coo-ssan is, ♪"

"C-calling my father... like that... that's wrong!"

"The opposite of 'wrong' is 'normal.' Dad isn't normal at all. You know that, don't you?"

"But..."

This isn't good. This isn't good, Eli.

You're starting to look just like Selen again. The kind of scary vibe you had before.

No matter what, don't try to drag off-duty half-sister Elenia down this particular path.

Just as I stepped in with a growing sense of crisis, Selen and Apple—who were hiding behind the same wall—along with Anzeros and the mysterious half-elf Neia, intercepted me.

"We'll leave this up to Sister Elenia, okay? ♪"

"I know you haven't touched her yet, Mr. Andy... So how is your understanding so accurate?"

"What a child of Selen she is. Even I can't quite articulate what's going on with such confidence, yet here she manages to describe Andy's charm so perfectly."

"My daughter is truly causing trouble... If Elenia-chan can persuade her while things are like this, she should calm down soon enough."

Everyone's entranced by Elenia's serpentine rhetoric, but... "With this current flow, won't we end up making her and Frena look like they've abandoned their fatherhood? It feels less like a lesson they need to learn and more like just making the point painfully obvious?"

"Oh, Mr. Andy is certainly a strange kind of dad♪"

"It's unavoidable, isn't it?"

"I think contraception spells would solve all the problems."

"If Frena can become a proper girl... then we could even treat her as a female slave."

"No way! Why does Neia need to dwell on this?! You absolutely shouldn't say something like that as a parent! And even as a wife, it's pretty out of bounds!!"

"But if I thought the Flashing Sword might at least substitute for a father... well, it turned out totally useless... it was nothing more than a story-replaying machine."

I should try harder to be a better dad. As a father.

...Why can't everyone stop trying to get their hands on my daughter?

Everyone is captivated by Elenia's viperous rhetoric, but... "With things heading this way, won't we end up making both Ellie and Frena look like they've failed in their roles as mothers? It feels less like a lesson for them to learn and more like just laying on the punishment?"

"Oh, Mr. Andy is certainly an unconventional father♪"

"There's no avoiding it, is there?"

"I think if we use contraception magic, it won't be a problem."

"If Frena can become properly girlish... then we could even treat her as a female slave."

"No way! Why does Neia need to obsess over this?! You absolutely shouldn't say something like that as a parent! And even as a wife, it's pretty unacceptable!!"

"But if I thought the Flashing Sword might at least step in as a father substitute... well, it turned out completely useless... it was nothing more than a device that just repeats old stories."

I really should try harder to be a better dad. As a father.

...Why can't everyone stop trying to get their hands on my daughter?

Having too many kids to be a hassle…… that’s a common story in the countryside.

With nothing resembling entertainment available, the only daily pleasure is screwing my wives. The locals don’t mind either; since there are always enough candidates for workers or heirs, they’re happy to let them keep going at it as long as they want.

Naturally, huge families pop up before you know it.

Beastkin, in particular, routinely have twins or triplets, so after a few births, families can easily reach the double digits.

Isaac’s place is particularly chaotic because his wives are beastkin sisters; apparently, he ended up with around twenty kids in no time flat. It’s not my place to tell him to tone it down, though.

Actually, the cat-beastkin group has hit a real baby boom.

Counting the Cat Colony, I wouldn’t be surprised if I had over two hundred kids of my own already. The original Cat Colony has more than doubled in size.

I consulted Irina on whether we could really keep this up, and she gave me a rather careless response: “There’s no way we can’t take care of them. We have dragons, after all.”

As for food, the idle Brood Dragons and Silver Dragons rotate shifts garrisoning the area around the Cat Colony to support monster hunting, so that’s covered.

Clothing and education are handled easily as well, thanks to direct trade agreements with the Elven territories. Once children reach an age where they understand things, they’re enrolled in my private Polka Academy, where Laurens and others serve as instructors.

According to Laurens, cat-beastkin are fickle and a pain just as the rumors said. However, the faculty consists of elves and dragons with decades to centuries of experience in their respective fields, making them exceptionally competent. In fact, some of the kittens are even showing magical aptitudes that rival Irina’s own.

Then again, they don’t have her lifespan, so I imagine they’ll eventually fall short.

“Having nearly all of them be my kids…… it’s a weird way to put it, but I don’t really feel the weight of it.”

“It’s not like there are any kids around who aren’t yours, right?”

“I guess not. But two hundred is—”

“And that’s not even everything, is it?”

“……Yeah, that’s exactly it.”

Claudio and I stood at the back of the Polka Academy auditorium, staring out at the scene with a sigh.

Naturally, toddlers who haven’t developed a sense of self don’t come to the academy. And although Claudio is only ten years old, he’s truly his mother Hilda’s son; his intelligence stands out so much that he’s already self-studied the main lecture subjects and is treated as a graduate.

He’s miles ahead of Peter, who still can’t stop chasing after breasts.

Incidentally, the academy is open only for the six months of winter (when everyone has free time); in summer, everyone goes back to their hometowns. It’s not just cats—elf-blooded kids and children born to prostitutes attend too, along with students from Polka town and even Granz.

Still, when it comes to the opening ceremony, it’s mostly my kids who show up.

Particularly since the dragons bring the cats directly, ensuring they’re all there. Also, because the academy started as an extension of the church’s educational outreach, we’ve inherited a lax attitude: if you don’t show up for the start or end-of-term ceremonies, that’s fine too.

Then again, just because you attend every single one doesn’t mean you get a medal or anything, so I suppose it makes sense.

There is a benefit, though: while enrolled, accommodation and meals are free. Since most of my children attended anyway, the arrangement ended up extending to external students as well.

As for lodging, half the kids stay at the inn I run (helping out there counts as part of their stay), while half stay at Viper Palace. Naturally, the Palace is reserved exclusively for my children.

I strongly recommend the inn for the boys, since the Naked Paradise is probably too intense a stimulus. I know some might ask if that’s okay for the girls, but the female slaves said, “It’s mostly women anyway, so it should be fine,” and I just nodded along. Of course, nudity isn’t mandatory.

But cat-beastkin don’t really care about propriety, so they usually end up naked without a shred of hesitation.

Looking ahead to maintaining my policy of “I will never do anything dirty with my daughters,” this situation feels extremely bad. Should I reach out to the Baron or Kristy to open another family-run inn?

……But if I expand inn management too much, it ties into the issue of “who exactly am I?”

I’m a blacksmith. The owner of Smisson Arms. It’s true that work has been dry from anyone outside the Crossbow Corps.

“Hmm……”

“I always think you have a lot of weird worries, Papa.”

“You’re right. I’m a weird dad…… my bad.”

Because my fathering style is so drastically different from everyone else’s, explaining things to my older kids often causes me trouble. Lately, I’ve been using the excuse “I’m just a weird dad” quite a bit.

Since I’m a weird dad, it makes sense that I have too many moms. Since I’m a weird dad, it makes sense no one really understands how I make a living.

Since I’m a weird dad, I even ended up making a fifteen-year-old new female slave a mom instead of a forty-year-old…… wait, no. That one’s a stretch.

Externally, the old slaves are no longer just slaves; they’re all wives now. But the women themselves don’t seem too hung up on that distinction anymore.

Broadly speaking, there’s the status of female slave, and within that, if you have children or make a sufficient contribution and are recognized as “a full member,” you earn the external title of wife. That’s how it works now.

And recently, the number of slaves has been increasing from time to time. I didn’t intend to add more, but they’ve kept showing up.

I know I shouldn't be getting a girl our age pregnant, really. But unfortunately, standing my ground against an enthusiastic partner is a bad habit of mine, and before I knew it, she was pregnant, and we even held a celebration party. I doubt many of the children around us would accept me as anything other than a "weird dad."

"I try to be the kind of dad you could be proud of... but I'm so weird there's nothing to be proud of."

"Um. To me, you're a totally normal dad I can be proud of."

"You're a good kid, Claudio..."

I get a little misty-eyed.

But how does a ten-year-old find any redeeming qualities in a father who spends every single day soaking in an onsen nude and getting peed on by dozens of mothers? Even when I think about it myself, I can't come up with anything worth boasting about.

"Everyone says that having more libido than your grandpa is practically legendary for a Dark Elf."

"Hold on. I mean... first off, who exactly are 'everyone'?"

"Mama Hilda, Mama Cosmos, Mama Mira, Mama Noelle, and others."

"In the Dark Elf culture sphere, you're telling a ten-year-old all that?!"

Sex education arriving this early is rough.

No, I guess my own education was just too late. At ten, I couldn't even understand what real sex was, so I ended up having vanilla no-fap sessions with Apple because she's such an innocent.

But how about those mothers who openly explain to their ten-year-old exactly what "your dad is strong in bed" means? Or telling them about their grandfather's sexual habits? How about that?

"At least in Tark, just saying 'Andy, the son-in-law of Onyx' makes everyone know who you're talking about."

Is that the type where people point and cuss if I use my real name?

"I don't mind the origin story part, but please don't boast about that to me... For starters, I want you to find attraction with a girl one-on-one."

I pat my son's head as I lecture him.

Claudio has that handsome, delicate face typical of elven males, so beautiful he could pass for a girl. His hair is slightly long for an ordinary boy, so if he dressed up in a skirt, probably very few people would see through it.

No matter what, girls are creatures who prefer pretty things. If this gorgeous kid becomes a gorgeous young man, he'll likely be incredibly popular and enjoy a far more privileged youth than I did. But first, I want him to firmly understand the basics: one-on-one relationships.

I absolutely do not want my child to try creating a massive harem like me and get themselves brutally crushed. That's just too much.

"Hmm..."

Claudio looked slightly troubled by that comment.

Did you actually think harems were the standard way of doing things...?

"Actually, I'd rather have boys than girls..."

My child made a shocking utterance.

"...What?"

"I, uh, no, I mean, it's just more of a preference!"

"...Oh. Yeah, sure."

The shaken father.

I—no, wait. Think carefully. Really think about this.

Ms. Hilda is a good wife and wise mother now, but she was always bisexual. She has plenty of repertoire in competitive hooking with girls.

Such an open-minded mother's values wouldn't deny her son's preferences at all.

Given how cute Claudio is, finding a boyfriend shouldn't be hard for him. Besides, he said "rather," not that he had zero interest in women. His strike zone is just a bit too broad.

How can I, the guy who has made so many slave females of other races—creatures I should never have easily lusted after—criticize Claudio's wide direction of love?

"P-Parents is... um, that kind of thing isn't... unacceptable. Hmm. It's just a different direction than Papa, but cats overheat and get really nasty with each other on full moon nights, so..."

Right. Same-sex attraction is never abnormal.

I've had it around me before. My circle just happened to be full of female examples, so I never really noticed otherwise.

Okay. Calm down.

"...Thanks."

Claudio showed an angelic smile at his father who, despite being shaken, acknowledged his minority sexual preference.

Damn... I can see why Hilda feels that way. Even if one had some reservations about Claudio's preferences, it’s impossible to be cruel in the face of that smile.
"As for using the rear passage, Tetes’ Mama taught me quite a bit, and Hilda Mama said there are plenty of people in Taruk who find it acceptable. I’m sure I’ll find a lover eventually."
"Tetes..."
A complex mix of emotions rose within me regarding the female slaves who went to extraordinary lengths to create an environment suited to Claudio's tastes.
It’s not my place to complain, but... ugh.

Among the children, Frena, Neia’s daughter, has been particularly active lately.

Initially, she took up swordsmanship from Neia but showed little talent; however, after learning dance from Nool and Lulkino, she began progressing rapidly.

Her physical coordination was truly a gift inherited from Neia, and her lively Dark Elf dance steps were perfectly traced by her small frame.

That part is fine. What’s problematic is that while she looks like Neia, she has a mischievous streak. She engages in pranks—throwing eggs at people or stealing food—and then quickly slips away into the city's alleys, growing into quite a headache for everyone.

While Granj and Polka are used to it, making her easy to find, she can vanish without a trace in the capital or Taruk in an instant, so one never lets their guard down.

One could locate her instantly using the dragons’ hearing, but unfortunately, after being found several times that way, she learned quickly and, demonstrating unnecessary genius at age eleven, independently developed magic to change her voice, continuing to run around the capital.

Eventually, Neia lost it all together and gave chase using her top-tier physical abilities, leaving a legend behind in the capital, but I’ll leave that aside for now.

If not for her pranks, she’s a good child... or so I tell myself, perhaps biased as a parent.

Lately, Emma has been strictly vigilant every time Frena leaves Granj, making me feel that it really doesn’t need to be that intense.

"Setting the pranks aside, she’s developed a habit of choosing dangerous locations for escape routes because of the acrobatic dance styles she learned. With a child’s physical abilities, running on rooftops and along canals... it could lead to irreversible consequences."

"I understand."

Irreversible consequences, even with Polka’s spring water or Break Core regenerative treatments, means death.

If a human lands badly, they can die just from rolling down a staircase. A child is even more vulnerable.

"We need to make her stop before it’s too late."

"But... do you think that will work? Neia has probably told her 'it’s dangerous, stop' countless times."

"For example, actually making her hurt a little..."

"If it stays light, that would be fine."

"Since she once really angered Neia, we’d need to inflict something worse than that for it to have any meaning... so even 'light' is difficult."

Getting Neia angry must be serious business indeed. And something even worse?

"Hmm... Maybe Frena isn't scared of Neia because they spend so much time together. How about having someone truly dangerous scold her... like Lyra?"

"Could a child who normally provokes the dragons even comprehend how terrifying Lady Lyra is?"

"...I see. In the end, she’d expect the dragons to hold back. So what about Tetes, Cosmos, or Lady... someone with a different kind of danger?"

"That’s still just the scary side of the adult world..."

"Hmm..."

How to effectively scold a child who is too accustomed to facing formidable opponents. It’s quite a puzzle.

What should we do...

The solution came from an unexpected source, or at least that’s how it seemed: Elenia.
"You just need to make Frena stop the annoying pranks, right?"
"W-well, yes..."
"That kind of thing doesn't work no matter how desperately adults try."
Saying this, Elenia took on the task.
A few days later, when Frena came to Polka, Elenia caught her in the act of attempting some bold stunt against the baron in the middle of the street.
"Until when are you going to do such stupid stuff? You're eleven—aren't you a bit too young?"
She looked down at Frena with eyes as cold as they could be.

"U... w-wait, don't you still..."

"You had Mamma Noel teach you how to dance like a lady, but this country bumpkin prince only knows how to play boyish games. Hmph."

...A strategy to tickle each other's pride as kids.

When I look back, I realize I was lumping all "adults" into one category. Around that age, at least.

As targets for teasing and playing with, it hardly mattered if they were high-ranking or scary; the difference was minimal.

Were they not a "teasing target"? Was I supposed to intervene from inside the line drawn on the kid's side?

...No surprise there. Frena took Elenia's bait right off the hook.

It was probably because, as half-sisters of relatively close age, they were already conscious of each other.

"Polka is way more provincial than Grandis! And you're just acting tough when you're nothing but a futa-freak! You're the one being a little kid!"

...Hey. I'm talking to you, E. Given your recent behavior, I can't really argue with that.

That's what I thought, but Elenia was unfazed.

"Little kids' heads only get that far."

"...It's just so irritating! Just because you're a year or two older..."

"I hope you lot quit playing the mixed-gender prank game by the time you're six or seven. I really wonder how long this is going to last. Is your mother spoiling you rotten?"

"W-well, my mom is strict!"

Try not to use the mothers as a talking point like that, Selen. You're quite doting, actually. At least I've never seen you get angry at him.

...Looking at it now, while Polka has an environment where co-mothers can share responsibilities, Neia is struggling with her adolescent daughter. Maybe I should go to Grandis more often.

I do visit sometimes, but usually, I have to play the role of father and mother simultaneously.

"Besides... since Dad doesn't really take me on one-on-one dates, that's why you can say things like that, Frena."

"W-what..."

"Mom and everyone else say it, don't they? Dad is special... but if you truly understood what that meant, you couldn't stay a child forever... ♪"

Elenia shifted from the vibe of playing with kids to an instant, chilling allure and ecstasy in her expression.

Frena looked confused by Elenia's inscrutable demeanor.

"W-what are you... I mean, Dad just... he even says he doesn't know why he's so popular..."

"That's because that's all you see of him. Because you don't understand... you probably think he's just a promiscuous lecherous old man, right?"

Elenia leaned in close to Frena and whispered.

"The real Dad... even Mamma Neia, even Sister Aurora... even Diane's Mom, the Dragons, they all get so head over heels for him that their heads explode. He's a man who makes even the strongest women want children. You've never really thought about having someone like that around, have you?..."

"..."

"...Heh heh. Just as I thought. Little Princess ♪"

"T-that kind of... that kind of thing about a father is weird!..."

"...The opposite of weird is normal. Dad isn't normal at all. You know that, don't you?"

"B-but..."

No good. This is no good, E.

You're acting a lot like Selen right now. The dangerous vibe type.

You really shouldn't try to drag your half-sister down that weird path, no matter what.

So, feeling the crisis, I tried to step in to stop her, only to be stopped by Selen and Apple, who had also come out from behind cover, along with Anzeros and Neia—a mysterious group of half-elves.

"Let's leave this up to E-chan, shall we? Yes ♪"

"I don't think E-chan has touched him yet, Mr. Andy... And with that level of understanding..."

"She really is Selen's daughter, isn't she... I can't even put it into words myself properly, so being able to speak about Andy's charms like that is impressive."

"My child really is such a troublemaker... If Elenia-chan persuades her, I think she'll calm down a bit."

Everyone's impressed by Elenia's serpent's tongue. "If we keep this up, the flow of things is going to force both Elenia and Frena into becoming father material that doesn't cut it as a dad. Aren't we reaching the point where we need to make them feel their mistakes?"
"Mr. Andy is a weird papa ♪"
"There's nothing you can do about it."
"I think if you just used contraceptive magic, there'd be no problem."
"If Frena acts more like a girl... I guess it's okay to make her a slave harem member."
"No way! You were that worked up, Neia!? You absolutely should not be saying something like that as a parent!? And as a wife too, that's really out of line!"
"But I thought the Flashlight Sword would at least step in as a stand-in father figure, but it was completely useless... All it does is just replay old stories."
I have to try harder. As a father. As a father.
...Why doesn't anyone stop me from looking like I'm about to lay a hand on my daughters?

Having too many kids is a common problem in the countryside.

Since there's nothing to do for fun, sex with my wife is the only daily pleasure. The surroundings are better off with more workers and potential heirs, so I'm allowed to try as hard as I want.

That's why big families form quickly.

Especially among Beastmen, twins or triplets are common, so after having several kids, a family can easily end up with ten members.

Since Isaac has two beastman sisters for wives, his family is already around twenty kids and he's struggling. But it's not like I could tell him to stop.

In reality, the cat Beastmen have been experiencing a baby boom.

Including the cat colony, my children alone are over 200. It's more than double from the original cat colony.

I asked Aelina if that was really okay and she replied casually, "There's no need to worry about not being able to raise them all since we have dragons."

As for food, the idle Blue Dragons and Silver Dragons take turns staying near the cat colony, helping with monster hunts so there's no problem.

For clothing and education, direct trade with the Elf territory makes things flexible. Once children reach an age where they can understand things, Laurel and others teach them at a private Polka Academy I set up for them.

According to Laure, the catkin rumors are true—they’re fickle and troublesome. But the teachers, elves and dragons with decades or even centuries of experience in various fields, are excellent instructors. Some kittens have shown magical aptitude rivaling that of Irina.

Well, I suppose they’ll never catch up to her since their lifespans aren’t as long.

“Seeing all these kids who are almost all mine… it’s a strange way to put it, but it doesn’t feel real.”

“There’s no kid you don’t know though, right?”

“That’s true. But there are 200 of them…”

“And this isn’t even all of them, is it?”

“...That’s right.”

Claudio and I sighed as we looked back at the lecture hall from Polka Academy.

Of course, children too young to understand anything don’t come to school. And while Claudio was only ten years old, he was Hildegard’s son after all—his intelligence was exceptional. He had already self-studied the main subjects and was treated like a graduate student.

Unlike Peter who still chased breasts around, Claudio was quite impressive.

By the way, the academy is only open during winter for half a year when everyone's free. During summer, they all go back to their hometowns. Not just cats but also kids from elf families and those born to prostitutes attend here, as well as students from Porca Town and Grangi. But usually, it’s only my kids who show up at the opening ceremony.
Especially since dragons bring the cat kids over, making sure they all turn up, and because this started off as an extension of the church's educational program, we maintain a lax attitude towards attendance at opening and closing ceremonies.
But there’s no medal or anything you get for completing everything. I guess that’s how it is.
There are some benefits though; while studying here, accommodation and meals are free. Since most of my kids attend anyway, external students end up getting the same deal.
Half of them stay in our inn to help out, and half stay at Vape Palace. Of course, only my kids can stay at the palace.
I strongly recommend boys to stay at the inn since full nudity is too much stimulation for them. Some people ask why girls are okay with it, but slave-girls say "there’s almost all girls anyway so it's fine" and I just nod along. Naturally, undressing isn’t mandatory.
But catkin kids tend not to hesitate about going naked because of their nature.
I think this situation is bad for maintaining the policy of “not doing anything sexual with my daughters.” Perhaps I should talk to the baron or Christie about setting up another inn run by family members?
... But expanding our inn business too much could also bring up questions about who I am.

I’m a blacksmith. I run Smithson’s Armory, and business is still slow except for the Crossbow Corps.

"Hmm..."

"You always have weird worries."

"Yeah... Sorry about that."

Because my work is so different from other dads’, explaining things to my kids has been tough lately. So I’ve started saying “I’m a weird dad” as an excuse.

So it’s no wonder I have too many moms, or that people don’t really understand how I make money. And being a weird dad means it’s not surprising that even though I’m already forty, I still end up with fifteen-year-old slave girls as my wives... No, scratch that. That part is still tough to admit.

Externally, the old slave girls aren’t slaves anymore—they’re all my wives now—but they don’t really care about that title change much. They just think of themselves as slaves who’ve earned their status by having kids and contributing in some way.

And lately, I’m getting new slave girls even though I didn’t plan on it.

I do feel that it's not right to make a girl the same age as Elenia pregnant, but unfortunately, I have this bad habit of not being able to keep up with an enthusiastic partner forever. So, I ended up getting her pregnant and they even threw me a congratulatory party. I doubt many kids would understand why I'm such a weird dad.

"I wish I could be the kind of proud dad that people brag about... but there's nothing really praiseworthy about how weird I am."

"Hmm. To me, you're just an ordinary proud dad."

"Claude is a good kid..."

I get teary-eyed.

But how does a ten-year-old see any positive points in a father who spends every day naked in the hot springs with dozens of mothers, getting their white pee all over him? I can't even think of anything to be proud of myself.

"Everyone says that my sex drive is stronger than grandpa's and it's already legendary among Dark Elves."

"Hold on. Wait, uh... Who exactly are these 'everyone'?"

"Hilda Mom or Cosmos Mom or Mira Mom or Noire Mom..."

"In the Dark Elf cultural sphere, ten-year-olds shouldn't be talking about that sort of thing!"

Sex education is too early.
Well, I think it's more that I was way behind when I was younger. At ten years old, I couldn't understand real sex and ended up giving Apple a natural tease play instead.
But what about mothers who can confidently explain to their ten-year-old sons the meaning of phrases like "your dad is strong in bed"? And what about grandfathers teaching them all about their sexual escapades?
"At least in Taluk, everyone knows 'Andy, the husband of Onyx.'"
Isn't that the kind of thing people would gossip about behind your back?
"I can understand you being proud of how it all started, but I don't want you to be boastful about it... First and foremost, I want you to find one girl at a time."
He patted his son's head as he lectured him.
Claudio was an elf-like boy with delicate features that could easily pass for a girl. His hair was slightly longer than what would normally be considered masculine, so if he dressed up as a girl, it wouldn't be hard to pull off.
Girls are creatures who like beautiful things after all. If this handsome young man grows into a handsome young adult, he'll probably become very popular and have an enviable adolescence compared to me, but I want him to understand that the basics start with one-on-one relationships first.
I don't want my son to suddenly try to create a harem like mine and get his heart broken.

「Hmm...」

Claudio looked a bit troubled after hearing that.

So you really thought the harem was the basic setup, huh?

“Actually, I prefer guys over girls...”

My son made an astonishing remark.

“...What?”

“What? No, I mean, it’s more like—”

“...Oh.”

The father was shaken up.

No, wait. Think about this carefully.

Hilda-san may be a good wife and mother now, but originally she was bisexual. She has plenty of experience in pleasing girls as well. Such an open-minded mother's values would certainly not deny her son’s preferences.
Claudius’ cuteness shouldn’t make it hard for him to find a boyfriend. Besides, he said "rather" than being completely uninterested in women; his interest just lies elsewhere.
I myself have already enslaved several races that should never be treated casually as my concubines. How could I criticize Claudius’s broad spectrum of love?
“P-Papa... Well, it's not like I think there's no room for that either… Yeah. Papa and I are different, but the cats go crazy with lust on full moons and do all sorts of lewd things to each other…”
Right. Homosexuality isn’t abnormal at all.
It’s something close by as well. It just so happened that there were more women around me, so I didn't notice it.
Okay, calm down.
“…Thanks.”
Claudius gave me an angelic smile in recognition of my acceptance of his minority sexual preference despite my agitation.

Damn… I can sort of understand Hildda’s feelings. If there were even a little bit in Claudia’s tastes that she liked, it would be cruel to say something harsh while looking at this smile.
“Tetesma taught me all sorts of things about using my ass hole… and Hilddama said that quite a few people are okay with it in Tarku. I’m sure I’ll find a boyfriend eventually.”
“…Tetes…”
Complex emotions arise towards the female slaves who have unnecessarily prepared an environment for Claudia.
I shouldn’t complain, but… ugh.
Among the children, the one who’s been particularly active recently is Frena, daughter of Neia.
Initially she learned swordsmanship from her mother Neia, but showed little talent. However, after learning dance from Noer and Lukino, she has made remarkable progress.
Her physical abilities are definitely inherited from Neia, and she performs the lively Dark Elf dance steps with her small body to perfection.
That’s all well and good.
But while Frena looks like her mother, she is mischievous, throwing eggs at others or stealing food as pranks before quickly hiding in alleys. She has grown into a troublesome child.

I'm used to searching for Grunji and Polka, but once she's in the capital or Tark, it’s over before I even realize it. Her hearing is so good that dragons could find her right away, but unfortunately, she learned how to change her voice with magic at age eleven after being found several times, which made me worry even more about her running around the city.

She eventually got so angry that she left a legend in the capital by chasing her down using her continent-class physical abilities. But I'll leave that aside for now.

If only she didn’t have such a mischievous streak... Is it just parental bias?

Recently, Emma has been on high alert every time she leaves Grunji, and I can't help but think maybe she's being too cautious.

“She’s developed the habit of choosing dangerous places as her escape routes because of all the acrobatic dancing classes. She runs around rooftops or along waterways... It could be fatal.”

“Yeah…”

By "fatal," I mean death. A person could die from falling down a few steps if they hit their head wrong, and that's even more true for kids.

“I have to do something about it soon.”

"But, you know... Would she even listen if I told her to stop? Mother Neia must have said it many times already."

"Like, maybe actually giving her a taste of pain..."

"...If only it were that easy. She's really ticked me off before, so unless I give her something worse this time, there won't be any point..."

It takes a lot for Neia to get mad. Something even more severe...

"Hmm... Maybe she doesn’t find Neia scary because they’re always around each other. So what about someone else... like Rilla or someone who’s really dangerous..."

"A kid who regularly picks fights with dragons might not understand the terror of Rilla."

"Right... The dragon would probably go easy on her in the end, huh? Then maybe Tetes, Cosmos-san, or Lady... people who are scary for different reasons..."

"But that's still just the fear of adults..."

It's not easy to find an effective way to scold a kid who’s used to dealing with tough opponents. I wonder what to do...

The one who solved this problem, surprisingly enough, was Elenia.

"If you want me to stop the harassment against Frena, right?"

"Y-Yeah..."

"That kind of thing won't work even if adults try their hardest."

Elenia said that and took on the task. A few days later, when Frena came to Polka trying to pull some stunt with the baron in broad daylight, Elenia stopped her.

"How long are you going to keep doing such stupid things? You're 11 years old already; act your age!"

「U...wh-what, you too still…?”
“Even though Nole Mama taught me how to dance like a lady, are country bumpkin brats only allowed to play like boys? Hmph.”
…So she’s trying to provoke me with childish pride.
Now that I think about it, back then I probably lumped “adults” together as one group.
When you look at someone as just an object of ridicule, whether they’re important or not doesn’t matter much.
Do I have to scold her from the inside, since she’s still a kid and not part of that category?
…As expected, Frena easily fell for Elenia’s provocation.
Maybe because they were half-sisters close in age, they had always been aware of each other.
“Polka is even more country than Granji! You act all grown up but you’re just a daddy’s girl! You’re the real kid!”
…Hey, she’s talking about you, Elenia. Your recent actions make it hard to argue back.

I thought so, but Elenia’s relaxed.

“Just a kid’s head won’t get that far,”

“...Grrr, it pisses me off. Just because you’re one or two years older—”

“I want boys and girls to stop getting caught up in mixed pranks by the time they’re six or seven. Really, how long are you going to keep this up? Are your moms spoiling you?”

“My mom’s strict! She is!”

Don’t make a joke out of our mothers too much. Selen’s pretty indulgent, isn’t she? I’ve never seen her get mad at anyone.

…Thinking about it now, Neia must be struggling with her teenage daughter while Polka has the luxury of splitting responsibilities between parents. Maybe I should visit Grange more often.

Even when I drop by occasionally, normally both parents have to take on both roles.

“And besides...since you’re not getting enough attention from your dad, Frena, that’s why you can say stuff like this.”

“Nn…!”

"Mom said it, didn't she? Dad's special... Once you really understand what that means, you can't stay a kid anymore..."

Elenia’s expression instantly transforms from childlike to one of sultry allure. Frena is taken aback by Elenia’s sudden change in demeanor.

"W-What are you talking about… I mean, Dad… He doesn’t even understand why he's so popular…"

"You've only ever seen him like that. You don't really get it… You just think of him as a sleazy old pervert, right?"

Elenia leans in close to Frena and whispers.

"The real Dad is… the kind of man who makes Nea Mom, Aurora Sister, Diaune Mom, even all the dragons go crazy for him. The kind of guy that even the strongest women would want a kid with... You've never really thought about how someone like that could actually exist in your life, have you?"

"…"

"...Heh heh. I knew it, little girl."

"T-That's… That’s just weird, isn’t it?!"

“...The opposite of weird is normal. Dad’s not at all normal, right? You know that.”

“But…”

No good, Ele. You’re acting just like Selen did when she was in one of those dangerous moods.

You can’t even think about dragging your step-sister down that path, no matter what.

So I tried to intervene out of a sense of crisis, but I got stopped by the mysterious half-elf group—Selen, Apple, and Neria—who were also hiding behind something.

“Leave this to Ele-chan. Okay?”

“Andy-san hasn’t touched Ele-chan yet, right? …And still, she’s so understanding.”

“She really is Selen’s daughter. …Even I don’t think I could describe Andy’s charm as well as that.”

“If only our child wasn’t causing such trouble… If we let Elenia-chan talk to her, she might calm down a bit.”

Everyone's impressed by Elenia's snake-like eloquence, but...

"Isn't this going to make both Ele and Frena feel like they've failed as fathers? Shouldn't we avoid making them realize things they shouldn't?"

"Andy is a weird dad♪"

"There's nothing else to do."

"I think it'll be fine if you use birth control magic."

"If Frena becomes more feminine...then I could make her my female slave too."

"No, Neia! You weren't thinking that seriously were you!? That's something no parent should ever say!! And as a wife, you're way out of line!!"

"Because the Flash Sword was supposed to be like a father figure for them, but it turned out completely useless...it just became some kind of old story playback machine."

I need to try harder. As a father.

......Why doesn't anyone stop me from messing with my daughters?

"Having too many children is a problem..." is a common story in the countryside.

Since there is virtually no entertainment, sex with my wives is the only daily pleasure. Since more laborers and potential heirs are always better for the community, everyone is encouraged to try as hard as they can.

As a result, a large family is formed in the blink of an eye.

Especially for beastmen, twins and triplets are commonplace, so if you give birth many times, you quickly end up with a family numbering in the dozens.

In Isaac's case, since his wives are beastman sisters, he says his family has ballooned to about twenty children in no time, which sounds exhausting. Now, I'm in no position to tell him to hold back, though.

In fact, the cat-beastman group is experiencing a baby boom.

If you include the entire cat colony, I think my own children alone might exceed 200. That is more than double the original size of the colony.

When I consulted Irina about whether we'd really be okay, she gave me a very dismissive answer: "It's not as if we can't support them. We have dragons, don't we?"

As for food, there is no issue, as the Blue and Silver Dragons—who have far too much time on their hands—take turns stationing themselves near the cat colony to support monster hunting.

Regarding clothing and education, we can be flexible with whatever we need because direct trade with the Elf territory has been established. Once the children are old enough to understand things, they are enrolled in the private Polka Academy, where the Lorries serve as instructors.

According to Laurie, cat-beiment children are as flighty as the rumors say, which makes things difficult; however, the faculty—consisting of Elves and Dragons with decades or even centuries of experience in various fields—is exceptionally talented. Some of the kittens are even showing magical potential that rivals Irina's.

Well, I suppose they'll never truly reach her level since they don't possess her lifespan.

"The fact that almost all of these are my children... it sounds weird, but it doesn't quite feel real."

"It's not like there's any child that Papa doesn't know, right?"

"I know that, but... two hundred is a lot."

"And this isn't even all of them, is it?"

"...That's the thing."

I sighed while looking back at the Polka Academy auditorium with Claudio.

Of course, children too young to comprehend things do not attend the academy. And while Claudio is only ten, being Hilda's son, his intelligence is extraordinary; he has already self-taught most of the academy's primary subjects and is treated like a graduate.

He is a far cry from Peter, who does nothing but chase after breasts as usual.

By the way, the academy is only in session for the six months of winter when everyone is idle; during the summer, they spend time in their respective homelands. It's not just cat-beastmen; children of Elves and even prostitutes attend, and students also come from the town of Polka and Grange.

But well, the ones who show up for the opening ceremony are mostly my children.

The cat-beastmen, in particular, gather reliably because the dragons transport them. Furthermore, because the academy started as an extension of the church's educational mission, they have inherited a loose attitude where it's no big deal if they don't show up for the opening or closing ceremonies.

Then again, there's no medal awarded for attending every single session, so I suppose that's just how it is.

There is one merit, though: while attending this academy, lodging and food are free. Since most of the students are my children, that's how it happened for the external students as well.

As for lodging, half of them stay while helping out at the inn we manage, and the other half stay at the Vapor Palace. Of course, the Palace is for my children only.

Since a "Nude Paradise" is a bit too stimulating for the boys, I strongly recommend the inn. Some voices ask, "Is it okay for the girls?" but since my female slaves say, "It's almost all women anyway, so it's fine," I find myself nodding in agreement. To be clear, I do not mandate undressing.

However, since cat-beastmen are quite casual about such things, they tend to strip naked without any hesitation.

I feel like this situation is not very good for my future policy of "I will not do anything lewd to my daughters." Should I approach the Baron or Christie to arrange for another family-run inn?

...But if I expand the inn business too much, it will start to involve the question of "Who am I?"

I am a blacksmith. I am the owner of the Smeaton Armory. Though, as usual, no work comes my way from anyone except the crossbow corps.

"Ugh..."

"I always think this, but Papa has a lot of strange worries."

"I am a strange Papa... sorry."

Because my lifestyle is so different from that of other fathers, I often struggle to explain things to my growing children, so lately I's been using the excuse "Because I'm a strange Papa" quite often.

Since I'm a strange Papa, it can't be helped if I have too many mamas. Since I'm a strange Papa, it can't be helped if people don't understand how I make my money.

Since I'm a strange Papa, it can't be helped if I make a fifteen-year-old newcomer a mama even though I'm already forty... No, no. That's pushing it.

Externally, my long-time female slaves are no longer referred to as slaves, but as my wives; however, they themselves don't care much about the distinction.

There is a broad classification of "female slave," and within that, once someone is recognized as a "full member" through childbirth or significant contribution, they obtain the external title of "wife."

And recently, the number of female slaves has been increasing occasionally. I have no intention of increasing them, but it keeps happening.

"I really thought getting someone around Elenia's age pregnant was a bad idea," I thought to myself. Unfortunately, I have a bad habit of being unable to hold my ground against an assertive partner, and long story short, she ended up pregnant, and now there's even a celebration party being held for it. I doubt many of the kids agree with my reasoning of, "Well, it can't be helped, because your Papa is just weird."

"I want to be a dad you can be proud of as much as possible... but I'm so strange there's nothing to be proud of, is there?"

"Hmm. To me, you're a perfectly wonderful dad."

"You're such a good boy, Claus..."

It was a touching moment.

However, I can't fathom how a ten-year-old can find any redeeming qualities in a father who spends every single day soaking in hot springs completely naked while accidentally splashing "white urine" on dozens of different mamas. Even as I think about it, I can't come up with a single thing that would be boastable.

"Everyone says that in Dark Elf culture, it's already legendary that your libido is even stronger than Grandpa's."

"Wait. No, uh... first of all, who is 'everyone'?"

"Like Mama Hilda, Mama Cosmos, Mama Mira, Mamaノール..."

"The Dark Elf cultural sphere goes that far with a ten-year-old...!?"

Their sex education is far too advanced.

Well, I suppose my own was far too delayed. When I was ten, I didn't even understand what actual intercourse was, so I ended up accidentally giving Apple a "teasing" play session.

But what's with these mothers who can so boldly and accurately teach a ten-year-old things like, "Your papa is powerful at sex"? And what's with teaching him about his grandfather's sexual affairs too?

"At least in Tarc, anyone who hears 'Andy, the son-in-law of Onyx' knows exactly who you are."

That sounds like the kind of name that gets you pointed at and gossiped about.

"I don't mind if that's the reason for how things turned out, but I don't want you boasting about that... First, I want you to find your own individual charm with a girl, one-on-one."

I lectured him while patting my son's head.

Claudio, being an elf-descended boy, has beautiful features that could easily be mistaken for a girl's. His hair is a bit long for an ordinary boy, so if he cross-dressed, very few people would likely see through it.

After all, girls are creatures that love beautiful things. When a beautiful boy like this grows into a beautiful young man, he'll undoubtedly be incredibly popular and live a much more blessed youth than I did—but I want him to at least understand the fundamental principle of one-on-one relationships.

I really don't want my child to end up getting rejected harshly because he tried to build a massive harem like I did.

"Hmm..."

Claudio looked a little troubled by that.

Wait, are you one of those kids who thought a harem was the standard...?

"To be honest, I'm more... into boys than girls..."

My child uttered a shocking murmur.

"...Eh?"

"Eh, ah, no, I mean, I'm more toward that side, but...?"

"...O-oh."

I, the father, was shaken.

N-no, think carefully. Think about it.

Hilda-san is a devoted wife and mother now, but she was originally bisexual. She has plenty of repertoire when it comes to pleasure with girls.

A mother with such an open-minded perspective wouldn't deny her son's preferences.

With Claus's cuteness, finding a boyfriend shouldn't be difficult. Besides, he said "more toward that side." It's not like he has no interest in women at all. His "strike zone" is just a bit too wide.

How could I, who has turned this many different species into my female slaves—species I shouldn't have been able to lay hands on so easily—criticize the direction of Claus's broad affection?

"P-Papa... well, I don't think that's... not a bad thing. Yeah. It's a different direction from mine, but they say the cats get so aroused on full moon nights that they engage in erotic things with the same sex..."

That's right. Homosexuality is by no means abnormal.

I've seen it around me before. It's just that, by chance, the examples around me happened to be mostly women, so it didn't catch my attention.

Okay. I've calmed down.

"...Thank you."

As I accepted his minority sexual preference despite my inner turmoil, Claudio gave me an angelic smile.

Ugh... I can understand Hilda's feelings just a little bit. Even if there are some questionable aspects to Claudio's tastes, you just can't bring yourself to say something so cruel to that smiling face.

"Tetes told me all sorts of things regarding... the use of the anus... and Hilda-mama said there are quite a lot of people in Talc who find it acceptable. I'm sure you'll find a lover before long."

"...Tetes..."

I feel a wave of complicated emotions toward these female slaves who are going out of their way to create the perfect environment for Claudio.
I hate to complain, but... ugh.

Among the children, the most active lately is Frena, Neia's daughter.
Initially, she studied swordsmanship under Neia but lacked much talent; however, after learning dance from Mr. Nor and Mr. Lucino, her skills have shown remarkable progress.
Her athleticism is, as expected, inherited from Neia, and with her small body, she brilliantly mimics the lively dance steps of the Dark Elves.
That part is fine.
The problem is that while she looks just like Neia, she has grown into a troublesome child who loves mischief—throwing eggs at others or stealing food, only to quickly vanish into the back alleys of the city.
If it were Grunge or Polka, I’m used to it and could track her down, but in the Royal Capital or Talc, she disappears in the blink of an eye, so I can never let my guard down.
If we use the dragons' hearing, we can find her immediately, but the trouble is that since she's been found several times that way, she learned from it—demonstrating a useless level of genius by independently developing magic to change her voice at just eleven years old, all so she could run around the capital undetected.
And then, Neia finally snapped, and her full-force pursuit—relying on her continent-class physical abilities—left a legend in the Royal Capital, but let's set that aside.
She would be a good child if it weren't for her penchant for pranks... though that might just be parental bias.
Lately, Emma has been on high alert every time she leaves Grunge, to the point where I feel like she's overdoing it...

"Pranks aside, because she's learned somewhat acrobatic dancing, she's developed a habit of choosing only dangerous places as her escape routes. Running around rooftops and along canal edges with a child's physical abilities... it could lead to something irreversible."

"...Yeah."

"Something irreversible," even with Polka's Spirit Spring or Break Core's regenerative healing, means death.
Humans can die just from tumbling down a flight of stairs if they land badly. For a child, it's even more so.

"We have to find a way to make her stop soon."

"But... I wonder if she'll actually listen. Her mother, Neia, has told her to stop because it's dangerous countless times."

"What if, for example, we gave her a slightly painful lesson..."

"...It would be great if it ended with just 'slight'..."

"...Since she's already managed to make Neia truly angry once, there's no point unless we make her experience something even worse... Even 'slight' is difficult."

Neia getting angry is a pretty big deal, though. Even worse than that...?

"Hmm... maybe it's not scary because she's always around Neia. Then, how about having someone else... someone truly dangerous, like Lyra, scold her..."

"Do you think a child who constantly messes with dragons can understand the terror of Lady Lyra?"

"...I see. In the end, she probably thinks the dragons will hold back in the end. Then, someone with a different kind of danger, like Tetes, or Cosmos-san, or Lady..."

"But that is ultimately the fear of the adult world..."

"Hmm..."
How to effectively use anger on a child who has become too accustomed to formidable opponents. It's quite difficult.
What should we do...?

The one who solved this was, unexpectedly, Elenia.

"You just need to make Frena stop her senseless pranks, right?"

"W-Well, yeah..."

"Adults trying their hardest won't work for things like that."

Elenia said this as she took on the task.
And a few days later, we caught Frena, who had come to Polka, boldly attempting to pull some sort of stunt on a Baron in the middle of the city.

"How long are you going to keep up with such tacky behavior? Aren't you being a bit too much of a brat for an eleven-year-old?"

She looked down at Frena with eyes of pure, freezing contempt.

"Ugh... W-what are you saying?! You're still..."

"Even after getting lessons in feminine dancing from Mama Nor, I guess a little country brat can only manage boyish playtime. Pfft."

...So, the strategy is to prick each other's pride, just like children do.
Come to think of it, I suppose I was viewing all "adults" as one single category. At least, when I was around that age.
When looking at someone purely as an object for teasing and play, it doesn't matter how high-ranking or formidable they are; there is no difference.
So, I can't just be an observer; I have to step inside the line and reprimand her from the child's perspective.

...As expected, Frena bit the bait of Elenia's provocation easily.
Perhaps it was because, as half-sisters with relatively close ages, they were already hyper-aware of one another.

"Polka is even more of the countryside than Grunge! And you act all grown-up, but you're just a daddy's girl! You're actually more of a brat!"

...Hey. She's coming for you, Ele. Looking at your recent behavior, I can't even argue against that.
I thought to myself, but Elenia remained composed.

"I guess that's all a child's mind can grasp."

"...I-I hate you... Just because you're a year or two older..."

"I'd prefer it if both boys and girls stopped being so obsessed with silly pranks once they reach six or seven. Seriously, how long do you plan to keep this up? Are you being coddled by Mama?"

"M-my mother is strict!"

Don't make our mothers the subject of your jokes. Selene is quite gentle. At the very least, I've never seen her lose her temper with you.
...It occurred to me now that while Polka has an environment where mothers can share the load, Neia is struggling with a daughter in puberty. Maybe I should visit Grunge more often.
Even though I visit occasionally, usually I have to play both the father and mother roles simultaneously.

"And that's only because... you've never had Papa take you seriously enough to say such things, Frena."

"Wh—!"

"Doesn't Mama tell everyone? Papa is special... If you truly understood the meaning of that, you wouldn't be able to remain a child...♪"

In an instant, Elenia's childish aura vanished, replaced by an expression of chilling allure and intoxication.
Frena looked bewildered by Elenia's inexplicable transformation.

"W-what are you... I mean, Father... even he says he doesn't know why he's so popular..."

"Because you only see him through that lens. Because you don't understand... You just think he's a flighty, lecherous old man, don't you?"

Elenia leaned close to Frena's face and whispered.

"The real Papa is... a man who makes Mama Neia... Sister Aurora... Mama Diane... even the dragons... all of them, every single one of them, fall so deeply in love that their heads spin. You've never really thought about the fact that such a man actually exists right before your eyes, have you...?"

"........."

"...Hehe. Just as I thought. A little brat♪"

"T-that's... treating a father like that... that's weird...!"

"...The opposite of weird is normal. And Papa is not normal at all. You know that much, don't you?"

"B-but...!"

This is bad. This is very bad, Ele.
Right now, you sound exactly like Selene. You know, when she gets that dangerous vibe.
No matter how much you want to, you shouldn't try to drag your half-sister down that... dark path.

So, intending to step in with a sense of crisis, I was intercepted by a mysterious group of half-elves—Selene, Apple, and Anzeros—who had also slipped into the shadows.

"Let's leave this to Ele-chan. Okay?♪"

"If I recall, you haven't even laid a finger on Ele-chan yet, Andy-san. ...And yet, her level of comprehension is already there."

"She really is Selen's daughter. ...Even I wouldn't be confident I could put that into words so well, yet she can speak so eloquently of Andy's charm."

"My child is truly a handful... But if we let Elenia-chan keep persuading her, she should eventually settle down."

Everyone is impressed by Elenia's silver tongue, though.

"At this rate, isn't the flow of the story going to force both El and Frena to do something that makes them complete failures as fathers? Won't it feel like they're being made to realize something they shouldn't have to learn the hard way?"

"That's because Andy-san is a strange papa♪"

"It can't be helped, right?"

"I think it'll be fine if we just use contraception magic."

"If Frena becomes a proper little lady... I wouldn't mind making her a female slave."

"Wait, Neia, were you really that distressed?! That is absolutely something you shouldn't say as a parent! And as a wife, that's pretty much out of line too!?"

"It's just... I thought the Flash Sword would at least act as a bit of a father figure, but it turned out to be completely useless... It's nothing more than a playback device for old stories."

I... I'll try harder to be a better father. As a father.

...Why isn't anyone stopping everyone from acting like I'm about to lay hands on my own daughter?

Having too many kids is a common problem in the countryside.

With no real entertainment around, sex with my wife is pretty much all I look forward to these days. Everyone wants plenty of workers and heirs, so I let her do as she pleases. Before you know it, you’ve got a huge family.

Especially with beastfolk—twins and triplets are the norm, so after a few pregnancies, you’re looking at a family of ten or more real quick.

Isaac’s situation is even worse; his wife is a pair of beastfolk sisters, so he already has like twenty kids and is struggling. I couldn’t exactly tell him to slow down, though.

In reality, the cat-beastfolk are having a baby boom. Including the cat colony, I’ve probably got over 200 kids on my hands. That’s more than double the original cat colony.

I asked Irina if this was really okay, and she said something incredibly vague like, "We shouldn’t have trouble raising them. We’ve got dragons too."

Food isn’t a problem since idle bronze and silver dragons take turns patrolling near the cat colony and help with monster hunting.

Clothes and education are flexible thanks to direct trade with the elf territory. The kids who are old enough get taught at a private Polka Academy run by Loree and the others.

Loree says the cat-beastfolk are as fickle as rumors say, but the elf and dragon instructors—who’ve got decades or even centuries of experience in their fields—are excellent. Some of the kittens even show magical talent that rivals Irina’s. Though, well, they don’t have her lifespan, so they’ll never quite catch up.

“The fact that almost all of these are my kids… it feels weird to say, but I barely feel it.”
“Aren’t there any kids you don’t know, Papa?”
“Yeah, but still. Two hundred is a lot.”
“And this isn’t even everyone, right?”
“…Yeah, it’s not.”

Claudio and I sighed as we watched the Polka Academy auditorium from behind. Of course, kids too young to understand don’t come to school. And Claudio’s only ten, but being Hildegard’s son, his brain is way ahead—he’s already self-taught in most of the academy’s core subjects and is treated like a graduate.

Peter’s still chasing after boobs, so he’s worlds apart from him.

The academy only opens for half the year (when everyone’s free) during winter; in summer, everyone goes back to their hometowns. Not just cat-beastfolk attend—elf-descended kids, whores’ children, and even some from Polka Town and Granze come too.

But mostly, it’s my kids showing up for the opening ceremony. The cats are reliably brought by dragons, and since it started as an extension of the church’s education program, there’s a loose attitude where you don’t have to show up if you don’t want to.

But even if you take all the classes, you don’t get any medals or anything—just that.

There is a perk: free lodging and meals while you’re here. Since most of the students are my kids anyway, it just… happened that way for everyone.

Half the kids help out at the inn I took over, and half stay at the Vapor Palace—but only my kids get to stay at the palace.

The all-nude paradise is too much for the boys, so I strongly recommend the inn. Some say it’s fine for girls, but the female slaves said, "It's mostly women anyway, so it should be okay," so I nodded. Of course, undressing isn’t mandatory.

But cat-beastfolk are so easygoing that they strip down without hesitation.

This isn’t great if I’m going to stick to my "no lewd stuff with my daughters" policy. Maybe I should ask Baron or Kristy to set up another inn run by family…

…But expanding the inn business too much ties into the whole "What am I, anyway?" problem.

I’m a blacksmith. The owner of Smythson Arms. Business is still slow except for the crossbow guys.

“Hmm…”
“You always have such weird worries, Papa.”
“Yeah, I’m a weird dad… sorry about that.”

Since my business is so different from other dads’, I often struggle to explain things to the kids who’ve grown up. Lately, I’ve been using "I'm just a weird dad" as an excuse a lot.

It’s no wonder I have so many moms; I’m a weird dad. It’s no wonder I don’t really know what kind of work he does to earn a living; I’m a weird dad. It’s no wonder he’s made a fifteen-year-old newbie female slave his mom even though he’s already forty… well, actually, that’s pushing it.

Outwardly, the old female slaves have all been wives for ages now, but they still don’t really care about that distinction much. There’s this broad category of "female slave," and if you have kids or contribute enough, you’re recognized as "full-fledged" and get the external title of wife.

And recently, female slaves are still increasing in number. I don’t intend to increase them, but they keep multiplying anyway.

I definitely shouldn’t be getting someone Elenia’s age pregnant, but unfortunately, it’s a bad habit of mine that I can’t stay stiff forever when dealing with eager partners, and before I knew it, I’d gotten one pregnant and we even had a baby shower. Not many of the kids probably understand why they’re okay with "it’s because he’s a weird dad," though.

"I want to be as proud of my dad as possible… but I’m too weird to be proud of."

"Hmm… As far as I’m concerned, you’re a perfectly normal dad to be proud of."

"Claude is such a good kid…"

Sniff.

But how does a ten-year-old find any redeeming qualities in a father who spends every single day soaking in the hot springs completely naked while dozens of moms piss white water all over him? I can’t think of anything to be proud of myself.

"Everyone says that being hungrier than your grandpa is legendary, dark elf-style."

"Wait. Whoa—uh—who’s 'everyone'?"

"Hilda-mom, Cosmos-mom, Mira-mom, Nol-mom…"

"In the dark elf culture sphere, a ten-year-old knows that much…!"

Sex education is way too early.

No, I think my sex education was way too late. When I was ten, I didn’t understand real sex and gave Apple the natural letdown play.

But what about mothers who proudly explain to their ten-year-olds, "Your dad’s a great lover," or even tell them about their grandfathers’ sex lives?

"At least in Tark, if you say 'Andy, the Onyx Groom,' everyone knows who you mean."

That sounds like the kind of name that gets whispered behind your back.

"I don’t want you bragging about that part to anyone… First, I want you to find someone’s charm one-on-one with a girl."

I pat my son’s head while lecturing him.

Claudio has elf-like features, almost girlishly beautiful. His hair is a little longer than most boys’, so if he cross-dressed, probably not many people would catch on.

Girls like pretty things, no matter what. If this handsome boy becomes a handsome young man, he’ll be super popular and have a much more blessed youth than I did, but first, I want him to understand that it’s one-on-one.

I can’t stand the thought of my own kid trying to build a huge harem like me and getting screwed over instantly.

"Hmm…"

Claudio looked troubled after hearing that.

"So… you really thought a harem was the default, huh?"

"Um… well… more than girls, I kinda like boys…"

My son dropped a bombshell.

"...Huh?"

"Eh, ah, no, just—more than girls, I mean?"

"...O-okay."

I’m flustered.

N-no, think about it carefully. Think about it.

Hilda is a good wife and wise mother these days, but she was always a two-edged sword. She’s got a pretty impressive repertoire when it comes to getting off with girls.

A mother with such open-minded values probably wouldn’t deny her son’s tastes either.

As for finding a boyfriend, Claudio’s cuteness shouldn’t be too hard. Besides, it’s not like he doesn’t like women—it’s just that his strike zone is a little too wide.

And here I am, turning so many different races—who should never be approached so casually—into my personal sex slaves. How can I possibly criticize Claudio’s broad spectrum of love?

“P-Perhaps… maybe Papa doesn’t think it’s completely out of the question. Yeah. It’s not really my thing, but cats go wild during a full moon and get all hot and bothered with each other…”

That’s right. Homosexuality isn’t abnormal.

It’s something that exists even in my own life. I just happened to be surrounded by more women, so it never stood out.

Okay… I’m calm now.

“…Thanks.”

Despite his flustered state, Claudio gives me an angelic smile for acknowledging his minority sexual preference.

Damn it… I kinda understand Hilda’s feelings now. Even if I had some reservations about Claudio’s tastes, I couldn’t be cruel to that smile.

“As for using the butt hole, Tete’s mom taught me plenty… and Hilda’s mom said there are quite a few people in Taluk who are into it. I’m sure you’ll find a lover someday.”

“…Tete…”

I can’t help but feel conflicted about these female slaves going overboard to accommodate Claudio.

Complaining is pointless… ugh.

Among the kids, Frena—Neia’s daughter—is the most active lately.

At first, she tried learning swordsmanship from Neia but didn’t have much talent for it. But after taking dance lessons from Norr and Lucino, she’s been improving rapidly.

Her athletic ability is pure Neia, and she flawlessly mimics the lively dark elf’s dance steps with her small frame.

Which would be fine if…

She may look like Neia, but she’s mischievous, throwing eggs at people or stealing food to harass them before vanishing into the city’s alleys. Granze and Polka are used to finding her, but she disappears in the royal capital and Taluk just as quickly, so I can’t relax.

I could use the dragons’ hearing to find her, but she learned that after being caught a few times and developed a useless genius-level talent—she created a voice-changing magic spell at the age of eleven just to run around the royal capital.

Eventually, Neia snapped and went on a full-force pursuit using her continent-class physical abilities, leaving a legend in the royal capital. But let’s leave that aside.

She’d be a good kid if it weren’t for her mischief… or maybe that’s just parental bias.

Lately, every time she leaves Granze, Emma tightens security so much that I feel like she’s overreacting.

“Putting mischief aside, she’s picked up the habit of choosing dangerous places as escape routes because of those acrobatic dance moves. Running across rooftops and along waterways with a child’s physical ability… it could end in disaster.”

“…Yeah.”

Even with Polka’s healing spring or Break Core’s regenerative therapy, some things are irreversible—namely, death.

Humans are so fragile that they can die from just falling down the stairs. Especially kids.

“We have to stop her before it’s too late.”

“But… can we even tell her to stop? Neia has probably told her a hundred times to stop because it’s dangerous.”

“Maybe give her a light scare, like… a minor injury?”

“…If it could be kept light, that’d be good.”

“…We already made Neia seriously angry once, so it has to be worse than that… and keeping it ‘light’ is going to be difficult.”

Neia getting angry is a big deal. Worse than that…?

"Hmm… maybe she’s not scared of Neyah because she’s always around her. Then, what about someone else… like, seriously dangerous, like Lila? Getting scolded by them…"

“Do you think a child who regularly pesters dragons can truly comprehend the terror that is Lady Lila?”

“…Right. In the end, they probably just assume the dragon will hold back. So, how about Tethys, or Cosmos-sama, or some other kind of dangerous person…”

“That’s still just the fear of the adult world…”

“Hmm…”

How to effectively scold a child who’s become too accustomed to dealing with incredibly powerful beings? That’s quite the challenge.

What to do…

The solution came from an unexpected source: Elenia.

“You should just stop harassing Frena, that’s all.”

“Well, yeah… sort of.”

“That’s something adults can’t fix no matter how hard they try.”

Elenia said so and took it upon herself.

A few days later, Frena came to Polka and was caught brazenly trying to do something to the Baron in the middle of town.

“How long are you going to keep doing such pathetic stuff? You’re eleven years old, aren’t you acting like a kid?”

She looked down at Frena with her full, cold glare.
“W-What’s that supposed to mean? You’re not even…”

“Even after learning ladylike dances from Norra-Mama, you’re still stuck playing boyish games like some backwoods hick. Hmph.”
…A strategy of poking at each other’s pride as children.
Now that she mentions it, I was lumping “adults” together. At least back then.
When looking at someone as a target for teasing, it doesn’t matter how great or powerful they are.
Is it necessary to scold from within the line, not as a “target,” but as a child?
…As expected, Frena easily fell for Elenia’s provocation.
Perhaps because they were relatively close in age and half-sisters, they were always aware of each other.
“Polka is even more rural than Grandje! You’re just acting like an adult, but you’re just daddy's girl! That makes you more of a kid!”

…Hey. I’m being told, Elen. Looking at your recent behavior, there’s no way to argue with that.

But Elenia was unfazed.

“Only a child would say something like that.”

“…Grrr… just because you’re one or two years older doesn’t mean anything.”

“I wish you’d stop getting so caught up in the same childish pranks, boys and girls alike. I wonder how long this will last. Is your mother spoiling you?”

“M-My mom’s strict!”

Don’t bring up their mothers so much. Selen is pretty lenient. I’ve never seen her get mad at you.

…Compared to Polka’s environment where the mothers can share the burden, Neia is struggling with her adolescent daughter, I realize now. Maybe I should visit Grandje more often.

Even when I occasionally visit, I have to play both father and mother roles simultaneously.

“Besides… you’re saying that because you haven’t gotten enough attention from Papa.”

“What…?”

"Mom says it all the time, doesn't she? 'Dad's special…' If you really understood what that meant, you wouldn't be able to stay a kid anymore…" ♪

Elenia’s expression instantly shifted, her face taking on a chilling allure and intoxicating charm as if sensing the presence of children.

Frena looked bewildered at Elenia’s inexplicable behavior.

"W-What are you talking about…? Dad’s just… he doesn’t even know why he’s so popular himself…"

"Because that’s the only kind of dad you see. Because you don’t understand. You probably think he’s just some lecherous, good-for-nothing old man, right?"

Elenia leaned in close to Frena and whispered.
"But the real Dad… he’s the kind of guy who makes Neia Mom, Aurora Sis, Diane Mom, even the dragons—everyone—fall head over heels for him. The kind of guy who makes even the strongest women want kids. You’ve never really thought about how weird it is that someone like that exists so close to you, have you…?"

"……"

"...Hehe. Still an o-ko-sa-ma, though." ♪

"T-That’s not how you talk about your father… that’s weird!"

"...Weird’s the opposite of normal. And Dad’s nothing like normal. You know that, right?"

"B-B-but—"

No. No, Elen.
You’re looking way too much like Selen right now. That dangerous vibe.
There’s no way you should be dragging your stepsister down that path.
Just as I was about to intervene with a sense of urgency, the mysterious half-elf group—Selen, Apple, Anzalos, and Neia—who’d also taken cover nearby stopped me.

"Let’s leave this to Elenie. Okay?" ♪

"And you haven’t laid a hand on her yet, Andy, right? …Yet she understands him that well."

"You really are your mother’s daughter, aren’t you? …Even I wouldn’t be able to put it into words so well, but you managed to describe Andy’s charm like that."

"My child is truly causing trouble… If we let Elenia talk some sense into her, she might calm down a little."

Everyone was impressed by Elenia’s serpentine eloquence.

"But if this keeps up, won’t it just lead to Elen and Frena making Dad look like a total failure? Won’t it turn into that kind of situation where they make him realize something he shouldn’t?"

"Because Andy’s a weird dad." ♪

"What can you do?"

"If we cast contraception magic, there shouldn’t be any problems."

"If Frena becomes a proper girl… I’d even consider making her my female slave."

"Wait, Neia! You were that serious?! That’s something a parent should never say! It’s also pretty much out of bounds as a wife!?"

"But the Flashblade was supposed to be like a father figure, and it turned out to be completely useless… just a machine that plays old stories."

I need to try harder as a father. As a father.
…Why won’t anyone stop me from messing with my daughter?

Having too many children is a common problem in the countryside.

With no entertainment whatsoever, sex with my wife becomes the sole joy of daily life. Since the surrounding villagers see no harm in having more workers and heirs, they encourage her to keep going as much as she likes.

As a result, before long, a large extended family forms.

Especially since beastkin twins and triplets are commonplace, giving birth repeatedly quickly results in families numbering in the dozens.

In Isaac's case, his wife is a beastkin sister pair, so their children numbered around twenty in no time, causing quite a stir. Though I wanted to tell him to pull back, it wasn't really my place to say such things.

Indeed, the cat-beastkin group has fallen into a baby boom.

Including those from the original Cat Colony, I suspect there are now over two hundred children of mine alone—more than double the initial population of the colony.

When I asked Ailina if everything would truly be alright, she casually replied, "There's no shortage of resources to raise them. Besides, dragons exist too."

Regarding food, idle blue and silver dragons take turns stationed near the Cat Colony to support monster-hunting efforts, so that poses no problem.

As for clothing and education, direct trade with the Elf Territory has been established, making arrangements flexible. Children old enough to understand are welcomed into our private Polka Academy, where Lorrie serves as an instructor.

Though Lorrie admits cat-beastkin are notoriously fickle and troublesome, the faculty of elves and dragons, each possessing decades to centuries of expertise in their respective fields, are exceptionally skilled. Among the kittens, some have even demonstrated magical aptitude rivaling Ailina's own.

Well, since they lack Ailina's lifespan, I suppose they'll never quite catch up.

"This situation, where almost everyone here is my child... it's a strange way to put it, but I feel disconnected from it."

"None of them are children your father doesn't know about, right?"

"That's true, but still—two hundred people!"

"And besides, this isn't all of them, is it?"

"...Yeah, that's right."

Sighing while standing behind the lecture hall of Polka Academy alongside Claudio.

Of course, children too young to understand are not admitted to the academy. Claudio is only ten years old, yet thanks to his mother Hilda's influence, his intelligence far surpasses others; he has already mastered most core subjects on his own and is treated as a graduate.

What a stark contrast to Peter, who continues to chase after breasts as usual.

By the way, the academy operates only during the six-month winter season when everyone has leisure time; during summer, each child returns to their hometown. Students include not just cat-beastkin but also children born to elves and even some prostitutes, alongside regular citizens of Polka Town and Grangi.

Still, mostly my own children attend the opening ceremony.

Especially since dragons transport the cats, attendance is guaranteed. Moreover, having started as an extension of the church temple's educational program, they've inherited a laid-back attitude where appearing at opening or closing ceremonies isn't strictly necessary.

But even if they complete all courses, no medals are awarded for it, so who cares?

There is one benefit: while attending the academy, lodging and meals are free. Since most of my children attend, this policy naturally extended to external students as well.

Half the time, they stay at an inn we manage with our help; the other half, they sleep in the Vaper Palace. Of course, access to the palace is limited to my children only.

For the boys, I strongly recommend staying at the inn since full-nude paradise might be too stimulating for them. Some voices argue that girls should also be allowed, but female slaves reassured us, saying, "It's mostly women anyway, so it should be fine," and I nodded in agreement. Of course, undressing is not mandatory.

However, cat-beastkin are naturally carefree and tend to strip naked without hesitation.

Looking ahead, maintaining the policy of never doing anything inappropriate with my daughters seems difficult under these circumstances. Should I negotiate with the Baron or Kristie to establish another inn operated by family members?

...But expanding our inn business too much might complicate matters regarding "who exactly I am."

I'm a blacksmith, after all—the owner of Smisson's Weapon Shop. Business there remains stagnant, receiving almost no orders outside the crossbow squad.

"Hmm..."

"I've always thought your father has quite peculiar worries."

"That's because I'm such a strange father... sorry about that."

Due to the vast difference between my lifestyle and other fathers', explaining myself to my growing children has become increasingly difficult, so lately I often resort to the excuse, "Because I'm such a weird dad."

My father is strange, so it's no wonder there are too many mothers. My father is strange, so it's no wonder I don't understand how he makes a living.

Since my father is strange, it's no wonder that even though I'm already forty, I've made a fifteen-year-old new recruit into a mother... No, no. That's just too much.

To the outside world, the old female slaves aren't considered slaves anymore; they're all wives now. But even today, they don't really care about that distinction.

In broad terms, there's still the status of "female slave," and once you bear children or make a certain contribution, you're recognized as "full-fledged" and given the external title of "wife."

Lately, female slaves have been increasing again. I didn't intend for them to increase, but they've just kept growing.

I really think it's wrong to impregnate someone as young as Elenia, but unfortunately, I can't hold my ground against eager ones forever—that's a bad habit of mine. So I ended up getting her pregnant and even threw an congratulatory party. I suppose few of the children truly accept me with the thought, "Well, it's no wonder; he's a strange father."

"I'd like to be as boastful a father as possible... but I'm so weird there's nothing to boast about."

"Hmm. As for me, I think my dad is pretty normal and something to be proud of."

"Klaus is such a good kid..."

My heart twinges.

But how can a ten-year-old possibly find anything admirable in a father who, every single day, soaks in the hot springs completely naked while dozens of mothers urinate white streams onto him? I can't think of any point to boast about either.

"Everyone says that among Dark Elves, having stronger libido than your grandfather is already legendary."

"Hold on. Wait, no... let me see. Who exactly are 'everyone' and 'who'?"

"Mama Hilda, Mama Cosmos, Mama Mira, Mama Noelle, and so on."

"In the Dark Elf cultural sphere, going that far with a ten-year-old...!"

Sex education is way too early.

No, I think my past self was way too slow. When I was ten, I didn't understand actual sex, so Apple just left me to natural play.

But how can mothers openly tell a ten-year-old, "Your dad has a strong sex drive," and explain the meaning of that? And they even teach about your grandfather's sexual matters!

"At least in Tark, if you say 'Andy, son-in-law of Onyx,' everyone knows who you're talking about."

That sounds like the kind of name that gets people pointing fingers behind your back.

"As for what led to this situation, I don't mind, but I wouldn't want you to boast about it... First, I'd like you to find charm with one girl at a time."

While gently patting my son's head, I try to reason with him.

Claudio, like many elf boys, has a beautiful face that could easily be mistaken for a girl's. His hair is slightly longer than the average boy's, so if he dressed as a woman, few would probably recognize him.

Anyway, girls are creatures who love beauty. If such a handsome boy grows into a handsome young man, he'll surely become extremely popular and enjoy a much more privileged youth than I did. But first and foremost, I want you to firmly understand the basics of one-on-one relationships.

I absolutely don't want my own child to try creating a harem like mine right away and get crushed by it.

"Hmm..."

Claudio frowned slightly after hearing that.

So you really thought a harem was the norm...?

"Rather than girls, I think I'd prefer boys..."

My son made a shocking whisper.

"...Eh?"

"Eh, ah, no, rather than that, you know?"

"...Oh, okay."

The father is flustered.

N-no, think carefully. Think it through properly.

Hilda is now a model wife and mother, but she's always been a two-sword fighter. She has plenty of experience with intimate encounters with girls.

Such an open-minded mother wouldn't deny her son's preferences either.
If Crow is as cute as he seems, finding a boyfriend shouldn't be too difficult for him. Besides, it's "somewhat" that way. He's not uninterested in women at all; his strike zone just happens to be a bit too wide.

After all, I—who keeps these alien females as slaves—can hardly criticize the direction of Crow's broad love.
"P-Papa... um, I don't think you're against that kind of thing either. Um. We're different in approach, but cats get so lustful during the full moon they do all sorts of erotic things with each other..."

That's right. Homosexuality isn't abnormal at all.
It exists right here among us. It just happened that most examples around me were female, so I didn't notice.

OK. Calmed down.
"...Thank you."

Even while shaken, Crowdio offers an angelic smile after acknowledging my minority sexual preference.
Ugh... I can understand Hilda's feelings a little now. Even if I had any reservations about Crowdio's preferences, I couldn't say anything cruel to that smile.

"As for using the anal opening, Tettesha taught me quite a bit, and Hilda Mom said it's fairly common in Tark. I think we'll find a lover soon."

"...Tettes..."

A complex emotion rises within me toward the female slaves who have gone to excessive lengths preparing the environment for Crowdio.
I shouldn't complain... ugh.

Among the children, Frena, Neia's daughter, has recently become the most active.
At first, she tried learning swordsmanship from Neia but lacked talent; however, after studying dance with Noru-san and Luquino-san, she showed remarkable improvement.
Her athletic ability is truly inherited from Neia herself, and her small body perfectly traces the lively steps of the dark elf dances.

That's good, though.
While she resembles Neia in appearance, she's mischievous—throwing eggs at others, stealing food, and pranking people before slipping away into alleyways. She's grown into a troublesome child who disappears in an instant whether it's Grangi or Tark.

Grangi and Polka would know how to find her, but even there, she vanishes quickly, so I can't let my guard down.
If only the dragons' hearing could locate her immediately, but unfortunately, after being found out several times this way, she learned to change her voice with a magic spell she independently developed at age eleven—showing off that useless genius by running around the capital city.

In the end, Neia finally snapped and pursued her with full seriousness, relying on her continent-class physical abilities, leaving legends behind in the capital—but let's leave that aside.
If only she didn't have such a mischievous habit... though maybe that's just parental bias.

Recently, every time Frena leaves Grangi, Emma becomes extremely vigilant. I feel like even that's going too far...

"Besides pranks, she's gotten into the bad habit of choosing dangerous places to escape after learning acrobatic dances. Running across rooftops and along canal edges with a child's physical abilities... it could lead to irreversible consequences."

"...Yeah."

When Polka's spring water or Breakcore's regenerative therapy can't fix something, it means death. Humans can die from falling down just stairs if they land poorly; children are even more vulnerable.

"We have to stop her before it's too late."

"But... how can we make her stop? Even Neia has said 'It's dangerous, stop doing that' many times."

"Maybe we should let her suffer a little pain..."

"...If it can be kept light, that would be fine."

"...Since we've already seriously angered Neia-san once, anything less won't work. It's hard to keep it 'light.'"

Neia getting angry means something serious... and even worse than that...

"Hmm... Maybe Neia isn't scary anymore because she's always around. So what about someone else? Like, say, getting scolded by someone truly dangerous, like Laila..."

"Would a child who routinely provokes dragons understand the terror of Lady Laila?"

"...I see. So in the end, we just assume dragons will hold back. What about Tetes, or Cosmo-san, or Lady? Someone with a different kind of danger..."

"That's still just the fear of the adult world..."

"Hmm..."

It's hard to find an effective way to scold a child who's grown too accustomed to formidable opponents.

What should I do...?

The solution came from someone unexpected, or rather, inexplicably so: Elenia.

"Just stop letting Frena bother you with those annoying little tricks, right?"

"Well, sort of..."

"Adults try their hardest and still can't handle that kind of thing."

Elenia took on the task with those words.

A few days later, when Frena arrived in Polka, she was caught mid-scheme against the Baron in broad daylight.

"How long are you going to keep doing such lame stuff? You're eleven already—aren't you still a kid?"

She looked down at Frena with icy eyes, giving her full attention.

"U-uh... w-what do you mean? Even you're still..."

"You spent all that time learning proper dances from Mommy Noelle, yet here you are in this backwater village, only capable of childish pranks like a boy. Hmph."

...So it was a strategy to rub each other's noses in their pride after all.

Looking back, I realize I used to view "adults" as a monolithic group. Back then, that was how I saw it.

When someone is just an object of teasing, it hardly matters how powerful or prestigious they are; the difference is negligible.

But this isn't about being "that kind of target." It's about crossing a line and addressing the issue from the child's side.

...As expected, Frena easily fell for Elenia's provocation.

Perhaps partly because, as half-sisters relatively close in age, they were always conscious of each other.

"Polka is even more rural than Grangi! And you're acting all grown-up too, but you're just a dad-obsessed idiot! You're the bigger kid!"

...Hey, watch your mouth, Elen. Judging by your recent behavior, I can't really argue with that.

But Elenia remained unfazed.

"Kids' brains aren't that advanced yet."

"...Mmph, it's annoying... Just because you're a year or two older..."

"I want both boys and girls to stop getting obsessed with such pointless pranks by the time they're six or seven. Seriously, how long are you going to keep this up? Are you being spoiled by your mom?"

"My mom is strict!"

Don't make too much of mothers out of it. Selen's pretty indulgent herself. At least I've never seen her get angry like that.

...It strikes me now, belatedly, that while Polka has an environment where mothers can share responsibilities, Neia is struggling with her teenage daughter. Maybe I should visit Grangi more often.

Even though I occasionally come around, in the end, I have to play both father and mother at the same time.

"Besides... Frena's able to say things like that because she doesn't get enough one-on-one time with Dad."

"W-what..."

"Mom says everyone's saying it, right? Dad is special... and if you truly understand what that means, you won't be able to stay a child anymore... ♪"
Elenia instantly wore an expression of intoxicating allure and arousal, reacting to the faint presence of children.

Frena looked bewildered at Elenia's unreadable demeanor.

"N-what are you talking about? But Dad... I don't even know why he's so popular..."

"That's because you only see that kind of dad. Since you don't understand, you think he's just a carefree lecherous old man, right?"

Elenia leaned in close to Frena and whispered.

"The real Dad... makes Mom Neia, my older sister Aurora, Mom Diane, even the dragons... everyone fall head over heels. He's a man who can make even the strongest women crave motherhood. Have you ever really thought about how rare it is for someone like that to exist right beside us...?"

"U-uh..."

"...Heh-heh. Just as I thought, O-KO-SAMA♪"

"D-Dad isn't supposed to be... that kind of thing! That's weird!"

"The opposite of 'weird' is 'normal.' Dad isn't normal at all. You know that, don't you?"

"But..."

No, no, Elenia...
You're acting just like Selen right now. In that dangerous, seductive way.
Even if it's only a sister by adoption, you can't try to drag her down that path!

Just as I stepped in with a sense of urgency, Selen, Apple, and Anzeros—who had been hiding behind the same wall—along with Neia, a mysterious half-elf group, blocked my way.

"Let Elenia handle this from here, okay? ♪"

"I don't think we've actually touched Elenia yet, Mr. Andy... so how come your understanding of her is so deep?"

"As expected of Selen's daughter... I can't even articulate it myself, yet she describes Andy's charm so vividly."

"My child really is causing trouble... If Mom Neia persuades Elenia-chan as she is, she should calm down a bit."

Everyone seems captivated by Elenia's serpentine rhetoric.

"If things continue like this, won't both Elenia and Frena end up making fatherless mistakes? Won't it feel like we're forcing them to realize something they shouldn't?"

"Mr. Andy is just a weird dad, after all♪"

"There's nothing we can do about it."

"I think if we cast a contraception spell, there won't be any problems."

"If Frena properly becomes a girl... then maybe even making her a female slave wouldn't be too bad."

"Neia, why are you overthinking this?! You absolutely shouldn't say something like that as a parent! And as a wife, it's way out of line!?"

"Because I thought the Flash Sword could at least step in as a substitute father... but it turned out completely useless. It was nothing more than a story-replaying machine."

W-well, I'll try harder as a father from now on. As a father.
...Why can't everyone stop trying to touch my daughter?

"It’s a common problem in rural areas: too many kids to handle."

With no entertainment of any kind, the only thing keeping me going is intimacy with my wife. The locals are happy for it too—more workers and potential heirs means more prosperity. So I let her work as much as she likes.

Before I knew it, we ended up with a large family.

Especially since beastfolk tend to have twins or triplets as a norm, having kids often leads to families of ten or more in no time.

At Isaac’s place, his wife is a pair of beastfolk sisters, so they’ve got about twenty kids now and are struggling. It’s not like I can tell them to slow down, though.

In fact, the catfolk have had a baby boom.

Including the cat colony, I’ve got over two hundred kids of my own. The original cat colony has more than doubled in size.

I asked Irina if it was really manageable, and she just brushed me off with something like, "How could we not handle it? We’ve got dragons too, after all."

As for food, the bored Blue and Silver Dragons take turns patrolling the cat colony and helping with monster hunts, so there’s no issue.

Clothing and education are also taken care of thanks to direct trade with the elf territory. Once the kids reach an age where they can understand, they’re enrolled in Polka Academy, a private school run by Laurel and the others.

Laurel says catfolk are notoriously fickle, but the experienced elf and dragon instructors in various fields are exceptionally skilled. In fact, some of the little kittens have shown such magical talent that it’s almost rivaling Irina’s.

Well, they don’t have Irina’s lifespan, so I guess they’ll never really catch up.

"I mean, almost all of them are my kids... It’s a weird way to put it, but it still doesn’t feel real."

"Right? There aren’t any kids here that Papa doesn’t know about, are there?"

"Yeah, but still. Two hundred of them..."

"And this isn’t even all of them, is it?"

"...Yeah, you’re right about that."

Standing behind the Polka Academy auditorium with Claudius, I sighed.

Of course, kids who can’t think for themselves don’t come to the academy. And Claudius is only ten, but being Hilda’s son, he’s exceptionally smart and has already self-studied all the major academy subjects, so he’s treated as a graduate.

Compared to Peter, who’s always chasing after girls’ chests, it’s quite a contrast.

By the way, the academy is only open for half a year during winter when everyone has free time. During summer, they all spend their time back in their hometowns. It’s not just cats—there are also elves and children born to prostitutes attending, and beyond that, students from Polka Town and Grange gather here as well.

But still, the only ones who come for the opening ceremony are mostly my kids.

Especially the cats, who are brought by dragons, so they’re guaranteed to show up. And since it’s an extension of the church’s educational program, there’s also a relaxed attitude that even if they don’t attend the opening or closing ceremonies, it’s fine.

But just because they’ve completed everything doesn’t mean they get any kind of award for it. That’s about it, I guess.

There are some benefits to this, though. During the time they’re at this academy, lodging and meals are free. After all, most of the students here are my children, so it’s only natural that we do this for them, and eventually, it became the same for the external students.

Well, regarding lodging, half are staying at the inn I manage, and the other half are staying at the Vapor Palace. Of course, the palace is reserved for my children only.

I strongly recommend the inn for the boys, though. Some might ask if it’s okay for the girls, but the female slaves assured me it’s fine since “there are almost no boys here.” Of course, I haven’t mandated undressing.

But the cat beastmen don’t seem to mind much and end up going naked without hesitation.

From now on, if I want to stick to my policy of “not letting anything indecent happen to my daughters,” this situation isn’t ideal. Maybe I should negotiate with Baron or Kristi to set up another inn run by family members.

…But if I expand the inn business too much, it might start to involve the question of who I really am.

I’m a blacksmith. The owner of the Smison Armory. Though, aside from the crossbow unit, I still don’t get much work.

“Hmm…”

“I always think you have weird worries, Papa.”

“Well, I am a weird Papa… My apologies.”

Since my line of work is so different from other fathers, it’s often hard to explain things to the children as they grow older. Lately, I’ve been using the excuse “I’m just a weird Papa” a lot.

But since I’m a weird Papa, it’s not surprising that there are too many mothers. And since I’m a weird Papa, it’s not strange that I don’t really know what I’m doing to earn a living.

I’m a weird dad, so it’s no surprise that even though I’m already 40, I’ve ended up with a 15-year-old female slave as my mother… Wait, no. That would be too much.

Externally, the female slaves who used to be slaves are now all officially wives, but they don’t really mind that distinction anymore.

There’s a broad category of being a female slave, and within that, if you have children or make some significant contributions, you’re considered “mature” and are granted the external title of wife. It’s kind of like that.

Recently, though, there have been more female slaves. I don’t mean to increase their numbers, but they’ve kept growing.

I know it’s a bad idea to impregnate a girl who’s around the same age as Elenia, but unfortunately, I can’t help but keep pushing myself on active girls, and before I knew it, I’d ended up with a baby, and we even had a celebration party. I think most of the kids would say, “Well, he’s a weird dad, so what can you do?”

“I just want to be as proud a dad as I can… but it’s hard when I’m too weird to even be proud of.”

“Well, from my perspective, you’re a perfectly proud dad.”

“Crow is such a good kid…”

I get teary-eyed.

But how does a 10-year-old find so much to admire in a father who spends every day, naked in the hot spring, splashing white pee on dozens of mothers? I can’t even think of any traits to be proud of.

“Even among Dark Elves, it’s already legendary that he’s more sexually active than his grandfather,” they all say.

“Wait. Uh… Let’s just say everyone…”

"Hilda Mama, Cosmos Mama, Mira Mama, Nola Mama..."

"In the Dark Elf cultural sphere, teaching a 10-year-old that much...!"

"Their sex education is too early."

"No, I think it’s just that my past self was too late. When I was 10, I couldn’t understand real sex and ended up playing with Apple in her natural state instead."

"But still, these mothers are so shameless, teaching their 10-year-old kids things like 'Your dad is good at sex' or whatever. And then they even teach them about their grandpa’s... stuff. What’s up with that?"

"At least in Talc, if you say 'Andy, the Oniki’s son-in-law,' everyone knows who you mean."

"Isn’t that the kind of thing where once you name it, people point at you and laugh?"

"It’s fine if it’s just the part that leads to that, but I don’t want him to brag about that... First, I want him to find his charm with girls one by one."

"He pats his son on the head gently, explaining things calmly."

"Claudio, being an elf-like boy, has a beautiful face that could easily be mistaken for a girl’s. His hair is slightly longer than average for a boy, so if he cross-dresses, it’s unlikely many people would notice."

"Girls, in the end, are creatures who like pretty things. If this handsome boy grows into a handsome young man, he’ll probably be extremely popular and live a much more blessed youth than I did. But first, I want him to understand that it’s always one person with another person."

"I don’t want my son to suddenly try to create a huge harem like me and end up getting stabbed in the back. That would just be too painful for me."

Upon hearing this, Claudio made a slightly troubled face.

"You're the type who thinks a harem is the norm, aren't you?"

[Child]: "If anything, I'm more into boys than girls..."

My child let out an astonishing mutter.

"...Huh?"

"Huh? Oh, no, I mean 'if anything'!"

"...Oh."

Father was flustered.

W-wait, think about it. Really think about it.

Hilda-san is a good wife and mother now, but she’s always been bi. She has plenty of repertoire when it comes to pleasuring girls.

Her broad-minded perspective wouldn’t deny her son’s preferences either.

With Cloud's cuteness, it shouldn’t be hard to find a boyfriend. And besides, "to an extent." It’s not like I’m completely uninterested in women. It’s just that my strike zone is a bit too wide.

How can I criticize Cloud’s broad love orientation when I’ve been turning non-human slaves into female slaves myself?

"Pa-Pa... um, well... I don’t think that’s... off the table. Um. It’s just different from Pa-Pa’s preferences, but I heard the cats get way too worked up during the full moon and do... ahem... things with each other..."

That’s right. Homosexuality is not abnormal at all.

It was something close to me. It’s just that most of the examples around me were women, so I didn’t notice it.

OK. Calm down.

"...Thanks."

Even as I was flustered, Cloud smiled at me like an angel for acknowledging my minority sexual preferences.

Ugh... I think I understand Hilda-san’s feelings a little now. Even if I had reservations about Cloud’s preferences, I couldn’t bring myself to say anything cruel with that smile.

"Regarding using the... back door, Tete-sama taught me a lot... and Hilda-sama said that in Taruk, it’s pretty common. I’m sure you’ll find someone soon."

"...Tetes..."

I felt mixed emotions toward the female slaves who’ve been unnecessarily preparing the environment for Cloud.

Note: This is a sample text for testing purposes only. It does not reflect real-world scenarios.

Sigh... I hate having to complain about this, but... ugh.

Among the children lately, the one who’s been particularly lively is Frena, Neia’s daughter.

Initially, she learned swordsmanship from Neia, but she didn’t have much talent for it. However, after learning dance from Nour-san and Lucino-san, she has made significant progress.

Her athletic ability, inherited from Neia, is as impressive as ever, and she flawlessly traces the lively dark elf dance steps in her small body.

That’s all well and good.

Though she looks just like Neia, she’s a prankster who throws eggs at people, steals food, and generally causes trouble. She grows up to be a troublesome child who quickly disappears into the alleys of the city.

I’m used to dealing with kids in Grange and polkas, so I can handle it, but she’s so quick that she’s often gone missing even in places like the royal capital or Tark.

If we use the dragons’ hearing to track her down, we’ll find her right away. Unfortunately, after being found out so many times, she’s learned her lesson and has developed a voice-changing spell by herself at the age of 11—quite the unnecessary genius. She’s been running around the royal capital with it.

And eventually, Neia got so fed up that she used her continent-best physical abilities for a serious pursuit, leaving behind legends in the royal capital. But let’s set that aside.

If only she didn’t have that prankster streak... though maybe that’s just parental bias.

Lately, Emma has been extra vigilant whenever Frena leaves Grange, and it feels like she’s taking it a bit too far...

"Pranks aside, the problem is that she’s gotten into the habit of picking dangerous spots as her escape routes because she learned acrobatic dance moves by accident. A child’s body running around on rooftops and near waterways... it could lead to something irreversible."

Even if you try to restore Polka's Spirit Spring or Break Core with regeneration treatments, it’s already too late. In other words, death.

Humans can die from the worst possible timing, even falling down a staircase. Children are especially at risk.

"We need to find a way to stop them soon."

"But... I’m not sure if that’ll work. How many times has Neia’s mom told her to stop because it’s dangerous?"

"Maybe if we actually make her feel some pain..."

"...As long as it’s not too serious, that is."

"Making Neia angry is already a big deal... So how much worse does it have to get before it’s meaningful? It’s hard to know what’s 'light' in this case."

It’s rare for Neia to get truly angry. And even if she does, would it be enough?

"Hmm... Maybe because I’m used to dealing with her, I don’t find her scary anymore. Then how about someone else... Like Lila, who’s genuinely terrifying..."

"Would a child who always picks on dragons really understand the true terror of Lady Lila?"

"...You’re right. They’d probably think even dragons would hold back in the end. Then what about Tete, Cosmos-san, or Lady... Someone else who’s equally scary in their own way..."

"That’s also the fear of the adult world, after all…"

"Hmm…"

An effective way to anger a child who has grown too accustomed to intimidating opponents. It’s quite difficult.

What should I do…?

Surprisingly—or rather, in some way, it was Elenia who solved it.

“Just make Frena stop with all that annoying harassment, right?”

“Well, yeah…”

“You can’t just desperately try to stop something like that as an adult.”

Elenia said that and took on the task.

Then a few days later, when Frena came to Polka, Elenia caught her trying to do something bold to the baron in the middle of town.

“Why are you still doing such lame stuff? Aren’t you way too childish for an 11-year-old?”

She looked down at Frena with a completely cold gaze.

"Ugh... w-what? You’re still like that..."

"After learning such a womanly dance from Noor Mama, this country bumpkin can only play childish games like a boy. Heh."

...So it’s a strategy to tease each other as kids.

Now that I think about it, I feel like I’ve been lumping all "adults" together until now. Back when we were around her age.

If you look at it from the perspective of someone to tease and play with, whether they’re important or impressive doesn’t really matter.

It’s not about being that kind of target, but if you’re on the "child" side of the line, you have to stop them from crossing over.

...As expected, Frena easily fell for Elenia’s provocation.

Maybe it’s because they were relatively close in age as half-sisters and were always aware of each other.

"Elenia’s polka is even more country than Grange! You’re acting all mature, but you’re just a daddy’s girl, aren’t you? That makes you even more of a kid!"

...Hey. She’s got you there, Elenia. If you look at how she’s been acting lately, you can’t really argue back.

I thought so too, but Elenia remains calm.

"Kids’ brains only get to that level, huh?"

"Ugh, annoying... Just because I'm a year or two older than you..."

"I wish they'd stop with this childish prank play by the time they're six or seven. Seriously, how long is this going to last? Maybe they're just spoiled by their moms."

"M-my mom's strict, though!"

"Don't make fun of our moms like that. Selen’s pretty lenient, isn’t she? At least I’ve never seen her mad at you."

...Looking back, I realize Neia’s having a tough time with her teenage daughter in this Polka environment where the moms take turns. Maybe I should visit more often.

"Even when I do come by, I still have to play both dad and mom roles at the same time."

"And... you can say that because you don’t get a proper chance to spend time with Dad, right, Frena?"

"What...?"

"M-mom said it, didn’t she? Dad’s special... If you really understand what that means, you won’t be able to stay just a kid anymore...♪"

Elenia’s expression shifted in an instant, from the childlike vibe to a chilling mix of seduction and ecstasy.

Frena looked confused by Elenia’s inexplicable demeanor.

"What are you...? Dad always says he doesn’t really know why he’s so popular..."

"Because that's all you've ever seen of Papa. You don't understand him... You just think he's a sleazy old man, right?"

Elenia leaned closer to Frena and whispered.

"The real Papa is... He makes Nae-mama, Aurora-nee-san, Dianne-mama, the dragons... everyone fall for him so hard they can't think straight. You've never really considered that there's a man like that, someone who could make even the strongest women want to have children, right here, in real life...?"

"........."

"...Hehe. As I thought, O-kosa-ma♪"

"W-wait, talking about your father like that is weird...!"

"...The opposite of weird is normal. Papa isn't normal at all. You know that, don't you?"

"But..."

No good. No good at all, Elenia.

You're acting just like Selen right now. In that dangerous mood of hers.

You can't possibly be trying to drag your own step-sister down that kind of path, can you?

So I decided to intervene, feeling a sense of urgency, but I was stopped by Selen, Apple, Anzeros, and Nae—a mysterious group of half-elf girls who had also come out of hiding.

"Let’s leave this to Eri-chan. Right? ♪"

"I’m pretty sure I haven’t laid a hand on Eri-chan yet, Andy-san. …And yet her understanding is like that."

"As expected of Selen’s daughter. Even I’m not confident I can properly put it into words, but she manages to describe Andy’s charm so well."

"My child has truly caused you trouble… If Eri-chan keeps persuading her, she might calm down a bit."

Everyone was captivated by Eri’s snake-like eloquence.

"But if this keeps up, it’ll feel like I’m being forced to act like a father unfit for both Eri and Frena. Doesn’t that feel like the wrong kind of lesson?"

"Andy-san is such an odd father ♪"

"I guess there’s no helping it."

"I think using contraception magic would solve the problem."

"If Frena can become more like a proper girl… I don’t mind turning her into a female slave."

"Wait, Neia, you’ve been that worked up!? That’s absolutely something you shouldn’t say as a parent!? As a wife, it’s pretty bad too!?"

"I thought the Flash Sword would at least be a little like a father figure, but it turned out to be completely useless… It only became a machine for replaying old stories."

I’ll… I’ll try harder as a father. As a father.

……Why doesn’t anyone stop me from doing something to my daughter?