"I can't thank you enough for this, Rudy." Laws lowered his head and said, "Truly. Thank you."

Sylphy bowed her head as well and said, "Thank you for saving me, Rudy."

"I-It's fine!" I raised my hands and said, "I was coming out to play in the forest anyway..."

Laws raised his head and chuckled. "Coming to the dangerous forest to play... I guess Paul and Zenith weren't exaggerating when they said you were a genius."

I frowned and said, "I'm not a genius, Mister Laws. I just work hard."

After all, a real genius would have anticipated something like this happening... I should have realized that something was up already after I got attacked by Whitey in the forest.

If Master Roxy was here, she would have placed down barriers all over and made sure that it worked against Whitey before leaving it alone instead of just thinking it was fine like me.

And if that had happened, Sylphy wouldn't have been terrified and forced to suffer like that for a whole day.

Dammit.

Laws smiled and said, "You are also as humble as they say."

My frown deepened. But it would be rude to say anything in response to that, so I just kept quiet. Instead, I took stock of the situation.

After picking up Luffy... or rather, Sylphy and saving her from that weird bear...

Seriously. That thing had like a giant glowy white core in its chest and then moved super fast.

Not as fast as Dad when he got serious, but it was still pretty dangerous.

Fortunately, it wasn't that scary or dangerous to me. I mean, it was a giant moving target after all. It might be fast, but Dad was faster, and I'd been hit enough times to build up my reaction speed.

Not to mention that constantly using <Healing> was a cheat that made me super OP in terms of physical skills and reflexes.

...Though not as OP as Dad.

Freaking combat genius. You're supposed to get slower when you get older, not faster...

But anyway, the bear wasn't that scary and the rescue mission was a success.

Though the secondary mission of figuring out Whitey's... No. Considering that he tried to get a cute little girl killed, that name was too friendly.

Let's call him... Well, he probably wasn't the devil. And demons were nice people like Miss Roxy, so that wouldn't work.

Hm... Guess I'll stick with Whitey for now. If I ever met the guy in person though, I definitely needed to remember to come up with a name to tick the guy off for all that he tried to do.

That and punch him in the face.

...What was I thinking about again?

Oh, right. Whitey's motives.

I didn't know what he was doing, but I did know for sure now that he was up to no good.

Also, my barriers really weren't helping. Needed to tune those up with some holy mana now that I knew how that worked. Maybe plant a few of my mom's special trees too...

Ah. And I needed to look into magic items to protect them from Whitey.

Thankfully, there was probably going to be a reason to give gifts to everyone soon. Assuming Dad didn't royally screw up.

I hope he didn't royally screw up.

...He'd better not have royally screwed up.

No, no. Positive thoughts. PMA. Positive mental attitude. No need to stress about things you can't control.

Right.

Anyway, lots of things to do.

For now though...

I looked at Sylphy and said, "Are you going to take Sylphy home, Mister Laws?"

Laws frowned.

Sylphy looked up at her father and said, "Father?"

Laws looked at me and then he looked back into the forest at the approaching village guardsmen. He looked thoughtful and then said, "Rudy. Do you think you could take Luffy out to play at your house?"

"F-Father?!" Sylphy blushed and tugged at her dirty clothes. "...I need to change."

I blinked. "I mean... I don't mind, Mister Laws."

It had been a while since I met anyone my own age. And Sylphy seemed nice... and pretty smart.

Maybe I could come up with some fun games we could play using magic?

"...But wouldn't it be better to take her home? Sylphy's mom is probably worried too, right?"

Laws shook his head and smiled. "Thank you for your concern. But I'll tell her myself about Luffy. Besides, I'm sure that she'd be happy to hear that Luffy found a new friend."

Sylphy blushed. "F-Friend?! U-Um..." She turned to look at me and then poked her fingers together. "...Are we really?"

I laughed and said, "Of course we're friends. Well, unless you don't want me to be your friend?" I paused. "...I guess it would be kind of weird-"

"No!" Sylphy immediately spoke up and shook her head. "I do! I mean... L-Let's be friends!"

An innocent and cute request. Seeing that, I couldn't help but smile. "Alright. Then we're friends now."

Sylphy smiled back.

"Laws?" Someone called out from the distance. One of the guardsmen.

Laws narrowed his eyes.

It was just a brief moment.

Laws immediately relaxed and put on a smile.

But I could tell. The guy was holding himself back. He was forcefully suppressing anger and irritation.

...It made me wonder what exactly went down. But I didn't want to get involved in the adult stuff if I didn't have to.

Not to mention adults tended to look down on kids, and I'd probably just muck things up.

So instead...

I grabbed Sylphy's hand and started walking back home. "Let's go, Sylphy! It's a long walk, but we can chat on the way back and get to know each other."

"U-U-Um...!"

"What's your favorite color? Mine's red. Well, it's actually a toss-up between red and green, but I think that red's a pretty cool color. A little bit of it makes everything pop, you know?"

"R-Really?" Sylphy looked thoughtful and said, "...I guess that's true. It's like how wildberries stand out in the greenery, right?"

"Er... Y-Yeah. Like that."

I wasn't expecting her to seriously analyze my response... Was Sylphy secretly a genius too?

...Well, she did manage to survive a whole day in the forest by herself. And there were monsters too...

...Nah. It wasn't like she was some secret genius who was both smart and good with magic too, right? I mean, what were the odds of that?

-LIV-

Paul leaned against the doorframe, staring out towards the forest. As he did, he frowned. "...Rudy's late."

It was turning dark. The sun was already half below the horizon in the distance, and the orange sky now had streaks of purple across it.

Lilia walked out from the house and stood beside Paul. "The young- I mean, Rudy will be fine, Mas- ...Paul." She blushed and said, "My apologies. This will be a hard habit to break..."

Paul laughed and said, "Don't worry. I'm still... trying to wrap my head around how it ended up like this too."

"Hmph." Zenith scoffed and then snuck up behind Paul, wrapping her arms around his shoulder. "Don't get a big head about it. If you start looking at any other women, I'm not the only one you have to worry about. Right, Lily?"

Lilia nodded. "Yes, Zenny." She tucked a strand of her crimson hair behind her ear and gave Paul a sideways glance. "...A scoundrel who is greedy after all this time does not deserve a happy ending."

Paul let out a nervous laugh. "C-Calm down you two. I'd never do that."

He was already living the dream. Two beautiful busty women who loved him and were even willing to share... And did share for a bit just a couple of hours ago.

Remembering that brought a silly grin to Paul's face.

And then Zenith slapped him.

"Ow!" Paul flinched and said, "What was that for!"

"For being a pervert." Zenith shoved Paul and stepped back.

He staggered a bit and then turned around. "I said I'm sorry. I didn't realize that I was aiming higher than usual and-"

Zenith gave Paul a cold stare.

He gulped and then bowed his head. "Sorry! Please don't throw me out!"

"...I'll think about it." Zenith looked at Lilia and said, "But spending a girl's night with just Lily is sounding pretty tempting right now."

Lilia blushed.

Paul looked between Zenith and Lilia and then pouted. "Hey! I'm the man of the house here! That's not fair!"

Zenith crossed her arms and said, "Well, maybe the man of the house should have been more gentle earlier and double-checked where he was planting his sword instead of being all excited like a horndog."

That 100% wasn't Paul's fault! Lilia was the one who brought Zenith around for that part...

But Paul knew when to stop pushing his luck. Not to mention he really did hurt his wife a lot recently...

So instead of saying anything, he bowed his head and said, "Yes Ma'am."

Zenith smiled and then walked over to pat his head. "Good doggy."

Paul's heart pounded when she did that.

W-Was this it? The so-called humiliation play...?

Zenith was usually submissive, but this side of her...

"Disgusting." Zenith reared back and then looked down on Paul. "...Don't show that face around Rudy. If he picks that up from you, I'm divorcing you right away."

Paul quickly nodded and cleared up his expression. "Understood!"

Zenith shook her head, seemingly exasperated. But the slight smile and warm gaze she gave Paul showed that she didn't really mind.

...Damn. Paul really owed his son a lot for this.

He seemed a bit lonely, so maybe Paul should just work hard to get him some younger brothers or sisters. Hehe...

A smack on his head.

"Ow!" Paul turned to look at Zenith.

"What?" She blinked and said, "It wasn't me."

Paul paused and then looked over at Lilia.

Her hand was outstretched, showing that she was the culprit. But she also didn't have a shred of remorse or embarrassment. Instead, she calmly lowered her hand and said, "I will not forgive you if Rudy becomes a lustful villain like you are, Paul."

"...I'll try to hold it back when he's around. But it's fine in bed, right?"

Lilia blushed. "O-Once in a while."

Yes!

Zenith rolled her eyes and then looked out towards the forest. "You're right though. Rudy is taking a while to get back... Do you think something happened?" She looked back at Paul and said, "You mentioned that kids went missing, right?" She looked worried and said, "Rudy is fine, right?"

Paul turned serious and thought about it.

There was a strange mist in the forest preventing people from going deeper... and there had been a lot of magical creatures, but Paul took care of most of them. Not to mention that they were all weaklings.

If that was all, then his son who had become a Saint-ranked magician should be fine. Especially since he was a Saint-ranked magician who could dodge Paul's attacks every three of four hits.

Which reminded Paul that he seriously needed to start training again. Couldn't let Rudy catch up before he was even halfway to being an adult...

But anyway, it should be fine if that was all.

There was that strange mist though... It had been there when Roxy was around too, but she couldn't find anything off with it.

It seemed harmless... but if the reason why a Saint-ranked magician couldn't find anything was that the source was *stronger* than the Saint-ranked magician...

Paul rested his hand on the sword sheathed at his left side and muttered, "Should I go check?"

He wasn't sure what he could do if it was actually that strong. But at the least he'd be able to get Rudy out. He was confident in that at least.

Even if it cost him his life.

Zenith nodded. "I think we should... I'll come with you."

Lilia frowned and said, "...I will come as well."

"Huh?" Paul looked at Lilia and said, "But your legs-"

"Are fine." Lilia cut him off and said, "They are still a bit weak, but it seems that the peaceful days in the countryside have helped them heal quite a bit. I am still not at the level I was, but I should be able to fend off some simple monsters."

Zenith shook her head. "No way, Lily. What will Rudy think if you get hurt?"

"And what about you, Zenny?" Lilia frowned. "You are Rudy's birth mother. If you get hurt, he will cry. I know it."

"And you're the one who supported him all this time!" Zenith grabbed Lilia's hand and said, "If something happened to you, he'd break down!"

Lilia hesitated.

Paul looked between his wife and his... Well, his other wife wasn't quite the right word for it... Lover? Partner? ...Partner. Partner was a better word. Lover sounded like he just used Lilia for her body, and he definitely wasn't doing that.

Anyway, Paul looked between the two women and shook his head. "No. You two stay here. I'll go take a look. Besides, if-"

A gentle breeze blew, carrying a young girl's laughter.

...A young girl's laughter?

Paul spun around and saw a young girl with light green hair and pointed ears land on the ground nearby. Her white hooded sweater and slightly tattered gray shorts shifted with the wind before settling down.

The young girl tidied up her clothes and then let out a wide smile. Turning back to look at the sky, she cupped her and shouted. "I did it, Rudy!"

Paul blinked. "Rudy...?" He looked up at the sky as well. The moment he did, Paul saw a gray blur fall down and crash into the ground beside the young girl.

"Owowow... Need to work on landing..."

A familiar young boy's voice. Rudy's.

He shook his left hand and then fixed up his gray scarf. After that, he looked at the young girl and said, "How did you land so gently, Sylphy?"

"I don't know? But it was fun!" She twirled around and smiled. "Rudy's a great magic teacher!"

Rudy let out a wry smile. "Yeah... I guess I am..." He shook his head and then noticed Paul and the others. "Oh. Hey Dad. Mom. Miss Lilia." He waved and said, "Sorry I'm late. But I brought a friend."

"...I can see that." Paul shifted his gaze to the young girl. "Sylphy, is it?"

"A-Ah." Sylphy reflexively ducked behind Rudy. But then she paused and stepped out. "U-Um..." She bowed her head. "N-Nice to meet you, Mister and Misses Greyrat. M-My name is Sylphiette... U-U-Um, my father is Laws and-"

"Wait!" Zenith stepped out from behind Paul and said, "You're Luffy?"

Sylphy's eyes widened and she nodded. "Y-Yes?"

Zenith squealed and ran up to hug Sylphy. "by Milis, You're so much cuter than I thought! And you're Rudy's friend? That's great! How about you come live with us? You seem like a nice girl, and-"

"MOM!" Rudy swept out his hand and sent a gust of wind, knocking Sylphy away from Zenith. After that, he sent another gust of wind and set Sylphy down next to him. "Stop that! You're scaring her!"

Sylphy immediately ducked behind Rudy, quivering in fear.

"Eh?" Zenith blinked. "What'd I do?"

Paul chuckled and then gave Rudy a thumbs up. "Bringing home a girl already... Seems like the Greyrat blood's running strong- Grk?!"

Lilia sighed and dragged Paul inside by his collar. At the same time, she grabbed Zenith's arm and pulled her inside as well.

"L-Lily? W-Wait. I want to talk more with Rudy's cute friend!"

"You two are far too much." Lilia looked back at Rudy and said, "Have fun with your friend, Rudy. I will make sure these two do not interfere."

"Um... Alright...?"

Lilia smiled and then slammed the door shut, taking Paul and Zenith inside with her.

Sylphy blinked and turned to look at Rudy. "...Did I do something wrong, Rudy?"

Rudy let out a wry smile. "I think my parents are just happy that I finally have a friend."

"O-Oh." Sylphy blushed and lowered her head. "...I'm happy too."

Rudy smiled and then patted Sylphy's head. "You're a cute girl, Sylphy. Please, never change."

"Heehee..."

At that time, a pair of loud smacks echoed from the house.

"I knew you'd be a bad influence on Rudy from all your flirting!"

"Master Paul's shamelessness has become a bad influence! How could you?!"

Sylphy turned to Rudy and blinked.

Rudy sighed. "...Let's just play in the courtyard, Sylphy. Here, you said water mana felt easier to use, right? How about we try bouncing some water balls around?"

Another smack.

"WHAT WAS THAT FOR?!"

Sylphy winced and turned to look at the house. "Um... Are they-"

"It's fine." Rudy grabbed Sylphy's arm and said, "Let's go play by the tree. I think my parents need some time alone..."