"S-Sorry, Rudy." Sylphy glanced at me and then looked away, her face a deep red. "I-I don't know what came over me."

"Me, apparently." I sighed and then fixed my pants.

Sylphy turned an even deeper shade of red and then started picking up her clothes from next to the bed.

"It's a good thing the FBI aren't a thing here. Or the police. Though I guess if they were, the Asura Kingdom wouldn't be so rotten..."

A very rough and intimate time spent with Sylphy.

It had an awkward start, but the good ol' Greyrat genes kicked in along with the hormones.

I was screaming on the inside from embarrassment, but thankfully I'd had plenty of practice recently playing it cool.

Not to mention that Sylphy was already mortified about what she did and the way she acted, so it was better to keep it simple. Play it off like it wasn't a big deal.

...Though I guess things were going to be extra awkward when I met up with Eris and Master Roxy again.

"FBI? Police?" Sylphy tilted her head, confused.

"Don't worry about it." I picked up my coat and started buttoning it. As I did, I noticed Sylphy staring at me, subtly licking her lips.

I gave her a blank look.

She flinched and then looked away. "S-Sorry Rudy. J-Just... Um..." She looked at me and then lowered her head, her face red. "D-Did it feel good for you too?"

Internal screaming. Definitely internal screaming.

But I stayed calm.

Mostly because Sylphy was probably feeling guilty and worried that she forced me when she was an adult and I was technically still a kid.

...Which, objectively, was true.

Which would also explain her nervousness and guilt.

So, instead of panicking or acting in a way that would make that worse, I decided to channel a bit of Dad (ignoring how much it made me want to cringe) and said, "The best, Sylphy. So don't worry about it, okay?"

Sylphy let out a sigh of relief and started to put her clothes back on. As she did, I couldn't help but stare at her body.

Not because it was beautiful. I was already made to appreciate that in full just a bit earlier.

Instead, it was because of the scars.

Burns, slashes, places that looked like she had been stabbed. There was even a scar over her chest that had a matching mark on her back. A literal stab through the heart.

I'd noticed it earlier, but now that the situation was a bit calmer...

Sylphy paused in the middle of putting on her shirt and then looked away. "S-Sorry, Rudy. I know it looks ugly-"

"No." I cut her off before she could finish that sentence and said, "You're beautiful, Sylphy. It's just..." I walked over and then traced out a thin line of scars over her neck. "...What happened to you?"

Sylphy laughed and said, "Oh. I was just clumsy. Roxy always told me to be extra careful in dungeons but I didn't believe her at first." She rubbed her neck and said, "Did you know? Some dungeons naturally spawn with thin wires at neck level. And some spider type monsters artificially create them to trap prey. They're really sharp. Really." After smiling, she put her shirt back on. Just like it was nothing.

Seeing that attitude, I hugged her and said, "I'm sorry, Sylphy."

"What are you sorry about, Rudy?" Sylphy smiled and patted my back. "You're safe, and I'm here again."

"...You're right." I nodded and said, "Then..." I leaned back and grabbed her hand. "From this point on, don't leave my sight, okay? I don't even want to think about you getting hurt somewhere I couldn't see. Not after seeing how much you've already been hurt."

Sylphy's eyes widened, her emerald irises glittering with tears. She smiled and then shook her head, causing the tears to scatter before looking at me. Reaching out, she placed her hand on my cheek and said, "Silly, Rudy. That's what I want to say to you. That's why I went looking all those years chasing down any trace of you."

A hauntingly beautiful expression. Love and happiness, but both gained after endless struggle and despair.

Seeing that, I reached out to pat Sylphy's head like I used to. "You silly girl."

Sylphy pouted and said, "I'm not a girl anymore, Rudy."

"Ah, right, right. Since you forced me to make you a woman, I guess that just mean you're mine now, right?"

Sylphy blushed and looked away. "W-When you say it like that... uu..." A mix of happiness and guilt.

I laughed and ruffled her hair. "Don't worry about it. Your love is a bit, uh... more *intense* than I remembered or expected, but I'll do my best to return it."

Sylphy looked at me and then smiled. "...Thank you, Rudy. I love you."

"I love you too-"

"Rika is happy that Rudy has reunited with his long lost lover and finally took steps to ensure continuation of the Rudras bloodline, but would you kindly wait until evening?"

"Eep!" Sylphy jumped to her feet. And then she realized she hadn't put on her pants and quickly sat back down, covering her lower body and turning a deep red.

Especially as an awkward dripping sound echoed.

I felt my face heat up.

Rika stared at me, her eyes silently judging behind her glasses. And then she sighed and walked back down the stairs. "Rika will give you ten minutes."

"T-Thanks."

I looked at Sylphy.

Sylphy stared back and cleared her throat. "U-Um..." She glanced down and then quietly said, "...I don't have any other clothes, and these..."

Ah. Right.

Well...

I was more than intimately aware of Sylphy's three sizes now, so if I just thought about it...

Something that would suit my beautiful Sylphy and draw out her radiance instead of the muted colors that made her look so tragic.

And also some comfortable undergarments instead of the tattered and rough ones she had been wearing.

Silk maybe? Black to hide any potentially embarrassing stains.

And then for an outfit... A light green blouse and skirt would work. Some brown leather boots and mesh leggings to hide her scars since she seemed self-conscious about them. Ah, then some gloves too to hide the ones on her arms. We'll do black silk on that too.

With that decided, the clothes popped into existence, landing with a soft thud next to Sylphy.

"E-Eh?"

"Wear that for now. We can work on getting you more clothes after we sort stuff out."

"U-Um... Okay." Sylphy smiled. But then she hesitated. "But, Rudy. My... I mean, I'm still..."

Oh. Right.

I coughed and then waved my hand.

A bit of wind, water, and heat. A quick rinse and dry off all over Sylphy's body-

"Hn~"

I stopped.

Sylphy turned red and said, "P-Please tell me before you do that next time, Rudy."

"R-Right."

Sylphy looked at me and laughed.

"W-What?"

Sylphy shook her head and started changing into the clothes I gave her. "Nothing. Just... I'm glad." She smiled and said, "Rudy's as cute as ever."

"...That's not fair." My face felt hot, but I ignored it and said, "I can't say that about you now that you've become so beautiful."

Sylphy's face turned red and she laughed.

And then a childish voice echoed from downstairs. "Nii-cha! Stap fwiwting!"

"Yeah, Master Rudy! Stop flirting with MM!?! Wata! What are you-"

"Shut up, Fai! Wyn, block the sound!"

"Kay..."

Silence.

Sylphy averted her eyes and focused on putting on her clothes.

...My image of being the cool big brother for Stella is ruined forever now, isn't it?

-RNG-

"Jiii..."

Stella stared at me from her crib with judging eyes.

I let out a nervous laugh and waved at her. "H-Hey, Stella. Sorry for the, um... noise."

"...Hmph." Stella looked away and then focused on playing with her elemental friends... who also pointedly ignored me.

Yep. That ship has sailed.

Sylphy walked in from behind me and glanced at Stella before looking away, her ears red with embarrassment.

It seemed like Sylphy finally realized how loud she was.

...Well. At the least it was the authentic Greyrat household experience for an infant, haha...?

Ha.

...Note to self. Puberty and hormones seem to have caused your intelligence to take a hit. At the earliest opportunity, do some meditating and clear that shit up before it makes your life worse.

Don't be like Dad.

Remember.

*Don't* be like Dad.

"So you're finally decent, Rudy?"

Ruijerd's voice.

I looked over to see him already sitting in his chair at the round table. Not just him, but Rika, Astolfo, and Roland were there as well.

Ruijerd looked at me, raising an eyebrow. "I wasn't aware that humans started becoming intimate so young."

"They don't. But I'm not completely a normal child or that young anymore either."

I was in my late twenties when I died in my previous life... I think. Plus my physical body was definitely in the late teens early twenties now... Especially after that Distortion mishap near the end and Grey's parting gift trying to age me to death.

So it was fine.

...Sylphy probably still felt a bit awkward about it, but on the outside it looked perfectly normal.

I'd just have to keep telling myself that so that Sylphy didn't have a mental breakdown and so that I could brace myself for the inevitable flaming when Dad found out.

Astolfo giggled and said, "Well from the sounds that elf lady was making, Boss definitely isn't a kid anymore."

Silence.

Sylphy turning a deep red and then ducking behind me and hiding her face on my shoulder.

Seeing that, I waved my hand and said, "We're not here to talk about that. And it's your job to ignore that sort of stuff, Astolfo."

"Ah." Astolfo flinched and quickly nodded. "Got it, Boss. I'll have the other knights shut up too."

"The other-" I paused and looked at Roland. "...Did the sound spread that far?"

Sylphy pressed her body against me, as if trying to use me to hide.

...Sylphy, love. That worked when we were younger, but you're just as tall as me now... It's still adorable, but everybody can see you.

Roland shook his head. "The sound was contained to within the tower, Lord Rudras."

Rika spoke up and said, "Yeah! You have Rika to thank for that!"

"Then thanks, Rika." I walked over to my throne, leading Sylphy with me. After arriving, I took my seat... Or so I planned. But Sylphy wasn't letting go, so I swooped her up and set her on my lap.

"R-R-Rudy!" Sylphy blushed, squirming against me-

No hormones! You will *not* be embarrassing me right now!

I forcibly zapped the nerves in my left hand, using the pain to focus.

It was hard with having a beautiful and lovely woman in my lap, as well as with the memories of what I'd just done with that woman, but I was a Demon Lord right now. Business! Professional!

...Gah. Maybe this was why Grey turned undead. It sure was a hell of a lot easier keeping your emotions under wraps.

Except I managed to tick him off still, so maybe that wouldn't have helped anyway...

But focus, me!

I rested my right hand on Sylphy's head, doing my best to keep it cool and turned my attention on Rika. "So what happened after I came back? Since you arrived right after, I'm assuming you used your eyes to bring everyone here?"

Rika stared at Sylphy for a bit, but then shifted her gaze to me and nodded. "That is so. Enoch is still at the site to ensure no complications arise, but otherwise we all returned."

"Hm..." I kept patting Sylphy's head and thought about what we should do.

I definitely wanted to take a closer look at the Distortion area and the aftermath. Especially to see if there were any survivors or potential hazards remaining.

But Sylphy was here, so-

Wait.

Sylphy was here.

I paused and then looked at Sylphy.

She blinked and looked up at me.

"Sylphy."

"Yes, Rudy?"

"...Just how did you get here?"

She didn't arrive through teleportation since either me, Rika, or Enoch would have caught it.

She definitely didn't arrive by port since we were still clearing up the Distortion covering it. So then...

Sylphy tilted her head and said, "How else? I flew here."

Silence.

Ruijerd was the one who broke it first. Nodding, he said, "I see. No wonder Rudy cherishes you so much. To have arrived here through the air..." He looked at Sylphy and smiled. "You must be a powerful magician- No. From those scars, you are a powerful warrior, are you not?"

Sylphy tugged her blouse and muttered, "Something like that..."

"Wait." I looked at Sylphy and said, "So you flew here."

Sylphy nodded. "Mmhm."

"By yourself? Fighting all the monsters?"

"Of course." She paused and said, "Well. There were times when I froze the seas to get some rest, but for the most part, I flew."

"...Sylphy."

"Yes, Rudy?"

"...Did Master Roxy not teach you common sense either?"

"Eh?"

HappyVainGlory

If you squint, you might see where this is going. Will Rudy enjoy loveydovey time with Sylphy? Will Stella stop judging her Onii-chan? Find out next time on Dragon God Z!

...Wait. That's not right...

P.S. Sylphy currently looks something like Briar Witch Iseria from Epic Seven: