After clearing things up with Dad a bit and hammering in the fact that, no, Roland wasn't a kid we threw into a distorted dungeon to pop him out as an adult... Seriously. Who did that? You'd have to be the most irresponsible parent ever to throw your kid into a time pocket, even if it was 'for their own good.'

But anyway, after that, it was time for the real talk.

"So what are you two doing in Milis?" I looked at Pierre and Dad and said, "Is there something going on here?"

Dad shrugged and said, "Not really. Your pal Orsted had the Central Continent covered, so I decided to head over with Pierre here to check this place out to see if we could find some news about everyone."

I tilted my head and said, "Without Norn or Eri?"

"Well, Pierre said that he knew where you were and could send them to meet you. Figured it'd be safer than whatever mess I was going to end up in over here."

After saying that, Dad let out a smug smile, proud that he thought about that.

...Considering his track record, it was probably the best move. Though I wasn't sure if I could approve the clearly reckless parenting decision.

Then again, Eri was definitely super strong and Norn was... Well. She picked up a few strange things in her personality, but she wasn't the sort to get wrapped up in dangerous situations. Mostly because she took preemptive measures to cut the problem at the root.

Literally.

...The part about childhood influences affecting your personality was definitely true considering how casually she treated people's lives.

Stupid past edgelord self...

"What about you, Kid?" Dad looked over and said, "Seems like a lot happened on your end." He frowned and said, "Did you get wrapped up in something crazy again? Must've been a hell of a story for you to come back with grandkids, wives, and Stella clinging to you like her real Dad."

I paused to reflect on everything I did in the Magic Continent.

Waking up with Stella as a newborn, meeting Ruijerd while still recovering, summoning Rika, summoning the White Knights, all the shenanigans that led up to me becoming the Demon Lord of Salvation and establishing Arcadia... And then meeting Sylphy, Eri and Norn...

"...We'll be here for days if I go through it, so let's just say that a lot happened, good and bad. Mostly good though. For now... Did you find anything here in Milis?" I looked between Dad and Pierre and said, "I know you probably didn't find anything about Mom and Mama Lily, but from the fact that something big is going down in the capital... Is Being W messing around here?"

"Before I answer that..." Dad took a sip from his drink and then stared at me.

I stared back and tilted my head. "What?"

"You're really my kid, right? Not some evil doppelganger from another timeline or something sent to conquer the world?"

I rolled my eyes and said, "Of course I'm your- Wait." I suddenly remembered what Dad said the first time he saw me again. The confusion he had about whehter I was some bloodthirst Demon Lord or something.

And then I thought about the attack avenues Being W had left after realizing how much raw power I had at my disposal...

"...That son of a bitch broadcasted my fight- No, he showed off Rudeus the Gray, didn't he?"

The way to kill the hero wasn't to send a powerful monster. Instead, it was to have the people he protected turn against him.

There was a reason why the saying 'you either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become the villain' existed. Public opinion was fickle and could turn on a dime.

And considering how zealous a group of people who were steadfast in their beliefs were... And how said group of people might react to seeing a tangible demon lord and a tangible message from a so-called 'God'...

I rubbed my face and said, "Maybe I should check in on Cliff."

Pierre blinked. "Cliff? You've met him?"

I nodded. "Yeah. He ended up getting sent to the Magic Continent along with his dad and some other people. Good kid, even if he keeps calling me Father-in-law."

Pierre blinked again. "*Father-in-law*? But... Well, I guess since I'm with Rostelina now... But then..." He trailed off, mumbling under his breath.

Hearing that, Roland narrowed his eyes and finally spoke up. "You never gave a clear answer on who you are, 'Pierre.' How do you know who Uncle Cliff should end up with?"

"Because that's the original flow of events. Of course, things have definitely gone off the rails now. I thought that was because of me, but now I'm wondering if there's someone else too. The divergence I planned wasn't so great..."

An important conversation was unfolding, but I decided to shelf that for now. Instead, I activated Clairvoyance to check in on Cliff.

Although it was night, that didn't affect my vision. Because of that, it was easy to check on the situation in the capital.

And also because of that, it was easy for me to see the crowd of adventurers and knights filling the central plaza.

It was also easy for me to see Cliff standing on a podium in the center of all that, sweeping his arms out to the crowd while making a speech.

I couldn't hear it. Mostly because I hadn't quite figured out how to tie Clairvoyance to more than just sight yet... Needed to experiment a bit more with synesthesia for that.

But judging from how the crowd pumped up their arms and cheered...

I blinked and looked back at Dad and Pierre. "Um. Just for the record... Do you happen to know where the Pope is?"

Dad smirked and said, "Of course!" He pointed at Pierre and said, "Pierre and I kidnapped the old man and tucked him away in a safehouse. That's why we're here, actually. The plan was to get him on a ship back to the Central Continent to grab some reinforcements. Also to try and one-up Being W." He paused. "Why?"

I let out a deep sigh and rubbed my face. "I've really got bad timing, don't I?"

Well.

I think Cliff mentioned how he used to dream about becoming the Pope and uniting humanity and the other races, right?

...Yeah. I'll let him sort that out.

For now...

"That aside..." I looked at Dad and said, "I'm planning on heading back home with everyone to meet up with Master Roxy and Aisha. Did you want to come with us?"

Roland blinked and said, "We're going to meet Blue Mama?"

I glanced at my son and nodded. "I've got a lot to talk about with her."

Mostly about our relationship, but also about Mom and Mama Lily. Master Roxy was always better at the theoretical stuff than me, so if I get her help, we should be able to grab Mom and Mama Lily in no time.

Dad rubbed his chin and said, "Hm... I'd love to see how my son wrangles in another wife, and I want to see my cute Aisha again... but my gut's telling me that I should probably stick around here. What do you think, Pierre?"

Pierre shrugged. "Lina's due any day now, so I'll be around anyway. But..." He looked off to the side and said, "I do feel like something's off. It'll be better for us to stick around."

Dad pointed at Pierre and said, "That's what our mystery Technique God says."

I frowned and said, "...Should I stay too?"

Pierre shook his head. "I think it will be even messier if you're around. More importantly..." He looked at Roland and said, "Your kid's big sister is a bit reckless with time, so it will be better for you to be near Orsted. He should be enough of an anchor to stop any of the stronger ripples."

I gave Pierre a blank stare.

"What?"

"Communication skills really are the most important, aren't they?"

Pierre tilted his head, confusion clear on his face.

I sighed.