— Leon Anemoi Greyrat —
"Evelyn… her name… doesn't Evelyn sound nice?" Sylphy said, resting her head on my shoulder as we looked down at the baby bundled up in both of our arms.
As one could assume from the name, it was a girl… another baby girl.
"Evelyn sounds great," I replied, reaching a finger down to brush across her cheek.
It had been a little over a month since the twins were born, and now, there was another that had joined our family.
With an adorable little face, sweet green eyes, which I can only guess she got from her grandfather, and cute, long ears that poked out of the blanket she was currently swaddled in, which she had definitely gotten from her mother.
While Anna had human ears, it seems that Evelyn here had inherited Sylphy's most distinct feature.
But that wasn't the other thing my little girl had inherited from her mother… as evidenced by the short, smoothed out hair on her head.
The green hair.
Thankfully, with Laplace dead, I didn't have to worry about this being something to do with the Laplace factor, as it was simply biological, but still… that didn't mean there weren't societal problems with it… hence why Sylphy's soft smile had morphed into one that was a bit more… pained.
"Green hair… just as I had feared," she said, her lip trembling a bit, and my attempt at reassurance through squeezing her hand not doing much to help her.
I lifted my head, my eyes meeting the frowning Ariel's who was sat on the other side of Sylphy, having acted as her other support as Roxy and Eris focused on the delivery.
"Sylphy… she's beautiful," Ariel said, turning to the other two. "Doesn't everyone agree?"
Roxy and Eris immediately perked up, likely due to the small bit of intimidation that had leaked out of Ariel's tone.
But with a shake of their heads, they immediately came over to surround us as they looked down at the little girl in our arms.
"Of course… she's incredibly beautiful," Roxy replied with a smile.
"Ha. What a stupid question," Eris huffed, reaching down to squeeze Evelyn's toe. "She's one of our children, so the answer is obvious!"
Sylphy cracked a smile, but she still seemed down as she continued looking worriedly at the newborn, slowly shifting closer to my side as I continued rubbing her back.
Ariel then suddenly shifted closer to Sylphy's right, leaning over in front of the two of us as she moved her head down, planting a gentle kiss on the top of Evelyn's head, before she lifted back up, only to place another kiss on Sylphy's forehead as her red eyes widened slightly.
"She's beautiful, Sylphy… and she's ours. And isn't that all that matters?" Ariel asked, her hand moving to cup Sylphy's chin. "You already know that we won't allow little Evelyn to think badly of her hair, so what's with that sad face?"
Ariel's thumb moved across Sylphy's cheek before she let go, Sylphy's head shaking side to side as she revealed a small smile.
"You're… right. All four of you. And I think she's wonderful too… absolutely wonderful…" she said, her tone growing warm as she looked down at Evelyn once more. "But… I'm still worried… because even if I know she'll feel more than all the love she will need within our family… that says nothing of the outside world. I already experienced it before, and while Leon was able to save me from ever truly feeling horrible over it… it was still painful. And I… do not want her to have that pain."
Right… arguably the main concern, the bullying.
I wanted to reassure her.
I wanted to hold Sylphy's hand and tell her that everything would be okay and that Evelyn would be able to grow up just fine, like a normal kid.
Yet… I couldn't.
Not completely.
Because I… also felt that worry.
But thankfully… there were others that could reassure her.
Others that didn't know enough of the world to have that worry, and as they got older, would surely have the power to keep our daughter safe.
Giving Sylphy's hand a final squeeze, I passed Evelyn off for Sylphy to hold her on her own as I got up from the bed, ignoring her confused look as I made my way towards the door.
And without warning, I opened it… only for four bodies to topple over each other as they fell into the room.
"Argh! That hurt!" said Aria, who was on the bottom of the pile.
"I told you we shouldn't lean on the door…" added Anna with a frown.
"Hahaha! That was kind of fun though!" Ars said, having rolled off to the side.
"Mmm… this is kind of comfy…" Emilia added, who was on top of the pile, as she rested her head on Anna's back.
These little troublemakers… I had noticed that they were listening in only a few minutes after Eris had 'put them to bed', and while I was primarily concerned with helping with Sylphy's labour, that didn't mean that they could escape my senses.
"You four… just what are you doing here?" Eris asked, coming to stand next to me with her arms crossed as she stared down at them.
"U-Umm, we heard Mama Sylphy screaming, so we wanted to make sure everything was okay?" Aria asked, her eyes averting from us as she slowly stood up along with the rest of the kids.
Trying to look innocent, huh?
"Aria… kids… we wanted you to stay away for a reason," I said with a sigh.
After all, while I could handle seeing Mama and Lilia give birth as a child due to my maturity enhanced by a failed reincarnation, that didn't go for the rest of them.
Despite the beautiful result, it was… not a sight I wanted them to see just yet.
Especially if it ended up not going as smoothly as it did.
"Sorry Dada…" Aria said, tilting her head down in sadness.
"Haa… well, since you're here, how about you greet your new sister?" I said, pushing Aria forward towards the bed.
"Yes! Wait… what's her name?" Aria asked, quieting down once Anna flicked the back of her head after her initial shout of agreement.
"It's Evelyn. Evelyn Greyrat," I said.
The rest of the kids followed behind her as they all hesitantly walked over, and with Sylphy readjusting herself with a smile, she then patted the spot where I had previously occupied as Aria and Anna crawled up first.
"Wow… it's a baby… so little," Aria muttered in amazement, barely holding herself back from reaching out.
"Mom… she has your ears…" Anna added, brushing her brown hair to the side to touch her own human ones. "…Cute."
She didn't seem to mind, thankfully.
I was a bit anxious that Anna would feel like less of Sylphy's daughter since she didn't share the distinguishing trait like her new sister did, but it seemed that such worries were for naught.
And yes… Evelyn was very cute.
Both Emilia and Ars peeked over their shoulders from the two to see her, Emilia's usually tired eyes wide in wonder.
"She is! And look how small and pudgy her hands are!" Aria exclaimed in a whisper, her wide smile revealing her excitement. "And look! Look! She has green hair! I haven't ever seen that before!"
Sylphy's calm smile straightened at that.
"Yes… yes she does," Sylphy responded.
Aria seemed to notice her saddened tone, leaning away from Evelyn as she tilted her head in confusion.
"Mama Sylphy? What's wrong?" she asked before raising a finger. "Oh! If you're worried about her not having your hair, that's fine! She has your ears, and she's really cute!"
Right… the kids still didn't know that Sylphy actually had natural green hair, and had only gained her current white colour after she overused her magic during the Displacement Incident.
And not having the same hair colour… that was definitely the least of Sylphy's concerns.
But such was the innocence of children, and in away, being able to completely ignore the complexity of some things… it was amazing
A small smile returned to Sylphy's face as she reached out to rustle Aria's hair, causing Aria's small twin tails to sway as she closed her eyes at the sensation.
"Thank you, Aria… but that isn't what I'm worried about," she said, looking back down at Evelyn. "Green hair… while you haven't encountered it yet, people will likely… be mean to little Evelyn because of it. It's an odd colour to have, and there are bad stories associated with it… so there isn't much we can do to change that…"
A sad silence settled in the room as Sylphy gently bit her lip, but in only a moment, that silence was smashed to pieces.
"What! That sounds dumb!" Aria said, raising her voice as she got to her feet.
Even Anna, who didn't usually show much emotion on her face, was openly frowning at this.
"But don't worry!" Aria proclaimed, pointing her finger at Sylphy as she raised her chin, her lips spread in a confident smirk. "I will definitely protect her from any mean people! Whether it be in school or in the street! Isn't that right, team?"
"Exactly," Anna nodded, narrowing her eyes. "Luckily, Papa taught me how to land non-fatal blows."
Umm… that was meant to be used in training, but… well, I guess I could feel some relief that she wasn't going to be killing any kids for bullying her sister.
"Yeah! We got this!" Ars added.
Emilia also nodded her head in agreement.
I was a bit worried that their volume would wake up Evelyn again, but thankfully, she still seemed to be fast asleep despite her enthusiastic siblings.
"Ah… thank you, everyone," Sylphy said, a slightly relieved smile crossing her face. "That… does make me feel a little better… knowing that she'll have her family on her side, just as I had Leon… so thank you."
It seems that I was right that they would be the perfect solution to cheer her up, but I could tell that Sylphy still wasn't completely fine.
"Sylphy… I felt the same way when I had Aria, you know, so I understand your pain, although to a lesser extent," Roxy said, moving over to sit next to Ariel.
"Wait, you did!? Why-"
"Hush," Eris said, moving her hand to cover Aria's mouth to interrupt her, causing her to wriggle her head back and forth in retaliation.
That girl…
"But listen…" Roxy continued, looking into Sylphy's eyes as she reached out to brush a strand of hair out of her face. "Even if there may be problems in the future, for now, you have no need to worry about them. I… I know more than most that knowing your parents worry over you is… taxing, to say the least."
Roxy frowned at the end of her words, as Sylphy's eyes widened in understanding.
Ah, right… with her lack of telepathy, Roxy was also experienced how parental worry could look on the other side of things… it was part of what caused her to want to leave home, after all.
"And besides, there might not even be a need to worry. Evelyn is Leon's child, the one who defeated Laplace and is the fourth-strongest in the world, so it is doubtful that they would do anything worse than excluding her based on that alone," Roxy said, unlatching her hand from Aria's mouth as she rubbed the girl's head. "She'll have her sisters and brothers beside her growing up, and who knows? With the Superd reputation steadily healing, the stigma of having such hair might all but disappear. Especially in this city, which hosts many different races."
Sylphy remained still for a moment before looking down, taking a shaky breath inward.
"I… suppose you're right, Roxy… about all of it…" Sylphy said, her hand gently reaching out to caress Evelyn's face.
Her finger traced along the newborn's cheek, reaching up to the small tuft of hair that was slicked back across her head, before she slowly lifted her face to look at me.
"Leon… she looks just like me," Sylphy said, a wide smile on her face as tears ran down her cheeks. "She's… beautiful!"
"Yes…" I replied, leaning over to kiss her forehead as Sylphy curled into my chest. "She is."
I then looked back down at the girl, still bundled up in her blanket.
Little Evelyn… welcome to our family… the ones who would definitely protect you, even if the world itself decides to reject you.
You'll have a wonder time growing up.
Your dad here will make sure of it.
— Leon Anemoi Greyrat —
It was nearing the end of the year, and the twins and Evelyn had been growing up wonderfully, with them now being 5 and 4 months old respectively.
While they mostly spent the day sleeping, the three of them had begun smiling whenever they saw us, moved their arms and legs now and then, cooed whenever we tried talking to them, and the twins had even recently learned how to sit upright!
Although… not all the milestones were amazing, as both Sylphy and Ariel were quite unhappy that all three of them had begun teething.
But still, seeing them roll around for the first time and begin to show emotion, even if it was only a little… it felt extremely fulfilling.
"Leon?"
Oh, right.
Hearing Rudy's voice, I returned my focus to the people around me rather than my thoughts, watching my gathered wives, as well as Rudy and his, who were all sat around the living room.
"You said you had an announcement, right?" Rudy continued.
"Yes… I did," I replied, shaking my head before I looked forward once more. "Ahem! Now that the twins and Evelyn are born, and healthily at that, I can now do some work once again. And there… is something I need to do."
"And what is that?" Rudy asked.
What was that indeed… well, obviously it was for the quest of all the sacred treasures, as we still had a few to acquire.
"It's… to go to Hell, the labyrinth located on the Divine Continent, to retrieve another sacred treasure located in the lowest floor," I said, folding my hands together.
My wives' expressions instantly soured at that… although Eris revealed a glimmer of excitement.
"I see… and the reason you asked me to come to this… I'm assuming you want me to go with you?" Rudy said.
"Yeah, if you don't mind," I answered, nodding my head. "Orsted said there might be a need for quite a bit of mana, or, in his words, it would be 'troublesome'."
And troublesome for him was… often quite a problem.
I guess it was natural for one's sense of frustration to be disturbed after failing and repeating who knows how many times.
"Is that so… well, I was going to offer anyway, so count me in," Rudy said, stretching his arms out with a smile. "It's not like I have anything better to do around here… well, on the other hand, there is something I do quite regularly~ augh!"
Shizuka instantly shot her elbow into his side, causing Rudy to lean over in pain as a blush covered my sister's cheeks.
…I wasn't even going to think about any of that.
"But Leon… why do you have to do it?" Sylphy said, giving me a worried frown as she ran her hand through her chest-length hair. "Can't Orsted do it? Or at least go with you?"
"Sorry… but no," I said, shaking my head. "He's currently searching for the last treasure that was taken so he doesn't need to use any mana to track it, and besides… this will be easy."
Should be easy, I should say.
Roxy's eye twitched, likely due to my confidence… she really hated when I said stuff like that.
Sorry, darling.
"Hmph! Well, if you have to go, then there's no way that you're going alone! And your brother doesn't count!" Eris replied, standing up as she walked over to me. "So Leon… I'm going too."
I wanted to briefly say that everything would be fine and that I wanted her here to protect our family, but seeing her face, I found myself unable to dissuade her.
After all, that look in her eyes… it wasn't one out of worry or protection, like when she asked to join me for our crusade against the Holy Country.
No… this was out of pure excitement.
Right… I should have expected this.
I mean, despite our years of being adventurers, and the time we have spent as husband and wife, we have still yet to venture through a dungeon together, so I could see why she wanted to go.
But still… without Rudy, Eris, or me here at the house… I guess I'll have to ask Perugius to help watch over them, and Ariel could probably bring Isolte over to make sure nothing went wrong.
"Eri… okay, you can join us if you want, but we're not going to just sightsee," I said.
"I know! What, do you think I'll hold you back?" she asked, raising her eyebrow as she crossed her arms.
That was quite the glare, Eri.
"No, but… only Rudy really has experience… although I'm not sure how useful that will be," I said, frowning a bit.
After all, I doubt that this labyrinth that was called 'Hell' was like the others, especially since it had been practically untouched due to its location, and Rudy had only cleared dungeons located in the northern parts of the Central Continent.
But still… it would be nice to have someone experienced in various dungeons with us…
"And I will be joining you too," Roxy suddenly said, taking a sip of tea as she narrowed her eyes. "It's been a while since I've gone to a dungeon… but regardless, my experience is the one thing I can proudly say is the best amongst all of us here. So allow me to assist, Leon."
She then looked over to me, giving me a smirk.
"Besides… didn't you promise me all those years ago that we would go into another dungeon together? And I believe you mentioned Eris even back then… so consider this your chance to keep your word," she said.
She got me there…
"Ah… well, we'll be glad to have you… but will you two be alright?" I said, turning to Ariel and Sylphy.
I didn't want to leave them alone with all the kids, especially since they already had their hands full in dealing with the younger ones.
"It's fine. I am sure that your parents will help us… though it seems that I will be taking another leave of absence from the throne," Ariel said, heaving a small sigh.
But from the smile she gave me, I don't think the thought of extending her break seemed all that bad to her.
"It shouldn't take too long… but thank you," I replied before turning back to Rudy and Eris. "So… the four of us? I suppose that will work, with two in the backline and two in the front."
And with my brother's magic armour… well, it probably wouldn't work too well in an enclosed space like a labyrinth, but if there was a boss room that had an open layout like in the teleportation labyrinth, then that would be extremely helpful.
"I think you mean three in the backline, because I am joining too," Sara said, raising her hand before Rudy could argue. "I've been wanting to try a dungeon after being away from adventuring for so long, and I'm not letting Rudy go on another adventure alone… while I might not be as strong as Eris, I'm not some maiden that will wait home for her husband to come back from a battle."
I briefly looked over at Rudy.
I didn't really care, as Sara could handle herself just as well as Roxy could, and I was confident that I could protect them both from anything that was too strong… so this was his decision.
"Sara… are you sure?" Rudy asked, a worried frown on his face.
"Damn right I am. And I'm not asking you, I'm telling you," she said, getting up as she walked to stand directly in front of him, poking his chest as she narrowed his eyes. "And if you try to stop me… no sex for a month."
"You can come," Rudy replied, not even a second later.
Brother… I could understand trusting your wife, but… did you have to fold so easily?
But still… I guess the group was set.