“Do you want to touch my chest?”
“……”
Judas bit his lip tightly, trying to hold back a smile.
But it didn’t work.
The corners of his mouth, oblivious to the embarrassment, twitched and rose.
His earlier sulking seemed ridiculously funny, making him want to smile even more.
He thought he should resist, but resisting was hard.
Feeling awkward, Judas kept chuckling and muttering.
“Ah, seriously. I don’t know why I’m laughing, ha, I’m really…”
Eliya, knowing his inner thoughts, asked once again on purpose.
“Don’t you want to?”
“W-who said I don’t want to?”
Before Eliya might run away, Judas hurriedly did as Eliya suggested.
He wrapped his hands around it.
A warm, soft, fluffy object reached its peak.
It was filled with a heavy sense.
Holding one in each hand, both hands full, made his heart overflow.
It felt as if all the troubles and hardships of the world were disappearing.
Eliya chuckled and smiled affectionately at her husband.
“Is it that good?”
“Of course.”
“You touch it any time, any day.”
That “any day” has already repeated for over ten years.
Yet Judas still finds himself reaching for his chest out of habit.
He thought it was time to get used to it or get tired of it, but he still loves it just as much as at the very beginning.
“It’s something I can never get tired of… that’s how it is.”
Judas declared with conviction.
Eliya couldn’t comprehend that feeling.
In any case, since Judas liked it, she was happy too.
The way he fondled her chest made him seem like a child.
Or like a cat kneading.
And she loved it too.
Setting aside sexual satisfaction, when he was touching, the weight of her chest disappeared.
It felt as if her upper body had become light as air.
That huge, heavy thing sometimes pulled her shoulders down uncomfortably.
So sometimes, she would ask him to hold it up first.
Simply sitting still could feel heavy.
Anyway, Eliya continued to comfort him.
She sat on his lap and enveloped him with her chest.
Judas nestled comfortably against her warm and soft chest, freely fondling Eliya’s hips and belly.
“Truly, Eliya is the best…”
Even though he knew he became a severe daughter-lover after having many children, there was no one like his wife.
Still so lovable, endlessly harmless, and always there to comfort him—she was the best partner.
Judas said with his face buried in her warmth.
“I love you, Eli. As expected, you’re the best.”
Eliya chuckled at his childlike reaction and ruffled his hair.
“I know. And I love you too.”
As she hugged him close while stroking his hair, Eliya carefully let him go.
“I have to go now. The kids are waiting for dinner.”
“Well… It’s unfortunate, but it can’t be helped.”
Though disappointed, his expression seemed much softer than before.
Eliya found her husband so cute that she pressed her lips firmly against his.
Pulling him in closer, their bodies pressed tightly together.
Their breaths became moist, and just as it was about to grow warmer.
Eliya playfully stuck her tongue in a little and pulled it back out.
Judas’s lips, which had been expecting a kiss, lost their way.
“We’ll do more later.”
Seeing Eliya with a playful smile, Judas seriously muttered.
“Should I put the kids to bed early today….”
*
Amor arrived late to the dinner table.
There was no way she could skip the meal.
Judas greeted Amor as if nothing had happened, but Amor couldn’t do the same.
She had no idea how to respond.
She merely smiled awkwardly.
Even after dinner was over, Amor hurriedly left her seat.
“Why is she like that?”
Donnem’s curiosity was met with a serious answer from Fides.
“She probably needs to poop.”
“Aha!”
Unlike Donnem, who understood easily, Spei tilted his head.
“I don’t think that’s it….”
Meanwhile, Judas and Eliya decided to just wait.
Until Amor was ready to talk.
It seemed like it would take a while, so Judas decided to step out for a moment.
*
After dinner, he played with the kids before leaving the royal palace.
He climbed the hillside overlooking the Bevel Empire’s royal capital, Jerusalem.
There was no one on the city street.
Only a guard on patrol with a torch.
He could hear sounds of other families chatting peacefully from several lighted buildings.
And in the distance, a bright castle loomed—the Academy.
A space where countless people lived in ways completely different from the existing rules.
It shone even in this world’s night, like a city of lights.
Judas sat absentmindedly on a tree stump, gazing at the scenery.
He tapped the beer bottle he brought for fun.
He didn’t come for no reason.
He was waiting for someone.
“Did you wait long?”
A voice from behind broke the silence.
It was Richard.
“I just got here too.”
Richard flopped down next to him.
“What’s up? Calling me out at this hour.”
“Just because.”
This was a midpoint on the mountain where Judas and the royal guard often trained.
Richard noticed that Judas’s energy had dulled.
Having shared the mountain for several years, he couldn’t miss the signs.
They sat together in silence for a moment.
Finally, Judas spoke up.
“I think Amor is going through puberty. I wanted to hear some stories from someone who’s been through it.”
“Ah, yeah, that’s the age for it. That’s why I told you to bring some drinks.”
Richard shook the beer bottle in his hand and chuckled.
This sudden request for a drink had led Judas to the training mountain.
Sometimes, this place was where guards gathered when someone had a concern.
The last topic they gathered to discuss was probably about Jerry’s repeated romantic failures.
Probably.
They often gathered as a big group, but sometimes only a few would meet like this.
“Didn’t you call me here because you wanted to spill what’s bothering you?”
“Ah, you got me there.”
Especially for topics that could be difficult to discuss with other guards, they would gather only among those who could share the burden.
Like a daughter going through puberty or something like that.
Among the royal guards, many were married, but only Richard and Judas had children entering puberty.
“Even gentle and obedient Amor goes through puberty, huh?”
“It’s a natural occurrence; what can you do?”
“But what happened that made her so distressed?”
“Well….”
Judas scratched the back of his neck with the beer bottle, feeling awkward.
To be objective, it wasn’t a big deal.
Amor hadn’t shouted for no reason.
She was just a bit louder than usual, but it didn’t even qualify as anger.
It was ambiguous to say their relationship had soured.
Amor was just confused and flustered.
“It’s not really about her; it’s more my problem.”
Judas said as he opened the bottle cap with his bare hands.
Richard did the same.
Their bottle necks lightly clinked together.
A clear sound rang out.
After taking a swig, Judas spoke again.
“It got complicated. I found myself thrown in when she was trying to keep her distance or when she raised her voice.”
“What about me? I hardly get to talk with Erin nowadays.”
“That sounds terrible.”
“It is.”
Richard chuckled lightly as he gulped his beer.
“When she was little, it felt like she couldn’t live without me, and now there’s a wall between us.”
Erin didn’t dislike Richard.
He loved and cared for the kids well.
But an unavoidable distance had formed, and Erin felt awkward around Richard.
Richard, in turn, became cautious and careful around Erin, which only made the awkwardness worse.
At least it was a relief that their mother, Beninita, got along well with her.
“But hey, what can you do? It’s a natural thing. It’s all in the book the Emperor wrote too.”
“True.”
Judas knew that.
He had read that book numerous times.
And once children pass through puberty healthily, they’ll return to their parents’ side with the mind of an independent adult.
They could become close again.
But knowing it in his head and accepting it with his heart were different things.
Calling Richard wouldn’t lead to sharp solutions.
He knew it was just a talk he needed.
Just knowing someone else shared the same struggles would somehow alleviate his worries.
“Or maybe it’s because of my beard….”
Richard muttered while stroking his chin.
Seeing his serious expression made Judas burst into laughter.
“Didn’t we say that you don’t suit it? I’ve told you that a few times.”
“Aw, come on… If I shave now, maybe Erin will like it?”
“I don’t think so.”
“Tch….”
The two men took another swig of their beer.
“Still, it feels better talking to someone.”
“See? You called me here to talk about yourself.”
“Honestly, you figured it out, didn’t you?”
“I’m your senior, after all. Who else will listen?”
“Oh, is that so?”
That wasn’t entirely wrong.
Richard had faced and accepted his daughter’s puberty earlier than Judas and had come to terms with it.
“Thanks, though.”
“Just knowing is enough.”
Clink. Bottles clashed. Alcohol flowed in.
They wouldn’t get drunk, but the mood was more than enough.
The two sat quietly, overlooking the royal capital and the Academy.
It felt like a long time ago.
The former emperor had sacrificed people to dark magic to dominate the world and revive the Evil God.
It was now a tale passed down like a fairy tale to today’s kids.
It had only been a few years ago.
The story of Eliya and the Evil God’s mutual destruction.
And at that time, Judas and Richard had also been there.
The royal guards, including those two, had thrown themselves in to stop the emperor.
It sounded like an embellished myth, but it was the truth, and the peaceful city before them was one of the results.
It was the future and present of humanity they had protected with Eliya.
“Looks good.”
“I agree.”
And as children cherish this peaceful era, if they had to do it again, both men would throw themselves back in without hesitation.
“Later, when the other guys’ kids go through puberty, I guess we’ll gather again like this.”
“That would be quite the gathering. Could Dillon be next?”
“Probably. That guy has a particular fondness for his son.”
Judas chuckled and agreed.
“Does Erin like the Academy?”
“Seems like it. She said a lot of good things to Beninita. Apparently, she’s already got something she wants to learn.”
“Oh… It’s great if she decides on her dream early. What’s it about?”
“Surprisingly, she said history. I thought she’d be into swordsmanship, but it’s actually the quiet Beirin who’s curious about swordsmanship.”
“That’s really out of the blue.”
“But she’s smart and active, so she’ll do well.”
The two of them lost track of time bragging about their children.
How intelligent Amor was for loving books, and how Fides was praised in his first gym class for his energy… and so on.
No matter what happens or how things change.
Both were fathers willing to do anything for their children.
That much had not changed.
*
Judas’s outing was not long.
Both he and Richard had families to return to.
He soon came back to see a shadow waiting at the entrance of the sky palace.
‘…Who could it be?’
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