Catherine spoke as if she was stunned, her voice grumpy.
“…How long do I have to wait?”
Teddy, with a nervous scowl, adjusted his collar repeatedly.
“Just wait a little longer.”
From Teddy’s perspective, this was the natural thing to do.
It had been years since they last met their ‘Guardian’ after the incinerator incident.
Teddy struggled to contain his racing heart. A bead of cold sweat dripped down the surface of the artificially crafted real skin.
Even after multiple deep breaths, the tension remained.
Teddy tidied up his stubborn Mohawk hairstyle and clenched his fists lightly.
He began to recite the ‘line’ he had prepared beforehand to mentally prepare himself.
“…Father, thank you for taking care of us back then. Thanks to you, we grew up well enough to meet again─, ugh, wait. That’s not it….”
Teddy scratched his head.
Thinking back, he had never referred to ‘that Wizard’ as Father, only as “Wizard.”
But,
Right now, Teddy wanted to show his growth to his Guardian.
Thank you for raising us, strong and healthy. I want to express my heartfelt gratitude, even if I can’t repay you.
Catherine, Eve, and Dal watched Teddy from behind, each wearing different expressions.
Catherine, whose demeanor suggested she would yell “I’m the center of the universe!” since birth, looked confused.
Eve awaited Teddy’s preparations with her usual blank expression.
Lastly, Dal couldn’t hide his excitement, fidgeting as if he understood Teddy’s feelings.
At this rate, they might end up waiting at the entrance for tens of minutes. Catherine finally issued an ultimatum to Teddy.
“I’m just going to ring the bell.”
“Wait, just a moment…!”
He had just sent a message saying he would probably arrive ten seconds late to Andrea.
There was no reason to linger half-heartedly here.
Naturally ignoring Teddy’s earnest plea, Catherine pressed the mansion’s bell.
– Ding, ding─.
A long silence followed the ringing.
Teddy nervously stared at the firmly closed front door. The tension made his muscles tighten, causing nausea.
Then,
The mansion’s door opened quietly.
Teddy instinctively squeezed his eyes shut. He quickly bowed, his waist making an elegant 90-degree angle.
“Ah, Father!”
He had a lot to say, but the only word that came out was this.
The title he had hesitated to use as a child because of embarrassment.
After saying it, Teddy felt a weight lift off his heart.
Somehow, it felt like he could hear people laughing around him.
…….
Teddy cautiously lifted his head.
It wasn’t just his imagination.
In reality, the people around him were smirking at him.
Teddy looked at the ‘Woman’ in front of him.
She had a vintage vibe with two horns. She couldn’t help but cover her mouth with her hand while laughing.
“Hehe, so you’ve come, Teddy. I’m glad to see you’ve been healthy.”
Teddy’s eyes widened.
‘…This tone of voice.’
And then,
Dal, watching the two from behind, murmured in a quiet voice.
“…Mama?”
The realization that the figure he had remembered as his father for so many years was actually his mother made Teddy close his eyes tightly.
At this point, he felt like he might faint from embarrassment.
Side EP: Aftermath (4)
Ehm.
I thought only Catherine would come, but there were more people than I expected.
Even Eve came along.
Well, that wasn’t too strange.
The reason we had gone to the laboratory in the first place was to find Teddy and Dal’s ‘Guardian’.
In reverse, it was something I should have mentioned to the two first.
Just a temporary lapse in memory.
I waved my hand to thank Catherine, who had thought of that part on my behalf.
However, Catherine’s reaction was a bit odd.
“……”
“……”
After a few seconds of making eye contact with me, Catherine awkwardly looked away.
I felt a little confused by her reaction.
But we couldn’t stay outside the mansion forever. We turned our steps inside.
Along the way, several kids shouted as they looked at us, especially at Catherine.
“…Oh, Goldie!”
“Really? Is that really you?! Goldie!”
Then, like a swarm of bees, they rushed towards Catherine─ but halted after spotting Teddy walking behind us.
“Well, thinking about it, there might be more important matters than Goldie.”
“I agree. Shall we go over there and discuss this?”
The kids awkwardly conversed and quickly distanced themselves from us.
Teddy did look a bit scary.
He should be able to replace his cyberware with a functioning one by now.
Was there another reason?
I slyly approached Teddy and asked.
“By the way, why haven’t you replaced your cyberware when your limbs are mismatched? Isn’t it uncomfortable?”
“Uh, uh…?”
Teddy, having regained his senses from my question, seemed dazed. He must have been shocked by the fact that his father was actually his mother.
Why did he have so many scars on his face? Even scavengers one might commonly see in the city wouldn’t be at that level.
“Or why not just replace the real skin?”
Teddy smiled as if my words were amusing. He casually shrugged his shoulders.
“…Ah, these are all proof that I’ve survived until now. My limbs, and even these disgusting scars and mechanical eyes.”
He then looked at the unseen distant mountain outside the mansion and softly murmured.
“So, I’ve grown somewhat attached to them.”
Has he come down with late adolescent syndrome or something?
I didn’t think he was this sentimental….
I squinted and stared at Teddy.
Dal, who was walking behind me, interpreted Teddy’s answer for him.
“He just doesn’t want to feel pain.”
“…Hey, Dal!”
Teddy shouted as if he was pricked.
In response, Dal snorted and continued.
“Cheap replica cyberware is all like that. It hurts a lot during replacement. Teddy doesn’t have nerve sockets to control the sensation, so he probably just doesn’t want to go through with it. It’s likely one of the reasons why anesthesia doesn’t work well on him, too.”
…Pain is indeed an important issue.
But maintaining such an incomplete state to this extent is a problem.
It might be a good idea to ask Drake to (unlike me) forcibly take him to an implant shop later.
Having neatly organized my thoughts, I looked back at Dal, who was following us.
“What about you?”
“…?”
“How’s the preparation for your prosthetics going?”
“…Ah, yes. Probably soon.”
I smiled at his words.
“That’s good to hear.”
Catherine would also be happy about that.
Since the topic came up, I turned my head back to Catherine once more.
Catherine was looking at the children, who were maintaining a few meters of safe distance because of Teddy, with a mixed expression that seemed both happy and worried.
…….
Wait, did Catherine look worried…?
I must have definitely misread something.
Meteorites falling from the sky don’t hesitate.
They just leave results like craters behind.
Anyway,
We soon arrived back inside the reception room.
“Oh, you’re here?”
“Did you come?”
Maya and Andrea, who were sitting on the sofa waiting for us, waved their hands nonchalantly.
Julia was focused on the drink placed on the table, gazing down at it.
What is she doing?
Mana around started to settle into the glass. Slowly, ice began to form on the surface.
Ooh.
Definitely, cold cola was several times better than hot cola. Even if some of the fizz had gone.
I should use that too─.
“The drink has gone cold. I’ll reheat it for you.”
Master?
The Dragon cast her gaze upon the drink. And within seconds, steam began to rise from the drink once again.
“Ah, oh….”
Julia sighed blankly, tightly hugging the rabbit doll in her arms.
Then the Dragon handed the drink from the table to Teddy and Dal.
“I’m sorry there’s not much I can offer after so long.”
“No, it’s okay! Thank you!”
“I’ll drink it gratefully….”
Teddy and Dal received the beverage (hot, flat cola) from the Dragon’s kind offer.
…Oh dear.
However, there was nothing strange in their expressions.
Could it be those two were also pretending to trick someone like me? But sadly, that wasn’t the case.
They were genuinely satisfied with the hot drink.
“It’s just like the one we had back then.”
“It’s delicious.”
……
Thinking back, I remembered being served a similar kind of drink when I went to search for them underground previously.
From now on, I should just avoid food given by someone from underground…. I firmly resolved in my head.
Anyway, there were more people gathered than I expected. Still, the reception room was spacious enough for everyone to have a seat on the sofa.
Except for maybe a slight reshuffling of seats.
“…Oh.”
I found myself unable to continue speaking as I looked at the Dragon sitting next to me. Her long tail gracefully settled behind me.
“…Master?”
Her split-pupil eyes stared at me.
“Are you uncomfortable because of my tail?”
…No, it’s not the tail that’s bothering me.
It’s the slightly scary gaze from the others.
As I predicted, everyone wore shocked expressions.
Even Teddy and Dal’s expressions were like “Mother…?” so I won’t elaborate on how serious this situation was.
However,
Catherine was smiling.
It was a bright and cheerful smile devoid of any dark shadows.
In contrast, I felt chills crawling down my spine at the sight of Catherine like this.
Desperately, I shook my head.
I conveyed my will through my gaze.
To say that it was unintentional.
Seeing my struggle, the Dragon widened her eyes and murmured.
“Ah…, did I sit in the wrong place? It’s just a bit spooky, so I couldn’t help it.”
I couldn’t tell if it was a joke or serious.
It was Catherine’s bright voice that stopped the standing Dragon.
“No, it’s fine. You can stay seated.”
“……?”
A question mark floated above my head.
Honestly, it wouldn’t be strange if Catherine shouted, “Get up right now and clear that messy backside!”
Feeling my throat starting to dry, I took a sip from the drink in front of me.
In this situation, even hot, flat cola could still serve its purpose.
Catherine continued to speak.
“I’ve heard that stressing while pregnant isn’t good.”
“Pff!”
I accidentally spurted my drink out.
Teddy, sitting opposite me, glared at me with a sour expression, but there were far more concerning matters than the cola-drenched boy.
Catherine smiled at me.
Unlike before, she didn’t avoid my gaze and made a V shape with her fingers.
“Two lines.”
“……”
The drink that I hadn’t managed to finish flowed down my mouth, dripping messily.
Oh, dear Lord.
