Chapter 237: Intermission (Father) ④

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After chasing and chasing, and finally finding Earth, he stubbornly rejected us and fled with Jamdi’el and the goddess of Cacretale, and a handsome man who is probably of the same race as Jamdi’el.

I heard about the last decade of Jamdi’el’s life in Cacretail. Good things, too. And about that young man named José.

Mamu and I only knew Jamdi’el during the war, so I can’t judge who she is now.

Has she changed, or is she plotting something?

Is Earth being deceived? It seems like he’s not

Does that have anything to do with the fact that Earth was able to use the techniques of the Great Demon King Tre’ainar?

I don’t get it.

That’s why I went after him.

I wanted to know the truth.

I wanted to know his feelings.

And most of all, I wanted to apologize for not being a proper parent.

There’s so much I want to say to him, there’s so much to talk about, so much to discuss, so much to listen to, so much to ask.

But……

―― But, after all, my father can’t understand what I’m going through.

He doesn’t tell us anything. That one statement, filled with such feelings, gutted me and Mamu.

And neither I nor Mamu could object.

Ever since the Imperial match, we were confronted with the fact that we were morons, that “we don’t know anything, we don’t know what we don’t know”.

And then, thinking that there was nothing more to talk about with us idiots, he was about to fly away without looking back.

But……

— Older Brother!

At the words of this little kid who adores him, he has a sad expression, and at the same time, he glared at me and Mamu with a look that said, “What the hell are you doing?”.

That was all it took, and I knew that Earth loved this kid.

I never thought we’d be jealous of this little girl…

Then, something unexpected happened.

The goddess girl turned around and said something. Then Earth stopped, turned around, and had a smile on his lips.

Are you up to something?

But, only Jamdi’el had a doubtful look on her face.

Yes, I thought Jamdi’el was in control of the group.

But she wasn’t, was she?

And then, Earth and the others descended to a remote island that came into view.

It’s as if they’re trying to pick a fight with us.

Earth.

The Goddess.

The Handsome man.

Jamdi’el.

A Pegasus.

A Hippopotamus.

A sense of tension ran through me and Mamu, as we wondered if they were going to fight us like this.

Jamdi’el was there.

I expected that would happen.

Still, the sight of my son facing us alongside Jamdi’el left me with an indescribable pain in my heart.

But, in response to our tense situation…

―― I will be Earth’s wife!

―― Earth Lagan and Lady Kron have already had naked relations!

No, it’s impossible for me and Mamu not to be surprised.

I had heard from his friends beforehand that Earth, who won the tournament, would marry the goddess of Cacretale, but I didn’t expect her to say it out loud by herself, and even Yamidire.

―― Let’s bring forth a flower garden in full bloom!

As if to further confuse us, that handsome man magically turned the entire area around our feet into a field of flowers.

Because I didn’t feel any threat or trick in the flowers, I didn’t know what was going on or what the point was.

If this were a battle, I’d just blow it away with a bang, but that’s not the case, and Mamu and I are just confused.

And against us…

—— Let’s go!

Earth came running toward us.

There was no sign of an attack, no killing intent, no hostility.

But his eyes were aimed at something. I felt his strong will.

And…..

—— 【Great Demon, Killer, Crossover】!!

Mamu and I saw. No, we were shown.

The realm that the current Earth has reached.

In Cacretale, I heard that Earth had won the tournament, and even fought Jamdi’el and won.

But both Mamu and I thought it was “impossible” and assumed that he must have used some kind of trick.

In a way, we knew more about the power of Jamdi’el than the power of Earth.

But I also knew that Jamdi’el was not an opponent one could beat by “trickery alone”.

So, we guessed that Earth was stronger than we imagined… I thought.

We thought so, but we still didn’t expect him to have reached this level.

We didn’t know.

“…… Earth…… your…… movement just now…”

“It was ridiculously sharper… more than in the Imperial match… you…”

Earth…… your Dad has always been able to use the opponent’s strikes, swordsmanship, and magic once he sees them.

I never understand the principle or logic behind them, but I was like, “Oh, this is how it’s done, isn’t it?”.

I don’t usually understand such principles and theories – but even I understand this.

“You… the last few months… how long have you been running?”

“……………”

Earth looked at me with the little girl in his arms, but he doesn’t answer my question.

But even without hearing the answer, I knew this much.

Earth’s steps today weren’t just a matter of practicing techniques or anything like that.

It was bloody effort. He ran and ran and ran, and practiced over and over again to master such a brilliant and powerful move, I could not help but be fascinated.

That’s right, even when I ran out of the Imperial City chasing him after the Imperial match, I always regretted that.

It wasn’t just the Great Magic Spiral.

In the Imperial match, the way he moved, the strength of his fists, and his footwork, were all remarkable.

The movements of the fists and feet that were toying with Rebal. There were no tricks.

Such beautiful form, and finely honed movements, I realized that they were all acquired through hard work.

And now, his new moves were much sharper than the ones he had shown in the Imperial match a few months ago.

Earth was even stronger, and tougher than he had been then, and he kept on running.

Yes, to the point of being able to fight against the Six Supremacy.

Ah, damn… why did I…

―― How, how was I? I got stronger…. I, I’m much, I got much…

―― Idiot!

―― Heh!?

―― What got stronger… if you want to be strong, is anything acceptable?

Why, at that point… I….. over and over again, I kept regretting that moment.

―― So, what’s wrong with me right now? I didn’t cheat, I didn’t play dirty tricks or anything! I trained and studied, I fought with my own strength! Only to have you have to look at me like that! You’ve been ignoring the fact that I’ve hit the wall, that I’m a second generation who is a lost cause, or not good enough. And now that I’ve finally come this far… Why!!

Why couldn’t I see his efforts? Even if I didn’t see it, why couldn’t I just tell him? Couldn’t I just give him a little credit?

All that time, constantly…

―― Well, you’re the type to grow slowly. Don’t be impatient, hang in there.

How dare I talk like that… why did I say something like that to him… that’s right… that’s why……

“Earth… I need you to stop… talk to me… words alone are not enough…”

“…………”

“For real… I’ll go all out to catch you… I didn’t realize you had become so strong that I can’t catch you if I didn’t get serious…”

You can’t catch me anymore if I’m that serious.

That’s what I had to tell you.

That’s why I…

“That’s right, Earth, your mother is getting serious too. You… you’ve already become so much stronger.”

We’re……

“”going all out.””

No matter how much I praise him with words, no matter how much I acknowledge him, he won’t believe me anymore.

That’s why I felt I had to convey how serious I am.

To accept him not as a son…… but as a man.

But he’s still…

“Keh, I don’t want acknowledgment at this level… I’m not looking for anything that cheap.”

“Earth…”

“I haven’t surpassed anything yet. This is why ‘we’ aren’t satisfied. I’m not going! Did you think that I, who went so far as to shake off Sadiz’s tears and aim for the world, would be satisfied with such a half-hearted evaluation and go home? You’re going to keep underestimating me, aren’t you?”

It’s not about what we think of him, but simply that he is not satisfied with himself yet.

Earth was so strict with himself, he still has high goals and wants to become even stronger.

That figure made me realize that Earth is getting stronger and greater.

And…..

“Kron! Prince!”

“”Huh!?””

“Right, Boy!”

“Okay, here we go!”

In the next moment, the eyes of the two people behind Mamu and I lit up, and at the same time, the thick flower petals flew up, blocking our vision.

Author’s Note

At 18:00 today, the first Chapter of the Manga will be released on the site Comic Earth Star. Please take a look at the world of the Forbidden Master and Disciple drawn by Eto Yona-sensei!!