~Chapter 9~
“An ability?”
And from the looks of it, one of those super rare healing ones.
“…Did that kid awaken too?”
Nobody had mentioned it, so he didn’t know.
Well, if it was his youngest son’s child, then of course the boy wouldn’t have told him.
“Or maybe… that girl is even hiding it from her own father?”
Since she’d said it was a secret, there was a good chance even his son didn’t know.
He had no idea why she would want to hide it though.
Just then—
Clack!
The door opened.
Instinctively, Magnum hid behind the garden wall, even though he wasn’t guilty of anything.
“Sweetheart, it’s time to come inside. Didn’t I tell you not to play outside too long in winter?”
“I was just checking if the snowman melted! If it did, I was gonna fix it!”
From behind the wall, Magnum saw his son crouching down comfortably and talking to the girl.
That expression—he’d never seen it on his son’s face before.
“You’ve always been fragile. Daddy gets worried.”
“Okayyy, I got it.”
He saw his son gently hug the little girl, patting her back.
“Daddy, I’m hungry.”
“It’s been a while… How about Daddy makes dinner for you? How about stew?”
“Oooh, yayyy!”
In silence, Magnum watched the two of them go inside together, then lowered his gaze slowly.
“Balux, go on inside. And don’t tell them you saw me here.”
“Ah—yes, sir. Take care on your way back.”
Valux hesitated, bowed politely, then ran over to the door and knocked.
“Uncle! I came to play! I even brought cookies to share!”
Click.
The door opened and Klein appeared. Behind his legs, the little girl peeked out shyly.
“You’re early. Come in and make yourself at home.”
Klein gave a small, gentle laugh and let Balux in.
Watching until there, Magnum let out a slow breath.
“…This building is pretty old.”
Still, for something old, it looked well maintained.
“To think that useless brat who couldn’t do a single thing right actually got a physician’s license… and now he’s even cooking.”
Magnum sighed shortly.
Back then, he’d spoken countless harsh words to Klein for not living up to his standards.
He thought that kind of treatment would push his son to work harder.
After all, that’s what had worked for him so he believed his children would be the same.
They would strive desperately to earn his recognition.
And it was true for all the others.
But not for the youngest.
While the others fought to impress him, Klein preferred hiding under a shady tree instead of studying indoors.
He’d rather take care of injured animals than socialize for connections.
While his siblings competed fiercely, he’d just stand at a distance, quietly watching.
Instead of holding a sword or using abilities, he’d read books or write boring little things.
Magnum couldn’t stand that, so he ignored him.
“And then one day… he left home.”
He regretted it.
But when, years later, Klein suddenly brought back some girl of unknown birth—no mother, no background—his regret turned into anger again.
Magnum stood there for a long time before finally turning away.
Unaware that someone on the second floor had been watching the whole thing.
***
“…Grandpa… does he want to make up with Dad?”
From the second floor, I crossed my arms, peeking out to see Grandpa sneaking looks over the wall at the guest house.
“Hm. Guess I’ll just have to step in.”
Yup. Time to start “Operation Reconcile.”
I clenched my little fist.
“First, I’ll reveal I have powers… Then I’ll show how smart Dad is… And then we’ll move into the main house!”
Mmhm. I nodded to myself.
If they run into each other often enough, feelings will naturally grow.
“Alright! Tomorrow’s the day I try it!”
Grinning to myself, I skipped over to Valux, who was happily showing off the cookies he’d brought to Dad.
***
“Big Brother.”
“Hm?”
“Can I come visit your room tomorrow?”
Balux blinked in surprise, while Dad’s jaw practically dropped.
“What are you talking about?”
“Well, Big Brother always comes here to play. I wanna go there too….”
“I told you before. Your grandfather—”
“Pfft! We can sneak in without Grandpa seeing!”
Dad frowned deeply and shook his head firmly.
“No. We agreed not to go there.”
“But I wannaaa! I wanna play with Big Brother! I wanna, I wanna! I like Big Brother!”
And I flopped on the floor, arms and legs flailing as I rolled dramatically.
My face went bright red.
But hey, once you’ve died once, embarrassment doesn’t really matter anymore.
“Gotta earn points with Grandpa.”
And besides—this was for Dad’s sake!
“No matter how cute you act…” Dad muttered.
Wait—what? That wasn’t my goal! He was supposed to be annoyed, not flustered!
When I pouted, Dad hurriedly scooped me up, sat down, and placed me on his lap.
Watching us, Balux finally spoke up.
“I don’t mind. I’ll talk to Grandpa for you. If he says no, I’ll tell you what he said.”
Blushing, he added, almost proudly, “Ahem. My little cousin loves me so much, I can’t help it.”
“…”
Balux nodded firmly, but Dad just looked at me with this… super sad face.
Well, not super obvious—just his brows slightly furrowed. But I knew.
When you’ve lived with Dad 16 years, you develop “Dad-expression-decoding skills.”
I used to think he hated me.
But now that the misunderstanding’s gone, I can actually read his expressions.
For the first time in 16 years.
“Of course, if Dad says no, I won’t go….” I mumbled, drooping my eyes sadly.
“…The main house isn’t a place for you. You’d only get hurt.”
“Hurt?”
“Ready. Your grandfather… he doesn’t know how to love people.”
Dad’s voice was heavy after a long pause.
I widened my eyes.
“…Dad’s hurt.”
That look—yep, definitely a hurt look.
“…Ugh, now I’m annoyed.”
Seriously, Grandpa? Making Dad show that face? That ticked me off.
If I got to the main house, I was definitely going to confront him about this too.
“It’s fine! I’ve got Dad.”
I hugged him tight and smiled.
“Even if I get hurt, Dad will hug me and make it better, right?”
“Of course. And not just that—I might grab your grandfather by the collar and fight him.”
“W-wait, no, you’d get hurt”
“Daddy wins.”
He said it with total conviction.
But really, how could plant-growing powers beat a war hero?
From what I’d heard, Grandpa’s ability was one of the four elements or something. Not sure which.
Dad never talked much about him.
Most of what I knew came from newspapers and articles.
“Then… Daddy’s the best!”
Well, if Dad says he’d win, then he’d win. End of story.
He set me back on the chair, and I happily dug into his special stew.
My cheeks twitched from the sheer joy.
“I’m so happy.”
“If only I’d lived like this before.”
I once read in a book that people only truly grow up after experiencing death.
Maybe that’s true for me.
After dying, death didn’t feel so terrifying anymore.
Which meant—I could just live honestly, with no regrets, doing whatever I wanted, openly.
“Daddy, this stew is the BEST!”
“I’m glad. It’s your mother’s recipe.”
“Ohhh, no wonder it feels like Mom’s warmth is in here….”
Dad chuckled softly at my silly remark.
“He laughed!”
So, Dad liked hearing about Mom. I giggled happily at the discovery.
After I praised the stew a few more times, Dad rubbed his face awkwardly.
“That’s enough. Eat it before it gets cold.”
“But it really is delicious, Uncle.” Balux added.
Now even Balux joined in the praising, and Dad finally dropped his head with a sigh.
“…I’ll go make cocoa.”
And just like that—Dad fled.
I met Balux’s eyes across the table, and we both burst into giggles.
Compared to before, reading the hidden emotions behind Dad’s grumpy face was actually… really fun.
