Mushoku Tensei — Chapter 128 - Lucy

Lucy, my youngest daughter — and the most timid of all my children.

Her timidity reminds me of Sylphiette when she was little.

But... Sylphiette was meek because she was bullied. Lucy just seems to have been born that way.

I'm not sure whether that's good or bad.

Mm.

......

She's three years old now. She can talk, she can walk. But unlike Lara and Windsor, she prefers to sit quietly and watch the world around her.

Lara, on the other hand, is loud from morning to night. Same age as Lucy, but she delivers every bit of the noise and wonder you'd expect from a three-year-old.

And four-year-old Windsor wakes up early every morning to go out to the courtyard and watch her mother Eris swing her sword. Seems like she's more interested in blades than magic...

Honestly, I'm not thrilled about Windsor picking up the sword. She's a girl, after all...

And I don't think she'll ever need to face real danger while I'm around to protect her.

Though, when I think about what life looks like for mages, maybe it wouldn't be the worst thing for Windsor to learn swordsmanship.

In the courtyard, I took in the warmth of it all.

"Daddy!"

I looked down. Lara was at my trouser leg, head tilted all the way back to look up at me, the Sacred Beast she'd named Dabai trotting along beside her.

"What is it?"

"Carry me!"

When faced with my adorable daughter, refusing is simply not an option.

I lifted Lara up and settled her onto my shoulders, her arms looped around my head.

"Red Mama said the other day that Daddy's magic is super amazing. I want to see it!"

"Oh! What kind of magic do you want to see?"

"Can you summon a bunny?!"

"Uh... I can't..."

"A puppy?"

"...Can't do that either."

"A kitty?"

"Lara, sweetheart, Daddy is a mage, not a summoner."

"Summoner...? What's that?"

"A profession that doesn't exist in this world. Probably."

"Daddy knows about professions that don't even exist in this world?!"

"That's right. That's how amazing I am. You should worship me more."

"Ohhh!"

That's kids for you. One small detour in the conversation and they forget what they were originally after.

While the two of us were going back and forth with no real destination in mind, Roxy's voice drifted in from inside the house.

"Lara~ Windsor~ come eat~"

I lifted Lara down from my shoulders and gave her a gentle pat on the back.

"Go eat."

"I don't wanna~"

"You won't grow tall if you don't eat."

Lara looked up at those words.

Her eyes lit up with the gleam of someone who has been waiting to share a very important piece of knowledge.

"Daddy! The book I was reading the other day said children take after their parents!"

"So?"

"Blue Mama gave birth to me, so I definitely won't grow tall!"

She patted her chest with great pride, as if this were genuinely something worth celebrating.

I couldn't hold it in. I laughed and ruffled her hair.

"Taking after your parents — why can't you take after me? Maybe you'll end up tall."

"No way! My hair is blue too, so I'm definitely going to take after Blue Mama!"

Well... fair point.

She's only three years old, yet I'm completely convinced that if a photo of Roxy as a child existed somewhere, it would look exactly like Lara.

I can't out-argue a three-year-old. Somehow.

Hmm?

...Something about this feels a little nostalgic.

I feel like I've had a conversation like this before.

Was it when Aisha was four? Probably. I didn't out-argue Aisha back then either.

"Anyway, eat up~"

I ruffled Lara's head one more time. Only then did she nod and walk obediently inside, Dabai padding along behind her.

I watched until she disappeared through the door, then turned to look at Eris.

She was swinging her sword, completely without any awareness that she'd spent the entire previous night tangled up with me.

Lately... mm...

Well, Eris wants a boy.

So we've been putting in effort. I'm not complaining — I'm not the least bit worn out.

I have to say, all that training in the past was probably preparation for married life without me even knowing it.

"Daddy."

Windsor tugged at my trouser leg.

"Hm?"

"Eat together."

"Sure."

Windsor is nothing like Eris was as a child. Nothing at all.

Obedient and sweet.

She takes after me, clearly. Has to be.

There's a quiet coolness to her, but somehow that only makes her more endearing.

I called for Eris, and the whole family sat down together for breakfast.

......

Afternoon.

I figured I should spend some time with Lucy.

Honestly, I don't quite understand her.

Lara is lively and mischievous. Windsor is composed and reserved.

Lucy... for some reason she just seems particularly timid.

I've turned it over in my head and I still can't figure out why.

She's so cute, and everyone in the family dotes on her.

By all logic, she shouldn't have turned out like this...

I wandered through the house until I found her.

She was playing with a small pile of building blocks.

When she saw me, she wasn't scared exactly. She just stopped and went still.

"Daddy."

"Mm."

I walked over, sat down beside her, and picked up a few blocks.

I made all of these with wood magic. The noble shops carry them too, but the shapes there are boring. Mine come in all kinds, towers, arches, walls. With a little imagination, you could build anything.

"What does Lucy want to build?"

"Umm... I don't know..."

"How about a castle?"

"Okay."

If I'm spending time with my daughter, I'm doing it properly.

I thought about what the castles in this country looked like and started laying the foundation, watching it slowly rise up.

"Daddy... this piece..."

"Hm? Where does Lucy think it should go?"

"H... here..."

"Oh! That actually looks really good."

"Hehe..."

Lucy would pass me blocks from time to time, and I kept nudging her to be bold and place them herself. Whenever she did, I praised her, no matter what it looked like, no exceptions.

"Rudy~ Lucy~ do you want some fruit?"

Sylphiette came in carrying a plate and sat down beside us in her little duck-sitting pose.

Even after all these years of being a mother, she still does the most endearing things.

She seemed to not want to interrupt my time with Lucy too much, so she simply brought a piece of fruit to my lips instead.

One bite for me. One bite for Lucy.

The whole afternoon passed just like that.

"Oh... ohhhh!"

I let out an exaggerated gasp on purpose.

The castle was taller than Lucy herself, rising all the way up to my waist.

I looked down to check her expression. She was smiling, though unlike Lara, she wasn't the type to let it burst out of her.

"Lucy did amazingly."

I reached out without hesitation and ruffled her hair.

"Lucy is so amazing~"

Sylphiette joined in.

"Umm... thank you... Daddy, Mama..."

"Mm! Any time you want Daddy to play with you, just say the word."

"Mm... mm!"

"Alright then, say it: 'Daddy, I love you.'"

Lucy fidgeted and hemmed and hawed, but didn't say a word.

Daughter, how are you already shy about something like this at your age?

While I was trying to figure out how to handle this, Sylphiette scooped Lucy into her arms and whispered something to her.

Then they both looked at me at the same time and began to count down.

"3~ 2~ 1~"

"Daddy~ I love you." x2

"Oh... uh."

I really hadn't expected Sylphiette to say it too.

I have to admit, at night Sylphiette always pulls out some... uh... terms of address for me that I have no idea where she picked up. And this "Daddy" is one of them.

I took a slow breath and pulled them both into my arms.

"I love you too."

➤ Next: An Ordinary Day