Mushoku Tensei — Chapter 175 - Roxy's Heart — Tears Unshed

"Happy birthday, Roxy!"

"Happy birthday, Blue Mama!"

"Ehhh?!"

That morning, Lara dragged me into the yard to go over magic with her.

I'd been wondering why Lara was being so well-behaved today. She actually sat there and listened to my explanations without interrupting once.

And in the morning, no less?

Lara almost never gets up this early. Between that and the ring Rudy gave me a few days ago, I'd been walking around wrapped in this quiet, happy warmth.

So when I was explaining things to Lara, I was genuinely happy. Content. I kept thinking that everything lately had been good.

No, that wasn't quite right. Ever since I'd been with Rudy, it felt like nothing unpleasant had happened at all.

So the more accurate way to put it: the things happening recently had made me feel even happier than before.

When noon came, Lara grabbed my hand and practically dragged me back inside.

The door swung open, and I saw this.

My birthday? I'd completely forgotten.

Eris, Aisha, and Sylphie stood there smiling, watching my reaction.

What kind of reaction was I supposed to have?

I mean... I really was touched. But I'm over fifty years old.

And I don't even know exactly how old I am.

Sylphie took my hand and led me toward the dining table.

A large cake sat in the center. Rudy was beside it, pressing two number-shaped candles into the frosting.

Oh wow. I'd never seen candles like that before.

The numbers on them were... 61.

So I'm already 61 years old?!

Seeing me frozen in a daze, Rudy finished with the candles and walked over to me. He wrapped his arms around me.

"Happy birthday, Roxy."

I leaned into the warmth and asked quietly,

"Rudy... how did you know my birthday?"

"Father-in-law told me."

"Dad, honestly... I'm this old. What's the point of celebrating a birthday..."

While I was enjoying Rudy's embrace,

Lara spoke up at exactly the wrong moment.

"Papa~ I want cake."

And just like that, the hug ended early.

This daughter of mine, honestly.

...Well.

She is my daughter. I know better than anyone how much that little mouth of hers wants things.

Rudy patted Lara on the head and smiled.

"Alright. Once Blue Mama blows out the candles, we'll cut the cake. But no eating only cake, okay? The mamas made other dishes too."

"I know!"

My sisters nudged me forward until I was standing in front of the cake.

Aisha grinned.

"Make it a good wish, Sister Roxy!"

Sylphie and Eris nodded along, still smiling.

Lara piped up.

"It won't come true if you say it out loud, Mama."

Windsor and Lucy nodded in solemn agreement.

It won't come true if I say it out loud?

Every year on our daughters' birthdays, they shout their wishes for the whole room to hear. Now that it's my turn, suddenly the rules are different?

Really.

I closed my eyes and clasped my hands together.

My wish...

-------

After lunch, Rudy and I were marched straight out the front door.

Sylphie, Aisha, and Eris spoke in unison.

"Enjoy your date!" x3

Lara grabbed Windsor's and Lucy's hands and yelled after us,

"Papa, Mama, bring snacks when you come back! Sister Windsor wants some too! Little sister Lucy too!"

Rudy and I looked at each other, laughed, and walked off toward town hand in hand.

-------

Well.

If we were going on a date, skipping lunch and heading out earlier probably would have been smarter. My stomach was still a little full, and I didn't really feel like eating.

But just strolling around holding Rudy's hand wasn't bad either.

"Roxy hasn't been to the school lately."

"I'm taking a break for a while~"

"Have you been tired?"

"Not entirely. It's more because of you, actually."

"Me?"

"Mhm. The students always crowd around asking questions about Rudy. It's exhausting."

"What are they asking about me for?"

Rudy tilted his head and pointed at himself.

My husband. Did he genuinely not know how famous he'd become?

I stood on my tiptoes and tapped his nose with one finger.

"They ask me things like, 'Does Lord Rudeus still need more wives~ Or maybe a lover~?' My figure isn't exactly up to their standards, after all. What do you think, Rudy?"

Rudy gave me a helpless smile.

Then, right there in the middle of the street, he bent down and kissed me.

Mm.

Even now, I still can't quite get used to that when other people are around.

After a dozen seconds or so, I pushed him back and said,

"I was joking... students wouldn't actually ask something like that..."

"I'm Roxy's student too, you know. So, teacher — do you still need a lover? I could be both your husband and your lover."

"Rudy... ever since Aisha came back, you've really started enjoying role-play, haven't you."

Mm.

It wasn't my imagination.

Rudy would never have called me 'teacher' at a moment like that before. Now he actually shows me this soft, vulnerable side and then calls me teacher.

Little sister Aisha really does have far too many ideas.

"Does teacher not like it?"

This Rudy. He's getting more and more shameless.

I reached up and pinched his cheek.

"Rudy. Bend down again."

Rudy obediently bent down.

I leaned close to his ear and did my best to channel Eris.

"Rudeus~ are you trying to seduce me?"

"Uh..."

Just as expected. He froze.

At night, Rudy's greatest opponent is Eris. But with Eris pregnant, the three of us aren't exactly a match for him either.

He's been far too smug these past few months.

Hmph. Once Eris is back, he'll behave.

"Alright~ Rudy, I want that ice cream over there~"

"Okay. Wait here, Roxy."

------

That afternoon, we wandered through a lot of places.

The theater, the playhouse, the Milis church. We even swung by the Magic University for a look around.

When the students spotted Rudy, none of them dared crowd over and pepper him with questions. They kept their distance and talked among themselves.

Well. Rudy had been using the teleportation array to visit Miss Nanahoshi lately. It had been a long time since he'd just walked around like a normal person.

What kind of person did the students see him as now, I wondered?

Being close to him every day, I knew he was remarkable. But I couldn't tell you exactly how remarkable, or in how many ways.

I'd heard he had fanatical admirers all over. In the Asura Kingdom, it was apparently even more extreme.

"You have a lot of fans, Rudy~"

"Fans? They're probably just curious why this teacher hasn't come back to the academy in so long."

"Come on, Rudy, you don't have to be that modest. The students you taught before have all graduated. The ones here now barely even know Rudy used to teach here."

"Is that right... oh. No wonder."

"Hm? No wonder what?"

"That beast-race girl Windsor likes. She really hasn't come around to see Windsor in a while."

Beast-race?

I had absolutely no memory of her.

What I did know was that Windsor, just like Eris, loved dogs.

Lara, like me, had a bottomless appetite.

Lucy, like Sylphie, spoke in this small, gentle voice.

Hm. How had they all ended up taking after their mothers?

There had to be things that took after their father too, right?

Let me think.

Lara's magical talent took after Rudy. Windsor's sense of responsibility as the oldest sister took after Rudy. Lucy's love of reading was a little like young Rudy. And Rudy wasn't much of a talker back then either.

Hm.

Actually, Rudy still isn't much of a talker now. He just saves all his words for the people he loves.

That thought made me smile. Every time I remembered how differently Rudy treated me, something warm spread through my chest.

"Alright, Rudy, we've seen enough of the academy. Let's grab some snacks and head back?"

"Mm. No candy for Lara, though. She's been eating way too much lately."

"That's your fault! I told you to stop giving her so much candy."

Hm. Wait.

I slipped my hand into the pocket of Rudy's coat.

There it was.

"Rudy~ What's this?"

"Uh..."

Several pieces of candy, pulled straight from his pocket.

This man. He spoils that child rotten, and on top of that, he's afraid of someone else stealing her attention.

He says he won't buy candy for Lara. And then he hides it on his person and slips it to her in secret.

"I know exactly what's going on, Rudy. Lara sneaks off to find you after every meal."

"It's just a little... Lara's at the age where she likes candy..."

"Mhm? So why is Rudy hiding it when he just said he wouldn't buy any~"

Rudy took a slow, deep breath.

Then, with all the dignity of a man confessing to a crime he was fully prepared to be punished for, he said,

"It was Lara's idea."

"What?"

"Lara said... I should hide it on me... and she'd come find me after meals. That way Mama wouldn't get angry."

"You two."

"But I can't help it! Lara is so cute! You understand, right, Roxy? She looks so much like you. I genuinely cannot say no to a tiny version of Roxy begging me for something. If you're going to blame anyone, blame yourself for making our daughter this adorable."

"What are we going to do when Lara gets cavities?"

"Ugh... we could heal them with magic...?"

Ha.

This man.

"Fine. You can keep hiding candy. But you have to control how much."

"Okay! I swear I will not fall for Lara's begging!"

"Who's going to believe that~ If I act even a little spoiled, Rudy caves immediately. Lara is definitely the same."

Under the setting sun,

Rudy smiled and took my hand.

Today, my birthday.

I'd been wrapped in a steady stream of small, unintentional intimacies all day. The kind I love most.

The way Rudy's arm had quietly pulled me close when the street got crowded.

The way his feet, when we sat across from each other, had drifted toward mine without thinking, until they were tangled together.

The way my head rested on his shoulder, my hand in his, and when someone walked past, his arm tightened around me.

The love between Rudy and me might not be flashy. It isn't dramatic or sweeping or the kind you'd write songs about.

But this love, built out of small moments like these, was the kind that made my heart ache in the best way.

Each little thing felt like Rudy saying,

I'm right here.

I care about you.

I love you.

Our lives had grown so deeply tangled together that the love just happened, without either of us having to try.

"Rudy."

"Hm?"

"The wish I made this morning already came true."

"What did Roxy wish for?"

"Something simple~ I just hoped Rudy would give me a romantic date."

"This counts as romantic?"

"It does. I like this kind of date just fine~"

Rudy looked down.

Our fingers, already laced together, held on a little tighter.

I tilted my head up and murmured,

"Rudy... if you kiss me right now, that's a hundred extra points."

"As your student, a hundred extra points is way too good to pass up."

Under the setting sun, we kissed until neither of us could breathe.

➤ Next: Aisha, Heart — Heartbreak