Chapter 216 - A Little Storm

One day.

After finishing my lessons with Julie and Zanoba, I came home in the afternoon.

Windsor was the one who greeted me.

Arms crossed over her chest, looking fierce.

Yeah. Very much like Eris as a kid.

Just without that particular brand of arrogance.

Windsor fixed me with that fierce-but-adorable face of hers and said, "Welcome home, Dad."

"......I'm home, Windsor."

"Mm!"

She nodded hard.

Pursena, standing beside her, spoke up too. "Welcome home, Master."

Is Windsor angry?

About what?

And where are my wives?

I patted Windsor's head. "Windsor, where are your mothers?"

"They're inside. I told them I'd come greet Dad and my little sisters today."

"Oh...... Windsor, are you......angry?"

She nodded. Completely serious.

"Yes. I'm angry."

"Why?"

"Lara stole the pudding you put aside for me."

Right. Lately, whenever I go out, I have the maids prepare a few servings of pudding and leave them in the icebox for my daughters and wives.

Lara.

What a little glutton.

Stole her older sister's pudding and ran off to play.

"Want Dad to make you a fresh one right now?" I offered.

Windsor shook her head.

"No. I need Lara to understand she can't just take things that belong to someone else."

"That's fair."

"And don't you defend her, Dad. When she gets back, I'm giving her a proper talking-to."

"Alright."

I had Pursena fetch me a reclining chair. Once it was set up, I settled in a little ways behind Windsor.

How do I put it.

I just wanted to see how she'd handle this herself.

Lara and Lucy had gone out together today, with Aisha and Ghislaine as their guards. The sun was almost down. They'd be back any minute.

I was still thinking that when there was a knock at the door.

"Open up open up open up, it's so hot out here!"

Lara's voice.

Windsor opened the door and looked at her little sister, who was looking a bit sweaty.

Summer had arrived. This world never got quite as brutal as my old one, but it was still summer. Lucky for them, I'd designed a Magic Circle to keep the house cool year-round.

Lara and Lucy stepped inside. Both of them took one long, deep breath at the same time.

"Phew. Home is the best."

"Lara sis....... thank you for coming with me today......."

"Not doing that again. Way too hot."

"Mm, it's okay. I got everything I needed."

"Well, there's that!"

They were still chatting when both of them noticed their older sister.

Windsor. Arms crossed. Full eldest-sister energy.

"Sis Windsor?"

"......Sis Windsor?"

Windsor glanced at Lucy and nodded. "Welcome home, Lucy."

Lucy nodded back and came inside. The moment she spotted me, she broke into a little jog toward my chair.

She'd already picked up on the atmosphere.

"Dad...... is Sis Windsor angry?"

"Yeah."

"Why......?"

"Not sure myself~ Let's watch."

"Oh......."

I pulled Lucy up into my lap.

She squirmed a little, then looked up at me with red cheeks. "Dad......"

"Hm?"

"I'm...... all sweaty......."

"That's okay. Lucy smells nice."

"Uuu......."

As if I'd ever be put off by my own daughter. It's a little sweat.

We've actually been discussing with my wives lately at what age we should stop bathing together with the girls. It's a genuine question. My instinct is somewhere around ten? They're only a little past five right now, so there's no rush.

I was still turning that over when the exchange between Windsor and Lara got going.

"Sis Windsor....... is something wrong?"

"What do you think?"

Lara pinched her chin and thought about it. "......I'm home?"

Windsor's expression softened just slightly. ".......Welcome home."

Then she caught herself and pulled the seriousness back. "And?"

"And? Hmm....... oh!"

Lara's eyes lit up. She reached into her little satchel and came out with a small iron ornament.

A tiny sword. The kind you could hang from a keyring.

"Sis Windsor~ I bought it for you!"

At that, Lucy shifted in my lap, suddenly remembering something. She climbed down, dug into her own little satchel, and came up with a small boxed cake. She ran straight to Windsor with it.

"Sis Windsor....... I ate your pudding at noon....... I'm sorry. This is for you......."

Windsor went still.

Her arms dropped. She took both gifts, one after the other, and passed them to Pursena for safekeeping.

Then she pulled Lara into a hug. "I'm sorry, Lara. I blamed you for something you didn't do."

"Huh? What did you blame me for?"

"I thought you were the one who ate my pudding."

Lara's mouth twitched. "......Do I really look that greedy......?"

Nobody answered that.

Windsor let go of Lara and turned to Lucy, folding her into a hug. "Thank you, Lucy."

"It was my fault to begin with......."

"It's okay. Of course you can have some if you want it. Just ask me first!"

"......Wouldn't it be easier to just have the maids make extra?"

"Mothers would scold us. We can't eat too much."

"......Okay."

My adorable daughters had made up.

They shared the cake between them, then dragged their old father along to the bathroom for a bath.

Watching the three of them splash and squabble in there, my chest went soft.

I was in my clothes, for the record.

"Dad! Stop daydreaming, I've got bubbles in my eyes!"

"Oh, sorry, sorry."

Lara, Lucy, Windsor.

I went down the line, washing each of their hair and rinsing them off, then wrapped them in towels and dried them one by one.

While I was scrubbing Lara's head, she looked up at me. "Aren't you going to wash too, Dad?"

"I am. Just doing you three first."

"Mm mm! Then I'll go call the mothers to come help wash Dad!"

"Hey, wait,—"

She bolted before she was even dry.

Honestly.

I finished drying Windsor and Lucy, then sat alone in the bathroom and waited for my wives to arrive.

All in all, my daughters were very cute today too.

➤ Next: Lucy, One Day