Mushoku Tensei (LN) - Volume 12 - Chapter 15

Chapter 15:

Carnage 

F IVE PEOPLE REMAINED in the living area: Sylphie, Norn, Aisha, Roxy, and myself. There was also the armadillo (Dillo, as I’d named him) sprawled out by the fireplace with a look of bliss on its face, but you could hardly count it among our number. 

Lilia was helping Zenith into the bath. Before entering, she’d come to ask me if it was all right, and I’d nodded. I wanted to get through this discussion without relying on her aid. 

Rather than return to her room, Norn lingered. She was having a rough time of it, still audibly sniffing. She’d been incredibly attached to Paul, and was taking the loss exceptionally hard. 

“Well, there is one last thing I have to talk about.” 

When I said as much, the three of them returned to their seats. I exchanged looks with Roxy, who quietly wandered over beside me. 

“…” 

Seeing how swollen Sylphie’s belly was made me hesitate, but I had a responsibility. Eventually, Roxy would be in the same state of pregnancy. If Sylphie refused to take her in, would Roxy give birth all by herself? That was the agreement we’d made, but if that really did happen, then I planned to support her however I could, financially or otherwise. 

“I’d like to take Roxy as my second wife,” I blurted out. 

“…Huh?” 

The one who voiced her confusion wasn’t Sylphie, but rather Norn. Sylphie just had a blank look on her face. 

“Wh-what are you talking about?!” Norn demanded. 

“Let me explain everything in order.” 

I started by recounting what had happened on the Begaritt Continent—how Paul had died and I’d fallen into a deep depression as a result. I told them how Roxy had been the one to save me, and that I’d developed feelings for her as a result. How I deeply respected her and wanted her to become a part of our family now. 

“It wasn’t my intention to betray Sylphie, but in the end, I did break my promise. I’m sorry.” I got down on my knees. There was a rug stretched out across the floor, but the winters in the Northern Territories were cold, so naturally the carpet was as well. I bent forward and pressed my head to the floor. 

“Huh, wai—Rudy?!” I heard Sylphie’s panicked voice call out from above. 

“I still love Sylphie just as much as before, but it seems I may have gotten Roxy pregnant. I need to take responsibility for that.” The more I spoke, the cheaper my words sounded, even though they really were my true feelings. 

When I peered up, Sylphie had a troubled look on her face. Perhaps she was confused. I couldn’t blame her for that. I’d told her that I loved her, sworn I’d come back no matter what. Now I’d returned in shambles—minus a family member and my left hand. She might have thought she could at least rejoice because I was safe, but here I was, saying I wanted to take another woman as my wife. In her place, I would have wailed, screamed, and lashed out. 

But still, I asked for the impossible. “Sylphie, please forgive me.” 

“There’s no way she can!” The one who shrieked back at me was Norn, not Sylphie. She stomped right over and grabbed me by the collar of my shirt. “How can you say that? Do you know how she felt the entire time she was waiting for you to come home?!” 

“…” 

“Every day she said, ‘I hope Rudy is okay,’ and ‘I miss Rudy,’ and ‘I wonder if Rudy’s eating right now.’ Do you know how lonely she looked—how lonely she sounded the whole time?!” 

I didn’t know. I didn’t know at all, but I could imagine it. The expression on her face as she waited for me. How lonely she sounded. How she might sit in a chair with nothing else to do but tap her foot as she waited. 

“I figured I couldn’t blame you for not being able to save Father. If things were so rough you even lost your left hand, then there was nothing anyone could do. So it seemed wrong to blame you for it. But now you’re telling me you had enough composure during all of that to have sex with another woman? And now you want to make her your wife ?!” 

“No! I wasn’t composed at all. I was depressed! That’s why Roxy put her own feelings on the line to save me!” 

“Miss Sylphie would’ve done the same thing for you if she’d been there!” Norn snapped back. 

Of course Sylphie would’ve saved me had she been there. She’d cured my impotence, after all. But the one who actually saved me was Roxy. Even though she had feelings for me; even though she knew I already had someone. She’d resolved to do it, even knowing she might be tossed aside afterward. 

“Norn, you should understand how it feels, locking yourself in your room, feeling like you’re so deep inside a hole you can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. How are you supposed to cast aside the person who saved you from that?” I argued. 

“I do know! I’m grateful to you for helping me through that, but this is a totally separate matter! Lord Millis would never permit someone taking a second wife!” 

Oh, that’s right. Norn was a follower of Millis. No—her religion wasn’t the issue here. Maybe it was just me. Maybe I was doing something wrong, and trying to strong-arm my way into being in the right. 

“Besides, why that tiny girl?! She’s not any different from me!” Norn glared at Roxy. 

Roxy returned the younger girl’s gaze with her usual poker face. She was taller than Norn, but barely so, maybe even less than centimeters’ worth. In the face of my younger sister’s hostile gaze, Roxy remained unfazed as she muttered, “I may be small, but I’m still an adult.” 

I wondered what she was going to say. Her voice trembled, an open door into her heart, but the words were such that they could be construed as impertinent. 

Norn was infuriated. “If you’re such an adult, don’t you feel like you’re being shameless?!” 

“…” 

“Don’t you feel bad for barging into their relationship?!” 

“Norn, that’s going too far. I’m the one who said I wanted to bring her into our family. Roxy’s done nothing wrong. She’s the one who tried to back out of it,” I objected with a firm voice. 

Norn didn’t even glance over at me, but just continued her verbal onslaught on Roxy. “You stay quiet!” she barked at me. “Besides, if she really did try to ‘back out,’ then why is she still here, clinging to you? She’s just taking advantage of your offer!” 

I honestly thought about slapping her, but—and it went without saying—I didn’t have the right to do such a thing. If I slapped her, I felt like I really would be complete scum. 

“…” 

Roxy fell silent as Norn shouted her down. She looked as indifferent as usual, her eyes turned to the floor. Finally, she lifted her head up and bowed it toward Norn. “You’re right. It is shameless of me. I apologize.” 

Then she stood up straight and drifted over to the edge of the room. She picked up her luggage, placed her hat on her head, and moved quickly toward the exit. 

I couldn’t even stop her. I knew we’d face resistance—knew not to underestimate how difficult it would be for everyone to accept this—but I’d thought I could convince them. That had been naïve. Now here we were, and Roxy had been lambasted for her part. She probably felt like she was walking on a bed of nails, and things might keep being that painful for her if she stayed here. 

No one would choose to stay with that possibility in mind. Even I would race for the door, unable to withstand it. 

I couldn’t let her leave here with such a bitter taste in her mouth. That wasn’t how I wanted this to end. I wanted to repay her for everything she’d done, not bring her here just so she could be dragged through the mud. I brought her here so I could make her happy. 

And yet, no matter how I felt, I couldn’t stop her. I couldn’t hold her back. Maybe I couldn’t make her happy? 

No, think! Roxy would be out the door any second now. I at least needed to stop her! Even if it meant slapping Norn, even if it meant making my little sister hate me, I— 

“Wait!” a voice called out from behind. “Miss Roxy, please wait!” 

It was Sylphie. She took to her feet and hurried over, grabbing Roxy by the hand. Roxy glanced back, her eyes welling up with tears. 

“Why are you stopping her?!” Norn gasped. “Just let her go!” 

“Norn, could you please be quiet?” 

Dumbfounded, Norn squeaked, “Huh?” 

“You were being far too harsh this whole time. I never expressed any objections,” said Sylphie. 

Norn froze, at a loss for words. 

“Please, sit,” Sylphie said, turning her back on Norn in favor of guiding Roxy to a place on the sofa. Roxy perched herself atop it willingly with no signs of resistance. Then Sylphie took a place beside her. “I was a little confused at first… So it seems you’re the one who saved Rudy, Miss Roxy?” 

Roxy tentatively nodded. “…Yes. But I did have an ulterior motive, and I don’t intend to make any excuses for that.” 

“Yes,” agreed Sylphie. “Well, Rudy is really handsome. I wouldn’t have believed you if you’d said you didn’t have any ulterior motives.” 

“…” 

“I think if I had been in your place, I’d have done the exact same thing.” Sylphie smiled at Roxy, a gentle expression on her face. Roxy’s was stiff in contrast. Sylphie kept smiling as she continued. “To be honest, I figured it was just a matter of time.” 

“Um, what was a matter of time?” Roxy asked, confused. 

“Rudy bringing home another woman.” 

Just a matter of time before I brought another girl? …Hm? Wait, did this mean she actually didn’t trust me? 

“You know Rudy’s a pervert, right? I figured he’d do it with someone else if I wasn’t around. But he’s loyal, so I figured if he did do it with someone else, he would want to bring her into our family, just like he did with me. I didn’t think I’d be able to have him all to myself forever.” 

I wanted to protest, but she’d completely hit the bullseye. I had no right to say anything. 

“Honestly, I figured if he was going to bring anyone home it would be Linia, Pursena or Miss Nanahoshi.” 

Roxy commented, “I’ve not heard those names, except for Miss Nanahoshi.” 

“They’re his friends at school. They’re all very sexy, with huge breasts.” 

Well, Nanahoshi isn’t necessarily that sexy, I protested inwardly. Wait, that doesn’t matter right now. 

“Truthfully, what I heard of your trip sounded brutal, and there was Paul’s death as well. I completely forgot the possibility he might’ve hooked up with someone else. That’s why I was so surprised when I heard…” Sylphie paused. “But it does make sense.” 

“What does?” Roxy asked. 

“Ever since you got here, you’ve been staring over at him with an anxious look on your face. I wondered what that was all about. At first, I thought it was because you were nervous about him announcing Paul’s death. But this is what it was actually all about.” 

“…” 

Sylphie continued, “You had the eyes of a woman in love, Miss Roxy.” 

The eyes of a woman in love. When Roxy heard that, her face heated up. “I’m sorry for making you witness something so unpleasant.” She lowered her head, cheeks still red as a tomato. 

From a wife’s point of view, it couldn’t be pleasant to watch another woman look lovingly at her husband. I could understand Roxy thinking that way. 

But Sylphie merely shook her head. “It wasn’t unpleasant.” 

“But…” Roxy began to protest. 

“How should I put this…?” Sylphie tilted her head in thought, and almost as quickly nodded. “You know, Rudy always talked to me about you, Miss Roxy.” 

“What did he say?” 

“Things like, ‘She’s the only magician I respect.’ He talked the same way about you before the Displacement Incident as well as after.” 

Roxy shifted awkwardly in her seat. “I’m not sure what to say, but I feel bad you had to hear that.” 

“Well, that was why I did feel a bit jealous as well,” Sylphie confessed. “He had such admiration in his eyes every time he talked about you.” 

“…” 

“I thought to myself, this Roxy Migurdia person is such an incredible magician, there is no way I could ever stand shoulder to shoulder with her.” 

“…” 

“But now that I’ve actually seen you and know you’re just a normal girl who loves Rudy, that jealousy is gone. That means you’re just the same as me,” Sylphie said as she lifted Roxy’s hat away and caressed her face. 

Roxy just stared back at the other woman and let it happen. 

And as she continued stroking, Sylphie said, “Norn may have expressed her opposition, but I welcome you.” 

Roxy’s face colored with surprise. 

I, too, felt my jaw drop in shock. I’d never dreamed Sylphie would accept it so easily. 

“Sylphiette…Miss,” Roxy said haltingly. 

“Just Sylphie is fine. I hope we’ll get along. Um, Rox?” 

“Um, I’m actually fifty years old as of this year, so that kind of nickname sounds a bit too childish…” 

“Oh, all right.” Sylphie nodded to herself. “You’re older than me, then. Sorry about that. Now that I think about it, Rudy did mention that, but seeing you, it just didn’t register.” 

“Well, I am petite,” Roxy admitted. 

“I’m not all that big myself.” 

The two of them looked at one another, holding hands, and laughed. 

“Well, Roxy, let’s support Rudy together, then.” 

“Thank you, Sylphie.” 

After they shared those words, they shook hands. The gesture radiated a curious sort of solidarity, and seeing it, I let out a sigh of relief. An unconscious reaction that slipped from me the moment I thought things would be okay. 

Norn glanced at me and furrowed her brows. “If Miss Sylphie is accepting of it, then I have nothing more to say.” Apparently, she wasn’t quite on board yet. She frowned slightly, clearly still displeased as she glared over at us. Perhaps I had earned her contempt once again. 

It was Sylphie who pacified her by saying, “Forgive him, Norn. Rudy’s not a follower of Millis.” 

“But—” Norn started to protest. 

“Mister Paul had two wives as well, didn’t he?” 

She went quiet for a moment before saying, “True, he did.” 

Sylphie continued. “Would you say the same kind of things to Miss Lilia, then?” 

Norn’s eyes widened in surprise. She turned to look at Aisha, who was sitting beside her. 

Aisha had been quiet the whole time, her face the picture of composure. 

“Oh… I’m sorry, Aisha,” Norn said. 

“It’s fine, really. I know you often say things without thinking them through.” 

“Why do you have to put it like that…?” 

“Look what just happened,” Aisha pointed out. “That wasn’t your place to speak. You kept going on about Miss Sylphie and her feelings, but really, you were just forcing your beliefs on everyone else.” 

“What?!” Norn hopped to her feet. 

I saw the fists at her side and jumped in to scold Aisha. “Aisha, you went too far.” 

“But—” 

I cut her off. “I understand what Norn is saying, too. If Sylphie had said the same things herself, it would’ve been understandable. I’m equally at fault for not considering how everyone would feel. We can’t blame Norn.” 

“Well, I guess. If you say so.” 

“…” 

Norn had a conflicted look on her face, as if unsure what to say. She must have felt uncomfortable standing there, because her next words were “I’m going to bed.” 

Her feet were quick as she moved to duck out of the living room. But then she stopped, as if she’d just remembered something, and looked back at me. 

“Um, Big Brother…?” 

“What is it?” 

Was she going to say make one last scathing remark? That was my fear, but what came out of Norn’s mouth next defied my expectations. 

“Would you teach me swordsmanship? When you have the time.” 

“Huh…?” 

It was so sudden that, for a moment, the words made no sense to me. 

Swordsmanship—was she going to try using Paul’s sword? Part of me felt like a half-baked attempt at self-defense would only be self-destructive at best, but this world wasn’t like my previous one. It might probably do her some good to learn swordsmanship. Even a little power was better than none. The bigger issue was whether I would be any good as a teacher. 

“Are you sure you want me to teach you?” I asked. 

“I can’t approve of what you’ve done, but I don’t hate you, either.” 

“…Okay.” 

I’d actually been asking if she was sure she wanted me to teach her when I’d only dabbled in the art myself, but I couldn’t turn her down now that she’d indirectly admitted she still liked me. 

“All right,” I said. “I’ll make time to teach you after school or something.” 

“Please do.” Once she said that, Norn was off to her bedroom on the second floor. 

In the end, I’d been absolutely helpless. Sylphie had rescued me with her generosity. 

“Big Brother,” Aisha called to me. “You look really pathetic right now, you know?” 

Unable to say anything in my defense, I just nodded. 

After that, the three of us (Sylphie, Roxy, and I) began talking about how things would work from now on, such as the order in which we’d spend our nights together, and how we’d negotiate quality time. The discussion was frank enough that Aisha took her leave. 

“Well then, Miss Roxy, I look forward to living together,” said Aisha. 

“Yes, me too.” 

Aisha grumbled under her breath as she went, but she was smiling even as she did so. 

What was up with her? Well, whatever. Sylphie, Roxy and I had the future to discuss. Some people might be aghast we could discuss such things when Paul had just died, but that was precisely why I wanted a more cheerful topic of conversation. 

“Please make Sylphie your main priority, Rudy. Just a little bit of your attention when you have the free time is enough for me,” said Roxy. 

“Nonsense. We must be fair,” Sylphie insisted. 

“But—” 

“He may yet take on more wives, so let’s not be bashful.” 

More ? I could tell how little faith she had in my lower half from that word alone. 

“Honestly, right now I just feel overwhelmed with guilt about this whole thing. I’ll just stay on the sidelines until your baby is born,” said Roxy. 

“So that’s how you feel.” Sylphie nodded thoughtfully. “Well, there is only a little more than a month until the delivery. You don’t mind if I take all that time for myself?” 

“I don’t. Then let’s wait until next month for me to officially become your wife, Rudy.” 

“…” 

I was probably an awful person for finding it a disappointment that I’d have to live the celibate life for the next month. But when I started to think about how I’d be able to have sex with both of them as much as I wanted after Sylphie gave birth… My buddy downstairs began to rise up in salute. 

“…” 

“…” 

As those fantasies solidified in my head, both women turned their gazes toward me. 

“Um, Rudy?” Sylphie called over to me. “If you absolutely can’t wait, let me know, okay? We’ll do something about it.” 

“Oh, no, I’ll take care of it myself.” 

No matter how much of a horn dog I was, I wasn’t going to cheat any more than I already had. I wanted her to trust that I, Rudeus Greyrat, would not falter again. The only reason I had wavered was because of the unique situation I’d been in, and because my partner was Roxy. As long as I never wound up in a depressive spiral and had a woman of Roxy’s caliber appear before me, I’d never cheat again. Ever. 

“Oh, but you said Roxy is pregnant as well? In that case, if we wait a month, you won’t be able to have sex with her, either. What’ll we do then?” Sylphie wondered anxiously. 

Roxy, looking ashamed, said, “Um, about what Rudy said regarding that…I think he was lying. I didn’t get the opportunity to say as much, but I’m not actually pregnant.” 

“Huh?” I blurted out. 

She wasn’t? Then what the heck was Elinalise talking about before? 

“…Oh.” 

She’d baited me right into a trap. That jerk. Dammit. And I’d danced right into the palm of her hand. 

“What is it, Rudy?” Roxy asked. 

“Nothing, but let me just clear the air and say I wasn’t lying. It was just a misunderstanding on my part.” 

“Oh, all right then.” Roxy scratched at her cheeks, face red. “But I look forward to it, someday.” 

“Oh, yeah. Me too,” I said. The words “Happy Family Planning” came to mind, putting a smile on my face. Ahh, I truly was looking forward to what was to come. 

“Rudy’s a perv, isn’t he?” teased Sylphie. 

“Yes, I certainly am,” I agreed. 

“I wonder what our pervy Rudy is going to do to me?” Roxy wondered aloud. 

We continued to talk and laugh together. 

And that was how I came to have a second wife. 

We prepared a room for Lilia and my mother after they finished their bath, then we retired for the night. Just as we’d previously discussed, I was spending the night with Sylphie. I made a pillow for her with my arm and we nestled close, her body facing mine. But we had yet to fall asleep. We were both gazing at one another quietly. 

“About our conversation before,” she began, being the first to speak. “I had something absolute tragic pictured in my mind when you said you had something to talk about and you had Roxy standing beside you.” 

“What’s that?” I asked. 

“I thought you might tell me that you couldn’t love me anymore and you wanted me to leave.” 

“I would never say that!” 

What kind of sleazebag would say something like that?! 

“Yeah, I know.” Sylphie rustled around. I could feel something press against the stump where my left hand had once been. Sylphie’s fingers—she was stroking it. “But I was still anxious. I don’t know why. I just got the feeling you weren’t going to come back to me.” 

A sense of foreboding? Well, this had been quite the close call. It wouldn’t have been surprising if I had died. 

I glanced at Sylphie. “Did I worry you?” 

“Yes.” 

“It’s okay now.” I stroked her head with my right hand. Her eyes crinkled as she leaned into my touch. Her hair was a beautiful, pale color. It had grown while I was gone. “Your hair is getting longer.” 

“Because you said you like long hair.” 

“You’re doing it for me?” 

“Yeah.” 

She’d waited for me this entire time, and I’d been stupid enough to… 

“I’m sorry, Sylphie, for breaking my promise to you.” 

She shook her head. “It’s fine. I love you the way you are.” 

“But if you’d done the same to me, I would have screamed and cried like a baby and lashed out at you for betraying me. I know I would.” 

She giggled. “Hee hee, but I wouldn’t do that to you. I don’t have eyes for anyone but you, Rudy.” Sylphie pressed her face close, pecking me on the cheek. 

A wave of affection came bubbling up from within my chest. I would love Sylphie for the rest of my life. She must’ve been worried, must’ve wanted to wail at me, and still, she accepted everything without a single complaint. 

“Sylphie,” I whispered. 

“Hee hee.” 

As repayment for her kiss, I gave her one of my own, planting my lips against her soft, squishy cheek. 

“…” 

Normally this was the prelude for our lovemaking, but we’d stop here for today. I couldn’t push her body, not when it was heavy with child. 

But just then, I felt something wriggle against my lower abdomen. 

“Come on, Sylphie, we can’t do that. If you start touching me down there, I’m not going to be able to hold off. I mean, I am interested in pregnancy sex, but…” 

“No, we can’t, Rudy,” she said at the same time. “It wouldn’t be good for the baby.” 

“Hm?” 

“Huh?” 

Suddenly we both looked down. There, just beside Sylphie’s swollen belly, was a dense, mountainous lump. We folded the blanket back to discover… 

“Dillo?!” 

The enormous armadillo had slipped its head in from the base of the bed, just between Sylphie and myself. When had this thing gotten in here? I hadn’t even noticed it enter. 

“Pervy little thing, sticking its head in people’s crotches,” I laughed. 

“Just like you, Rudy.” 

“No, I—” I started to protest, then thought better of it. “Ah well, I guess you can sleep with us for tonight.” 

“Yeah, that sounds good.” 

I slipped out of bed, produced a second blanket, and created a spot on the floor beside our bed for Dillo to sleep in. It sprawled out across it and closed its eyes. 

The creature had the appearance of an armadillo, but it was basically like a large dog. We’d have to build it a kennel down the road. Keeping it inside was all well and good, but it’d be a pain if it started crapping in here. Wait—I guess we could always just train it to be housebroken, like a dog? Well, that was a conversation we could have later as a family. 

“Shall we go to sleep?” I started to slip back into bed on Sylphie’s right, but stopped and returned to her left instead, so I could hold her hand with my right one. She gave it a powerful squeeze. “Good night, Sylphie.” 

“Yeah. Glad you’re home, Rudy.” 

And then I was out like a light.