Chapter 127 - A Father's Value
I put my foot on the apartment stairs.
I head up while keeping my hands in my pockets, making sure not to touch the handrail.
After all, the building is aging, so the handrails here are covered in rust.
If you touch them, your palms will get coated in grime, and it'll be a disaster.
In the beginning, Angelica made a huge fuss because both her hands got covered in rust.
There are only a few more times I'll be using these stairs.
It's strange, but thinking that I'll be leaving here and moving tomorrow brings up a somewhat sentimental feeling.
Could I really be feeling attached to an apartment where a neighbor died alone?
They say that as men get older, they marry their own habits, and perhaps that is actually true.
Surely, one begins to dislike change for no reason at all.
I finish climbing the stairs, mocking myself with the thought that I've grown old too.
In contrast to me, Angelica and the others should be looking forward to the new environment.
Their circumstances should be the top priority.
Switching my brain from single man mode to father mode, I open the door to the room.
"I'm home—"
There is no reply.
Usually, Ayako-chan, who is busy with kitchen work, would be the first to greet me, but it seems she is in the living room.
...Is she watching TV with Angelica and the others?
She said they were having a viewing party for the program I appeared in, but is that more important than the real me?
Feeling a slight sense of loneliness, I head toward the living room.
"I'm home... What's this, what's wrong? Everyone looks so down."
Angelica is lying on the bed looking listless, and Ayako-chan is sitting in a fetal position by the side of the table.
Philia is sitting in a girl-style pose, which is unbefitting of her age, rubbing her red, swollen eyes with her hands.
"Did you guys have a fight?"
The story that immediately flashed through my mind was: "Philia had an accident with her bladder, and Angelica and Ayako-chan got into a heated argument over who would clean it up, leading to a bad atmosphere."
It's a problem that frequently occurs in nursing care or parenting.
The kind of thing where a commentator would prattle on about how a wife's burden is caused by a husband's lack of understanding...
It's not like I'm in a marital relationship with Angelica and the others, but I am the only man in this house.
If I handle this incorrectly, I might become the common enemy of the women.
One could say my capacity for tolerance is being tested.
"Did something happen?"
I ask in a sharp voice, wondering if there is anything I can do to help.
Then, Angelica slowly sat up and began to speak with a lifeless expression.
"...We were watching that program you were in earlier, Father, and it feels like everyone's hearts have been wounded by it. Actually, I'd like you to explain. Various things. In detail. Everything."
"What do you mean?"
Behind me, Ayako-chan whispers in a low voice.
"Nakamoto-san, you appeared in that 'Muscle Talent Special' wearing a tank top, didn't you? With your nipples poking through."
"H-hey, who cares about a man's nipples? It's not like they're going to decrease in number."
"...They do decrease. They wear down. Even if the nipples remain intact as physical matter, I believe the Idea of the nipple has been sucked dry."
"Don't use philosophical terms for my mere nipples, okay?"
"Even if the viewership is only one percent, that's a million viewers... Since they say the average viewership for this program is around twelve percent, that's twelve million people, you know? That means one-tenth of the Japanese population has visually violated Nakamoto-san's nipples. It's practically like you went around handing them out. It's equivalent to being a victim of a major sex crime!"
I want to point out that her very way of thinking is the sex crime, but Ayako-chan possesses an intensity that makes me too afraid to speak up.
"If this many people adore Nakamoto-san's nipples within their minds, it's no different from having one's body defiled in the real world. Between a person who was violated in a place where no one was watching and a person who was visually violated in a place where everyone was watching, isn't the latter more malicious? This is murder against the nipples."
I whisper softly to Ayako-chan, who is making nonsensical arguments while sniffing her nose.
"Can I say one thing?"
"What is it..."
"Look. As a fundamental premise, I think this is a very important thing."
"Yes..."
After taking a deep breath into my stomach, I declare forcefully.
"—Nobody is interested in my nipples, you know?"
The room falls into a dead silence.
As far as I was concerned, I thought I was teaching them a very obvious piece of common sense.
However, Ayako-chan's gaze grew even sharper, and Angelica admonished me, saying, "Father, you should realize how you are being viewed by women."
Eh...?
What is this reaction?
Am I the one who's wrong?
Is the world actually obsessed with the nipples of a thirty-two-year-old average-looking man?
Am I the only one who didn't know?
"...Do you realize... why I've been able to work so hard on the housework in this apartment until now...? It's because Nakamoto-san regularly exposes himself in such an unguarded state...? Thanks to the stable glimpses of your nipples and your arm muscles, I've been able to find the motivation to work hard at cooking and laundry...? And to think, to think you were doing that for other women too... throwing it away without even knowing the value of Papa's nipples..."
"Sorry, I don't understand. I have no idea why my nipples are being discussed with the same energy as putting money into the household budget."
I instinctively want to cover my chest, thinking, Wait, were you looking at me with those kinds of eyes?, but since I had also been looking at Ayako-chan with those kinds of eyes, we were completely even.
So, letting this matter go for now.
"Is Ange depressed about that too? Are you also head over heels for my nipples?"
"I'm not that obsessed with men's nipples... Honestly, halfway through, I lost track of what Ayako was saying."
"Eh," Ayako-chan cries out. She has a face that looks like she's been "betrayed," but I want to tell her that this is the reaction of a normal human being.
"...I mean, I don't really... like the idea of Father's body being seen by other people, but the upper body is barely within my tolerance range."
"Is... that so?"
"I wouldn't forgive it if it were the lower body, though. Please never expose what's inside your boxers."
"Rest assured, if I did that on TV, I'd be arrested."
And if the house were searched, your existence would be revealed, and I would be etched into history as a legendary sex criminal.
"Um. Then why are you all moping?"
Angelica answers in a dark voice.
"Father, you were co-starring with young girls."
"...Ah."
"You were very popular, weren't you? Having them touch your whole body like that."
"Could it be that... that was broadcast unedited...?"
It's true that I am currently working with female idols on several programs.
My fan base consists mainly of housewives and children. It's centered around older women looking for a toned body and elementary schoolers who are delighted by magic tricks.
And the fans of female idols are primarily adult men.
So, if we co-star, we can create programs that appeal to various demographics.
Due to such adult circumstances, lately I've been continuously working with very bubbly girls, but...
The recording for the Muscle Talent Special was about a week ago.
Come to think of it, I feel like idols were also invited as guests back then.
There were scenes where those girls were touching my body all over, or were there? No, there were. There definitely were.
With a vibe like, "Wow, Nakamoto-san's biceps are amazing!", they stroked all sorts of parts.
But I had assumed that such scenes, which were certain to cause a backlash, would definitely be cut before broadcasting. Did they actually broadcast it to the whole nation just as it was?
By now, I wonder if enraged idol otaku are sending me death threats.
"What is up with that woman, Juri?! Isn't she touching Father way too much?!"
"No... well... she belongs to a group where romance is prohibited, so maybe a man's body is just a rarity to her..."
There's no way I can say, "Actually, I was almost subjected to pillow business by that idol."
That is a secret I will take to my grave.
"You'd understand, Ange, right? If you spend all your time in an environment full of women, the creature known as a man becomes purely a rarity. So, look, their touching probably didn't have any sexual meaning; it was likely just an action born of curiosity."
"I don't know! I'm always touching Father not out of curiosity, but driven by sexual desire!"
"You just confessed something outrageous!?"
"It's obvious that if you touch Father's muscles, you'll want to do something lewd! The girls who were on that program must have all been touching Father for the sake of his body!?"
I stare at the panting Angelica with exasperation.
I see.
So that's how it is.
Both Ayako-chan and Angelica think that because they are crazy, other women must be thinking crazy things too.
Humans can only suspect others within the range of actions they themselves would take.
"...Listen, Ange. You might not be able to imagine it, but... most girls in the world have very faint sexual desires, you know...? Compared to men, they are much more temperate creatures, you know...?"
"?"
I slump my shoulders, wondering how to explain it to my daughter, who has a face that says, I have no idea what you're talking about.
...Actually, there might be a racial difference in this, too.
There seems to be data suggesting that Westerners are more active at night than Japanese people.
Elsa was on the proactive side, too.
"W-well, anyway, Japanese girls are reserved. They don't invite men in as aggressively as you imagine, Ange. You don't need to worry about anything strange."
"...Is that so, Ayako?"
I try to stop her, saying that child is a wrong sample, but she won't listen.
Ayako-chan answers flatly with a tearful voice.
"No. Japanese women basically believe that they should sexually assault their fathers and men who resemble their fathers."
"See! See! Even Ayako is saying so!"
Angelica huffs with pride, as if her point has been proven.
I've realized a terrible fact, but there isn't a single sane person in this room.
Therefore, if I seek someone's opinion, even more insane opinions will simply come flying back at me.
"...What do you all want me to do to make you feel better?"
I ask, raising my hands in surrender.
A voice came out of me that was as weakened as an old man's, which even surprised myself.
To have my morale drained this much in such a short time. Aren't these girls stronger than a Demon Lord?
"...Did you just say you'll do anything... now?"
[Angelica's Sexual Arousal has reached 70%]
"...If it's an apology for eventually having to use a pregnancy test, then anything is fine..."
[Ayako Otsuki's Sexual Arousal has reached 70%]
As I gaze at the girls' eyes, which have begun to shine with a predatory light, I think: Well, of course Philia would start crying if she were around people like this.