Chapter 203 - An Outrageous Rebellious Phase
I pulled my fingers out of Chloe's mouth and let my shoulders slump.
My life is always like this. I lay hands on nothing but things I don't want to kill, and before I know it, I've lost everything.
When I killed Elsa, the child dwelling within her died too.
—Are you telling me to lay hands on my own child again?
"...There's no way I could do that."
I extinguished the Light Sword and lowered my arms powerlessly. Right now, I must look incredibly defenseless.
The girl from another world looks up at me with a puzzled expression, seeing me having lost all will to fight.
If you're going to do it, then do it. Why don't you just take my head with that proud sword of yours?
As I stared down blankly, Chloe began chanting a spell as if she had just remembered something.
"...Heal."
The arms that should have been severed were instantly regenerated.
Chloe generated a blade of light from her right hand and pierced through my left chest.
"...Kh!"
To pierce through my body, it must have considerable power. She must be quite well-trained.
...But it seems it will take a little more time to completely destroy my heart.
As I writhed in agony from the sensation of my internal organs being scorched, I continued to gaze at Chloe.
A girl with features that looked both Japanese and Western. Despite the reversal of fortune, she was looking at me with suspicious eyes.
Could she be thinking this is some kind of trap?
"...What's wrong? Are you hesitating? There's no need to hold back; if I'm to be taken down by you, it would be my heart's desire."
With just a twist of her right hand, she should be able to tear my lungs and esophagus to shreds.
And yet, Chloe's sword does not move. Keeping the tip pressed against my heart, she makes no attempt to do anything more.
"...Why aren't you dodging?"
To my daughter's question, I answer, "I'm tired."
"It's fine now. If it means killing my own kin, I'd rather die here. I suppose that was my lifespan. ...Ever since I killed Elsa, I had intended to follow her soon. This is for the best."
"That's so defeatist. Aren't you the guardian of that Holy Maiden? You're acting as those children's father, aren't you?"
"You're the worst," Chloe spits out.
"That's impossible. Even so, I am a father. Shouldn't you refuse to give up until the very end and think about how to survive? What will happen to the children left behind? Do you have any awareness of being a father?"
It was a reproach that made me want to ask, "Whose side are you even on?"
I curled the right corner of my lips and laughed.
"If you were some terrifying monster, I might have done that. But you're my daughter, aren't you? If so, I can't. I can't fight. Just kill me."
"..."
"How disappointing," Chloe said, swinging her sword sideways and rupturing my heart.
"Gah...!"
I sputtered out the blood that surged up from the depths of my throat.
It splashed vigorously onto Chloe, staining her clothes. Ah, man. She was wearing such fancy clothes, too. After having my sleeve cut off by my old man, now I'm getting splashed with my own vomit.
Even if this isn't a rebellious phase, I'm definitely going to be hated by my daughter.
While thinking such trivial things—I died.
＊ ＊ ＊
In a flower field that stretched on forever, Elsa was smiling while holding a baby.
Ah, so this is heaven. This is the afterlife.
I was certain I was headed for hell, but to think such an ending was waiting for me.
I reached out toward my wife and child while laughing, and then—
—The moment I embraced them with all my might, my consciousness was pulled back to reality.
The soft sensation I felt on my lips was a girl's kiss.
...No. It wasn't anything romantic like that. This was mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.
"...?"
What on earth was she thinking? It seemed Chloe had cast Recovery Magic on me and was desperately attempting cardiopulmonary resuscitation.
"...What is the situation...?"
"Start over."
"...Start over?"
"The duel."
While pressing down firmly on my chest, Chloe spoke.
"This won't do. This is no different from my opponent committing suicide. Don't disgrace a warrior's pride."
"...In other words, you want to fight me fairly and then defeat me in a satisfying way, right?"
"That's right."
"...It's fine if you just win."
"It's not a win!"
Chloe raised her voice.
I thought she was the type who didn't show much emotion, so this was unexpected.
"This is impossible... Until you lost your will to fight, you were supposed to be the one in the lead, right? This is just running away with a win. I won't allow that."
"You're stubborn."
I wonder who she takes after. I softly reached out and touched Chloe's hair.
I expected her to brush me off, but she let me stroke it quietly.
"...What is it you want to do?"
"What about you? What is it you want to do?"
At my question, Chloe let out a sigh.
"I don't have much time. Therefore, I desire a normal match."
"Time?"
"Don't you understand yet? Just as Mother said, you really are slow."
Mother. Her way of speaking was like someone of knightly rank, and then there was that line about being chased by time.
From this, the identity of Chloe that could be inferred was—
"You're a Homunculus, aren't you?"
"..."
Thanks to the chest compressions, my head had cleared up considerably.
With my thoughts beginning to race, I organized the situation one by one.
The fact that the position of her mole perfectly matched my parent's is something that couldn't happen in nature. It's certain she was created by some extraordinary means.
My lower half had been preserved alive in Teacher Lili's atelier. If they used that, they could have collected as much semen as they wanted.
A Homunculus is an artificial human created by putting human semen into a still to let it rot, and then providing it with human blood every day.
Normally they are about the size of a dwarf, but it is said that by sacrificing reproductive capacity or lifespan, it is possible to adjust them to human size.
And Chloe is anxious because she has no time.
If that's the case, then you—
"You were made as a short-lived species, weren't you? Am I wrong? With that physique and combat power, your lifespan must have been shortened considerably, right?"
"...That took quite a while to deduce. I wish you had noticed sooner."
Saying that, Chloe slowly moved away from me. She continued to back away to create distance, holding her sword in an upper guard.
"What I desire is the honor of a warrior. I want to dedicate my remaining few years of life to the glory of a knight. That is truly all."
I feel like elements of Teacher Lili are in this personality, too.
...She probably used Teacher's blood.
A forbidden hybrid created through Alchemy. That is Chloe's true identity.
"Is that why you interfered with the Status Appraisal?"
"That's right," Chloe nodded.
"Because if you appraised me, Lord Father, you would never be able to cut me down. That wouldn't work. So, I used an artifact to hide my identity."
At the way she called me Lord Father, my heart nearly stopped.
To think I suddenly ended up with a fifteen-year-old daughter.
"...Was that mechanism to scramble the numerical notation an artifact? What's the principle? There's no need to hide it at this late stage. Tell me."
"...A tiny, flea-like tool. It has the property of moving every time it touches someone's body."
"I see. So it was traveling from person to person. No wonder I couldn't identify the epicenter."
I muttered, "Bringing in such a troublesome thing," as I stood up.
"So, now that you've revealed the trick, what are you going to do? I still don't think I can cut you down, you know?"
"I've decided to appeal to your emotions this time, so it's fine. This seems more effective on Lord Father."
"...Emotions?"
Chloe quietly lowered her sword and bowed deeply.
It was a Japanese-style, textbook bow.
"I beg of you, Lord Father. My remaining life is less than three years. If so, at the very least... I wish to serve my homeland by taking the most valuable head in this world. Even if it results in defeat, I do not mind. To be repelled by a Hero like you... to be repelled by a parent like you, if that is the case, it would be my heart's desire. Lord Father, you succeeded in cutting off my arm and completely overwhelmed me, didn't you? Why didn't you finish me off then? I wouldn't have minded, even if that happened."
"...So you're saying that if you fight me one more time and lose completely, that would also be fine?"
"That's how it is."
Forget a knight, she's a samurai.
Damn it, you do have Japanese blood in you.
"Lord Father, now, draw your sword!"
Chloe shouted.
"Lord Father!"
I—my choice—
"No. I will absolutely not allow it. A parent and child hacking at each other is something that can never happen, no matter what."
"Are you intending to mock a knight's pride!?"
"Is that how you speak to your parent!?"
When I stomped my foot like a stubborn Showa-era old man, a small crater formed in the asphalt.
I could tell Chloe gasped at my ridiculous physical abilities.
"...E-even if you don't intend to... I intend to fight."
"Chloe. You have another choice. Don't you think so?"
"Another? Wh-what? Don't tell me you want me to betray my country? Are you trying to say 'come to me'?"
"I've already anticipated that," Chloe said.
"Even if I were to submit to Lord Father's banner... what could I possibly do in just three years? ...If you love me as your daughter, then please, fight me with everything you have. I, too, will try to kill you in earnest. It would be a fitting end for a parent and child bound by forbidden Alchemy."
"Three years is plenty. In the three years to come, I'll make sure you experience all the happiness a normal daughter should have."
"You're talking big. Even though you couldn't even make your own Party Members happy."
"...That's true. That's why I won't fail again. ...I won't make a mistake anymore."
With a thud!, I kicked off the ground and circled behind Chloe. Since a sonic boom occurred, I must have exceeded the speed of sound.
"—A surprise attack!? How malicious!?"
"There's no way I'd do something as cowardly as that. I am the Hero, and I am your Lord Father!"
I quickly crouched down and hoisted Chloe up with all my might.
"...Is this... a tackle!? ...No...!? What is this?"
"A shoulder ride."
"Eh?"
"A shoulder ride."
In the pitch-black harbor, I was giving a majestic shoulder ride to the person who had just pierced my heart.
Drops of blood were still falling from my left chest.
"...Have you gone mad?"
While fending off Chloe with one hand as she repeatedly smacked my head, I continued to trudge along the nighttime seashore.
"How is it, Chloe? You must feel like a giant."
"...Can I kill you?"
"What's with that way of speaking? You're the one who'll suffer for it when you enter society. Stop saying things like 'kill' or 'die'."
"...How long am I supposed to go along with this farce?"
Chloe finally tried to thrust the Light Sword into my ear canal, but I prevented it by shaking my head rapidly.
Providing vibration to the crotch area certainly makes a girl behave.
"That was totally out of line for parent-child communication!?"
"It's out of line as a human being, let alone a parent. Do you want me to vibrate again? If you don't, then stay quiet."
"...Ugh... just kill me already... I'd rather die than receive such humiliation from my biological father..."
"Ah, you really are a female knight, saying things like 'kill me' after all."
While feeling a strange sense of admiration, I continued talking to Chloe.
"For three years, I'll keep entertaining you and pampering you. How about it? You might as well enjoy being a daughter to the fullest. Who knows, we might even find a way to extend your lifespan."
"..."
Is one more push enough? I set Chloe down on the ground and hugged her tightly.
"Chloe... no matter how you were born, you are my daughter. Come to me."
"..."
Chloe's body was trembling.
Thank goodness, we're connecting. We really are parent and child after all. As I stroked her head with a touch full of fatherhood, Chloe spoke in a spoiled voice.
"...You really will entertain me for three years, won't you?"
"Yeah."
"Do you promise?"
"Yeah!"
"Then, I want to try sexual intercourse."
"Eh?"
"...I hate the idea of dying a virgin. If I can't die gracefully right here, then I want to know the joys of a woman. If I'm going to be kept alive aimlessly for three years, I can't manage without that kind of pleasure."
"O-okay, I get it. I'll find you a good partner. That's also a parent's duty, right?"
"I want it to be you, Lord Father."
"Hm?"
Chloe stared at me with a provocative smile.
"You hold me, Lord Father. If you do, then I will swear my loyalty to you."
What the hell are you saying? A biological father and daughter... that's the worst kind of bad joke.
"I can't imagine any man other than you, Lord Father. I have no interest in weak men. ...You're going to pamper me, aren't you?"