...
"I'm back! Father!" Several hours after Cecilia and Shimo left the lord's city.
Returning from a monster hunt, Cecilia, without even changing her clothes, came to Albert's room to report her return.
The last days of the year, time for family.
For Cecilia, who had been pampered since childhood, although a little boring, it was undoubtedly a pleasant holiday.
"...Huh? Father...?"
"...Ah...you, you're back. Cecilia..."
Her loving father, whom she hadn't seen for many days.
She had expected her father to greet her with a smile, but his face now bore an unsettling weariness.
Sunken eye sockets, inexplicably gaunt cheeks.
His body, slumped in the chair, was lifeless; even the hand reaching out to her trembled.
"Ah, Father!? Are you feeling unwell!?" The air in the lord's room, which should have been warm, was icy cold, and her father looked like a sick man.
She hadn't traveled far or been away for long, so how could he have become like this in just a few days?
"Ah, it's nothing... I'm fine..."
"Fine?! Your complexion is terrible! Why isn't the heating on...!" After activating a heating magic item, she went directly to Albert and examined his face closely.
Although he didn't look thin, his pale face revealed deep exhaustion.
Her father was indeed burdened by heavy official duties, but he had always been very careful about managing his physical strength.
Seeing her father so busy yet never showing any signs of fatigue, as his daughter, she had always felt a certain pride.
But what happened to him now? "Oh my god. Look how haggard you are. Are you really alright?"
"Um, um… I'm fine. I…"
"So you're just exhausted? How long have you been working so hard to…"
"…Ah. Yes, yes… because of official duties…"
"You should take care of your health! Didn't Mother say anything?" The moment the word "Mother" was mentioned, Albert's pupils trembled as if startled, unable to look Cecilia in the eye.
Shaking pupils.
A look of fear.
And shoulders trembling as if feeling cold… Cecilia, puzzled by Albert's appearance, suddenly felt it was strange that Celestia wasn't in the room.
"…Speaking of which, where is Mother? I thought she would be with Father…"
"Ah, ah… Ce-Celestia, she, um…"
Something's wrong. What happened to make Father look so terrified? He only asked where Mother was.
His expression was twisted as if recalling something he didn't want to remember, his lips moving but no sound came out. What exactly happened while I was away...?
"...You, your mother...Celestea...Ugh, ugh...!"
"Ah, Father...?"
"...Zemo...went to...the party..."
"...What? Zemo...? That monster organization? That Zemo party...?"
"Yes, yes...I...I'll probably...stay there for a few days...and come back..." I completely can't understand what they're talking about.
We agreed to spend the New Year together as a family, but instead they went to that monster's party?
And they're going to stay there for a few days...?
It's not like it's in another city...?
"What is this...going to that monster's party during the New Year? What are they thinking..."
"...It was me, I allowed it...a divine beast, we have to build a relationship first..."
"Even if it's a divine beast, it's still not okay! Leaving your ailing father behind! And of all times, on a day like this!"
"...It's alright...it's okay..." No, something's fishy about this.
My own mother, even if she were a divine beast, would never be close to monsters.
In fact, it's a miracle she didn't kill that monster.
She's certainly not the kind of person who still deeply loves my father but abandoned him to attend a party alone.
But why would someone like that go to that monster's place on a day like this...?
"Heh, heh heh... yeah... it's alright... this is fine..."
And what's with that strange, ambiguous expression on my father's face...?
"...You must be tired. Go change your clothes and rest. Don't worry about your mother."
"Ah? No, but...! ...Haa. Okay. Father, please rest too. You look very tired."
Looking at my father resting with his eyes closed, I silently left the room.
It was the first time in my life I'd seen my father so exhausted, and it was hard to speak.
What exactly happened while I was away...?
"...Hmm?" Suspicious about my parents' unusual behavior, I was walking towards my room when I noticed two maids of similar age trembling in the hallway. The door to their room was wide open. That was… their father and mother's bedroom…
"…What's wrong? You two. What happened?"
"Ah, ah… Miss Cecilia…" Aside from her innocent childhood, she herself rarely ventured into this room.
Although her father and mother each had their own separate bedrooms, they would share this room on special occasions.
Now, as an adult, she understood the true meaning of sharing a room… While there were days when they simply slept together, the true purpose of this bedroom was probably… This was supposed to be a private space where her parents spent intimate moments together, a place even their own daughter shouldn't enter without permission.
These maids must be here to clean.
Then they should hurry up and finish cleaning. Why leave the door open and not go in?
"Th-um… we… this morning, Lady Ceresia instructed us to come here to clean…"
"Mother? This morning?" But was she still in the city this morning? She said she left after instructing me to clean this room.
So, yesterday I was with Father…
"Y-yes…but…when I came to clean…the state of the room…"
"…? What happened…" These are maids working in the lord's city, after all.
I have to stay calm.
Really…though I have no right to say such things.
"But, the state of the room…did you two have a fight?"
"…Ah. So Mother was angry and used the excuse of attending a banquet to go out?"
Really, you two are still so young.
So passionate…
"…Huh!?" I breathed a sigh of relief, thinking it was probably just a trivial incident, but the moment I saw the room, all that thought vanished.
"This…this is…what…?" My parents' bedroom was almost identical to my childhood memories.
However, the state of the room was completely different from what I remembered.
Unmade bedding. A dress carelessly tossed on the floor.
No, compared to that… what exactly is this yellow liquid covering the entire room…? It's almost like a high-level water magic spell was used to create it…?
"…Ah."
No, it's not like that.
If it's the white liquid in the bedroom, then it should be… Although I lack experience, as a well-educated noblewoman, I know what it is.
That viscous texture. Calling it white is a stretch; it has a yellowish tinge.
Especially… the smell.
…That's probably male semen… No, is that really it? That intense color and viscosity. It's so different from what I've learned… And, moreover… the amount is outrageous. This…
The bed is practically covered in a liquid blanket.
There are several yellow puddles on the floor… Could it be that Father…?
That's why he's so tired…?
…Ah, no.
For a human, this amount is impossible.
What on earth is going on...?
"...Ugh!!!" The moment I stepped into the room, the overwhelming masculine scent from outside assaulted my nostrils, making it hard to breathe.
After smelling it, I felt inexplicably dizzy and my body felt hot.
What is this... this disgusting and strange smell... is this the smell of male semen?
No, compared to this... it feels like the scent of a wild animal I've smelled somewhere before...
"...!!!" The instant I recognized the wild animal scent, the face of a certain monster flashed into my mind.
That body, covered in bulging muscles, emitted a stench that was strangely captivating.
It was the divine beast Shimo, who was in charge of my training.
That's right. This is... the scent of that monster... Why, in my parents' bedroom... is the scent of that monster...? '...Could it be...?' An unpleasant thought flashed through my mind.
It was clearly an absurd conjecture, but the moment the thought arose, my body strangely trembled.
'No, Mother… How could Mother…' The bedroom was a mess, stained with yellow liquid.
It didn't look like something a single person could have done.
Multiple men. Or, non-human males… Thinking this, she suddenly recalled the feel of the heavy testicle she had kicked but which remained intact.
If it was that monster, perhaps…
'You, you! Clean this room immediately!'
'Ah… Cecilia-sama…!'
'Hurry! If you clean it up, you can go home today!'
'Uh, uh… Yes, yes!'
No, that's not right.
Mother, my mother who hates monsters so much, couldn't have done such a thing.
Although it was hard to believe the state of the room, Mother would never do something so blasphemous…!
'…Tsk. This smell, no matter how you look at it…' That monster… but it didn't seem like the kind of creature that would do something so insane… Tsk.
I don't understand.
No matter how I thought about it, I couldn't understand this situation.
Despite possessing a physique and abilities far superior to what I imagined, even so… was what that monster did really right?
Besides, Mother wouldn't see any man other than Father… they were so loving.
…Some bastard must have made this mess to humiliate them.
…So, did Mother go to see that bastard? '…Damn it. I don't know who it was, but it's a complete mess!' I cursed inwardly, staring at a puddle on the floor.
I don't know who the culprit is. Although that monster is the prime suspect, judging from his appearance, he seems like a reasonable guy.
Most importantly, his level is so low, he couldn't possibly commit such a suicidal act.
…Of course, the power emanating from those muscles was truly astonishing.
Thinking back now, the impact of that blow to my stomach still sends chills down my spine… '…Ugh. Cheer up, Cecilia.' The smell of men and beasts assaulted my nostrils, making me dizzy and almost unbearable.
It was a nauseating smell, yet each inhalation sent strange waves of heat through her body.
The maids cleaning the room must be even more... '...Ah. So thirsty...' The liquid was thick, almost like slime. Its yellowish hue inexplicably drew her attention.
From the moment she stepped into the room, she felt an unnatural, unbearable thirst in her throat.
Cecilia watched as her parents' bedroom was being cleaned.
...
"...Understand? I'll give you a holiday. Go home and rest. Don't tell anyone about today. If word gets out, it won't just be a matter of being fired."
"Yes, yes...Cecilia, sir…"
"Very good. Well then, thank you all for your hard work."
"Yes, yes...Ah...We'll take our leave now…" The maids, their faces flushed for some reason, bowed and turned to leave.
The yellow liquid still clapped on their hands as they turned away.
What was it…? Were they going to wash it off? "Ha…" Her father's haggard face. Her mother's sudden departure.
This was probably related to the state of this bedroom.
"…Tsk. I can't just leave a father like that…"
Although she wanted to find out what had happened immediately, her father's withered face lingered in her mind.
'Mother should know something, or she'll find out and come back… Then I can ask her…' Cecilia, the mother who always gently, sometimes sternly, admonished her impatient nature.
Cecilia's absolute trust in her beloved mother—that she could never have an affair with a monster—led her attention to her haggard father.
"Ugh!!! Why did this shameful thing have to happen! I'm going crazy!" Faced with this embarrassing situation that she couldn't tell anyone, Cecilia stamped her feet and walked towards her room.