Fast-forward about half a year from the day I went to the Demon Realm and received a guest house from Finar for movement.
During this time, I completed the road to the royal capital of the Demon Realm, and now I could go there anytime I wanted. It was nice to have a wider range of activities.
Thanks to the hunting of monsters in the Demon Forest, the levels of me, Rir, and the other four pets have also improved.
The level of me and Rir increased only a little, though.
Perhaps it was the influence of Ruin's power, but it was noticeably harder for us to raise our levels, and while all the pets except Rir had increased their levels by nearly 10, we had only increased ours by about 3.
One of the reasons may be that we were not fighting strong monsters that we had to risk our life, since our objective this time was to increase our DP, not to raise our level.
Lefi also spent a thousand years to reach her current level. The growth rate of Lefi may require an even greater amount of time compared to us.
There had already been three meetings among Rulers in the Rogard Empire, and I participated in two of them.
The competition that would bring the nations together was officially called the Humanoid Races Joint Competition, but It was commonly known as the Magic Warfare Festival.
Most of the rules have been discussed. The last of the fair and unfair parts have also been sorted out.
The construction of the event location in the Rogard Empire had also been started by the dwarves. I recently saw it from the sky.
What to say, it was really amazing, as expected of the Dwarves. They seemed to have carefully examined the parts of the plan that I had shared with them based on my shallow knowledge. Even now, when the stadium was still unfinished, it was an exciting structure to look at.
I knew from what I had heard that they were very good at this kind of construction, but it really felt different witnessing it with my own eyes.
I did not know if it was because of the use of magic, but the speed of construction was almost on par or even faster in comparison to how they built things in my previous life.
And despite the speed of construction, it was definitely built in a very solid form from foundation to its overall structure. Moreover, even looking at the parts that have been completed at this point, they have been refined in a conventional way.
I felt like I was catching a glimpse of the high level of technology possessed by the dwarf species.
The announcement that a competition would be held had already been made, and the economic circles centered on the Rogard Empire seemed to be actively moving.
The world was about to move forward one more step after the war.
We may still be within the framework of the [postwar] era, but we have started to move forward, trying to get out of it.
Times were changing.
I was excited to witness it during its creation, which was quite a feverish time, and even now, I still remained excited. However, the most significant change for me in the past six months happened at home.
"Hmm… It's growing well. As for the duration, it's difficult to say, but from the records that Layla-san has compiled, I'd say probably about another year."
The old woman, who was touching Lefi's abdomen, seemed to be using some kind of magic diagnosis while answering.
Her name was Xena.
She was a kind-looking grandmother, with drooping eyes and a constant smiling face, and was the midwife that Finar had prepared for us. By the way, she was a demon.
She seemed to be a skilled midwife that was even working directly for royalty. She had delivered the children of successive kings of the demon world, and even Finar said that, "She's probably one of the top midwives in the world" and that we should ask her everything that we were worried about.
Once again, I was glad to have the opportunity to get to know him.
I asked Xena to come from the demon world to check on Lefi as soon as she could.
"A year from now... I guess our child is an exceptional one." (Yuki)
Lefi nodded at my comment, then Xena added.
"Yes, this child is the child of the [Demon Lord] and a [High Dragon]. As such, there is no doubt that this child will also be born as a powerful race. Therefore, the nutrition and magical power required by this child is likely to be an order of magnitude greater than that of a normal child. Also, the load on the mother's body will be greater because of this, so please be aware of that."
"Kakaka, that much is not a problem! I am a dragon! So, Yuki, don't look so worried."
Lefi grinned smugly.
Her belly had grown noticeably, indicating that the life in her belly was growing steadily.
It had been less than eight months since Lefi became pregnant. If she were a normal human, she would have given birth in a couple of months.
In Lefi's case, however, it would still take a year from now.
"…I understand. But you, if there's something wrong, be sure to tell me, okay?" (Yuki)
"I'm sure it won't make any difference even if I told you. I understand already, it is not like I will be stubborn about it. Women are strong. Right, Xena?" (Lefi)
"Yes, yes. Men have men's strength, but women have women's strength." (Xena)
"That's right. So Yuki, just keep yourself calm and wait." (Lefi)
"Hey, hey" (Yuki)
I knew that women have their own strengths. That point was true even in my previous life. However, even knowing so wouldn't reduce my concern.
But then again, I wonder what would happen to my child's race.
I would laugh if he were to be a [High Lord] or a [Demon Dragon] like me from the moment he was born. Or maybe even a [High Dragon Lord]? Sounds super strong.
...Yeah, realistically, it might start as a [Dragonoid]. I was wondering how much of my power as a Demon Lord – or rather, the power of the dungeon – would be passed on to the child.
I have already thought of a name… regardless of gender the child may be.
I was sure Lefi and I would discuss it further, but I doubt it would change much from what I have in mind right now.
Then, after taking one more look at Lefi, Xena then started to look at another person.
"This one is easy to understand. We still have to see how it progresses, but there should be no problem if we think of it as the normal gestation period of a typical humanoid race. So I would say she has about seven months to go. Everything is going well."
"Heheh, is that so? Everything is going well?"
Lyuu smiled at Xena's words.
–Yes, Lyuu was also pregnant.
It was only about a month and a half ago that the ladies noticed the change in Lyuu's health.
I couldn't tell you how many times I went around hugging Lyuu when I found out.
"You, too, tell me if there's any change in your health condition, okay?" (Yuki)
"I'm fine! I'm going to use this time to get a lot of pampering from my husband!" (Lyuu)
"Oh, you said it so proudly in front of him." (Xena)
"Hehehe, from now on, I will be a mother as well! I will definitely grow stronger!" (Lyuu)
Lyuu puffed out her chest and looked proud of herself.
She was adorable with every move she made.
"I hope things are going well for both of you…"
I turned my head towards Nell, who chuckled a bit, and she turned to me and said.
"That's right, that… Onii-san! I'm almost done with my work! Just a little bit more time and the system will be able to manage without me… so just wait for me!"
Nell, who had been gradually reducing her hero work compared to how busy she was before, used to work in the royal capital, but now she had already switched to working in the frontier city [Alfiero], which was the closest city to the Demon Forest in the Allysia Kingdom.
I have also set up a door near Alfiero, so unless there was an emergency, She was able to come back every day.
This was also another huge benefit of airships.
The airships were developed by the Elrene Coalition, and as their usefulness became well known, they were introduced to many countries at a rapid pace, and even now, the routes they take continue to expand.
The Allysia Kingdom, one of the largest countries in the world, seriously expanded its airship fleet, and now owned more than a dozen of them, with more and more landing and servicing stations and mechanics being added.
Thanks to this, a system had started to be put in place to make sure that help could immediately be deployed in the the location where something happened, and it became possible to deploy the necessary forces to the site where they were needed at a speed unmatched in the past.
Nell also benefited from this, as she was allowed to work in Alfiero, located at the edge of the country, and was able to return home every day.
I believe that they built the station in Alfiero out of concern for me… and I was truly grateful for that.
As long as I was based in Demon Forest, the Allysia Kingdom would always be my neighbor, and I would like to continue to get along with them.
Speaking of which, the Beastmen, especially the Warwolf clans like Lyuu, often visited Alfiero to increase their friendship with other races, and I have informed them of Lyuu's pregnancy.
They also told me that they would like to come here once the baby was born, and of course, I said yes, so I was sure they would come back to visit us soon.
Layla smiled and added after Nell.
"I'm… ready anytime, you know? Yuki-san, have at me anytime you want."
"…Oh. Thanks."
Layla and I have… well, done it a number of times, but no kids yet.
Well, this was normal. It was common knowledge in this world that it was difficult for two people of different races to have a child, and if anything, Lefi and Lyuu were more of a surprise because they had a child earlier than expected.
I have to follow up on this so that Nell and Layla would not feel pressured.
Well, there was no need to rush into having a child. I would like to take things slowly, at our own pace.
"At any rate, this means that my first son or daughter would be with Lyuu." (Yuki)
"That is the case, I guess? Well, the child would still be zero years old when my child is born, so they won't really be far apart in terms of age." (Lefi)
I had always expected this to happen when I first heard about Lefi's gestation period, but it couldn't be helped.
"Well, this is quite an unusual case after all. Yuki-san, you may have many wives, but you are the only husband. You have to do your best as the only husband, don't you?" (Xena)
"…Yes. I'll do my best." (Yuki)
When I replied, she smiled and nodded.
"Don't worry, husband. Even if husband ends up becoming a pimp, we'll take care of you!" (Lyuu)
The Pimp Demon Lord. What terrible words to say.
I couldn't feel any dignity in those words.
"I'll go out and earn money! My work will be less from now on, but I'll still be able to earn enough money for everyone as a temporary hero!" (Nell)
Please stop talking about the work of a hero as if it were the part-time work of a wife.
"Then, I'll make use of the knowledge I've acquired so far and earn money by imitating a merchant…" (Layla)
"Then I will hunt monsters and sell them! I am sure that in human society, the materials of monsters can be sold at a high price, right? If I work with Layla, we can make a lot of money." (Nell)
"Yes, if Lyuu worked with me as the vendor while Nell and Lefi were in-charge of hunting for monsters, we can probably build a big business right away!" (Layla)
"Oh, that sounds fun too!" (Nell)
"I'll do my best as a vendor!" (Lyuu)
"Oh, I'm glad you guys are so enthusiastic. I'm sorry to interrupt your excitement, but I have to ask you once again where the heck do you guys usually live?"
Also, just to be clear, we really did not need to go outside to earn our living, just the DP that I earned every day was enough to sustain us.
Since the Rogard Empire became my domain, I have earned enough DP every day to stay cooped up in this place for the rest of my life and continue to live in luxury if I wanted to.
As I was joking with my wives, Illuna, who was with me, clenched her fists.
"If there's anything you need, big sisters, just let us know! We will help you a lot! We may not be the best at cooking, but we'll make it right!"
"We'll help you a lot!"
"….We'll all work together."
After the three young girls' expressed their own suggestions, the wraith girls also showed their own enthusiasm and were gesturing that they also felt the same way as the others.
"Kakaka, thank you, my little darlings. We will count on you little ones when we are in trouble. And as the big sisters of our children, I will be leaving them in your care." (Lefi)
"Ehehe, leave it to us! We will do our best!" (Illuna)
"Being called an Onee-chan… doesn't sound bad." (Shii)
"…Sounds great. Being a Big Sister." (Enne)
Xena-san's face lit up at the sight of the little girls.
"Fufufu, I'm glad to hear that your family seems to be getting along well. Having a child is a difficult time, but at the same time a very precious and wonderful one. Let us all work together and make sure everything goes well." (Xena)
"Yes, thank you, Xena-san!"
"Thank you, Ms. Xena!"
"You're right. We need to work together in all aspects of our daily lives."
"From now on, until the birth of the child, I will be counting on you, Xena."
"Yes, I'll be counting on you, ladies."
The chatting was lively with Xena-san smiling at the center of it.
Watching everyone's enthusiasm, I thought to myself.
–Ah, this was a happy moment.