“What? There was such an incident at the Academy?”
Dayton understood why the security guards had blocked his way so resolutely after hearing the explanation.
If it had been a normal day, they wouldn’t have stubbornly controlled his access, but it just so happened that a voyeur was caught in the changing room, and shortly after, a suspicious individual appeared on campus claiming to be a parent.
The security had simply done what they were supposed to do.
However, Luke could only feel embarrassed for Dayton.
It was true that he was registered as his “dad,” but who would have thought he would end up calling him “dad” over such a trivial matter?
Luke felt bad for Dayton, but he still couldn’t bring himself to recognize him as “dad.”
It was true that he was Yerna’s “good husband,” but how should he put it…
It was hard to find a part of him that Luke could look up to.
Well, he acknowledged that he was better than the average ability levels of typical adult men in their mid-20s, but from Luke’s perspective, he still fell considerably short.
Yerna had seen his dedication to her for quite some time, so now, even though she felt a bit shy calling him “dad,” it didn’t feel overly uncomfortable. However, with Dayton, who had only recently been living under the same roof, that devotion felt distant to him.
Of course, he recognized that Dayton was working hard to support his family behind the scenes.
Even though it was tough for him working in the forest, he still made breakfast, worked hard to pay off the loan for the house, and tried to remember anniversaries…
In that regard, it was quite admirable.
He willingly did all of that out of true love for Yerna.
But still, something felt off.
It was possible that he felt this way because he saw him as a “young dad.”
To Luke, a man in his mid-20s was still just a young adult.
For that reason, it was extremely embarrassing for him to refer to him as “dad.”
Maybe that’s why Luke voiced his dissatisfaction to Dayton with a somewhat curt tone.
“Honestly… Why didn’t you at least contact us before you came? If you had, this wouldn’t have happened. And if you were coming, couldn’t you at least have dressed nicely? What is that outfit? You look suspicious to the security guards like that.”
If Dayton had contacted him in advance, Luke could have gone to meet him, avoiding all this commotion, and more importantly, if he’d dressed well, he wouldn’t have been mistaken for a suspicious person.
Dressed like a local delinquent, it was only natural for the security to view him with suspicion.
“I should’ve thought about that. I didn’t expect such a thing to happen. Hahaha.”
Dayton awkwardly laughed at Luke’s grumbling.
Despite his way of speaking, Luke was probably thinking very similarly to kids his age, so he couldn’t be happy about having such a disheveled person as his dad.
It seemed that Dayton always made mistakes because he lacked this kind of subtlety.
As Luke silently watched Dayton’s sheepish smile, he sighed deeply and turned his body away.
What good would it do to say such things now? Dayton was here like this.
“Ugh…”
At that moment, Emily bounced over to Luke, expressing her interest.
“Is that person really Luke’s dad? He looks very different from what I imagined! He seems more like an older brother!”
“…Is he really that strange?”
In the social convention of marrying in one’s 20s, given the minimum age difference of over ten years, it’s common for a father to be in his 30s or older, making it understandable for kids to find him odd.
It’s not impossible, but definitely not typical.
However, Emily shook her head and said,
“No! He’s super cool!”
“Really? Thanks.”
Perhaps it was because he didn’t project a threat to the kids?
Dayton had a quite imposing stature, but fortunately, the kids seemed to have unexpectedly positive opinions about him.
But Emily didn’t stop there; she continued praising Dayton.
“Plus, he made a lunchbox for you and even brought it himself! He must really care about you! And he’s super tall! Completely awesome!”
“Uh, really?”
“Hey, hey. What does Luke’s dad do?”
“He works as a Forest Keeper…”
“Wow, that’s a really great job! How cool! So that’s why he’s so big! And my dad says that Forest Keepers do a very noble job, so they should be respected! They should also receive good treatment!”
“Oh, really? That’s great.”
“Right? Speaking of which, I actually got a commendation for a forest safety poster last year! The Forest Keeper praised my drawing back then! I thought he was awesome since then! And also…”
“Ah, uh…”
At Emily’s continuous chatter, Luke could only smile awkwardly, unable to find the timing to interrupt her.
Still, he didn’t feel entirely displeased about the positive feedback about Dayton as a father and the Forest Keepers, as his tail was subtly swaying.
At that moment, Kaila approached the awkwardly seated Dayton and said,
“Hey, aren’t you hot wearing that thick padding continuously? If you give it to me, I can hang it up for you nicely!”
“Ah, this isn’t padding…”
“Huh?”
It was just an ordinary hoodie that looked puffed up due to his muscles.
—–
After the incident had settled down to some extent.
“Well then, let’s have a drink while we’re at it.”
“Ah, thanks.”
-Swish.
Luke carefully placed a cup of ‘Vitality Tea’ on Dayton’s table, trying not to make any noise.
It was a quite skillful and elegant gesture.
Dayton gazed at him in slight bewilderment.
‘In a maid outfit, huh…’
Feeling Dayton’s gaze, Luke asked, “Why are you staring at me like that?”
“Ah, um…”
Well, it wasn’t anything unusual as it was an action he always displayed at home, but that was precisely the issue.
Thinking about it, there was no household work that Luke hadn’t contributed to.
Laundry, cleaning, cooking, childcare, and even gardening…!
He had been doing the work typically assigned to a household helper entirely by himself.
“You know, thinking about it, you really do seem like a maid. Now you handle all the housework by yourself, right?”
“Ex-excuse me!”
Well, he did work on all the household chores!
But that wasn’t because he wanted to be a maid; it was simply that there wasn’t anyone else who could do it properly, and he could finish tasks quickly using the features of the enchanted mansion he created! It’s not like he wanted to hear such a thing!
…Just as Luke was about to speak up, Dayton opened his mouth first.
“No, I meant to say thank you for doing all that. I really appreciate it. Thanks to you, I can be at ease in many ways.”
“Uh… Oh, really?”
Caught off guard by the sudden gratitude, Luke lost the chance to retort and awkwardly cleared his throat, averting his gaze.
“Um, well, it’s good that you recognized my efforts, at least.”
“Yeah, really, thank you.”
“…”
Luke felt an inexplicable embarrassment rising from Dayton’s compliment and turned his head away.
But why was this praise making him feel so shy when he wasn’t someone who had received little appreciation or compliments?
Perhaps as his fluency in the spirit language improved, he had become more adept at reading the emotions embedded in words, making him more susceptible to this heartfelt praise.
Dayton, watching Luke’s embarrassed demeanor fondly, smiled and lifted his cup.
‘No matter how much Luke pretends to be mature and tries not to show it, he really loves to be praised…’
Dayton thought he should continue to be generous with his compliments in the future.
“Hmm…”
As Luke brought the cup of tea to his lips, the aroma that spread was incredibly pleasant, almost washing away the fatigue of the day.
In that sense, it was quite fitting that Luke named this tea ‘Vitality Tea’. While savoring the flavor, Luke spoke up.
“How’s the tea?”
“It’s amazing! Totally great! It’s more delicious than any tea I’ve ever had!”
“Hahaha! I knew you’d say that. You think so too, right?”
“Yeah, it’s the best!”
Sensing Dayton’s words were sincere, Luke smiled widely and set another cup down beside him.
“Here, then, try this tea too.”
“Huh? What is this?”
“It’s Milk Tea.”
It was the tapioca milk tea that Luke had improved.
Dayton expressed curiosity about the peculiar-looking drink.
“Did you make this too?”
“Yeah, I made it.”
It seemed that at least Luke’s involvement was certain.
“There’s something that looks like frog eggs in it…”
“That’s how it’s supposed to be.”
“Uhmm…”
Dayton met Luke’s gaze for a moment.
He appeared as if he desperately wanted him to try it and give his opinion.
Despite being anxious about its strange appearance and unpredictable taste, he couldn’t turn down such a desperate plea from Luke.
Resigning himself, Dayton closed his eyes and brought the straw to his mouth.
-Sluuurp-.
He felt the soft texture and the subtle flavor and sweetness of the tea.
It wasn’t that there was no taste, but rather, it was quite peculiar.
However, it was better than he initially thought.
Surprisingly, it had a texture to chew on, and the flavors seemed to complement each other well…
As Dayton finished his sip and was about to open his mouth to declare it “delicious,” Luke eagerly interjected,
“The taste is okay, but doesn’t it seem strange?”
“Uh?”
It was definitely strange, but…
‘…Wasn’t Luke hoping for a compliment?’
Under the pressure of Luke’s urgency, Dayton hesitantly replied,
“Uh, um… Is that so?”
“Isn’t it totally inedible? There’s no way you want to eat this? The scent isn’t as good as the first one, and the texture is terrible, right?”
Luke’s reaction, as though he was desperately seeking negative feedback, seemed a bit odd as well.
Making a troubled face, Dayton responded.
“Uh, didn’t you say you made this too…?”
What kind of reaction was he supposed to give here?
