“”Onii~chan, good morning~””


  “Good morning.”


  We woke up a little later than usual.

  “Are you okay? Did you get enough sleep?”


  “”Yeah!””


  Despite the irregular sleeping hours, the children seemed to be full of energy.

  “How are your stomachs?”


  “”Hungry~””


  “Then, let’s get ready and go eat.”


  “”Okay!””


  We headed to the dining room not for breakfast but for brunch instead, and despite the odd hour, we were served a normal meal. If it’s too difficult, I would just make the food myself, or we would go to some restaurant to eat. The servants of the Ruven mansion are as good as they get.

  “Good morning.”


  “”Good morning~””


  After we finished eating, Rebecca-san gave me a message that she would like some of our time if we were available, so we went to her immediately.

  “Good morning you three. How do you feel?”


  “Feel fine!”


  “Lively!”


  “We took our time resting, so we are good. It must have been hard for you yesterday, Rebecca-san. Are you feeling tired?”


  “Fufu, thank you for your concern. I’m fine.”


  We checked each other’s physical condition first, and then Rebecca-san took us to another room.

  Apparently, they are going to let us see the newborn baby again.

  “Almeria-san, we are entering.”


  “Yes, go ahead.”


  “Oh my, Velio-san, you came too.”


  When we entered the room, Velio-san was also there, pecking the baby on the cheek with what I could only describe as a grin on his face.

  “Almeria-san, how do you feel?”


  “Thank you, Takumi-san. I’m fine. Come on over, have a look at his face.”


  As soon as Almeria-san gave her permission, Allen and Elena quickly rushed over and started poking the baby’s cheek, just like Velio-san.

  “”So squishy~””


  “Ahhh~ Allen, Elena, don’t poke too hard.”


  “”Oka~y.””


  I hurriedly warned them as Allen and Elena were poking the baby’s cheeks again and again.

  “”Onii~chan, he’s so cute!””


  “Indeed, very cute.”


  I touched the baby too, and found his cheeks to be very soft and squishy as well.

  “Velio-san, have you decided on the name?”


  “We named him Lucario.”


  “Lucario-kun, huh. What a good name.”


  “”Luca-chan!””


  The baby boy seemed to have been named Lucario-kun.

  As soon as they heard his name, Allen and Elena immediately started calling him by a nickname.

  “”Oh! He opened eyes~””


  “Yeah. They are beautiful blue-green eyes.”


  Lucario-kun’s eyes were the color of Velio-san’s fresh leaf-colored eyes and Almeria-san’s blue eyes combined——Turquoise.

  I took out the congratulatory gift that I had prepared from the Infinite Storage.

  A stuffed animal we bought in town the other day, an educational toy, and the picture of a rabbit. I also have some monster materials on hand, such as good quality fur, and some herbs that are easy to preserve. In addition, there were the rubies and crystals that were politely refused when I tried gifting after we arrived to Rubia, as well as pearls. Based on the mistake I made last time, this time I packed them in a box so that they would not be obvious at a glance.

  “Takumi-kun, there’s no need to be this considerate.”


  “Well, we’d like to celebrate as well, so please accept it.”


  “Fufu, Velio-san, accept it. We are also celebrating Takumi-san’s auspicious occasions, so they are going to feel sad that they can’t do the same.”


  “That is true. Thank you, Takumi-san.”


  Velio-san was reluctant to accept the gift, but thanks to Rebecca-san’s encouragement, he did.

  As Rebecca-san said, I would be really sad if they celebrated Allen and Elena’s birthday, and we could not do the same.

  “But, Takumi-san, what is inside this wooden box?”


  I couldn’t help but look away from Rebecca-san’s sharp gaze.

  Did she notice the contents of the box?That’s weird~ I thought people wouldn’t know what’s inside if I used a box…


  “Mother, do you mean this box?——Wha!”


  Velio-san immediately picked up the box that Rebecca-san had pointed out, opened the lid, and shouted in surprise.

  “I knew it. Geez~ Takumi-san, I told you that you cannot give this away.”


  “I thought it would be acceptable as a gift for a celebration~”


  “Yeah. I noticed right away when you spoke about it the last time.”


  The reason why she noticed was that when it was rejected as a gift, we discussed the next opportunity with Allen and Elena in front of Rebecca-san.

  “Takumi-san!”


  Velio-san, a little angry, held out the wooden box in his hands.

  “No returns!”


  “There’s no way we can take this!”


  “Ehh~ No matter what~?”


  “No matter what! Obediently take it back!”


  The always mild-mannered Velio-san’s eyes turned sharp.

  … Should I even collect things like this? I had no choice, so I stored the wooden box in the Infinite Storage.

  “… Haah. I thought it would be much better for Rebecca-san or Almeria-san to make a use of it rather than me hoarding it~”


  Next opportunity will be Wald-sama’s wedding, then?

  “Fufu, it’s so easy to understand what you are thinking, Takumi-san~”


  “Eh?”


  “Weren’t you thinking just now that you would present it as a gift for Wald-san’s wedding?”


  “Ehh!?”


  Rebecca-san guessed exactly what I thought.

  “D, does it appear on my face that much?”


  “Fufu, I wonder~”


  “……”


  Rebecca-san smiled at me and muddled her answer.

  For some reason, I get the feeling that I should not go against this person.

  “By the way… is this no good as a wedding gift?”


  “Well, I guess it would be all right if a little more modest?”


  “… Modest?”


  How modest is modest, really?

  “Rubies and pearls are out of question. I guess about a few crystals would be fine?”


  Only crystals~ Rubies aside, there’s no opportunity to reduce my stock of pearls at all~

  Then, let’s get rid of the cryst——


  “Takumi-san, I’m talking about two or three at most.”


  “……”


  I tried to reduce my inventory, but as if she had read my thoughts, Rebecca-san stopped my thoughts.

  It’s really as if Rebecca knows exactly what I’m thinking.

  “”Onii~chan, what’s wrong?””


  When feeling dejected, Allen and Elena patted my head.

  “… Allen, Elena, they say they won’t accept the rubies.”


  “”Rubies?””


  “The shiny red stone.”


  “”I see~ Unfortunate.””


  Although they let out “Unfortunate” Allen and Elena’s expression didn’t change much. Well, either way must be good for the kids.

  “”Luka-cha~n.””


  The one who Allen and Elena were most interested in right now was Lucario-kun, after all.