Then four years went by.
　The children were now 14 years old.
　Elsa was devoted to the path of the sword. She worked feverishly to master the many swordsmanship techniques I taught her.
　In the village swordsmanship competition, you were unbeaten every year. You were banned from the village swordsmanship competition, just like me.

I'm glad to be banned like my father. ......!

　He was happy to see me.
　Only Elsa would be happy to be banned from the tournament.
　As a village guard, Elsa fought many battles against demons. She was intimidated by the first battle, but her fear disappeared once she found the one she was supposed to protect.
　She fought bravely against boars and wolves.

　Anna showed her management and negotiation skills to the hilt.
　Since she became the manager of the village, the village's finances are well-financed and the people are more prosperous than ever before. Every autumn they would hold a festival to thank Anna.
　It was not uncommon for her to be recruited by the merchants who came to the village. But she turned them all down, unwilling to do so.
　Her dream was to become the guild master of the Adventurers' Guild. Her willpower is as strong as a cold stone.

　Meryl was still a spoiled brat and a slacker, but she used her magic not for self-display, but for the good of the world.

''Dad. Today, I used my earth magic to find a vein of hot spring water...Thanks to this, there will be a hot spring in this village!
'Oh!　That's great!　You've helped everyone.
I know! Praise me! Praise me!
I'm proud of Meryl.
I'm happy.

　...... It's more like he's doing the world a favor, or maybe he's just trying to get me to praise him. As it turns out, I'm doing people a favor.
　My daughters have all grown up well.
　In this world, at 14, you have the right to take a vocation.
　It is at this age that you can become an adventurer or a guild official.
　I jumped into the adventuring world when I was 14.
　It was time for them to follow their dreams as well.
　Elsa was an adventurer just like me.
　Anna's path led her to becoming a guild master.
　And Meryl is a lazy knitter. ...... she said, but as a result of doing what she didn't want to do, she became a wizard.

　Tomorrow, the girls would leave for King's Landing.
　Today was the last night the four of them would be together.
　The four of us were sitting in the living room at home, eating rabbit stew, meat pies, bacon and freshly baked bread.

Hey. Aren't you sure Dad won't come with us?

　Meryl said in a forlorn tone.

'Yeah. I have a job as village watchman. And other things I need you to do. I've got to look after the house.
'I miss you!　I can't live without my dad!　If Dad stays in the village, I'll stay here too~!
No. Don't be selfish. Don't annoy him.

　Anna chided.

"And if Meryl stays in the village, Dad will spoil him and he'll be a straight line of NEETs. Go to King's Landing and let the tide of society wash over you.
Mmm.
Dad. It's okay. I'll take care of Elsa and Meryl. I'll send you a note once a month telling you what they're up to.
Yeah. I'll feel better knowing Anna's with me. Please.

　I smile.

''In the end ...... I couldn't hit your father with my sword, could I? I've had hundreds of fights before at my age.

　Elsa had a frustrated look on her face.

''I thought I had trained myself to be strong, but I'm still not as good as your father. I will strive to be even more diligent as an adventurer.
I look forward to seeing a strong Elsa.

　I smiled at Elsa .
　She smiled at me and nodded.
　After eating, I took a bath with the girls.
　Normally we take a separate bath, but since it's the last day of the week, ...... the girls begged me to join them for a mixed bath.

"You know ...... father. Can you let me flush my back?


'What?　Mine?
"Yes, my lord. Your father trained me with a sword all this time. So I thought it would be good to repay him by letting him wash my back.
You didn't have to worry about that.
No?
No. I'll take care of it.

　I let Elsa wash my back.
　The towel washed my back with a lather. The lather was just the right amount of pressure and it felt so good.

Hmmm... Elsa. Let me do the next one.
Anna?
I want to wash my dad's back too.

　Anna took the towel from Elsa's hand and began rubbing my back.
　It was a careful and labored effort.

"Bok-chan and Bok-chan too~

　Meryl applied the soap to her body and then hugged me directly on my back.

She said, "Skin to skin, skin to skin, let's get clean and nice," but Anna immediately pulled her to her feet. Mummified.

　I was happy to have my daughters flow down my back.

　--But I hadn't yet told them the truth. That they weren't really my daughters.

　I've tried so many times over the last four years to tell you, but I never did.
　Maybe because I owe them.
　I sent their real parents to their deaths because I failed to defeat the Ancient Dragon.
　I slept with them that night under the same covers.
　The next morning. I was riding to see the girls off on the King's Landing Live Carriage. I peeked out from inside the hood and said to the girls.

"Well, take care of yourselves, boys.　
Yes, sir. I'll make sure I'm an A-list adventurer just like my father.
Take care of yourself, Dad.
I'll be back to spoil you once a week!

　The carriage with the girls in it was moving along.
　I waved them off as they drove toward King's Landing. And they kept waving at me until I couldn't see them anymore.

Four years later...
　And that's where the story of the father and son relationship begins.