After Retirement, Living a Stud Life in Another World - 105

Chapter 105: Naming Matters

Walking with adorable little steps is my beloved daughter, Kaori.

I might be called a doting parent, but even objectively speaking, Kaori is quite cute. Her glossy black hair, which could be likened to the color of a crow’s feathers, and her deep black eyes are exactly like Ayaka-san’s. My silver-haired, blue-eyed handsome looks don’t seem to have been inherited at all, but… her cute little nose, which is slender and tight, somehow resembles mine.

“Daddy, thank you for seeing me.”

Surprisingly, though her pronunciation is still a bit clumsy, the words that come out of her small lips are not baby talk but rather well-articulated.

“I wanted to see you too. You’ve grown big, Kaori.”

“Yes, I’ve listened well to what mommy says and grown big.”

Hey now, isn’t she growing up surprisingly fast for someone who’s barely a year old? Usually, children her age find it difficult to walk straight without support, and their speech is limited to “ma-ma” or “ba-bu” at most. Or is it that in this world, babies develop this quickly?

“No, this child is clearly developing faster than usual. Especially, intellectually. It seems she recognizes some letters…”

Ayaka-san seems to have understood what I wanted to say from my gaze and quietly informs me.

“It’s not due to any special Spartan education of the Dark Clan, right?”

“No, we don’t push children too hard with training until they’re three years old. Kaori’s growth rate is very high.”

So, after she turns three, will she start a rigorous ninja training course mercilessly… is not the right time for such a joke. It seems Kaori is excellent in her natural abilities. As a parent, I should be happy about it, but when I think about what I saw earlier with the charm spell, I can’t help but feel anxious.

“Is this because of… my lineage?”

“Yes, probably. I confirmed with Mrs. Hermine and Mrs. Daniela, but although not as much as Kaori, they all said their children were developing faster in intelligence and physical aspects.”

Sigh… Is my “god’s seed” going to cheat here too? It doesn’t seem like a bad thing, but in the world of breeding racehorses in my previous world, having a high “early maturation” parameter for a stallion wasn’t considered a good evaluation because it meant a shorter competitive lifespan. I hope my children won’t age too quickly. Well, by the time that becomes clear, I’ll be too old for breeding activities anyway, and worrying about it is just pointless.

“I see, Kaori is smart. Listen to mommy well and become a good girl, okay?”

“Yes. I’ll become a good girl that makes daddy happy.”

Wow, this is intense, too cute! I couldn’t help but lift up her small body.

“Daddy’s embrace is high.”

“That’s right, I’ll carry you anytime.”

In my previous world, I was of average height, but since coming here, I’ve been growing and growing over the past year or so. I haven’t measured it accurately, but I’m probably around 180 centimeters. And it feels like my growth phase isn’t over yet. Western genes, they’re amazing.

As I turn around with her in my arms, Kaori buries her face near my neck, perhaps a little scared. When I look at her, she opens her big black eyes wide, just like her mother, and her cherry-colored lips move.

“Daddy, you smell really nice.”

Saying that with a smile, my child’s figure is so dear to me. While being careful not to be too rough, I hug this small bundle of life tightly. Ah, I’m so happy… When I thought that, I was briefly overcome with anxiety.

“Wait, am I being ‘charmed’? Is Kaori using it too?”

“Ugh, you know nothing, Lutz. It’s called being a ‘doting parent’!”

At Gretel’s retort, laughter erupted from everyone.

—

In front of me is a thick sheet of Japanese paper. In my previous world, it was called “hōsho-shi.” And next to it are an inkstone and a writing brush. I wonder how much of Ayaka-san and the others’ culture is influenced by Japan.

“What would you like me to do?”

“We haven’t yet given a name to that baby. We would like to ask for Lord Lutz’s help in naming her.”

Ugh, here we go again. Kaori’s naming was well-received, but honestly, I’ve never had much of a knack for that kind of thing. Even when my son was born in the previous world, I just nodded along to the name my wife came up with.

Meanwhile, everyone is looking at me with expectant, sparkling eyes. Even gentle Ayaka-san is exerting a quiet pressure. If I mess up the name, I’ll definitely receive cold looks for the rest of my life. Tough crowd.

While enduring the piercing gazes, I slowly grind the ink with the inkstone. Ah, in my previous world, calligraphy was done quickly with ink, but maybe this inkstone is used to buy time in situations like this.

I seem to have enough composure now that such trivial thoughts come to mind. After calming my breath and picturing Ayaka-san and the baby’s faces, a somewhat suitable name comes to mind. Slowly dipping the brush in ink, I write the somewhat clumsy characters on the Japanese paper, which for some reason is set up for horizontal writing.

“Honoka.”

“Hey… Lutz, is this characters from another world?”

“Yeah, they’re kanji characters used in Japan where I was. People in this world probably can’t read them…”

As I was explaining to Gretel, who was peering at the characters with skepticism, Ayaka-san suddenly stood up and took the paper. It’s rare to see the demure Ayaka-san make such a noise…

“I can read it.”

“Huh?”

“I can read these characters. It’s an ancient script that even few in our clan can read now… Is ‘Honoka’ okay?”

When I nodded, large, transparent tears fell from Ayaka-san’s eyes and streamed down her cheeks.