After Retirement, Living a Stud Life in Another World - 106

Chapter 106: Troubled Gretel

The kanji characters I hastily wrote seemed to evoke a sudden nostalgia for the distant homeland of the Dark Clan. In no time, about a hundred “Children of Darkness” were lined up with large Japanese paper or wooden boards resembling signs, heading towards our house.

“I want my name written in ‘kanji’ too!”
“I want one too! If it’s written by the Lord, it’ll become a family heirloom!”

Sigh. I mean, I’ve only had experience with calligraphy back in middle school, so unless you’re talking about someone with a calligraphy rank, it’s not my forte. If these poorly written characters were displayed on the tokonoma (alcove), it would be beyond embarrassing… Ah, if only I had written them in hiragana from the start, maybe this wouldn’t have happened.

In the end, Ayaka-san, who regained her composure, decisively announced, “For today, only one per household. The rest will be given as rewards to those who achieve special merits.” That means my mediocre calligraphy would suffice for about thirty pieces. I felt relieved, but… isn’t turning something like this into a reward for life-threatening work a bit off?

Nevertheless, calligraphy under the piercing gaze of everyone’s expectations was quite a trial. It felt as tense as dining in front of an etiquette teacher. I had to make sure not to make any mistakes, so I carefully executed each movement.

“Oh, the Lord’s way of grinding ink reflects profound understanding of ‘ma’ (間).”
“The Lord with silver hair and blue eyes looks picturesque while writing.”

Fortunately, my desperate calligraphy seemed to be well-received by the members of the Dark Clan. Well, maybe it’s because of the novelty factor, like “Look, the panda’s drawing!” or “Even foreigners enjoy tea ceremonies!”

And before I knew it, I was being called “My Lord.” Since Kanako-san, the clan leader, had already lost her spouse and Ayaka-san, who was determined to be her successor, had decided on me as her partner, it wasn’t that strange… but wasn’t “My Lord” in old Japan a title for the head of a household?

“It seems that when we were in the East, men were the heads of households. This is a remnant of that time, so please don’t mind it, Lord Lutz.”

When I asked Ayaka-san, she brushed it off easily. Hmm, I don’t want to be treated as the head of the Dark Clan by default… but faced with Ayaka-san’s unwavering smile, all I could do was remain silent.

And after the onslaught of calligraphy, as I breathed a sigh of relief, a young child toddled up to me… In her small hands, she held what was probably the finest-quality Japanese paper.

“Father, please write my name too.”

Ah, how adorable. Of course, if it’s my beloved daughter asking, I’ll do anything for her. Suppressing the incipient tendonitis in my right hand from too much grinding of ink, I vigorously wielded the brush.

“Kaori.”

—

“It’s a relief that Ayaka’s children are doing well.”
“Yeah, I’m glad.”

As the tide of the Dark Clan receded like a raging storm, and Ayaka-san returned to her lodging with her children, Gretel and I remained, enjoying wine with our dinner. Yeah, we’re both fifteen now, adults who can drink wine with dignity.

It was quite a day. I was happy, but tired… Our conversation gradually dwindled, and eventually, we fell silent as we drank. How long had we been like that when suddenly Gretel spoke up.

“When Lutz held Kaori, he had such a happy expression.”
“Really? Well, she was really cute.”

“I envy Ayaka, who can give such happiness. I want Lutz’s children soon too…”

Noticing the lack of enthusiasm in Gretel’s voice, I looked at her, and she was looking down at the table. The wine glasses were already empty… and, by the way, three bottles beside her were also empty.

“Hey, you’re drinking too much. Don’t worry, we’ll get married soon, and then we’ll have lots of daughters like Kaori.”

“Yeah, lots of them. But… right now, it’s painful. Please, Lutz, give me… a treasure?”

Huh? Could this be the “you can” pattern?

“No, it’s no good. Gretel is drunk right now, her judgment is impaired. You said it yourself, it’s not okay until the formal marriage. Let’s talk about this when you’re sober, and then I’ll gladly fulfill your request and plant my seed in you.”

I thought I was calming her down, but Gretel shot me a piercing glare and directed it firmly at me.

“If I weren’t drunk, I wouldn’t be able to say such embarrassing things! I relied on the power of alcohol to say this! Please, Lutz… give me the fruit of our love!”

Seriously? Gretel joked about wanting to hurry things up, but I didn’t realize she wanted my children this badly. Did the feelings I had been holding back overflow after seeing Ayaka-san’s child?

“Alright, I want it too… You won’t regret it, will you?”

“No, I won’t!”

Alright, if it’s come to this, I’m a man too, there’s no other choice. Beatrice will be angry, but she won’t go as far as cutting it off as punishment. I can’t just leave Gretel, who desires me so much, alone.

Once the decision was made, it was straight to the bedroom. I stood beside her and gently took her hand. Gretel stood up with a beaming smile…

“Eugh!”

“What’s wrong, Gretel?”

“Ugh, bleh… e-e-erotic…”

She vomited.

Well, I guess that’s how it goes. Of course, Gretel has had alcohol before, but she usually drinks with moderation as a lady, usually only having a couple of glasses. But today, she clearly exceeded her tolerance… Well, it’s a common mistake among young people, I’ve had my fair share of experiences with alcohol too. Even if you think you’re fine while sitting down, as soon as you stand up, it hits you all at once.

Of course, there was no more of that afterwards. I spent the rest of the evening cleaning up after Gretel’s reverse propulsion.