I Was Reborn in Another World, but Hold On – No Parents? Was I Abandoned? - Chapter 32

Chapter 32: Am I Really Iron-Wall?

When I woke up, I found myself in an incredibly spacious and luxurious room. The ceiling was adorned with multiple chandeliers, and upon leaving the bedroom—which felt too large to be called just that—there was another room separated by doors. In that room, there were two clearly high-end leather sofas facing a large table, perhaps meant for receptions, along with a grand fireplace against the wall and a set of desks that seemed suitable for work.

This must be the room my father (the Demon King) prepared for my return, as I heard yesterday. But… It’s just too impressive. It’s like a suite room.

Sitting on the sofa, I couldn’t help but chuckle wryly as I gazed around the room.

However, as I sat on the sofa, I couldn’t help but get lost in thought while looking around the room. I wonder how Maria and the others are doing… They must despise me now that they know I’m the Demon King’s son. And the maids… Are they still alive? If they are, I’d like to find them. But being served by the Demon King’s son… Yeah, that doesn’t sound good, even if it’s just an idea.

Oh, but more importantly… I was supposed to meet with Mother today! Yesterday was so hectic that we all just ate dinner together and then went straight to bed. So, I didn’t get to see her.

As I pondered, the door suddenly creaked open. Huh? Who could it be?

Peeking through the gap in the door was a beautiful young woman with short, translucent platinum hair and emerald eyes. Wait… huh?

The woman strutted into the room, practically running at full speed, then jumped mid-way and threw herself at me, wrapping her arms around me tightly.

“…Arus… Arus… You’re finally home… Sniffle Sniffle”

And as soon as she embraced me, she burst into tears.

Wait… Could it be?

“Mother?”

“Yes… It’s me… I’m your mother. Elizabeth.”

So, it was indeed my mother… I had a feeling it was her because her hair color was the same as mine, but you really can’t tell the age of demonkind.

Mother, you look just like a regular older sister, you know?

“Um… I’m back now. Mother.”

“I’m sorry for making you feel lonely for so long…”

“It’s okay… At first, it was tough being alone in the forest during my early years… But then I was taken in by foster parents and raised in a warm household…”

“Alone in the forest during your early years?”

Mother looked at me, wide-eyed with surprise.

“Yes… So, during that time, I had to fight off monsters to survive.”

“You were attacked by monsters during your early years?”

“Yes. But don’t worry! I managed to defeat them somehow.”

“…D-d…efeat…?”

Mother suddenly fell silent, muttering something under her breath.

And then, an immense surge of magic power emanated from her.

She was truly the Demon Queen.

Wait, is Mother upset?

“What’s wrong, Mother?”

“I’m sorry, Arus. I’m just going to sink a bit of the Southern Continent now…”

“Huh?”

“Hmm?”

We stared at each other, puzzled.

Sink a bit of the Southern Continent? Like, popping out for a quick trip to the convenience store?

“Well, it’s been a while since my blood has been boiling like this… To think that the humans would abandon my beloved son in the forest of demons since infancy… They must be eradicated completely…”

“Mother, um, it’s really okay. Please stop. We’ve finally ended the war, and I’ve returned home…”

“…What a… good child you are… Truly my son… Yes… that’s right… It’s about time I had some physical contact with my long-lost child…”

Mother nodded in agreement with herself and then proceeded to embrace me tightly once again.

Uh, with this kind of embrace… I can’t breathe…

“Mother… I can’t breathe.”

“Oh… I’m sorry.”

And so, I talked to Mother about my life up until now.

She seemed a little irritated about my time in the forest, but she was all smiles during my life with Father, Mother, and Mel.

“The two who raised you. It’s a waste to leave them as humans!! They’re such wonderful people!! Yes… I understand why you call them family! And a sister… finally… I also have… a daughter!!”

It seems Mother has grown fond of my second family as well.

We then talked about school, the war, and various other topics.

Furthermore, Mother also told me about the internal affairs of the Demon Kingdom during my absence, their arguments as a couple, and the days she cried thinking about me.

It seems both Father and Mother had been eagerly awaiting my return.

Before I knew it, we had become a family of two fathers and two mothers… Well, it’s a happy family.

Afterward, the maids came to call us for the meal, and we headed to the dining hall.

There, a long table set vertically, enough to seat at least 50 people, greeted us, along with incredibly high ceilings adorned with chandeliers hanging from above, and unnecessarily luxurious decorations… It resembled a dining hall straight out of a movie from my past life.

Father, Father, Mother, and Mel were already seated in the dining hall, according to Mother, Kaito and the others would be dining in a different room.

Well, it makes sense, considering they’re the Demon King, Demon Queen, their son, and, well, family.

“Big brother!! Who’s that pretty lady??”

“Hey, Mel! Good morning! This is my mother.”

“Your mom? She’s so cute! So she’s Mel’s mom too?”

My adorable little sister alternated her gaze between me and Mother, seemingly delighted as if to say.

“Oh, we’ve got another mom?”

Strangely, my Mother seemed equally delighted.

“You must be Mel. You’re adorable~. That’s right! I’m your mom too!! We can play together anytime! Let’s go buy lots of clothes. And…”

Mother… I understand you wanted a daughter, but you’re spoiling her too much.

“You’ll play with me?? And buy me clothes too?? Yayyy!! I love you, Mom!!”

“Zoommm… Arus… I’ve been pierced through the heart by my daughter… Arus, you should be this affectionate too. Be spoiled. No, come on, give me a hug.”

Mother… What a comical person.

After that little comedy, Mother and I finally took our seats. Father, Mother, and I sat on the right side, while Father, Mother, and Mel sat on the left.

“Thank you so much for truly embracing my son… We’ve heard all about it from Arus. You’ve poured so much love into him… You’re already our family! If there’s ever anything you need, don’t hesitate to tell us!”

Mother addressed Father and the others across the table.

To which Mother responded.

“Thank you too… for allowing us to be here. And of course, it’s only natural to shower Ars with love… after all, he’s adorable. Especially when he wakes up with bed hair… it’s just too cute…”

Mother… the second half sounds weird, doesn’t it?

“Bed hair…”

Upon hearing that, Mother looks at me.

“That sounds absolutely adorable!! Please share more stories like that about Arus next time!!”

“Yes!! Let’s definitely share stories!”

Huh? Something seems off, doesn’t it?

“Keires, do you have any plans for the future? If you wish, you could become a squadron commander or something. I do intend to grant you a title…”

My new father addressed Father.

Wait, why the sudden use of names? And a title?

“…I’d like to continue training, but I’ve grown a bit tired of war… I don’t really want to be a commander right now. And as for a title? I couldn’t accept… Besides, I’m a human, you know?”

“Well, that can’t be helped. Just raising Arus, only to be betrayed, stabbed by comrades, and targeted by the country… It’s natural to grow weary.

What? Why does it matter that you’re human? You’re already family. Who cares what anyone else says? Let them say something… I’ll erase their existence from here to eternity. So go ahead and accept the title. I don’t want you to be separated from Arus, and while I won’t grant you land, having the title alone should be helpful in case anything happens.”

“…Thank you so much for everything.”

“What? It’s nothing major. I’m just a parent of my beloved son. It’s only natural to do something like that.”

Father said… no, His Majesty the Demon King. He emitted a slightly dangerous aura, but… yeah, he’s still a good person.

After the meal ended on a cheerful note, I was taken to the training grounds by Father.

There, I saw the executives from yesterday and some formidable soldiers… huh?

“Ah!! Surprise Assault Unit, Second Division, Lorna!!”

There stood a girl with semi-long blonde hair.

She was the captain I fought against during the wyvern incident.

“Eh!! Why are you here? Wait… you’re… His Highness??”

Lorna’s eyes widened.

“What? Do you know her, Arus?”

Father asked, and I explained the situation during the war.

“I see… Didn’t your stats drop significantly due to some kind of magic? And yet, you managed to defeat Lorna in that state…”

Upon hearing this, those around Lorna began questioning her.

“Oh, wasn’t that the bloody return with the return magic… Were you fighting His Highness?”

“Please forgive me for my disrespect.”

Lorna looked at me as if she was about to cry.

“No, we didn’t know each other at that time. Besides, it was during the war. Well, neither of us died, so let’s just forget about it. I won’t hold it against you. “

I reassured her, and relief washed over Lorna’s face.

She resembles my little sister a bit, with her blonde hair and blue eyes, although she’s much older than me.

“Arus… Among the demons, strength is revered. So, show them what you’re capable of. You haven’t truly fought since your full power returned, right?”

Father murmured softly as he said that.

“Yeah. I’ve only checked my status so far.”

“Alright, then let’s confirm your strength a bit… Alright! Lorna!! Fight Arus.”

And so, I faced off against Lorna.

Surrounding us were soldiers, Father, and the executives.

Indeed, my original power returned with the overwrite of my stats, but… it increased to an unimaginable extent.

I don’t even know the extent of my own power.

We each held training swords without blades and stared at each other.

Lorna was the first to move.

With incredible speed, just like back then.

But, huh? Huh?

She’s slow. Very slow.

As Lorna approached and swung her sword for a diagonal slash, it felt like slow motion.

Is this my true power? It’s like cheating.

Is it because I’m the Demon King’s son?

I lightly lifted my sword to intercept the diagonal slash.

I didn’t even feel a vibration in my hand.

It felt like being lightly poked with wood.

“What!? Huh?”

Lorna’s eyes widened.

I deflected her sword with mine without hesitation.

With tremendous force, Lorna flew backward, even sweeping up soldiers in her path.

What!? No way!

Lorna, who was blown away, blinked her eyes as she stood up, then began chanting some magic to enhance her body and charged at me with even greater speed than before.

Still… slow.

With momentum, Lorna thrust forward with her sword.

I easily dodged to the side, circled around her, grabbed her collar, and pulled her down.

Just that created a tremendous crater, and Lorna sank into the ground.

I pressed my sword against her fallen form.

“That’s enough!! Hmph. It seems Lorna is weak against Arus after all.”

Father’s words ended the match.

Am I… too strong?

“Your Majesty… I would like to go next.”

Said Gazef, the giant.

From what I heard from Father, Gazef holds the rank of General, making him the top of the Demon Kingdom’s military.

“Very well. But don’t underestimate him just because he’s a child. He’s my son, after all.”

“Yes. Of course. I won’t hold back, especially after seeing his moves earlier.”

Yeah. He’s incredibly strong.

Even though my stats are higher now, his combat experience is clearly superior to mine.

And his unique magic… What kind of power is that?

Gazef hoisted a large axe over his shoulder, its bladeless form still a lethal threat.

Wait, hold on! Even without a blade, that thing could kill you, you know?

Slowly, Gazef approached, his steps deliberate.

Is he challenging me to a direct confrontation?

Oops, I have a bad habit of thinking like that…

I want to conduct an experiment.

I want to test the ironclad defense that surpasses a defense stat of one million… I want to see if it really doesn’t hurt even if I take a direct hit.

Lately, I’ve been too scared to try it.

But that giant’s enormous axe… it must hurt, right?

No, but for the sake of understanding myself…

I made up my mind and drove my sword into the ground.

Come on then!

“What are you doing, Your Highness?”

Gazef asked, tilting his head as he approached.

“I was thinking of conducting an experiment, to see what happens if I take your attack head-on, knowing your strength…”

“What!?”

Gazef was stunned. I probably would be too. Wait, are you into that kind of stuff? But bring it on!

“Come at me with everything you’ve got… Well, if I’m about to die, just take me to the infirmary.”

I added, acknowledging the possibility.

“Haha! Arus, you’re truly my son! To think you’d willingly take Gazef’s attack without defending! This should be interesting!”

Meanwhile, my father in the background was roaring with laughter.

“Please stop, Your Majesty!”

“This might be too much, Your Highness.”

“…Well, but… it might be possible for the legitimate child of His Majesty.”

The officials added, surprised.

The surrounding soldiers were also buzzing with excitement.

“Your Highness… I’m going all out, okay?”

Gazef’s face was terrifying.

As Gazef approached, he raised his axe overhead, preparing to strike down.

His body seemed to swell slightly, and his muscles bulged even more as he assumed the stance.

Oh, he’s serious about this.

Wait, I won’t actually die from this, right?

Then, the huge axe came down.

It hit my left shoulder.

The force of the blow caused a cloud of sand and dust to billow around us.

But, in terms of pain…

Well, I could bear it.

It felt more like being poked hard with a wooden stick.

It hurt, sure, but not as much as expected, and there wasn’t even any blood coming from my shoulder.

Wow, I really am invincible.

“…You’ve got to be kidding me,” Gazef muttered, shaking slightly as he saw me standing there unscathed, once the dust settled.

The surrounding people erupted into chaos.

“What!? Taking the Chief of the Army’s full-force blow without any defense…”

“He came out unscathed from that strike?”

“Am I dreaming right now!?”

But my experiment wasn’t over yet.

The next experiment was to gauge the power of a strike with body enhancement.

I wanted to see what it was capable of.

“Gazef… it’s my turn next,” I declared.

“Huh? Uh…”

Gazef looked bewildered.

But, it was still a match.

I fully utilized my body enhancement and leaped slightly, delivering a punch to Gazef, the giant.

There was a louder explosion than before as Gazef was sent flying with several times more force than when he fought Lorna.

He flew all the way to some distant building, crashing into it and pulverizing it.

Huh? No way… really?

He’s a giant, you know? Incredibly strong, right?

Would he fly like that??

“Well, that settles it… But hey, you could’ve held back a little more. With that, you probably broke some ribs or something,” my father, who appeared beside me out of nowhere, commented with a wry smile as he placed a hand on my shoulder.

“Surprised by how strong he’s become.”

“That’s Arus’s true power for you. How about that? My blood’s something else, isn’t it?”

Father… you’re too much.

Well, at this rate… I might not even stand a chance against the humans, huh?

Then, Gazef was taken to the infirmary, and I received unexpected praise from the executives and soldiers. Huh? Is Gazef disliked?

And then, even Father patted my head, and said.

“As expected of my son.”

After that, I returned to the castle and spent the rest of the day leisurely with a cheerful Father, Mother, Father, Mother, and Mel while having tea.

It seems that starting tomorrow, a private tutor will come for studies related to the demon clan and even imperial studies as a demon king.

And then, it’s training… or rather, since I messed up this time, I’ll probably be doing solo experiments.

Ah, I’d like to spar with Father once…

But, you know, even though I can’t see his stats, I somehow know I wouldn’t stand a chance against him, or rather, there’s no hope of winning.

Sigh… I wonder what will happen from now on…

I kind of want to go back to school again…

Apparently, there’s one in the Demon Kingdom too.

I wonder if Maria and the others are doing well…