Chapter 14 – Let’s Become Family (5)

“H-hey. I still haven’t agreed yet, though.”

“That’s right, you still don’t know about dragons. Since you don’t know about dragons, can you listen to the words of one who knows about dragons?”

While that may be true, it would be nice if you explained how this course of events came to be.

“…I understand, but why do I have to take off my clothes?”

Didn’t you just say that they won’t be sucking milk from my breasts!

“U-um, Kunpei-san. Please excuse me.”

Aoinoun’s sound came from behind me.

“Y-yeah.”

A cold sensation ran down my back.

However, it quickly became warm, then smooth and elastic. Well, it was the feeling of Aoinoun’s skin.

“H-hey, why is there the need for us to join our backs naked?”

“Hey, can you be quiet for a bit? Can you let me be moved of my first breast feeding in peace?”

I-I’m being scolded for some reason!

My heartbeat is already strange.

It’s not good to make a boy of this age do these things.

My heart’s been thumping and beating like crazy since a while ago, I’m going to get heart failure if this continues.

“Um, like this?”

W-what? What are you trying to do?

“Nn, nnn. Waah. They’re drinking with so much force… it really came out…”

Don’t let your voice out! It’s hard not to!

I knew what they were doing intuitively, but I can’t listen!

“Aa, the younger sister too… here, nn, hya! Uuuh, it’s ticklish… ah, a bit to the side? Look, it’s here~”

Aah! What do you mean to the side!

“A-amazing. I’m breast-feeding my children… fufu, how cute.”

It’s bad, bad bad bad bad!

I can’t explain what’s bad, but the sensation on my back and Aoinoun’s sweet voice is slowly shaving down my important something.

“Un. There doesn’t seem to be any problems with breast-feeding. They’re lively kids.”

The rat’s voice was irritating.

This bastard completely forgot about me!

“H-hey. Isn’t it about time? Please explain it.”

“Geez, you’re persistent. I get it, what do you want to ask?”

You, I will really hit you!

But my body was stiff and I couldn’t move except for twitching.

“U-uh, first of all, why am I these kid’s father?”

The first person to speak was Aoinoun.

Why did she say such a frightening thing?

“After all, Kunpei-san hatched the eggs…”

“No, if it’s the father, shouldn’t there be some guy who fertilized the eggs?”

Call a male dragon here!

“So the first thing I’ll tell you since you don’t know anything…”

Alba Germain walked briskly with small steps across the tiles.

He swung his staff up and down while proudly snorting. He’s peerless at irritating me.

“…the dragon race has no males.”

“Huh?”

Eh? I mean she’s breast-feeding, wasn’t it only mammal-like creatures that could do that? When you don’t have the pistil and stamen… even fish fertilize their eggs.

I was in turmoil.

“Only female dragons have existed since ancient times. I’ve seen all the dragons since the primordial dragons and I love all dragons, but I’ve never seen a male dragon. Even if they existed, then they weren’t dragons.”

Ah, that reminds me, I feel like Aoinoun said ‘older sister’ even before the eggs hatched. Was it like that, since there was no way of it being an ‘older brother’?

“As far as dragons are concerned, egg-laying is a way for them to expel accumulated energy from their body. That’s why they seldom give birth since they have long life spans, they don’t need to reproduce.”

Ah, so that’s why they are so few in number.

“Furthermore, there are many conditions they have to meet in order to reproduce.”

“Conditions?”

“That’s right, if the conditions aren’t met, the egg won’t have life. If there’s even one that’s not met, the expelled energy would mix with the atmosphere and the egg would become a mere stone.”

Ah, like what Officer Doggy explained regarding the dragon bloodstone earlier, it’s related.

“What are the conditions?”

“Firstly, the health of the mother, they have to be in perfect condition. The breeding season as well, it differs, but it generally comes every 200 years.”

So you’re saying, that they only have one chance to have children every 200 years, and if they happen to be sick, it’s no good?

“Injuries are no good either. Dragons have strong instincts, if they instinctively know that they can’t protect their new born child, even if it goes against their intent, their body won’t create life.”

“T-that’s kind of amazing…”

“It’s also no good if you don’t have a strong desire to have children. Life will not respond if you do it without taking it seriously. If you don’t want it to the point where you can’t endure, the children won’t take form.”

So, in other words…

“Aoinoun, really wanted children…”

“Hey!”

Ah, was this fellow flustered? I knew intuitively through my back.

Why, you ask? It’s because I’m completely focused on the sensation on my back! How sad!

“U-um! This is the first time I’m hearing what uncle was talking about, so I can’t deny it, but rather than saying that I want children! Rather than saying…”

For some reason, Aoinoun was hesitating.

It’s not really something bad.

From what I could see from today’s events, her maternal sense is quite strong.

“I-I was lonely by myself… That’s probably why I unconsciously wanted an existence that could stay by my side.”

“By yourself…”

Come to think of it, she did say that she hasn’t seen her mother for around 40 years.

“Us sky dragons have a custom of becoming independent after we’re 200 years old, but… I was lonely and selfishly asked my mom to stay for 10 more years… she flatly refused and departed on a trip. Since the other tribes were so different, I didn’t have the courage to go down to the town… I only left the nest to buy the bare minimum or to hunt, other than that I stayed on that large boulder reading and watching TV… what am I saying…”

And so, you thought that if you had children, you could live with them for another 200 years.

“I wasn’t aware of it, but after hearing uncle’s words I’ve understood a lot of things… u-um being alone is tough, since half a year ago, I’ve been crying every night…”

Half a year ago?

That’s fairly recent, huh? You were alone for 40 years, after all.

“U-um, this is the second time meeting with Kunpei-san and the others. The first time was half a year ago…”

Eh?

Nope, I can’t remember at all.

Aoinoun’s appearance stands out a lot.

“I don’t think I would forget such a beautiful blue-haired girl.”

I inadvertently blurted without thinking.

In the first place, this is the first time I’m seeing someone with blue hair. Once in a while I do see cosplayers on TV with gaudy blue hair, but none are as natural as Aoinoun. Even if I’m an idiot, I don’t think I would forget. No, I’d like to think I wouldn’t.

“B-beautiful!?”

Oh, my back is getting hot.

“U-um, I came to visit your house, right? Along with your father and Shouhei.”

Ah, is that so.

“Old man, have you heard of it?”

“What?”

The old man and the others were on the other side of the partitioning screen.

It seems like they were greeting and thanking the supermarket’s manager.

When we were viewing the house, the neighbors were making a ruckus about a beautiful girl, right?

“There was a ruckus, but it didn’t seem like you were interested.”

Let alone me, even Shouhei wasn’t interested. You were the only one that was excited.

“About that…”

“Isn’t she sitting over there?”

Oi. Say those things sooner.

“Ah, that’s right. Um, after I left the nest to go shopping, I happened to meet your father near the gate. I saw Kunpei-san and Shouhei-kun laughing inside the house… i-it looked like you were having fun… I was jealous…”

… In other words, we dealt the finishing blow to Aoinoun who was lonely. And the breeding season just so happened to overlap.

Mm. Although I haven’t done anything wrong, somehow I feel responsible.

“I see!”

Suddenly, Alba Germain raised his voice.

“Now, the last mystery has been solved. Even I found it strange, no matter how you put it, it was weird that the eggs didn’t hatch for a month. You appeared at a wonderful time. As expected, you’re undoubtedly the father.”

“H-hey, sometimes the things you say are hard to keep up with. I’m an idiot, so can you explain it in a way that an idiot can understand?”

“It can’t be helped. It’s tough being an idiot, eh.”

Alba Germain shook his head slightly and snorted.

This guy, I’m going to step on him later.

“Listen up. These kids hatched after you touched them. Normal dragon eggs hatch on their own in a week or so. These kids didn’t come out for a month. I said it earlier, right? Dragons have strong instincts.”

“A-ah.”

“These kids waited for you. They wanted to meet you, so they didn’t hatch. They felt that they would be in danger if you weren’t there, so even though the eggs started to decay, they endured it.”

W-why, me?

“Aoi felt it. When she met you, her loneliness became uncontainable. Dragons started to be born on the surface! There was no reason other than desiring humans! Got it? Those children are mixed with a human. Your blood touched the egg, they felt it and the conditions were satisfied! Those children finally came out! Aoi, this is amazing! You and your daughters took a step forward for the stagnant dragons!”

O-oi, calm down.

Alba Germain’s rising excitement was getting scary.

“Of course, I’m calm! That’s right, I still haven’t told you the significance of you helping to breast feed, eh! To begin with, breast-feeding satisfies a dragon’s appetite and taking in strength from the mother’s body. Same as human babies! In order to strengthen their resistance to illnesses, they supplement it via their mother’s milk! It was that! Those children needed the dragon factor from Aoi and they needed the human factor from you! That’s why they cried wanting your touch!”

That reminds me, when I was first hugging the younger sister, the older sister also reached her hands over.

“U-um, uncle, please calm down. The children are startled.”

Aoinoun calmed the excited rat sage that was breathing heavily.

“Oh, right. I of all people. But now you understand the meaning of the back to back act, right? Dragons can take in a lot of stuff through touch. If you touch as large surface area of the mother’s body, they can take in factors through the mother’s milk.”

In other words, this…

“Well, at the very minimum, I want you to breast-feed like this once a day.”

I see, there’s no meaning unless you do it regularly.

“U-um, Kunpei-san.”

Aoinoun twisted her body.

“W-what?”

“On top of getting you involved, I have a selfish favor I would like to ask… would you somehow, for the sake of the children, please help me…”

“… ah.”

I ruffled my tough hair.

How could I refuse after hearing what Alba Germain said.

“… You don’t really have to feel particularly sorry. You’re the mom, this amount of shamelessness is just right.”

“…Eh?”

“What I’m saying is…”

We’ve already exposed our skin to each other. It’s too late to hold back.

“I understand.”

“…fu! …Hic…”

Aoi’s shoulders were quivering, and she started sobbing.

Sweat began to accumulate on our backs due to the combined heat.

But, it wasn’t unpleasant, it felt comfortable.

I closed my eyes and for now concentrated on her voice.

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