184 – End of the Samhwa Country Trip!

The Ichinose family assembled in the room used as a reception parlor.

It was a space with reliable soundproofing, perfect for important conversations.

“Honey, don’t drink too much coffee. It’s almost time for dinner, isn’t it?”

“Mmm.”

Ichinose Jun and Momo were fostering a gentle atmosphere, but.

Eung-ae-nose, sitting across from them, couldn’t quite get into the flow. It was impossible for her to shed the tension.

Watching her parents wait patiently, she made her decision.

She had to do it.

First, a deep breath.

“Haa…”

Seeing Shion and Clara deepen their relationship, Ichinose felt she couldn’t delay any longer.

The girl needed an answer to one particular problem to firmly establish her direction and move forward.

“If, just if we are assuming something… I would like to ask you one thing…”

“Our Yui is showing such a nervous appearance. I wonder what it could be.”

“…”

Ichinose Jun was just as tense as Eun-gae-nose.

A father’s intuition told him that his daughter was the subject of the hesitant query.

“If I were to become involved with a man who practices polygamy… would it damage the company’s reputation or image…?”

An unexpected question. Ichinose Jun and Momo’s eyes widened.

Confirming this matter was very important to Ichinose Yui.

Her actions could tarnish the time and effort her parents had invested.

She hadn’t even considered it during the time when she was dreaming of a sweet relationship, captivated with naive feelings for Rohan.

This issue was one that was overlooked earlier, during the disorganized chaos of first love, before it was brought to light by the order gradually established in her mind.

The more she agonized, the larger the wall seemed. She couldn’t see an answer alone.

“Hee-eung~”

Momo was the first to regain her composure.

Smiling contentedly, she tapped her lips with her finger.

She repeated her daughter’s concern, parsing its meaning.

“A man from a polygamous culture… that would be Rohan Saengdo, right?”

“!!!”

Einose, startled by her mother’s words, glanced quickly at her father. She knew Momo was aware of her being discovered with Jane, but she had only suspected her father might know.

“…”

Ichinose Jun, with some effort, maintained a blank, stern expression as he watched his daughter. Einose realized, with a sinking feeling, that her father knew too.

So, she abandoned all pretense of hiding it.

Her face flushed, she looked down and gave a small nod.

“It’s admirable you thought that far ahead, but our Yui is thinking too much.”

Momo finished speaking, taking her husband’s hand.

At Momo’s signal for him to say something to their daughter, Ichinose Jun took a long breath.

“Yui.”

“Yes, Father…”

“If I hadn’t started a family, I wouldn’t have run a company. I would have spent my whole life wielding a sword.”

Einose wore a puzzled expression at Ichinose Jun’s words.

Momo muffled a laugh.

While he exuded charisma when issuing directives or giving speeches, only saying what was necessary, he was still awkward at expressing himself and his feelings to his daughter.

In place of Ichinose Jun, who couldn’t even speak plainly for fear of hurting or upsetting his sensitive and delicate daughter,

Momo offered an interpretation.

“Do you know why your mother and I haven’t chosen something like an arranged marriage for Yui, something that would allow the company to grow more easily than it is now?”

At Momo’s question, Ichinose earnestly contemplated the answer.

‘The reason Father and Mother have given for my sake….’

Many things came to mind. A reason that was unconditionally kind.

But a clear answer that tidied everything up didn’t surface.

Momo gazed lovingly at her daughter, who was struggling with the question, and parted her lips.

“The enterprise called Tenkaiten is ultimately a means to an end for the family. It is never more precious than family itself.”

“Ah…”

Einose sequentially grasped the hidden meaning in her father’s words.

That her father had given up the time he could have spent wielding his sword to build the company and increase its social standing, was simply a result of his efforts to increase the means to protect her mother and herself, and to hope for their comfort.

“…”

Einose bit down hard on her lower lip, trying to hold back the surge of emotion.

Momo continued the conversation to make it undeniably clear how much Ichinose Jun thought of his family.

“Honey, what would you do if you decided that the company was hindering Yui’s future?”

“I would shut it down. Physically demolishing the headquarters would also be acceptable.”

Because money is something one can earn in heaps with just a sword and the will to do it.

At Ichinose Jun’s heartfelt and immediate answer, Momo broke into a pleased smile. Yui, startled, even released the lip she was biting.

“Do you understand? You don’t need to have such complicated worries. Your mom and dad are happy if you live the way you want.”

“Yui. There is no need to worry about the company. There is no need to force yourself to inherit it. If you want it, I will give it to you right away, and if it is a burden, I can easily manage it for decades or even hundreds of years.”

“Honey! If you work that long, when are you going to go on dates with me! You haven’t even had time to go on a trip recently…”

At Momo’s words, half-serious and half-teasing, Ichinose Jun became flustered and corrected himself.

“…If Yui wants it, I will give her the company right away. And if it is a burden, I can manage it for a few years, dispose of my shares, and step down.”

“Yes. That’s what your father says, isn’t it?”

Satisfied with her husband’s words, Momo smiled and relayed the information to Yui.

“Do you think Yui got the answer she wanted?”

A nod. The expression of their daughter, who had resembled a rain-soaked puppy, had improved greatly.

For the parents, that alone was enough for this moment, enough to feel happiness.

“I’d love to talk more with our daughter, but shall we postpone that for now? Our guests are waiting.”

“Yes!”

At Momo’s words, Eungae-Nose rose abruptly from her seat.

“Yui, could you prepare the dishes? Mom will be out in a jiffy, too.”

Eungae-Nose acknowledged with a nod, and headed toward the door.

Momo, clinging to Ichinose Jun, sent him off with a spirited voice.

“Don’t worry about anything, just look ahead. Our daughter is the prettiest in the world, so Cadet Rohan is guaranteed to fall for her!”

Ichinose, about to leave through the door, fidgeted and responded in a small voice.

“I-I’ll do my best…!”

Eungae-Nose exited the room.

*Click!*

Momo, confirming that the door was securely closed, erased her smile.

“…”

Even though the conclusion was favorable, Yui’s concerns weren’t entirely unfounded.

Rather, it was a commendable assessment of the constraints of society.

‘I should make some preparations in advance.’

Momo recalled several figures from the press.

Small businesses subsisting on advertising revenue while running online communities also made it onto Momo’s list.

‘If the information is leaked that the successor to Cheonoecheon married a polygamist, a pack of ravenous hyenas will pounce on it.’

History is a witness.

Similar incidents had occurred countless times.

‘It’s obvious what they’ll say without even seeing it.’

They would say Ichinose Jun’s only daughter had abandoned the pride of the Samhwa Nation and bowed her head to a foreign country, spewing provocative words and inflicting wounds.

It was the law of nature that great wealth and power attract both allies and enemies simultaneously.

Silencing those people was easy enough.

But shutting their mouths after her daughter had been hurt would be an action taken too late.

That was the crucial issue.

‘If I take action now, perhaps things will calm down later. I might even need to consider changing the law itself.’

While Momo was formulating her plans in her mind.

Ichinose Jun spoke with a voice full of emotion.

“Momo…children grow up so quickly, it’s truly in the blink of an eye.”

“Hehe, you’re really weak when it comes to Yui, aren’t you?”

“…”

“It may be painful for our daughter to leave the nest, but we know better than anyone the happiness of sharing love and building a family, don’t we?”

“Ahem…!”

He nodded, heavy with the weight of it.

Momo was sure, based on this alone, it was a giant leap forward.

“It makes no sense for parents to stand in the way of their daughter finding happiness.”

“…I know that too.”

Though he spoke the words, complex emotions played across his face.

Momo watched Ichinose Jun and a warm smile bloomed on her lips.

Ichinose Jun looked like he needed some comforting.

*

The meal Momo prepared was, as Noah vouched, delicious.

Rohan emptied his rice bowl twice, piled high each time, and Momo smiled, saying how good it was to see him eating so well.

After the meal.

She sliced the peaches Rohan had brought, making them easy to eat, and then the explanation of the clash with Cheongrim, the incident itself, unfolded.

Having understood the situation, the three marveled at the incredible coincidence, and simultaneously praised him for handling it so well.

Jane, however, seized upon a single point in Rohan’s explanation and corrected him.

“Yui and Noah are already warriors, no matter what anyone says. Don’t feel guilty for getting our daughters caught up in a petty squabble. It wasn’t an act of wickedness.”

“I will keep that in mind.”

After he finished explaining.

Noah sprang from her seat, throwing punches at the air as she recounted the event from her perspective.

“I uppercutted the guy’s chin just like *that*! And his head slammed into the ceiling, and he was just dangling there like *this*──.”

Momo and Jane watched Noah’s gestures, smiling with fondness.

They looked at her with eyes like they were watching a children’s talent show.

··

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He’d gotten lunch and given his explanation.

It was time to return to the Academy City. Rohan’s body was itching to train, fueled by the rest he’d had.

Rohan finished saying goodbye to Ichinose’s parents and Jane, and then faced Eunghae Nose.

On the other side, Noah was hugging Clara and Sion tightly, whining about him not leaving.

“Ichinose will be back after vacation, right?”

“I think so.”

“Too bad, but nothing can be done. Spend some good time with your parents.”

At Rohan’s words, Ichinose offered his usual smile.

“Drive safely. I’ll keep in touch.”

Rohan said he’d let him know when he arrived and climbed into the driver’s seat.

Sion was already settled in the passenger seat.

“Porter! Bye!”

Noah rapped her knuckles on the window.

Rohan rolled down the window and corrected her.

“The trip’s over, so the porter job is done.”

“Aw! Why! Keep doing it! Be the cook, too!”

“We’ll see about that.”

With a “take care during the break,” I ended my farewell to Noah.

Engine humming, I offered another round of bows to my friend’s parents.

*Ah, Instructor. I need to tell him.*

Rohan sent a message to Juyeon, letting him know of the departure from Samhwa.