Inside the bed where the lingering warmth of our actions remained, Misako and I pressed our bodies together.
Just feeling our heated bodies touch filled me with an indescribable sense of satisfaction.
In the silence of the night, I could hear the steady, rhythmic heartbeat of “thump, thump” echoing from deep within Misako’s chest.
That sound was so comforting that just listening to it brought me peace.
“Um, Misako…”
“What is it?”
I felt a little shy as she peered up at me from under her eyelashes, and made my request.
“I want to bury my face in your chest.”
“Ufufu, you’re such a spoiled boy. Alright? In return, you’ll give me plenty of arm pillows later, okay?”
“I promise.”
With her permission, I brought my face close to her full breasts and held her body tightly.
The overwhelming softness wrapping around both cheeks and the solid warmth transmitted from it.
More than that, the sound of the heartbeat echoing in my ear brought peace to my heart.
Just that made me feel a happiness so great that the rest of the world didn’t matter.
“Misako, you are my treasure. I wouldn’t trade you even for a diamond of the same size. No, I probably wouldn’t trade you even for my own life… Ahaha, it turns out I have a much stronger desire for exclusivity than I thought.”
What I thought just slipped out of my mouth.
Force entered Misako’s hands, and she held me even tighter.
“I love you too, Ren. When you hold me like this, I feel like I’m the happiest person in the world.”
I love the intense actions where we devour each other, but I feel even happier during this sweet time that comes right after.
After thoroughly enjoying the sound of Misako’s heartbeat for a while, as promised, I offered Misako an arm pillow.
Misako lifted her head slightly and gently pressed her ear against the left side of my chest.
“It’s true… Ren’s heartbeat is so comforting. This might become a habit. I want to listen to it forever…”
“So, um… Misako.”
“What is it? Is it something a little hard to say?”
Perhaps noticing my tense expression, Misako flashed a smile full of maternal affection.
“You don’t need to make a face like that. I know painfully well that I am loved by you. I won’t get angry no matter what you say.”
“……Really? Then I’ll say it. Misako, you’re turning 38 this year, right?”
——At that moment, Misako’s gentle smile froze.
The air gave a sharp crack, and I fell under the illusion that the room temperature was dropping rapidly.
The expression of the kind Misako turned into that of an ogre. or so it felt.
She said she wouldn’t get angry.
“That’s right… I’m a 38-year-old old lady…?”
“No, I didn’t mean it in a bad way! Look, we were doing it over and over without thinking about the future, without using any contraception.”
“Ufu, what is it. If it’s Ren’s child, I’ll gladly give birth to it for you, you know?”
“No, that’s not it…”
“……Don’t tell me Ren, you held me without any intention of taking responsibility?”
I felt the depths of her eyes cloud over.
I felt a chill, and cold sweat ran down my spine.
“No! If you’re pregnant from what we’ve done so far, I’ll raise it with all my might. I think it’s fine to give birth. But!”
“It’s fine to give birth, but…?”
Ah, I made her even angrier.
“I didn’t phrase it well! Misako is 38 years old, so if you give birth to a child from now on, it will be an advanced maternal age birth. The burden on your body is huge, and I’m really worried that the risks are too high.”
The tense air suddenly relaxed.
Misako’s face returned to its usual soft smile.
“Ah, is that it. You were worried about my body. I thought you were going to cowardly run away, so I just misunderstood. Advanced age births are certainly tough, but for Ren’s sake, I can do my best.”
“……Also, one more thing. I don’t want children.”
The world stopped.
The color drained from Misako’s face, and from behind her, a murderous intent—a pitch-black aura—seized me, or at least it felt like it.
“I see… Ren… No, Ren. Doing it and running away from responsibility, you really are the worst kind of man—”
“Gabu!?”
Before the words finished, Misako bit into my neck.
Along with a sharp pain, I was pushed off the bed and tumbled onto the floor.
When I touched my neck, sticky, hot blood clung to my fingertips. She might have seriously intended to bite it off.
In a panic, I pulled out a potion I had and poured it over my neck.
“Ouch! Misako, please listen to the end!”
“Shall we have you explain what that means in a way that makes sense? Ha, ha…”
Looking up at her panting heavily, I started talking about the “true feelings” deep in my heart.
“I realized I’m much more jealous and possessive than I thought. I might even be more intense than you, Misako. If the child born is a girl, that’s fine. A cute girl resembling Misako, I could love her so much it wouldn’t hurt to put her in my eyes.”
“……You sound like you’d make a good father.”
“But what if it’s a boy? Every time Misako dotes on that child, I feel like I’d go mad with jealousy. If the child hugs Misako saying ‘I love Mama,’ I might pull them apart. …If it were a brat full of attitude like Tetsuya, I might even resort to domestic violence. And above all, my number one priority is Misako. I wouldn’t be able to love a child the most. Isn’t that nothing short of misery for a child born into that?”
Misako wore a stunned expression, and soon began to think with a serious face.
“……Wait. Even me, I might be the same.”
“Eh?”
“If the child born is a girl, and she starts clinging to Ren saying ‘I love Daddy, I’ll be your bride in the future’…… I’m not confident I could truly love that child from the bottom of my heart. Tetsuya was a boy, so I could still forgive him. Just thinking about if it were a girl gives me the creeps…”
“Right? We are great as a couple, but I think we are people who shouldn’t become parents. Of course, if a child was made by what we’ve done so far, I’ll do my best to raise them. But from now on, it’s better to choose not to make any.”
“……As for what we’ve done so far, it’s fine. I calculated the safe days. The problem is from now on. Certainly, hearing what you just said, it’s wiser not to make children. But I absolutely hate the idea of letting go of my nighttime life with Ren, you know?”
“I feel the same. That’s why let’s use perfect contraception. There are no condoms in this world, but instead, there seems to be a magical tattoo called a ‘Contraception Crest.’ I’ll have it carved into my body.”
“Not me, but Ren?”
“Because Misako’s bottom already has the proof of being mine carved into it, right?”
Hearing my words, Misako seemed to think for a moment.
“True… But there are also goblins and beasts in this world. You never know when a woman’s chastity might be threatened. …Hey, why don’t the two of us get it carved together?”
“……That’s true too.”
Realizing we could not be good parents, we resolved to carve the “Contraception Crest” into each other’s bodies.
When we asked the inn’s landlady about the contraception crest, she blushed and told us it could be carved at a slave trader.
The slave trader the landlady told us about was called “Serio Commerce,” located about a 10-minute walk from the inn.
“Excuse me, I have a favor to ask.”
When I plucked up the courage and opened the heavy door of the slave trader, an elderly gentleman dressed in well-tailored clothes approached us with a sizing, appraising gaze.
“Humu… quite a fine piece, but somewhat advanced in age. Sorry, but even for us, we can’t take her in for much.”
Right off the bat, the man looked at Misako and said something so rude.
“I’m not selling her! Absolutely not! Today isn’t about slave trading; we came to have a contraception crest carved!”
“You really are a rude person!”
The slave merchant put a hand to his chin, muttering “Humu,” and made his eyes shine suspiciously as if something clicked.
“I see… a forbidden incestuous relationship between parent and child, wanting to indulge in that ecstasy. Ah, indeed, there is no pleasure that drives a person mad quite like the taboo-breaking sense of immorality. I understand, I understand completely… However, our Serio Commerce is a prestigious shop authorized by the state. We cannot lend a hand to such impure—”
“No, there’s an age gap, but we are a proper married couple! This is a consultation to avoid the risks of an advanced age birth!”
I cut him off and thrust out the adventurer guild cards for both Misako and myself.
“Oh… True enough, you are a married couple. But no matter how you look at it, you only look like parent and child.”
“Please stop this already.”
“Really, just how rude can you be.”
“……My deepest apologies. As an apology, if I may, I will perform the procedure for the two of you together for 2 silver coins. How about it?”
“”Please do it for that.””
We were ushered into a separate room and received an explanation of the risks with a solemn look.
“Once carved, it’s the end; removal is extremely difficult”――Removal is not impossible, but it falls under the jurisdiction of the church, and removal requires a massive amount of money comparable to building an entire house.
To put it simply, that’s what it was like.
We signed the consent form and were ushered into an even deeper room.
Shifting the clothes on our bottoms, a precise crest about the size of a child’s palm was carved with needles imbued with magical power.
There was a stinging pain, but not to the extent of hurting terribly.
Having finished the procedure and paid the fee, we left the slave merchant shop.
“With this, we’re safe now… Well then, shall we head back to the inn?”
“Uhm, well…”
“……Don’t you want to?”
“There’s no way I don’t want to.”
Walking quickly back to the inn, Misako and I tumbled straight onto the bed.
And we began to devour each other’s skin once again.
I really need to start working properly as an adventurer soon… Well, tomorrow is fine.
Drowning in Misako’s soft body, I abandoned all thought.