Kaori and Tomoichi took a detour to take a slightly longer route back home, while Sakura headed straight back. She could tell that the two of them wanted to have a long talk, so she made herself scarce.
“Dad, does your lip still hurt?”
“Don’t worry, I’m fine now, Kaori. Magic really is amazing. I know I’ve seen it a bunch now, but it still surprises me each time.”
Kaori smiled gently, then tried to figure out how to phrase what it was she wanted to say. Tomoichi already knew what was going through her mind, so he held back a sigh.
“Kaori, if there’s something you want to say, just say it. I’m the world’s best dad, so I promise I’ll hear you out.”
Kaori blinked in surprise, then smiled again and said, “All righty, then. You know, dad, I realized this earlier, but you’re a lot like Hajime-kun.”
“Hold up, Kaori, there’s a limit to how much I can take, even if I am the world’s best dad. You’re telling me I’m like that cheating harem lord bastard? Is it okay if I take a journey to find myself? I think after a year, maybe I’ll be able to come to terms with what you just said.”
Kaori chuckled at her dad’s reaction and shook her head.
“Ha ha ha, I don’t mean how he is now, but how he used to be.”
“Before you all got summoned away?” Tomoichi asked dubiously, and Kaori nodded, her expression nostalgic.
“Yes. Back then, he wasn’t good at fighting at all, but he still stood up to people harassing others without hesitation. He was weak but strong.”
That was why Kaori had fallen in love with him in the first place. She’d learned from watching her mom that marrying someone like her dad would make her happy. Though, when she said as much to Tomoichi, he wasn’t sure whether to be happy to hear that or not.
“I can’t believe that guy I met at the family meeting used to be such a meek boy...”
“It’s crazy, right? When I first saw him again after he fell off that bridge, I was shocked too. It was like he’d become a completely different person. He’d gone through so much that he’d had no choice but to change.”
“Well...I guess if what you all say is true, he really did have it rough.”
“He did. But you know, deep down he was still the same Hajime-kun I knew. On a fundamental level, he hadn’t changed. That’s why there are so many people who love him even now. If he really was a cheating womanizer, do you think there’d be so many people sticking by his side? Besides, I’m not so stupid that I’d pine after a guy like that either.”
There was nothing Tomoichi could say to refute that. Groaning, he kicked a rock in frustration.
“Look, I know he’s the guy your heart’s set on,” he finally said after a long pause. “But you know, it’s still hard for me to accept this as your father. I want you to marry someone who’ll treasure you more than anyone else.” Tomoichi let out a long sigh and scratched his head.
Kaori linked her arm around his and said, “Thank you, dad, but I know that even if I won’t be the most important person to Hajime-kun, he’ll still make me happier than anyone else ever could.”
Kaori showed him the ring hanging from the necklace around her neck. This one wasn’t a Treasure Trove, it was a simple engagement ring that Hajime had given her. Naturally, Tomoichi frowned distastefully as he looked at it.
“Dad, Hajime-kun’s the kind of person who cares about everything and everyone the people he holds dear care about, so no matter how cold you are to him, he’s not going to give up trying to make amends with you.”
“I guess he is the guy who crawled back up out of hell just to make it back to his family and then killed god to get his girlfriend back.”
“He he, that’s right. He never, ever gives up.”
Yeah, I don’t think I can win in a war of attrition against him.
Tomoichi let out another very long sigh.
“I know our relationship isn’t normal, and I’m sorry I’m making you worry, but...” Kaori trailed off there, looking into her dad’s eyes. “Even if it takes time, I’d like it if you could try to get along with Hajime-kun, dad. I love him, and I want you to love him as well.”
I wish the tide had come in and drowned out my daughter’s words just now. If I could just pretend I never heard that, then this would be so much easier.
Tomoichi glared over at the ocean, unable to maintain eye contact with his daughter. He’d never felt this conflicted before.
For a few moments after that, the two of them walked on in silence as Tomoichi contemplated how to best respond. Finally, he let out the longest sigh of the day yet and his shoulders drooped in surrender.
“As a father who loves his daughter, how can I possibly say no to that?” he muttered in a barely audible voice. He then held out his hand toward Kaori.
✦ ✦ ✦
