The small penguin waddled around on the rocky area. Its beak was thick, and the area around its eyes had a pinkish tint. It must be a Humboldt penguin.
There were two areas surrounded by acrylic panels, one on the right and one on the left. The left side had a rocky area, and the right side had a tank. The two areas were connected by a bridge above, and from below, you could see the penguins stumbling as they walked along the acrylic bridge.
"How cute."
"So cute... Maybe I should make a penguin golem next time."
While watching the penguins swimming around in the tank, Leen and Quun were talking about such things.
A penguin golem...? A mechanical penguin? Why does it feel like it might fly through the air using jet propulsion...?
"These penguins are big!"
"These ones have amazing eyebrows...!"
When I approached the glass where Frei and Yakumo were peering, there were larger king penguins and the rugged-looking rockhopper penguins with what looked like eyebrows.
King... King penguin, huh. Yeah, when you think of penguins, you usually imagine them like this. Is that why they're called kings?
"Huh? But didn’t I also hear about emperor penguins? Are they the same thing?"
Is the king penguin known as the emperor penguin in other countries?
"King penguins and emperor penguins are different species. The emperor penguin is one size bigger and lives only in Antarctica."
According to Dad’s explanation, it seems that the king penguin was discovered first, and since it was a large species, it was named the "king" penguin. But then, a larger one was found, and they thought, "What should we call it now?" and decided on "emperor." Really...?
While people tend to think of penguins as living in Antarctica, it turns out that fewer penguins actually live in Antarctica. Penguins that live in areas slightly farther away from the continent are more common.
Living in such an extreme cold climate must be tough...
We decided to take a picture with the penguins in the background. Someone kindly offered to take a picture, so we took them up on it, capturing a photo with everyone in it.
It was a family photo with Dad, Mom, and Fuyuki. Alice was also in the picture, but she’s practically family by now, so it wasn’t a problem. ...Now that I think about it, there are a lot of us...
If I had grandchildren, how many would that make...? ...Well, I’m not planning on marrying off my daughters, so that’s not an issue! It would only be Kuon and Alice’s kids, yeah.
In the tank next to the king penguins, a spotted seal was swimming energetically. I think spotted seal pups are completely white. I wanted to see one, but it doesn’t seem like they have them in this aquarium.
This one... is it a sea lion?
"It looks like a member of the sea lion family. 'With its mane-like fur, it's sometimes called the "sea lion." Occasionally, it eats penguins or fur seals...'"
Leen must have searched it on her phone and gave the explanation. This thing eats penguins...? Is it okay to have it in a tank next to the penguins...?
As I worried about it, Quun continued the explanation, strangely smiling slightly.
"'Also, the sea lion forms a harem with one male gathering around ten females...'"
Huh? I suddenly feel a sense of camaraderie. The sea lion is also staring at me. You too are struggling, huh? I see, I see.
"Oh, there’s a beaver here!"
I felt a few gazes from behind, but I ignored them and headed towards the American beaver under the sea lion. Its fur looked fluffy.
Its tail was large and paddle-like. It also seemed to have webbing on its hind legs.
When you think of beavers, you think of dams. They gnaw on trees near the water, blocking the flow to build dams. Then, they make their homes in those dam lakes.
Of course, since they can’t build dams in an aquarium, the beavers were just lazily lounging around.
It didn’t have a shred of wildness... Well, maybe these beavers were raised in the aquarium.
Aren’t beavers nocturnal? So, are they taking their nap now?
It seems that the "Monster Plaza" section was coming to an end. From here, we were going to head back downstairs to the main hall.
"The penguins were so cute!"
"I liked the otters..."
"I liked the black-and-white dolphins!"
As I descended the stairs, I could hear each of the children talking about their favorite animals. Soon, we reached a bright, open space with a food court.
"Perfect timing. How about we eat here?"
"Sounds good!"
"I'm so hungry!"
When I suggested this, the first to agree were the gluttonous Yaé and Frei.
The food court had many chairs and tables, with a few customers enjoying their meals.
We headed to the counter and faced the menu on the standing sign.
There were a lot of ramen and curry options... Oh, there's a big shrimp tempura bowl as well.
Shark nuggets and dolphin curry... A dolphin made of rice and small islands in a sea of curry. And a palm tree made of fried shrimp. It's elaborate.
It’s cute, but it seems a bit too much for kids, and I’m a bit hesitant. Well, I’m still a kid, I guess.
How about the shark miso katsudon here? Shark meat... that’s intriguing. But, this corn-filled sea miso ramen also seems tempting... Shark fin ramen...?! Hmm...!
Alright! I’ll go with the shark miso katsudon! I’ll eat some shark meat!
I placed my order at the counter and received a numbered buzzer. Since there were a lot of us, we split up into different tables. The water was self-service, so I went to get it myself.
I sat with Dad, Mom, and Fuyuki. This food court had an aquarium on one side and large windows on the other side, where we could see the outdoors. Inside the aquarium, penguins and spotted seals were swimming. It seemed to connect with the "Monster Plaza" on the second floor.
"Penguin!"
"Yes, that's a penguin."
"I'm glad Fuyuki enjoyed it too."
Fuyuki, sitting next to Mom, was watching the penguins swimming in the tank without getting tired of it. She must have really liked the penguins.
"It was pretty interesting."
"When you come as an adult, you can see things from a different perspective. I once brought Touya here when he was about Fuyuki's age, but it seems he doesn’t remember."
"Huh? Really?"
I don’t remember at all... Well, I feel like we went, but I don’t remember what we saw at all.
"At first, just like Fuyuki, you were running around excitedly, but toward the end, I think you were so tired that you were half asleep."
So, I was asleep... Did I mistake it for a dream...? The aquarium is so fantastical, it probably appeared as a magical space in my eyes as a child.
While thinking about that, the buzzer rang, so I went to pick up the food.
The shark miso katsudon came in a small wooden box with four small cutlets on top of rice, all covered in miso sauce. It also came with miso soup. It looked delicious.
"Let's eat!"
I took the first bite of the cutlet. This is shark meat? It’s mild and tastes like white fish. The miso sauce complements it perfectly, making it just right. The rice goes well with it.
The miso soup is delicious too. It balances out the strong flavor of the miso sauce and makes it refreshing. Now I can dive back into the cutlet.
In front of me, Fuyuki was excited about her dolphin curry.
She hesitated to take a spoonful. It was so endearing, seeing her hesitate with the cute dolphin-shaped rice.
"Da-u."
...But then the dolphin’s head was mercilessly chopped off by the spoon’s guillotine. The dolphin’s head sank into the sea of curry. Whoa...
Fuyuki scooped up the curry-covered dolphin’s head with her spoon and brought it to her mouth.
"Yummy!"
"Is it good? I'm glad to hear that."
Fuyuki happily ate the curry rice, and Mom wiped her mouth with a napkin. It was apparently mild, kid-friendly curry, and Fuyuki seemed to like it.
Next to me, Dad was eating the corn-filled sea miso ramen that I had been pondering over. It looked like it was covered entirely in yellow corn... That’s a lot of corn... Yeah, it’s definitely a sea of corn.
I looked to the side and saw that Lu had ordered the shark fin ramen. She was chewing slowly, eyes closed, as if analyzing it.
Isn’t shark fin supposed to have no taste of its own...? Well, I’m sure it’s flavored, but I wonder if she might mistake it for the flavor of the shark fin itself. I’ll tell her later.
"Thank you for the meal."
After finishing the shark miso katsudon, I returned the dishes to the return area. It was quite delicious. I might consider incorporating shark meat into meals at the castle.
We took a short break until everyone finished eating, then headed to the souvenir section.
There were all sorts of souvenirs related to marine creatures, from snacks and goods to stuffed animals and decor.
"Stuffed animals!"
When Stephanie ran over to the section with stuffed animals, the other children, except for Kuon, also excitedly ran over.
"Hey, don’t run inside the store!"
There were so many different types of stuffed animals. Dolphins, seals, otters, penguins... Wait? Is there even a giant isopod stuffed animal...?
I wondered if these would even sell... and then I saw a pop-up card that said "Selling fast!" They’re selling...
Well, they're deformed, but still... Stuffed animals are usually popular with kids or women, so maybe that's why? Kids like bugs, don’t they... or maybe that’s just boys?
I think I liked bugs when I was little too, but as I grew up, I kind of started to dislike them...
It's the many legs that get to me... I don’t mind shrimp, though...
"Stephanie, I’ll take this one!"
"I’ll take this..."
Stephanie picked up a dolphin stuffed animal, and Elna hugged an otter stuffed animal.
It seems like the other children also found their favorite stuffed animals: Yakumo picked a seal, Frei a clownfish, Koon a penguin, Yoshino a sea lion, Arcia a beaver, Linne a spotted dolphin, and Alice held a shark stuffed animal. Fuyuki also had a smaller dolphin stuffed animal than everyone else.
"Kuon, don’t you want one?"
"I’m not really into stuffed animals... I’m more interested in this over here."
What Kuon seemed to be glancing at were capsule toys, which cost 500 yen per turn. Inside, there were highly detailed figures of Antarctic creatures.
Emperor penguins, rockhopper penguins, Adelie penguins, orcas, leopard seals... These figures were pretty realistic. Even I kind of wanted one.
I exchanged 5000 yen and decided to try my luck with Kuon, each of us getting five turns.
In the end, Kuon didn’t get any duplicates, but I ended up getting two figures that Kuon didn’t have. Why is that?
Of course, since I’m an adult (?), I gave the duplicates to Kuon. He was happy to complete his collection, so no problem. Well, that’s good.
The children were fascinated by the stuffed animals and toys, while the wives seemed more interested in souvenirs, goods, and accessories.
"This mug is so cute. Linze, would you like to buy one together?"
"Big sister, how about this penguin strap?"
"Oh! That’s nice too!"
In the goods section, Elze and Linze were discussing...
"Lu, this shark fin soup looks delicious, doesn’t it?"
"Yaé, they also have ripe oyster sauce with oysters!"
"Hmmm, that also looks delicious!"
At the food section, Yaé and Lu were debating...
"This cookie would be good to share with a lot of people."
"Yumina, it seems this giant isopod sweet potato is selling well?"
"Hmmm... That might be a bit too niche for most people..."
In the sweets section, Yumina and Sue were discussing...
Giant isopod again... Wait, it’s a sweet potato shaped like a giant isopod, right? It’s not actually inside it or anything, right?
"Giant isopods are edible, you know..."
"Huh...?"
Dad muttered softly as he went off toward Mom.
Hey, my dad. There’s no way he’s eaten one, right?
Considering he likes to challenge everything he finds interesting, it could be possible... Could he have made me eat sunfish too...?
Well, putting my dad’s suspicious actions aside, I still needed to buy souvenirs for everyone at the castle.
When buying for a large group, I tended to choose things that were individually wrapped.
Cookies for the knights would be good, right? How about this "aquarium furikake"? We have rice in the other world, so the Eashen people would probably like it.
As for Laim the butler and Prime Minister Kousaka, would pens or notepads be good? Maybe a dolphin pen is a bit too cute?
Ah, I also need to buy something for the researchers, like Dr.Regina, Elluka, and the Babylon Sisters. If I don’t buy anything, I’ll definitely get some sarcastic remarks...
In the end, I ended up buying quite a bit. It was still a manageable amount for everyone to carry.
When we find a secluded spot, I’ll slowly store everything in [Storage]. If a big load suddenly disappears, it might look suspicious.
Well, with the souvenirs bought, all that’s left is to head home. But before that, some of us headed to the restroom.
While waiting, the children and wives were watching the penguins swim in the aquarium on the wall of the food court.
The aquarium was pretty fun.
It will probably be another decade or so before we can talk about this memory with the children... Future me will probably be looking forward to their return, waiting to share the experience.
After everyone returned from the restroom, we left the aquarium.
We took one last photo in front of the aquarium. Hopefully, it will be another page in our memories.
We boarded the bus to the station and left the aquarium behind. By the time we arrived at the station, the children, who had been so happy with their stuffed animals, now looked like they were running low on battery and had tired faces.
"So, what should we do? Should we rest somewhere before going home?"
"No, it’s better to just use teleportation magic to get home. It’d be tough to walk all the way from the station to Grandpa’s house."
I suggested as I watched the children, who were dozing off against Mom’s side on the bench at the station. Since there were so many of us, taking separate taxis would be awkward.
We headed toward a secluded underground passage, cast a recognition-blocking spell just in case, and used a [Gate] from a hidden landing where there were no surveillance cameras, returning directly to Grandpa’s house.
As soon as we got home, the children collapsed onto the sofa or carpet, completely exhausted.
"【Levitation】"
I cast a floating spell and moved each child one by one to the futons that the wives had laid out for them. Dad and Mom were excitedly exclaiming "Ohh!" as they saw the children floating.
Kuon, the only one still awake, looked sleepy, so I told him to go to sleep. He silently nodded and went upstairs.
"Ah... Home really is the most relaxing place..."
Mom said, sipping the tea that Lu had brewed. Well, technically, we’re at Grandpa’s house... but since it’s under Mom’s name, I guess it’s not wrong.
Fuyuki was also hugging her dolphin stuffed animal and sleeping soundly. She had been so excited earlier.
Blanca, who had welcomed us, naturally flopped down beside Fuyuki.
"It was fun, wasn’t it? The aquarium."
"I do think it would be nice to have an aquarium in Brunhild."
Yumina and Lu were happily discussing this, but honestly, I think managing and building one would be pretty difficult...
"So, what’s your country like, Touya-kun?"
"Ah, I’d like to know that too."
"Well, it’s just a small, normal country."
I answered honestly when my parents asked, but the wives looked at me with piercing eyes. What? What’s wrong?
"Well, calling it 'normal' doesn’t really apply, does it...?"
"How is it normal, with hundreds of giant humanoid weapons that no large nation possesses, and a country that revived lost ancient magical techniques and received the blessing of great spirits? I’d like to hear more details."
Linze and Leen strongly disagreed with my response. Yeah... I guess it’s not really 'normal'...?
"Giant humanoid weapons...?"
"Well, I don’t quite understand, but it’s clear that Touya-kun did some crazy things."
"That’s harsh!?"
I was slightly hurt by Dad’s words. For me, it just felt like I went with the flow, but...
"Do you have any pictures of that country?"
"Well, I’ve got an album of some pictures... I’ll show you."
Actually, I printed out some of the pictures I and the wives took and made a few albums. I figured the children would want to see them when they came back. I think future us probably has them too, so we can look through them and talk about the memories from this time.
I placed a few thick albums on the table.
"They’re pretty thick..."
"Well, with nine of us, the number of pictures piles up..."
Ah, I should probably buy a digital photo frame while I’m here. One that automatically does a slideshow.
If I give it to the doctor, he’ll probably make a magical version. I’m sure the kings will want one too.
"Wow, is this the castle? It’s impressive. Who’s this child?"
"That’s Maid-Head Lapis. The person next to her is Butler Lime."
"Eh!? They’re riding such robots!? I want to ride too!"
"That’s the 'Heavy Knight Chevalier.' It’s a mass-produced frame gear for general knights."
While my parents looked at the photos in the album, the wives explained things here and there.
I really wish I could take them to the other world... Well, it’s not impossible, but if we go, we’ll be gone for a year, and there’s that time paradox... Maybe if I ask the World God, they can help?
...But, no, this is selfish. After all, I already get a lot of time for a yearly return home.
Besides, once the children return to the future, the issue will be resolved. I think future me will probably take them to the other world. I wonder about Winter Flower... Will she be okay? I hope she won’t talk about it when we return.
If she says, "I went to another world," she’ll probably be treated like a weirdo...
As I watched my family getting excited over the album, I absentmindedly thought about such trivial things.
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