Chapter 28: Kana is staying over.
Chapter 28: Kana is staying over.
As the due date for the birth of the Tonobe family's first son approached, Hiroko-san was admitted to the hospital with plenty of time to spare. Momi-san, contrary to his dynamic personality, is said to be quite a worrier. He took Hiroko-san, who was having her second baby and had a relaxed attitude, to the hospital in case something went wrong.
Kana is now staying at the Kyobe family's house.
It is a strange feeling to have guests in our home all the time. It is as if our house is not our house anymore.
"What are you doing?"
"I'm studying hiragana."
As I was filling in my hiragana exercise book, Kana peeked at me from the side.
I have been doing this assignment for three months now.
At first I had an illusory feeling that I was doing something wrong, but when I followed the model, the lines were much shakier than I had expected.
My handwriting is not beautiful, but it is not that bad either.
My handwriting had developed habits without me noticing, and often deviated from the model.
In other words, my handwriting was far from the ideal form, and it was messy.
The shocking fact that the letters I had taken for granted from my previous life were written poorly made me change my attitude toward this assignment.
Since I was going to start my life over, I decided to write beautiful letters.
There were people at work who had beautiful handwriting, and I was impressed every time I saw them.
From then on, I looked at the letters in my exercise book carefully, traced them accurately, and practiced with an awareness of making the letters look similar to the model.
However, I was wrong in thinking that since I had learned the letters once, it would be quick and easy.
I had a habit from a previous life that I have not been able to get rid of, and it is taking me a long time to correct it.
If I follow a model, I can write beautiful letters, but if I write in a capus notebook, I can't write the same thing. If I'm not careful, I can easily fall into the habit. I never thought that the experience of my previous life would become a stumbling block.
"Kana will do it too."
"Okay. Use this."
Kana's rivalry spirit was on full display here.
Or, rather, "My good friend is doing it, so I want to do it, too".
It's just a little used hiragana exercise book, but it's good enough for Kana to play with.
"Trace these lines. The order is like this. This is an "A".
"A!"
Kana traces letters while pronouncing them.
She loves to draw and is used to handling a pencil.
I'll have to ask her kindergarten teacher to teach her the correct way to hold the pencil when she gets older.
"Oh my, you have beautiful handwriting. I'm sure your father will be delighted when he sees it."
"Really?
"Yes, it's true. I'm sure he will be happy to hear that Kana-chan has grown up."
"Hehehe."
When Kana's mother noticed that Kana-chan was taking the initiative in her studies, she said something like that.
It was the perfect support to motivate Kana-chan.
Kana was all smiles, but suddenly her face showed signs of anxiety.
"Will Mama be pleased?"
"Yes, I'm sure she'll be delighted. I'll tell your mother, who is working hard in the hospital, that you practiced writing letters."
"Yes!"
Even a young child must be worried when his mother is hospitalized.
I think she must be anxious about being separated from her mother for the first time in her life, and she may not have time to relax since she will be spending time at someone else's house.
Maybe I should give her a little more attention.
After that, Kana called Hiroko-san, and she quickly recovered.
Children are so emotionally unbalanced.
I've been in the hospital myself, so I'm used to it.
Kana, who was praised by Hiroko-san, worked even harder on her hiragana practice.
I was deeply moved by the way she learned the letters one at a time, even though they were childishly squiggly, but completely foreign to her.
I couldn't let her down.
Kana and I continued to quietly practice hiragana together.
---
"Ah, it's Reiju's egg!"
After a nap time peculiar to children, Kana found an egg in the corner of my bedroom.
It was the 50 million yen egg my father had bought for me when I was eight months old.
Since then, it has grown even larger and is now the size of a school bag. The pattern has become more intricate, and I am looking forward to seeing what it will produce.
Every day the egg devours spiritual power, and the amount it demands increases every day. If a small fish is born, it will be a waste of food.
"I want it. I wish."
I don't even look at her with such expectant eyes.
Maybe it's because I allow Kana to be selfish most of the time, but she thinks she can have anything she wants if she asks for it.
In the first place, Kana only yearns for things from me because of the spirit animal eggs that have sucked my spiritual power.
And it's 50 million.
"What kind of baby is going to be born?"
"A spirit animal. You don't know what kind of beast you're going to have until it's born."
"I understand Kana's dad."
That being said, if we used ultrasound or a CT scan to look through the egg's contents, we might be able to see what's inside.
It would be an interesting experiment, but I would not dare to use a 50 million yen specimen.
I would have to make sure that the egg is born safe and sound, and that it performs to its full potential to make up for the price.
"Okay, good."
Kana has grown up a lot since those days when she used to tap the eggs with curiosity, and she caresses them as if she were handling something fragile.
Her appearance already shows a glimpse of her compassion as a big sister.
She knows that eggs are fragile and that there is a baby inside of them.
You've really grown up, Kana.
I feel like a father who has a daughter.
"When the baby is born, give it to me."
"I can't do that."
"Why not?"
The princess, spoiled by Momi-san and me, was honest about her desires.
I see, you also know about the foster care system. You've really increased your knowledge, haven't you?
But I can't fulfill that request.
You can buy it if you beg your father for a regular price of 1 billion yen. Good luck with that.
Momi-san will probably request a spirit animal egg for her daughter's birthday present this year, but I don't think it's possible. Even if I were to buy one, the only person I would choose to give it to would be my eldest son.
The Onmyoji family still has a strong tradition of eldest son inheritance. The eldest son is responsible for the succession of onmyojutsu and the inheritance of the family. The second son and after are taught onmyojutsu other than the secret arts and support the main family as a branch family.
Women, including Kana, are taught only the basics of onmyojutsu. This is because they will eventually marry into some Onmyoji family and they need to know their husband's work.
This was also taught on the Onmyouji Channel.
Well, I heard that as modernization progresses, more and more exceptions are being made, and gradually more and more women are learning onmyojutsu like Sister Shido, so it is not absolutely certain.
"Hey! Let's play!
"Yuya! Okay, I'll play with you!
Yuya, who had woken up before I knew it, found Kana and started to get excited.
She, in turn, also began to get excited as she demonstrated her big sisterly personality.
Children's interests are easily changeable.
Forgetting about the motionless spirit animal eggs, the two of them started to play with each other.
I guess big brother should join in once in a while.
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