“… Eh, who’s that?”
“Kehma, who’s this? Someone you know?”
“Nope.”
The girl opened her eyes with a snap—they looked like I’d seen them somewhere before, a shade of blue. Actually, once I got a good look at her, she kind of looked like Rokuko—
Just then, I felt a foreboding feeling run through me. The girl opened her mouth and her first words.
“Papa! Mama! Hello, I’m your daughter!”
… Yeah, I get it.
“You’re the Dungeon Core from earlier, aren’t you!?”
“Eh, earlier? Papa and Mama…? Eh, daughter… wait, she looks like you, Kehma!”
“Oh no no no, she looks like you.”
Wait, why are we talking like a couple in front of their baby?
“This is me guessing, but you know how we focused our power into that core? I figure that.. well, it took in some elements from each of us and hatched into a Dungeon Core… yeah?”
“I seeee… So she’s our kid! I’m Mama!”
“So then I’m Papa?”
“Of course my Papa and Mama would be so quick to figure it out! You’ve got most of it correct!”
The girl clapped her hands together and confirmed our suspicions with a smile.
… I was careless. Actually, does this mean we’ve had our first child?
No way, for our first kid to talk and be this big the moment they’re born… I guess it’s possible because of the whole Dungeon Core thing.
“Alright, so I’m going to message Otou-sama1 now.”
“Ah, then I’ll get Haku Ane-sama—”
“Absolutely not, Rokuko! Let’s get a hold of what’s happening before that!”
When I stopped Rokuko from committing second degree murder and opened my menu, I saw that I’d already received a message from [Father].
[Title: Congratulations, Kehma! You had your first child!]
“Seriously…?”
A god just certified her as my daughter…
I opened the message to read further.
[Maaan, first off, congratulations. It looks like you and Rokuko created an additional Dungeon Core, Kehma-kun! I’d originally only prepared the preset core so you could raise your hero skill’s level, but both of your elements managed to boot it up. Well, you two are unmistakably the parents, so make sure to take good care of her, alright?]
… It appeared to be exactly as I’d guessed.
[PS: I won’t be giving her a number, so name her properly! Also, I also took the liberty of connecting the DP Catalog to her so she can use it as well. Think of it as my baby shower present.]
Seriously though…? Yeah… baby shower, huh.
“What did Otou-sama say?”
“… That she’s definitely our daughter… and to give her a name.”
“Yaaay! What should we name her!?”
“Right, right! I want a cuuuuute name!”
“Naming my first daughter’s making me nervous!”
She even raises her hand and speaks normally despite just being born. She doesn’t seem to have any questions about what’s going on, either.
… It must have something to do with being a Dungeon Core. The presets [Father] mentioned must have been a set of basic knowledge, an ecology completely different from what humans have.
“Wait, Kehma. Let’s come up with a name for her together. She’s our daughter, after all.”
“S-Sure. Right… wait, first, you. What happened to your actual body, the Dungeon Core?”
“Eh? It’s just in there?”
The girl pointed to the [Storage] I’d left open.
… You’re not saying my [Storage] turned into a dungeon, are you?
“My dungeon is Mama’s [Storage]!”
“Ah, yeah… figured… huh? What did you just say?”
“It’s Mama’s [Storage]…”
!?
“Wait, why am I Mama!?”
“…? Based on my knowledge of the situation, I decided that Mama is Mama! Huh? Is something about that weird?”
“I’m a man, so I’m Papa!”
“… Ah, I guess…? You’re a man… so you’re Papa…? I don’t know anything about that.”
Yo, Dark God. The heck are with these presets of yours?
“In the case that god isn’t here, god is Papa, not Mama!”
“Oh, now that you mention it…”
“Right, you had the same kind of education, huh Rokuko…”
Dungeon Cores were god’s children, so they themselves were similar to gods… and following that logic, I’m Mama? Come on, what kind of gender free god is this?
“I’m a human and Rokuko’s a human-type core, so apply your logic from a human’s point of view.”
“Question, Mama! Shouldn’t god take priority over humans?”
“It’s fine, please just go with a human’s point of view… Right, Rokuko doesn’t want to be called Papa either ,right?”
“Huh? I don’t really mind either way though.”
Not good. I’m going to have to do something here before it’s too late.
I briefly wondered if Haku-san would prefer me being the Mama, but then figured that she’d have the same sentiment as Rokuko and not care…
“Kehma. The important thing is that she’s ours. Isn’t deciding which of us is Papa or Mama trivial?”
“That’s a noble thought, but doesn’t it sound like I gave birth to her?”
“… Didn’t you?”
Rokuko pointed to my [Storage].
“… Ah, that. Well… hearing someone call me Mama Kehma physically hurts me, so please just call me Papa.”
“Got it! Papa!”
“I don’t really mind, but is it like that in Japanese? Alright if that’s how it is.”
That’s all it took!?
No—that’s good. They said so. No takebacks.
“Alright, back to her name. This whole situation is about an additional core, so how about we call her Soto for now?”
“Karinisoto? What’s the meaning of that name?”
Why’d she include [karini]?2
Just as I tried to correct her, she clapped her hands together with a smile.
“Karinisoto! What a nice name. Soto means outside, elsewhere, and additional in Japanese!”
“Drop the for now part, okay? I was saying for now.”
“For now means temporarily, for a moment, for now. It’s from another world!”
“Karinisoto, Soto for short! Additional for now… how cute! It’s the best!”
A core’s sense of aesthetics is a mystery! I wonder if it’s just that it being a foreign language is cool?
She was so happy she was basically squirming… wait, are you telling me you’re making the final decision on it being Karinisoto?
“We’ll think about the name later! Karinisoto is rejected!”
“No. It’s decided. I am Karinisoto! Call me Soto-chan please~”
“Please think this through…”
“Then give me some socks. I’ll think about it if you give me some socks… Oh, what’s this? Papa isn’t wearing socks! And there aren’t any in his [Storage]. Too bad, buying more isn’t allowed!”
… The heck’s she talking about? I mean sure, I don’t wear socks in my room though.
“Therefore, my name is Karinisoto—Soto!”
“Good for you, Soto. Ah, my name was given to me by Kehma, it means 695 in another world.”
“Uwaaah! Papa’s a naming genius!”
Rokuko pumped her chest out in pride. I’m so sorry. It’s all my fault….
Oh yeah, I have to contact Narikin and everyone on time (escaping reality).
