Chapter 427: IDK anymore… |
It was late in the afternoon. Around 3 PM.
Meggie was supposed to come home around this time, but considering her text, she would likely be staying after school a bit later.
Yue should be coming home soon too, but from the stack of papers on her desk in that video, she might take a bit too.
Aurora was fast asleep though.
Which meant that John was completely free to do whatever he wanted right now.
There wasn't anything Myth Incorporated or Project MirAIs related in queue, and none of the girls had texted about any issues...
Which meant that John was completely, absolutely, and utterly free.
"Huh."
It was a strange realization.
Nothing was happening.
"Huh." John rubbed his chin and said, "For once in my life... I guess I'm not the protagonist?"
It was a bit of a wild thought.
Ever since John had been tossed in the Three Realms, and even after arriving on this Earth, he'd been wrapped up in countless random plot points. Or at least events that seemed like random plot points.
That, and drama. Lots of drama.
But it was a sobering thought to realize that, at that very moment, John was free. He could literally do anything...
Well, odds were high that if he stepped outside, something random might happen.
But John wouldn't do that anyway since Aurora was sleeping and he had to make sure she was safe-
John's eyes widened and he gasped. "Wait. Have... Have I become the token Dad side character...?"
It made sense.
If John went with the logic that all of his daughters were a 'protagonist' type character... it still worked.
For Alphy, John was the somewhat distant but loving father who kept texting her every morning. For Betty, John was the father who wasn't in the picture since she was living an independent life but showed up for filler episodes. And for Meggie, John was practically the 'final boss' type character who would show up when things hit the fan...
Heck, even for Aurora, John was the overprotective Dad who took her out on zany adventures when her mom wasn't around.
"Holy cow." John slumped in the couch as the realization hit me. "I'm literally not the main character anymore. No, I guess I 'transcended' the role of a main character too...?"
It was unexpected... but John *did* cultivate to become transcendent. And by the very definition of that word, it meant beyond any sort of constraints.
And right now, John just realized that he had transcended beyond the troubles and role of a protagonist that had been plaguing him his whole life. But...
"Is this what a mid-life crisis feels like?"
Despite everything... John was at a loss.
John let out a weak laugh and said, "Oh the irony..."
He wanted to escape the Three Realms and just relax playing video games and scrolling on the internet. But now that he was in the position to do exactly that without having to worry about anything... he didn't want to.
"...Man. So this is what growing up feels like." John laughed.
"Ba..." Aurora's sleepy mumble echoed on the baby monitor.
John smiled and then walked over to the nursery. After entering, he leaned over and kissed Aurora's forehead.
Aurora let out a big smile and then sighed before drifting back to sleep.
John chuckled softly and whispered, "Oh well. Guess being the side character in my kids' lives is fine..."
Wasn't that every parent's goal? To set the stage for their kids and let them write out their own wonderful story?
John just... happened to be speedrunning that a bit.
Well, maybe it was more like the events were long overdue and were finally just now hitting him.
John sighed and walked back into the living room. "Whatever. I'm going to just catch up on my game catalogue for now..."
There were plenty of games to run through while there was time.
John pulled his gaming laptop out from a pocket space and then booted it up. While it was loading, he hummed and said, "I guess I should start seriously thinking about that goal of returning to the real Earth too..."
Even if it was just for a visit, it would be nice to have the parents meet their grandkids.
John hummed and put a pin in that thought before loading up Steem. "Now... let's see if the 'Kingdom Stars' series is as ridiculous as the Kingdom He*rts I remember..."
===
A private office building in Los Angeles, California. Thursday morning, around 8 AM Pacific Time. There, in a conference room, Bai and Qing sat, nervous.
Bai adjusted his white suit and tie before fixing his salt-and-pepper hair. "John won't skin us for this, right?"
Qing nervously fiddled with his sapphire dragon cuff links. But then he glared at Bai and said, "Quiet! Don't jinx it!"
Bai tugged his tie and said, "Is it really jinxing if it's John though...? You know what he's like..."
Qing swallowed and then adjusted the jade band holding his long dark blue hair in a ponytail. "Please don't tempt fate..."
Bai sighed.
Qing shook his head and then picked up his coffee cup from the table. After taking a sip to calm his nerves, he looked over at Bai and said, "How's life with Eri? Is she adjusting to life in America well?"
Bai picked up the cup of coffee. But after a moment of thought, thinking better of it. Coffee with his nerves would only make them worse... He sighed and then said, "Eri is fine." Thinking of the love of his life, Bai relaxed and put on a warm smile. "She's an angel. Even though it's a bit tough adjusting since she's still learning English, she's doing her best. All to make me happy and make us work."
Qing smiled. "That's wonderful."
Bai nodded. "It is. But..." His eyes narrowed. "I wish she would speak up more about her past. She still won't tell me why she was blacklisted from working as a nurse in Japan."
Qing sipped his coffee and said, "Well it's obvious why, isn't it?"
"Hm?" Bai tilted his head. "What's obvious?"
"The fact that you'd rush back to Tokyo, knock around a bunch of heads and then drag everyone responsible in front of Eri to kneel down and apologize."
Bai laughed and said, "I wouldn't do that." His eyes turned cold and said, "They wouldn't get a chance to see my Eri. Just a letter of apology would be fine."
Qing rolled his eyes. "Do that and you definitely would get skinned by John."
Bai huffed and leaned back in his chair. "Whatever." He looked at Qing and said, "How about you? How's life with Sitri?" He let out a smirk and said, "Must be nice living with such a... sinful woman."
Qing's ears turned red and he coughed mid coffee sip. He quickly put down his cup and wiped his mouth before glaring at Bai.
Bai let out a cheeky smile in response.
Qing glared for a bit longer. Then he sighed. His face still a bit flushed, he tugged on his sleeve and said, "W-Well. Sitri is... very affectionate. Both at home and in public. But especially at home, she is very... Well." He tugged his collar.
Bai laughed and smacked the table. "Looks like your little dragon's finally seeing some action after all these years, hm?"
"Oh shut it." Qing glared. "It's none of your business... and don't be so crude."
Bai held up his hands. "Hey, I'm just curious. If you hadn't done it with how handsy Sitri is, I was about call you a saint."
Qing turned a deep red and said, "Well... Sitri and I do... love each other. Intimacy is... natural, is it not?"
Bai grinned. "Damned straight it is, you snake."
Qing coughed.
Bai laughed. But then he put on a serious expression and said, "Alright. Now that we've got the nerves out... Let's review the situation before John gets here."
Qing nodded, turning serious too.
Bai looked at Qing and said, "How is Sitri's streaming? Do we still want her to be the first member of the English branch like we planned?"
"Well..."