Chapter 13 – The Evil Dragon Receives a Present from Her Son【Part 2】

In the living room, his mother stood with her mouth wide open.

Ryuuji looked away, embarrassed, and confessed.

“I bought it. In town. With the reward money from the slime subjugation earlier.”

…Ryuuji had money from defeating the Small Bats and the other monsters.

But he hadn’t touched a single cent of it.

Because in the end, it was money he’d obtained with his mother’s help, which meant it was no different from her just handing him cash.

That wasn’t right.

Ryuuji wanted to give her a gift.

No matter what… he wanted to give his mother a present with money he had earned all by himself.

Ryuuji looked at his mother and explained.

The reason he gave her the present.

“Happy birthday, Mom.”

…The Evil Dragon Karma Abyss had been born into this world on this very day, several hundred years ago.

So Ryuuji had been told long ago by the Observer.

That his mother’s birthday was a few days after his own.

That, in part, was why Ryuuji had resolved to leave home on his birthday.

He had intended to go to a town, earn some money, and use that money to buy his mother a present.

He’d figured that if he got a job, earned some cash, and sent the present home… it would arrive right around today.

…Of course, he never imagined that the person he was buying the gift for would actually tag along with him to the city.

“For a long time, I’ve wanted to celebrate your birthday, Mom. You always throw me these huge parties, but you never do anything for your own.”

Ever since he could remember, Ryuuji had wanted to give his mother something.

But… as a child with nothing to his name, Ryuuji couldn’t give his mother a present.

He could have found a pretty stone for her in the forest. But that was just playing house.

…That wasn’t it. He wanted to properly earn money, buy something, and give it to her.

To his mother.

To the benefactor who had raised him all this time.

“Thank you, Mom.”

“Ryu-kun…”

sniffle… His mother’s nose started to run. Before long…

“Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!”

Tears streamed from her eyes like a waterfall.

“I’m so haaaappyyy! So, so haaappyyy!! My son! My son is—gaaahk! Cough! hack-hack!”

Karma choked and started coughing.

“A-Are you okay, Mom?”

“Mmhmm! Yup!”

His mother beamed a bright, child-like smile.

“Eheh, eheheh… I’m happy… I’m so very happy… To think the day would come when my own son would celebrate my birthday…”

Karma clutched the necklace she received tightly to her chest.

“…I’m happy. So happy. This is the second happiest I’ve ever been in my life.”

He was about to ask what the first was, but decided against it out of embarrassment.

“Of course, the happiest was the day you came to me, Ryu-kun!”

The very thing he was too embarrassed to ask about…

This mother of his just came right out and said it.

Ryuuji gave a wry smile. But that was his mom for you.

“Here, eat the omelet. I made it for you.”

When Ryuuji said that, Karma shouted, “A-A-Absolutely not!!!”

“A-A dish made by the hands of a god… no, a divine offering! For a lowly creature such as myself to even put it to my lips, ah! The sin is too great!!”

thud! Karma dropped to her knees, choked with tears of overwhelming emotion.

“Cut it out with that stuff. I went to the trouble of making it, and if you don’t eat it… I’ll be sad.”

At that, his mother cried, “Whaaaaaat!!!”

sproing! She shot to her feet.

“Then I shall finish it in a flash!”

His mother sat at the table, a knife and fork in each hand.

“Jeez. Savor it, okay?”

He sat down across from his mother with a wry smile.

“Of course! I will savor it while eating it in one second, and I will sear the memory of this wonderful day into my brain, down to every last microsecond!”

His mother put her hands together and said her thanks, then began to wolf down the omelet.

Partway through, there was a sound like someone biting down on an eggshell,

crunch,

“Haaaaaaah! Delicious! Too delicioooooouuuus!!”

Karma, tears streaming down her face, chanted “delicious” over and over.

…It was a completely over-the-top reaction.

…And he didn’t really like that exaggerated side of his mother.

But.

Still.

…He certainly didn’t hate it.