It's a Chastity-Reversed World, But It's Different From What I Imagined? - 43

Chapter 43: Mother’s POV– 1

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【Sei Kurose】

“Breaking news. Male population decline is worsening! Male-to-female ratio among teenagers is now 1 to 30. Shortage of boys in the countryside! Rural girls flock to the cities in search of men. Where have all the men gone???”

The announcer delivered the urgent report with exaggerated gestures, speaking the latest news with a dramatic, astonished expression.

“In recent years, assaults against men have been increasing. It is said that the strengthening of the Male Protection Law is now under review. What are your thoughts, SEI-san?”

The announcer turned to the day’s commentator, a woman whose nameplate on the table read: 【President of Valkyrie Security Company, SEI】.

“In recent years, the weakening of men has been progressing. Men who use the Male Protection Law as a shield and become arrogant, men who wallow in a sedentary lifestyle, men who show no passion or affection toward women… It can be said that such men are on the rise.”

Her words, which could be taken as criticism of men, made the announcer break into a nervous sweat.

“I see. So you’re saying that’s why the number of men being attacked is increasing?”

“Yes. Back when we were born, the gender ratio was about 1 in 5, so the common recognition was that men were physically stronger. However, by the time I reached adulthood, the ratio had dropped to 1 in 10, and the Male Protection Law had already been established. At that point, weaker men had increased in number.”

Though she seemed to be opposing the Male Protection Law, the President of Valkyrie Security, SEI, insisted the root problem lay in the weakening of men.

“There’s no point in dragging up the past. The issue is what we do now. Do you understand?”

Another commentator countered SEI’s argument. The two quickly launched into a heated debate.

“We must raise today’s young men to be strong! That’s the only solution.”

“Oh please. Today’s kids? They just dump all the responsibility on others, don’t they?”

The older commentator snapped back at SEI’s words.

“That’s not the case. I have military experience. Using that, I now run a security company. I believe that while we protect men, we can also train them to become stronger.”

Without flinching before the older commentator, she asserted even more strongly that using her company, men could indeed be made strong.

“In the end, won’t that just impose impossible demands on men and will further reduce their already dwindling numbers? I think the only way forward is to continue gently protecting them. Men are beings that must be protected.”

SEI demanded strengthening men and opposing the Male Protection Law. The older commentator demanded protecting men and supporting the Male Protection Law. The announcer, bewildered by their debate, decided to change the topic.

“Incidents threatening men are increasing. We ask all men to refrain from any unnecessary outings. If you must go out, please contact the newly established Men’s Guard or go out accompanied by family or trusted acquaintances.”

The Men’s Guard was a new measure under the Male Protection Law: each man would be assigned a protection officer. It was supposed to assign a protection officer to every man under 50, but due to insufficient training, it had yet to cover everyone.

“This is only making men even more useless.”

Fuming, SEI hurled the newspaper she had been reading in her office into the trash, then gazed down at the city from her company’s tower window.

“Pathetic. Nothing but creepy men and pitiful men. Real men… there aren’t any left.”

Her eyes shifted to the photograph on her desk of her son and daughter. When they were little, she had tried to raise her son into the ideal man, making him train his body. But by the time he entered middle school, he had grown weak and timid, no different from other boys.

When her daughter told her that her son had become gross, she went to see him and felt disillusioned. His eyes held no confidence. When he spoke, he stammered and mumbled, unable to say anything clearly. His face and body, once trained to be reasonably sturdy, had no vigor in their presence at all.

『You’re bad at talking. Your very existence is gross, so you shouldn’t go outside.』

Understanding her daughter’s words, she spat out the same insult to her son, calling him creepy. It hurt.

She had wanted to raise him into a strong man. In this dangerous world, she didn’t want him to be pinned down by women. She wanted him to have the strength to live on his own.

Just like that man…

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When I was a student, the government was already debating bills to protect the declining male population. The male and female gender ratio was at 1 in 10. It wasn’t uncommon to see boys in class, but they were all so timid and feeble that they only struck me as disgusting.

Why should we have to protect such creatures?

Back then, the meaning of “manliness” was different. Today, effeminate men are sometimes called “manly,” but at that time, manliness meant strength and courage. Manly men had already become treated as an extinct species, something no longer seen anywhere.

Unable to imagine a future with weak men, I joined the military to strengthen myself. I had no interest in weak men. If I entered the military, maybe I would meet strong men. But that faint hope was shattered in the very first year.

There were no men in the military.

Harsh training, a body forged stronger and a grueling curriculum. No man could withstand it. By then, men were no longer allowed to enlist. Men themselves had shown willingness to accept the Male Protection Law, not wanting to endure such hardship. Disappointed in the weakness of my country’s men, I went abroad in search of strong men.

That was when I met him…

Wakka Wagner. He was more than 30 years older than me and yet, I fell for his charm immediately.

Jet-black Japanese hair with amethyst-colored eyes. Sun-browned skin, thick arms, sharply defined features. The very word “manly” seemed to exist for his sake. I had just gone overseas, and with broken words, I courted him.

He listened seriously to the words of a younger girl like me. He agreed to sleep with me, if only for one night. We drank, we ate meat, we dove into bed together. It was my first time, and I was bewildered, but guided by his experience, I entrusted everything to him.

This was the man I had been searching for—I felt it deep in my soul. Perhaps he had also taken a liking to me, because he doted on me until I bore him two children…

But partings come without warning. He suddenly lost his life to a heart attack. To raise the two children he had given me, I returned to my homeland, left the military, and started a company.

Thanks to the help of my comrades from the military, the company we built together thrived and succeeded. I raised my son strictly, hoping he would grow into a man like him. And yet, he grew in the opposite direction, into a weak and feeble boy. I could no longer see any trace of that man in him. Little by little, I found myself avoiding my own son.

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