Hakuren went into labor.
I panicked. I was in a total fluster, yet there was absolutely nothing I could do.
Hakuren was attended by twenty veteran midwives from the Devil Race, brought in by Draim. Since having all twenty in the room at once would have been a logistical nightmare, only one or two stayed by her side at a time. The rest were busy teaching the other women of the village the finer points of midwifery.
With practiced, efficient movements, those midwives completely took over Hakuren’s room. I was deemed an obstacle and promptly evicted. I didn't even try to resist.
So, I left the room where Hakuren was working so hard and headed outside the mansion. There, I found Urza and a young girl about her age locked in a fierce staring contest.
A short distance away from them sat Dos and another rugged, dignified older man I didn't recognize. They were side-by-side, calmly sipping tea. I wondered if they had dragged those chairs out from the mansion themselves.
"Is the baby here yet?" Dos asked.
"No, not yet. She just went into labor, so they kicked me out."
As I answered, I glanced at the grizzled man sitting next to him.
"Ah, my apologies. I’ve been slow with the introductions," Dos said. "This is Giral, the Dark Dragon."
"I am Giral," the man said. His voice was just as deep and cool as his looks. "I'm here as my daughter's escort. I'll be in your debt."
By escort, I assumed he meant the girl currently glaring at Urza.
"That's my daughter, Gural," Giral added, answering before I could even voice the question.
He seemed like a good guy. Looking closely at the girl, she had two horns on her head just like Rusty, and a dragon tail sprouted from her backside.
"So, why exactly is Gural staring down Urza?"
When I asked, Giral averted his eyes. Dos followed suit. I really hoped Urza wasn't being rude to a guest...
Seeing my confusion, Draim beckoned me over from a short distance away.
"That's... well, it's a sort of feminine instinct among the Dragon Race," Draim explained.
"Hmm?"
"When they sense their mate is about to be born into this world, they rush to the spot immediately. They try to claim them by driving everyone else away."
Wait.
"In other words... that girl, who’s roughly Urza’s age, is already targeting Hakuren’s unborn child?"
"Most likely."
"But we don't even know if it's a boy yet."
"The fact that she's here at all suggests it probably is."
I was skeptical, but he didn't seem to be lying. I suppose my list of potential girl names was officially obsolete. No, that wasn't the point...
"I get that, but why is she glaring at Urza?"
"Well, naturally, it's a battle between women."
They both looked like they were barely five years old.
"A woman is a woman, regardless of age," Draim warned. "It's best not to poke that particular nest."
I could certainly feel the tension. Draim then shared that since his wife, Graffaloon, was younger than him, he had been safe from such things at birth, though that had brought its own set of complications later on. I see.
"Don't the mothers have anything to say about this?" I asked.
He told me that when dragons are in their Dragon Form, they lay eggs and then leave them be, so they don't usually care. In fact, many are happy because having a "mate" show up means someone else will protect the egg, saving the mother the trouble.
Apparently, giving birth in human form was so rare that there wasn't much precedent. Draim had hatched from an egg, but since no one had come to protect him, everyone assumed he was going to be another girl.
"I see... but what about Rusty or Hakuren? Does that mean a 'fated partner' will just show up for them eventually?"
"Ah, since they're already married, they're fine. Dragon women never stray once they've chosen a mate, so you can rest easy."
That was a relief.
"Just look at how attached she is to you," Draim continued. "My elder sister has become an entirely different person. Please, continue to look after her."
Draim bowed his head deeply, and I assured him that I would. I went to join Dos and Giral, wondering what to do with myself, when Gural and Urza finally moved.
Without a single word, the two girls stepped toward each other and shook hands. Then, walking shoulder-to-shoulder, they marched toward the forest.
The forest?
"Hey! I told you not to go into the forest alone!"
I suppose their logic was that they weren't "alone" because they were together. Several of Kuro’s offspring noticed them leaving and gave chase. I followed as well, joined by Draim, Dos, and Giral.
What were those two planning to do in the woods? They shook hands, so I doubted it was a duel. Which meant...
We couldn't catch up. Gural and Urza were much faster than I expected, and Draim, Dos, and Giral were significantly slower.
"I haven't run in this form for centuries..." Dos wheezed.
"I think this might be a first for me," Giral added.
"Me too," Draim panted. "Wait, why did Dos's son ever have to run?"
"Hahaha... It involved my wife... please, don't make me remember."
"Ah, Graffaloon. My apologies for my niece's behavior."
It turned out Giral and Graffaloon were uncle and niece. The dragon world really is a small circle.
We finally caught up to Gural and Urza. The two were currently engaged in a battle with a massive boar. Gural had transformed into her Dragon Form, but she was small—maybe five meters long? She was bigger than the boar, but the beast was holding its ground and knocking her back. Urza was stabbing at the creature with a sword she had pulled from who-knows-where, but she couldn't land a finishing blow.
"Whoaaa!"
I stepped in and finished off the giant boar with my Universal Farming Tool. Then, I gave the two of them a stern scolding.
What were they thinking? They said they wanted to get a present for the new baby. The sentiment was nice, but I told them specifically not to enter the forest. Their excuse was that they "weren't alone," so I told them they could try explaining that logic to Hakuren.
That did it. They both slumped, realizing they should just apologize. They couldn't be making Hakuren worry at a time like this.
Gural shifted back into her human form, and Giral immediately began coddling her.
"Gural, you're so amazing! You almost had it, didn't you, sweetie?"
Hearing that rugged, manly voice turn into a high-pitched coo was something I could have lived without. I looked at Dos, who gave me a look that promised he would tattle to Giral's wife about this later. I decided to leave that to him.
We decided to bring the boar back as food. I hooked it with the Universal Farming Tool, but Giral offered to carry it in his Dragon Form. Since he was carrying Gural anyway, it was a big help.
By the time we returned to the village, a grand celebration was already underway. The baby had been born safely. It was a boy.
The Dragon Race had already formed a tight circle around him. Hakuren’s mother, Raimeiren; her sisters, Suiren and Sekiren; Suiren’s husband, Marksbergark; their daughter, Helzernark; Hakuren’s brother, Domaim; his wife, Kuon; and Sekiren’s husband, Kuorun.
Draim, Dos, Giral, and Gural joined the cluster. And, of course, so did I.
He was a healthy, energetic boy. I was so relieved. Hakuren was resting in bed, but she looked like she was in high spirits.
"Urza. Don't be shy. Come and see him."
Urza hesitated for a second, but when Hakuren called her over, she approached the bed. She was a big sister now. Though, considering the interaction with Gural, would she eventually become his wife instead? I decided not to think about that for the time being. I was just grateful he arrived safely.
I went to hold the baby, but I was immediately blocked by the Devil Race midwives. Me, Draim, Dos, Giral, Gural, and Urza were all shoved out of the circle.
"Please take a bath before you touch the child," they commanded.
A perfectly reasonable request. Since we had been running through the forest until a moment ago, we scrambled toward the bathroom.
Regarding the name.
The Dragon Race apparently had a few naming conventions. Dos’s sons usually had names starting with "Do," while Raimeiren’s daughters ended in "ren." Marksbergark’s daughter ended in "ku" (Helze’s full name was Helzernark), and Graffaloon’s daughter ended in "n" (Rusty’s full name was Lastismun). For Giral, his sons started with "Gi" and his daughters started with "Gra."
It seemed there wasn't a strict rule about whether the identifier was a prefix or a suffix, as long as it made it clear whose child they were. However, these weren't absolute laws. The parents were free to name their children whatever they liked.
Still, I decided to use the tradition as a reference. If I followed the rule, I should use the "Hi" or "Hira" from my own name, Hiraku.
That effectively wiped out most of the boy names I had been brainstorming. The one that remained was Hiichiro. It felt very much like a name from my previous world.
I presented the proposal to Hakuren. I told her the final decision was hers, and that she didn't have to decide right away.
Strangely, she started consulting with Urza. She said she wanted a name that Urza would find adorable. I understood the sentiment, but...
Draim warned me that if we didn't pick a name soon, Dos and the others would try to butt in. Apparently, Raimeiren also loved having a say in such matters and wouldn't show any restraint now that it was her grandson.
Even Gural was already trying to participate in the naming. If she wanted to be my son’s wife, she’d have to get through me first... though in a few years, that might be a losing battle. They're dragons, after all.
Don't worry, my son! I'll protect you as much as I can!
And then there was Giral. I really wished he would stop crying over the idea of his daughter getting married. We hadn't even accepted her proposal yet. Apparently, when Giral had left Gural at Dos’s place as a "dragon-tage" (dragon hostage), he had ended up just staying there with her. I see.
The name was officially decided: Hiichiro.
My son was celebrated grandly by the gathered dragons.
"Alfred, Tiselle, come look. He's your younger brother. Make sure you get along."
"Lilius, Rigul, Ratte, Torain. You're still too little to understand, but this is your brother. Be good to him, okay? No fighting."
With the introductions over, it was time to eat the massive boar Urza and Gural had brought back.
"Hmm? No, I didn't hunt it. Those two caught it as a celebratory gift."
Alfred looked like he wanted to go out and catch one too, but I told him it was far too early for that. Ria and the others would teach him to hunt eventually. I made sure to remind all the children not to go into the woods on their own. I knew they wanted to make us proud, but they shouldn't do things that make us worry.
The village was filled with life and laughter deep into the night.