CHAPTER 208: WHAT’S A FATHER?

"The number you are trying to reach is unavailable."

The mechanical voice echoed in the room. Flat. Emotionless.

Sophia stared at her phone screen as it dimmed again. Her hand still gripped it tightly.

"...Failed," she muttered under her breath.

Lily lowered her head. "Maybe the signal’s bad... or—"

"—Or he really can’t be reached," Sophia cut in, her voice soft but sharp. She wasn’t angry—just... disappointed. At who? Even she didn’t know.

Silence returned to the small living room. Only the lazy creak of an old fan filled the air.

Meanwhile, on the 100th floor of the Tower...

Nathan stood under the waterfall, his body halfway between human and monster, slowly shrinking back into his original form. Steam rose from his skin, mixing with the droplets splashing off his shoulders.

He said nothing.

The water flowed over his face, but his mind was far away.

"A father..."

That word echoed in his head—not because Lilith had said it, but because... it was true. He couldn’t deny it anymore. It wasn’t about sperm or experiments anymore—it was about responsibility.

He couldn’t run away with some "going out for milk" excuse... or hide behind "I’ll send child support every month."

No.

That child existed. Alive. Breathing. And came from him.

Nathan stared at the faint reflection of his face on the water’s surface.

"...Father," he whispered.

Only one image came to mind—a cold man. Left early for work, came home late, ate, slept. Occasionally played with him... but mostly just sat in silence watching TV, face always tired.

Nathan used to hate him. But now... he understood.

"Work... is exhausting," he murmured. A dry chuckle escaped his lips."Dad would be ashamed... if he knew his son turned out to be a loser like me."

But far outside the Tower...In a world that had long forgotten most of its ’missing people’...

In a tall corporate building, a middle-aged man sat behind a desk. His suit was tidy. His shirt drenched in sweat. On the monitor, numbers changed by the second. But his eyes... were empty.

He stared at the screen like he could see through it.

"Please... don’t turn out like me," he whispered.

His left hand clenched a small paper beneath the desk—a copy of the official report:

"Your child has been declared missing, presumed lost to the vortex. {Blue Fang Guild Report}."

"If you’re still alive in there..."

His eyes trembled. His face tensed, struggling to hold back emotion.

"...I hope you become strong. Someone cool. Even if you’re trapped... stay alive."

He closed his eyes for a moment. A faint smile formed—like a man choosing to believe in something, even without reason.

"At least... you don’t have to sit in this room pretending to be a successful human being."

Nathan kept staring at his faint reflection in the water when suddenly—

[Ding!][As your first reward as a father...][Cooldown: Fresh Recalibration has been accelerated!][You may now return to your normal size and say goodbye to your daughter.][Prepare yourself—in two days, you will enter a reinforcement mission in the Snowy Area.]

Nathan blinked.

"Huh?" His brows furrowed. "Snowy Area? Reinforcement?"

Questions flooded his mind.

What about the farm? The White Null Shop sales? The stamina potion distribution? Marketing?

"If I leave now... my entire logistics system’s gonna collapse!"

[Relax. You’ll only be gone for two days.][And you won’t be alone. Livia will accompany you as Support and Tactical Advisor.]

Nathan fell silent.

"...Of course," he muttered. "The cheerful bunny girl who now treats me like trash. Great. Life’s gonna get even colder..."

Slowly, his body began to shrink. The faint glow on his skin faded back to a normal human tone. His breathing calmed. His muscles adjusted. The energy inside him compressed—ready to be reshaped.

He stepped out from under the waterfall.

Still naked.Still exhausted.But now... with an extra title: "Father of a Super-Dimensional Hybrid Infant."

Nathan let out a long sigh.

"This has to be the result of one of their weird meetings..." he murmured.

And as usual, no further explanation.No vote.No written agreement.

Just a notification—and the twisted fate that kept dragging him forward.

Nathan returned to the farming area.The air was calmer here—the scent of damp earth and fresh fruit lingered in the breeze.His steps were slow, body still a bit heavy after the waterfall soak.

In front of a small cabin—he had no idea when it was built, but at this point, nothing Monster Girls made surprised him anymore—stood Validia. She was now in human form, though... still taller than him. Her hair was damp, half-dried, and she was holding a full set of Nathan’s Hunter Gear.

"Oh... you’re back," she said, lowering her head slightly. Her face was a little flushed, though her expression remained cool.

Nathan stopped. "You’re the only one here? Where are the others?"

Validia didn’t answer right away. Instead, she held out his clothes.

"Here... your outfit," she said. "We cleaned it and... made a few adjustments."

Nathan raised an eyebrow. "Adjustments?"

Validia pointed to the bottom part.A hint of green fabric peeked out from the folded clothes.

"That’s... underwear. Made from Oraliusfera leaves. Soft. Antifungal. And... size-adaptive. So you’ll... feel comfortable. And your... thing won’t get cold..."

The last line came out almost as a whisper. Validia quickly turned her face away.

Nathan just stared."...Thanks, I guess."

Just as he was about to ask more, laughter and light footsteps echoed from the fields.

He turned.

Domina and Livia were jogging through the crops—and behind them... was a little girl.

Her hair was like Nathan’s—messy but soft. Her sharp eyes resembled Domina’s current gaze, her twitching bunny ears mirrored Livia’s, and her laughing mouth... was unmistakably Livia when she was in full teasing mode.

The little girl looked so happy, running around while being playfully chased by the two adult women—who, despite their usual attitude, were clearly treating her with extreme care.

Nathan froze.

The girl suddenly stopped, her eyes locking onto Nathan.

Then—

"Papa...!" she yelled, her voice high and full of joy.

Nathan stiffened. "...Huh?"

"Papa!!" she cried again, louder, even more excited.

She began running toward him, her tiny arms outstretched.

Nathan stayed rooted. His body frozen.But in his head—

A memory surged up.A younger version of himself, running toward his mother. Laughing. Shouting, "Mama! Mama!"

He didn’t know why, but that memory made his heart skip a beat.

And before he realized it...

His hand lifted—slowly, awkwardly... and opened.

The girl jumped——and hugged him.

A small body. Short breaths. But warm.

Nathan looked down.

He wasn’t crying.But something inside him melted.

"...Papa," the little girl whispered again.

Nathan wrapped his arms around her.

"...Yeah. Papa’s here."

Outside the Tower – Blue Fang HQ

The fluorescent light above the sink flickered once.

David stood motionless, staring at his own reflection in the mirror of the empty bathroom.

Sharp eyes. Clean cut hair. Jaw tight. No visible scars—but his entire face looked like it had been hardened by command.

He blinked slowly.

And still didn’t recognize himself.

"...Ulrich," he muttered.

The man who raised him.

Trained him.

Shaped him into what he was.

Usually cold. Strict. Calculated to a fault.

But lately... something was off.

"First you kept repeating if i need to take a vacation," David murmured, "and then... you apologized?"

His fingers tightened against the edge of the sink.

"That’s not you."

He remembered the conversation clearly. The way Ulrich lowered his voice. The way his eyes softened. That whole speech about "you’re still human, David"—as if that excused everything.

A bitter chuckle escaped David’s lips.

"Are you trying to be... a father now?" he scoffed.

The word tasted strange. Like poison. Or maybe just irony.

He stared deeper into the mirror. At the way his eyes didn’t flinch. At the way his body stood like a soldier even when alone.

"A father..."

He said it again.

Then laughed—sharp, hollow, real.

"...Hah. What’s a father?"

His smile widened, but it never reached his eyes.

Outside the Tower — Late Evening

The door creaked open.

"Welcome home, Papa!" Lily ran barefoot through the hallway, arms outstretched like always.

Nathan’s father—still in his work suit, tired and drenched in city grime—managed a faint smile as he crouched to catch her.

"You’ve grown again," he said, voice low.

Lily hugged him tighter. "Papa... when’s your day off?"

He paused.

And before he could answer—

100th Floor – Tower Realm

"YOU must be prepared to grow stronger!" Livia’s voice was sharp, commanding. Her rabbit ears perked, eyes locked onto Nathan like a drill sergeant from hell.

Nathan, half-dressed, half-annoyed, raised a brow. "Can’t I at least rest for—"

"Papa..." a tiny voice interrupted.

Everyone froze.

The little girl stood near them, her big eyes blinking slowly.

"Papa... who is me?"

Nathan blinked. "...What?"

"My name, Papa," she said again, tilting her head. "What’s... my name?"

Silence fell.

Even Livia couldn’t speak.

The little girl pinched Nathan’s cheeks with her tiny hands."Give meeee... a name..."