I am that male friend in the harem story Chapter 286: Marriage

"I-I am Narasaka Maaya! I-I am Tobe-kun's friend, Uncle!"

"Ah, yes, nice to et you, Narasaka-san. I am Kakeru-kun's father."

"Ah, I am sorry for bothering you, b-but I will hang up first! See you, Tobe-kun!"

Hurriedly, Maaya ended the call as she was embarrassed, which made Tobe think that she was cute.

"So, is she your girlfriend?" Tobe's father asked curiously.

"No, she is a friend."

"Really~?"

"Really." Tobe nodded. "Instead of , shouldn't you talk about your girlfriend?"

"....." Tobe's father.

"...you know?"

"I just felt that you might have, but it seed that you really have a girlfriend."

"..." Tobe's father.

Taking a deep breath, he slled a delicious sll, then looked at the kitchen with doubt and surprise. "You... did you cook?"

"Yes."

"..." Tobe's father.

"How about we have dinner as we talk?"

"Agree."

The two of them were hungry, so it was better to eat first as they talked over the discussion about Tobe's father's girlfriend.

"I never expected that you would cook..."

Tobe's father, Tobe Shigeru (OC), looked at the bowl of pho with amazent. "Is it ran?"

"It's a pho. A Vietnase dish. You can say that it is Vietnase ran. Don't worry, it has a light broth."

"I can see that."

Unlike when he was young, as he grew older, his digestive system wasn't as good as before, so Shigeru rarely ate ran. It was delicious, but it wasn't good for his stomach as it had a lot of calories.

Yet, the pho in front of him was different as it had a clear broth, many green veggies, and also a good amount of at, as it emitted a refreshing yet delicious aroma, which made his stomach feel hungry.

"Should we eat now?"

While Shigeru wasn't sure why his son decided to cook and even a good cook at that, he decided to eat his food as soon as possible.

"Go ahead."

With those words, the two then started to eat, slurping the noodles of the pho with contentnt. The warm broth made their bodies comfortable, and as the broth was light, it was easy to eat.

The veggies were also a nice touch, but the at was what made this dish gritty.

Still, Shigeru stopped after eating a mont, which made Tobe ask, "What's wrong? Is it not good?"

"No..." Shigeru hesitated for a mont, then asked, "Can I eat it tomorrow? I want to keep it."

"...."

Why did it feel like his father was a child?

It was like Tobe was a mother who was being requested by his child to keep the food, so he could eat it tomorrow.

His father, despite being an adult, was like that, which made him speechless, but—

"There is still a lot of broth, so we can make a lot of them."

"...so, I can eat it tomorrow?"

"Yes."

At that mont, Shigeru didn't hesitate and continued to eat mouthful after mouthful.

Watching his father, who happily ate, Tobe didn't feel surprised, especially with all of the abilities that he had gained, which could make his food taste better and healthier.

The "Delicious" ability he got from Tsuba aside, the "Enhanced" from Chitanda could increase the taste, nutrient values, and many others of the food, and the "Healthy" from Irisu helped him to make his food healthier.

Even though his abilities were amazing, if he didn't develop them, they wouldn't beco stronger.

It was like his physical ability wouldn't grow if he did nothing..

"By the way, what did you cook?"

It was good, but Shigeru wondered why his son started to cook.

"No, I just want to try. I got bored with buying bento or eating out, and when I went to the bookstore, I found the recipe book was quite interesting, so I bought one and tried it."

"It's a great hobby." Shigeru nodded. "You can even make a living with this." Probably, it was the best food that he had ever tasted, and he wanted to eat more.

"That said, I wanted to get a part-ti job, too, is that okay?"

"Why so suddenly?"

Tobe had been trying to do many things, which made him, as a father, confused.

"I am in my 2nd year and next year, it will be my third year, and I need to focus on my exam, so I want to try many things."

"Including getting a girlfriend?"

"Aren't you the sa?"

"....sorry."

"It's fine. You don't have to apologize, but did you really get a girlfriend, Dad?"

"Yes..." Shigeru was a bit embarrassed. "I t her during work, and like , she lost her husband early, so as we talked, we couldn't help but feel connected..." Even though he still loved his deceased wife very much, it couldn't change the fact that he was lonely sotis, and as a man, he also had an urge that he couldn't talk to his son.

"I don't mind."

"Really?"

"You have worked hard enough, after all, so I don't think it is bad of you to be happy."

"Tobe..." Shigeru wanted to hug his son at this mont.

"But are you going to make it formal or informal?"

"Formal? Informal?"

"I an, are you going to get married or not?"

"O-Oh..." While Shigeru was happy that his son could accept his relationship with another woman so easily, it was also strange of him to talk about everything so easily. Still, being asked such a question, he blushed and said, "While it hasn't been settled, I will probably marry her..."

"Don't tell ... You plan to invite to et her all of a sudden, soti in the future, when you plan to marry before even telling everything?"

"..."

Shigeru was guilty, but what could he do?

After all, it was also awkward for him, and he also felt guilty when he thought about eting his son, so he could only talk, and sohow agreed to his requests.

Then again, Tobe also knew that his father's face wasn't bad, and his career was also at the peak, especially when he worked on The Oriental Land Company, the leisure and tourism company headquartered in Urayasu, which owns and operates the Tokyo Disney Resort.

With that career, it would have been weird if his father wasn't popular, especially with the current economy.

Still, when Tobe thought that his father was about to get soone of a younger age, unexpectedly, he would get soone who was about the sa age.

Did he like an older woman?

"...is it or do you think sothing rude now?"

"I thought you would get the younger one."

"...what do you think I am? I am not a scumbag. When I love soone, I love her sincerely like your mother."

Marriage was a heavy choice, especially when the man had a nice career; being tied down by a woman was a burden, not a liability, but as his father had given his choice, Tobe knew that he must be sure about his decision and thinking of his father's personality, and everything, he didn't think his father made this decision based on his feelings alone, so he should trust her.

"So, does she have children?"

"Well, yes." Shigeru nodded with a smile and said, "Congratulations, you might get a sister."

"...."