#1204 Tenderness like a Vanishing Miracle Ball 

Operation: “Demon King Gets Cozy with the Kids” is officially underway. 

“Fiine, if we have toooo.” 

The very first to step up was the Demon King’s daughter, little Marine. 
She’s only seven, yet she’s already a total prodigy. 

“Okay. I’m gonna draw something cute for Daddy. Every self-respecting dad plasters his workspace with his kid’s terrible artwork, hon.” 

A kid who already knows that trope is kind of terrifying. 

“Doodle-doodle… aaan’ done, hooon.” 

She proudly presents her masterpiece... 
…Is this impressionism? 
The hazy lines and perfectly balanced colors are surprisingly soothing. 

“Uh… Marine, sweetie, let’s keep this one in a safe place for now.” 
“True art is destined to be misunderstood, hon.” 
“No, no... Think of it as our secret trump card for later.” 

Honestly, the painting’s got power. 
One glimpse and the Demon King would open something like “The Genius Daughter Art Museum” on the spot. 

Okay, parking that for now... 
Time for the farm team to brainstorm ways to fix this family’s dynamic. 

My first suggestion is... 

Playing catch!!! 

“C-Catch? Lord Saint, you bring the strangest ideas…!” 

The Demon King looks utterly baffled. 

But when it comes to parent-child bonding, nothing beats a game of catch! 
Behold, me: certified Family-Harmony Expert!!! 

Picture it: a father and child tossing a ball back and forth in the sunset glow. 
Every throw carries not just a ball, but feelings, thoughts, unspoken words. 

They don’t call good conversation a “game of catch” for nothing! 

“I-I see! If Goetia and I play this ‘catch,’ our hearts will resonate, and our bond will deepen!” 
“Shouldn’t you start by actually talking, hon?”  

I brush off Marine’s brutally straightforward logic and start getting things ready so we can actually play catch. 
…These kinds of things need a bit of flair, you know!!! 

First off, the one thing you absolutely need for catch is a ball. 
Of course, right? Without a ball, what are you even supposed to throw? 

Next up, something that’s kinda necessary… a glove. 
It’s mainly to keep your hand from hurting when you catch the ball, but this isn’t a serious baseball game; just a casual game of catch with family. I figured we probably don’t need anything too fancy… or so I thought… 

“...What is it, Lord Saint?” 

The Demon King’s body is as burly and muscular as ever. 
Sure, these days are peaceful and he's gotten a bit squishy from not needing to fight, but beneath that softness still lies a veteran warrior’s muscle. 
Right now, he’s got the vibe of a “fat but agile” guy. 

And with that kind of physical power, it’s no surprise he can’t really hold back, even when it’s just for fun. 
Like that time with the God Figure, his over-the-top intensity freaked Goetia out pretty hard. 

So, if that same Demon King goes all-out on a game of catch... 
Well, Goetia’s still just a kid, after all. 

“...Yep, we’ll need gloves.” 

So off I go to make a ball and two gloves. 

Destination: the elves’ leather-craft atelier. 
Both items are basically leather, after all. 

Maelga, the head artisan, gave me the “what now?” face, but whipped up prototypes in no time. 

Gloves have to be shaped to fit hands, so their structure must be pretty complex. And yet somehow, just by hearing about them, she managed to put one together pretty well. 

Surprisingly, the ball was even harder. I had to rely on some vague memory and started by wrapping some vines I picked from the forest into a sphere, trying to get it about the size of a baseball. 
But I got too into the wrapping, and before I knew it, I’d ended up with something closer to a soccer ball.  

After that first mistake, I wrapped a vine yarn ball next, then used the tanned leather Maelga prepared to cover it up. Stitched it all together nicely… and it turned out way more baseball-like than I expected. 
I might actually have a knack for this... 

All right! 
With that, we’re finally ready for some good old catch! 
Now we just throw and catch. Throw and catch. That’s it!!! 

...But is it really okay to go straight to playing catch with the Demon King and young Goetia? 
Sure, it’s just a game of catch, but you never know what could happen.  
This is a fantasy world, after all. For all I know, the ball might grow arms and legs and run off somewhere. 

So, just to be safe, I decided to do a rehearsal. 

Before I toss it to the Demon King and Goetia... 
I’ll warm up by playing catch with Junior! 

Junior, the eldest of my three sons. 
Playing catch with his dad—there’s no way that wouldn’t lead to some kind of deep emotional connection! 

Demon King, I want you to feel something from our game! 
Are you ready, Junior?! 

“Let’s rockkk.” 

Junior’s fired up and ready to go. 

We’ve earned our right to some good father-son bonding time. 
 

All right, bring it on, Junior!  
Put everything you’ve got into that ball and throw it straight at me! 

“Raaainbow-Spark Baaaall!” 
"?!” 

The ball Junior threw at me didn’t just start glowing like crazy, it split into seven or eight midair, and now they’re all flying at me in wild, chaotic arcs! 

“Uoooooogh!” 

By sheer luck, the ball landed in the glove I’d instinctively thrust out. 
All right, I got it! 
The ball had split into seven or eight pieces (?), so I just randomly caught one of them… which means I hit a one-in-seven or one-in-eight chance? 

Wait, was that a miracle ball just now? 
Why the heck is my kid throwing miracle balls in a casual game of catch? 

See? Something totally unexpected happened right off the bat! 
This is what a fantasy world is all about!!! 

“Pitcher changeee.” 
“Middle reliever, comingggg.” 

While I’m still stunned by that miracle ball, something else is happening on the mound…? 

A pitcher change? 
The next pitcher is… my second son, Norito?! 

I mean, sure, I play catch with him, too, but why switch pitchers now? 
 

Did Junior hurt his shoulder throwing that crazy pitch out of nowhere? 
See? This is why breaking balls in little league messes up your arm! 

As I stand there worrying, Norito is already getting into his pitching stance. 

“Supreme Thunder-Overdrive Cannon!” 
“GUOOOOOOOOOOH!” 

Norito’s throwing a miracle ball this time?! 
Wait, is this even a miracle ball?! 

The baseball is wrapped in a swirling mix of lightning and fighting spirit, and Norito launches it like a punch straight toward me! 

It has enough killing intent to wipe out an entire enemy battalion, but somehow, I managed to catch it. 

“GUOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHH!!!” 

But the moment it landed in my glove, the impact was so intense it forced both my feet to sink into the ground, dragging me back a full meter. 
...Thank god I was wearing a glove!!! 

First Junior, now even Norito’s throwing miracle balls? 

My kids are way too wild!!! 

“Got you, Daddyyy.” 
“Surpwise attack completeee.” 

Apparently, everything has done according to plan; my eldest and second son exchanged a victorious high five. 
As for our third son, Shotaro, well, he’s still a baby. Obviously, he’s not joining the catch ball game. 
…Thank goodness. 

And that, dear Demon King, is what we call a game of catch. 
What do you think? 
Did you find that helpful? 

“Ughhh… So this is what catch is? Such a grueling and intense training ritual…!” 

Well, given what you just saw, I guess that’s a fair reaction. 
But no!  
That’s not the right takeaway...! 

“Only through such fierce clashes can hearts truly connect… I’ve now seen firsthand how hard it is for people to understand each other. I must steel myself if I wish to stand before Goetia with pride!” 

Ahh… The Demon King’s sincerity is taking this in a very unhelpful direction… 

“To do that, I must first learn what catch really is. Shamefully, I never had the chance to experience it as a child. Without memories of playing catch myself, how could I possibly explain its wonders to my own child?!” 

Uh, Demon King...?! 
Let’s try relaxing your shoulders a bit, yeah...?! 

“But it’s not too late. If I don’t have any memories of playing catch as a child, then I’ll just make some now!!!” 

Wait, what are you saying? 
If you want to make memories of playing catch, just go throw a ball with Goetia right now! 

“No! That would be as a parent playing catch! To give Goetia the greatest memories possible, I too need to experience it… from the child’s perspective!!!”