Arafoo Kenja No Isekai Seikatsu Nikki Chapter 24

Ossan, goes to an abandoned mine *DISCLAIMER: I DON'T REALLY KNOW j.a.pANESE, THESE ARE MACHINE TRANSLATIONS THAT I TRY TO PUT INTO PROPER ENGLISH. READ AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION.

When it comes to going to an abandoned mine, naturally, you'd need a guide, or at least information about the place. Though, Zeros, who was close to being invincible, was looking for the latter.

The question now is where to gather information, and there are few places to do so. It's either at the Mercenary Guild, or at a some back-street's shady tavern.

Since he wasn't a mercenary, he stopped himself from going to the guild, and instead went to a nearby tavern.

In this world, they are establishments that function as restaurants during the day, and later, as bars when the sun goes down. 

It was currently lunchtime, so many merchants and craftsmen were gathered to have a meal and talk with each other. It was also possible to see merchants conducting business negotiations, and mercenaries bartering different items with one another.

Zeros' image of fantasy taverns was a spot where only shady people gathered, but surprisingly, it was a social gathering place open to everyone.

(Hmm… Shouldn't I revise my knowledge of these situations? One shouldn't believe all the things that appear in light novels, right? This looks just like a bar in the Bronx.)

In all honesty, he was scared of going to a tavern. At first glance, he looked aloof and collected, but in reality he was a cowardly old man. 

If he stayed locked up in his house, there was little chance of running into something troublesome, but he wouldn't be able to get information and grasp the common sense of the people in this world, which would be unwise considering he had no choice but to live there. 

There's bound to be a difference in common sense with his former world, and not having a grasp on it can lead to misunderstandings with people. Business negotiations and information gathering require one to have proper knowledge on it, and it's not always possible to pretend to be a magician withdrawn from society.

After the episode in which he sold magic stones, he had to put more effort into blending with the surroundings. Though, he forgets that he already looks suspicious enough to normal people.

(Somehow… I feel like I'm being stared at… What's going on? Is a cliché light novel event going to happen or something?)

When a boorish-looking middle-aged magician, wearing a discolored and shabby gray robe, enters the tavern, all the surrounding gazes gather on him.

He got so used to his shady look, that he forgot how sloppy his appearance actually was.

Humans are creatures that quickly adapt to their environments, and in this case, the person in question was unconcerned with his appearance. 

He came to this place for the sake of gathering information, but the matter of his looks got pushed out to the back of his mind, completely forgetting about it, making the surroundings cautious of the unfamiliar and suspicious-looking magician.

Because it's mostly regulars who hang out at such taverns, the appearance of such an uncle will be conspicuous whether the person likes it or not.

The shady uncle's face distorts after receiving the inquisitive eyes from the tavern's patrons.

(Let's see now, I can't gather any information if I'm standing here alone, I should get a seat and order something right…?)

He looks for a free seat, but due to the place being packed, there didn't seem to be any. 

Looking around, he sees a familiar figure. A twin-tailed girl dressed in an all black outfit that dangerously exposed her flat chest, which seemed as if she was trying way too hard to look more mature than she actually was, but ending up giving the complete opposite impression.

It's the fellow j.a.panese person he rescued from the bandits a while ago. There seemed to be two other women with her, and so, Zeros thought of getting information from them.

"Huh? Mister, it's been a while *mogu mogu*…"

"Don't say h.e.l.lo while you're eating… And it's been a while, Iris-san. And… your friends are?"

"I'm Rena. I'm sincerely grateful. Thank you for saving us back then."

"Ah, that's right. I remember you now, Rensan."

The woman named Rena seemed to be a mercenary specialized in being a vanguard, wearing a green leather vest, easy-to-move clothes, in addition to the small buckler, and short sword on her waist. 

Alongside them, there was brown skin, red-haired woman staring at Zeros with sharp eyes. She was equipped with a breastplate over a chain mail armor, and a bit further there was a greatsword leaning against the table. She seemed to have the role of dealing damage as a vanguard.

Zeros didn't overlook the fact that she was taller than the average woman, and most importantly, her considerably bountiful bosom. 

She looked like a model, and was completely his type. Though if he had to point out an issue, it would be their age difference. 

"Oi, who's the old man? Do you know each other?"

"Hmm? Yeah. He helped us when we were caught by bandits a while ago."

"So shady… and somehow I feel like he's staring at my chest."

"Isn't that the usual? You have quite the figure, Jane. Of course men's eyes will be glued to it."

"But isn't it the same with you, Rena? How many men have tried to hit on you so far since we've been here?"

"Well well, I'm only interested in younger boys anyways."

It seemed like Rena was apparently a shotacon.

"Is it okay to share a seat? The place is so busy there's nowhere else to seat."

"Hm? Yeah, it's fine, mister. But, didn't you say you were going to live as a farmer from now on?"

"Well, I'm going to the abandoned mine north of the city, but before that I thought I should gather a bit of information at least."

"The abandoned mine? Give up, uncle. That place is impossible for a gray robe, you know?"

"What about gray robes, does it mean that you're really strong, mister?" 

Iris was unaware of the cla.s.sification of magicians in this world, and more specifically, in this country, where the color of their robes signifies their abilities, with gray being the lowest, followed by black, crimson, and finally white. 

However, Zeros and Iris weren't from this country, so that common sense didn't apply to them. 

She summarizes it to Iris in that way.

"Fuun. Then, mister, is it really safe for you to go there?"

"Well? I've never been there, so I can't say, but, is it really a dangerous place?"

"I often receive escort request from laborers. Things like Goblins, Kobolds, Worms, and Golems are commonplace there. Worms are the most troublesome though."

"Fumu. So, it's possible to mine there, right? Excellent."

"Were you even listening to me? The whole place is a giant maze, it's dangerous to go alone."

While hearing Jane's advice, Zeros takes a bite of the fried chicken-like sandwich he ordered. The meat seemed to have been macerated with different herbs, which was the first thing he tasted, followed by the sweetness of the fat of chicken-like meat, that spreads in his mouth as he chews, mixed together with the subtle flavor of the herbs, in addition to the unique aroma of the hard bread. 

"I know it will be dangerous, but I really need to get metal right now, so I will go either way."

"I don't know if you're an over-confident fool or not, but well, it doesn't matter to me if you die."

"We were gonna go there anyways, right? It's better if we have more fighting potential."

"That's right, didn't you want to mend your sword, Jane? You said it would be cheaper if you could mine metal ores at the mine, right?"

"Uuu… you wanna take this old man there?"

(*T.N: the word she uses is 親父[oyaji], which is used to refer to someone else's father in a casual way, so it's not really said in a derogatory manner imo.)

While looking at Jane, Zeros was thinking that her back must hurt with all that weight on her shoulders.

Nevertheless, the shaking of her b.r.e.a.s.t.s, springing up as she stands up, somehow fills his heart with a strange sensation.

That sensation is the same thing he felt when he first met Luceris, something he never experienced in his former world.  

Though, it was closer to the feeling you get when you look at nudes on the weekly p.o.r.n mags. 

(I wonder what is this feeling…)

He couldn't understand this mysterious feeling welling up in his chest for the first time since arriving at this world.

"Well, if you guide me around you can do as you please, I guess. Are you also looking to get metal?"

"Err, yeah that's right. Jane's sword is about to break, and she needs iron or black iron to mend it."

"What about blazing red iron*? Isn't it stronger?"

(*T.N: 赤光鉄)

"You can't mine it unless you go to the deepest parts. It's really dangerous because there are a lot of Worms loitering around there."

"We don't have to worry about that because mister will be with us… so, why don't we go together?"

Zeros contemplates about her proposal for a little while.

He wanted to get metal, but being accompanied by a party of women of marriageable age made him a little embarra.s.sed. However, it will certainly be easier if he goes with them.

He didn't have a problem with going alone, and above all, he wasn't that over-confident to the extent of carelessly wandering through the unfamiliar pa.s.sages.

Mere bandits wouldn't even pose a problem to him, but from the experience of being constantly chased by monsters in Far-flung forest, he knew that having to protect that many people would be extremely troublesome.

"Then, if that's alright with you, I don't have a problem. But, it will be completely dark by the time we arrive there, are we camping outside?"

"Nah, it's alright. There's a village near the mine. It's called Ahhan village…"

"Ah, you mean Aaahhnn♡ village, right? I've occasionally escorted some young boys there to level up… fufufu…"

"It's Ahhan village, you idiot!!"

Apparently, the people going there for a different reason, had given the village a new moniker.

Silently entering the village accompanied by a beautiful woman. Thinking about that made Zeros' cheeks loose into a smile.

It didn't seem all that bad.

(No way… Does she really eat inexperienced young boys starting out as novice mercenaries? Wouldn't that be a crime? Hmm… but it might be another difference in common sense compared to j.a.pan.)

*T.N: it's probably clear enough, but the verb 'to eat' [食う] can be specifically used to refer to having s.e.xual relations with a woman for the first time.

He unconsciously started to compare it to what would be a crime in his former world.

She seemed to be quite upfront about being a lewd woman, and also had a different modus operandi from a certain feudal lord.

Though he kept wondering why that sort of thing wasn't a crime…

"Well, whichever way it's fine. There's no problem if we stay at an inn, right? I am a man, of course, and if there's such a charming woman in front of my very own eyes, it wouldn't be strange if I become a savage beast. That's why we'll stay in separate rooms, so you can be at ease."

"Me?… Charming?"

"I'm not interested in kids. That would totally be a crime."

"Oh my? Then is it about me, I wonder?"

"Sadly, I'm not really into women with such a suspicious way of smiling…"

(*T.N: not sure about this; 「さっきの変な笑い方が無ければ守備範囲なのですが、残念……」)

 That means there's only one person remaining, Jane, who for some reason, was left stunned, while the gazes of the other two women gathered on her.

"C-Charming!? Me!?"

"Going by process of elimination, you're the one left. Were you not aware of it? You're quite a beauty, you know?"

"Aahh!?"

With her face dying in crimson, her panicking expression was, quite frankly, really cute.  However, Zeros, who didn't expect such a reaction, had his heart racing like crazy, though he managed to keep eating his sandwich as if nothing happened. 

Such poker face was a remainder from his time as a salaryman. 

"T-This uncle, aren't you quite the smooth-talker!?"

"Heee… Isn't that fine? He said you were cute, Jane, you know? You have quite the appeal…"

"That's right, apparently he was a bit displeased about me devouring one or two young boys…"

"… Iris aside, Isn't that a crime, Sena?"

(Ah, I knew it. So it was a crime. I doubted my common sense for a second there.)

The three women seemed to be quite dense.

However, since he didn't want it to be a big deal, Zeros keeps eating quietly. That's because, if he stops talking about it, it's more likely that they would gloss it over as a joke.

"No! I don't wanna go with this uncle anymore!"

"It's better to have a higher fighting potential, so give up."

"Is that so? No one is as powerful as mister though. We can go there safely if he's with us."

"N-Noooooo!!!"

It seemed like he really wasn't her type. And being so bluntly rejected gave him quite the shock. 

In the end, she agreed to go after being persuaded by Iris and Sena. However, for some reason, she keeps glancing cautiously at Zeros.

He just complimented her by calling her cute, but somehow he ended up branded as a pick-up artist.

After finishing their meal, the group proceeded by foot towards the abandoned mine, though Jane was the only one whining until the end.

It's often said that all travels are pleasant when you are accompanied by friends, but after walking for three hours, no one is speaking a word. 

The girls who were initially, noisy and lively, were now walking silently down the path.

There's an enormous forest as far as the eye can see, and a road made by clearing the surrounding vegetation and levelling the ground. 

It's a half a day trip to Ahhan village, but it's a considerable distance to travel by foot. 

—

For around six hours, they continued to follow the forest road safely, without encountering any monsters on the way. 

They're certainly proceeding within schedule, but it would be a boring and tedious experience if they continued like this the rest of the way. 

Iris, who couldn't stand the silence any longer, asks a question.

"Hey, mister. What are you gonna use the metal you extract from the mine for, are you making new equipment?"

"I'm thinking of making some sort of container that dries and stores rice. It's called a desiccator."

"Rice!? There's rice in this world!?"

"There is. You see the weed that's growing at your feet, Iris-san? That's rice."

She frowned with a dubious expression as she pulls out some weeds, which seemed to be rice seedlings.

"… Is this really rice? When I used appraisal, it just said that it was a common weed."

"Yes, it's rice. The position of rice in this world is as low as gra.s.s."

The level of Iris' appraisal seemed to be low, given that it only stated that it was a weed.  

"Without a senba koki*, everything has to be done by hand, and I like to make a stepping threshing machine in the future. There are tools like hoes and spades, though I wonder how do the people in this world thresh wheat."

(*T.N:  senba koki->https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:j.a.panese_old_threshing_machine,Senbkoki,Katori-city,j.a.pan.JPG)

"What's a senba koki?"

The senba koki is a farming tool used for threshing rice in the past, and it's the precursor of the threshing machines that used comb-like teeth in order to separate the rice grains from the husk. 

These stepping threshing machines were made from attaching countless metal spikes to a cylindrical drum, which is, at the same time, attached to a belt and a pedal, that, by repeatedly stepping on it, rotates the drum and makes it possible to thresh the rice more efficiently than a senba koki. This type of device was used until the mid-Showa era(1926-1989).

(*T.N: 足踏み脱穀機, literally 'stepping threshing machine' doesn't have an equivalent in english, but it's this thing-> ) 

In modern times, combine harvesters are the norm, and everything, from reaping and threshing, to winnowing, is done in a single process.

(*T.N: a combine is the typical thing that comes to mind when you think of farming machines-> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combine_harvester)

Although it's quick, the combine can't drive through the paddy fields, so it has the downside of having to reap the rice by hand first before processing it, but it can be said that the work is incomparably faster to how it was in the past.

The technological progress of the modern era is tremendous.

"What if you make a combine yourself?"

"I thought about it, but then it would be possible for people to refurbish them into some sort of tank, don't you think? If you mount a large ballista on it, even if you can't defeat a Dragon, you take down Wyverns."

"Wouldn't that be a good thing? It'll protect a lot of people."

"Have you forgotten? The history of man is one of bloodshed. Can you say they won't be transformed into tools of war and be directed towards other humans?"

"Uuu…"

The unnecessary release of modern technology will decisively change the balance of military might in this world.

If he planned to, magic alone could be used as a sort of super electromagnetic gun, and in fact, Zeros already has that kind of magic.

If it were simplified and distributed among the general soldiers, it may not lead only to war, but to ma.s.sive genocides. For that reason, Zeros decided against using his knowledge cheat.

Not to mention that he doesn't want to go down in history as an infamous slaughterer or a sage who created a weapon of ma.s.s destruction.

He just wants to live his days peacefully without being bound by responsibilities.

Well, he still has the responsibility of having to pay taxes, but that wasn't so different from modern society.

"Now that you mention it, you were working as a private tutor, right? Are you unemployed now, mister?"

"Ugh!? I didn't want to be reminded of it, but yes, I am unemployed right now. Though I wonder how Celestinsan is doing…"

The sun would completely set after three more hours of walking. 

This uncle gazed at the clear blue sky unfolding as far as the eye can see. Under the same sky is the student whom he was teaching magic to until six days ago. He was worried about the girl who was said to be useless.

DelSasis von Solisthea.

The current Lord of the Duchy of Solisthea, and a busy person, both in his public and private life. 

He married two women from different n.o.ble families, though their relationship can be said to be harmonious and in good shape. However, the number of mistresses he has on the outside, explains how is he such a polarizing character in the public eye. 

People either love him or hate him.

Although he's generally favored by the people of his territory, he's despised by many merchants and n.o.bles, thus he was in a dangerous position, surrounded by many allies and enemies alike.

In the case of the merchants, they were his business rivals, and the ones who were completely smashed by his G.o.dly decision-making and ability to get things done, and were beaten down to the point of believing themselves that it would be meaningless to keep being hostiles towards him.

For one of his mistresses, he dealt a terrible blow to their businesses, taking all of their a.s.sets and completely dominating them. And, furthermore, they resented him for proposing unreasonable business negotiations and deals knowing they couldn't possibly refuse.

On the other hand, the n.o.bles opposing him, held resentment towards him, specially the n.o.bles from the magicians' factions.

Currently, DelSasis' faction, called the Solisthean faction, is composed of a small group of magicians who advocate in favor of the merging between knights and magicians. In addition, despite being a minor faction, they're wealthy enough that they can stand alongside the bigger, and more influential, factions in terms of raw capital. 

It's a faction born from the declaration from the previous Duke, Creston, who worried about the future of the kingdom, though for their opponents it's nothing more than an evil ploy designed to overthrow the magicians, who happened to be n.o.bles, from power. However, they couldn't just carelessly oppose the house of the Duke of Solisthea. 

Creston and the former King are brothers, and DelSasis also has a right to the throne, so if they're successfully murdered, the first people to be suspected will be the n.o.bles from the magicians' factions.

Moreover, the Solisthean faction is a political faction with ties to the Royal faction, and in addition, they were in a relationship of deep trust with the current King and the royal family, which, at the same time, could be taken as a sign of DelSasis stepping down and declaring he had no interest for the throne. And, in fact, that was true. He was wholly dedicated to improving his territory and protecting the lives of its people.

Even at this moment, he was in his office, organizing and working on some doc.u.ments.

"Fumu. It appears the sales of the magic scrolls are doing good. They're cheap and reliable, and seem to be popular among mercenaries. They don't even look at the other factions' magic scrolls anymore."

"Yes, it seems to be going well. Their main source of income is the sale of magic potions and scrolls, isn't it? And it looks like it's stagnating quite rapidly."

"Once you buy a magic scroll, you can use it as many times as you want, so there's no need to buy it again. It's only natural for their sales to be low."

"But the magic scrolls we sell are different."

"Er, that's right. As expected of a Great Sage… to prepare such a magic formula."

Currently, the Solisthean Chamber of Commerce has launched new types of magic scrolls, and the sales have been doing really well recently. 

The reason lies in a peculiar characteristic of these scrolls.

The magic scrolls widely used until now were, as DelSasis said, once purchased, you could use them as many times as you wanted.

These scrolls were widely popular among mercenaries, who would then share them with their own companions, so they could also memorize the spell. The current situation, naturally, affected the factions who were losing a potential sale, and in turn, profits. 

Additionally, the price of magic paper wasn't cheap at all, so it wasn't a particularly profitable business. 

But the scrolls sold by the Solisthean Chamber of Commerce were different. By etching the magics, Zeros optimized, directly into the brain, and erasing the magic formula afterwards, once the spell is learned, it can no longer be used by someone else.

When you learn the magic, the formula is activated once to make it possible to engrave it into the mind, but once that process is completed, the magic scroll will erase itself, including the magic formula.

The expensive magic paper is then collected and reused on the spot, and can be immediately sold again just by writing another magic formula on it. They can't complain about having to repeat said process each time, given that they've been consistently selling out their entire stock.

That's how supply and demand work. Costumers rush to buy the new, more efficient, and cheaper magic spells.

There's a lot of effort in making sure the magic can be immediately memorized, so the magic paper can be reused and doesn't leave the store.

Presently, the sales have been soaring upwards, and the performance of the spells have also been well-received, making the ma.s.s production of magic scrolls just a matter of time. 

The business of selling these magic scrolls is becoming the main venture of the Solisthean Chamber of Commerce, who is frantically gathering magicians.

The sale of such an efficient new magic will surely deal a ma.s.sive blow to the magicians' factions.

Up until now, the people in the business of selling magic scrolls, wouldn't see an increase of profit even if they produced more units, but now, it's establishing as a new commercial enterprise unlike from how it's been thus far. 

The prices change according to the power of the spell, and if someone wants to learn it, it's necessary to buy it directly from them because it's impossible to copy or reproduce the magic formula. 

Because these powerful new magics require a reasonably high level, mercenaries are now more focused in improving their abilities, which, at the same time, helps to decrease the threat of monsters, giving that they will now strive to become stronger to learn these new spells, and getting even more powerful as they do.

From the point of view of the feudal lord, it was a convenient vicious cycle, that was both, a profitable business, and a great way of improving the territory's security.   

There's no better plan than that, because, given that the pretext used to start the aforementioned enterprise was to 'improve security', the other factions wouldn't be able to complain and forcefully seize it. 

Moreover, it puts a huge strain on their finances.

"It's troubling that those guys are coming to pester our faction for money. The academy's budget is already tight as it is, and it would be impossible to give them more financial aid."

"It's necessary to increase the power of the faction without them realizing. But, if an opportunity arises, We have to hit their pockets directly."

"Then, what about magic potions? Though I don't think there are enough alchemists in the territory."

"The issue is that, the efficacy greatly depends on their individual skill. It's useless to hire any third-rate alchemist."

"No, wait. It will work even if we gathered third-rate alchemists, they only need to produce potions with the same rate of efficacy, isn't that right?"

DelSasis' idea was to get rid of said variations in efficacy by having the alchemists concoct the potions at the same time and mixing them altogether, so even if they're third-rate, the reagents were all the same, thus there shouldn't be a noticeable difference anymore.

"And what about the rest of the alchemists, do they usually make this kind of recovery medicine?"

"They only produce high quality products suitable of their skills. Though, both magicians and alchemists will have a hard time now, so they'll surely come to our side."

"Won't they send people to spy on us? They could easily sell inside information on the black market."

"I've already prepared for that, I've hired the help of some gents from the underworld, so I think they'll have a hard time trying to enact their revenge."

The most troublesome factions were the Saint-Germain, and Weissler faction. The former were mainly focused on research, so they were likely to back down if shown proper arguments. However, the latter were a bunch of hot-headed people.  

Rumor has it that they have ties to criminal organizations, and the suspicious deaths attributed to them are endless. 

In addition, their arrogance could only be said to be borderline delusional.

"And yet, they're as arrogant as ever. The Saint-Germain faction controls the magic potions market, and the rest of the n.o.bles send them threats disguised under the pretext of financing their research."

"I see, you are planning a lot of things behind the scenes to fight back in the near future."

"That's exactly right. However, their source of funds must be thoroughly crushed first. Is that alright with you, father?"

"I don't mind. Do it in a flashy way, all these reckless n.o.bles should disappear from the kingdom."

In order to oppose the Knights, the Weissler faction has been bribing all the influential n.o.bles to garner power. And, while the rest of the factions do similar things, they haven't been as aggressive as them.

On the other hand, the Saint-Germain faction has been scheming for the sake of raising their research funds.

And, as a result, these two major factions have been dragging the kingdom into turmoil in their selfishness.

There's a reasonable dissatisfaction spreading around, and if another major, influential faction rises up, they will surely double-cross each other sooner rather than later.

"We can have Zweit give us a hand behind the scenes. The problem is…"

"Why don't we request Zeros-dono's cooperation? What if we ask him to write a handbook on the deciphering method of magic characters? Would that work?"

"Hmm, I don't think there's another way for my father's faction to gain more power."

"Should we leave it to him then?"

"If we can somehow guarantee he can live a leisure life, or perhaps…"

"You can't start giving him any t.i.tles, alright? If handled poorly, the country will definitely fall into ruin."

Aside from Zeros, only Celestina and Zweit know how to decipher magic characters. If the deciphering method is put in a book, and is then distributed within Creston's faction, it will lead to an exponential improvement in their magicians' abilities.

By raising such magicians, the other factions, who created this situation where injustice runs rampant, will disappear. 

There's an urgent need to take hard-line measures to change the current state of affairs, due to fear that a coup d'etat may come in the near future if the factions keep ama.s.sing more political power.

At the same time, the people clearly held resentment towards the current status quo, so the only way to avoid a situation where the kingdom is plunged into chaos, is to eliminate them.

"Tina and Zweit will be the smoke of the rebellion."

"If it's the current Zweit, he'll be fine, because he knows how much of a spoiled brat he was in the past."   

"If you knew then why didn't you do anything?"

"You'll never grow if you don't learn from your mistakes. Encountering Zeros-dono seems to have changed him greatly."

"The problem now is with Kreuz, I wonder what's going to happen with him…"

It seems that his head hurt every time he thought about his grandchildren's future. Such an old man was caressing his temple with his fingers, trying to endure the headache. 

"Well then, I have an appointment, so I should get going soon…"

"Hm? Wait, are you skipping work again?"

"A lovely woman is waiting. It's not good to make her wait."

" … Oi, someday you're going to get stabbed by a woman."

"And that's my earnest desire. I can say I was a good man if I'm killed by a beautiful woman."

He's a man among men who can manage his work time with a precision of seconds. 

DelSasis, who has now finished with his work, heads to see his lover. 

" … Seriously, I wonder how many grandchildren do I have…"

Creston mutters as he stares at the back of his son, as he puts on his coat and leaves.

His actions were too mysterious.   

He wondered if he actually was his biological father. 

And so, Creston, who was left alone, seriously contemplated if he did something wrong to educate his child. 

It's often said that the children don't know what's in their parents' mind, but the opposite may actually be true. This parent had no clue what was inside his son's mind.

(*T.N: That might be some sort of proverb or saying, not sure; 親の心子知らずと言うが、実際は逆の様である。)