Rats, bats, snakes, cockroaches, and centipedes came pouring out of the dim interior all at once — quite a few of them immediately began crawling straight up Kyaru's brown heels.
"N-nooooo!!!!" The color drained from Kyaru's face in an instant. Tears welled in her eyes as she stumbled backward and crashed to the floor. A slick, wet sensation clung to her palm — she raised her hand and turned it over to find she'd crushed a cockroach flat beneath it. With a shriek even more piercing than the last, she flung her hand away.
"Oh my, oh my — so many terrifying monsters! Jhin, can I use Explosion Magic?" Megumi asked, eyes lighting up.
"Are you trying to exterminate the bugs, or exterminate Kyaru?"
Jhin shot Megumi a sideways look, then crossed the room to Kyaru in a few quick strides. He pressed both palms to the floorboards and sent a pulse of electricity rippling outward, scattering the insects swarming around her — then scooped her up and carried her out of the swarm.
"Th-th-this — this — how can anyone actually live in a place like this?!" Kyaru, still shaking, threw her arms around Jhin's neck and wheeled on Hanarin. "Is this place empty because it's haunted?!"
Hanarin kept her smile perfectly composed as she explained, "Everyone can rest easy on that point — it is absolutely not haunted. It's simply that the location is quite far from the Adventurers' Guild, so not many people choose it. Definitely not because of any ghosts or anything like that."
"You just said ghosts! You absolutely just said ghosts!"
"Hmm? I have no idea what you're referring to." Hanarin turned her face away, tilting it into shadow — while her gold-rimmed glasses caught the light and gleamed with an unsettling white glow.
"Then at least look at me when you say that!"
Right in front of Jhin's eyes, a pair of fluffy cat ears were swaying back and forth in time with their owner's agitation. The gray down peeking from those pink inner ear cups made his fingers itch with the urge to reach out and find out for himself whether they were really as soft as they looked.
Unfortunately, both his arms were currently occupied with holding Kyaru, so direct contact was off the table. But watching those ears bob tantalizingly in front of him without being able to do anything about it was its own particular kind of torture — like an itch just beneath the skin.
So he did the next best thing, and blew a soft puff of air directly into one of them.
"Hoo—"
"Ah~!" Kyaru let out a startled yelp, then turned to glare at Jhin with a flush of outraged embarrassment. "What do you think you're doing?"
"Your ears have been swaying right in front of my face this whole time. Since I can't use my hands, blowing was the only option left."
It was only then that Kyaru registered she was still cradled in his arms. She jolted upright like she'd sat on a pin and scrambled off him. "E-even if you did rescue me from the bugs, that does NOT give you the right to blow in my ears — and definitely not to touch them!"
Jhin shrugged. "Fine, I'll keep that in mind."
"I know you're still plotting to get at my ears!"
While Jhin and Kyaru bickered, Kokkoro quietly turned to Hanarin. "Excuse me, Miss Hanarin — are we allowed to repair the house and the surrounding area ourselves?"
"Of course. Rent is fifty thousand Eris per month."
"Here is this month's rent."
"Received. I wish you all a pleasant stay."
Kokkoro gently broke up the quarrel between Jhin and Kyaru. "Master, Miss Hanarin says we're free to do the repairs ourselves."
Jhin had lost all interest in debating whether or not he intended to touch Kyaru's ears. "That's a minor issue — we can sort it out later. For now, let's focus on getting the guild house cleaned up."
(Whether he intended to touch them, though, wasn't really a question worth asking. Of course he did. No one could resist the chance to pet a pair of fluffy beast ears.)
"Hmph. I'll let it go this time." Kyaru huffed, spun on her heel, and went off to find a rag to start cleaning. The tail flickering behind her almost got Jhin's hand moving before he'd even thought about it.
"Master..." Kokkoro caught his half-raised right hand between both of hers. Her pale-pink eyes and the uniquely childlike features of an elf filled his field of vision. "Shall we go buy some furniture?"
Jhin bent down to straighten the hair ornament on her forehead — the one that carried a faint, gentle floral scent — then folded her small hand in his. "Yeah. Let's go."
One look at the state of the place — four kinds of pests crawling over absolutely everything — made it clear that most of the furniture inside was unsalvageable. Everything would need to be replaced. Fortunately, Jhin had planned ahead: while hunting monsters in the wild alongside Pecorine and Kokkoro, they'd gathered a fair number of materials, and when filing their guild application, he had cashed those in for two hundred thousand Eris.
Jhin had since learned a convenient rule: to tell whether a monster dropped materials, all you had to do was watch for a conspicuous golden flash when it died. It was a mechanic straight out of an online RPG — and, while surreal to encounter in what was supposed to be a real world, it was undeniably practical. No dissecting required.
Kokkoro picked up a small plate printed with a little bird design. "Master, what do you think of this dish?"
"If you like it, go ahead and get it. We don't really need to buy too many bowls and utensils, though."
"Ah, that's true..." Kokkoro remembered that the Capsule House kitchen was already well-stocked with dishes and cutlery. Buying more plates now would just be an unnecessary expense. She set the dish back down under the vendor's disappointed stare. "Then let's go look at beds."
Jhin took Kokkoro's soft little hand back in his and started walking. A short distance ahead, he spotted a crêpe stall and steered them both over toward it.
"Excuse me — five crêpes, please!"
"Right away, sir. What flavors would you like?"
"Kokkoro, pick whichever flavor you want — it's your choice." Jhin gave her a light pat on the head and handed her the menu.
"Th-then... strawberry cream, please."
"And the other four — chocolate banana, chestnut cream, apple cream, and mango cream."
"Got it, just a moment please."
The stall owner worked quickly, and before long all five crêpes were done. He handed them over to Jhin with a grin. "That'll be one thousand Eris. You're a lucky guy, pal — got yourself an elf girlfriend!"
"Ah — I, um... we're not exactly..." Kokkoro's face turned pink as she fumbled for words, her voice dropping to a small, flustered murmur.
Jhin passed her the strawberry cream crêpe. "We're working on becoming family. Isn't that right?"
"Yes!" Kokkoro nodded earnestly, several times.
"Oh ho~ Then you've got your work cut out for you, young man." The stall owner gave Jhin a knowing look and a thumbs-up.
"Naturally."
Jhin paid, and they headed off together.
"That stall makes a pretty good crêpe. Do you like it, Kokkoro?"
"Mm — the wrapper is really soft, and the strawberry and cream are both delicious. I'd only ever seen crêpes in books back in the Fairy Forest. I never imagined they'd taste like this."
"You've got some cream on your face." Jhin wiped a smear of cream from her cheek with his thumb, then lifted it to his own lips. "If you like them, I'll make them for you in the guild house from now on."
"Thank you, Master..." A faint blush crept up to the tips of Kokkoro's ears. She was still getting used to Jhin's casual, unguarded affection.
____
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