"Starting today — I, the Great Arch-Mage Megumin, shall personally attend to my companion who is on the verge of becoming a complete invalid!" The cheerful, confident voice rang out alongside its owner: Megumin, fully kitted out in her witch's hat and cape without a single accessory missing, materializing at Jhin's bedside with a flourish.
"...?" A massive question mark formed above Jhin's head.
What happened? Where did his gentle, adorable, soft and sweet, white-haired red-eyed Spirit Clan guide go?
And why had she been swapped out for a terminally chunnibyou girl who was all bluster and no skill, with a Schrödinger's grasp of basic common sense?
"You! You're definitely talking trash about me in your head right now!" Megumin let out several sneezes in quick succession, then fixed Jhin with a look of pure menace, cracking her knuckles in a way that conveyed absolutely zero intention of nursing anyone — she looked more like a malicious babysitter.
Her pale fingertip poked him right in the chest. Megumin jutted out her upper lip and tried her best to look like a street tough. "I swapped caretaking duties with Kokkoro. Your good days are over, punk."
"Is that so? Feels pretty much the same to me." Jhin wasn't rattled in the slightest. It wasn't as if this was his first time dealing with Megumin — he knew her personality inside and out. Harsh words, soft heart: that was her to a tee.
"Trying to butter me up now? Too late!"
"More importantly, my head hurts a little — could you pour me a glass of water?"
"Ah, why didn't you say so sooner? I'll go get it right now."
So easy to handle.
Jhin watched her leave, biting back a smile.
When Megumin came back carrying the water, she found Jhin sitting contentedly on the bed, leafing through a monster encyclopedia. She instantly realized she'd been had. Headache? Thirst? All faked — nothing but a distraction to get her out of the room.
Calm down. Calm down. He's a patient, and I'm supposed to be taking care of him. I can't haul off and deck him just because I feel like it.
Megumin walked over with a smile that didn't reach her eyes. "Your water."
"Thanks." Jhin closed the book and set it aside, took the cup, drained it in one go, and handed it back. "Do me a favor and step outside for a minute."
"And why exactly should I obediently walk out just because you tell me to?!" Megumin plunked the cup on the table, dragged over a stool, and sat down with her cheeks puffed out. "I'm not going anywhere!"
"No matter what I do, you're not leaving?"
"Absolutely not."
"Fine. I need to change clothes, so if you won't go out, at least turn around." Having said that, Jhin went ahead and started pulling off his pajamas entirely on his own.
Wait — you're actually doing it?!
Megumin had assumed Jhin was joking, but sure enough, he was right there changing in front of her. Turning around wasn't an option — the motion was too large and there wasn't enough time — so she grabbed the brim of her witch's hat and yanked it all the way down, completely blocking her line of sight.
Even with nothing but darkness in front of her, the soft rustle of clothes changing still pierced right through the hat and reached Megumin's ears with crystal clarity. The temperature in her cheeks climbed steadily, and her heartbeat quickened before she even noticed it happening.
Half a minute — brief by any measure, yet it felt as long as half a lifetime. If Jhin hadn't spoken up to announce he was done, she was fairly sure the seemingly limitless heat radiating from her own cheeks would have set the hat on fire.
"Do you just... change clothes in front of Kokkoro like this all the time, without a care in the world?" Megumin kept the hat pulled over her flushed face and grumbled under her breath.
"I tell Kokkoro I need to change, and she leaves the bedroom. You're the one who said you weren't going anywhere no matter what — that's not on me."
"Don't you have any sense of shame?!"
Jhin glanced at Megumin, who still didn't dare lift the hat from her face. "You're the one who refused to leave the room even while I was changing — and now you're asking me if I have any shame?"
Megumin had no answer to that.
"It's been about a week since we took down the Sand Scorpion King. My mental power has recovered — I don't need anyone looking after me anymore. So, regrettably..." Jhin patted Megumin on the shoulder. "You're out of a job."
"Hmph. As if I wanted to come take care of you in the first place." Megumin gave a light snort and brushed the hand off her shoulder, but on her way out she deliberately turned back to check: "Your injuries really are completely healed?"
"That's right. Thanks for your concern."
"I'm not concerned about you — I'm asking for Kokkoro's sake!"
Jhin nodded understandingly.
Classic tsundere. They always say things like that.
After washing up, he stepped out of the bedroom and immediately spotted Megumin in the kitchen preparing breakfast. Her domestic abilities and cooking skills — a complete departure from her usual persona — had left both Kokkoro and Kyaru utterly floored when they first witnessed it.
They had only known that Megumin could help Jhin with prep work in the kitchen; they had no idea how good her cooking actually was. If both of the guild's main cooks hadn't been laid up sick at the same time, who knew when that little secret would have ever come to light.
Her witch's hat and the cape that got in the way of cooking had been set to one side, and Megumin had even tied her hair back in a small ponytail at the nape of her neck. Her hair wasn't really long enough to need tying up, which made the gesture's purpose something of a mystery.
"Megumin, what's for breakfast? And — why did you tie your hair up?"
"Fried egg and ham sandwiches." Megumin slid the egg out of the pan and layered it onto the bread, then turned back with a small smile. "I read in a book that girls look especially charming when they tie their hair up to cook. What do you think?"
"The things you read..." Jhin studied her carefully for a moment before delivering his verdict. "You do give off a different vibe from usual, I'll grant you that."
"Oh? What kind of vibe do I normally give off, and what's different about now?"
Jhin pinched his chin and thought it over, then spoke slowly: "Normally you're like a humanoid mobile Explosion magic launcher — if you don't fire on schedule, you'll just blow up on the spot. Right now, though..." He tilted his head. "...you look like a surprisingly domesticated Explosion magic launcher?"
The finished sandwich was in Megumin's hand. Expressionless, she used it to forcibly stuff Jhin's mouth shut — cutting off whatever other non-compliment he might have produced — and said coldly: "You've finished your breakfast. Get moving, and stop getting in my way."
"I was being perfectly honest."
"Please vacate the kitchen immediately!"
"Alright, alright, no need to get worked up — there's still oil on that spatula." Jhin backed away from the gleaming black spatula with a sheepish grin. When a girl was holding a physical weapon, it was wise not to push your luck too far.
At this hour, Kyaru was probably still in bed. He'd go find Kokkoro — might as well take the opportunity to look into the Void weapon she carried and do a bit of research on healing magic.
With a clear goal in mind, Jhin walked to Pecorine's bedroom door and knocked. "Kokkoro, is now a good time for me to come in?"
"Master, please wait just a moment — I'm helping Pecorine get dressed."
"Oh, right, take your time then."
Before long, Kokkoro came out supporting the patient. Pecorine's injuries had improved considerably with healing magic and rest; only her hands had yet to fully mend.
The moment Megumin spotted Kokkoro emerging, she called out: "Kokkoro! Come taste the soup for me!"
"Coming right away. Master, Pecorine hasn't brushed her teeth yet — I'll leave that to you."
"Eh?! Wait — Kokkoro!"
"Leave it to me." Jhin laughed and steadied the flustered Pecorine with a gentle hand. "Come on — let's go get your teeth brushed."
____
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