kscans

Chapter 791 - From My Home to My Home, and Then to My Home

"—Ah."

"—Oh."

After about half an hour of sparring, I left the faction headquarters and returned to my familiar home, the clan home. As I stepped through the dazzling light of the transfer gate, I bumped into a single person, just as expected.

I had been wondering if we'd miss each other again today, just like yesterday. I was debating whether to call her again, or if calling two days in a row was too clingy.

My partner, who had apparently returned earlier, her training with the [Screen] finished... the moment she saw my face, a sound escaped her lips and her expression brightened.

For a moment, she seemed to try to control the soft smile spreading across her cheeks.

Then, I couldn't tell if it was because her own face wouldn't listen to her, or if it was directed at me for making her face do that.

Though she looked happy, she had a hint of a pout. With a complex expression that was hard to describe but undeniably cute, she trotted over and—

"Oof..."

A critical hit. She rammed her forehead right into my solar plexus.

Of course, dodging was not an option. And so, as I took the light impact with a resigned smile of my own, hiding my embarrassment... a few seconds later.

"...Good evening."

Having successfully composed her face, she pulled away slightly, yet still from up close, she offered a greeting with a deadly upward glance that may or may not have been intentional.

"Yeah, good evening. How did things go on your end?"

That kind of devastatingly cute move was business as usual at this point. If I let myself get knocked out by it every time, I wouldn't have enough lives to last. So, the best course of action was to either play it cool or endure it.

And so, I tried my best to be casual, letting my hand fall onto her golden head as I brought up a new topic.

"It was strict, but she was kind. I learned a lot."

The honest girl accepts everything honestly. My hand, my smile, my words—she probably sees right through it all and entrusts herself to me anyway.

She really is something else.

"Well then, I'll be looking forward to seeing you shine tomorrow."

"Hee... ehehe."

Just a light pat on the head, and this is the result. She really, truly is something else.

And then, after what felt like only a few minutes.

"Oh, are you done already?"

"Mmph... Don't make me sound like a clingy baby!"

I mean, you kind of are,—I thought, but didn't say. Understanding Sora's intention as she finally pulled away completely, I asked, and she replied with a smile that contained a hint of bravado.

"Let's do our best tomorrow, okay?"

"Yeah. It's a race to see who gets MVP."

I had already told Sora about my plans for later today. And in situations like this, my partner is a good girl who doesn't complain.

"Well then... good night, Haru."

"Mhm. Good night, Sora."

I don't have to worry about making her hold back. Our trust is more than sufficient, right down to the part where she'll demand I make it up to her later.

And so, we exchanged a quick greeting, and so, we passed each other, and,

"...?"

Wait, wasn't she going to log out in her own room...—the moment I belatedly questioned this.

"—!"

"Whoa... whoa there!?"

Making it seem like she was going to touch the front door of the home, which also served as a transfer gate, she hit me with a surprise attack. A light weight slammed into my back, and I couldn't help but let out a cry of surprise.

"...You've gotten mischievous, haven't you?"

When I turned around, however, all that was left was the blue afterglow of a transfer. Wherever she had flown off to, Sora-san was surely pleased with the success of her prank.

What is this? Is my partner too cute?—I thought, my mind bubbling with such nonsense, and composed my slightly flustered emotions as I headed to my destination.

Not to my own room, but to the room of a certain clan member.

And so, I unhesitatingly opened the door bearing a nameplate with 'Ui' written in ridiculously masterful cursive, without even knocking...

"Man... I can't get used to this."

A familiar sight spread out before me.

A bamboo grove, bamboo leaves, the sound of a gentle breeze. A purely Japanese-style scene, with one slightly out-of-place Western-style cottage... in other words, the 'entrance' I had just come out of was the only new addition.

This was, unchanged, my master's castle.

As for how this was possible, it was the result of her doing whatever she wanted.

[Rear Truffles, Secret Key of the Divine Hall Loving the Outer Heavens]—the unique domain boasted by the Terror Armament that had left even the [Sword Queen] dumbfounded, had been connected to the clan home, another pocket dimension.

It made absolutely no sense, but it couldn't be helped. Just like with Anima, it was impossible for anyone but the owner to truly understand the unique equipment in this world.

In fact, with so many items that even their owners didn't fully comprehend, it was healthier to just throw understanding out the window and vaguely accept it... oh.

Slightly in the distance, my gaze met a pair of gray eyes sitting on the veranda.

And at the same time,

"Ooh...?"

A completely unexpected sight jumped into my view, and a bewildered sound escaped my lips. Not that the sight itself was strange, but...

It was certainly a rare sight.

"Good evening...?"

Given the situation, I approached quietly. And so—my master, who had a small girl on her lap, smiled softly and replied, "Good evening."

"She's already asleep, so you don't have to whisper."

"Ah, I see."

She's asleep, so there's no need to worry about the volume of my voice. In the context of a virtual world, that meant her consciousness had already left her body.

With her light beige hair scattered, her eyelids lowered, and her chest rising and falling in a quiet, steady rhythm, the girl—Ri-na—looked for all the world like she was 'alive and sleeping.' But this is what logging out outside of a safe zone in Arcadia looked like.

Ui-san's domain was technically a 'safe zone,' but due to its various special specifications, logging out here left the body behind... which is why this happened.

"...So, what's going on?"

"Fufu... I wonder what indeed."

Incidentally, if anyone were to try anything untoward to a sleeping player within this domain, they would be subject to divine punishment from the domain itself. The security was top-notch.

That aside, about our guest. The [Yueltemis, Cradle of the Divine Hall] connected to 'our home' should be systematically part of the clan home, but just as Natsume-senpai had been invited the other day, it was possible to invite outsiders using a member's authority.

So there was nothing strange about Ri-na being here, but the question was why she was here. Did Ui-san bring her, or did she follow her...

"".........""

—Well, it doesn't really matter. An unconscious body (avatar) is, at this moment, truly no different from a doll, but before she reached that state, there must have been a peaceful and harmonious scene.

It's not for a man to tactlessly pry. Just be silent and revere the moment. That's enough.

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Screenshot, please.