Time to cook! A nice lunch box, huh? Let's see... I think I only made these for my brother, many years ago, I guess they're okay, the recipes were simple, though the good kind of simple, in fact, I think I enjoyed cooking more back then.... Let's prepare some white rice before we start.
Jasmine rice in a saucepan, I wash it several times until the water is no longer whitish, put it on high heat, without stirring, I wait until some of the water evaporates and the bubbles reach the top of the rice, then I lower the heat and cover the pan.
Now I take an egg, mix it well with milk and salt, put a little oil in a rectangular pan and put it on the fire. Then I put a turkey sausage on top and roll it with the egg as soon as it is firm enough, then another egg, roll some more, cut, and done! Egg rolls, I set them aside for now.
A little over 10 minutes have passed, I turn off the rice, but it's not time to take the lid off yet, I just let it sit.
Next, I mix flour, salt, water, an egg, ground garlic, black pepper and hot pepper. Hey, I can't even remember the quantities, but I've done this so many times that I know how much is the right amount. I take some shrimp out of the fridge, luckily, I had the foresight to take them out of the freezer last night. Let's start... remove the head, skin them, remove the nasty black stuff on their backs, dip them in the batter, coat them in breadcrumbs and put them in the pot.
I uncover the rice and stir... yes, loose, fluffy grains.
Now for my favorite part! I take some rice balls and shape them into kittens, a couple of oval heads, put two little ears on each one, we don't have any more seaweed to make the facial features and whiskers... condiments will do, mmh, ham, yes, a little ham to shape the ears and that's it!
Should I have made foxes...? Nah, I'm not that narcissistic.
Oh sure, I have to pack everything, I take a lunch box, a couple of lettuce leaves on the bottom, on top I put the kittens, the rolls, the shrimps... it's missing something, some avocado, broccoli and the last cherry tomatoes from the fridge will do.
"..."
Definitely looks like something you would give to a kid, anyway, it's very nice, I'm not hungry right now, but maybe I should have prepared more for myself too... oh well, maybe I'll eat something with the elven sisters.
I go back to my room as soon as I finish cleaning and tidying up the kitchen. Alright, I'm done cooking, so I need to change my mood again. Then... I find that all the clothes we had taken out of my closet earlier are now almost completely hidden under underwear.
"Look, this is nostalgic," Nicole says as she holds up... were they called drawers? Open drawers? Huh, I think I used those a long time ago.
"Oh... I remember they were comfortable, though very loose and impractical"
"Comfortable? Mm... maybe they were with loose clothing, though I don't remember them too fondly, in fact the same goes for clothing before Canola"
Oh, should I ask? I want to, I have no idea what or who Canola is, but she said it so matter-of-factly that it's probably a common-sense thing, I don't want her to get mad at me for not knowing important things again.
"You have no idea who Canola is, do you?" She found out from me.
"No, I'm sorry, is she someone important?"
"Well... technically no, I guess she's not really well known, don't worry"
"Okay, but did you say her name like it was obvious that I knew her?"
"With how much you like to buy and hoard clothes, especially underwear, I assumed you knew her. Well, let me sum it up for you, Canola is a reincarnated woman who survived Gregory's slaughter 150 years ago"
... I don't want her to scold me, so I'll ask Sarisa later what the hell Gregory's slaughter is all about. Oh, I found a topic of conversation! For now, I'll just try not to change my expression.
"... I'll pretend not to notice those confused ears. Uh, I forgot the whole story, you should ask her if you ever met her. Anyway, it seems she was some kind of seamstress or designer or something, so she introduced a lot of different clothes to the world, mostly women's underwear, with the help of the Carian royal family and many other nobles"
"Oh... so this highly esteemed holy woman is the one I have to thank for having all these clothes?"
"More or less, it's not the most suitable clothing for adventurers, knights, or anyone who needs protection, but in general, it's very good for everyday use"
"Huh... wait, two things, you said 150 years ago? And I might still be able to meet her, so how old is she?"
"... Again, I forgot her race, I didn't care much about the subject really, I just know she has big antlers on her head and pointy ears. Whatever she is, yeah, she's lived for over a century and a half"
“... Wow”
"Yeah"
"Oh, yes, one more thing, what do knights wear under their armor?"
“Mh? Well... normal clothes?"
"Don't they feel hot?"
"Oh, you mean plate armor? I guess light clothing, I'm not sure. The vast majority of knights wear gambesons or some kind of similar clothing, it's much more practical than metal armor, sometimes they wear chainmail underneath, but not much more, so yes, if a knight gets an arrow while wearing just the dress you're wearing, he's dead"
“... Thanks for the mental image, then why have I only seen knights in full armor?”
"I don't think so, maybe you mean the ones guarding the castle gates or something, I'm sure you've seen a lot of knights, they were just casually dressed, cloth armor or uniforms, so you didn't notice them"
"Huh..."
With the pause in the conversation, I look at my bed, almost buried under mountains of clothes. With a layer of underwear on top.
I knew I went overboard with my shopping, but... I don't even remember buying most of what's here. There are all kinds, most prominently some high waisted (although I haven't fixed a hole for my tail or anything like that on most of them), boyshorts type, in larger quantities there are normal panties, more bikini type, many more cheeky type, many many more of the... enough, get the point.
There's a complete mess in my room, but it's time to go, I'll clean up later.
"It's getting late, get naked and put this on"
“Mh?”
Nicole shows me a light pink bralette with lace, on one hand and... panties that, to the naked eye, are full of lace, also light pink.
Huh, bralettes, the combination between a sports top and a bra, having mostly lace, are nice and comfortable, but I haven't worn them much, though I suppose they go well with a dress.
"That looks good," I tell her.
"Doesn't it? You should take advantage of the mess to arrange your clothes better"
"Yeah...I was hoping you'd pick something more scandalous"
"Oh, I found a lot of those, do you want to change?"
"N-no, these are nice"
"Hehe, they're better than you think, go put them on"
I undress and put them both on, then I look at myself in the mirror... yes, very nice, I prefer a normal bra, but this one is also comfortable for my breasts in its own way, although it's less support than I'd like, not that I really need it.
As for the panties, they are... somewhere between cute and spicy, they are also comfortable, what are they called, something similar to a bikini type? They have some decorations with intertwined straps and... when I turn around, I see that they leave part of my buttocks visible and what is covered is mostly by lace with a pretty flower pattern, which of course shows through.
I turn around a few times, I like it. When I turn to Nicole to ask her what she thinks, I see her with an unusual smile and her hand raised, ready to spank me.
"Why do you like spanking my bottom so much?"
"It's a good bottom"
"You're the one who says that?" I look at her wide hips.
"Bigger doesn't always mean good"
"Mm, right, but yours are big AND good, uh, anyway, didn't you say you were busy? is it still because of that meteor thing the other day?"
“Ugh, yeah, I should have been at the castle like half an hour ago, oh, didn't I tell you? It wasn't a meteorite, it was a volcanic rock"
"What...? So... a volcano somewhere throw a giant rock full of monsters all the way here?"
"Apparently"
“... You're not sure?” I ask as I put my dress back on.
"I'm no volcano expert, but it's definitely a huge volcanic rock, basal-something, they called it"
"Huh... my information might not be the most reliable, but I don't remember there being more than small volcanoes in the country?"
"Exactly, wherever the volcano is that spewed that, it must be a super volcano, especially if the rocks it spewed rose high enough to catch fire, the problem is that there were no recorded tremors before the rocks themselves, no clouds of smoke, no alerts from distant countries, nothing... how curious isn't it?"
"... Is it like giant volcanic rocks full of monsters suddenly appearing in the sky?"
"Something like that"
“... How scary”
Would something like that happen again? I don't want to know, well, it doesn't do me any good to worry about it, those things didn't fall in my hometown either, so I'd better worry about something more urgent and important, at least for me... what am I going to talk to the sisters about to make them like me?
Nicole POV
This girl is changing, albeit in a strange way, she used to be always with her head down, barely talking even to me, looking for many different hobbies and just working too much, getting tired quickly and so getting as much sleep as possible, maybe to make the time go by faster.
Basically, living in a depressive rut with no motivation to get better, until recently. I know she thinks I'm a lazy woman who loves to sleep... well, I am, it doesn't help that my facial features give me a lazy look. But I'm still very observant, though...
I look at her cute, fluffy tail swaying happily as she looks at her reflection in the mirror from different angles.
You don't have to be very observant to notice how she feels, He.
I sit back down on her bed and watch as she begins to brush her hair.
Her change is kind of strange, I don't feel like she's found an important goal or something similar, it's like... she's given up, but instead of heading somewhere dangerous, it was like she was saying 'f*ck it, even if I fail, I'll live.'
It sounds optimistic, but I think it's the opposite, like she's throwing herself into the world without any expectations or hope. Or maybe not? I hope I'm wrong and she has big dreams. Of course, she has her goals, I know she likes to cook, sing, knit... but it seems like she doesn't stop to think about it herself, right now she's just hoping for the best.
"...~ Somehow I hate to see you lie and lie...~"
... Her humming turned into singing, another unfamiliar song, even before she awakened her magic, she was singing songs too well done to be made up on the spot, oh well, at least I understand the words to this one, sometimes she sings in some unfamiliar language.
Let's see... if I could sum it up, her method wasn't the best, but she's improving, still, she has a lot of habits from when she was depressed... like her low self-esteem in everything but her body. Overthinking, although it seems to be less depressing this time. Quick mood swings, like one moment she's happy, but then she remembers the thing that depresses her...
I could go on, but at the end of the day she's healing, so it's okay, I hope she heals completely one day. When she finishes her song, it's coincidentally when she finishes her hair, a simple braid and a knot at the back of her head to adorn her loose hair, cute.
And then, to confirm my thoughts, she goes from a happy girl singing while combing her hair to... floppy ears and tail as she slowly looks down and stops moving.
“... What are you thinking about?” I ask her. She looks at me a little surprised, as if she'd forgotten I was here. It's not exactly what just happened, but it reminds me that she also used to pay very little attention to everything around her, as if it had nothing to do with her.
"Well, um, I have to do it right, what if they think I'm boring and tell me they don't want to be my friends after all? I don't think I could ever talk to anyone again... oh, what if they pretend we get along, but behind my back they plan to stay away from me? That would be much worse..."
As I thought, it's so senseless, how can a half exhibitionist girl, who not-so-secretly hopes that the wind will lift her skirt, also be an insecure and socially awkward girl?
"You're better company than you think, just try not to be so stiff"
"Oh, I managed to talk a little yesterday, I think"
"You did? Even better then, they must have a good opinion of you by now, I'm sure, now just help them with what you can”
“I guess I helped yesterday by carrying Ilona quickly...”
“Didn't you say you protected them at first too? Your depression is coming back, it's trying to make you see only the bad and minimize the good. You know what?"
I put my hands on her cheeks and hold her head so she looks at me.
“You'll do fine, you're cool, kind, interesting and fun once you let yourself go, if they don't think the same then they're not worthy to be your friends, be more confident,” she looks away a little, I'll be firmer then. "Look at me, BE MORE CONFIDENT! You're a good girl, if you still can't trust you, trust me who believes it.”
That was a bit cliché, but at least I trust being her closest person, then she will trust me. I should be more active in helping her, actually I should have been much more active in helping her these past years... I thought being there for her and taking her out to different places would be enough, and maybe it was, but I feel like I could have done a lot more.
"Y-you think?"
Mm... she looks incredulous and shy, but mostly happy and proud, it seems my words are finally getting through to her, I stop holding her.
"Definitely"
"Well... by the way, what time do you get off work?"
"I'd like to know that too, why?"
"Well, yes, um, I should get to the castle as soon as possible-" I interrupt, I already know what she wants.
"You want me to come with you." It wasn't a question.
"Well, now that you mention it, yeah, maybe, that would be great," you're not fooling anyone.
"Mm... no, I think you'll be fine on your own"
"B-but wait, what if someone talks to me?"
"That again...!? Sigh, you'll be fine, didn't you make friends yesterday?"
"Right"
"See? you don't have to make friends with anyone in the castle, just get the job, do it, get paid, and you're done"
"I don't think it will be that easy, but okay"
"It will be, see you, oh yeah, one more thing..." I stop halfway to the door and look at her again.
"Yes?"
"Have you been practicing your magic?"
"Oh, just simple things like manipulating natural darkness and comparing it to what I create with magic, moving it from intangible to more solid to pull things around and, mm... control, basically"
"Control... Nothing more practical like creating blades again?”
"No, I don't feel like I need to practice that... it's kind of weird, even if I haven't done anything before, it feels like... like I'm telling you to practice walking, well, even if you've supposedly never walked before, if I ask you to do it, you'll do it no problem, right?"
"Not the best example, but I understand, you should practice anyway, it's better to know what you can do while practicing than in the middle of a fight"
"Okey... have a good one," she says as she watches me leave.
Her magic... darkness, it's not at all like the darkness magic I've seen before, it's much more... how to say... submissive.
Magic has no consciousness or anything, but it can still acquire certain habits, a kind of muscle memory, so to speak. For example, everyone can use ordinary magic to varying degrees, but if someone is very good at using light magic and he really likes flowers, he takes care of them, waters them, and feeds them every day. If that person were to release pure light magic into the air without any intention or specific spell, it might happen that the magic would direct itself to the flowers and help them grow.
Another example, though much rarer, is a cook who uses his own fire to cook. If he were to conjure a fireball under a frying pan and the cook were to leave, the magic would notice when the food started to burn and would dim or go out at just the right moment.
That happens with her darkness, but instead of it being something small like muscle memory, it's like the darkness is completely submissive towards Seina, wanting to please her almost desperately in every way it can, like when it went out on its own to kill a fly.
Not to mention that she can control non-magical darkness... which is another can of worms.
All in all, it's a good thing... the problem is that I've only known of two cases where the magic practically helped its wearer on its own.
The first was Bonifacio Bergman, a serial killer with an unhealthy taste for his victims ending up separated into as many parts as physically possible. It is said that his wind magic created blades that sliced through anyone who came near him, even when he was asleep. He was executed almost ten years ago, when I was still a student, and his magic defended him to the end.
The second is more recent, a former court magician named Julius, no family name, particularly good at water magic, he was also a potionist and alchemist who, as later found in his journals and notes, had too many delusions of immortality, he became so obsessed with stopping aging that he sacrificed parts of his body to an unnamed evil god he only referred to as 'death made flesh', according to him they would grow back once he achieved his goal, he bled to death and died alone.
I didn't know him very well, but I ran into him a lot in the hallways, he looked and acted like a normal, kind old man, but he had poor control over the enormous amount of magic he had, so sometimes it escaped him in the form of mist and water droplets, which ironically, slightly aged everything they touched. Maybe magic doesn't necessarily try to fulfill someone's wishes, but is influenced by whatever is weighing on its mind.
Well, of course there are more cases, most, though not all, with similar stories, but those are the ones I saw with my own eyes.
Anyway, Seina's darkness magic reminds me of a... child who desperately wants to redeem himself to his parents after they despised him for being a bad boy. I had already thought of that, but I'm really glad that she doesn't remember her previous life, how strong do your emotions have to be for your magic to obediently follow you to the next life?
'... But enough thinking about the past, it doesn't matter anymore, whatever it was, the magic is in Seina's hands now, and judging by what she's done with it so far, it definitely has a better owner.'
I'm sure she'll be fine, the after-effects of her depression will gradually disappear, I just can't let her lose her momentum. Visiting the family after not seeing them for four years will do her good.
Seina POV
... Shame on me, I tell myself I'm getting better, and suddenly I'm having pessimistic thoughts again, and in front of Nicole! Although I guess it's good that it was in front of her so she could remind me not to relapse.
'Remember to be optimistic, Sei, optimistic!'
I leave the house shortly after Nicole, might as well spy- distract myself with the sounds around me again, if I hear something delicate, technically it's their fault for talking about it out loud on the street, right?
A few blocks later I enter a main street. As I walk down the wide sidewalk, watching the carriages go by, I concentrate... gossipy mode- no I mean, collecting information mode.
"... Bro, this must be fate, I'm walking behind her again"
"Why are we coming this route again?"
"I had a feeling..."
"Did you hear? Carian's sword is in the city..."
"...Mamacita"
"You think no one understands you, but yes, shut up..."
"Bare legs..."
"I'm going to get rid of that tanned fox fur in my shed, forgive me, gods"
"Is it treason to my cat-kin wife if now more than ever I want to caress that fluffiness?"
"I need my head between those thighs..."
"Oh~ pink huh?"
"Clearly they're pink"
"Bless that speeding driver"
"Lace...~"
I-I notice myself shuddering a little at that last comment, along with a certain f-feeling in a certain place. I-I need distraction! Um, um, oh, Carian's sword? I have no idea who that is, but I feel like I've been hearing about Carian a lot lately, despite living in Ciren... I guess it makes sense, they're kind of sibling kingdoms, but Ciren is more of an economic and military country, while Carian is more of an arts and culture country.
... It wasn't a very good distraction, I can feel my tail alternating between standing still and wagging like crazy, I can't stop it... maybe I'll hear something distracting, yeah, one last time...
“… Was that a Goddess? I guess this world has something valuable in it after all. I think I wouldn't mind risking my life to protect the world she lives in. I'm gonna register as an adventurer! After I go home and change my underwear…”
Enough, there are very intense people here, let's get out of here as soon as possible!
But then my head turned almost by itself, just in time to see a dagger about to plunge into my stomach.