[Ding! World-Crossing Gate Progress +15%]
[Ding! Meteria affection threshold reached. Copied trait: Spell Turret (Blue)]
[Spell Turret (Blue): You can store spells inside your body in advance, up to nine. Stored spells consume no mana and can be released instantly.]
Seeing the new trait pop up, Takumi's grin turned downright excited.
"Meteria, you're a treasure chest. I want to dig a little deeper~"
"Mmm—!"
Meteria let out a soft, helpless whimper, unable to refuse him at all. With her mind gone hazy and her body hot, she could only give herself up completely—offering everything she had, over and over, until there was nothing left to hold back.
Meanwhile, Hestia—completely unaware her house had already been robbed—came back carrying a pile of delicious food.
"I'm back, Takumi-kun!!"
The moment she stepped inside, she caught the thick, lingering scent in the air.
Before jealousy could even flare, a large hand reached out.
Takumi scooped her up in one smooth motion, laughing like he was picking up a doll.
"Perfect timing, Hestia. Since you're back, I'll help you exercise a bit~"
A nice walk after eating, to work off the food—good for body and mind.
"Mmm… you brat. Why are you never full?"
Hestia pouted, but her eyes were already sparkling with rosy, lovestruck heat. If it was Takumi asking, she couldn't refuse him even if she wanted to.
Her gaze drifted—and landed on Meteria.
"…So it was Meteria," Hestia murmured, voice soft. "Of course. He's been raised like that since he was little. I knew it~"
And with that, she let herself sink into it with him.
After Takumi activated a people-repelling barrier, the two of them wandered through the church together—walking, chatting, killing time the best way possible.
Before he knew it, dawn had arrived.
Takumi thought back and remembered: he'd gotten tired mid-walk… and ended up carrying Hestia back.
"Mmm…"
Maybe because Takumi stirred, it disturbed Hestia's sleep.
She let out a sweet, needy little moan and cracked her eyes open, still drowsy.
"Takumi-kuuun~~~"
Her voice was ridiculously soft, like a kitten begging for attention.
Takumi brushed his fingers over her warm, flushed cheeks, then stood.
"Time to clean up…"
Before he could finish, Meteria—also waking—moved first.
"Mmm? Ah—!"
Hestia jolted awake fully and glared, half angry and half flustered.
"Cleaning should be my job, Meteria!"
"Hestia-sama, I got here first this time~~" Meteria replied with a smile that was far too satisfied.
They went at each other like rivals, neither willing to give an inch.
But their bickering didn't slow the cleanup at all. If anything, working together made it faster.
Pop—
By the time Takumi had opened a bottle of red wine, the place was spotless—so clean it looked almost glossy.
"Good girls."
He stroked their heads like he was teasing cats, then lightly scratched under their chins, watching both of them melt at the touch.
Only after that did Takumi stand and leave them there.
The two women who should've kept fighting had no strength left. Even arguing took energy, and they were down to nothing.
"Sleep," they said at the same time, looking at each other—and then flopped backward together.
…
When Takumi stepped into the living area, he released Haruhime and Lili.
Even after a night's rest, both of them still had soft legs.
"T-Takumi-sama… what do you need?" Lili asked, cheeks pink as she swallowed hard.
She wanted breakfast—but her stomach had been stuffed last night.
As a tiny pallum, if she kept getting "force-fed," she was genuinely afraid her belly might burst.
She rubbed her round, swollen stomach, a flicker of fear flashing in her eyes.
Haruhime, meanwhile, looked half asleep. Still dazed, she drifted closer like she was about to give Takumi a good-morning kiss on instinct.
Takumi pinched her ear and gave it a thorough rub until she snapped awake.
"First thing in the morning: go rinse your mouth."
He spoke like a man laying down household law.
"I'm heading out on a trip today. It shouldn't take too long. Tell Hestia what's going on—she's inside. Take good care of her for the next few days."
He paused, then added, "Also—this is the valis I got."
Takumi pulled out a massive pile and handed it to Lili.
"Go buy a good villa. Living in a church forever isn't going to work."
"W—whoa! So much valis!!!"
Lili's eyes practically turned into valis signs.
Five billion. A full five billion.
She'd never seen that much money in her life. It felt like something you could spend forever and still not run out.
And seeing Takumi hand it over so casually made both Lili and Haruhime straighten up, suddenly serious.
"Takumi-sama, we promise we'll spend it properly!" x2
"Haha. Don't be so tense," Takumi said, waving it off. "Take a few hundred thousand or a million as pocket money—buy what you want. Just don't blow all of it before I get back."
After tossing out that warning with a grin, Takumi finished dressing, then shot off toward the Adventurers' Guild.
…
"Eina-san, I'm back again~"
The moment he stepped into the Guild, he greeted the counter out of habit.
Seeing it was Takumi, Eina came over immediately with a bright smile.
"Here to take a quest today?"
"Oh? You could tell?" Takumi asked, genuinely surprised.
Eina smiled sweetly.
"You've only been in Orario for a few days. Before, you only came to exchange magic stones. Today you showed up without going to the Dungeon, so it was obvious."
She tilted her head, voice playful but professional.
"Doing quests is actually what new adventurers are supposed to do first. You're just… reckless. And way too strong, so you skipped the whole step."
With that, she pulled out the mission list, looking a little resigned.
"Recently, a lot of quests are for rebuilding damaged buildings. But there are also healing requests—they pay well…"
Eina carefully scanned the list, quickly picking a few easy, high-paying jobs based on what she knew about Takumi.
Takumi had to admit—if he didn't already have his own plan, Eina's picks would've been the best choice.
He shook his head.
"Eina-san, I'm planning to head outside Orario. I want a quest that takes me out—so I can do it on the way."
"Eh? Outside Orario?!" Eina's eyes widened.
Even though she didn't quite understand, she didn't pry. As a Guild worker, she simply did her job and selected a row of requests beyond the city.
"These outside commissions are hard to judge in danger level. Very few adventurers take them… except the Artemis Familia, who specialize in that kind of work."
As she said it, Takumi spotted the one he wanted.
[Investigation: Monster Disturbances in the Great Tree Labyrinth]
It was a request that had reached Orario within the last two days.