Knowing that going back down would only end up annoying both sides, Tatsumaki really didn't want to bother. She simply told Alice to head down by herself, grab whatever she needed to pack, and meet her back outside.
Alice, naturally, had no objections.
All she really needed to bring along was her handheld console, her gaming system, and her PC tower; things like monitors could always be bought later.
When Alice returned to the Blizzard Group's base alone, everyone froze in surprise. Fubuki, in particular, never expected her older sister would let Alice come back so soon in the afternoon.
However, once Alice explained the situation, Fubuki understood what was going on. Though she felt a bit frustrated by her sister's overbearing control and excessive protectiveness, she couldn't bring herself to say anything to make Alice stay.
Since even Fubuki kept her mouth shut, the others obviously couldn't say much either.
Piko and Lily helped Alice pack up the things she needed. They felt she should probably bring the pillow she usually slept on so she wouldn't struggle to adjust to a new environment, but Alice couldn't carry any more than she already had.
The Sword of Light on her back was fine, but between the gaming system and the PC tower—one large box and one small—her arms were already completely full. At most, she could balance her handheld console right on top.
Seeing this, Piko and Lily had no choice but to give up on the idea.
"It's just one more item, what's so hard about that?" Just as the three of them were lamenting, Tatsumaki's voice suddenly drifted into their ears.
As it turned out, she had descended from the sky at some unknown point and was floating just outside Alice's dormitory window, quietly watching the three of them work.
Hearing her voice, Piko and Lily instantly tensed up. Tatsumaki didn't have a shred of goodwill toward them, and worse, she was the one taking Alice away!
Alice herself, however, harbored no hostility toward Tatsumaki. Instead, a delighted smile lit up her face.
"Oh, right! Tatsumaki can use her superpowers to carry all of Alice's things easily!"
"Don't push your luck, you oblivious tin-can," Tatsumaki grumbled.
Yet, even as she said it, she yanked the window open and used her powers to pull Alice—along with everything except the furniture and personal items that couldn't fit through the frame—right out of the room.
She had really been too careless just now, letting this girl come down here alone. If the robot realized that she wouldn't be allowed to see Fubuki anymore, it would have been disastrous if she used this last chance to take Fubuki hostage.
Displeased with her own lapse in vigilance, Tatsumaki glanced at the ditzy robot waving goodbye to Piko and Lily. With a flick of her power, she swept the girl and her belongings up into the high sky.
It wasn't too late by the time they got back to the house.
Even though dusk was settling in, the sun hadn't completely dipped below the horizon.
This time, without needing Tatsumaki's help, Alice found a pair of slippers on her own. Stepping into the hallway, she turned and asked, "Can Alice choose her own room?"
When she had visited earlier in the afternoon, she had gotten a rough layout of the house. There were three rooms on the second floor; Tatsumaki's was the one furthest inside, which left two empty rooms.
"Suit yourself," Tatsumaki replied indifferently. "Just make it quick. I'm hungry and thirsty."
Though it might not look like it, Tatsumaki actually cared quite a bit about basic etiquette, like eating meals at the dining table.
Floating a pile of personal belongings around with her telekinesis wasn't exactly convenient for that.
"Alice chooses the middle room!" The young girl had naturally made up her mind long ago. It wasn't because the middle room was the largest, but because she believed a Hero should always stand right in the center.
Although they were empty rooms, they still came furnished with basics like beds and wardrobes. With Tatsumaki's cooperation, Alice arranged her belongings one by one in the spots she thought fit best.
Among them were a few items Tatsumaki recognized. After all, the girl had explicitly mentioned them during lunch in the living room, proudly stating they were gifts from others.
In just about ten minutes, a barren and somewhat oppressive spare room was transformed into a space bursting with life and a deeply personal flair.
In Tatsumaki's eyes, the room looked a bit cluttered, but looking at it stirred a strange, inexplicable feeling inside her.
"If you're done, go make dinner. I might have brought you here to keep an eye on you, but you're not allowed to just idle around," Tatsumaki said, seeing that the room was finally sorted.
She wasn't much of a cook and had no intention of learning. Usually, she got by on pastries or store-bought bento boxes. She didn't have much of an appetite anyway; most of the time, eating was just a matter of maintaining basic nutrition to survive and function.
"There are ingredients in the fridge that someone gifted me. Help yourself."
"Um... but, Alice does not know how to cook."
However, Alice's response made Tatsumaki knit her brows in confusion.
"You don't know how to cook? Aren't you a robot?"
"Alice is Alice."
"...No, I'm not asking for your name. You're a robot, right? Since you're a machine, there's no logical reason you shouldn't be able to handle something so simple."
"Even though Alice doesn't know how, Alice can undergo culinary training!"
Which meant, up until now, those people had been catering to this girl's diet.
Don't tell me Fubuki had cooked for it too?
Tatsumaki felt her mind tearing at the seams. Even she had never eaten a meal cooked by Fubuki...
"Then go learn," Tatsumaki muttered, her mood thoroughly tangled. Giving up on the thought, she turned and walked out of the room.
Once they reached the living room, Alice rummaged through the fridge, pulled out some ingredients she deemed ideal, and enthusiastically marched into the kitchen.
As Tatsumaki used her telekinesis to heat up a bento box and brew a pot of tea, she wondered what kind of end product the robot would serve. Since she was a machine, it stood to reason that she should turn out a pretty decent dish, right?
Then again, remembering the girl's bizarre train of thought and her generally ditzy impression, Tatsumaki couldn't be entirely sure.
Her doubts vanished a few minutes later. While the aroma drifting from the kitchen wasn't exactly mouth-watering, it was a far cry from a culinary disaster.
When Alice brought two ordinary plates of curry rice to the dining table, Tatsumaki raised an eyebrow.
Doesn't look like anything special, but why are there two plates? Can she really eat that much?
Alice was clearly thrilled with her creation. After setting the plates down, she thrust one arm into the air, a smile of pure accomplishment plastered across her face. "Ta-da! Alice's specialty dish: Alice Curry!"
"Alice used a pot to steam the rice, then used the other ingredients to make the curry, and even added sugar!"
"It's just regular sweet curry," Tatsumaki huffed, offering a sharp critique. "And besides, only little kids like sweet curry."
The young girl's sense of achievement wasn't dampened in the slightest.
Instead, she pushed one of the plates right in front of Tatsumaki and said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world: "But Alice and Tatsumaki are kids."
"Huh?!"
--+--
T/N: If you want advance chapters, you can find it at [email protected]/AspenTL