"Where is this? Whoa—what a huge bed. Is this yours?"
"It is."
"Then I'm making myself at home~"
Frieren flopped onto the soft, oversized bed and happily rolled around.
"I don't want to move…"
"You really are hopeless," Shichen said, watching her laziness with a helpless shake of his head.
"Mm… bring me a manga, quick." Frieren lay face-down, burying her face in the pillow, legs patting the covers as she hummed.
She still had her fall outfit on—jacket and pants—so there wasn't exactly a view to speak of.
"Don't start like this the second we arrive. I'm taking you to meet a few people—and we'll get your ID registered while we're at it."
Shichen glanced around his room: spotless, not a speck of dust, and a faint fragrance in the air.
Someone had clearly been cleaning here regularly.
Aside from Yunyun, he couldn't imagine who else it would be.
"Eh? Such a hassle. Isn't this a different world, not the modern day? Why do I have to register for anything?" Frieren flipped over, pouting, clearly not into it.
Shichen had already explained this world to her. She was actually a little interested—especially the bit about adventurers leveling up to learn skills outright.
It was wild.
Then again, after so many brain-bending manga and novels, it took a lot to shock her now.
"If you don't register, how are you getting an adventurer card?" Shichen grabbed her ankle and tugged her to the edge of the bed. "And shoes off—my bed wasn't cheap."
"My shoes are clean," Frieren batted his hand away and sat up.
"'Clean,' huh?"
In truth, they were basically brand-new. Ever since she bought them, she hadn't worn them outside once—just holed up in the study devouring manga and novels without ever getting bored.
"You do know the concept of clean!"
Shichen poked her forehead, then looked toward the door. "Alright—time to introduce you to my companions in this world."
"Bet they're all girls…" Frieren muttered, lips curling.
Bang!
The door burst open, and a tense, vigilant voice rang out.
"Who's there? How dare you barge into Shichen's roo—Shichen!?"
"Yunyun. Long time no see," Shichen said with a small smile to the young woman at the door.
"It really is you!"
Yunyun's face lit up. She sprinted over—staff and all—and crashed straight into his arms.
"You finally came back!"
Shichen wrapped her up as she came, feeling the soft warmth press against his chest.
"I'm back. Been a while—did you miss me?"
"Mhm! I did!" Yunyun nodded hard against him.
"I missed you too, Yunyun."
"Shichen…"
Yunyun lifted her head from his chest, gazing up at him with starry eyes.
Shichen slowly lowered his head toward her.
Just as their lips were about to meet, an untimely voice drifted over.
"Hello? I'm still here," Frieren drawled, shooting them a mildly aggrieved look.
"Eh—w-who's she?" Yunyun finally noticed Frieren. Flustered, she slipped out of Shichen's arms and, cheeks flushed, gave the newcomer a once-over. "A k—kid?"
"I'm older than you several times over," Frieren said with a flat face.
"R-really? Sorry—that was rude of me." Yunyun bowed her head at once.
"Hm?" Frieren blinked, then asked Shichen, "Isn't this girl a little… naive?"
"She's Yunyun, and yeah, she's a bit pure," Shichen said with a laugh.
"Hard to believe you could make a move on someone that pure…" Frieren muttered, lips twisting.
"What was that?" Shichen narrowed his eyes at her, danger in his gaze.
Frieren instantly sat up straighter. "Nothing."
"Hmph."
Only then did Shichen make the introductions. "Yunyun, this is Frieren. She's been traveling with me lately."
"Frieren… Her ears are kind of… uh—sorry, I don't mean anything by it," Yunyun blurted, having instantly noticed Frieren's distinctive ears.
This world didn't have an elf race—but it did have spirits, like water spirits and the like.
"Don't mind it. She's naturally like that," Shichen said. He wasn't planning to explain her background anyway—it wouldn't make sense to Yunyun.
"Got it…" Yunyun nodded.
"By the way, how long was I gone?" Shichen asked.
"Two months. Why?"
"Two months, huh… Got it."
"She" had been right: leave a world and come back, and the minimum interval was a month. After that, it was up to him.
He hadn't known before.
"You're weird, Shichen—how do you not know how long you were gone?" Yunyun teased.
"I know. Just confirming."
"So where did you go that you even lost track of time?"
"Well, I—"
"Yunyun, who are you calling so early…? Shichen, you're back!" A petite figure appeared in the doorway, cutting him off.
"Megumin, I'm back," Shichen said, opening his arms.
"You really are!"
Megumin's face lit up. She ran over, took a little hop, and he caught her in a hug—supporting her by the waist as he lifted her easily.
"Did you miss me?"
"Of course I did!" she shot back without hesitation.
"Yeah? I missed you too~"
"Hmph~ As if that isn't obvious," Megumin said, smug.
"Megumin…" Yunyun's plaintive voice sounded.
"Ah!"
Megumin finally realized and wriggled a bit.
"What are you doing?" Shichen tightened his hold, amused.
"P-put me down first," Megumin whispered.
"What's the big deal? We've always hugged like this."
"Today's a little different."
"Hm?"
Noticing the look in Yunyun's eyes, Shichen set Megumin down on the bed.
She was still in her pajamas, and after two months, she looked as petite as ever.
"Huh? And you are…?" Megumin finally noticed Frieren.
"Hi. I'm Frieren, traveling with Shichen lately," Frieren said lazily by way of introduction.
"I—I see."
Curious as she was about Frieren, Megumin had to deal with Yunyun first. She turned to her, looking embarrassed. "L-let me explain…"
"No need. I figured it out a while ago," Yunyun cut in.
"You did?" Megumin stared, stunned.
"I knew it—you like Shichen too," Yunyun said bluntly.
"I… that's not—"
"Still going to deny it? Or do you think I'm a fool? I consider you a good friend," Yunyun said, serious.
"I… alright. I like Shichen too," Megumin admitted honestly.
"That's more like it."
"Eh? You're not mad?" Megumin looked at her in surprise.
She had promised to cheer Yunyun on at first, and then secretly gotten closer to Shichen. That sounded a lot like betrayal.
"Why would I be mad? Shichen's amazing—and handsome. Liking him is perfectly normal," Yunyun said matter-of-factly.
"B-but…"
"Megumin, don't worry about me. Feelings aren't something you can control. Worst case, we compete fair and square—just don't sneak around."
"Yunyun…" Megumin looked moved.
"She really is pure," Frieren couldn't help commenting.
"Purity's a good thing. Not many women like that anymore," Shichen said.
"Tch."
"Ahem." Shichen cleared his throat and jumped back in. "Actually, I don't think you two need to compete."
"What do you mean?"
"Yeah, why not?"
Both of them looked puzzled.
"I could just have both of you," Shichen said.
The two of them stared at him, faces suddenly blank.
"W-what? Is that a problem? This world allows polygamy, doesn't it?" Shichen asked, a bit uncertain.
"In your dreams," Megumin shot him a glare. "A harem? Keep dreaming."
"Yeah, Shichen, that's pushing it," Yunyun chimed in with a pout.
"Well… if I became a noble, I could marry multiple wives."
"Even if you could, that doesn't mean we'd agree," Megumin said.
"Why not?"
"Why not? What normal woman wants to share her boyfriend?" Megumin huffed.
"I get that—but it's not for me, it's for you two," Shichen said, hand on heart.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"You're best friends. If I married both of you, you'd always get to stay together."
"…Do you take me for an idiot?" Megumin deadpanned.
"Really?" Yunyun blinked, unexpectedly touched. "You mean it?"
"Yunyun, you—"