After sending Shiro back to the dorm, Akira and Erika finally reached home.
By the time they arrived, the sun had already set.
What greeted them outside the mansion was an entire army of crows that Raven and Rose had recruited.
Rose flew down first.
"Caw! Welcome back! Welcome back!"
Then Raven swooped down beside her.
"Caw! Did you get food?"
Akira turned to Erika.
"Huh… did you get them something?"
Erika sighed and pulled two large bags out of her bag.
"I brought these… but how am I supposed to distribute them?"
Akira sighed and snapped his fingers.
A magic circle appeared on the ground.
With a metallic thud, Za-kun materialized.
"Just have Za-kun distribute them."
Erika sighed again and handed the bags to Za-kun.
Akira looked at the birds and warned them,
"Remember, don't litter around here. Or I'll fry you."
Raven nodded quickly.
"Yes, sir!"
The other crows cawed loudly in acknowledgement.
Akira and Erika then walked inside the house while Za-kun began distributing the food.
After they entered the house, Erika asked,
"So… are all these crows becoming my familiars?"
Akira shook his head.
"No. Just Raven and Rose for now."
He paused.
"As for the others, we can decide what to do with the rest later."
Erika nodded slightly.
"When will we do it?"
Akira thought for a moment.
"How about tomorrow night? I think I can finish creating the full ritual formula by then."
Erika sighed.
"Alright."
Then she added,
"Anyway, I'm going to take a bath. You go make some food."
She walked off toward the bathroom.
Akira sighed.
He was tired too.
But someone still had to cook.
And he didn't have time to take a bath.
So he simply used magic.
"Refresh."
A magic circle appeared beneath his feet.
Like a scanner, it moved up and down across his body.
A moment later, Akira was completely refreshed, as if he had just stepped out of a bath.
Even his clothes looked brand new.
"Yup."
He stretched slightly.
"Now… what should I make?"
Just as he was thinking about it—
His phone rang.
He glanced at the screen and smiled slightly.
"Serafall?"
He answered the call.
Immediately, an excited voice exploded from the other side.
"AKIRA-CHAN!!"
Akira winced slightly and held the phone away from his ear.
"Hello to you, too, Aunt Serafall."
Serafall immediately complained.
"How many times do I have to tell you!? It's Big Sister Serafall!"
Akira replied calmly,
"But you're my mother's friend."
"Doesn't matter!" Serafall protested. "It's Big Sister Serafall. Say it!"
Akira sighed.
"Alright then… Big Sister Serafall."
Serafall sounded pleased.
"Good!"
Akira leaned slightly against the counter.
"It's rare for you to call me. Is something important?"
Serafall suddenly took a dramatic breath.
"You traitor!"
She declared loudly.
"How could you get a girlfriend and not tell your big sister first!?"
Akira shrugged slightly.
"I was a bit busy. I didn't have time to inform you."
Serafall protested again.
"How could you say that!? I'm your big sister! You must tell me first whenever you get a girlfriend!"
Akira answered casually.
"Alright. Next time I get a girlfriend, I'll inform you first."
Serafall nodded proudly, completely missing his joke.
"Yes! That's a good boy!"
Then she asked excitedly,
"So tell me! Who is she? Is she cute? When do I get to meet her?"
Akira replied,
"Her name is Erika. I told you about her before."
Serafall paused.
"Oh! That dhampir girl you mentioned? Your childhood friend? And also the girl on the cover of your Volume One?"
"Is that her?"
Akira nodded.
"Yeah. Her."
Serafall gasped dramatically.
"Oh my god… Akira-chan… you picked the childhood friend route."
Akira leaned against the kitchen counter.
"That's normal, isn't it?"
"No, it isn't!" Serafall protested. "Did you forget? Childhood friends never win!"
Akira smirked slightly.
"I'm beyond those rules."
Serafall laughed.
"Fair enough. I want to meet her someday."
"Sure. I'll introduce her."
Akira paused for a moment.
"Actually… there's something I wanted to talk to you about."
"Oh?"
"Do you remember when we talked about bringing your magical girl show to the human world?"
Serafall's voice immediately became interested.
"Is it about time?"
"Yeah," Akira replied calmly. "It's time to create Starlight Entertainments."
"That's great!" Serafall said. "But why so suddenly? You've been putting that off for a while."
"I've settled down in Japan now," Akira explained. "And it's about time I adapt my novel into anime. So I thought we should start it."
Serafall replied immediately,
"Alright! I'll help you."
Then she added,
"But remember, you promised you would appear in my show."
"Don't worry," Akira said. "I'll keep my promise."
"That's great!"
Serafall continued,
"Send me the details. I'm busy with something right now, but I'll come meet you soon so we can talk about it properly."
Then she added mischievously,
"And bring your girlfriend too. I want to evaluate her."
Akira chuckled.
"Sure. It's a deal."
Serafall laughed.
"Bye-bye, Akira-chan!"
"Bye."
The call ended.
Akira looked at the phone for a moment and sighed.
"Alright… what should I make for dinner again?"
By the time Erika finished her bath, changed her clothes, and returned to the dining room, Akira had already finished cooking and placed all the dishes on the table.
But the moment she entered the room—
The first thing she saw was Akira dressed like a Roman centurion.
Helmet. Red cloak. Armor.
He stood beside the table with a proud smile.
"Welcome to the Roman feast."
Erika stared at him.
"…What nonsense are you up to?"
Akira replied proudly,
"Well, I suddenly remembered the Roman Empire while cooking, so I decided to make an ancient Roman feast."
Erika rubbed her temple.
"I don't even know what to say. But why are you cosplaying?"
Akira answered casually.
"Well… for the aesthetic."
Erika pointed at him.
"Change immediately."
Akira shrugged.
"Fine."
He snapped his fingers.
A black sphere briefly enveloped him.
When it vanished, Akira was back in his normal clothes.
Erika sighed.
"What did you make?"
Akira immediately stood up and began introducing the dishes dramatically.
"At the center, we have Pullum Parthicum—Parthian chicken. A recipe recorded in Apicius, one of the oldest surviving Roman cookbooks."
He lifted the lid slightly.
Steam rose from the rich, spiced sauce.
"Chicken simmered with wine, cumin, coriander, asafoetida, and garum."
He gestured toward another plate.
"For the appetizers—moretum, a garlic and herb cheese spread traditionally eaten with bread by Roman farmers."
Then he indicated a smaller dish.
"And stuffed dates with honey and nuts. A common Roman starter."
Finally, he pointed at the dessert.
"And for dessert—libum. A Roman honey cake made with cheese and flour."
Erika looked at the table full of food with a complicated expression.
"…It will taste good, right?"
Akira nodded confidently.
"Don't worry. The ancient Romans knew how to eat well."
"Just try it."
Erika sighed.
"Fine. I'll trust you for now."
Akira smiled. "Actually, ancient Romans ate while reclining."
Erika immediately said. "We are not doing that."
Akira sighed in disappointment. "Fine."
So the two of them began eating normally.
Despite the ancient recipes, Erika quickly realized something.
It actually tasted really good.
After finishing her meal, she leaned back slightly.
"This is good. Really good." She sighed, "I didn't expect it to be this good."
"Heh. I told you." Akira smiled proudly. "The ancient Romans really knew how to eat well. Their recipes are also very well preserved."
He continued thoughtfully,
"I actually wanted to use silphium like in the original recipe, but unfortunately, it's extinct. So I had to replace it with asafoetida."
Erika tilted her head.
"Silphium?"
Akira explained,
"An ancient Roman herb. It went extinct about two thousand years ago."
Selena's voice suddenly appeared in his mind.
"If you want silphium, I'm sure you can find the seeds in the shop."
Akira blinked.
"Really?"
He immediately checked the system store.
And there it was.
"Oh… It's only fifteen points for the seeds. That's surprisingly cheap."
He paused thoughtfully.
"Should I revive it…?"
Erika looked at him.
"Is it that good?"
"I don't know. But according to legends, it was extremely valuable."
Akira shrugged.
"Some records say it was traded equal to gold. Others say it was even given as gifts to emperors."
Erika sighed at his sudden nerdy enthusiasm.
Then she remembered something.
"Oh, right. Speaking of gifts…I actually got one for you."
Akira looked surprised.
"A gift? What is it?"
Erika took out a small jewelry box and handed it to him.
"Here."
Akira opened the box.
Inside was a large silver wolf-head pendant, its jaws frozen in a fierce snarl. Two purple crystals were set into its eyes, glinting under the light.
Akira tilted his head slightly.
"Is this from The Witcher? The eyes are different, though. But it does look really good."
Erika sighed in relief.
"Yeah. When I saw it, it reminded me of you… So I bought it."
Akira picked up the pendant and examined it carefully.
"It's really well made."
He paused, then chuckled softly.
"You're right. It does look like my direwolf form."
Then he looked up at her and smiled.
"Thank you."
He closed the box gently.
"I really like it. I'll take good care of it."
Erika immediately looked away, slightly flustered.
"It's nothing."
Then she stood up quickly.
"Well… It's late. Let's go to sleep."
She started walking away before Akira could say anything.
A few seconds later, she suddenly returned, her face slightly red.
"…I forgot about the blood."
Akira nodded with a small smile.
"Right."
They moved to Akira's bedroom and sat on the edge of the bed.
As usual, Akira tilted his head slightly and exposed his neck.
"Here."
Erika moved closer and wrapped her arms around him.
The moment she did, she became very aware of how close they were.
Too close.
She shook her head slightly.
"Think about something else… think about something else… don't think weird things…"
Trying to distract herself, she thought about everything that happened today.
Then she remembered something.
Akihabara.
Everyone calling her Lyra cosplayer.
Her irritation returned instantly.
"That idiot…"
She had promised herself she would punish him.
But how?
Then she remembered one of his few weaknesses.
A mischievous smile appeared on her face.
"Let's see how you deal with this."
Instead of leaning toward his neck—
She leaned toward his ear.
And bit his earlobe.
"—!"
Akira let out a startled yelp.