To be honest, although Mira's hair smells really nice, being held by her like this constantly does feel a bit strange.
The villagers passing by quickly threw curious glances, and the village chief had a knowing expression, making Rhode feel a bit embarrassed.
In contrast, Mira seemed to be getting more and more enthusiastic.
The warm firelight in the dim environment shone on her face, making her smile exceptionally charming, while also hiding the blush on her cheeks.
Luckily, the distance wasn't too far, and Rhode struggled to get down when they reached the village chief's doorstep.
Rhode had his principles; no matter what, he couldn't let Mira carry him into the house or onto the bed.
Unless she used Satan's Soul to force him.
Since Mr. Jasper noticed their relationship early on, he naturally only prepared one room.
As a mage, sharing a room with a companion while traveling is a normal thing.
Even if the room only had one big bed.
It's a normal thing, Mira thought, opening her suitcase, taking out toiletries and pajamas.
Rhode's keen eyes caught sight of two suspicious black garments.
Mira hugged the clothes to her chest, snapped the suitcase shut with a "clap," gave him a warning glance, and rushed to the bathroom.
If it were another mission, it would be fine to skip a bath for a day, but today, having dealt with mice all the time, it would feel really uncomfortable not to shower properly.
Rhode sprawled on the bed, feeling underestimated. Who would rummage through her suitcase just like that? By acting this way, she made people curious about its contents.
Unfortunately, Rhode really didn't want to move now, as the loss of a lot of magic power itself was a burden on his body; if it weren't for anticipating something happening, he would have fallen asleep by now.
Do girls take a long time to shower?
Rhode thought for a moment and called out Warm for some amusement.
"Purr~" Warm bounced on the bed, and the soft mattress made Rhode sway along.
Rhode lay there, rubbing Warm's belly, enjoying the familiar tactile sensation.
He gestured a bit and found that Warm's body length was almost as long as his upper body.
"I feel like if you grow any more, I could ride you to work."
"Purr purr?" Warm looked at Rhode in shock. You find me this cute, and you want to ride me like a horse?
Rhode tugged at its face: "What are you shocked about? I carried you when you were little; wouldn't it be reasonable for you to carry me when you've grown?"
This chubby, soft, and furry guy would be surely comfortable to ride, no need for a cushion.
While enjoying his master's massage, Warm pondered whether to eat a bit less in the future, so it wouldn't grow too fast.
But... eat less?
Then maybe being a steed isn't bad.
By the time Mira came out, Rhode was already close to falling asleep.
Unfortunately, there wasn't much of a benefit to it—Mira was wearing very ordinary beige pajamas, adorned with blue heart-shaped cross patterns.
Rhode felt like he'd seen this style somewhere before, with the phrase "this is the same style as Erza's pajamas" stuck in his throat.
"Purr~" Warm happily greeted Mira, this prospective female owner who often fed it. It approved of this marriage.
Mira walked over, holding a thick towel, carefully absorbing the water from her hair: "Warm is here, are you hungry? I brought some snacks."
As long as she asked about such things, Warm would certainly be hungry.
Mira took out some snacks from the suitcase, opened the package, and fed Warm, occasionally tossing some to Warm's owner.
"Go take a shower, get some rest early." Mira urged Rhode while handing all the snacks to Warm, then sat down in front of the mirror to dry her hair.
It naturally took Rhode much less time to shower than her, and he was back out in less than ten minutes.
At this point, Mira still hadn't finished drying her hair.
She turned her head to the side, her arm holding the hairdryer awkwardly reaching behind her, seeming to exert a lot of effort.
"Can I help you?" Rhode volunteered.
"Sure." Mira was a bit pleased, handing the hairdryer to Rhode, then sat down, watching Rhode's actions through the mirror.
The hairdryer was one Mira had brought herself, the end embedded with a rechargeable magic crystal—this thing was also a magic tool.
Rhode recalled the way Teacher Tony blew girls' hair in the salon, finding his memory somewhat hazy.
He decided to give it a try.
He carefully picked up a strand of long white hair, starting up the humming hairdryer, as the wet ends flapped against Mira's face in the strong wind.
"Ooh..." Mira had to close her eyes and cover her face.
Rhode moved the hairdryer, only to blow Mira's bangs into a fluttering mess, and hastily turned it off.
"Oops!" Despite the initial failure, Rhode couldn't help but laugh.
"I thought you knew how to do this." Mira straightened her hair messed up by him and scolded the image of Rhode in the mirror, "And you're laughing!"
"Sorry, sorry, first time helping someone dry hair."
Mira had to teach him hand-over-hand: "Long hair needs to be managed like this... right, spread your fingers and gently comb through, the wind should blow backward... towards the ends, you can hold it like this, here the wind can be a bit stronger..."
Lesson learned, managing long hair is really troublesome.
Rhode glanced at the bottle on the table that seemed like conditioner, thinking it had probably already been used, which meant he had skipped a step or two...
Being a beautiful woman is really not easy.
Looking at Mira gently fixing her bangs in the mirror, Rhode had a sudden idea: "Is there a magic that can conveniently handle hair?"
Mira met his gaze through the mirror: "There is, do you want to learn it?"
Rhode thought for a bit: "I could learn, but I'd rather help you do it by hand every day."
"Hmm, you only know how to sweet-talk." Mira stood up, pushing Rhode to sit down, "Let me help you now."
"My hair's almost dry."
"Even so, it must be completely dry before sleeping."
Rhode could only sit there, watching his hair sway in the wind in the mirror, a small hand running over it.
If not for the comfortable feeling on his scalp, he'd suspect Mira was taking the chance to rub his head.
Drying Rhode's hair didn't take long.
But even after the hairdryer stopped, Mira's hands kept gently moving over Rhode's head, much like his method of petting Warm.
"That's enough now." Rhode caught her mischievous hand and pulled it forward.
Mira fell onto his back, wrapping her arms around his neck, planting a kiss on his cheek.
The sensation on his back and the kiss on his face made Rhode's heart flutter. He turned his head and kissed her lips for the first time.
Mira's heart also raced, and her face visibly reddened.
This first kiss felt a bit surprising but also naturally fitting.
Running away... was not an option. She closed her eyes, choosing to enjoy this moment thoroughly.
Rhode slowly turned around, gently lifting her onto his lap.
"Mmm."
They bumped teeth.
Both of them felt a bit embarrassed, but tacitly chose to ignore it, holding each other tightly.