A Suspiciously Earnest Person About That

The guest beyond the door was a familiar face.

Her glossy black hair shimmered in the morning sun, and the fluffy animal ears attached above it boasted their fluffiness today as well. Among those I could introduce, this person was no uninvited guest.

It was Claudia.

Today, she was dressed in quite comfortable attire. A white shirt and ordinary pants. Was it because they weren’t tightly fitted? Her voluptuous yet firm figure was clearly revealed. Perhaps that’s why… it felt a little suggestive.

…What was I thinking? It must be due to lack of sleep.

While I observed Claudia, she was also looking at me.

Her sharp, yet always playful, golden eyes seemed filled with questions today, as if she was flustered. After briefly scanning me in silence, Claudia opened her mouth.

“…Every time I see you, you have something new attached?”

She must be talking about my tail and ears… A wave of awkwardness washed over me, and I scratched my ear as I replied.

“Uh… something like that happened. Anyway, what brings you here so suddenly…?”

“Feeling disappointed? We’re not the kind of people who only see each other when there’s business, are we?”

“…”

Actually, we used to only see each other when there was business, you know? In Claudia’s hand, which was wiping away tears as if sad, was a basket. It was covered with a wrapping cloth, so the contents weren’t visible. Noticing my gaze, Claudia chuckled.

“Curious what it is?”

“No… my eyes just went to it because it was visible.”

“I thought you’d guessed the contents.”

“…What is it, then?”

I didn’t have any particular guesses… The packaging was too flimsy for it to be something I’d be interested in, and if not, nothing else came to mind. As Claudia gently swayed the basket, my eyes unconsciously followed it. Before I knew it, my tail was also swaying gently.

Claudia smiled with a look as if she was watching a cute creature. Embarrassment washed over me. My face grew hot. I hastily grabbed my ears and turned my head. When I grabbed my wildly wagging tail,

“Heuk!”

A strange sensation washed over me. My lower abdomen tingled, and my thighs trembled. Just as I was about to lose my balance and collapse to the floor, Claudia’s hand grabbed me and lifted me up.

I found myself dangling from Claudia’s hand, but I barely avoided collapsing to the floor. It dawned on me anew that she was a strong adventurer.

“Are you okay?”

“…Thanks to you.”

Our eyes met while I was dangling from Claudia’s hand. It was closer than I expected. I could smell the scent of sunlight.

“Your tail is more sensitive than you think. I hope you handle it carefully. Though I don’t know how much longer it’ll be attached.”

“…Yes.”

While I hesitated, Claudia sniffed. I was needlessly nervous that last night’s events might be discovered.

“You must have washed? You smell nice. But…”

What I was thinking didn’t happen, but Claudia’s face darkened in a different sense.

“Your ears are still wet? Didn’t you dry them properly?”

“Ah… uh… are they not dry?”

“Now that I look, it’s not just your ears… You shouldn’t do this, Shaa. Even if they’re going to disappear soon, you need to take good care of them while they’re there.”

Then Claudia began pouring out worries, saying I could get sick or something. It was truly heartwarming… concern and talk, but.

It didn’t seem like a conversation to have while dangling in the air.

“Uh… could you please put me down first?”

“Ah, sorry.”

Only then could I reunite with the ground. After tidying my clothes and clearing my throat once, I invited Claudia inside the house. Because it wasn’t the kind of atmosphere where I could just send her back.

Even then, the wrapping cloth covering the basket remained. When I asked Claudia to wait in the reception room for a moment, she shook her head.

“You haven’t had breakfast yet, have you?”

“That’s true, but.”

“Then, finish your business and come to the Kitchen. I’ll prepare a meal.”

“…Suddenly?”

Even so, when I was flustered by the sudden proposal, Claudia removed the wrapping cloth. Inside were large eggs.

…Somehow, they looked familiar. Memories of that time resurfaced, and I had the illusion that my stomach hurt, so I unconsciously stroked my belly.

“The Harpies said they were grateful and asked me to deliver these to you. They just laid them, so they should still be warm.”

“…It seems it was resolved well.”

“Well… it’s thanks to Shaa.”

…It was just work I did for money anyway… Still, I wasn’t one to refuse a gift, so I readily nodded.

“Was that why you came so early in the morning?”

“Well, a bit of both?”

“…Alright, for now. Then I’ll head to the Kitchen. But… there are two other people besides me, is that okay?”

“Huh? There’s someone else besides your assistant? Ah, has Lord Astaroth returned?”

I pondered for a moment how to introduce Veronica. Even now, her appearance wouldn’t make it strange to call her a friend… but it seemed better to say she was an acquaintance of Astarote Asha. If Claudia happened to know Veronica… she might think it was strange.

“Not exactly, but Master’s acquaintance is here.”

“Oh? That’s unusual. Well, I don’t mind. Preparing one more serving is an easy task.”

“Then… I’ll leave it to you.”

“Leave it to me.”

Leaving Claudia, who was heading to the Kitchen, behind, I set out to find Veronica.

But… where could she be?

Since her last known whereabouts were the shower room… I had to search the house for Veronica. However, I searched everywhere, even the Bedroom, but Veronica was nowhere to be seen. The same went for Cecil.

Just in case, I stealthily peeked into the Kitchen… and sure enough, all three of them were inside the Kitchen.

The two of them were looking enviously at Claudia, who was skillfully cooking. Why were they in the Kitchen…? Anyway, putting Cecil aside, it was surprising that Veronica couldn’t cook.

Perhaps it wasn’t surprising after all. Given Veronica’s background, it was highly likely she wouldn’t have to do such things. If I thought about it that way, I might be a bit… unusual. And indeed I am. Since I possess memories from both my previous life and this one.

For now, however, it was more important to let Veronica know that Claudia didn’t know I was Asha. That was the reason I sent Claudia to the Kitchen first, to begin with.

I crept carefully closer and called Veronica. I trusted Cecil to handle things discreetly.

…Somehow, the words wouldn’t come out easily.

“Ve, Veronica…-nim.”

“Huh?”

Veronica, who had been wearing a blank expression for a moment, looked at me with a foolish face. It was the quick-witted Cecil, as expected, who resolved the situation. Cecil, who had been watching Claudia cook beside her, dashed over and spoke.

…Seeing her tail wagging excitedly, it might just be that she was happy to see me.

“Shaa-nim! You’ve arrived!”

“…Ah.”

Veronica seemed to have grasped the situation from that, and she smiled with a somewhat sinister expression. Still, I was relieved by that face. It was proof that she hadn’t said anything that would cause trouble for Claudia, at least.

“Shaa, you’re here.”

Claudia, who was cooking, turned to look at me.

“Ah… yes.”

“I’m almost done, so could you just prepare for us to eat?”

“Understood.”

Having said that, Claudia began to focus on her cooking again. It seemed that the fact that I was Astarote Asha had not leaked out after all.

While preparing the tableware on the dining table, I asked Veronica, glancing at Claudia who was cooking.

“…Why are you… in the Kitchen?”

“To… prepare breakfast?”

Unlike her sinister expression, her awkward reply made me give her a look, and her face showed a bit of embarrassment. Hoping there would be no problems, I finished preparing, and one by one, dishes began to be laid out on the table.

A savory and fragrant aroma began to spread, enough to make my tired body react. Actually, the smell had already been there, but I must have been too distracted by keeping Veronica quiet to notice it.

Poached eggs and salad. A large omelet, not the dainty one I had last time. Nicely browned Bacon. And even the leftover soup was served, making the table quite abundant.

Especially the egg dishes… that is, the dishes made with Harpy eggs, had an even more captivating aroma. They were rich enough to be described that way. Perhaps that’s why all four of us sat at the table and quietly ate breakfast.

Everyone was silent, savoring the taste of the Harpy eggs. So much so that they only formally introduced themselves after finishing the cleanup.

While hiding my identity from Claudia, the relationship got a bit… complicated, but there were no major issues. Rather… Claudia got heated about something else.

…She seemed to get even more heated about managing the ears and tails attached to the three of us. She poured out worries, saying that even if they were only temporarily attached, managing them this way could have adverse effects. Eventually, it seemed she couldn’t hold back, and she began to touch our ears and tails.

She properly dried our ears and tails, which were damp from not being dried properly, then took out something like a comb from the backpack on her waist and began to groom them. It seemed they felt good… as Veronica and Cecil, who received the grooming first, were soon breathing evenly and asleep on the bed.

While I watched the two of them, Claudia, who had moved to the adjacent bed, gestured for me to come closer.

“Lastly, it’s your turn, Shaa.”

“…You’re incredibly skilled at this.”

“Otherwise, my tail wouldn’t feel good, would it?”

“…Hmm. Indeed.”

Recalling the memory of touching Claudia’s tail, I replied and sat on the bed. Then Claudia began to dry my ears. Her touch was careful.

“And… even if I didn’t want to get used to it, I couldn’t help but become familiar with it. Before I became an adventurer… I often did it for the children in my hometown.”

“You did?”

“Yeah. That’s why today, more than ever, I feel like I’ve come home.”

With a somewhat wistful voice, I entrusted my body to Claudia. After gently drying my ears and tail, Claudia opened her backpack and took out a comb again.

However, as Claudia opened her backpack close by, a fragrant scent was perceived. It was a sweet and refreshing scent, so much so that I unconsciously sniffed.

Somehow… it felt like my mood was improving.