“Let’s go; we have a lot to research today,” said Marie, hugging my arm. I guided her toward the passenger seat, held her by her slender fingertips, and helped her lower herself into the car.
“So, why are we going to the university library?” asked Toru.
“Oh, it was actually Wridra’s request. She wanted to go someplace quiet where she could read lots of books. We also like books and thought it would be nice to read together,” I explained with a smile, feeling something was up. Wridra had been furious last night, so it was hard to believe she was in the mood for reading.
As for Wridra, she sneaked up behind Toru and plopped her hand on his shoulder. He turned around, surprised to find her beautiful, smiling face right next to him. “Hm, it appears many Japanese men are quite useful. Perhaps it is because the ability to fight is not as important here as in the other world. I hear you helped Kitase cook before. Can I presume you are good at it?”
“Ah.” Wridra wanted to recruit Toru as a chef. It would certainly help me out if he worked in my stead, although I didn’t want to turn his dreams into nightmares. Seeing that I didn’t know whether I should say anything, I stayed quiet. After all, I didn’t want to put myself in Wridra’s crosshairs.
“Y-Yes, I suppose so. I cook as a hobby, but I do get a ton of ingredients from my family out in the country and have leftovers sometimes,” said Toru before turning to me. “I think you mentioned it’s possible to bring food to the other world?”
I nodded.
“Ah, then maybe we can bring something over to the manor,” he said, which made Wridra and Marie cheer.
When I considered things, I saw that they had shared some food with us in the past. They’d given us some high-quality meat and vegetables, which we enjoyed at our household and took to the other world. As Wridra recalled this, her eyes narrowed, and she smiled and slapped Toru’s back.
“How wonderful it is to have friends. Kaoruko has been quite good to us as well. I thank you for agreeing to show us around the library today,” said Wridra.
“N-No, it would be an honor,” Kaoruko said. “But are you sure it’s okay for me to be beside you and Marie-chan, breathing in the same air― Ah, I mean... What am I saying?!”
I wasn’t sure what she was saying either. A cold sweat ran down my face, and Toru had a similar, awkward expression. Kaoruko covered her bright red face, mumbling apologies into her own hands. But Wridra was utterly unconcerned and flashed a cheerful smile.
“Well, let us depart. But I must address something first... Toru, what is with your outfit?”
Toru wore a full suit, which was clearly unfit for a casual outing and seemed a little out of place.
He scratched his head and said, “I’m sorry, I got called in to work after agreeing to show you around today. But I reached out to an acquaintance who will show you around the library even though it’s closed today. It would’ve been a good opportunity to get to know each other better, so I’m disappointed I can’t go.”
I was grateful that he had gone through the trouble of planning for us, though I couldn’t help but notice Kaoruko glaring resentfully at him. I did think it was unfortunate that he was wasting a day off by working.
“It’s a shame that your job is taking up so much of your time when you’ve found something new and fun. Maybe you shouldn’t work as much,” said Kaoruko.
“I couldn’t agree more. Boy, I wish I could stay in the dream world forever,” replied Toru sadly.
Working a government job seemed harsh, but maybe I had it too easy because I hardly ever had to work overtime. In my opinion, the important thing was having a good work-life balance.
Kaoruko hadn’t finished complaining and looked quite upset. She squinted at her husband and said, “At this rate, I’m going to sleep with Kitase-san before you get home from work.”
If we had been drinking something, we would’ve spat it out at once. Had someone overheard us, they might―no, they definitely would have gotten the wrong idea. Toru had learned his lesson from the time he had said something similar before, and I was glad he did. It nearly led to him getting divorced.
“Well, of course I wouldn’t mind if you slept with him, but...” said Toru, then turned to me. “I don’t need to worry, right? You’re not taking this the wrong way, are you?”
“O-Of course not! I know she meant it literally! Just going to sleep, nothing more, nothing less!”
He glanced at Marie, who was tilting her head in confusion in the passenger seat, then finally sighed in relief. I didn’t know how I felt about my words not being enough to reassure him. Regardless, I didn’t remember doing anything that would make him suspect me.
Truthfully, I was happy that the Ichijos were looking forward to revisiting the dream world. I just wished they were a bit more careful about their phrasing when talking about it. Toru and I looked rather weary from this exchange, yet the women in the back seat were all smiles.
Seeing their cheerful expressions made my concerns seem arbitrary. The weather was nice on this fine autumn day, and we were about to go enjoy our visit to a historic university library.
“Let’s get going, everyone,” I said, then turned to Toru. “Please let us know once you’re off work.”
“Sure thing. Have fun!” responded Toru.
We put on our seat belts and waved at Toru as he walked away. Judging by his expression, he seriously considered taking on less work for the first time.
I began to drive the car slowly and safely, noticing that the ginkgo trees lining the streets had turned a beautiful yellow.
§
The sun was warm, but it was still chilly out when I rolled down the window. It was just before lunchtime on a weekend, so we would surely run into traffic before long. In the passenger seat, Marie seemed to like her autumn outfit a lot as she swayed her feet and turned toward the backseat. She also looked eager to talk to our unusual guest.
“You fell asleep at the mansion before us, didn’t you?” Marie asked Kaoruko. “Did you wake up in the same bed?”