🦊 🦊 🦊
IT’S finally time to celebrate Lanakiller becoming a high-tier guild! Claire and I have been hard at work since we arrived home in the early afternoon, and our efforts have paid off. While Claire was busy doing the actual cooking, I took care of decorating the rooms, tidying up, and setting the table! I made sure to pick the best flowers and the nicest tablecloth I could find!
“Hello, everyone! Wow! The decorations are gorgeous! Did you do this, Miku?”
“Everything looks so nice! And smells amazing! I’m so hungry!”
No sooner had I sat down to start waiting for our guests to arrive than who should turn up first but Kiefer and Candice. I’m honestly impressed!
“Yeah! Claire was in charge of the food, and I did everything else. I’m glad you like it! Honestly, I never thought you two would be the first ones here.”
“That’s only because I dragged him here! Hehe!”
“Yep! Haha! You were so loud and annoying… I walked faster just to get away from your irritating voice.”
It’s easy enough for me to imagine how excited she probably was about the party since the moment she woke up.
“Where’s Ektor?” Candice asks. “I miss him so much!”
“He had to take care of something with Macro after we submitted the paperwork for the guild,” Claire explains. “He said they’d be back before it gets dark, so I’m sure they’ll be here soon.”
Candice’s cat ears, which had been flicking this way and that, suddenly droop upon hearing Claire’s words.
She’s got such a huge crush on him!
“You look so cute, Candice,” I say to her. “Did you get all dressed up for the party?”
“You noticed! I did! This is my favorite dress! Doesn’t it look great on me?”
She just looked so sad that I had to say something, and she immediately snapped back to her formerly cheerful self. She twirls in place, her frilly skirt fluttering out around her. The way her skirt seems to float like a cloud along with her fluffy, bright orange pigtails, only makes her look cuter.
“It took forever to help her get ready, which meant I had less time to get work done,” Kiefer grumbles.
“Maybe if you were more helpful, it wouldn’t have taken so long!” Candice snaps at him. “I guess girls just see the world differently! I’m starting to love having Miku around!”
I have a feeling we’ll be dealing with Kiefer, who already looks bored, and Candice, whose cheeks are puffed out in anger, for the rest of the evening, although a part of me realizes they only fight like this because of how close they are. They act like they can’t stand each other, but if that were the case, they wouldn’t live together, let alone be in the same room.
“I’m back! Wow, you guys showed up early. I didn’t think anyone would be here yet.”
“Ektor!”
“Whoa?! Hold on! Stop clinging to me!”
Just then, Macro and Ektor show up, followed shortly after by Rinny. Candice immediately throws herself into Ektor’s arms as soon as she catches sight of him. Macro and Rinny are arguing about something like always. I have no idea what they’re fighting about, but I’m sure it’s not important.
Break it up, you two!
“The party can start now.”
“Angela! Welcome!”
The next person through the door is Angela, her bright blue ponytail swinging merrily behind her, carrying a bunch of bags. I immediately rush over, instinctively wanting to help her with her stuff, but…
“Oof! This is heavy!” I groan.
What’s in this thing?! She’d been carrying it easily in one arm, but I can’t seem to lift it with two! If this is how much her smallest bag weighs, I wonder how heavy her other bags are. Angela’s so amazing!
As my tail droops sadly, I hear her delighted laughter coming from somewhere above me.
“Haha! Don’t worry about it, Miku. Since I’m moving in, I decided to bring a bunch of my stuff with me. So, which room is mine?”
“I’m sorry I can’t help carry more of your stuff… But I can show you to your room.”
“That’s more than enough. Thanks, Miku!”
I’d made sure her room was tidied up and ready for her whenever she felt like moving in! It’s across the hall from our room, because us girls need to stick together! Plus, I wanted her to have a cozy room with plenty of natural light. I tell Claire where we’re going before I lead Angela upstairs. Angela climbs up the stairs easily, which is amazing to me, considering how heavy all her stuff is! It’s possible she’s more buff than she looks.
“Is it really that weird that I can carry my bags so easily?” she asks me, giggling. She must have caught me sneaking peeks.
“Ugh! I’m sorry! I can’t stop staring,” I immediately apologize, but she laughs it off.
“I don’t mind if you stare.”
She’s so sweet!
“I’m actually using a wind spell to help me, so they are lighter than they appear.”
“Oh, really? I didn’t know you could use wind magic.”
“Yep. I specialize in both wind and dark magic. Being a woman requires having a couple of tricks up my sleeve so I can keep up with the men.”
Confidence flows from every word she speaks. She understands her strengths and weaknesses and also knows ways to make up for them. The fact that Angela knows her best attributes and can be proud of them is impressive to me.
“Um… Remember what happened earlier today? What we talked about when Ektor and Claire were ragging on the receptionist? I asked Claire, and she told me about the light curse.”
We arrive at her room, and as I open the door and usher her inside, I begin telling her about what I learned. Her eyes widen briefly in surprise as she sets her bags down, but all she says is a simple “I see” in response, smiling gently at me.
“I want to live my life proudly, just like you, Angela. I’m a little worried about this curse…but I don’t want that to stop me from doing my best and keeping my head held high!”
“As you should. And you’ve already made so many new friends. With so many new experiences ahead of us, we should all try and live the best life we can! If there’s ever anything I can do to help, please don’t hesitate to ask,” she says with a smile, not mentioning my curse at all. I’m glad I was able to be so honest with her.
“And please let me know if there’s ever anything I can help you with, too, Angela! Not like I’m all that helpful to begin with…” I trail off.
“That’s not true at all, Miku. Just having you around cheers people up and makes them feel better about everything.”
“How? I don’t do anything special?” I blink up at her.
“You’d be surprised by how much you do for us,” she says mysteriously.
Is that so? Is there something good about me that I never knew about? Being helpful in any way makes me happy, although it’s a little odd I can’t figure out what it is. I hope someday I can see myself the way others do and have a bit more confidence in myself.
“Let’s head back,” Angela says, and I nod in response before we leave the room. I feel much lighter, as if a burden has been lifted.
Upon seeing us coming back down the stairs after leaving Angela’s luggage in her room, Claire calls out excitedly, “They’re back! And just in time to meet our final guest!”
Our final guest is here! Time to start the party!
Although there’s still one person I’ve yet to meet.
As my eyes scour the room, Ektor suddenly appears, escorting two people into the living room. Wells, the laidback guy from the other day, walks into the room ahead of Ektor. He smiles as he struts in, one hand raised in a familiar gesture, promising to try and keep the teasing down to a minimum.
Moments later, in walks an incredibly flashy lady. She’s not as tall as Angela, but she looks that way, thanks to her incredibly high heels. Her long dress, glittering in the light, clings to every curve of her body, showing it off and leaving nothing to the imagination. Her dress is so low cut that I’m worried her breasts might spill out at any moment. The slit that runs up through her skirt shows generous flashes of her thick thighs with each step, and I suddenly find myself with no idea where to look.
Why am I so nervous in front of another woman?!
“Hehe… What an adorable young lady we have here.”
This gorgeous lady’s eyes meet mine, having noticed how flustered I am from her grand entrance. The way her wavy, short hair, black with blue streaks running through it, and her long, dangling earrings bounce with each step is absolutely enchanting. I can’t seem to look away! I can tell my cheeks are bright red! I unconsciously cling to my tail for comfort.
“Nice to meet you. My name’s Marino. You must be Miku, right? I’ve heard so much about you. Now I understand why he kept referring to you as a precious cinnamon bun! The pleasure is mine.”
“Uh! Err! N-N-Nice to meet you!”
“M-Miku! Calm down! You’re being too obvious, even though I understand where you’re coming from!!” I can hear Claire frantically whispering at me to calm down, but it’s impossible.
I catch a whiff of Marino’s perfume, which only grows stronger the closer she gets, and immediately feel dizzy. I’ve never met anyone in the entire world with a presence as overwhelming as hers!
“Awww! She’s too cute!”
“Eep!”
Suddenly, before I know what’s happening, this gorgeous woman stops in front of me and wraps her arms around me, hugging me tightly. Because of our height difference, I vaguely realize my legs are no longer touching the ground.
“My gosh! She’s so sweet! Like a little angel! Aww! And her tail and ears are sooo fluffy!”
“Ah! Eep! D-Don’t touch me there… Ack!”
She cuddles my ears and tail as she hugs me in her arms. I’m so embarrassed by what she’s saying and how she’s touching me, as if we’ve known each other all our lives, and so ticklish, that I can’t help yelping in surprise.
Please stoppppp!
“Hey, Marino! Cut it out already!”
As I begin to panic, I feel someone pull me from Marino’s embrace.
Whew! Thank you!
“Awww! But she’s just too cute for words! It seems your prince has arrived. Too bad.”
My prince?
I take stock of my current situation and realize Ektor’s left arm is wrapped tightly around my shoulders.
Eep! I’m glad he rescued me, but this is a little too close for comfort.
Wanting him to let go just a little, I hesitantly look up at Ektor’s face only to notice a stern, almost angry look in his eyes I’ve never seen before, making me gulp nervously.