“Mine is one thousand two hundred and five. How unexpected…”
Leonie’s number was even higher than Nor’s. See?
“I figured as much,” said Nor.
“S-seems you are getting noticed after all, Leonie.”
“Well then, what about you, Ruchika?”
“Me? Wait a sec, I’ll ask Proto.”
The number Proto revealed to me was…
“No way…!”
“What is it?” asked Leonie.
“What was your number?” asked Nor.
“…T-two thousand eighty-one.”
“…”
“…”
I felt Leonie’s and Nor’s gazes grow cold. Whaaat…?
“No, come on, there’s gotta be something wrong with this number!”
“Gear do not make mistakes,” said Leonie.
“Ruchika, you’re so popular!” said Nor.
“S-stop that! Besides, I’m not interested in boys anyway! If someone’s going to check me out, I’d rather they be a girl.”
The way they were looking at me all glassy-eyed was starting to freak me out, so I tried my best to talk my way out of it.
But—
“Hear that? She’s not satisfied only getting looks from men and needs attention from both sexes…”
“How greedy…”
“Th-that’s not what I meant!”
“And how does it feel to be so popular, Ruchika?” asked Nor.
“You even doubled my score…,” said Leonie.
“Come on, give me a break…!”
As I pleaded with them, at my wit’s end, they both suddenly broke into giggles.
“I’m sorry, Ruchika.”
“???”
“Your reaction was just too funny, so I couldn’t help it.”
Which meant…
“Y-you were just teasing me?!”
“Yes, sorry.”
“Sorry, Ruchika!”
“Ugh!!”
I decided to curl up in a ball and hide under the blanket for a while.
“Maybe it’s about time we put the rest of the snacks away,” said Leonie.
“Yeah, you’re right,” I said.
It had been about two hours since the start of our pajama party. Most of the snacks were gone, so it was good timing for us to wrap it up.
“I don’t wanna brush my teeth; it’s such a pain… Can’t I just go straight to bed?”
“Of course not. You’ll get cavities,” said Leonie.
“Just one time won’t kill me, right? I’m too lazy to get up and go to the sink…”
“Oh, Ruchika, you’re hopeless… Wait here for a moment.”
Leonie answered in exasperation before going into her bag and taking out a small piece of paper from inside it.
“What’s that?”
“A simplified scroll of convenience magic. I call it a ‘slip.’”
As Leonie cast her mana upon the slip-thingy, I felt the inside of my mouth suddenly feel refreshed.
“What is this, some kind of toothbrushing scroll?”
“Technically, it’s a simplified version of a cleansing and disinfecting scroll.”
“Wow! These scroll things… No, you called it a ‘slip’? Either way, they’re super convenient!”
“But they can only be used once. And I would call it quite a waste to use it on something as trivial as brushing your teeth.”
“Hmm, okay…”
“Scrolls need to be carefully managed, too. It’s one thing if it’s something like a convenience magic scroll or slip, but there are a number of powerful scrolls that are so precious, they’re under the control of the kingdom’s military.”
“Th-that reminds me, there’s been some fuss going on lately about how a military scroll went missing, right?” said Nor.
According to Nor, the missing scroll had a shady history, involving some monster that had gone on a rampage during the Great Human-Demon War. And the people who were supposed to be in charge of guarding it had been fired for misplacing it.
“So they’re not all just for convenient stuff like this, huh?” I asked.
I guess that meant I had enjoyed quite the luxurious toothbrushing. Deeming this a special occasion, Leonie and Nor also decided to use slips to brush their teeth. After that, we settled down to chat a little more before bed.
“So are you feeling better now, Nor?” I asked. Originally, the main idea behind this pajama party was to cheer her up.
“Yeah. I’m sorry for getting jealous, Ruchika.”
“Don’t worry about it. Since Leonie’s my bride, it’s best we iron things out before we get too serious.”
“Who do you think you’re calling your bride?” Leonie quipped back from her bed, which was on a lower bunk.
By the way, Leonie and I were both sleeping in our own beds, and Nor was sleeping on the floor on a futon we had laid out.
“I—I don’t mind sharing a bed with Leonie…”
This had been Nor’s wild proposition, but both Leonie and I had shot it down. Obviously.
“So how has school been going for the two of you?”
I tried making some harmless small talk.
“Things have been fine in the classroom, but I’m still having trouble with practical training. At my level of swordsmanship, it’s been difficult to keep up with the other students who enrolled at the same time as us,” said Leonie.
“Practical training is my weak spot, too. I really just don’t like fighting…,” said Nor.
They both seemed to think they were unskilled at practical training.
“Practical training’s simple. You just gotta throw all your power out and be like, wham, boom!”
“…Must be nice for you, Ruchika, to not have to worry,” said Leonie.
“Yeah, agreed…,” added Nor.
“Hey, that’s rude. I have plenty of worries!”
Come on, guys. Who do you think I am?
“And what kinds of worries are those?”
“I-I’d like to know, too.”
—Me too.
I inwardly resented the comment, but they kept pushing the topic even more than I had expected. Did I really seem like the kind of person who didn’t have any problems? I was a little shocked.
“Well, right now, what’s troubling me the most is the girl I love won’t even look my way…”
“Good night,” said Leonie.
“Night!” said Nor.
—Party’s over.
“What?! Geez, guys, you’re so mean!”
All I had done was honestly voice what had been troubling me, but the two girls (and one device) had reacted like, “Not this again.”
“I’m just sick of hearing that same joke over and over,” said Leonie.
“And I’m telling you, it’s not a joke! I’m totally serious!”
“Sure you are.”
“Waaah! Why won’t you guys take me seriously…?”
“It’d be a bigger problem if we did.”
It seemed humans really did have some resistance to the idea of two women being each other’s mates after all.
“I wonder why my beloved won’t turn my way? Maybe I’m not pushing hard enough?”
“I don’t think it’s possible for you to push any harder,” said Leonie.
“Maybe you should actually try easing up a bit?” said Nor.
“I’m no good at playing hard to get. I only know how to push, push, push until I win over the one I love!”
“…Well, do your best to exercise some moderation,” said Leonie.