A carriage rolled along the road. Inside, three people sat side by side.
Two girls and one man—except the man was sprawled out with his head on the purple-haired girl's lap. The other girl, with white hair, lay in the man's arms like a doll.
"The sky is really blue," Shichen sighed, staring upward.
"Isn't that normal?" Fern lowered her gaze and met his eyes.
"At least you can still see the sky," Shichen said, closing his eyes.
"Shichen-sama… what do you mean by that?" Fern asked, puzzled.
"Fern, don't mind him," Frieren cut in.
"Oh… okay."
"Frieren, what were you going to say?" Shichen asked with his eyes still shut, pinching her cheek.
"Mmph… you know perfectly well," Frieren mumbled through his fingers.
"You're understanding more and more, huh."
"All thanks to your wonderful teaching."
"Yeah—" Shichen started, then hissed. "Ow—Fern?"
He opened his eyes and looked at Fern.
She'd just smacked him on the head.
It was the first time she'd ever hit him.
"Nothing," Fern said, lifting her chin and pointedly not looking at him.
"Hm?" Shichen noticed her cheeks were puffed out.
She was mad?
Why?
He didn't think he'd done anything.
Shichen didn't really worry about it. Fern getting irritated was basically routine now—and often for reasons that made no sense at all.
Honestly, with her taking care of the two of them, it'd be stranger if she wasn't irritated.
The carriage kept going until it reached a village and stopped.
They got down and walked toward the village.
There were plenty of people around—mostly elders and children. The younger adults were still out working the fields.
"You are…?" An old man who looked like the village chief approached them.
"Grandpa, we're just passing through. Don't mind us," Shichen said.
"Is that so?" The old man didn't take his eyes off Shichen. He clearly didn't believe him.
"Alright, fine—we're actually here to check on something," Shichen admitted.
"Check on something?"
"You recognize her, don't you?" Shichen pulled Frieren forward.
"She is… Frieren-sama?"
"Good. We're here to see if there's been any demon activity in the area."
"Demons?!" The old man jumped.
"Don't panic—I'm just taking a look. There probably aren't any," Shichen hurried to reassure him.
He'd only tossed out an excuse, but the old man's reaction was way stronger than expected.
And it was getting late. They intended to stay here, but if they caused a fuss, the villagers would get suspicious.
"Please, my lords—check thoroughly."
"No problem."
Having the "hero party" name made things easy. No one bothered them after that.
A short distance from the village, Shichen conjured a house, set up a barrier, and the three of them settled in.
The house was simple: three bedrooms, one living room, a kitchen, and a bathroom.
The first time Fern saw a house like this, she'd been stunned—it was completely outside her understanding.
But now she'd adapted entirely, using the cookware and furniture like it was second nature.
Fern cooked dinner. Shichen took Frieren to soak in the bath.
The bathroom had a tub; two people fit easily—especially with how small Frieren was.
They didn't soak long. Shichen didn't do anything inappropriate—he just gave her a full-body massage.
When they came out, Frieren was half-asleep, her little face flushed pink—whether from the bath or something else, who knew.
Shichen carried her to their shared bedroom, tossed her casually onto the bed, and left.
In the kitchen, several dishes were already laid out on the counter.
"Smells amazing."
"Shichen-sama, want to taste it?" Fern asked over her shoulder.
"Sure."
Shichen walked over and, without hesitation, picked up chopsticks and put a piece of meat into his mouth.
It was tender and full of flavor.
"Delicious!" Shichen gave Fern a thumbs-up.
"As long as it suits your taste," Fern said, the corners of her mouth lifting slightly.
"Did you try it yourself?"
"Not yet."
"Then I'll feed you," Shichen said, picking up some food and holding it to her lips.
"Huh?" Fern blinked at him.
"What—oh, right. It's my chopsticks."
"It's fine." Fern immediately lowered her head and took a bite.
Then she turned back to the pot, cheeks moving as she chewed.
"Well? What do you think?" Shichen asked.
"Mm. It's good," Fern replied without turning her head.
"Your cooking keeps getting better, Fern." Shichen ruffled her hair as he praised her.
Fern didn't answer, but her smile definitely grew.
"Dinner's basically done, right? I'll go get Frieren—she's about to fall asleep."
"Fell asleep again?"
"Yeah. She just bathed, she's warm."
"Just bathed?" Fern turned and looked at Shichen's still-damp hair.
"Shichen-sama… you just bathed with Frieren-sama?"
"Yeah. Why?"
"Nothing."
"Hm?" Shichen looked at Fern—sure enough, her cheeks were puffed out again.
Mad again?
Why?
Because he'd bathed with Frieren?
But that was normal—they did it all the time.
Shichen didn't dwell on it. He left the kitchen, went to the bedroom, and "woke" Frieren.
Not by calling her name—he slung her over his shoulder, carried her into the living room, and plopped her into a chair.
Frieren looked dead tired, slumped in the chair with eyes that barely opened.
"Are you really that sleepy?"
"You tell me. It's because you keep getting handsy," Frieren pouted.
"Isn't that normal? How are you still this useless?"
"You… I'm not talking to you." Frieren opened her half-lidded eyes and shot him a look.
"Heh. I'm helping you, you know."
"Helping me with what?"
"Aren't you getting more and more jealous of Fern?"
"…You're so annoying."
"If you keep at it, you'll definitely catch up to Fern."
"Catch up to me how?" Fern walked in from the kitchen carrying plates.
"Frieren wants to grow taller," Shichen said.
"Huh? Frieren-sama is an elf… wouldn't that be hard?"
"Not sure…" Shichen stood up. "I'll help you."
He went to help Fern carry dishes.
Frieren didn't move—she was still limp all over.
Dinner was simple, but the three of them ate in a comfortable, warm atmosphere.
Afterward, Frieren stayed home alone while Shichen and Fern went out to "check the area."
They made a bit of noise on purpose—enough to scare the villagers.
Not to extort them, just to keep them from bothering the house.
"Shichen-sama… aren't we getting a little far?"
"What's wrong? Scared of the dark?"
"Not really. And you're here."
"Heh. Honestly, I brought you out to look at the night scenery," Shichen said, stopping.
"Night scenery?" Fern stopped too, looking at him in confusion.
"Look over there." Shichen pointed up.
Fern followed his finger. A bright full moon hung in the sky, surrounded by stars.
"Isn't the moonlight beautiful tonight?"
"It is…" Fern found herself staring.
Come to think of it, she'd never really looked at the moon this carefully before.
"Shichen-sama… why did you bring me to see the moon?"
"Didn't you want to watch it with me?" Shichen looked at her. Under the moonlight, her face looked pale and clean, almost luminous.
"I'm just curious… shouldn't you be showing Frieren-sama this?"
"And why can't I show you?" Shichen countered.
"Huh?"
"Fern."
Shichen turned fully toward her and gently cupped her cheek.
"You were jealous earlier, weren't you?"
~~~
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