Toc! Toc! Toc!
"Young master, it is me."
"Come in" Yuuji said when he heard Sebastian's voice outside his door.
"Young master, the madam has already taken care of registering your company along with all the legal procedures. Miss Ruri will guide you so you can learn how to manage it.
Additionally, the house you requested has already been purchased and you can move in at any time.
Here is the address."
Yuuji checked the papers, where the address was listed along with images of everything.
The house was not too large. In fact, it was quite ordinary, at least within Yuuji's standards. However, it was closer to the residential area than the mansion, which was located in what could be called the "rich district" of the city.
As for the company, it was a glass skyscraper with more than twenty floors in the Tokyo metropolitan area, close enough to the city without being exactly in the center.
Even so...
"Sebastian, why this house?"
"You do not like it, young master?"
"It's not that, I like it. It's just that, looking at the addresses, from there to the company it is a little over an hour of travel, right? Couldn't they buy one closer?" Yuuji asked.
"I'm not sure" Sebastian replied. "According to the madam's words: 'It's not like the distance to the company really matters to him'. So she bought one she is sure you would like."
"It's not like the distance matters?" Yuuji repeated with confusion.
'System, could it be that my parents know about my abilities?'
[Considering how frequently you use them in your home, it is very likely.]
'Then why did they not say anything?'
[Perhaps they simply did not care, like most people in this world when they see strange things. Or perhaps they are involved in such matters.]
'Perhaps' Yuuji thought, hoping it was the first option.
"Alright, then let's see what this house is that my mother says I would like so much," Yuuji smiled as he decided to go check it out.
[Do you not want to see the company first?]
'Later. I'll just go see the house and then fly there. I'll also place a Gate, it won't take long.'
...
"Good morning!"
At Rito's house, Lala went downstairs and greeted Rito and Mikan, who were at the table having breakfast, both with worried expressions.
"Lala..."
"Lala? You're back! Are you okay?" Mikan said when she saw her, interrupting Rito.
"Yes, why?" she asked, confused.
"You disappeared all day yesterday and we didn't see you again. We were worried" Rito said with relief.
"Ah, that. I went to bring something to Yuuji and ended up taking a trip to another world. We could only come back at night, so I returned late and, since I was excited about a dragon I got and wanted to turn into a cyborg, I focused on that and forgot to say hello. Sorry" Lala explained apologetically.
After hearing her explanation, both Rito and Mikan were left stunned, understanding nothing.
"A-another world?... Cyborg dragon? And who is Yuuji?" Mikan asked.
"Yuuji is my best friend!" Lala exclaimed.
Mikan looked at Rito expecting an explanation.
"He is a classmate and Lala's friend" he explained.
"Human?" Mikan asked suspiciously.
"Well, he is human. But... he has some really strange abilities" Rito said, not completely sure.
"Then... it's fine" Mikan said with a sigh, deciding not to think about it too much. "But you should let us know next time so we do not worry."
Since she was little, because her parents were never home due to work and Rito did not exactly have the best personality, she had to mature earlier than expected.
She basically became a premature housewife, being the one who takes care of most of the responsibilities of the house.
Lala's arrival did not change that.
Although at first she was surprised that an alien princess engaged to her brother suddenly appeared out of nowhere, she got used to it quite quickly and even faster began to consider her another member of the family and, of course, another person she was responsible for.
For that reason, when she disappeared out of nowhere, she immediately worried about her.
"Sorry" Lala said embarrassed.
"An apology is not enough" Rito added, defending his younger sister. "Just do not worry us like that again"
The atmosphere at the table became tense for a moment, so Mikan interrupted.
"It's fine, she already apologized. There is no need to continue the topic.
Lala, wait a moment, I'll serve you breakfast" she said as she stood up from the table.
Seconds later she returned with a plate of toast with eggs.
"Mikan, thank you very much!" Lala said, returning to her normal attitude.
"It's fine, it's normal" Mikan dismissed it. "By the way, you said you went to bring him something" she asked with genuine curiosity, and a bit of concern, knowing how her inventions usually end.
"Mmhm, I brought him an AI" Lala replied while eating.
"An AI? How did that make you travel to another world?" Rito asked, confusing Lala.
"What does my AI have to do with that?"
"Didn't you travel to another world because your invention failed?" Rito asked, and Mikan nodded, thinking the same.
"N-no? Of course not! Yuuji was the one who caused the trip" Lala said, offended, before asking, "D-do my inventions have that reputation?"
"A-a little" Rito said, realizing his mistake.
"Just so you know, not all my inventions fail. Only some. It's just that the ones that don't fail do not leave as strong of an impression" she defended herself.
"I'm so..."
"Fine!" Before Rito could continue apologizing, Lala stood up excitedly. "I'll go create something that will surprise you and will not fail!"
"Is this okay?" Rito said while looking at Mikan.
"Maybe? What a shame, I wanted to ask her what another world is like" Mikan said with some disappointment. "Although being an alien I imagine it is not that impressive for her. She has probably visited many worlds."
"Visit!"
This time it was Rito who suddenly stood up.
"Rito?" Mikan asked confused.
"I forgot, Haruna will come to visit. She promised to help me with some homework I did not understand. I need to go get ready."
"Eeeeh? Haruna, huh?" Mikan looked at Rito with narrowed eyes.
"W-what? Why are you looking at me like that? It's just a study meeting" Rito said while blushing.
"Yes, sure" Mikan nodded, not believing him at all.
"I do not care what you do, but if you want to go out with someone you have to resolve things with Lala. Even if the current situation is an accident, she does not know that. Do not hurt her."
"I know" Rito nodded seriously.
Mikan watched Rito run upstairs, both hurried and excited at the same time, and sighed while clearing the table.
"They are both children."
But while collecting the plates she realized something and murmured in confusion,
"Speaking of that... hasn't Lala been less attached to Rito lately? I wonder why."
...
Ding Dong!
That afternoon the doorbell rang and Rito ran toward the door. He stopped less than a meter away and took a deep breath, looking at himself in the reflection of a nearby surface.
He took another deep breath to calm himself and opened the door.
However, all his calm disappeared the moment he saw Haruna.
Haruna wore a short sleeved white blouse with small frills on the edges and a blue ribbon on the chest, combined with a light yellow skirt that moved with the wind. She wore light sandals and a delicate hair clip, giving her appearance a fresh, springlike feeling.
She seemed distracted by something, so when Rito opened the door she was looking in another direction.
When she heard the sound, she turned toward him and smiled, giving her a fresh and kind appearance.
Without saying anything, Haruna made Rito blush completely, leaving him speechless.
"Rito?" Haruna asked when she saw him staying silent.
"Ah! S-sorry, please come in" he managed to say.
"Then, excuse me" Haruna nodded as she followed Rito inside.
"B-by the way, what were you looking at?" Rito asked, not knowing what to talk about.
"That... I thought I saw someone familiar next door" Haruna said with a surprised expression.
"Really?" Rito was surprised, since no one should live in the house next door, but Haruna interrupted his thoughts.
"By the way, your house is very nice" Haruna said while looking around.
"T-thanks" Rito said, completely forgetting the previous topic.
"Then, let's..."
"Rito!"
Lala's voice interrupted them as she came down the stairs.
"Lala?" Haruna said, surprised.
"Haruna! What are you doing here?"
"I... came to help Rito with his homework. What are you doing here?"
"I live here!"
"W-wait, Lala" Rito interrupted nervously.
"It's fine, you are engaged, so it makes sense that you live together" Haruna said with a kind smile, although that smile made Rito break into a cold sweat.
"Haruna, it's good that you are here. Join my new invention" Lala took both of Haruna's hands and spoke excitedly.
"Invention?"
"No!" Rito interrupted by shouting, attracting both of their attention.
"Why not?"
"Lala, your inventions always end badly. Do not put Haruna in danger just for fun."
"It's not just for fun, it's because..."
"It does not matter, we are not going to test your invention!" Rito interrupted again.
"Um... I do not have a problem trying her invention" Haruna said, trying to calm the situation.
"No, Haruna. Her inventions always end up failing. It is dangerous."
"This one will not fail, trust me" Lala said.
"I do not trust it!"
"B-b-but... Yuuji would trust me!"
"What does Yuuji have to do with this?" Rito asked angrily.
"I... I... I do not know!"
Leaving those words in the air, Lala ran upstairs toward her room.
Once Lala left, the living room remained in absolute silence for a few seconds before Haruna spoke.
"Rito, that was wrong. She only wanted to show us an invention, you did not have to start an argument for no reason" Haruna said seriously.
"N-no... I... I was agitated by the situation and suddenly she came with an invention. It's the first time you come here and I was afraid you might get hurt, I just thought, 'what if it ends up hurting someone?' and I lost my temper. I... I'll go apologize" Rito said with a sigh before giving in and following Lala.
'Why can't I control myself? Always letting my feelings take over' he thought.
TOC TOC TOC.
Upstairs, in front of Lala's door, Rito knocked on the door wanting to apologize for his exaggerated reaction.
However, there was no response from the other side.
"Lala?" Rito asked, assuming he was being ignored.
"Lala, listen, I want to apologize, I..."
He did not finish speaking.
Instead, he watched as the door in front of him seemed to fill with dots of the same color, while the tones around it became more garish.
"A comic?" he wondered, as everything reminded him of the atmosphere of western comics.
Before he could react, it expanded toward him.
Rito looked at his body, filled with dots and saturated colors, in shock, before his entire vision turned black and he fell to the floor, losing consciousness.
When he opened his eyes again, he was no longer in his house, but in a strange agency with oddly dressed people where he recognized Haruna and Mikan.
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+15 chapters in advance on Patreon.
p-atreon.com/IAMME26
(just delete the hyphen)
80 power stones = 1 extra chapter (cumulative)