Near the Adventurer's Guild is my house.
Well, calling it a "house" might be a bit misleading. "Apartment" would be more accurate. It's the kind of place you can rent through the guild's referral system.
It's about the size of a 1LDK (one living-dining-kitchen unit). The rent is one gold coin per month.
One gold coin is fairly expensive. This is the capital, after all, and the fact that it's located in the densely packed district around the Adventurer's Guild probably drives up the price.
But for me, that's no problem. Somehow, the quests for exterminating stray undead pay pretty well.
"Uh, h-here we are..."
For some reason, having a girl in my room makes me nervous. My voice comes out weird as I invite Nao inside.
Nao shuffles in, moving like a sleepwalker, and immediately plops down on the floor.
"I'm sorry… I couldn't protect the mansion..."
Seems like she feels guilty about the mansion being burned down.
"That's all Tsugumi's fault. Entirely. You did nothing wrong. More importantly—I wasn't there when the fire started, so I didn't see, but you're not hurt, right? No burns?"
"...Yeah."
Apparently, Tsugumi didn't actually intend to burn Nao alive.
But Nao is covered in grime. The white lace parts of her outfit are stained with soot and mud, and fine ash clings to her everywhere. Maybe she struggled hard against the soldiers in front of the burning mansion.
Nao seems to notice me glancing at her clothes and face.
"Ah, sorry… my clothes are dirty, huh?"
I didn't mean to complain, but it must've come off that way to her.
"Don't worry about the dirt. I'm the one who brought you here. I'll clean up later anyway, so just relax."
"No, it's bad… I Takumild change—ah."
Ah.
All of Nao's spare clothes were back at the Hero's mansion. And that mansion is now ashes. Right now, she has nothing but her maid outfit.
Did Tsugumi burn everything? Well, maybe she moved Nao's belongings to that "new residence" she mentioned, but at this point, it'd be awkward to ask.
Either way, she needs to wipe her dirty face.
I grab a towel.
"Oh, water spirit Undine, bring forth the blue purity, the source of life, the blessing of the river..."
A swirling, aqua-blue mist gathers in my outstretched hand—the precursor to a water-attribute spell.
"Purifying Water: Cure Water."
A basic water-generation spell. The lowest of the low. It can't even defeat the weakest slime monster.
This is a medieval-ish fantasy world. Convenient plumbing doesn't exist in my apartment. If you want water or fire, you use magic like this.
With a cold, damp towel now ready, I hand it to Nao.
"Thank you… you're kind."
"Nah, nah, this is just part of the job for an S-rank Hero candidate."
...Well, not that my excessive aptitude is good for much beyond beginner-level spells like this.
Nao wipes her face and hands. Beneath the soot stains, her snow-white skin is revealed. It contrasts beautifully with her long black hair.
Nao's a little gloomy, withdrawn, and easy to overlook, but she is cute. I wonder if she's popular with guys?
"Shimojou-kun… can I borrow some clothes?"
"Yeah, good idea. You can take anything from the closet or whatever's lying around."
"... (Nods)"
Nao starts undressing right there.
Her black thigh-high socks hit the floor, and I catch a glimpse of her garter belt around her thighs.
Let me reiterate—I didn't pick out this outfit. Some noble or other brought it over with a smug grin. The girls somehow got the impression that I requested it, and I remember Tsugumi yelling, "You pervert!" Like I could've done anything about it. Nao just quietly wore it, and that was that. It's not like I was peeping or anything.
Suddenly, my eyes meet Nao's as she reaches for her underwear.
Gah! I've just been staring at her blankly—does this count as peeping?! Takumildn't a proper gentleman turn around?!
"Sorry, I was spacing out..."
"It's fine… my body's like a grade-schooler's anyway. You wouldn't wanna look, right?"
"N-N-N-No way! I do wanna look! I mean—ugh, I'm really sorry!"
"...You don't have to apologize."
I turn around.
Behind me, I hear the rustling of fabric. My imagination runs wild, picturing Nao in nothing but her underwear, and I can't help but feel strangely excited.
"Ah, I'll borrow this."
Seems like she's decided what to take.
"Sure."
I turn back.
Nao is wearing the white dress shirt I originally had on under my blazer.
...She's not wearing pants.
Huh?
"Look, it's huge."
Her body is way smaller than mine—she could almost pass for an elementary schooler. The sleeves of the shirt are rolled up, and the oversized collar reveals a glimpse of her white bra.
"Why aren't you wearing pants?"
"Well… I'm too small. None of them fit..."
Nao shyly clutches at her waist. Yeah, at her size, even a belt wouldn't keep pants from sliding right off.
W-What kind of dangerous situation is this?! Is she trying to seduce me?!
I'll have to buy her some clothes later.
Flustered, I freeze as Nao takes my hand.
"Um… Shimojou-kun."
"Yeah?"
"I'll do lots of things here… cleaning, cooking… I'll be useful to you."
"Y-You don't have to push yourself! This is just until we get back to our original world. I've lived alone all this time—I can handle cleaning and stuff even without—"
I meant to be considerate, but it seems I overstepped. Nao presses a finger to my lips, cutting me off.
"Take care of me… okay?"
She smiles.
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