While Shichen was cooking, he heard a strong gusty noise upstairs, but didn't think much of it.
When a completely naked Frieren came down to find him, he froze.
"Frieren, what…?"
"Lala made my clothes disappear. Hurry up and get me a new set." Frieren explained with a flat face, unconcerned that Shichen was looking her up and down.
"Lala wrecked them? Don't tell me she was showing you one of her inventions?" Shichen asked, amused, his eyes still roaming.
Frieren's skin could hardly be called simply fair anymore—like her silver hair, it had a silvery, translucent cast. A cool alabaster tone, through and through. Even the two key places were faintly tinted—hard to notice if you didn't look carefully. Maybe because she was still so small.
"You knew her inventions have issues? Why didn't you warn me?" Frieren frowned and glared at him.
"You didn't ask," Shichen said with a helpless little shrug.
"Forget it… just give me clothes."
"About that…" Shichen stroked his chin and continued leisurely admiring Frieren.
It wasn't that he didn't have her clothes—his Treasury had plenty of outfits for her, all styles, and even fun modern extras: stockings, cat-ear headbands, and so on. But with such a perfect opportunity, of course he wanted to appreciate the view a bit.
"It's not like you haven't seen it before…" Frieren sighed.
"It's different. It's rare for you to stand in front of me this calmly like this."
"I'm being forced," Frieren muttered.
"Since you're being forced—and you want clothes—you should know there's a price, right?"
"…You're cooking," Frieren said, exasperated.
"It's fine. I'll just delay a bit."
"What do you want to do?" Frieren compromised. She wasn't the type to stroll around the house undressed.
"Come here first." Shichen opened his arms with a smile.
Frieren pressed her lips together, shook her head slightly, and walked over.
When she got close, Shichen crouched and wrapped her in his arms.
Her skin was slick and smooth; he couldn't help running a hand along her back.
Frieren shut her eyes, biting her lip lightly, pretending to ignore his wandering hand. She truly didn't understand what was so good about her body that captivated him like this. Obviously petite and flat—like a child. Sairael was probably the same way, too. Oh, right—this guy liked lolis; she fit the bill perfectly.
Even so, though she thought all that, she didn't resist his touch in the least. She rather liked being liked this much by Shichen.
After holding her for a while, Shichen still wasn't satisfied. He looked at her delicate little face, then lowered his head and kissed her.
"Mm…" Frieren could only passively respond.
But after a moment of passiveness, Frieren started to feel it herself and couldn't help hugging Shichen back.
"Eh? Frieren, why are you kissing Shichen? And you're still naked—"
"!"
Startled, Frieren instantly broke away and pushed him back.
"Give me the clothes, now!" A rosy flush spread across her face—and not just her face; her skin had taken on a faint blush as well.
"Okay, okay." Trying not to laugh, Shichen pulled an identical dress from the King's Treasury and handed it to her.
"And underwear!"
"What color do you want?"
"Anything!"
"Alright, alright." He gave her a pink pair.
Frieren snatched them, hugged the clothes to her chest, and hurried back upstairs.
"What's with Frieren?" Lala came over, puzzled, and asked Shichen.
"She's embarrassed. Not everyone is as thick-skinned as you."
"I am not," Lala pouted, clinging to his arm.
"You know full well. Who else but you runs around the house undressed?"
"Hmph~ I do that for your sake, okay? I know you like it. I don't do that at home when you're not around."
"I almost believed you," Shichen said, tapping her forehead with a grin.
"Mm~"
"Alright, stop distracting me. I need to finish dinner."
"Wait~" Lala tipped up her chin, lips pursed slightly.
"Didn't I already kiss you?"
"Not enough. Besides, you just kissed Frieren."
"Fine, fine."
Shichen bent down and kissed Lala. Just as he intended to keep it brief, she hooked her arms around his neck and deepened it. With no choice, Shichen went along.
Come to think of it, he hadn't been affectionate with Lala in a while. Maybe because she was an alien, her whole body seemed to brim with youth, vitality, and tender softness—like her hair color. It was far too easy for Shichen to get swept up with her.
Kissing and kissing, he started losing control of his hands again, "checking" how she'd developed over the break.
In the kitchen, soft sounds and gentle "singing" rose for a time.
Until, at last, Yami returned.
"Princess Lala? You're back."
"Oh~ Yami, long time no see." Lala broke away from Shichen and greeted her.
"Mm."
Yami nodded lightly, glancing at the still-wanting look on Shichen's face and Lala's rosy cheeks.
"Carry on."
"Carry on my— I need to cook dinner!" Shichen gently pushed Lala away.
With the delay she'd caused, dinner would be late.
"Heehee~ Do your best then. I'll catch up with Yami."
"Go on."
"Yami~ Tell me what you and Shichen have been up to lately." Lala slipped to Yami's side, affectionately taking her arm.
Yami struggled a bit, realized it was pointless, and let it go.
"Nothing much. I've been at the library on my own."
"Huh?"
…
Once dinner was ready, the four of them—Shichen, Frieren, Lala, and Yami—sat in pairs to eat. Lala sat with Shichen. Frieren and Yami didn't mind any of that.
Shichen hadn't brought Est along this time—she and Beatrice were closest; leaving Est behind meant Beatrice had company. Beatrice had actually wanted to come to see Lala and the others—she knew them too—but she still wasn't that close with Tohru and the rest, so she decided not to tag along this time. In any case, this trip would only be a month; Shichen planned to bring Lala and the others over later.
"Right, Shichen, turn on the TV—I want to watch Magical Girl Kyoko!" Lala suddenly said during dinner.
"Turn it on yourself."
"Eeh~ You're closer…"
"Sigh." Shichen, defeated by Lala's wheedling, scooted over, turned on the TV, and found the channel.
"…Burn it all! I'm Magical Girl Kyoko!"
On the screen, a dazzling black-haired girl filled the frame, clad in a magical-girl outfit, very cute indeed.
"Magical girls, huh." Frieren also glanced at the TV.
Yami said nothing, but couldn't help looking as well.
Shichen studied the girl on the screen and frowned slightly. She had a divine-shard aura too. If he recalled, this TV girl was half-alien; that flame magic wasn't special effects—it was her real power. He had to admit, Kyoko was cute—fine features, pretty face—practically on par with Lala. Maybe makeup, but she'd be lovely regardless.
He'd make a point to meet her sometime.
Because she had a divine shard, Shichen watched along with Lala and the others—and sure enough, magical-girl shows were fun.
After dinner, with the girls still absorbed in the show, Shichen didn't rush to wash dishes; he sat and watched with them until the episode ended. Not a single one of the three could set foot in the kitchen; and Lala's inventions couldn't be trusted there either. Shichen was already missing Tohru and the crew.
"By the way, Lala—are things bad with your sisters?" After washing up, Shichen came back and tossed out a topic.
"No, my relationship with Momo and Nana is great."
"Is it? And they were fine with you coming to this planet?"
"Ah—I almost forgot. Shichen, be careful." Lala suddenly turned serious.
"What's up?"
"Nana said she's coming to this world. She's very interested in you."
"Interested in me?"
"Since I'm with you now, um… heehee, they're curious."
"I see. Then let them come—it's better to put their minds at ease."
"Mm-hm."
"It's getting late—time to bathe. Anyone coming with me?" Shichen looked at the three.
Frieren and Yami instinctively turned away.
"Me!" Lala raised her hand.
"Then it's a couple's bath for me and Lala," Shichen said, scooping her up and heading for the bathroom.
Frieren and Yami didn't even glance over—nor did they care what would happen next. Which was, of course, exactly what they imagined. Shichen and Lala had long since crossed that line; within minutes of entering the bath, the water was splashing.
Shichen didn't even mute the sound; the ripple of water carried easily outside, letting Frieren and Yami hear it loud and clear.
Along with Lala's cheerful "singing."
~~~
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