Rhode accepted the cruel punishment from Mira—carrying her home on his back.
It didn't really feel like a punishment.
Mira's arms were wrapped around Rhode's neck, and Rhode's hands supported the bend of Mira's knees.
The way he carried her was quite standard.
But for the two of them who had just taken an important step, it was intimate enough.
Their bodies leaned against each other, and Rhode could feel her good figure against his back.
Especially when Mira's body slipped slightly downward, needing him to adjust her position.
Though he had gotten some idea of it when he held her or when she linked her arm with his, carrying her now was a different experience.
That's what it's like when you've just fallen in love; a little touch is enough to make your heart race and your face flush, yet you always look forward to that contact.
Mira seemed to have realized this problem after being carried by Rhode for quite a distance.
Her face turned red, and to reduce the frequency of adjusting her position, she tightened her arms around Rhode's neck a bit more.
As a result, their bodies were even closer, with Mira's warm breath tickling Rhode's ear.
"Am I too heavy?"
Mira asked a classic question, as girls always seem to care about their weight at the strangest times.
Rhode nodded seriously: "You are kind of heavy, feels like you're at least 30 kilograms?"
The first half of his sentence made Mira want to bite his ear off, while the second half made her laugh: "That's way too exaggerated, no way I'm that light."
"Then, what's your weight?"
"Fou...that's a secret!"
Not that it mattered, Rhode could pretty much guess it anyway.
Besides, when they went shopping for clothes together, he got to know all sorts of sizes, missing just the weight doesn't matter.
Thanks to the unceasing training since crossing over, carrying Mira's weight was surprisingly easy.
Besides, with Mira being a dual A-ranked weaker girl in strength and speed, wouldn't it be interesting to have a chance for Mira to carry him?
"Are you thinking about some naughty idea again?"
"I can already walk you down the street like this, what more naughty ideas would I need?"
"So, you used many naughty ideas before? Let me think... like giving me the key or something."
Rhode chuckled: "I think that's a good idea."
"Hehe, starting tomorrow, you'll have it coming for you."
"What?"
"I'll help increase your training intensity a bit."
"You're not planning to use Satan's Soul against me, are you?"
"Bingo!"
"..." Rhode hesitated for a moment. "Alright."
He had always been somewhat resistant to fighting Mira, but now she seemed to need adaptive training.
Bring it on.
After all, it's just training, not a death match.
Mira pressed her cheek against him and said, "If you can beat me, there's a reward~"
"Then I'm definitely going to win!"
Although quite challenging, Rhode felt it was worth a try.
Anyway, he'd eventually become S-Class; practicing with Mira first would be nice.
Upon arriving at Mira's house, Rhode stood there, a bit reluctant to let her go.
It wasn't until Mira gently tapped his shoulder that he loosened his grip.
Mira didn't seem to have any intention of letting him in.
Rhode had no choice but to wave goodbye: "See you tomorrow?"
"See you tomorrow." Mira pushed open the door and turned back to see Rhode still standing at the door, watching her.
She turned and ran back, hugging Rhode tightly, burying her face in his chest.
"This is wonderful."
Her voice was small and muffled; Rhode didn't hear clearly: "What?"
Mira lifted her head to look at him, her smile radiant: "I said, meeting you has been wonderful."
The light from the doorway stretched their intertwined shadows.
At such a close distance, Rhode could see the faint blue in her pupils, like blooming blue butterfly flowers.
Rhode gazed into her beautiful eyes: "I think so too, meeting you has been wonderful."
They stared at each other quietly, their breath quickening.
Mira was the first to be unable to stand the atmosphere; she nervously looked away, lightly pushing Rhode's chest: "You should go."
Rhode didn't let go.
He had a bold idea, but unfortunately, Mira seemed unable to accept it now.
But just leaving would be such a waste of this wonderful atmosphere.
Rhode thought for a moment: "Do you remember when we went for a picnic last time, you owed me a little flick on the forehead?"
Mira covered her forehead, pouting and looking at him: "Talking about this at such a time, is that your revenge?"
Rhode looked at her: "It's not. I want to trade it for something else."
"Trade for..." Of course, Mira knew what he wanted to trade for.
She put down her hand from her head, her cheeks burning: "Only on the forehead."
"Alright."
Mira closed her eyes, her face slightly tilted up, her hands twisted together.
Rhode's heart was racing; he wrapped one arm around her shoulders and gently supported the back of her head with the other.
'Mira's hairstyle is quite convenient at times like this.'
Rhode pushed the odd thought out of his mind, lowered his head, and gently pressed his lips against her forehead.
...
That night, Rhode didn't sleep well because he truly experienced what it meant to wake up laughing from a dream.
Of course, sometimes he jolted awake, wondering which side was real.
Rhode sat up, raised his hand, squeezed and opened it. The hard touch of the Devil Hand felt too real to be imaginary, and so did the soft touch of a small hand.
And... isn't it said that humans can't dream of sensations they've never experienced?
So, it's real?
Oh, suddenly getting together with Mira, where's the rationale in that?
Rhode reached under the blanket, fished out a Warm, which had fully evolved into an oversized pillow, barely fitting under the covers anymore.
He exerted some effort to lift Warm up: "Warm, don't you think?"
Warm opened its drowsy eyes, silently returned to Wailing Abyss.
Insane!
Not sleeping in the middle of the night, and not letting Poro sleep!
Tomorrow there'll be double compensations for the mental shock!
...
The next morning, although Rhode didn't sleep well, he still felt refreshed when he went to the Guild.
Rhode's excitement hadn't worn off, and he couldn't help but smile when he saw Mira.
Mira felt the same, but occasionally, she glared at him to compose himself: "You go clean over there first, I'll handle the counter."
"Okay." Rhode thought being together would be better, but seeing her playful expression, he followed her arrangement.
In their current state, it was actually more efficient to be a bit apart.
Laki asked suspiciously: "Did something happen between you two?"
Expecting the usual denial, she planned to tease Mira or bother Rhode.
But this time, neither of them denied it.
"Something really did!"
The Guild had started to get busy, Laki's exclamation drew quite a bit of attention.
Rhode smiled silently, Mira reassured her: "Don't shout, I'll tell you later, let's work first."
Work not possible at all.
Wasn't this just suspenseful? Laki observed the two, one bold guess after another forming in her mind.