Chapter 7: Into an Unseen Tomorrow
NTR Commissar
Bareback Collapsal
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'I can't believe it… You've set up a small camp here…'
'Ah, w-well, it's warmer to sleep in the alley compared to outside of town…' I explained. She pinched her brow and mumbled something I couldn't hear.
Miss Irina was helping me collect my clothes from the makeshift clothesline I'd strung up between the walls on either side. After I had worked out the details with Mr. Taylor's team, I was surprised to find Miss Irina following behind me. She wanted to see what kind of alleyway I'd been living in.
I liked to think that it was quite liveable now.
Nobody had ever come for the wooden crate, so I wrote my name on it and claimed it. It was a storage box for my belongings now. If anyone wanted it back one day, I could just scrub my name off and return it.
Besides the twig pillow I'd fashioned during my first week, in the crate were a few bottles of water in case I got thirsty at night, and some spare clothes.
There was a stone stool, and a broom as well.
I'd crafted the broom myself from twigs. You could buy brooms all over town, but they cost as much as a plate of fried frog meat at the Guild, which I thought was a bit expensive. I think I did a good job though. I needed to wash my clothes less often ever since I'd started sweeping the alley.
The stool was actually just a stone from the riverbed that I'd given a thorough scrubbing. Sitting on the ground was fine, but it was nice to have some variety.
It wasn't perfect, but well, all I did was sleep here, anyway. I wasn't causing trouble for anyone, and I was saving a lot of money this way.
'I think this might be illegal.'
…Eh?
'I–i-illegal…?'
Oh no… Don't tell me I—
Miss Irina clapped her hands in front of my face.
'Stop, none of that now.' A-ah, I almost fell into another— 'Are you paying attention? Hitori, even putting the law aside, this isn't how anybody should be living, let alone a young girl like you.'
Was it really so bad?
'B-but it's been fine so far…' I protested. I looked around the alley.
…I-I suppose it must have seemed pretty rough from an outsider's perspective. Before I'd tried it myself, I definitely wouldn't have thought this was a comfortable way to live. But I was an adventurer now. I'd camped in the bushes before, so what was so different about doing it in town?
'What were you going to do if it rained?' she asked. I'd noticed that she was a lot more forward outside of work hours.
It wasn't like I hadn't considered it. The cobbled floor didn't provide much absorption, so if it rained I would get soaked with the run-off. If it ever happened, I was just going to stay up all night and use my Summer Vitality. The sound of the rainfall would muffle my shoddy playing anyway.
Somehow I had the feeling that this wouldn't be the smart thing to say though.
Instead, I argued, 'You s-said that it mostly rained in s-summer…'
Disapproval radiated from Miss Irina.
'That doesn't mean it never rains in autumn. It's also going to be freezing in a few weeks.'
'T-that's why I've been looking… for new quests…'
Miss Irina's eyes were scrutinising. After a moment of silence she sighed again.
'Alright, that's it. I'm not going to wait until you find the money and courage to find some roommates.'
'Ah, n-no, I really have been l-looking—'
'Do you really think I'd believe that? Anyhow, you'd be more comfortable with me, right? We don't have much space in the living room, but you can sleep on the floor of my bedroom.' She hummed thoughtfully before nodding to herself. 'It's not ideal, but it's better than this.'
Eh?! W-was I being invited to live with Miss Irina?! S-s-she'd really have me over?!
'R-really, Miss Irina? I wouldn't—'
'Irina,' she corrected.
'—I-Irina.'
No way. I'd never been invited to someone's house like this before. When I was little, some of my classmates stayed overnight at their friends' place but I'd never had any friends before. Was it finally time to make use of the rules I'd memorised?!
Seven, seven… What was rule number seven?!
'Hey, are you listening?'
'I-I'm sorry I-Irina… I can't even remember rule seven…' I said despairingly. I covered my face.
'Rule seven of what? Nevermind, let's just go. Is this everything?'
Huh? I looked around. Ah, she was asking about my belongings.
I nodded.
'You probably don't need to bring these bottles of water, but I can help carry them if you'd like.'
Oh. I was a little reluctant to part with my only belongings, but I didn't want to crowd her home with my things.
'It's okay. J-just the clothes and this pillow…'
'I have a pillow. You don't need to use this… thing . Unless that's your preference?' she asked.
I shook my head. It was nice experiencing ancient Japanese culture, but I still preferred a soft pillow. Once I had my clothes packed into one of my bags, we set off out of the alleyway.
'I-I can't believe you're letting me sleep on your floor…'
I was so happy.
'...It sounds really bad when you say it like that, but we've got a futon. I'd share my bed, but it's only wide enough for one.'
'N-no…' My face must have been red from excitement. 'I'm just so happy…'
'...Geez, talk about making someone feel bad.'
I happily followed behind Miss Irina as we moved into a part of town that I'd never visited before. It was hard to make out too many details given that the sun had long since set, but as we moved deeper in I thought we were in the craftsmen's area.
Here and there I saw artisan shops that were still in the middle of closing up. I wasn't sure how many customers would be shopping for pots and pans this late, but maybe the store owners didn't have anything better to do. W-was that rude of me to think so? But it wasn't like I was blaming them for not having television or internet…
We turned a corner and I followed Miss Irina towards a small brick house with glass windows like the others. If there was anything unique about it, it was that the houses on this block weren't islands. They were packed, side to side. I didn't know what that was called. Terracing, maybe? It looked cosy.
Warm light was spilling from the curtained windows. Ah. Come to think of it, because I'd never visited a friends' house before that meant that I'd never greeted a friend's parents before either.
I-I didn't have a gift with me. Was that even part of the culture in this country? Surely it was just polite to bring one. I wanted to check my belongings for anything suitable, but all I had was my handmade pillow and my clothing!
'U-umm, I d-don't have a… S-should we go buy…?'
Miss Irina didn't seem to hear me as she unlocked the door and ushered me inside. W-wait, I wasn't rea—
…Eh? Who was this? H-h-her boyfriend…?
Sitting at a dinner table was a young man about my age. Short dark brown hair, wide shoulders, a rugged but handsome face like some kind of baseball star.
Right. Of course. Miss Irina was so pretty and nice. It made sense that she had a boyfriend or two. They were both so young though, and already living together. This was why foreigners were…
'Oh, Rina-nee. You're back early. Who's this?'
O-ohh, it was her younger brother? The face shape... On closer inspection, he did look a bit like her.
'E-excu-e-e-excuse…'
No! Not at a time like this…! He turned back to Miss Irina while I stammered.
'Concussion?' he asked in a knowing tone.
'No, Hitori is just like that. She's a new adventurer who'll be staying with us until she finds her feet. Hitori, this is my younger brother, Roy.'
He waved at me.
'E-e-excuse t-the—'
'Come on, I'll show you to my room. I'll lend you some pyjamas too.'
Miss Irina took my hand and pulled me further into the cosy home. It was deeper than it was wide, and all the rooms along the hallway were on the left. The second door was her bedroom.
A neatly-made bed sat in the corner, while a small desk, shelf, and bookcase sat snugly in the opposite corner. A small pot plant was being used as a bookend on the shelf above the desk. The room smelt nice. It was warm, too.
So this was the floor I was going to sleep on. I felt a little giddy.
While I was politely inspecting my surroundings, Miss Irina rummaged through a light brown cupboard.
'Here.' She held out a bundle of clothing for me. 'You can get changed into these. You're a bit smaller than me so they might hang a little loose though.'
The pyjamas were soft and light blue. M-my first time borrowing clothes…!
'I'll wait outside for you to change and then I'll bring out the futon. Actually, let me check what's for dinner.'
Miss Irina closed the door behind her, leaving me barefoot in her room. Unable to stop myself, I took a deep sniff of the clothing first. Clean and fragrant. How nice. I eyed Miss Irina's pillow curiously, but thought better of it.
Right, Miss Irina was still waiting for me. Rather than doing strange things in her room, it was better to get changed first.
I placed the clean pyjamas onto her bed first. Then I took off my clothing and left them in the corner of the room. They were undoubtedly less clean than the floor of her house, so I tried my best to keep it that way.
As expected, the pants were a little long. Miss Irina had long, stylish legs after all. I bent over to roll up the cuffs, and thankfully that worked out just fine. With nothing left to worry about, the top came on next.
H-huh? The shirt wasn't fitting very well. Wait… Hmm… Huh?
'Hitori? Are you okay in there?'
'I-I'm fine!' I said through the door.
Come on… T-there. This was good enough, right?
I nervously opened the door and headed outside.
Irina's eyes glued themselves to my chest.
'…How on earth did you hide those?' Oh no! She looked a little upset! After a moment she crossed her arms and examined me. 'I don't have anything bigger though, and it's probably still better than sleeping in your day clothes.'
'N-no. I'm grateful! I-It's my first time b-borrowing clothes from a f-friend,' I said.
'Yeah, I'll bet. Anyhow, there's some stew for dinner. Want some?'
Miss Irina really was such an angel… Was it OK for me to keep taking advantage of her?!
'I-I c-couldn't possibly…'
'Just eat.' Eh?! I was being tugged by the arm again, and led back into the living room. 'If you really feel bad about it, then do your best tomorrow.'
Before I could get my bearings, I was shoved into one of the seats around the dining table.
To the side, Roy looked at me curiously and then shrugged. 'You might as well listen to her the first time, or Rina-nee'll nag you to no end.'
' Roy! '
'Ah, by the way,' he said, ignoring her outburst. 'Master says that I'm worthy of learning the next step now, so starting tomorrow I'll be coming home a bit later.'
'Oh, already?' Irina asked, the annoyance on her face turning contemplative. 'I thought you said it would be another few months.'
Roy shrugged. 'I guess I've just got talent for this.'
Noticing my gaze, Miss Irina explained while she was ladling portions of the soup into large bowls. 'Roy's apprenticing under one of the blacksmiths in town.'
'The best one,' he said.
'You shouldn't discount the others just because they don't make gear for adventurers. You might find yourself needing to sell pots and pans one day,' Irina warned.
'I'm already making knives, so I'll sell those.'
I watched them bicker back and forth. Thank goodness Futari was so much younger than me. If our age gap were more like these siblings, I would never have survived a single skirmish…
'So how'd you get yourself kidnapped, anyway?' Roy suddenly asked.
Eh? Eh?
He gestured at me. 'Rina-nee doesn't usually bring her work home with her.'
Miss Irina sent him a flat look. 'You're being rude. We're new friends.'
'Another friend, huh?' Roy looked back towards me with a serious expression. 'If you're being coerced, I can hold my sister down while you run.'
Miss Irina swiped at his head, but Roy dodged it with ease.
'So, another new adventurer, huh?'
Oh. I had to respond!
'I-I-, y-yes! I'm new adventurer!'
I messed up!
'Guessing you're new to Axel too, if you're stuck sleeping on Rina-nee's floor.'
'If she wasn't sleeping on my floor, she'd still be roughing it in an alleyway tonight—' I flushed as Roy's eyes widened. '—just like you'll be if you don't fix that smart mouth of yours.'
'I-I-...'
Think , Hitori! Say something!
'I didn't k-know it was against the law!' I cried, and half covered my face in shame.
…I had definitely suspected something though!
'Man, I'd heard adventurers were slumming it in stables, but I guess if you don't fancy sleeping next to horse shit, an alleyway is the next best thing, huh?'
Roy sounded rather impressed.
'Which alleyway?' he asked.
'O-oh, I-I-I-I-! I-it-it!'
'It was actually on the corner of that bakery we used to get Baumkuchen from as kids. You remember the one?'
I was saved! Miss Irina was my guardian angel after all !
'Huh. No kidding. I haven't been that way in ages.'
It was my chance to say something.
'A-Axel!'
The two of them looked my way. H-huh? What was I going to say again? O-oh!
'Y-you two… Have you always lived in Axel?'
Miss Irina nodded. 'We grew up in a different district, but it's always been Axel Town for us.'
Wow. I learned another thing about my friend!
'Ehehe… A-are your parents still living in Axel too?'
Come to think of it, I saw another bedroom earlier. Was that a guest room for their parents?
Maybe I'd have to greet them someday, if they came over. I-I could buy them a cake with the money I'd make with my new party!
'Ah, our parents died in an accident when we were younger.' My heart dropped into my stomach. 'It wasn't all bad. After something like that, siblings either grow really close or they can't stand each other,' Miss Irina said with a smile, despite the fact that I'd just brought up painful memories for her!
'In this case it's the latter.'
Miss Irina swiped at Roy's head again, but he dodged it without even looking.
'O-oh n-no, I-I'm, I'm so sorry to h-hear…'
Roy waved his spoon at me. 'It was ages ago, it's fine.'
I would be so sad if I lost Mum. Even if I lost Dad.
'S-so, you had to look after R-Roy when you were younger?' I asked.
No wonder Miss Irina was so good at taking care of others. It must have been so tough…
'Huh? Oh, no, when we lost our parents it was my eldest sister who looked after us,' Miss Irina said.
Roy nodded skilfully even as he slurped from his bowl.
'Sis used to work as a clerk at the guild, too,' she continued. 'It's actually because of her that I'm working there.'
Oh. In my mind I could see another Miss Irina gently taking care of a tiny Miss Irina and Roy.
'I wonder what she's up to,' Miss Irina wondered.
Roy must have noticed the question in my expression.
'On my sixteenth birthday she shouted "I'm finally free!" and the next day she left for Arcanletia to become a travelling one-woman circus,' he explained to me nonchalantly.
Eh? Suddenly the clothes worn by the 'Miss Irina' in my head turned a little strange, and she began juggling balls of different colours.
'Hey! Hoi! Hey!' shouts Sister ver. Irina as she rides a unicycle while juggling seven balls.
Miss Irina snorted. 'She hadn't told anybody at the Guild that she was quitting, so after some discussion with the boss, I ended up taking her old job.'
…Unsure of what to say, I went back to my stew.
When we were done eating, I offered to help with the dishes, but Irina told me to just watch for tonight. T-to be honest that was probably for the best, since Mum did all the washing up back home.
I did my best to burn the techniques into my mind as I watched Irina work. When the dishes were done, it was time for bed. Irina pulled out a futon from her closet and laid it on the ground.
'Hope it's comfortable enough,' she said.
'I-it looks wonderful.' I was being honest. It looked as good as my futon back home. 'U-um, about the food…'
'It's just one meal. Actually, if you want, you can pitch in when we get groceries. Home cooked food is cheaper than what you can get at the guild.'
'O-okay.'
'If that's still not enough, you can pitch in with the chores too. We'll find a way to split it fairly.'
U-usually Mum would do the chores at home, but I was at a friend's house now! That was rule number 5 of sleepovers!
'Y-y-you can count on me! I-I'll be Hitori the Chore Machine!'
Miss Irina snorted and patted me on the shoulder. 'Sleep well, Hitori.'
I watched her crawl into bed for a moment before I carefully lay into my futon.
'G-good night, Miss Irina.'
'Irina,' she scolded.
***
In the darkness, I watched her sleep.
Miss Irina was so nice.
Eyes wide open, I pulled the futon up to my nose and breathed in heavily. My first sleepover. My first sleepover !
Hehehehehehehe…
A/N: I was really struggling with Bocchi's first adventure with a party. In the end I cut chapter 7 in two, since it was getting long, and this half and the (now chapter 8) second half don't have much to do with each other anyway.
I actually have more of Chapter 9 and 10 finalised than 8 lol.
'Ah, w-well, it's warmer to sleep in the alley compared to outside of town…' I explained. She pinched her brow and mumbled something I couldn't hear.
Miss Irina was helping me collect my clothes from the makeshift clothesline I'd strung up between the walls on either side. After I had worked out the details with Mr. Taylor's team, I was surprised to find Miss Irina following behind me. She wanted to see what kind of alleyway I'd been living in.
I liked to think that it was quite liveable now.
Nobody had ever come for the wooden crate, so I wrote my name on it and claimed it. It was a storage box for my belongings now. If anyone wanted it back one day, I could just scrub my name off and return it.
Besides the twig pillow I'd fashioned during my first week, in the crate were a few bottles of water in case I got thirsty at night, and some spare clothes.
There was a stone stool, and a broom as well.
I'd crafted the broom myself from twigs. You could buy brooms all over town, but they cost as much as a plate of fried frog meat at the Guild, which I thought was a bit expensive. I think I did a good job though. I needed to wash my clothes less often ever since I'd started sweeping the alley.
The stool was actually just a stone from the riverbed that I'd given a thorough scrubbing. Sitting on the ground was fine, but it was nice to have some variety.
It wasn't perfect, but well, all I did was sleep here, anyway. I wasn't causing trouble for anyone, and I was saving a lot of money this way.
'I think this might be illegal.'
…Eh?
'I–i-illegal…?'
Oh no… Don't tell me I—
Miss Irina clapped her hands in front of my face.
'Stop, none of that now.' A-ah, I almost fell into another— 'Are you paying attention? Hitori, even putting the law aside, this isn't how anybody should be living, let alone a young girl like you.'
Was it really so bad?
'B-but it's been fine so far…' I protested. I looked around the alley.
…I-I suppose it must have seemed pretty rough from an outsider's perspective. Before I'd tried it myself, I definitely wouldn't have thought this was a comfortable way to live. But I was an adventurer now. I'd camped in the bushes before, so what was so different about doing it in town?
'What were you going to do if it rained?' she asked. I'd noticed that she was a lot more forward outside of work hours.
It wasn't like I hadn't considered it. The cobbled floor didn't provide much absorption, so if it rained I would get soaked with the run-off. If it ever happened, I was just going to stay up all night and use my Summer Vitality. The sound of the rainfall would muffle my shoddy playing anyway.
Somehow I had the feeling that this wouldn't be the smart thing to say though.
Instead, I argued, 'You s-said that it mostly rained in s-summer…'
Disapproval radiated from Miss Irina.
'That doesn't mean it never rains in autumn. It's also going to be freezing in a few weeks.'
'T-that's why I've been looking… for new quests…'
Miss Irina's eyes were scrutinising. After a moment of silence she sighed again.
'Alright, that's it. I'm not going to wait until you find the money and courage to find some roommates.'
'Ah, n-no, I really have been l-looking—'
'Do you really think I'd believe that? Anyhow, you'd be more comfortable with me, right? We don't have much space in the living room, but you can sleep on the floor of my bedroom.' She hummed thoughtfully before nodding to herself. 'It's not ideal, but it's better than this.'
Eh?! W-was I being invited to live with Miss Irina?! S-s-she'd really have me over?!
'R-really, Miss Irina? I wouldn't—'
'Irina,' she corrected.
'—I-Irina.'
No way. I'd never been invited to someone's house like this before. When I was little, some of my classmates stayed overnight at their friends' place but I'd never had any friends before. Was it finally time to make use of the rules I'd memorised?!
- Follow the rules of their house
- Be careful not to make noise
- Don't touch things without permission
- Tidy up after yourself
- Help with the cooking and cleaning
- Don't waste their soap and tissues
Seven, seven… What was rule number seven?!
'Hey, are you listening?'
'I-I'm sorry I-Irina… I can't even remember rule seven…' I said despairingly. I covered my face.
'Rule seven of what? Nevermind, let's just go. Is this everything?'
Huh? I looked around. Ah, she was asking about my belongings.
I nodded.
'You probably don't need to bring these bottles of water, but I can help carry them if you'd like.'
Oh. I was a little reluctant to part with my only belongings, but I didn't want to crowd her home with my things.
'It's okay. J-just the clothes and this pillow…'
'I have a pillow. You don't need to use this… thing . Unless that's your preference?' she asked.
I shook my head. It was nice experiencing ancient Japanese culture, but I still preferred a soft pillow. Once I had my clothes packed into one of my bags, we set off out of the alleyway.
'I-I can't believe you're letting me sleep on your floor…'
I was so happy.
'...It sounds really bad when you say it like that, but we've got a futon. I'd share my bed, but it's only wide enough for one.'
'N-no…' My face must have been red from excitement. 'I'm just so happy…'
'...Geez, talk about making someone feel bad.'
I happily followed behind Miss Irina as we moved into a part of town that I'd never visited before. It was hard to make out too many details given that the sun had long since set, but as we moved deeper in I thought we were in the craftsmen's area.
Here and there I saw artisan shops that were still in the middle of closing up. I wasn't sure how many customers would be shopping for pots and pans this late, but maybe the store owners didn't have anything better to do. W-was that rude of me to think so? But it wasn't like I was blaming them for not having television or internet…
We turned a corner and I followed Miss Irina towards a small brick house with glass windows like the others. If there was anything unique about it, it was that the houses on this block weren't islands. They were packed, side to side. I didn't know what that was called. Terracing, maybe? It looked cosy.
Warm light was spilling from the curtained windows. Ah. Come to think of it, because I'd never visited a friends' house before that meant that I'd never greeted a friend's parents before either.
I-I didn't have a gift with me. Was that even part of the culture in this country? Surely it was just polite to bring one. I wanted to check my belongings for anything suitable, but all I had was my handmade pillow and my clothing!
'U-umm, I d-don't have a… S-should we go buy…?'
Miss Irina didn't seem to hear me as she unlocked the door and ushered me inside. W-wait, I wasn't rea—
…Eh? Who was this? H-h-her boyfriend…?
Sitting at a dinner table was a young man about my age. Short dark brown hair, wide shoulders, a rugged but handsome face like some kind of baseball star.
Right. Of course. Miss Irina was so pretty and nice. It made sense that she had a boyfriend or two. They were both so young though, and already living together. This was why foreigners were…
'Oh, Rina-nee. You're back early. Who's this?'
O-ohh, it was her younger brother? The face shape... On closer inspection, he did look a bit like her.
'E-excu-e-e-excuse…'
No! Not at a time like this…! He turned back to Miss Irina while I stammered.
'Concussion?' he asked in a knowing tone.
'No, Hitori is just like that. She's a new adventurer who'll be staying with us until she finds her feet. Hitori, this is my younger brother, Roy.'
He waved at me.
'E-e-excuse t-the—'
'Come on, I'll show you to my room. I'll lend you some pyjamas too.'
Miss Irina took my hand and pulled me further into the cosy home. It was deeper than it was wide, and all the rooms along the hallway were on the left. The second door was her bedroom.
A neatly-made bed sat in the corner, while a small desk, shelf, and bookcase sat snugly in the opposite corner. A small pot plant was being used as a bookend on the shelf above the desk. The room smelt nice. It was warm, too.
So this was the floor I was going to sleep on. I felt a little giddy.
While I was politely inspecting my surroundings, Miss Irina rummaged through a light brown cupboard.
'Here.' She held out a bundle of clothing for me. 'You can get changed into these. You're a bit smaller than me so they might hang a little loose though.'
The pyjamas were soft and light blue. M-my first time borrowing clothes…!
'I'll wait outside for you to change and then I'll bring out the futon. Actually, let me check what's for dinner.'
Miss Irina closed the door behind her, leaving me barefoot in her room. Unable to stop myself, I took a deep sniff of the clothing first. Clean and fragrant. How nice. I eyed Miss Irina's pillow curiously, but thought better of it.
Right, Miss Irina was still waiting for me. Rather than doing strange things in her room, it was better to get changed first.
I placed the clean pyjamas onto her bed first. Then I took off my clothing and left them in the corner of the room. They were undoubtedly less clean than the floor of her house, so I tried my best to keep it that way.
As expected, the pants were a little long. Miss Irina had long, stylish legs after all. I bent over to roll up the cuffs, and thankfully that worked out just fine. With nothing left to worry about, the top came on next.
H-huh? The shirt wasn't fitting very well. Wait… Hmm… Huh?
'Hitori? Are you okay in there?'
'I-I'm fine!' I said through the door.
Come on… T-there. This was good enough, right?
I nervously opened the door and headed outside.
Irina's eyes glued themselves to my chest.
'…How on earth did you hide those?' Oh no! She looked a little upset! After a moment she crossed her arms and examined me. 'I don't have anything bigger though, and it's probably still better than sleeping in your day clothes.'
'N-no. I'm grateful! I-It's my first time b-borrowing clothes from a f-friend,' I said.
'Yeah, I'll bet. Anyhow, there's some stew for dinner. Want some?'
Miss Irina really was such an angel… Was it OK for me to keep taking advantage of her?!
'I-I c-couldn't possibly…'
'Just eat.' Eh?! I was being tugged by the arm again, and led back into the living room. 'If you really feel bad about it, then do your best tomorrow.'
Before I could get my bearings, I was shoved into one of the seats around the dining table.
To the side, Roy looked at me curiously and then shrugged. 'You might as well listen to her the first time, or Rina-nee'll nag you to no end.'
' Roy! '
'Ah, by the way,' he said, ignoring her outburst. 'Master says that I'm worthy of learning the next step now, so starting tomorrow I'll be coming home a bit later.'
'Oh, already?' Irina asked, the annoyance on her face turning contemplative. 'I thought you said it would be another few months.'
Roy shrugged. 'I guess I've just got talent for this.'
Noticing my gaze, Miss Irina explained while she was ladling portions of the soup into large bowls. 'Roy's apprenticing under one of the blacksmiths in town.'
'The best one,' he said.
'You shouldn't discount the others just because they don't make gear for adventurers. You might find yourself needing to sell pots and pans one day,' Irina warned.
'I'm already making knives, so I'll sell those.'
I watched them bicker back and forth. Thank goodness Futari was so much younger than me. If our age gap were more like these siblings, I would never have survived a single skirmish…
'So how'd you get yourself kidnapped, anyway?' Roy suddenly asked.
Eh? Eh?
He gestured at me. 'Rina-nee doesn't usually bring her work home with her.'
Miss Irina sent him a flat look. 'You're being rude. We're new friends.'
'Another friend, huh?' Roy looked back towards me with a serious expression. 'If you're being coerced, I can hold my sister down while you run.'
Miss Irina swiped at his head, but Roy dodged it with ease.
'So, another new adventurer, huh?'
Oh. I had to respond!
'I-I-, y-yes! I'm new adventurer!'
I messed up!
'Guessing you're new to Axel too, if you're stuck sleeping on Rina-nee's floor.'
'If she wasn't sleeping on my floor, she'd still be roughing it in an alleyway tonight—' I flushed as Roy's eyes widened. '—just like you'll be if you don't fix that smart mouth of yours.'
'I-I-...'
Think , Hitori! Say something!
'I didn't k-know it was against the law!' I cried, and half covered my face in shame.
…I had definitely suspected something though!
'Man, I'd heard adventurers were slumming it in stables, but I guess if you don't fancy sleeping next to horse shit, an alleyway is the next best thing, huh?'
Roy sounded rather impressed.
'Which alleyway?' he asked.
'O-oh, I-I-I-I-! I-it-it!'
'It was actually on the corner of that bakery we used to get Baumkuchen from as kids. You remember the one?'
I was saved! Miss Irina was my guardian angel after all !
'Huh. No kidding. I haven't been that way in ages.'
It was my chance to say something.
'A-Axel!'
The two of them looked my way. H-huh? What was I going to say again? O-oh!
'Y-you two… Have you always lived in Axel?'
Miss Irina nodded. 'We grew up in a different district, but it's always been Axel Town for us.'
Wow. I learned another thing about my friend!
'Ehehe… A-are your parents still living in Axel too?'
Come to think of it, I saw another bedroom earlier. Was that a guest room for their parents?
Maybe I'd have to greet them someday, if they came over. I-I could buy them a cake with the money I'd make with my new party!
'Ah, our parents died in an accident when we were younger.' My heart dropped into my stomach. 'It wasn't all bad. After something like that, siblings either grow really close or they can't stand each other,' Miss Irina said with a smile, despite the fact that I'd just brought up painful memories for her!
'In this case it's the latter.'
Miss Irina swiped at Roy's head again, but he dodged it without even looking.
'O-oh n-no, I-I'm, I'm so sorry to h-hear…'
Roy waved his spoon at me. 'It was ages ago, it's fine.'
I would be so sad if I lost Mum. Even if I lost Dad.
'S-so, you had to look after R-Roy when you were younger?' I asked.
No wonder Miss Irina was so good at taking care of others. It must have been so tough…
'Huh? Oh, no, when we lost our parents it was my eldest sister who looked after us,' Miss Irina said.
Roy nodded skilfully even as he slurped from his bowl.
'Sis used to work as a clerk at the guild, too,' she continued. 'It's actually because of her that I'm working there.'
Oh. In my mind I could see another Miss Irina gently taking care of a tiny Miss Irina and Roy.
'I wonder what she's up to,' Miss Irina wondered.
Roy must have noticed the question in my expression.
'On my sixteenth birthday she shouted "I'm finally free!" and the next day she left for Arcanletia to become a travelling one-woman circus,' he explained to me nonchalantly.
Eh? Suddenly the clothes worn by the 'Miss Irina' in my head turned a little strange, and she began juggling balls of different colours.
'Hey! Hoi! Hey!' shouts Sister ver. Irina as she rides a unicycle while juggling seven balls.
Miss Irina snorted. 'She hadn't told anybody at the Guild that she was quitting, so after some discussion with the boss, I ended up taking her old job.'
…Unsure of what to say, I went back to my stew.
When we were done eating, I offered to help with the dishes, but Irina told me to just watch for tonight. T-to be honest that was probably for the best, since Mum did all the washing up back home.
I did my best to burn the techniques into my mind as I watched Irina work. When the dishes were done, it was time for bed. Irina pulled out a futon from her closet and laid it on the ground.
'Hope it's comfortable enough,' she said.
'I-it looks wonderful.' I was being honest. It looked as good as my futon back home. 'U-um, about the food…'
'It's just one meal. Actually, if you want, you can pitch in when we get groceries. Home cooked food is cheaper than what you can get at the guild.'
'O-okay.'
'If that's still not enough, you can pitch in with the chores too. We'll find a way to split it fairly.'
U-usually Mum would do the chores at home, but I was at a friend's house now! That was rule number 5 of sleepovers!
'Y-y-you can count on me! I-I'll be Hitori the Chore Machine!'
Miss Irina snorted and patted me on the shoulder. 'Sleep well, Hitori.'
I watched her crawl into bed for a moment before I carefully lay into my futon.
'G-good night, Miss Irina.'
'Irina,' she scolded.
***
In the darkness, I watched her sleep.
Miss Irina was so nice.
Eyes wide open, I pulled the futon up to my nose and breathed in heavily. My first sleepover. My first sleepover !
Hehehehehehehe…
A/N: I was really struggling with Bocchi's first adventure with a party. In the end I cut chapter 7 in two, since it was getting long, and this half and the (now chapter 8) second half don't have much to do with each other anyway.
I actually have more of Chapter 9 and 10 finalised than 8 lol.
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