“Hm? Why is there fire… Ah! Alicia!”
How much time had passed? Lindy must have also finished her tasks, as her voice called out loudly from the entrance. Light running footsteps followed, and before long, I was finally able to see Lindy again after what didn’t feel like a long separation.
Despite this, the dark circles under Lindy’s eyes were still prominent.
“Lindy is here. Come on in.”
“…This is my house, you know. Looks like you all have been having quite the time while I was gone.”
Lindy’s expression turned one of bemusement. It was understandable; she’d come home after working hard only to find that what she thought would be an empty house was instead filled with unexpected guests who had settled in.
If that wasn’t enough, these guests had rummaged through the kitchen and were leisurely eating tea and snacks as if nothing was wrong. Luna was even happily rocking back and forth in a rocking chair with a creaking sound, while Lilith was helping by pushing the chair in rhythm.
“Hehe… It might be because Lindy told me the other day that she could feel at home here, so I guess I unconsciously started thinking of it as my own…”
Since I was ultimately the one who had caused this situation, I had no choice but to apologize to Lindy on behalf of everyone.
“U, uh? Oh no, no! This IS your house Alicia! Seriously! Relax and stay! If you want tea or cookies, or anything else, feel free to take them! This is YOUR house!”
Thankfully, Lindy didn’t seem too upset and quickly forgave us. In fact, she took the plate in front of me, put it away, and then opened a high cabinet that neither Bear nor Tokki could reach. From it, she took some high-class cookies she had hidden and replaced the ones on the plate.
She handed me one of the cookies, which I promptly ate, then placed another in Presia’s mouth, who was lying with her head resting on my thigh. Still with her eyes closed, she gripped my hand holding the cookie and chewed contentedly, looking unbearably cute.
As I watched Presia for a moment, Lindy quietly returned with a chair, sat down in front of me, and asked:
“Anyways, are you taking care of your health while working? The last time you came over in a hurry, you looked awful, and today you don’t look much better.”
“Pfft, this amount of tiredness… Well, I wanted to say it’s no big deal, but yeah, I am a bit worn out. Am I that obvious?”
“To be honest, it’s surprising you’re even standing this way.”
She admitted that the last time she saw me, the make-up had somewhat hidden my exhaustion, but today it was painfully clear without it.
“Come on now, scoot a little closer.”
“Like this?”
“…A bit too close.”
When I told her to get closer, Lindy practically pressed herself against me, causing me some embarrassment as I gently moved her away a little.
“Now, face forward.”
Next, I turned Lindy’s body so she faced away from me. Slowly lifting my hands, I placed them gently on her shoulders.
“Wha? Alicia?”
“Relax.”
“H, but even if you tell me to relax…”
Ignoring whatever Lindy was about to say, I grasped her shoulders gently yet firmly, careful not to hurt her. Messing around by giving her a massage could backfire if I accidentally tightened up the knots in her already tense muscles.
“Hmm…”
My fingers trailed up the back of her neck, then slowly glided down her neck and back to her shoulders. It was clear that she’d been sitting at her desk for far too long, with every muscle in her body tight and knotted. Knowing that much of her strain was likely due to my responsibilities, it upset and angered me that she didn’t take better care of herself.
“Hnnng… Ah!”
Deciding to give her an additional light pinch on her tense arm, Lindy let out a mixture of a satisfied sigh and a surprised yelp.
“The massage is over. I’ve told you this before, but please start prioritizing your health when you work. Even if we miss out on catching a demon or two, your health is far more important.”
While missing a demon could indeed lead to unforeseen consequences, sacrificing Lindy’s well-being was not an option in my mind. If I had to, I would simply move quicker or take on more responsibilities to ensure her safety.
“Hehe… But if I can get Alicia to give me massages like this, it feels worth the trade-off, doesn’t it? I’ll be sure to ask you again soon.”
As much as I worried she might be developing a bad habit, I could counteract it later by threatening not to give her massages if she didn’t listen.
“Senior onee-sama. I’m hungry~”
As soon as the short massage session concluded, Luna poked her head out from the rocking chair and started complaining that she was hungry. Now that I thought about it, I had intended to prepare dinner before Lindy arrived, but lost track of time watching Presia sleep with her head on my lap.
“Lindy? Can I use the kitchen?”
“Eh, uh? The kitchen? What for suddenly?”
“Lindy hasn’t eaten dinner yet, has she? Neither have we. So let me make something for all of us to eat.”
I rather confidently offered to cook since I consider myself decent in the kitchen. Wanting to show Lindy my appreciation for her hard day’s work, I decided to make something special for her.
“A, ah! No, Alicia should just sit down. I’ll go make something quickly.”
But Lindy strongly rejected my offer. She even seemed to snap out of the relaxed state after the massage, stiffly shaking her head no.
“Haha, it’s alright, really. You look exhausted from work. Why don’t you go rest your eyes for a bit in the bedroom? I’ll call you when it’s ready.”
However, Lindy stood up before I could, pressing down firmly on my shoulders to keep me from standing.
“No matter what, it’s not right for the host to be served by the guest. Just wait a bit. I’ll prepare dinner.”
“Then how about I help on the side at least—”
I tried to compromise by offering to assist, but Lindy’s grip tightened on my shoulder.
“Why don’t you just sit nicely for a bit? Yeah?”
“Eh, okay…”
Faced with her determined stance, I reluctantly agreed and quietly sipped from my teacup, suddenly finding it quite parched.
From the kitchen, came the sounds of rustling, pots and pans being taken out, and the rhythmic chopping of a knife. It seemed Lindy was quite competent at cooking as well, and my interest was piqued on what she would prepare.
“Anyways, did you wrap up all the handovers or the stuff we talked about last time?”
With Presia sleeping soundly on my lap and Luna busy playing with Lilith on the rocking chair, I decided to start a conversation. I raised my voice to address Lindy in the kitchen.
“Yeah. Actually, I did have someone trustworthy in mind, but since the system isn’t just me running things anymore, I had to get approval from all the shareholders. Everyone wanted to send their own representatives, so most of my time was spent negotiating and sometimes pressuring them into agreement.”
Just hearing that was giving me a headache, but I guessed Lindy had it all under control. My job was simple: listen to Lindy and handle the enemies accordingly. One could call it… division of labor.
“Still, looks like you’re pretty busy, huh? Given that you’re off work.”
“Just one small issue cropped up. Not worth staying late, but still, work’s work. Oh, does the boss not handle spicy food well? If that’s the case…”
“Hmm… The boss doesn’t really like spice, but as long as it’s not too hot, it’ll be fine. By the way, what issue?”
“Then I’ll just leave out the spicy parts. It’s nothing big, really. Just received a report that a lower demon was spotted nearby. Turns out it was a legitimate report, but it’s not urgent enough to handle right away. So, I just left a few guards to keep an eye on it.”
“Pfft. Still, if you already know, you should deal with it quickly. Tell me where it is. I’ll take care of it while you prepare dinner.”
“It doesn’t have to be…”
I lifted Presia’s head gently and replaced my thigh with a cushion before standing up.
“…Then I’ll come as well.”
Not sure if she was actually asleep or just woke up from my voice, Presia attempted to stand but I gently pressed her shoulder, making her lie back down. If anything seemed off, I’d go with the others, but given what I’d heard, the situation was far from dangerous.
Even if Lindy failed to detect any other demons hiding, at least two upper demons would need to be lying in wait to truly pose a threat to me. And even if that were the case, I was confident I could conceal and escape anytime.
“The boss is tired too, please rest. It’s just one lower demon, it’s fine.”
“But…”
“You know my skills, right? Unless I fall into a trap, I have confidence I can protect myself, even if it were the Four Heavenly Kings.”
“…Fine. Just be careful, alright?”
“Yes. Thank you for worrying about me. Lindy? Where exactly is that demon located?”
“…Trying to stop you would just be a waste of breath. I’ll send a guide with you. Go quick and come back before the food cools. I’ll wait here.”
With a loud sigh that carried all the way from the kitchen, Lindy finally gave in, raising her hands in defeat. She set down her knife, returned, and pulled out a crystal ball to summon an underling.
“Though I can’t promise I’ll be back before dinner is ready, I’ll definitely return before the food gets cold.”
Carrying only my holy sword, I walked out of the house with the lightness of a casual stroll.
Yes. It was a walk filled with carefree ease.
