This is the start of a new chapter.
During what I thought would be a peaceful lunch break, I was diligently working in the Party Room with Kaido.
“Senpai, did you gain more wives?”
“It’s a bit different from that, but yes.”
As I was creating a report, Kaido suddenly brought up the topic, and I responded with a wry smile. I admit it’s a happy problem to have, but it’s also true that it’s an unusual situation by Japanese standards, which is why I respond this way.
“I’m envious, Senpai. How do you get so many?”
“If you get close to death, beat someone up, get close to death again, or stick your nose into troubling situations, you might be able to do it too.”
“Didn’t you just say ‘get close to death’ twice?”
“It’s important, so I said it twice. So, was my experience helpful?”
“Um, I’m sorry.”
“Don’t worry about it.”
Lately things have been chaotic, so I never thought that working on dungeon reports would become a peaceful time. Even as I chatted with Kaido, my eyes remained fixed on the PC screen, my fingers typing away busily. Rearranging traps, rebalancing monster strength, proposing new monsters, and planning new passages in the labyrinth. With every dungeon adjustment, new areas to modify become apparent. Because of this, my fingers are constantly moving, but unlike before, I have enough mental余裕 to chat while I work.
“When I heard the rumors, I thought you were kidding, Senpai. How did you meet that rumored Fallen Angel?”
“A giant iron ball flew at me when we met.”
I briefly explained the beginning of my encounter with Himik, and Kaido’s typing fingers stopped as he looked at me. I, with my next appointment looming, continued typing the report without pause.
“What’s that? It’s not just pink, it’s dyed entirely in violence colors.”
“It’s the truth.”
“Romance in another world is scary, huh.”
“It really is.”
“And you still accepted her?”
“…Suella and the others did.”
“Ah.”
A few days ago, I brought home a Fallen Angel named Himik. I was honestly unsure how to handle her. Frankly, she was in a fight, and I couldn’t just leave her there, so I was swept up in the situation and brought her back. However, I didn’t have any particular feelings towards her. Or rather, that was my one-sided belief. Going back a few days.
“Jiro-san.”
“What is it, Suella?”
“About Himik-san.”
“Himik?”
I was sitting on the sofa, chatting with Suella while watching Memoria feed Himik.
“It seems Himik-san likes Jiro-san.”
“Huh?”
Though said with a hint of a joke, Suella dropped this bombshell without any preamble. However, my brain capacity was completely used up trying to understand the content, leading to a rather clumsy reply. My eyes widened, and I stared intently at Suella’s face.
“I’m not joking, you know? Memoria has noticed it too.”
“…Impossible.”
Himik harboring feelings for me. Was there a process that led to this? The person being told indirectly by Suella about my feelings…
“Delicious!”
“You have anko on your cheek.”
“Oh.”
She was engrossed in a dorayaki. What I thought when seeing this scene was…
“You must be joking, right?”
“You think so?”
“Yes, and I have absolutely no idea why.”
I wouldn’t say I’m particularly sensitive to other people’s affections, but I’m not completely oblivious either. Even with my senses, I can’t fathom Himik having feelings for me. I haven’t felt any such atmosphere from her either. I thought this was just Suella and the others misunderstanding, but…
“Fufu, Jiro-san, you didn’t see Himik-san’s face when she followed you, did you?”
“Himik’s face?”
“Like a kitten afraid of being abandoned.”
“She looked like that?”
“Yes. I thought you would explain something, seeing her face when you brought her back like that. Well, you did explain. Just not in the way we expected.”
Hearing about Himik in a way that deviated from my image of her, I still couldn’t quite grasp it. I don’t have eyes in the back of my head, and when it comes to sensing presence, it’s surprisingly difficult to detect anything other than negative emotions like ill will, killing intent, or hostility. Furthermore, looking back, I realize I’ve been rather casual in my treatment of her since we met. I questioned whether there was any reason for her to fall for me, even as I denied such feelings. Yet, Suella and the others claimed to witness these very things. It would be easy to dismiss this as my imagination, but that would also be problematic. So, what should I do? I couldn’t think of a good plan. Asking her directly might be seen as overthinking things. And if it turned out to be a misunderstanding by Suella and the others, it would be truly embarrassing.
“There’s no need to think that deeply.”
“Suella?”
Suella offered me a lifeline.
“Himik-san.”
“Yes? Wife.”
“Suella is fine.”
She paused our conversation and beckoned Himik over. Himik, holding a half-eaten dorayaki, carefully placed it on a side plate and walked towards us. Suella seemed to glance at Memoria at that moment, but Memoria simply nodded once and sipped her tea without taking any action. Seemingly satisfied with that gesture, Suella just smiled brightly. It’s nice that the wives get along well, but I can’t shake the feeling that I’m being cornered… Regardless of my inner thoughts, Suella announced something to Himik.
“Himik-san, would you like to become Jiro-san’s wife?”
“!?!”
“Suella!?!?”
It seems Suella’s helping hand came with a jet of water, as she went straight for the kill with full throttle. I looked at Suella, thinking she couldn’t possibly have done that, but she just smiled and stared intently at Himik. As for the recipient of those words…
“Uh, umm, that…”
She was practically overheating from the directness of the proposal. However, her expression showed no negative emotions like dislike. In fact, her face was bright red, and she nervously fidgeted with her index fingers, peeking at me. The affection I hadn’t seen before was now visible. When our eyes met, she quickly looked away but then looked back at me again. Ah, with such actions, I had no choice but to believe Suella’s story. The eye contact between Suella and Memoria earlier was probably a final confirmation for this matter.
“Ah, Master, um…”
“Let’s just try to talk calmly, shall we?”
In a situation where the plan had already been executed without my full awareness, all I could do was listen slowly, just like Suella and Memoria. I met her gaze directly and told her to speak slowly, at her own pace. Himik hesitantly began to speak. She explained that angels can sense souls, and she fell in love at first sight with my soul, finding it appealing. She was also drawn to my clumsy kindness shown since we met. Hearing her praise my soul so much in front of me actually made me feel embarrassed. Finally, Himik said:
“Even if you have your wife Suella and Memoria, please let me stay by your side. Just being allowed to stay is enough for me.”
Her initial boldness had vanished, and she timidly said this to me. Anyone who could say no to such a request from a beautiful woman like Himik would have to be a homosexual, a lolicon, or some kind of monster. As I was none of those things, my action was…
“Honestly, don’t look so scared. It’s like I’m doing something wrong.”
“Ah.”
I had no choice but to honestly accept her feelings. While I considered myself easily swayed, it was also true that I was happy about her feelings. To express this, I gently patted Himik’s head, making a conscious effort to be gentle. Internally, I was still overwhelmed and couldn’t fully accept the suddenness of it all, but fortunately, I felt I had some leeway with time.
“I can’t do anything drastic right away, but at least I don’t dislike you. So, let’s get to know each other first.”
“Y-yes! That’s right, it starts with you getting to know me!!”
Jumping straight to marriage was too fast, so we settled on an engagement for the time being. However, what left the biggest impression at that moment was that when I patted her head, Himik’s smiling face wasn’t dignified or cool, but simply, adorably cute.
“Senpai, you say it’s unavoidable, but your face is smiling.”
“I’m aware of it.”
“If it weren’t you, Senpai, I’d be shouting ‘explode!'”
As I reminisced about that time, my cheeks must have loosened, because Kaido’s teasing words made me compose my expression and return to work.
“By the way, what is that Fallen Angel doing now? Since she’s not with you, she must be somewhere else, right?”
“Enjoying the tatami.”
“Huh?”
“I understand your reaction.”
Even as I returned to my work, Kaido seemed eager to continue the conversation, showing his intense interest in the topic. Thanks to my increased status, I had enough leeway to chat while working, so it wasn’t a problem. I decided not to point out that Kaido’s fingers had stopped typing. I figured he’d have to suffer later at his own risk, but Himik, who had piqued Kaido’s interest so much, was enjoying the tatami, or rather, the Japanese-style room. The day after we returned here, the issue wasn’t just Himik’s relationship status. Her living situation also became a topic. Of course, having her in my male room was out of the question. Initially, I considered having her stay in Suella’s room or at Memoria’s shop. However, Suella had some confidential documents in her room, making it impossible. And Memoria’s shop attracted too much attention, and having an angel, even a fallen one, there could cause various troubles, so that option was postponed. This led to a change of perspective: a proposal to move into a place where the four of us could live together was decided upon quite smoothly. I was shown a house according to the common sense of Suella and the others’ world. A 6LDK. In the past, I wouldn’t even consider a place this size when searching for an apartment. Seeing a room that occupied a third of that floor, I thought this was the norm where they came from, but when Suella said it was still on the smaller side, I could only offer a wry smile. The rent for such a place, with subsidies from the company, was a bargain for its size. Financially, there were no issues, nor was the atmosphere unpleasant. Being on a high floor, the view was also good, and Suella and Memoria seemed pleased. As we were about to finalize the decision, I noticed Himik was missing. I rushed to look for her, but Memoria, with a slight smile, led me to one of the many rooms. She put her finger to her lips, indicating quiet, then opened the sliding door to reveal Himik lying face down on the tatami, wings spread, using her arm as a pillow. According to Memoria, when they were viewing the rooms, Himik found this one and tentatively touched the tatami. Gradually, she became captivated by the feel, scent, and atmosphere of the tatami. And once she lay down, she was eventually lulled to sleep by the drowsiness. I guess she’s a Fallen Angel who likes Japanese things, between the dorayaki and the tatami. I wondered if she’d be pleased if I dressed her in a kimono, but I couldn’t just leave her like that in a room we hadn’t even finalized the contract for yet, so I gave the sleeping Himik a light chop to her head to wake her up. Her response at that moment, “I wasn’t sleeping! I wasn’t sleeping, I swear!” sounded just like a student caught dozing off in class, which made me laugh.
“Oh, so that’s what happened.”
“Yes, and because of that, we had to sign the contract for the room that very day. I was really glad Suella was there.”
While talking about Himik’s newfound love for tatami, the report was finally finished. I made one last check for typos and opened my mail.
“Huh?”
“What’s wrong?”
“No, I received a message from the HR department.”
“A message?”
I was about to quickly attach and send the report, but I noticed an unread message in my inbox and opened it.
“Announcement regarding the creation of a promotional video for next fiscal year’s Newcomer Dungeon Tester Career Choice Reference?”
“PV? As in, a promotional video?”
“Yes, that PV.”
It seems that due to the current imbalance in the Dungeon Tester profession, the Dungeon Test’s progress is slower than initially planned. Therefore, to make up for that imbalance with next season’s newcomers, they’re making a PV. Incidentally.
“There’s no right to refuse, huh?”
“It can’t be helped, Senpai. There are only three of us in the frontline, including ourselves.”
“It’s best to think of it as an investment in the future.”
“That’s right.”
At the bottom of the email, along with the schedule, it was stated by the Supervisor that there was no right to refuse. When I jokingly said to Kaido that this might be a sign of something, he replied, “It’s not funny to me,” which probably means we’re both getting molded by this company.
Today’s Word: As the end of the year approaches, things tend to get busy.
That’s all for now. If you found this interesting, please leave comments, ratings, bookmarks, etc. I look forward to your continued support of this work.
