A/N: Sorry about the delay, I was struggling with how to lay out the different scenes in this chapter. I tend to just have a basic idea of what I want to happen, but I rarely plan out the details in advance. Hopefully it turns out alright and it doesn't end up dragging in places. Anyway, hope you enjoy the new chapter, and what awaits Yuuto during his stay at the Kurusu residence you may ask? Well, you'll just have to read to find out!
It was early morning at the Kurusu residence, and light was starting to spill into Kimihito's room through the window. Yuuto laid under the covers as he started to stir from his slumber. As he tried to get up, he felt a weight keeping him pinned to the bed. He glanced to his side to see Lala resting her head against his right shoulder as she slept peacefully. He then flung the covers from himself to find her body clung to his left side, only wearing a white tank top and black shorts, as well as her black scarf to cover her neck. He had gone to bed alone, but it seemed that his girlfriend snuck in during the night, wanting to take every opportunity to cuddle up to him.
Yuuto just smirked to himself as his cheeks went a faint shade of red. "Should've expected her to do this sooner or later." He thought to himself as he wrapped his left arm around her shoulders and his right arm around her head.
As he did so, he felt her body shift itself, so it was now laying right on top of him with her breast pressing up against his chest. He glanced to his right to see her head still sound asleep. He glanced up at her body, though he was unprepared for the sight of seeing her exposed cross-section.
He quickly glanced up again with an embarrassed look on his face, also feeling slightly nauseous from seeing his girlfriend's oesophagus. "Well, that's going to take some getting used to…" As he was looking up, he noticed that the covers he threw off them were still mysteriously hanging in the air above the pair. "What the hell?" He muttered to himself with a look of bewilderment.
As he moved Lala's body to the side and sat himself up, her head began to stir from it's slumber as her body began to prop itself up. "Good morning me Love. I hope ye rested well in the realm o' Morpheus." She said while stifling a yawn as her body wrapped her arms around his chest.
Yuuto looked down at her head and gave her a warm smile. "Hey Babe, yeah I slept great." He replied as he placed a hand on her arm and gently rubbed it, causing her body to hold him tighter in their embrace. "But I think we have a bit of a situation here."
A look of worry crossed her face. "What perils await us this time?"
The blonde loosened himself from her body's grip and picked up her head with both hands. As they looked around Kimihito's room, they saw that there were many strands of silk criss-crossing all over the space leaving very little room to move. They noticed many more above them that were suspending the covers in mid-air.
"Looks like Rachnera's been busy while we were sleeping." Yuuto replied with a hint of annoyance in his voice.
*Sigh* "I see that she still holds a vendetta against ye fer yer trick the other day."
"Doppel's prank, thank you very much. She was the one that dragged me into it." He replied defensively.
"Regardless, this is a simple trap tae disarm, though I require ye tae restore me tae me full power." Lala replied, her voice full of determination.
"Sure thing, I just hope that scythe of yours isn't just for show."
Just as he was about to put Lala's head back onto her body, a knocking came from the bedroom door, soon followed by Centorea's voice. "Caretaker Yuuto, art thou awake?" She asked in a respectful tone.
"Yeah, I am, and you can drop the 'Caretaker' title while you're at it." The human answered with a hint of annoyance as he placed the girlfriend's head back on her shoulders, which she immediately readjusted.
"M-My apologies!" She responded as she burst through the door. "I only meant to show thee respect while thou art-!"
"Hold on Centorea! Don't come in here!" Yuuto shouted in an attempt to stop her, but his warning came too late.
As she came into the bedroom, she let out a yelp of surprise as she was immediately tangled up in all the lines of silk the arachne had set up for Yuuto. The centaur began to flail about in a panic, but it only succeeded it getting her more entrapped within the silk. Luckily for the human though, Centorea's flailing had managed to open a safe passage between the bed and the door.
"Confound that spider and her traps!" The equestrian knight shouted in irritation as she struggled to free herself. "She will feel my wrath once I'm free of these snares!"
"Calm down and quit your flailing, will you?" He asked as he got off the bed and made his way to the door. "I'll have you down in a sec." As he made his way to the door, he shut it and found Black Lotus propped against the wall in its sheath. He then unsheathed the katana and made his way to the now calm centaur. "Okay, I'll need you to stay still while I cut you free, got it?"
"As thou wish, but prithee, I wish to be released as soon as thou art able to. This sticky sensation is becoming rather unbearable." She answered in an embarrassed to, staying as still as possible.
Before he could attempt to free the centaur, the door opened once more to reveal Rachnera with a mischievous smile on her face, hopeful that her trap succeeded in ensnaring her intended target. "Sounds like someone's gotten a little tied up this morning." The arachne said teasingly before laying her eyes on her equestrian house mate, and her smile was soon replaced with a pout. "Oh, it's just you Horse Flesh. That trap was meant for Yuuto you know." She added with a look of disappointment.
"I care not for thy target Rachnera! Thou should be treating our caretaker with the greatest of respect for what he is doing for us! Plus, I am rather sick and tired of thy traps!" Centorea shouted in anger as she tried to shake herself free.
"Hey, a girl has to keep her skills sharp, just like you keep swinging that piece of steel around."
"Can you two quit bickering for a second please?" Yuuto asked the two girls with a hint of annoyance. "I have other stuff to sort out once I've dealt with this mess." He then focused on the arachne and gave her a stern look. "Haven't you got anything better to do right now?"
"What, and miss out on our dear fledgling knight's struggle with some webs? Perish the thought." Rachnera answered in a teasing tone.
"Yuuto," The centaur spoke up as her cheeks went red from her compromising position. "may I beseech thee to free me from these bonds now? I wish to get on with my morning routine…"
Yuuto nodded in response and poised his blade to slice her free from her sticky prison. Within moments, he slashed through all the threads around her and the centaur fell to the floor with a grunt. He then knelt next to her and carefully cut through the threads that had bound her arms and legs together during her struggle. Once done, he stood up and re-sheathed his katana as Centorea stood to her hooves, pulling off the remainder of the silk from her body.
"Thou hast my deepest gratitude Yuuto." She said respectfully as she gave him a bow.
"It's no problem, really." Yuuto replied as he rubbed the back of his head. "Just helping a friend out."
"Well, so much for my morning entertainment." Rachnera muttered to herself before attempting to skitter off. "I'll let you guys get on with it."
"Hold it." The human spoke up, stopping the arachne in her tracks. "We need your help cleaning up your silk." He continued in a commanding tone.
"Really? Because it seems you have things under control already." The spider woman replied as she pointed towards the bed.
Yuuto looked over to the bed to see that Lala had materialised her scythe and was slicing away at the webs that the bed sheets were clinging to. He then looked back to her with furrowed eyebrows. "Yeah, but you're the only one who can move your silk around without getting stuck to them. So, I'd appreciate it if you could help clean up YOUR mess." He said to her in an irate tone.
*Sigh* "Fine, I'll help. We kind of need you to take care of other stuff anyway." She said in a defeated tone as she went to help Lala clean up the mess, though she stopped next to him and lowered herself to whisper into his ear. "And just so you know, we're not finished with this little game of ours." She added with a smirk on her lips.
"Oh, I'm just looking forward to it…" He replied unenthusiastically, earning a chuckle from the arachne before she raised herself and made her way to assist her dullahan housemate.
"Yuuto," Centorea spoke up again to grab the human's attention. "I had originally come to request thee to accompany me on my morning jog, seeing as Milord would normally do so, and that thou partake in this activity on a daily basis thyself. Would it trouble thee to do so?"
"Sure thing. Just let me get changed first." He replied, giving her a warm smile.
Before he could do so, the doorbell rang downstairs, much to everyone's surprise. Yuuto checked the time on his phone and found that it was only 5:25AM.
"Who would come calling at this hour?" The centaur questioned with a look of confusion on her face.
Yuuto just sighed to himself as he started making his way downstairs the Centorea in tow. "I could probably take a guess…"
The pair were soon downstairs, and the MON operative told the centaur to stand back as he made his way to the front door. He took a deep breath before he began to open the door, prepared for what was about to happen. As he opened the door, a black and crimson blur tackled him and knocked him to the ground. He lifted his head and looked down to see Blare with her arms wrapped around him as she nuzzled against his chest with a look of worry on her face.
"Stud! Thank god you're okay! I was so worried about you!" The hellhound yelled as she gripped to him tighter.
Yuuto couldn't help but smirk at her as he started to pet her to calm her down. "Hey, it's okay. I haven't even been here for a full day, so just calm down, will you?" He said to her in a calming tone.
Blare eventually let go of him and was now kneeling in between his legs as the human sat himself up. "I'm sorry, it's just that when I heard you were staying at Kurusu's place, I thought that something bad might've happened. You know what this place is like."
"Blare, I'll be fine, trust me." He replied in full confidence.
The hellhound smiled back at him before they both stood up. "Alright, you seem to know what you're getting yourself into at least." She said hesitantly.
"Right. Anyway, I can only imagine why you'd be here so early in the morning." He said sarcastically as he took notice of her jogging outfit.
Blare giggled at him before bumping shoulders with her squad captain. "Like you're getting out of our morning routine that easily." She replied as she gave him a teasing wink.
"Well, today's your lucky day. Centorea and I were just about to head out ourselves." Yuuto said as he hooked a thumb towards the centaur standing behind him. "We just need to get changed first."
"That's no problem, my 'Plus One' need a quick breather anyway." She responded as she hooked a claw-tipped thumb behind her.
Yuuto and Centorea looked behind her to see a human with short jet-black hair, wearing a grey short-sleeved polo shirt, blue running shorts and a pair of white trainers. The man was currently resting his forehead against the frame of the door, taking quick and shallow breaths as his skin glistened with sweat.
"It's… okay…" He responded between ragged breaths. "Take all… the time… ya want…"
"Oh, c'mon Itaru." Blare teased as she walked up to him and patted him on the back. "You'd think you'd have better stamina with your line of work."
"Wait, Hase?" The blonde human asked in surprise. "Since when did you and Blare start hanging out?"
"Well… ya know… met at Oni's one night… started drinkin' and talkin'… next thing ya know… we're practically datin'…" Hase answered while still trying to catch his breath.
Blare's cheeks went bright red as she turned to face her squad captain and waved her hands frantically at him in a panic. "Don't get the wrong idea Stud! I like the guy, but we're not doing anything illegal, honest!" She shouted panickily as she became flustered.
Yuuto just raised an eyebrow at her, thinking she was making too big a reaction out of the situation, though this was par the course when it came to the hellhound. "Okay, so you two are dating. So, what? I don't see the problem as long as you two aren't fucking."
His squad mate stared wide-eyed at him in surprise, not expecting him to be so calm about the situation. "Wait, you're okay with this?!" She exclaimed with a look of confusion.
Centorea, who had been quiet and respectful up until now stepped forwards and made her concerns known. "I am also rather surprised. What she's doing is technically in breach of the exchange accord, even if she isn't a student in the program." She said to the human MON agent matter-of-factly.
Yuuto turned his head to face the centaur as he furrowed his eyebrows at her. "Yeah, I'm not exactly one to talk, see I'm dating a liminal myself."
*Sigh* "Thou doth make a fair point Yuuto." She replied as she relented to him. "If thou art willing to overlook this, then it is not my place to speak against it. My housemates, as well as myself art yearning for our master's affections also after all…" She continued as she started to fidget with her fingers, her cheeks burning bright red in embarrassment.
Yuuto gave the equestrian knight a warm smile in return, happy with her decision. "Good to hear." He then walked up to his squad mate and gently pat her on the head, giving her the same warm smile. "Anyway, I'm happy for you two. Just don't do anything that'll land you in trouble, alright?"
Blare looked up at him and gave him a wide smile full of joy. "Got it, and thanks a lot Stud! You're the best!"
The blonde human removed his hand from her head and took a step back as Hase finally stood himself up straight, wiping the sweat from his forehead with his arm as he moved next to the hellhound. "See, I told ya we'd have nothin' ta worry about." He said to her with a look of relief on his face.
Yuuto smiled at the pair, happy that they found each other, though he knew that his squad mate was going to make life difficult for poor Itaru. "Anyway, I'll head up and get changed now, shouldn't take me too long." He said as he started to make his way upstairs, giving them a wave as he did so.
"As will I, so please, make thyself comfortable while thou wait." Centorea added as she followed Yuuto up.
"Thanks, Centorea. We'll see you in a sec." Blare replied as she waved the pair off. After they disappeared upstairs, she looked up at her boyfriend before wrapping her arms around his, resting her chin on his shoulder as her cheeks went bright red once more. "I'm really glad that Stud is okay with us dating." The hellhound said before giving him a mischievous grin. "Though you do realise that seeing that we can't have sex, you'll have to satisfy me in other ways, right?" She asked him as she gave him a teasing wink.
Itaru's face also went bright red, though he was happy to hear the hellhound say that. "Well, I guess it's a sacrifice a guy's gotta make." He said with a smile as her rubbed the back of his head.
Happy with his answer, Blare licked the man's cheek, causing his face to go a brighter shade of red. "Good boy." She said as she started guiding him to the living room. "Might as well enjoy ourselves while we're waiting for them."
"Heh, ya don't have to tell me twice." He replied with a smirk on his face.
After a while, Yuuto and Centorea had gotten changed and the group headed out on their run. They made their way to the nearby park on Blare's and Yuuto's usual route. The two MON operatives took the lead while Centorea followed behind matching her pace with theirs, though Hase was starting to drag behind, not used to running so much in the morning, though the hellhound would quickly change that. Blare talked to her captain about her concerns over his current situation staying at the Kurusu residence, but Yuuto quickly reassured her that he was going to be alright. Not long after, they had to go their separate ways, though the hellhound gave her captain a hug goodbye before dragging her boyfriend off back home, the poor man being nearly on the verge of collapse.
Yuuto and Centorea made it back to Kimihito's place in good time and let themselves inside. Their skin was glistening with sweat as the human took off his running shoes and the centaur scraped her hooves clean on the door mat. As they were about to head off towards the bathroom to get cleaned up, Yuuto heard someone making a pleasant humming tune from the kitchen, though the smell that accompanied it was far from pleasant as it assaulted their nostrils.
"Holy crap, what is that?" He asked as he held his nose tight to stop the assault on his nostrils, though it proved ineffective.
"I doth believe it to be one of Miia's vile concoctions. I would advise caution if thou art willing to confront her on the matter." Centorea answered as she did the same. "She seems determined to improve her culinary skills, though it has yet to yield any successful results."
"Yeah, I should probably supervise her." Yuuto replied before letting out a sigh. "Centorea, can you get everybody up while I deal with this? Might as well start on breakfast while I'm at it."
"It would be my pleasure!" The centaur exclaimed with a look of determination. "I wish thee luck!" She added as she began her rounds.
With the centaur gone, the human took a deep breath and bravely made his way to the kitchen. As he walked in, he found the red-haired lamia happily tending to her masterpiece, which from his current viewpoint seemed to be emitting a horrid purple steam, which Miia seemed to be oblivious to. Miia heard him walk into the dining area and turned to face him, wearing a pink frilly apron and a large pair of oven mitts on her hands
She beamed a wide smile at Yuuto as she slithered up to him. "Morning Yuuto-kun!" She exclaimed excitedly as she got in his face. "I hope you slept well."
"Yeah, I had a good sleep, thanks." He replied before glancing past her to see the calamity that had befallen the kitchen. "What are you up to?"
"Oh, I'm just cooking breakfast, silly."
"Yeah, looks more like a science experiment gone wrong." The MON agent thought to himself.
"Anyway, I wanted to thank you for your advice yesterday, so I thought I'd cook up breakfast for everyone." She then grabbed him by the hand and started dragging him towards the dining room table. "C'mon, you have to try this!"
"Hey, hold up a sec!" The blonde protested, but she ignored him and sat him down at the table.
"You just wait right there while I serve up your breakfast stew." She told him before slithering back into the kitchen with haste.
"Breakfast stew?!"
Within moments, Miia was back holding a bowl and a spoon in her hands and placed them on the table in front of him. "Yeah, I thought making all the stuff separately would take too long, so I just put everything together into one simple dish!" She explained before placing her hands on her now reddened cheeks as a dreamy look appeared on her face. "Oh, Darling is going to be so proud of me!"
Yuuto looked down at his 'stew?' and his face contorted into a look of horror. The abomination of a meal consisted of a purple goop with bits of salad, rice, and a mixture of fish heads and bones floating around in the still bubbling concoction. The smell that accompanied it smelt like burning rubber, not something you'd normally associate with something edible.
"Well, it certainly looks interesting at least…" The blonde commented, trying his best to hide his disgust.
"I know, I just hope it tastes better it looks."
"Wait, you haven't tasted it?!" Yuuto exclaimed in shock
Miia's cheeks went red as she started fidgeting with her fingers, trying her best to avoid eye contact with the human. "Well, lamiae are technically carnivores and as such we don't have the greatest sense of taste. So, I thought you could taste-test it for me just to make sure if Darling will like it or not…" She said in an embarrassed tone.
He looked back down at the concoction once more as it bubbled away. He swore he just saw a fish head blink at him. "Miia, for all I know this could kill me."
The red head leaned down till she was at eye level with Yuuto. "Oh, please will you try it Yuuto-kun?! I really want to get this right!" She practically begged to him.
He looked back at her and saw the last thing he wanted to see in this situation. She was giving him puppy dog eyes. The blonde mentally cursed himself over his inability to turn down a request from a cute girl giving him that look, he would feel too guilty to say no to her otherwise. He struggled to make up his mind, but eventually he relented to her gaze, letting out a sigh of frustration.
"Okay, I'll give it a try…" He replied unenthusiastically.
Miia gave him a warm smile in return, happy with his answer. "Thanks, Yuuto-kun, I'm sure you'll enjoy it."
With that, he looked back to the 'stew' and hesitantly dipped the spoon into it, half expecting it to melt on contact. He pulled it out of the concoction, the spoon heaped with rice and fish and whatever the purple juice was supposed to be, and he slowly edged it towards his mouth. After taking a deep breath, he opened his mouth wide before slurping up the contents on the spoon. Miia stared wide-eyed at him in anticipation as the blonde slowly chewed on it. To his surprise, it did taste alright for the most part, not quite like how the traditional Japanese breakfast would taste, but at least he wasn't gagging on it.
After a moment, he swallowed it before looking back to the lamia. "It's not bad, though I have to ask. What exactly did you put in it?" He asked, though he would soon come to regret that decision.
"Oh, just your typical stuff, fried fish, boiled rice, green salad, miso soup, what you'd expect from a normal breakfast."
As he listened to her, his tongue was soon assaulted by an unpleasant aftertaste, along with a spicy sensation. "Miia, did you add something spicy to it?" Yuuto asked with worry.
Miia beamed a wide smile at him. "I'm glad you noticed. Seeing that since breakfast is supposed to energize you for the day, I thought it would be great to spice it up a bit. So, I added some chilli powder, red peppers, a spoon full of wasabi, jalapenos,"
As she listed off what spices she added, Yuuto suddenly felt a cramping sensation in his stomach, and he grasped his hands to it as his face was slowly turning purple. "Miia, I don't feel so good…" He tried to tell her, but she was too preoccupied with trying to remember all the spices she added.
"cinnamon, horseradish, and I think I put in a dash of paprika too. Oh, and there's also some-!"
The red-head was cut short as she heard something hit the table hard. She looked to her side to see Yuuto laying his head on the side of the table, his eyes gone blank as his face took on a disturbing shade of purple, his mouth agape as he was barely able to breathe.
"Oh my God! Yuuto-kun, are you alright?!" Miia cried out in distress as she rushed to his side before trying to shake him from his vegetated state. "C'mon, speak to me!"
He gave no response as his head flailed back and forth from the girl's shaking.
Just then, Centorea came trotting into the dining room to see what all the commotion was about. "Miia, must thou make such a ruckus so early in the day? We've already had several complaints from the neighbours abAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" The centaur screamed in shock at seeing the state Yuuto was in, looking as if he was currently knocking on Death's door. "What hast thou done to our caretaker?! Art thou trying to poison him?!" She shouted as she pointed an accusatory finger at the bowl of 'stew'.
"Hey! My cooking has gotten better you know!" Miia shouted back in irritation.
The centaur then rushed over to the MON agent's side and pushed her housemate out of the way to check him over. "Thy latest experiment begs to differ, but that is besides the point." She found that Yuuto was still breathing and that his heart rate was normal, though the shade of purple the human's cheeks took on suggested that his body was struggling to digest the 'stew' he had consumed. "Miia, go fetch some water for him, maybe that'll be enough to quell his stomach." She said calmly as she tried to sit him up straight.
Just as the lamia was about to do so, Rachnera came skittering into the dining room, stretching her arms above her head as she let out a yawn. "Good morning, what are you two bickering about this-" She cut herself off as she noticed the blonde human sitting back in his chair in a vegetated state. "Oh my, Snakey. It hasn't even been a day and you've already poisoned him?" She asked teasingly as she place a hand over her mouth in mock shock. "And here I thought you two were getting along so well."
"It's not like that Rachnee! He offered to try it for me!" She exclaimed in self-defence.
"I highly doubt he would've offered willingly." Centorea spoke up in disbelief. "I'm surprised that Milord didn't warn Yuuto about thy inability to cook anything edible."
Miia just pouted to herself, getting tired of everyone criticising her cooking.
Rachnera skittered up past her equestrian housemate and made her way into the kitchen. She quickly retrieved some digestive tablets from one of the cupboards and filled a glass of water before making her way to Yuuto. "If you two are done bickering like children, I'd appreciate it if you helped me sort Yuuto out here." She said to the girls in a stern tone before she stopped by his side and handed the glass to the centaur. "Horse Flesh, hold this for a second, will you?"
"Of course."
The arachne gently lifted Yuuto's head up, then carefully opened his mouth before placing the tablets inside. Once she stepped back, Centorea put the glass to his lips and started pouring the water inside, careful not to let it spill. Miia looked on with worry, now feeling guilty about what she'd put him through for her selfish desires. Thankfully the MON agent was able to swallow without any assistance, to which the three liminals sighed in relief. It would only be a matter of time before he'd come to again.
"He should be fine now." Rachnera said as with a sense of relief. "Let's just hope he comes to before anyone else shows up."
Just as she said that, a certain dullahan walked into the kitchen, unknowing of what had just transpired. "Greetings Mortals," She started in her usual chuunibyou fashion. "Tell me, have ye seen me Love? I wish tae-" She stopped abruptly as she noticed her boyfriend sat in a chair, seemingly on the verge of death. "Yuuto!" She exclaimed as she rushed to his side. "Please, do nay go tae the Underworld!" She added as she shook him but got no response. She then stood up and eyed the three other women as a dark vengeful aura appeared around her. "What have ye done tae him?" She said in a low threating tone, which caused them to flinch in response.
"Don't look at me, it was Snakey who poisoned him." Rachnera answered as she pointed towards her lamian housemate.
"Hey! I didn't poison anyone!" Miia shouted, still desperately trying to defend herself.
Lala focused her gaze towards the red head and started moving towards her as she materialised her scythe into her hands. "Serpent, ye shall pay dearly fer this transgression." She said to her with barely contained anger.
"Whoa, hold on a second!" The lamia exclaimed in a panic as she tried to back away from the vengeful dullahan, flailing her hands apologetically in the hopes that it would save her. "I wasn't trying to poison anyone! I just needed someone to try out my new dish!"
"Then ye have sealed yer fate." The young reaper replied in a grim tone.
"Knock it off, will you?!" Miia then turned to her other housemates for assistance. "Will one of you help me out already?!"
"Pass, you dug your own grave, so leave me out of this." The arachne replied uncaringly.
"You damn traitor!"
Centorea let out a sigh, getting tired of the two of them messing around. "Lala, dost thou think thou art over-reacting? Our caretaker is on the mend as we speak."
"That may be so, but she has yet tae repent fer her sins." The dullahan replied as she continued to close in on her serpentine housemate.
"I'm sorry, alright?!" Miia yelled as she practically begged for her life. "Just don't do what I think you're about to do!"
Just as Lala was about to carry out her sentence on the red head, Yuuto's eyes shot open and he shot up straight in his seat. "AAAAAHHHHH!" He screamed with his lips bright red and his eyes watering, grabbing the attention of all the girls in the dining room. "HOTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOT!" He then grabbed the now empty glass and shout out of his chair towards the sink in the kitchen as fast as he could.
"Yuuto, art thou alright?!" Centorea shouted with worry in her voice.
He didn't answer as he filled the glass with water to the top before downing it in one go, thankful for the relief it was providing him. He then let out a gasp as he tried to catch his breath, trying to calm himself down before facing the girls once more. "It's alright, I'll be fine now. That dish was just a little too spicy for my taste." He said to them in a reassuring tone.
Before he could continue, Lala rushed around the counter and into the kitchen as quickly as her feet could take her. "Yuuto!" She yelled in relief as she tackled him to the ground in an affectionate hug. The human landed hard on his back as her arms gripped around his chest tightly, her head resting on its side near his as she cried with joy. "Thank the gods, ye are alive! I thought I had lost ye!" She sobbed as she refused to let him go.
Yuuto just gave her a warm smile and wrapped his arm around her head, pulling it in close until their cheeks were pressed against each other. "Hey, it's okay." He said in a calming tone as he rubbed her back reassuringly. "I'll be alright."
After calming his girlfriend down, the pair stood up and made their way to the table just as everyone else was making their way into the dining room. The MON operative explained what had happened to the other girls and told them that he would sort out breakfast. Miia offered to help, though she received a death glare from her chuunibyou housemate for her troubles. Yuuto said it was okay to do so, but he told her sternly that she wasn't allowed in the kitchen without supervision for the remainder of his stay at the Kurusu household. She pouted in response, but he put his foot down on the matter. He wasn't about to allow anyone else to get food poisoning while he was here.
The day went on as usual at the Kurusu residence, with the girls going about their usual routine and Yuuto preoccupying himself with a bit of housework, though he was occasionally interrupted by Papi and the two slime girls to play video games with them for a bit, or by Lala so they could cuddle and kiss while no one was watching, not that the blonde would ever mind such interruptions to begin with. It was eventually mid-afternoon and Yuuto was just about finished with washing the dishes from lunch with the help of Vee and Suu. The two slime girls went off to play as he made his way to the porch to see if anything needed doing outside. As he made his way to the glass door, he saw that Centorea was already outside swinging her replica sword around, honing her skills with the blade with practiced precision and concentration. He smirked to himself as he opened the door and stepped outside into the warm summer air. He shut the door behind him, causing the centaur's ears to twitch and turn her attention towards the human, momentarily distracted from her practice.
"Yuuto, dost thou require any assistance?" Centorea asked as she was about to sheathe her blade.
"No, it's alright. You carry on." He replied, motioning her to continue. "Just wanted to check if anything needed doing out here is all."
"I see." She responded as she continued to practice. "Fortunately for thee, Milord already tended to the weeding the day before his accident, so the outside areas of the premises shouldn't be a concern for the time being."
Yuuto let out a sigh of relief, thankful that he could take a break from housework. "Lucky me then." He said as he took a seat on the porch. "Do you mind if I watch you practice for a bit? If it's not bothering you, that is."
Centorea's cheeks went red, not used to anyone being interested in watching her practice her swordsmanship. "Of course, though I doubt it'll be all that interesting to thee. I'd wager thou would practice with a blade in a similar fashion."
"Well, katanas tend to be used differently compared to a European short sword, so I want to see how different the fighting styles actually are."
"Thou doth speak truth." She replied as she continued to swing her blade, letting out occasional grunts as she did so. "My knowledge of eastern swordsmanship is still relatively new, especially amongst human fighting styles."
Yuuto smirked at her at that comment as he stood to his feet once more. "You know, I could show you, if you're up for a sparring match that is."
The centaur froze in place at the mentioning of a sparring match as her cheeks went red again before turning her attention to the human. "What?!" She exclaimed in an embarrassed tone. "No, I couldn't possibly ask thee to go out of thy way for my sake! I would be a waste of thy time, seeing that thou hast already bested myself and my mother in combat!" She explained as she became more flustered.
The human sighed to himself before giving her a reassuring smile. "Centorea, if you're still embarrassed about our previous fight during the full moon, don't be. I know you might not remember much, but it isn't fair to compare yourself to what you're like in a moon frenzy. I'm sure that you're an excellent swordsman, and I'm sure your mom would agree." He then walked towards her until he was right in front of her and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Besides, how do you expect to improve if you don't challenge yourself regularly?"
Centorea stared at him for a moment as she took in what he said. She knew that what he said was true, but she still couldn't help but doubt her skills. She trained tirelessly with her sword, but even then she couldn't shake the fact that she had lost not only to a human in combat, but to her blind rage. She wanted to find an excuse to avoid sparring with him, to avoid the shame of losing again, but the reassuring look Yuuto was giving her had slowly started to push doubt from her mind. It was obvious that he was quite the skilled swordsman himself, and she would only have to gain from his assistance. After a while, she found the courage to speak once more.
*Sigh* "Thou art right." She said as she was now smiling back at the human. "It would be an honour to face off against thee once more in a friendly manner. Mayhap the lack of a training partner thus far has halted my progress."
"Awesome." Yuuto replied as he took a step away from her. "Just wait there for a sec while I go get Black Lotus."
"That will nay be a bother me Love." The pair glanced towards the porch to see Lala standing there with his katana held in both hands. She then smiled at her boyfriend as she moved to his side and presented his weapon.
Yuuto smirked at the dullahan before taking his blade from her. "Thanks Babe." He replied before planting a chaste kiss on her lips. "You might want to stand back a bit, this might get dangerous." He added as he tied the sheath to his belt.
"As ye wish but do be careful. I do nay wish tae see ye harmed." She responded with a hint of worry in her voice.
The MON operative nodded back at her confidently as he and Centorea positioned themselves for the upcoming sparring match. The young reaper made her way back to the porch and sat herself on the edge of it, watching intently to see what was about to transpire.
Yuuto smirked at the centaur as he unsheathed his katana and twirled it in his hand before holding it low to his side. "Now, tell me Centorea. How long have you been training with that thing?" He asked as he glanced at her short sword.
Centorea returned a confident smile as she unsheathed her weapon and held it in front of her in both hands. "Since I was a young foal. Centaurs are trained from a young age, such is the way of my people."
"Well, this should be an interesting bout then."
With that, the human rushed towards his opponent with Black Lotus still held low to his side. Centorea held her ground, bracing herself for the oncoming attack. As Yuuto closed the distance, he switched to a reverse grip on his katana and swung a wide arc from his right towards the centaur. She easily parried the strike and tried to respond with a strike of her own, but the MON agent quickly switched back to a normal grip on his blade and parried her downwards swing. The pair continued to dance around each other as their swords continually clashed against one another. Lala watched in amazement at how evenly matched they were, both struggling to gain the upper hand. Centorea was able to keep calm as she continued to deflect Yuuto's attacks, though she was unable to find an opening to counter attack. Just as it looked to be a stalemate, a smirk appeared on the human's lips as he was about to put his plan into action.
"You know, Kimihito's cooking is okay, but is a bit bland if I have to be honest." He said with an evil glint in his eye.
The equestrian knight's eyes shot wide open as a look of anger crossed her face. "Balderdash! Thou hast no right to insult Milord's culinary skills!" She shouted with righteous fury as she reckless swung her blade down at him.
Yuuto easily dodged to the side of the strike before striking her hands with the butt of his pommel, causing the girl to lose her grip on her blade. The sword clattered to the ground as Centorea looked on in horror at her blunder, and the human quickly pointed the tip of his blade towards her, gaining her undivided attention.
"You really need to reign in your temper. It makes you reckless and predictable." He explained as he lowered his katana and picked up her short sword before handing it back to her. "Though your mother is no different in that regard from what I can tell."
The young knight scowled at him for a moment before taking a deep breath to calm herself. She retrieved her weapon from the human and got into a fighting stance, ready for their next bout. Yuuto did the same and smirked back at her. Annoyed, Centorea took the initiative and rushed him, starting with a diagonal upwards strike which the MON agent parried with ease. Yuuto kept on the defensive as the centaur continued to rain down attack after attack against him.
"Kimihito would definitely make a good housewife someday." He said teasingly with a smirk on his lips.
"Silence! My master is a fine young man, and thou shalt cease thy mockery of him!" She yelled as her swings started to become erratic.
Yuuto dodged to the side of one of her downwards strikes and quickly grabbed hold of her wrist. He twisted it sharply, causing the centauride to lose her grip on her sword once more. Centorea lowered her head in frustration at having been disarmed so easily by the human once again, her temper now reaching its limit.
She looked back up at him as her face was now contorted into a grimace. "Why dost thou continue to mock my master when we should be training?! It serves no purpose!"
"But it does." The human replied sternly as he picked up her sword and held it out to her. "The fact that you get set off so easily by mere words is holding you back. You'll never improve if you can't get past this."
The centaur snatched her blade from his hand as she continued her tirade. "I can fight just fine without thee continually insulting Milord!"
"Okay then." He simply replied as he quirked an eyebrow at her. He then directed his attention towards the dullahan still sitting on the porch. "Hey Lala. Is your scythe just for show, or do you actually know how to wield that thing properly?"
The young reaper stared wide-eyed at her boyfriend for a moment, not expecting him to ask her to participate. She then broke eye contact with him as her cheeks went read, twiddling with her fingers in embarrassment. "As a spectre o' Death, tis tae be expected, though I must save me efforts fer when I send a vengeful spirit back tae its rightful place…"
Ever since the day he first met Kimihito, Yuuto quickly learned that chuunibyous were very resistant when it came doing something they didn't like or were uncomfortable with, usual coming up with some ridiculous fantasy-fuelled excuse to get out of doing it. But he also learned of a way of getting them to do almost anything, and it involved calling them out on not sticking to their persona, which would eventually force them to prove themselves worthy of their own delusions. He remembered one time in middle school where he managed to convince Kimihito to walk into a lingerie shop by himself to help him get over his fears of talking to girls at the time, but the results were quite embarrassing for the chuunibyou and hilarious for the blonde. He was certain that this same tactic would help convince Lala to have a go at sparring too.
Yuuto smirked at her as a devious look crossed his face, confident that his plan would be successful. "And here I thought reapers had nothing to fear from mere mortals, but I guess I was wrong about that." He teased as he shrugged his shoulders for emphasis.
Lala shot up from her seat and looked him straight in the eyes with newfound confidence as she placed a hand over her face. "Do nay lack conviction in me skills Yuuto. I feel I must prove tae ye that I am worthy o' being a reaper o' Death, and I shall have ye begging fer forgiveness after I am done."
"Then by all means, prove me wrong."
The dullahan gave him a confident smirk as she removed her hand from her face, before making her way to face off against her equestrian housemate. She stopped several feet in front of Centorea before raising her hands palms-up, closing her eyes as she began to chant. "O Crescent Shadow, I call upon ye tae defeat those that would stand against this Spectre o' Death. Show them what it means tae stand against those who are one with the darkness." Upon finishing her chant, she materialised her scythe into her hands and twirled it around for a moment, before grasping it in both hands again, pointing the blade towards her adversary with a look of determination on her face.
Centorea was unnerved at first, but it soon faded as a smirk appeared on her face. She then readied her blade as she stared down the dullahan. "I fine performance Lala, but I am not about to fall for thy bluff." With that, the centaur charged forwards and raised her blade high. "I shall make this quick." She rushed forwards, confident in her victory, but she would soon come to regret underestimating her opponent.
As the young knight swung her sword down towards the dullahan, Lala effortlessly spun to the side to avoid the strike while simultaneously swinging her scythe in a wide arc back at the centaur. Centorea was caught off guard and barely had time to parry the counter attack. As the strike was deflected, Lala used the momentum of her blade to swing into another wide-arced attack, this time from above. The centaur was forced onto the defensive as the young reaper continued to deliver wide swung attacks from every direction, each carried by the momentum of the previous attack. It was almost like fighting a cyclone of blades.
Yuuto watched in astonishment, unable to believe what his girlfriend was pulling off. Not only was she holding her own against a trained centaur warrior but was also pushing her back with great ease. "Holy crap, I had no idea she was capable of that, but how the hell has her head not fallen off yet?" He thought to himself as he continued to stare wide-eyed at the spectacle in front of him.
Eventually though, Centorea was able to hop back from the reaper's flurry of attacks to gain some much-needed distance and readied her blade once more. She couldn't believe what had just happened, she never thought that Lala was anything more than a young woman caught up in her own fantasies, but after what she just witnessed, there seemed to be some merit to her words.
Lala held her scythe low and to her side in one hand as she placed her free hand over her face, locking eyes with her housemate with a deadpan expression. "This is what it means tae face a servant o' Death, Mortal. I will nay blame ye if ye wish tae withdraw."
The young knight's face contorted into a grimace, her temper flaring up again at the dullahan's words. "I will not be so easily swayed by mere words! Prepare thyself, for I shall show thee the wrath of a knight of the centaur race!" She yelled with pride as she charged forward, swinging her blade from the side.
Lala responded by swinging her scythe up towards Centorea's blade with great force, knocking the sword out of the centaur's hand. As it spun in the air, the young reaper spun around on her heel and brought the tip of her blade mere inches from her housemate's neck. The sword clattered to the ground, then all was silent. Centorea just gasped in horror at the humiliation she just suffered.
"Do ye yield?" The dullahan asked with a smug look on her face.
The young knight was slow to respond, but she eventually dipped her head in shame as her ears drooped down as well. "I yield…" She replied in a defeated tone.
With that the reaper dematerialised her scythe and went to pick up Centorea's sword. She held it in the palms of her hands and presented the weapon to her housemate. Centorea looked up to see a warm smile of the girl's face, something that she rarely saw from her.
"Do nay fret Centorea. Ye are a fine warrior, worthy o' yer kinsmen's reputation. Though ye should nay concern yerself with petty insults from other mortals, it is unbecoming o' ye tae succumb tae yer inner demons."
"She's right you know." Yuuto added as he stood up and made his way to them. "You fight just as well as Maredrianna does, but you both are so quick to anger. If you keep it under control though, I'm sure you'll improve in no time."
She stared blankly at both the dullahan and the human as she took in their words, and she knew they were right. She then took her sword from Lala and re-sheathed it before looking back at Yuuto with a look of doubt. "That may be so, but I cannot simply cast aside my feelings so easily…"
"I'm not asking you to cast them aside," he said as he placed a hand on her shoulder. "You just need to focus more on the fight at hand and keep your head in the game. I'd be more than willing to spar with you as much as you want while I'm staying here."
"As will I if needs must." Lala added as she placed a hand over her face once more for dramatic effect.
Centorea smiled back at them, genuinely happy that they had gone to such lengths to help her. "I thank thee for thy assistance in this matter, both of you. It will help me greatly."
"Yer gratitude is well received." The young reaper replied in her typical chuunibyou manner.
"Yeah, it's no problem Centorea."
"Cerea." The centaur interjected.
Yuuto gave her a quizzical look. "Pardon?"
"It is the name I allow close friends and loved ones to call me by, and I truly appreciate what thou hast done for me in recent weeks. It would be remiss of me to not acknowledge thy friendship so far."
The MON agent couldn't help but smile back at her. "I'm honoured Cerea." He then redirected his attention back to his girlfriend as a smirk appeared on his lips. "And I wasn't expecting that from you. Where the hell did you learn to fight like that?" He asked with genuine amazement.
Lala smirked back at him before she pressed herself against his chest and gave him a chaste kiss on the lips. "It is an age-old secret which only those who are one with the darkness are prithee tae." She answered as she caressed his cheek lovingly. "Now, if ye would excuse me, I must return tae me sanctum and delve intae me tomes."
Just as she was about to leave, Yuuto grabbed her by the hand to prevent her escape. She looked back in mild surprised as she saw him giving her a cheeky grin. "Cerea got her turn to dance with you. Where's mine?"
The dullahan's cheeks went bright red as she averted her gaze from his. "A-A-As skilled as I may be, I fear I may be lacking compared tae an individual such as yerself." She stuttered in embarrassment.
"Oh, I see how it is." He teased as he narrowed his eyes at her. "Death would be most displeased to hear one of its spectres turn down a challenge from a mere mortal." He continued, hoping to goad her into a sparring match with him.
Lala pulled away from his grasp and spun to face him as she brought Crescent Shadow into existence once more. "It seems I shall need tae teach ye tae respect me skills the hard way. Do nay hope fer me tae go easy on ye me Love." She replied challengingly.
Yuuto smirked at her before drawing Black Lotus from its sheath once more, holding it in both hands in front of him as he locked eyes with the young reaper. "Bring it." He answered confidently.
Centorea stepped to the side and sat herself on the porch to witness the bout between the two lovers. "I suppose this is what thou would call a 'lover's quarrel' then. I just hope they do not damage anything in the process." She muttered to herself before letting out and audible sigh.
She sat there silently, watching them dance around each other as they clashed blade. Though as meddlesome as they were, the young knight was happy to call them friends.