Tatsuya woke up the next with a splitting headache, a high fever, and an aching body. He greeted the morning with a series of uncontrollable sneezes. The door to his room suddenly swung open and Aika rushed in. She held his face in her hands, squishing it in the process, and asked worriedly, "Are you okay, Darling?"
"It's just a little cold," he told her through squished lips.
"Ingrid!" she called out loud.
The maid immediately appeared beside her mistress like a ninja. As a result of yesterday's battle, Ingrid suffered a mild bruise to her head and had to wear a small head bandage. "Yes, my princess?" she said with a bow.
"Take care of Darling! He's sick!" ordered Aika hysterically.
"As you wish," obliged the maid with a bow. A few minutes later, the maid came back into the room with a bowl of soup. "Please take this, Owatatsumi-sama," said the maid. She scooped up a spoonful of the soup and held it for Tatsuya to ingest. Tatsuya slowly rose up and took the spoon in his mouth. He swallowed the soup and felt his body becoming more energized. His nose felt clearer and less stuffy from the soup's aromatic warmth, his throat was soothed by the smooth and warm broth, and his headache slowly subsided as a result of the soup's pleasing flavor.
Aika noticed Tatsuya smiling warmly and satisfyingly and became jealous of her maid's current position. Ingrid was about to feed Tatsuya another spoonful when Aika decided to to tackle on the task for herself in the hopes of strengthening her bond with her Darling. "Actually, Ingrid," she said, stopping the maid midway before the spoon touched Tatsuya's lips, "I want to feed the soup to my Darling, myself." Twiddling her thumbs innocently and blushing, she added, "It's only right for me as his lover. I should know how to correctly treat my Darling so that when we marry, I can be a perfect wife for him."
"Understood," said Ingrid, dropping the spoon back into the soup. She handed the bowl to Aika and excused herself.
With a loving smile, Aika scooped up another spoonful of the soup and held it for Tatsuya to take in. "Now, Darling, say 'Ahh'!" she told him happily.
Tatsuya opened his mouth and accepted the warm healing nectar with a content smile on his face. Just when Aika was about to feed him another spoonful, the door to his room suddenly swung open again. Kanjomizu and Umi quickly entered the room with the former breaking out in tears. "My Love is sick!" she exclaimed tearfully.
"He was doing fine," Aika told her through gritted teeth and with a subdued angry smile. 'My alone time with Darling…,' she cried miserably to herself internally.
"Umi, bring out the medicine!" Kanjomizu ordered her maid.
"Wait a minute, just what do you think you're doing?" challenged Aika defensively.
Umi quickly came back with a blue gourd. "Here it is, my lady," said the maid with a bow.
Kanjomizu thanked the maid and took the gourd. She approached Tatsuya and opened the gourd. Using the cap as a cup, she poured a little bit of the medicine and held it to Tatsuya's mouth. "Drink this," she told him.
Tatsuya didn't argue or put up a fight and took the medicine. The liquid traveled down his body and acted like a miracle serum, reinvigorating him and relieving him of the illness's effects. He could feel the headache disappearing and his chest becoming free of congestion. It was possible to say that the sickness was as good as gone.
And then, rather expectantly, the door to his room swung open yet again and Arashi entered with Sylphie in tow. Arashi had on a knee bandage and Sylphie wore a bandage over the cut on his left cheek. The dragon princess walked past the other room occupants and placed herself right near Tatsuya. "How are you feeling?" she asked him with a sad frown.
"H-Hey, Acchan," groaned Tatsuya, the sickness slowly returning.
"You don't look so good," surmised Arashi with a shake of her head.
"Hey, wait a minute, what do you think you're doing?" protested Aika furiously.
"Sylphie, can you tend to Tatsuya, please?" ordered Arashi happily.
"Yes, mistress," said the maid with a bow. He climbed up on Tatsuya's bed and placed the latter's head on his lap. The headache slowly came back and Tatsuya wasn't thinking straight at all. However, having his head laying on top of a lap felt very comforting. The maid then proceeded to caress Tatsuya's hair while saying, "There, there. There, there."
"T-T-This is not allowed!" objected Aika vehemently, forming a giant X with her arms.
"Then, would you rather me doing it?" suggested Arashi. Aika couldn't believe how quickly she was defeated by the air dragon princess' words. "That's a good idea!" said Arashi. She replaced the maid and placed Tatsuya's head on her lap instead. Caressing his hair in a slightly more provocative manner, she comforted the sick Tatsuya with words in a sultry voice that greatly turned his situation on its head. "Don't worry, you're safe in my arms," she said, "I'll be your mother for today."
Aika and Kanjomizu exchanged worried looks. Looks like it was time to put their alliance in action. They huddled close together and discussed various ideas to steal back their lover from the she-devil that is Arashi. The princesses eventually settled on a plan for Kanjomizu to take the first shift of treating their lover while Aika drives Arashi away. They nodded in agreement and commenced with the plan.
"Hey, Arashi!" called Aika with a giant innocent happy smile. She quickly grabbed the air dragon princess' arm and forcefully dragged her away. "I need to talk to you about something," she said, still smiling nonchalantly. Arashi was quickly dragged off the bed and the two princesses exited the room with Aika shutting the door behind them.
Kanjomizu slowly approached Tatsuya and climbed onto his bed. She then placed his head on her lap and smiled contently to herself. 'I finally get to have some alone time with My Love,' she mused with a giggle. She lightly caressed his hair and face.
Outside the room, Aika opened the door slightly to take a peek inside. She was burning with jealousy upon seeing Kanjomizu with Tatsuya's head on her lap. However, she needed to resist the urge to burst in and take control in order for this alliance to work. Since they both have a common enemy, and the fact that having allies is better than facing against an enemy alone, Aika needed to soothe her fury and take this in stride. She slowly extinguished the jealousy inside of her and soothed her mind with the only thoughts that can keep her sane: romantic fantasies about her Darling and herself.
Tatsuya began to feel a little better after comfortably resting atop Kanjomizu's lap. The dragon princess also fed him the soup and the medicine, which greatly helped with his recovery. His body felt lighter and refreshed and the headache had gradually subsided but wasn't entirely gone. Still, it was the best feeling he had the entire morning. He slowly got up and thanked Kanjomizu for watching over him. The dragon princess smiled and grabbed his face, bringing his forehead to hers. "Mm-hm, your temperature has gone down a lot," she told him happily.
"Thanks," he said, blushing. "Anyway," he began, stretching his arms, "I have to wash myself now."
"Oh, then—," began the dragon princess, however she was quickly cut off by the sound of the swinging door.
"I'll do that!" interjected Aika excitedly. She flashed Kanjomizu a determined and intense look, forcing the latter to back down.
"If you please," surrendered Kanjomizu with a smile. Despite her desire to help her Love with his washing routine, she needed Aika on her side and so she relinquished the opportunity for the fire dragon princess instead. 'Besides, it's only fair,' she reasoned.
Too sick to protest, except for a clear irritated look on his face, Tatsuya relented for Aika to wash him. She took off his shirt and, with a wet towel in her hands, she began to wipe him down. Aika relished in the moment, taking care to savor this wonderful progression in their relationship. She carefully did her job and did her best to not do anything that will put her Darling in a bad mood.
Tatsuya sighed in relief as the wet towel wiped down his body and cooled it down. It felt like heaven. The headache began to feel like it was really disappearing from existence and the pain in his body slowly subsided. To be honest, he was a little apprehensive about having Aika washing his body for him. He had expected for her to be more overzealous and irritating and taking this task to the extreme. But seeing how careful she was doing her job, it warmed his heart and put a smile on his face. "Thank you, Aika," he told her kindly.
"Of course," replied Aika in a more mellow tone than her usual overly-excited self. She had finished wiping down his back and arms and moved on to do his front. As she did it, her face became redder than usual with her cheek becoming flushed with embarrassment. The atmosphere felt different than usual—it felt more intimate. This was what she had wanted, and she should be exited for it, but as she wiped down Tatsuya's front she couldn't help but feel a little bashful and anxious.
Tatsuya himself couldn't help but blush a deep shade of red too as the princess wiped down his chest. It was very embarrassing for him to be in this position. He had never imagined that he would be caught in a situation like this in his entire life. His heart literally skipped a beat as Aika glossed over his left pectoral.
Aika had reached his stomach and rubbed it down too. As she went across his abs, she turned her face away and whimpered. It was too embarrassingly intimate for her, but she had to see this through since she was the one who volunteered to do it. It was supposed to be a big step forward for their romantic relationship, but the feelings of bashfulness and anxiety begs to differ. 'Geez, why I can't I enjoy this moment properly?' she whined to herself. Before she knew it, she was finished with his stomach. "Okay, Darling, time to wipe your bottom half," she told him with an attempt at a nonchalant smile.
"Sure—wait, what?" said Tatsuya, catching himself. "I-I-I can do that myself!" he told her.
"But you're sick," protested Aika.
"Just give me the damn towel!" he shouted, his cheeks turning a bright red color.
"Well I need to see this through," she squealed at him. She grabbed his pajama bottoms and began to tug them off. Tatsuya quickly grabbed them and competed with Aika to pull them back up. The both of them engaged in a tug-of-war over a pair of pajama pants with their pride at stake. However, Tatsuya was fighting a losing battle; his opponent was a non-human girl who possessed tremendous strength and he himself had become weakened due to his illness. Finally, with one giant tug, Aika pulled Tatsuya's pants off. Bared before her eyes was Tatsuya's naked pair of black boxer briefs. Her mind immediately exploded upon seeing them with her own eyes and her entire body became a deep red color ripe with embarrassment. This was actually harder than she'd thought. She quickly threw her hands up into the air and quickly ran out of the room, screaming back, "I'm sorry!"
Embarrassed beyond words, Tatsuya slowly reached for the towel that was thrown on his bed, his hands shaking along the way. He completed the work himself while his mind was slowly recovering from the shock of embarrassment. After he was done, he put the towel away, redressed himself, and reached for his phone on the dresser. Sasuke had sent him messages wishing for his wellbeing, as well as an update on his own injury and Manami's recovery. According to his messages, he hadn't received an update yet regarding the case and captured prisoners.
Tatsuya quickly sent a message back to tell his friend that he was doing fine too. He then slowly got up from his bed and stretched his body. The medicine and soup combo really helped to alleviate some of the pain and effects of the illness. And the wash really made him feel awake and refreshed. He got dressed and walked out to the living room. Upon entering, he found that it was empty and took a seat on the couch. He turned on the TV and the first thing that came on was a home renovation program. As he watched, something nagged at the back of his brain. 'Where have I heard the term 'house restoration' before?' he asked himself.
Ingrid entered the living room and was surprised to find Tatsuya sitting on a couch while he was sick. "Owatatsumi-sama," she said, "you should be in bed."
"I'm fine now," he told her with a reassuring smile. He was telling the truth too. The cold and fever, along with the headaches and body aches, had greatly lessened in potency and was almost all gone now. This was the quickest recovery he had ever experienced in his life!
The maid let out a sigh and said, "I really think that you should rest yourself, but I guess I have no right to tell you how you should feel."
"Thank you, Ingrid, but I'm really fine," reassured Tatsuya with a laugh.
"By the way, Owatatsumi-sama, I have a favor to ask," said the maid.
"What is it?"
"The princess has locked herself in her room. I tried to get her to come out, but she is insistent on staying inside." The maid let out another sigh, this time filled with exasperation. "I noticed her running back to her room and so I decided to go and check on her. However, she wouldn't even open the door for me to enter."
Tatsuya suddenly remembered back when Aika was helping to wash his body. After a little embarrassing struggle between them, she immediately ran out of his room with bright red cheeks. His cheeks became flushed bright red again upon replaying the entire scene in his mind. "I-I-I wonder why," he said with a nervous laugh. He cleared his throat and nonchalantly asked, "So you want me to check on her?"
"Yes, if you could," urged the maid.
That's when the nagging thought at the back of his brain came to light. The words 'home renovation' brought to mind the letter he had received a few days ago regarding the magical reconstruction of his home, courtesy of his carefree and irresponsible father. Then an idea popped into his mind: since he was going to see Aika anyway, whose room will more than likely be located in this magical reconstructed part of the house, he might as well see just how reconstructed his house has become. "So, where is her room located?" he asked the maid. (In actuality, what he was really asking was: "So, what part of my house was magically reconstructed because of my father's carelessness and selfishness?")
Ingrid pointed to the hallway and told him that the guest room is where it was located. "It" being the magical space that houses the extra rooms for any future inhabitants of the house. This is where the princesses and maids were staying. He was a little apprehensive about this, but knew that he had to see this through. And so, armed with a more-or-less steel-will to complete this quest, Tatsuya got up and made his way to the guest room.
Standing in front of the guest room, Tatsuya slowly reached for the knob. He mentally prepared himself as best as he could for the things he will see on the other side. With a shaky breath, he slowly turned the knob and opened the door. On the other side was a giant extensive hallway; the ending was nowhere to be found and the hallway trailed off into the darkness like a deep abyss. Covering the ground was a navy blue carpet that stretched as far as the never-ending hallway itself. The only light source were lighted torches on each side of the hallway, giving it an adventurous feel like a scene from an action movie where the hero enters a dark cave to find the treasure. Doors neatly populated each side.
Tatsuya entered the hallway and slowly took in his surroundings. He was no doubt surprised by how extensive the hallway was, but everything else was within the realm of his expectations. He walked up to the first door and saw a sign on it with two lines: one was in a foreign language that he had never seen before and the one below it was in Japanese. It was Ingrid's room. He thought it was best to keep moving on and not invade on her privacy.
The next room he came across was Umi's. The door opened and the maid walked out. She was surprised to find Tatsuya there and bowed. "I didn't know that you were doing inspections, Owatatsumi-sama," she said.
"No, I wasn't," he told her with an embarrassed laugh. "I was actually going to see Aika. Ingrid asked me to check up on her."
"I believe this is your first time in this magical hallway, correct?" asked the maid.
"Yes, it is," replied Tatsuya honestly.
"Would you like to take a look inside?" she asked him with a smile. Before Tatsuya could give her an answer, the maid grabbed his hands and led him inside. Tatsuya was astonished to see how big the room was—it was the size of a small classroom! The walls and ceilings were a beautiful aqua blue color and decorated with beautiful images of seashells and fish. There was a blue twin-sized bed, blue shelves stacked with books and scrolls, and even a small indoor pond with actual koi fish swimming inside. "What do you think?" asked the smiling maid.
"It's very…unique," he answered honestly. After having his fill of the room, he decided to get back to his mission. "I gotta go now," he told the maid, heading to the door. "But your room is very beautiful," he added with a thumbs up. He opened the door and exited her room. He walked down to the next door and realized that it was Sylphie's room. The door was slightly ajar. He was tempted to take a sneak peak inside. He placed his left eye to the crack and was met by a giant green button.
"Excuse me, Owatatsumi-sama?" came the maid's voice.
Tatsuya looked up and realized that the maid had opened the door and was standing right in front of him. "Ah, Sylphie, I…er…I," stuttered Tatsuya in embarrassment, his cheeks turning a bright red color.
"If you wanted to come in, you should've just done so," the maid told him with a smile. "We're both guys after all."
"R-Right," responded Tatsuya with an embarrassed nod.
He walked in and found himself staring at the maid's room with wide-eyes and a dropped jaw. The maid's room was about as big as Umi's. It had silver and green walls and a very high ceiling with a hanging light fixture. High poles at varying lengths were spread across the room, giving it a very circus-like feel. There was even a trapeze swing hanging from the ceiling!
"This is amazing!" exclaimed Tatsuya.
"Thank you," said the maid.
"Say, are you by any chance a circus performer?" inquired Tatsuya, pointing to the trapeze swing above him.
"That's just for recreational purposes," stated the maid. "Quetzalcoatls are air dragons, so we have a natural inclination for high places."
"I see." Tatsuya was still amazed by how spacious the room was. He looked around and noticed that the maid's bed was located five feet above the ground atop a stone pillar. 'Natural inclination for high places,' he thought to himself. He suddenly remembered his true purpose of coming into this hallway and bid Sylphie goodbye. He exited the maid's room and went on to the next room. Unlike the others before, this room didn't have a name. The only character written on it was: "Gate". He opened the door and pulled it back slowly. There was nothing on the other side. Confused by this unclimactic result, he took a step forward and walked inside. Suddenly, the door closed behind him and he found himself in complete darkness.
Tatsuya cautiously moved forward, not knowing what he could find in this dark room. After walking for what felt like five minutes, he could finally see a small circle of light ahead. He was overwhelmed with excitement over finding a light source that he forgot to be careful and immediately rushed forward. He finally reached the end of the tunnel and found himself in a completely new surrounding. It was a small classroom with a podium at the front. Something about this place felt really familiar to him. On his left were glass windows; he walked up to them and took a look outside. Upon seeing the familiar grounds below, it finally hit him. "This is just a portal to the school?!" he shouted furiously. That's when the door to the room opened. Tatsuya quickly ducked behind a table and hid himself.
Mr. Urushihara entered the room and noticed that the silver locker at the back of the room had its door opened. It has appears that someone has entered this room and could still very well be inside. He carefully scanned the room for the intruder and slowly walked up to the podium.
Tatsuya quieted his breathing. Seeing as the teacher had his back turned, he decided to take this opportunity make his escape. As quietly as could like a sneaking mouse, Tatsuya carefully turned around and crawled back to the locker. He was only a few inches away when a large sound from behind him stopped him in his place. He took a peek to see what it was and saw that Mr. Urushihara had dropped a pen. Tatsuya let out a sigh of relief and turned back to his escape. He finally reached the locker and was about to enter it when the door suddenly swung shut. Tatsuya looked up and found the teacher looking back at him with an amused smile.
"Good to see you here, Mr. Owatatsumi," said Mr. Urushihara. "Mind telling me why you're here on a non-school day?" Tatsuya gulped and laughed nervously. He got up and explained his situation to the teacher. Mr. Urushihara nodded along with his hand to his chin. "I see," said Mr. Urushihara with an understanding nod.
"Anyway, I got to get back now," said Tatsuya with a nervous smile. He had turned his body towards the locker when the teacher stopped him.
"Mr. Owatatsumi, would you like to know more about that portal?" asked Mr. Urushihara.
"The portal?" inquired Tatsuya.
"That portal is one of the things that was built into your newly magically reconstructed house, courtesy of the United Front," explained the teacher. "It is meant to be a portal to connect your home and this specific room, which you know is our club room."
"Why the connection?" Tatsuya asked.
"If your home is ever under attack, the portal serves as a quick evacuation point for the inhabitants, yourself included," revealed the teacher. "The opposite is also true. If the school is under attack, the portal will serve as a safe gate to transport the princess and all other personnel to the safe confines of your home."
"The safe confines of my home?"
"Your house has also been enchanted with defensive magic and spells," said the teacher with a smile. "Safe!" he said with a thumbs up.
"Will my house really be caught up in such an emergency?" asked Tatsuya desperately.
"Who knows," replied Mr. Urushihara with a shrug. "However, we have to pull out all the stops for what we believe in. We're going up against a very powerful enemy after all."
"I guess you're right," agreed Tatsuya with a grim nod. Both teacher and student said their farewells and Tatsuya entered the locker again. He reached the door on the other side and opened it, exiting out into the magical hallway again. Tatsuya walked over to the next room and saw that it was Arashi's. He made a very discomforting face and thought it was best to never take a step inside. As he was about to make his way onwards, the door opened and a hand reached out to grab Tatsuya. Before he knew, he was pulled inside her room by none other than the air dragon princess herself.
"Don't be so hasty, Tatsuya," said Arashi.
"How did you know that I was outside?" asked Tatsuya in a frightened tone.
"I heard from Sylphie that you were inspecting the rooms," she told him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him close, their noses touching. "Would you like a tour?" she asked him suggestively. Her hot breath on Tatsuya's skin made his body squirm with pleasure, his cheeks turning a bright scarlet color.
Tatsuya couldn't believe that he's in this position. It was embarrassing and uncomfortable to say the least. However, he couldn't escape his fate; Arashi's hold on him was too strong for him to break from. Additionally, she's made his body incredibly weaker and more sensitive with her lewd actions.
Arashi was extremely pleased to know that she had him completely under her control. As befitting her desire to make things interesting, she decided to take this a little further. She placed a kiss onto the side of his neck. His body reacted by squirming desperately in pleasure. "I see that you've recovered from your illness," she whispered in his ear. She then lightly and sensually licked his neck, slowly tracing her tongue along his hot skin. Tatsuya let out an uncontrollable moan of pleasure. Arashi then pushed him onto her silver bed. "Let me make you feel welcome in my room," she told him, biting her lower lip. She then proceeded to climb on top of him.
"A-Acchan!" screamed Tatsuya. He summoned the strength of his chivalric will and pushed her off of him. And then, quicker than a fleeing rat, he exited the room without so much as a glimpse of how it looked. Once he was out, he swore that he will definitely never ever step a foot inside that room again. He then went on to the next room. As he came to the door, he was greeted by Kanjomizu.
"My Love!" she exclaimed upon noticing him there.
"Hey, Mizu," greeted Tatsuya with a wave of his hand.
"What are you doing here?" she asked. And then, before Tatsuya could answer her, she brought her hands to her mouth and said, "Are you perhaps here to see my room?" The color suddenly drained from her face and she began to shake and sweat.
"Um, actually—," he began unsuccessfully.
"My Love is going to see my room!…I need some time to prepare….But what if he doesn't like it?…Will it live to his expectations?…I don't know if I can handle the pressure….Is there anything embarrassing out in plain sight?…" Kanjomizu mumbled quietly to herself in a panic.
"Actually, Mizu," began Tatsuya with a nervous laugh.
Once again ignoring Tatsuya's attempts to explain himself, Kanjomizu grabbed him by the arm and dragged him inside her room. Her room was a beautiful sapphire blue, from the walls to the ceilings. Delicate drawings of sea animals decorated the walls, making it seem as if they were really swimming around the room. The back half of the room was a giant indoor lake with real life sea creatures swimming inside. Tatsuya felt like he had just stepped inside a mini aquarium. "This is beautiful," he said breathlessly.
"T-T-Thank you, My Love," squeaked Kanjomizu with flushed cheeks.
Tatsuya walked towards the lake and was amazed to see so many animals swimming peacefully inside: a pair of sea turtles, a trio of dolphins, a school of goldfish, an octopus, and even a shark! He dipped his hand into the lake and felt the cool water. One of the dolphins broke away from its group and came towards him. It brushed it's nose against his hand. This was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience that Tatsuya was grateful to have witnessed right now. Kanjomizu had walked up to join him and smiled. "They're really beautiful," he told her.
"I'm glad to hear that," she replied. Kanjomizu glanced at her Love and took a deep breath. 'Be more assertive,' she told herself. She had successfully proved to herself that she is capable of taking the initiative in the last battle—it was a step forward in the right direction. If she falters now, she would be taking a huge step backwards—something she needs to avoid. She cleared her throat and said, "Listen, My Love, I—."
"Oh yeah, I remembered!" interrupted Tatsuya, getting up. "I have to go check on Aika," he told her. With a wave of his hand, he said farewell and left the room.
Meanwhile, Kanjomizu was left all alone. She hung her head in shame and remained still like a statue. It looks like she still needs a lot of work until she's ready to take the initiative.
Tatsuya, once he was outside in the hallway, walked down and reached the next door. Finally, he had arrived at Aika's door. He knocked on her door and waited for her reply. Nothing. He knocked once again and waited.
"I said I don't want to talk about it, Ingrid! Just leave me alone!" she shouted back like a whining child.
"Open the door, Aika," Tatsuya called to her.
"D-D-Darling?!" shouted Aika in surprise. "W-What are you doing here?"
"I'm here to talk," he told her.
"I'm sorry for this morning's incident, okay?" she shouted back in a desperately exasperated tone.
Suddenly, Tatsuya's face became a bright scarlet color. He knew that that must be the reason why Aika has locked herself in her room. She must be embarrassed out of her mind right now and just needs some time to sort out her feelings. Even though he knew that it might be best to leave her alone, Tatsuya felt bad for her and couldn't agree with subjecting her to that suffering alone. He knocked on her door and said, "Listen, it's alright. Why don't we talk about it?"
There was silence on the other side. And then her door opened and Aika greeted him with her eyes looking to the right. She let him in and Tatsuya stepped inside. He was astonished to the brilliantly glistening crimson walls and floor. The crimson ceiling was dome-shaped and had a beautiful Victorian-style chandelier hanging from it; images of dragons and phoenixes flew across the ceilings as if they were really there. On the walls were delicately drawn flame designs. A small scarlet table sat in the middle of her room complete with chairs and a teapot in the center. Next to her crimson bed was a small dresser with a few books stacked inside and a display case of sparkling pieces of jewelry on top. Next to the dresser was a small circular bed for Salazar, her pet Primordial Salamander. The pet himself was quietly sleeping on top of Aika's bed.
Aika invited Tatsuya to sit on her bed. She then carefully picked up Salazar and placed him in his own bed. The princess sat down right next to her Darling with her face turned away. Tatsuya himself had his face turned away too. The both of them remained like this in silence. Feeling that he needed to be the one to break the ice, Tatsuya began by saying, "You have a really nice room!"
"Mm-hm," uttered Aika.
"You know, I feel really better now," he told her. "My illness seriously felt like its completely gone now! That soup was good and the medicine Mizu gave me really did the trick."
"That's good," muttered the princess.
Tatsuya couldn't help but utter a groan. Although he's not particularly a fan of Aika's usual personality, he desperately wanted her to return back to normal soon. The way things are right now felt too weird and unnatural. His desire for normalcy told him that he needed to return Aika back to her usual self as quickly as he can. "Listen, I don't this to be our new normal," he told her.
"I'm sorry," apologized Aika. "I just—I can't," she told him quietly.
"Just tell me what's wrong already!" he exploded.
"I don't know if I can do it!" Aika cried, tears flowing from her eyes.
Tatsuya had never seen her like this before. No, actually he has. Suddenly, the memory of the first day they met replayed in his mind. That time she was crying too. A feeling of guilt lightly tugged at his heart as he remembered the way he felt that time after she ran away. He sighed and said, "Listen, how about we just go back to the way we were?"
"I-I don't know if I can do that," she told him glumly.
"Then we why don't we take it slow?" he suggested with a smile.
Aika turned her face to him and felt that a great burden had been lifted off her chest as she took in his kind smile. She dried up her tears and nodded along in agreement with his words. "That'll work!" she told him with a big smile. She lifted her head and gave him a peck on the cheek.
Tatsuya felt a little jolt upon receiving the kiss. He glanced at the princess and noticed that she was gradually returning back to her normal self. Satisfied with the result, he decided not to mind the little act of thanks and accepted it. It appears that he doesn't need to worry about their relationship any time soon. And although he would be the first to object to the fact that they have any kind of relationship at all, he was actually happy that everything would be going back to normal. Well, normal enough ever since his world became whatever it is now.