Edward planned to carry Anya back to his room.
As he passed the corner of the stairs,
Edward felt as if he had suddenly bumped into something.
Soon, Edward heard a very attractive female voice in front of him.
"Oh! Sorry!"
"I'm so exhausted from working overtime lately!"
"I didn't see anyone else at the stairs!"
"I accidentally bumped into you. I'm so sorry!"
"Did anything happen to you?"
Looking at the woman standing in front of him, wearing a business uniform and with orange hair in a ponytail,
Edward shook his head and fell into thought.
I always feel like I've seen this person somewhere before...
The next second, Edward suddenly raised his eyebrows.
Isn't this person in front of me the programmer Kobayashi?
She is the heroine in Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid!
Looking at the obviously tired Kobayashi in front of him, and remembering her profession as a programmer,
Edward also understood why Kobayashi bumped into him just now.
"I'm fine." Edward showed a gentle smile on his face.
"On the contrary, you look very tired."
"Working overtime is important, but you still need to take a break and not exhaust yourself."
"That would be more trouble than it's worth."
"Woo! Thank you!"
Hearing Edward comforting her, Kobayashi scratched the back of her head in embarrassment.
Then, Kobayashi looked at Edward's face in a daze.
"Um, I don't think I've ever seen you around here before. Are you a new resident?"
Hearing Kobayashi's words, Edward shook his head.
"I'm not a new resident."
"I'm the new landlord!"
"!?"
…
"New landlord!?"
"The landlord changed? When did it happen?"
"Wasn't the previous landlord that uncle?"
At this point, Kobayashi was still a little slow to react. Looking at Edward in front of her, she couldn't understand what had happened for a moment.
Edward saw the confusion in Kobayashi's eyes and explained to her:
"The previous landlord was my uncle. But a few days ago, my uncle passed away due to illness."
"So now I am the one managing this apartment."
"I see." Kobayashi showed a regretful expression on her face.
"Your uncle was a really good person."
"When I first came to Tokyo to look for a job, I had no place to stay. One day, I got drunk at a bar,"
"It was your uncle who paid the bill for me..."
"Then, he invited me to come here and become his resident."
"Unexpectedly, your uncle left so suddenly..."
Edward was also quite surprised when he heard Kobayashi's words.
The more Edward learned about his uncle, the more he felt that his uncle had been a great person.
It's a pity that even such a good person had no relative standing at his side when he passed away.
The only relative is not from this world, but a time traveler.
However, although Edward had never met his late uncle,
He also planned to help the people around him as much as possible, just like his uncle did.
After all, he was the one who inherited his uncle's estate.
Then, Edward thought, he should also inherit his uncle's philosophy.
As he made the decision, Anya, who was held in Edward's arms, secretly opened her eyes.
When Edward and Kobayashi bumped into each other just now, she had already been woken up by the impact.
But she kept her eyes closed and quietly listened to the conversation between Edward and Kobayashi.
When she heard that Edward decided to do the same as his uncle and lend a helping hand to those in need,
Little Anya couldn't help but open her eyes.
Looking at Edward's profile,
Little Anya was stunned for a moment.
…
"Then I'll go back to my room."
"When I have some free time in the future, I will definitely go to my uncle's grave and offer him a bottle of beer."
"This can be considered as a thank you for taking me in at that time."
Kobayashi yawned tiredly, clearly exhausted.
Seeing Kobayashi so tired, Edward didn't continue talking.
"Resist!"
"Besides,"
"Drink more hot water!"
"Stop drinking beer all the time!"
Hearing Edward's words, Kobayashi scratched the back of her head and nodded at him.
After Kobayashi returned to her room, Edward looked at the room number, which was 2002.
There are three households on each floor, and the entire apartment is divided into four floors in total.
In other words, there are a total of twelve households living in this apartment building.
So far, Edward has visited his own house, Mrs. Nishimiya's house, and Kobayashi's house.
He wondered which anime characters the other residents might be.
It felt like he had somehow traveled to a world where anime and manga are integrated.
It seemed that after he cleaned up tomorrow, he would also need to conduct a survey of the apartment residents.
---
Certainly! Here's the updated chapter with "Passerby Girlfriend" changed to "Saekano: How To Raise A Boring Girlfriend":
---
After returning to his room, Edward looked at Anya, who had fallen asleep again in his arms. He gently placed her on the bed.
"Dad!"
Just as Edward laid Anya down, she stretched her little hand out, almost as if she was afraid he would leave her.
Seeing this, Edward felt a pang of sadness when he thought about Anya's past—how she had been sent back to the orphanage four times.
What a poor little girl. But luckily, she met me.
As Anya's father, Edward had made a vow to take care of her.
And it wasn't just Anya. This apartment was also filled with people his uncle had helped.
Helping others in need, maybe that's the true meaning of my journey through time.
Is that too childish to think?
Edward shook his head, pushing away the scattered thoughts.
His attention then turned to the advanced good luck card given to him by the system.
Now that Anya was asleep, he finally had a chance to study it.
---
Advanced Good Luck Card: After using it, the host will be surrounded by good luck for 24 hours! Go out during this time, and something good might happen!
It was pretty much what he had expected. The card maximizes luck for a short period.
Though he wanted to use it right away, it was already getting late, so he decided to save it for tomorrow.
After taking off his coat, Edward got into bed, pulling the quilt over him.
Sensing his presence, Anya subconsciously crawled into his arms as she slept.
Edward was a bit surprised, but he smiled and hugged her gently.
"Good night, Anya."
He turned off the bedside lamp, and the room fell into darkness.
---
The night passed quietly.
When Edward opened his eyes again, sunlight was streaming through the thin window curtains.
"7:00," he muttered, seeing the time.
It was already morning.
Edward noticed his left arm was numb. When he looked down, he saw Anya still sleeping peacefully.
Looking at her calm face, he smiled.
"Good morning, Anya."
He kissed her on the cheek and carefully pulled his arm out from under her little head.
"Hiss... My hand's numb!"
After a few moments, he walked out of the room.
"The fridge is empty. Looks like I'll need to go out."
"It's also a good chance to get familiar with the area."
"And I should use the luck card too."
Edward took the advanced good luck card from his system backpack and used it without hesitation.
---
"Is this what good luck feels like?" Edward thought to himself. "It doesn't feel any different."
But since it was from the system, he trusted it.
He stepped outside and breathed in the morning air.
The apartment had a nice environment. There was a large park next door. Maybe in the future, he could bring Anya here to play.
---
Edward walked around the shops near the apartment.
As soon as he entered one store, the cheerful owner shoved a stack of coupons into his hands.
"Hey, customer! You're so lucky!"
"You're the first customer today, so your bill is free!"
"And here are some coupons! You'll get 30% off everything if you use them in our store!"
Edward blinked, surprised. The owner kept smiling and handing him more coupons.
After leaving that store, he passed a toy store.
"Brother! Don't go!"
"You're the 100th person to pass by! Here's a big teddy bear as a reward!"
---
He walked on, receiving even more prizes—coupons, a free soy milk, and more.
What was going on? Edward had just wanted to buy breakfast.
Thanks to the advanced luck card, his hands were filled with all kinds of freebies from different stores. He even found 10,000 yen just lying on the ground.
"Is this really how strong the luck card is?"
Edward was amazed by his luck.
Just as he was heading back to the apartment, he noticed a girl ahead of him.
"Excuse me, can you lend me that for a moment?" Edward asked, carrying his bags.
The girl stopped and looked at him in surprise. "Um, can you see me?"
"Of course I can. You're not invisible," Edward answered, confused.
She had short bobbed hair and wore a white beret. Edward instantly recognized her.
Wasn't this Kato Megumi, the heroine from Saekano: How To Raise A Boring Girlfriend?
Edward's eyes widened.
It looked like he had traveled to a world where both anime and manga existed.
Before he could speak again, a man suddenly rushed out from behind them.
"Ahhh! Please move, please move!"
The man was heading straight toward Kato Megumi, and without thinking, Edward grabbed her, pulling her out of the way.
The next moment, there was a loud crash, and the man was hit by a truck.
---
Edward froze, stunned. If he hadn't stopped to help Kato Megumi, he might've been the one hit.
"Was that... the effect of the luck card?" he thought, looking at the scene in shock.
"Are you okay, classmate?" Edward asked, worried.
Kato Megumi, still in his arms, seemed unfazed. "I'm fine. But, shouldn't we focus on the guy who got hit?"
Edward blinked at her calm expression. "Are you serious? You were nearly run over!"
Kato Megumi gave him a blank look but answered seriously, "I'm fine, really."
Seeing how calm she was, Edward couldn't help but laugh nervously. "Well, I guess you're tougher than you look."
"Seems like you're really lucky today," Kato Megumi said with a small smile.
Edward nodded, still holding the pile of bags. "Yeah, I don't know what's going on, but I've had some strange luck today."
Kato Megumi raised an eyebrow. "You've certainly got a lot of things with you."
"Yeah," Edward chuckled. "It's been a weird day."
The two stood in silence for a moment before Edward spoke again. "Do you live around here?"
Kato Megumi nodded. "Yeah, I just moved in nearby. It's my first day here."
Edward's eyes widened. "Really? That's a coincidence. I live close by too."
Kato Megumi looked at him curiously. "Really? Small world."
"Yeah," Edward smiled. "If you need anything, feel free to ask. I'm pretty familiar with the area now."
"Thanks. I might do that," Kato Megumi said with a small nod.
As Edward turned to leave, a little boy ran up to him, holding out a toy car.
"Big brother! You helped my sister! Here, this is for you!" the boy said with a big smile.
Edward blinked, then laughed as he accepted the toy car. "Thanks, little guy."
The boy waved and ran off, leaving Edward holding the car.
Kato Megumi raised an eyebrow. "Seems like you're collecting things today."
Edward chuckled. "Yeah, I guess I am."
As he walked away, he couldn't help but wonder what else this strange day might bring. Was this just the beginning of something new? Or was it just another bizarre twist in the world he had found himself in?
Either way, he felt like his adventure had just started.
---