Why Shouldn’t a Detestable Demon Lord Fall in Love?! 2

Seeing the pure joy radiating from Luina’s face, Anima was worried that her jaw would fall off from smiling so much.

“I’m really happy to hear that, but I want to make you even happier. Instead of just walking around, let’s enjoy this trip to the fullest!”

“I can’t wait to see what surprises you have in store for me.” Her pure, blissful smile caused a slight disturbance to stir Anima’s heart. Seeing that disturbance in his face, Luina shot a worried glance at him. “Are you okay?”

“Well… I’m worried about whether I’ll be able to make this special for you.” To put it bluntly, Anima was unbearably nervous. Luina tugged him closer and hugged his arm tighter, making his heart race even faster. “Why are you squeezing so tightly?”

“I just feel like clinging to you. Because… I fell even more in love with you.”

“Did I say something that made you do that?”

He was overjoyed, but he had to ask anyway. In response, Luina looked up at him with the warmest, most longing look Anima had ever seen in her beautiful eyes.

“Nothing in particular. But I can hear how much you love me in the way you talk.”

Her gentle words tickled Anima’s cheeks as she rested her head on his shoulder. The sweet scent that drifted off of her mixed together with the fresh fragrance of the lush plains, creating an image of a field full of budding flowers in his mind. All he wanted was to share a warm kiss with his lovely wife, but doing so while walking was a disaster waiting to happen.

I can wait until tonight to kiss her.

They had shared a kiss every day since their first, so he had already gotten used to that routine, but he couldn’t risk hurting her. Anima stifled his desires and continued to walk next to Luina. Just as the sun finished its slow climb all the way up over the family’s heads, they decided to take a small break.

“Wooow!” Marie shouted in excitement as they came upon a sea of blooming golden flowers.

“Oh my, what a beautiful field of dandelions.”

“Dadelins! So pitty!”

“They sure are,” Myuke agreed. “I wonder if someone planted them.”

“Dandelion seeds are connected to little white balls of fluff that can be carried far, far away by the wind. I think this field is probably natural,” Luina explained.

“Woooow! Dadelins’re so good!”

“Do you like dandelions, Marie?”

“Uh-huh! They sooo pitty!”

Marie watched the dandelions wobble in the gentle breeze, completely awestruck. Suddenly, Myuke clapped her hands together.

“Marie, do you want a flower crown?” she asked.

“You make one? I wannit! I wannit!”

“Coming right up!”

“Yay!” Marie cheered as she jumped with joy. “Cown! Cown!”

“Why don’t we have lunch here too?” Luina suggested.

“’Kay!”

“Sounds good to me! I’m starving!”

“All right, give me a moment to set up the blanket.”

Anima laid out the picnic blanket and took off his backpack. As he did so, Shaer landed next to him.

“Are you about to have lunch?”

“We are. Would you like to join us?”

“No, I wouldn’t want to ruin your precious family picnic. Besides… I hate to admit it, but I’ve already had lunch.” She had probably eaten her lunch in the air, as evidenced by the crumbs dotting her cheeks. When Anima pointed it out, she blushed, quickly wiped them off, and looked back at them with a stiff expression. “I’ll take a break a bit further away, just call for me when you’re done.”

“’Kaaay!”

“What a lively response.”

Shaer praised Marie before moving to the other side of the road. As she did, the girls shifted their focus to their lunch. The moment Luina opened the picnic basket, their spirited cheers travelled through the plains.

“Nummy!” Marie complimented the sandwiches Luina had woken up early to make.

“These sandwiches won’t last as leftovers, so eat them all up!”

“Don’t worry, I was already planning to do that.”

Anima loved Luina’s cooking; there was no way he was going to leave even a single bite uneaten. If anything, he had to be careful not to accidentally devour the girls’ portions as well.

“Thanks for the meeeaaal!”

The others did the same, then they all started eating. To prevent the girls from getting bored of them, Luina had made a plethora of different sandwiches—the one Anima picked up was ham, lettuce, and tomato. The lettuce crunched as he bit into it, and the saltiness of the ham was perfectly balanced out by the slight acidity of the tomato. The freshness of the ripe vegetables completely overtook his palate.

“Seconds!”

“More for me, too!”

They had to have been starving after walking all day; the large, well-packed sandwiches were almost completely gone in mere minutes.

“Be careful not to choke.”

“I know! So, anyway, where are we going today?” Myuke asked, her eyes twinkling as she stuffed her cheeks with one of Luina’s delicious sandwiches. Anima took out the map and pointed at the day’s goal just as she swallowed.

“We don’t have any set plans,” he explained, “but we want to reach the next city in five days. If we split the distance into five parts, we should stop around here for the day.”

“It’s that close? That should be a cinch to reach by the evening!”

“You two were moving pretty fast this morning, after all.”

“I can’t wait to see all the cool things they’ve got out there!”

“Myukeyyy, you neber been here?”

“I’ve been around there for work, but it’ll be completely different this time around.”

Just thinking about the fact that Myuke was a Hunter almost made Anima throw up. He recalled the jerks who had bad-mouthed her at the top of their lungs, saying all kinds of horrible things. Those pigs had called her useless and bragged about using her as a pack mule, forcing her tiny body to haul all their luggage. He could imagine her dragging their clothes and equipment around all day, dead tired, her head hanging. She must not have had the luxury of getting to enjoy the scenery.

“I’m excited to get to our destination, but it’s nice to be able to relax here for a while,” Anima chuckled. “We’re not in any hurry. You can run and play around all you want after lunch.”

Their faces lit up in an instant and they continued stuffing their cheeks with sandwiches. Before long, the lunch basket was completely empty.

“I’m still hungy!”

Marie looked at Luina, asking for more food.

“Do you want to have dessert?”

“Uh-huh!”

“You mean the dried fruit, right? I want some too!”

The girls excitedly followed Luina’s hand as she reached into her bag, took out the jar of dried fruit, and opened it.

“Eating too much will make your tummies ache, so you can each have three!”

“Twee? But, but, I’m so hungy…”

“Then let’s make it four.”

“Four? Yaaay!” Marie cheered before jumping hand-first into the jar of sweets. At least she had planned to. As she took a closer look at the jar, she realized that there were multiple different kinds of fruit, and got very confused.

“These!” Myuke, on the other hand, immediately picked out her four and ate one. “So good!”

“Me too! I wannit too!”

Marie was getting restless. Feeling like she was wasting her time thinking, she stuck her small hand into the jar and took out four pieces of dried fruit. She then chose one of the four and tasted it.

“Wooow! Shoo shweet! Whassis?”

“That’s a mango.”

“I love mandoes! Myukey, Myukey, do you like mandoes?”

“I do!”

“I gibe you one!”

“Really?”

“Mm-hmm! ’Cause I love Myukey more than mandoes!”

“Thank you! Here, I’ll give you a strawberry for it.”

“Yaaay! I love stawberbies!”

While excitedly bonding over the delicious dried fruit, they each scarfed down their four pieces. After thanking Luina, Myuke stood up, and Marie followed suit.

“Time to make you a flower crown, just like I promised.”

“Yaaay! Thanks!”

Anima watched as Myuke began making the flower crown from the surrounding dandelions. Marie supervised the process, watching with great interest.

“Are you tired?” Luina asked, snuggling up to Anima.

“Don’t worry about me, I’m pretty confident in my stamina. I traversed the world on foot, and even crossed the infamous Desert of Perish once before you summoned me here.”

“I see…” Luina let out a disappointed sigh.

“Sorry,” Anima replied, seemingly worried.

“Hm? What are you apologizing for?”

“I fear my stories might be boring you.”

“Oh, no, not at all! It’s just, umm…” Luina fidgeted, staring at Anima with pleading eyes. “I was thinking about letting you rest your head on my lap if you were tired…”

“Your l-l-lap?! As a pillow?!”

Anima was thunderstruck. They’d done plenty of couple-like things such as holding hands, hugging, and sharing kisses, but she had never offered to let him use her lap as a pillow before.

He had watched as Marie enjoyed resting on Luina’s lap a number of times before. He didn’t want to admit it, but he felt a bit jealous every time that happened. Even so, he couldn’t bring himself to ask Marie to trade places with him. That, coupled with the feeling of awkwardness at directly asking Luina to pamper him, left him cursed to a life devoid of a lap to lie on. Being blessed with the wonder of resting his head on his wife’s lap took his breath away.

“Are you okay?”

Anima huffed and shook his head.

“I would love that.”

“Then please, go ahead.”

Luina sat down and patted her legs. After a big gulp, Anima carefully laid his head down on her thighs, taking extra care not to stab her with his horns.

Her thighs were like the fluffiest of clouds, and his head was floating on them. Their warmth and softness left him overcome with drowsiness, but he had finally gotten to experience the lap pillow he so deeply coveted, and he wasn’t going to let it go to waste by falling asleep.

“How is it?”

“Incredible.”

“I’m happy to hear that,” Luina said with a smile upon hearing his heartfelt praise. “I’ll keep an eye on the girls, so feel free to take a nap.”

“I don’t want to fall asleep and miss out on this wonderful experience. I’ll stay up.”

“If you’re enjoying my lap that much, I’ll do this for you every day.”

“I appreciate the offer, but your lap would get tired if we did it every day.”

“You’re always so kind,” Luina told him as she ran her hand through his silver hair.

“No, I’m really not. I just love you.”

“Anima…”

Anima watched as a gentle smile spread across Luina’s face, when Myuke’s voice suddenly cut through the serene atmosphere.

“It’s done!”

Marie was making her way toward the couple with a dandelion crown sitting proudly atop her head.

“Oh my, what a beautiful crown. You’re like a real princess.”

“Myukey maked it!”

“Impressive, Myuke. Great work.”

“Wow, you’re very good at that.”

Myuke blushed from all the praise she got. While she was busy trying to cope with the sudden compliments, the others watched as a butterfly slowly landed on her head.

“Ah! Buttafye!”

“Really? Where?”

The butterfly took to the skies again as Myuke turned around.

“Wait, buttafye! Wait!”

“Wait!”

Anima watched from the comfort of Luina’s lap as the girls chased the butterfly around. After a while, they both returned to Anima and Luina with their bangs stuck to their forehead.

“Water… Can I have some water?”

“Me too!”

“Just a moment,” Luina said. Ushering Anima’s head off her lap so she could move around freely, she grabbed their water container and handed it to Myuke. After taking a couple big gulps, Myuke let out a satisfied “Ahh” and threw herself down on the picnic blanket.

“I need a quick break,” she said.

“Me too!”

“Then how about resting your head in my lap?” Luina offered.

“My lap is available, too.”

They both jumped on the proposal. Myuke leapt into Anima’s lap after shooting a quick glance at Shaer, and Marie snuggled into Luina’s.

“Wow, Daddy. Your legs are super ripped.”

“I’ve done a lot of training. Are they uncomfortable?”

“No, I love how they look and feel. They’re so cool!” Myuke often made a point of acting like an adult, but that was only in front of strangers. When she was together with her beloved family and no one else—save for Shaer—she would let herself be pampered like a little child. She flashed Anima a big, bright smile while he gently pet her head. “Thank you, Daddy. I’m really happy.”

“Me too!” Marie shouted. “I wanna get pets too!”

“Of course.”

Luina started patting Marie’s head, and before long, the two girls closed their eyes and fell asleep. Watching her two little angels peacefully sleep on her and her husband’s laps, Luina couldn’t help but to smile.

“They’re fast asleep.”

“It’s no wonder. They were on their feet all morning.”

They stared at the emerald-green field while patting the adorable little girls sleeping in their laps. Time slowly trickled down as one hour turned into two, two into three…

“Oh, curse my luck! I overslept!” Shaer’s eyes flew open and she jumped to her feet, looking around in panic. She calmed down the moment she spotted Anima, and begrudgingly approached him. “Were you stuck waiting for me? …Ah, I see the children are sleeping too.”

“They are. I’d hate to wake them, and the sun has almost set. Why don’t we end today’s trip here?”

“After only half a day…”

Shaer looked troubled. She must’ve wanted to defeat the monster as soon as possible. Taking another look at the peacefully sleeping little girls, she nodded. “You’re right, though; it would be mean to wake them. In that case, I’ll start setting up my tent. I wouldn’t mind setting yours up as well, but… Where is it?”

“We didn’t bring one.”

“Really? I believe it will get quite cold during the night. It might get a bit cramped, but please, use my tent.”

“Don’t worry about us. I’m going to build a house.”

“A house?” Shaer asked with an inquisitive look.

“Ah, speaking of which, could you switch places with me for a moment?”

“M-Me? It’s difficult to admit, but as I was quite young when I first devoted myself to the way of sword, I’m quite inexperienced with handling children on top of being absolutely terrible at any and all kinds of chores.”

“It’s okay,” Luina assured her, “the girls love you. I’m sure you’ll do just fine.”

“I-I’ll certainly try, then.”

The encouragement from Luina built Shaer’s confidence. She held her breath to avoid making any sound, and carefully lifted Myuke’s small head, setting it down on her lap. Her awkward, flustered demeanor reminded Anima of himself from three months earlier.

“Thank goodness. She’s sleeping like a baby,” she said with a relieved sigh. “By the way, how are you planning to build a house? I don’t see any trees nearby.”

After getting over the shock of having her lap become Myuke’s pillow, she was finally able to ask the question she’d been curious about. Anima signaled her to stay where she was and watch, then moved away from the group. He put his hand on the ground and focused his mana into it. When he did, the ground before him turned over, quickly forming into a recognizable shape.

He had succeeded in making a dome-shaped house. The arched doorway led into a single, wide area. The building’s walls were coated with mana to make the structure incredibly sturdy; even in the case of a strong earthquake, it wouldn’t suffer a single crack. Moreover, the mana coating kept any trickling dust in check, making it a perfect sleeping area for the night.

“I really wanted to throw together a door and a couple of windows, but I don’t have any wood on hand. I apologize; it might get a bit windy inside.”

“A small breeze won’t hurt,” Luina told him, “and it’ll be warm and cozy if we snuggle up together. Thank you for making such a lovely little house for us, Anima.”

“I’m glad you like it,” Anima said with a smile, then turned towards Shaer with a serious look. “Are demons common in this area?”

“No, not at all. Hunters often patrol these areas, as we’re not terribly far from Garaat yet. Still, being cautious is always a good idea. One can never be too prepared.”

“Then I’ll probably seal the entrance when we go to sleep.”

Of course, he’d be sure to leave enough of an opening to allow them to breathe.

“Nhh…” Marie moaned. They must’ve accidently woken her up. She rubbed her eyes and sat up, then drowsily looked at the newly built house. The moment she spotted it, her eyes popped wide open, filled with wonder and awe. “House! Look, house!”

“Ngh, what’s with all the noise…? Wait, what’s up with that house?!” Myuke exclaimed in surprise.

“Anima made it.”

“Daddy did?! Wooow!”

“This is indeed very impressive. I assume you made use of a dwarf stone, but manipulating such an excessive amount of earth must have required an unbelievable amount of mana. Not to mention that you’re using a minotaur stone simultaneously. Your mana reserves must be truly bottomless.”

Shaer was thoroughly impressed. She hadn’t commented on Anima’s horns at any point prior, seemingly because she assumed they were the result of a magic stone rather than being his own. He could have told her about them, but if he did that, he would be forced to explain everything about himself—about how he had been summoned to her world, and about the power of the Scarletts’ hidden treasure. They trusted Shaer, but it was better not to tell her anything she didn’t need to know.

“We’ll be setting up camp here for the day, so go on inside.” He guided the girls inside, then, after packing up the picnic sheet, went inside as well. “Shaer, please come in.”

“May I?”

“Of course. You might catch a cold outside.”

“I am in your debt.”

Shaer took down her haphazardly set up tent and entered the soil-scented room.

“Sooo biiig!”

“Not even rain can stop us now!” Marie and Myuke ran excitedly around the room. They had just woken up, but it was nearing sunset; after a hearty dinner, they were sure to get sleepy again. “Oh, since Daddy set up the house, does that mean we’re done walking for the day?”

“Yep,” Luina said with a nod. “Let’s let Daddy relax for a bit while I make dinner. Would anyone like to help me prepare dinner?”

The girls’ hands immediately shot into the air of the soil hut that echoed with cheerful laughter. As the sun slowly set behind it, the family’s first day of travel came to an end.

◆◆◆

Three days had passed since Anima and his family had left Garaat. Soon after the sun began to peek over the horizon, the group set out from their camp at the foot of the mountain. Marie had wanted to sleep for a bit longer, but Anima had told her that it would be more fun if they started climbing early in the morning, so they had set off for a small settlement on the other side of the mountain that Shaer had told them about.

According to her, the place wasn’t anything grand, but they could restock their supplies there. Given that they had already eaten half the food they’d brought with them, it was the perfect stopping point for the night.

“Is everyone doing okay?” Anima asked his family. “Just say the word and I’ll give you a piggyback ride or carry you in my arms all the way to the top of the mountain.”

“I keep cimb!”

Despite having acted like a little sleepyhead when she’d woken up, the excitement of her first climb filled Marie with energy.

“Good girl! You’re doing a very good job! How about you, Myuke?”

“All good! I’ve climbed some hellish mountains for work, so this puny hill is nothing to me!”

“Such a strong girl,” Anima said while gently petting her head. “And you, Luina?”

“I’m fine. My legwork is one of my strongest points,” she chuckled, continuing to climb the mountain with ease.

Things wouldn’t have been going so smoothly if they had been on a steep animal trail, but the beaten mountain path they walked had a gentle, comfortable slope. Even with the occasional patch of weeds and sudden dip or rise in the road, it was a pretty safe climb overall.

No matter how safe it was, however, it was still a climb. The girls’ stamina drained much faster than it had when they’d been walking the flat plains on the first day, and before long, wiping the sweat off their foreheads became a common occurrence. The trees blocked some of the relentless sunlight, but they didn’t provide a perfect cover. The patches of sunlight shining through rapidly raised their body temperature.

“I’ve found a perfect little spot for a break!” Just after the sun had reached its apex and continued to move west, Shaer landed near the group and informed them of her findings. “Let’s have lunch there.”

“Good idea. We’ll have lunch soon, girls. Just a little longer.”

The girls nodded excitedly to Luina and continued their brisk climb until something came into view.

“Wooow!” Marie exclaimed.

Before them was a rope bridge around a hundred feet long, suspended over a rocky, sparkling clean mountain stream. Falling from that bridge would spell certain death for anyone except Anima. Being faced with the first challenge since their departure, Anima tensed up. He needed to escort his family to the opposite shore safely.

“Marie, hold my hand and don’t let go while we’re on the bridge.”

“’Kaaay!”

Anima took Marie’s hand, and faced the dangerous crossing. They carefully set foot on the bridge, which immediately started swaying.

“Wooow! It’s goin’ shaky shaky!” Finding it amusing, Marie started shaking the rope. The more the bridge swayed and creaked the more excited she got. “Aaand done!”

Marie was ecstatic as they safely arrived at the shore. At first, Anima was hell-bent on protecting her at all costs, but as they got closer to the other side, he realized that it was pretty well built and that he had nothing to worry about.

“Did you have fun?” he asked once they’d made it across.

“Uh-huh! It goed shaky shaky! I wanna go ’gain!”

“Then do you want to go back with me to the others?”

“Yes peeease!”

They once again held hands and crossed the swaying bridge, only to be greeted by a deathly pale Myuke. Anima had a hunch as to the reason for her lack of color.

“Are you afraid?”

“N-Not at all…” she said, visibly shaking. She couldn’t admit to being scared in front of Marie, and Anima completely understood that. He flashed a warm smile before opening his mouth.

“You know, I’m afraid too,” he told her.

“Huh?” she replied, dumbfounded. “Afraid? You?”

“Yes. I was scared stiff when I crossed the bridge with Marie. My heart wouldn’t stop racing.”

“R-Really? W-Well, to be honest, I’m also a little, super tiny bit scared…”

“I see. Then could you hold my hand? I feel like I can conquer my fear if you’re there with me.”

“Okay! I’ll keep you safe!” Myuke exclaimed proudly with an enthusiastic nod, then squeezed Anima’s hand. Her palms were sweaty from the stress.

“Luina, you should hold Marie’s hand.”

“Of course. The bridge would sway too much if we all crossed at once, so we’ll go first, okay?”

Once Luina and Marie had crossed the bridge and waved back at them, Myuke whispered “I can do this” and took a step forward. With a painful creak, the bridge started swaying. Her shaking legs carried her one step after another until she and Anima safely reached the other side.

“That was pretty fun!” Myuke said with a big smile.

Overcoming such an obstacle seemed to have really helped her grow; the look in her eyes was much more mature than it had been before. Realizing—and being astonished at—how quickly children grow up, Anima pet her head.

“I only managed to cross that bridge because you were there for me. Thank you, Myuke.”

“You’re welcome! I’ll help you cross again whenever you want, just say the word!”

“I can always count on you.” Anima smiled.

“Ah, look, there! What’s there?!”

The area Marie was excitedly pointing toward was completely concealed from the opposite side by trees, but after crossing, the family had a clear view of a beautiful waterfall. It wasn’t too elevated, so the feeling of grandeur was mostly absent, but its breadth was quite impressive. The curtain of water streamed down without pause, its coldness reaching all the way to the group to banish the beads of sweat from their foreheads.

“Look! A rainbow!”

“Wooow!”

As the sunlight shone upon the waterfall, it produced a cute little rainbow. The view was so lovely that all five of them were left completely spellbound.

“How pretty…” Luina said in a serene tone, awestruck by the waterfall.

Anima turned toward her and experienced the same feeling of awe.

“Just gorgeous…”

“It really is, isn’t it? Wait, what are you looking at?!”

“You.”

“Ah, jeez. There you go again, flattering me…”

Luina’s face flushed and she turned back toward the waterfall. After gazing at the beautiful scenery for a little longer, they set out on their climb again.

“Aaand done!”

When they reached the top of the mountain, the family sat down at a group of benches prepared for the Hunters usually patrolling the area and enjoyed the scenery, so breathtaking that it couldn’t be described in words. The light of the setting sun painted the vast forests below them orange, as if they were dressed in autumn colors, while the cold, gentle breeze lessened the exhaustion that had set itself on their bodies after a long day of climbing. Taking in the view, a gentle smile appeared on Luina’s tired face.

“Ahhh! Look! There! A moundan!”

“Wow, there really is a mountain over there! Good find!”

“I’m sooo good at finding! That moundan is sooo biiig!”

“It really is big, but you know, you climbed an even bigger mountain today.”

“I did?!” Marie was blinking rapidly in surprise. “I cimbeded something bigger?”

“You sure did. Both of you did really well, Marie, Myuke.”

Hearing Anima’s praise, wonderful smiles bloomed on both of their faces, and they jumped up from the bench.

“I can cimb s’more!”

“I’m ready to roll too! Though, Marie, we won’t be climbing anymore. We need to go down the mountain now.”

“We go dowd?”

“Yep, exactly! Look, see that village down there?” Myuke pointed at the small settlement in the middle of the woods. “We want to get there!”

The orange sunshine reflected off the river running along the outskirts of the village. It seemed to be rather far away from the summit, but once they’d descended the mountain, the rest of the way would be through plains. The flat roads wouldn’t prove very difficult to walk for the girls, so even in the worst-case scenario, they would be able to make it there by the morning two days later.

“Wooow! Look, Daddy! Wassat?”

Marie excitedly pointed down. A small pond was letting off a gentle cloud of steam just under the slope, which could only mean one thing.

“Isn’t that a hot spring?”

“‘Hod sping’?”

“A bath.”

“One’s there?”

“Mm-hmm. Why don’t we all get in while we’ve got the chance?”

The girls nodded. They had worked up quite a sweat during the day-long climb, and naturally, they wanted to rinse it off—a feeling that even Myuke was old enough to be extra conscious of. Settling on the idea of a relaxing bath, they started descending the mountain when Shaer landed near them.

“It’s gotten rather dark, so I suggest we set camp for the night. Naturally, I’d prefer that we get to the monster as soon as possible, but I would hate to put your dear family in danger to do so. Therefore, rude as it may be for me to say, I forbid you from pushing your limits,” she warned out of the goodness of her heart.

“We go hod sping!”

Shaer was visibly puzzled by Marie’s brief report.

“‘Hod sping’…? Ah, a hot spring! So that’s where all that steam was coming from.”

“You come too!”

Marie took her hand. She was traveling separately, but she slept together with the rest of the group, and it seemed that Marie had really warmed up to her during their three-day sleepover. Anima also enjoyed her company, especially because she was mindful of his family.

“Would I be disturbing your family bonding?” she asked, and looked to Anima and Luina.

“I wouldn’t mind one bit if you joined us. The more the merrier, after all.”

“I don’t mind either.”

Marie really wanted to take a bath with Shaer, and Anima couldn’t possibly turn down his little angel’s wish. Their acceptance made Shaer’s face twinkle with happiness.

“To tell the truth, I really wanted to take a bath. I’m drenched in sweat.”

The knight’s inclusion decided, all five left for the hot spring together. As they got to the edge of the water, Marie immediately started undressing while Myuke looked at it with a worried expression.

“It’s steaming like crazy. Can we really get into this?” Myuke carefully checked the temperature with her hand, then flashed a relieved smile. “It’s perfect!”

Following Marie’s example, Myuke started stripping too. She was already old enough to be embarrassed about bathing with others, so despite having agreed to wash Anima’s back not long after they’d met, she still hadn’t gotten into the bath together with him. Still, watching Anima, Luina, and Marie merrily take their baths together must have made her feel left out, so a week after she’d started referring to Anima as “Daddy”, she’d finally given in and taken her first bath with them.

“So compy!”

“It’s nice and warm.”

Marie and Myuke quickly submerged themselves in the bath, followed shortly after by Anima and Luina, who were also stark naked.

“How relaxing…” Luina whispered with a gentle smile. The comfortable warmth had very obviously made her drowsier, as her eyes stayed closed longer every time she blinked.

“I feel like myself again.”

Shaer, in the nude like the others, enjoyed herself a little bit further to the side. It was supposed to be a rather embarrassing experience, but she either didn’t mind Anima’s company or was just too absorbed in enjoying the warm water, as she didn’t show any signs of embarrassment.

“Look, look! The wader’s so pitty!”

“It’s really beautiful how it reflects the setting sun.”

“I’m being revitalized…”

The family spent the rest of the evening revitalizing their bodies and minds at the dream-like hot spring.