The day after the thoroughly embarrassing wardrobe incident, my face still flushed at the thought.
I had risen early, cleaned the general store, and returned to the office, only to be greeted by the rich smell of cooking oil as soon as I opened the door. My mouth watered instinctively.
Was someone cooking?
As I stepped inside, my suspicion was confirmed—Raven was standing at the stove, grilling sausages to a perfect golden brown.
He looked utterly mismatched: a bird’s nest of unkempt hair atop his head and an adorable set of pajamas. It was clear he’d only just woken up.
I quickly approached Raven and tugged at his sleeve, unable to sit idly by when I was already freeloading. I needed to help in some way.
“Oh, what is it? You want to help?”
“...!”
“Alright then... could you set the table with forks and knives? I’m almost done here, so there’s not much left to do.”
Following his gaze, I turned to see a toaster quietly humming in the corner. Today’s breakfast was sausages and toast.
I realized I’d arrived too late to be of much help this time. I’d have to move faster next time.
Understanding the situation, I dashed over and set the table with forks and knives for two.
When everything was ready, we sat down to eat. Breakfast passed in near silence.
Raven tended to focus on his food when eating, and I couldn’t speak to begin with.
The only sound in the room was the gentle clinking of knives and forks against plates.
After a while, Raven wiped his mouth with a napkin and suddenly spoke up.
“Yuria, about yesterday. Something came to mind.”
“...?!”
Gulp!
Startled by his sudden mention of the previous day’s events, I choked on my drink and started coughing violently.
Raven quickly handed me a glass of water. Once I managed to calm my cough, I was left feeling flustered.
Why was he bringing this up now?
I thought we’d moved past it. Or maybe, on second thought, he’d decided it wasn’t something to let slide after all.
Gripping my fork and knife tightly, I nervously awaited his next words, my eyes trembling.
Seeing my reaction, Raven chuckled wryly and placed a hand lightly on my head.
“I’m not trying to scold you, you silly girl. I just wanted to tell you that if you want to come into my room... you’re welcome to do so without sneaking around.”
“...?”
“You seemed so worried about it, so I figured I’d clear the air. Just in case.”
With that, he ruffled my hair so roughly that my head swayed back and forth.
Stop it! You’re making me dizzy!
I raised my hands to push away his hand with all my strength, but the difference in power was too great. In the end, I could only let him shake me around as he pleased.
“All done. When you’re finished eating, put your plate and utensils in the dishwasher. I’ll head out first.”
“....”
After tormenting me to his heart’s content, he finally stood up with his empty plate and utensils.
But as for me, with my head still spinning, I could only slump over the table, groaning in defeat.
To think he’d put me through such humiliation... One day, I’ll get my revenge!
As the dizziness subsided, I angrily bit into my sausage, vowing to make him pay.
Strangely enough, the unease I’d been feeling earlier now seemed trivial by comparison.
*
The day passed uneventfully after Alice and David arrived at the office.
As expected in a bustling city, clients with all sorts of quirks came and went. Fortunately, due to the time of year, there weren’t any dangerous, large-scale requests that could put the entire city at risk.
Hopefully, those kinds of events would wait until I quit my part-time job here.
Snuggled into Alice’s arms, where I was being treated more like a favorite doll than an assistant, I found myself entertaining such petty thoughts.
“I don’t want to leave Yuria... but I have to go home. Jin, what should I do?”
Alice muttered her reluctance aloud, making her feelings plain.
Raven, sprawled out on the sofa and casually picking at his ear, replied in his usual blunt tone.
“Then don’t leave.”
“Well, that’s not realistic... Wait, are you saying you want me to stay? No way, we’re family—”
“Pfft.”
“Hey! Don’t laugh! You’re making me look like an idiot for joking!”
Alice, flustered after trying to tease Raven and only being met with laughter, flushed red and protested.
It was one of those moments that could only exist between a man and a woman who saw each other as anything but romantic interests.
Alice, a stunning beauty even by city standards, and Raven, who, despite his lack of self-care, had a handsome face if you looked closely—
Yet, because there wasn’t even the faintest hint of romantic attraction between them, their relationship felt more like siblings than anything else.
Honestly, if the two of them ever developed romantic feelings, I’d suspect they’d fallen under some kind of hypnosis.
‘Still, I think Alice and Raven fit best together... but they’ll figure it out on their own.’
Watching their playful bickering with interest, I noticed David sitting nearby, observing the scene with a similarly amused expression. Our eyes met.
You find this funny too? Same here.
Without exchanging a word, we shared a knowing look and stifled a few chuckles.
“Alright, I’m leaving! Ugh, this is ridiculous.”
“Yeah, yeah, see you. Oh, and take the trash out on your way.”
“Hmph, do it yourself, Jin. Anyway... Yuria, I’m off! See you tomorrow!”
“...!”
Smack!
Alice, finally letting go of me, planted a bold kiss on the cheek of my fox mask.
Compared to her previous casual pecks on the top of my head or hair, this was a significant escalation in affection. Caught off guard, I couldn’t help but flinch.
Wait a minute—hasn’t her physical affection been getting bolder lately?
At this rate, who knows what she might do in the future...
Not that I’m ungrateful for such open affection.
But honestly, it’s a bit overwhelming, and I have no idea how to reciprocate.
As I awkwardly rubbed the spot where she kissed me and returned her farewell, Alice giggled and walked out of the office. She truly was a handful.
“I’ll be heading out as well. Oh, Yuria.”
“...?”
David, preparing to leave after Alice, suddenly stopped as if he’d remembered something.
He pulled a piece of paper from his pocket and handed it to me.
When I tilted my head, silently asking if I could open it now, David nodded.
“It’s a note from Sabrina. She wants to meet you this Saturday at 10 a.m. in Central Square. Is that okay? Alright then.”
Saturday, 10 a.m., Central Square.
I didn’t have any reason to refuse. I’d be free anyway.
From what I remembered, it was an invitation for an apology.
Might as well take the chance to get a free meal out of it.
With his task complete, David quietly left, leaving the large office empty except for Raven and me.
“How about burgers for dinner? There’s a new place nearby called Peanut Crunch Burger. What do you think? Any peanut allergies?”
“...!”
The source of this c𝐨ntent is freeweɓnovēl.coɱ.
At Raven’s suggestion, I nodded enthusiastically.
When he asked me to choose a menu item, I pointed to the super-sized option with my finger.
It was described as big enough to satisfy an adult, but I’d been eating a lot lately. This should be enough.
‘Alright, time to get started.’
Judging from Raven’s habits, tonight was the day of the dragon racing league—a chaotic event he wouldn’t miss for the world.
He’d probably crack open a can of beer and settle on the sofa in front of the big TV, showering only after the late-night races.
With about 30 minutes until the delivery arrived, I grabbed a change of clothes and dashed into the shower.
By the time the food showed up, I was freshly washed and changed into my cat-themed pajamas. I grabbed the burger set the delivery person had left at the door and sat down to eat with Raven.
Shower, dinner, teeth brushed—check.
Now, nothing could stop me.
Passing by Raven, who was fishing a cold beer from the fridge, I hurried to my room, grabbed my pillow, and made my way to his.
Opening the wardrobe, I tossed my pillow onto the pile of blankets inside. Carefully stepping onto each shelf, I climbed up to the top tier.
‘Close the door... and let’s get started!’
I pulled the Tesseract out from where I’d hidden it inside my pajamas.
Bringing it close to the ceiling where the rift was, I immediately felt a faint, ominous violet energy being drawn into the Tesseract.
Just like when I brought it near the fragment before, the dormant Tesseract began absorbing energy from beyond the rift.
‘Hmm, this is... really slow.’
Maybe it was because the rift was small, but the amount and speed of energy being absorbed were almost laughably slow.
So slow, in fact, that my arm holding the Tesseract began trembling from the strain of keeping it raised.
This wasn’t going to work. Unable to hold it up any longer, I used telekinesis to lift the Tesseract and hold it closer to the rift.
‘At least this way it’s easier... but if Raven opens the wardrobe door and sees a floating necklace, that’d be a problem.’
After a moment’s hesitation, I decided to connect my telekinesis to the rift and hugged the Tesseract close to my chest.
To my surprise, the faint energy from the rift flowed through my telekinesis and into the Tesseract, as if my ability was acting as a conduit.
This was it! A perfect method to awaken the Tesseract without worrying about Raven catching me.
All I had to do was maintain the connection and wait.
I hadn’t expected the idea I came up with last night to actually work.
Overjoyed, I couldn’t help but roll around on the blankets in excitement.
Slide.
“...Do you like it that much in there?”
“....”
...When did he get here?
Raven’s amused gaze bore down on me as I froze mid-roll.
The warm, almost fond look in his eyes was unbearable.
D-don’t look at me like that...!
Overwhelmed by embarrassment, I wriggled back under the blanket, desperate to hide.
I wanted nothing more than to smack that grin off Raven’s face.