Mushoku Tensei — Chapter 89 - One Day, Rudeus

"Hm? It's this late and you still haven't gone home?"

Nanahoshi glanced at the setting sun outside the window, then turned to look at me.

"My wives said they're preparing a surprise. They told me to come back later."

"Oh? Then let's go grab a drink."

I shook my head.

"Since when did you become a drunkard?"

"So are you going or not?"

"No. I don't want to have to carry you home again."

"Then what are you planning to do now? I'm heading back to the dorm to rest."

"I know, I know. I'm leaving."

Well, it's been a while now. Should be about ready, right?

They said it was a surprise, but I had absolutely no clue what to expect.

It's not an anniversary. Not a birthday or anything like that...

"You make it sound like I'm chasing you out... Alright. See you tomorrow."

Nanahoshi grumbled a bit and started tidying up the materials on her desk.

"See you tomorrow."

I stood up from the chair, said goodbye to Nanahoshi, and headed home.

...

"Knock, knock, knock."

Hurried footsteps followed immediately after.

"Welcome back!"

Aisha was the one who opened the door.

"I'm home."

She rushed over and threw her arms around me.

I looked around the living room. There was no decoration of the kind I'd imagined.

Where's the surprise?

I set Aisha back on the ground and walked further inside.

Roxy's and Sylphiette's voices drifted from the kitchen. Looks like they're the ones making dinner again tonight.

Our family's maids are practically turning into cleaning maids at this point. Aside from breakfast, they hardly ever need to cook.

I let myself relax and flopped down onto the sofa, soaking in the warmth of home.

Aisha sat down beside me, perfectly well-behaved.

Come to think of it, isn't she being a little too well-behaved today? Normally the moment I walked through the door she'd be dragging me straight to the bathroom, wouldn't she?

"Rudy~ You're back?"

Roxy poked her head out from the kitchen.

"Yeah."

"Dinner will be ready soon. Just wait a bit."

A few minutes later, Roxy brought the finished dishes out one by one.

I patted Aisha's head and asked, "Aren't you going to help?"

"Does brother not trust his sisters-in-law?"

"I do."

"Well, there you go."

Aisha leaned her head into my chest.

I stroked her hair slowly, catching the faint scent of her. Hmm... We bathe with the same soap. How does she manage to smell this nice?

I lifted a strand of her hair and brought it to my nose.

Just soap. That's all it was.

"Brother..."

"Huh? Yeah? What is it?"

"You're acting kind of like a pervert right now."

"Eh? Ah... I was just curious why you smell so nice when we use the same soap..."

"It's fine. If brother likes it, smell a little longer."

Aisha grinned, her little fangs showing, and burrowed her head deeper into my chest.

"Alright, stop messing around. Time to eat."

I lifted Aisha out of my arms and set her aside.

Just then, Sylphiette's voice rang out from the dining table.

"Dinner's ready~"

I got up from the sofa and walked over.

The spread was about the same as usual — all Roxy's and Sylphiette's specialty dishes. But I could tell they'd put extra care into everything today. And every time I reached for my knife and fork, they watched me with barely concealed anticipation.

The pressure was real.

I put a piece of steak in my mouth and smiled. "The steak is grilled really well."

"Is that all, brother~?"

Aisha looked at me with an amused tilt of her head. I glanced left and right at Sylphiette and Roxy, both of them still watching expectantly.

Right. I should be laying it on a bit thicker here.

"Ahem... I'm sorry, I'm not exactly a food critic, so I don't have many words for this kind of thing. But today's cooking is better than anything before. I mean it."

That came out a little too earnest.

"Hahaha, no need to be so nervous, Rudy."

"Yeah. Even though Sylphiette and I were really serious about making dinner tonight, we've always put care into it before too. So it's only natural you can't taste the difference, right?"

"I see..."

Through dinner, I almost forgot entirely about the surprise Sylphiette and Roxy had mentioned.

It wasn't until the meal ended that the two of them, no, all three of them — stood before me in a way that felt unusually formal.

Sylphiette and Roxy, fine. But why was Aisha there too?

I wanted to ask. But the atmosphere wasn't right for that question, so I stayed quiet and waited.

After ten or so seconds, Roxy took a deep breath.

"Ru... Rudy! This is the ring that I, Sylphiette, and Aisha picked out for you!"

She held out a leather box, small, elegant, clearly expensive.

"This is..."

I took the box and opened it.

Inside were three rings. Cyan-blue. Emerald-green. Wine-red.

"Well... we were thinking... Aren't we Rudy's fiancées? Even though we haven't had the wedding yet... but... but... we want more people to know that Rudy has fiancées... because Rudy is very popular, isn't he..."

Roxy was stumbling over her words. It was incredibly endearing.

So these rings represent them. Each one. But then... what does Aisha's mean?

I held the box, already seeing the problem. With only one hand, getting all three on was going to be awkward.

"Rudy~ Hold out your hand."

They must have anticipated that. Each of them took the ring in their color and slipped it onto my fingers themselves.

Index finger. Ring finger. Pinky.

What should I say right now?

I was quiet for a moment.

"...Hm. Tomorrow I'll go get some rings and necklaces custom-made too. Those men out there should know you have a fiancé. Especially since you're all this adorable."

"Really, Rudy, stop saying such embarrassing things!"

"I'm just telling the truth."

I stepped forward and hugged Roxy, then Sylphiette.

Damn it. Not having two hands is genuinely inconvenient.

"So?" Sylphiette kissed me on the cheek. "Do you like the surprise we prepared?"

"I do. Very much."

I looked over at Aisha. Her expression hadn't changed much — she was just smiling quietly.

"Does brother like the ring I gave him?"

"Yeah. I'm really happy."

"I need to let those 'little sisters' out there know that brother already has one."

"I see. Thank you, Aisha."

"Alright! Brother, go take a bath now! Today, let Roxy-nee and Sylphiette-nee help you!"

"Hm?"

I looked at Roxy and Sylphiette. Both of them were red in the face.

"Rudy~ Let's bathe together?"

There was something about the way Sylphiette said it. My imagination immediately started running.

"Rudy... We've always slept together. Bathing together is nothing to be shy about, right?"

Roxy's voice followed right behind, slipping into the same fantasy.

I looked at my blushing fiancées and swallowed.

Could I really hold myself back?

Or did I even need to?

"I... well..."

"We know, okay? It's just a bath~ Nothing else."

Sylphiette said it lightly and took my hand.

"Rudy is so conservative~"

Roxy came around behind me and pushed me toward the bathroom.

...

The night breathed quietly in my mind.

I turned my head. Both fiancées were still sound asleep beside me.

So cute.

Watching them sleep wasn't bad. But my body wanted to move.

I climbed out of bed.

Insomnia.

How long had it been? Had I even had insomnia since coming to this world?

I moved quietly, slipped out of the room, and made my way to the kitchen. I grabbed a bag of milk, warmed it with magic, and poured it into a cup.

I brought it to the sofa, sat down, and took a sip. Then I just stared at nothing.

The moonlight outside the window was sharp and clear. I thought about how I'd been lying there, unable to sleep. Eventually I got up and went outside.

The night air hit me the moment I stepped through the door. I took a deep breath. The smell of grass was thicker than usual — probably because it was the middle of the night.

"Hm? Brother?"

The voice was soft, a little startled. It came from the yard.

Aisha was sitting on the lawn, knees pulled to her chest.

"Why aren't you asleep?"

I walked over and sat down beside her.

"Brother's the one to talk. You didn't spend the whole night being intimate with your wives?"

"You say that like it's ever actually happened."

Aisha shifted naturally and leaned back into my arms. I patted her head without saying anything.

The silence sat comfortably between us. Warm, I thought. That's what this was.

I looked up.

The sky was full of stars. So many it was almost disorienting.

I hadn't properly looked at a night sky in a long time. The one from my previous life had barely a handful of stars scattered across the dark, and you'd have to squint to find them. No comparison.

"Brother, what are you looking at? You seem completely lost."

Aisha followed my gaze up toward the sky.

I pinched her cheek lightly. "Nothing. But you still haven't said why you're not asleep yet."

"Mm... Brother..."

"Yeah?"

"I'll be turning fifteen in just a few months. Does brother know what that means?"

"Uh... You'll be an adult?"

"Exactly~ So please, brother, don't ask a woman who's almost an adult why she's not sleeping in the middle of the night."

I didn't quite know how to respond to that.

My inner thought, though, was simple: she's really grown up.

Seeing my embarrassment, Aisha smiled and softened. "I'm joking~ I just... couldn't sleep, I suppose. Same as brother, right?"

"Yeah..."

She settled deeper into my chest.

After a quiet moment, she murmured at the stars.

"Brother, I'm almost an adult."

"Yeah. Aisha's almost an adult."

"Have I become a fine woman?"

"Yes. Aisha has become a very fine woman."

In the eyes of others, Aisha was probably perfect.

Her swordsmanship was already on par with Paul's, according to him. Her magic was close to mine, and if she weren't unable to use silent casting, she'd likely have surpassed me by now. Housework, cooking, studying. Anything I could think of, Aisha handled it all with easy competence.

And she was cute. She'd be a great beauty someday, no question — after all, Lilia was beautiful.

Truly an outstanding little sister.

"Speaking of which, Aisha, what do you want for your coming-of-age ceremony?"

We weren't nobles, but I still wanted to do something proper for Norn's and Aisha's ceremonies.

"Hmm... I don't know~"

"Nothing you want?"

Aisha tilted her head up and looked at me directly.

"In that case, just promise me one thing."

"Hm? As long as it's within my power."

"Don't worry~ I just want brother to promise that, even if I do something unforgivable someday, you'll forgive me at least once."

Aisha, doing something unforgivable?

I couldn't picture it. She'd never do anything to hurt the family. And anything else she might get wrong, I doubted I'd even be angry.

"Alright. I promise."

"Really?!"

"I do."

"Love you, brother!"

Aisha sprang out of my arms and tackled me straight down onto the grass.

As expected of a swordswoman. I had essentially no power to resist.

"Brother, sleep with me tonight? I want to talk for a while."

Lying around and chatting with my little sister after so long. That sounds nice.

I smiled and nodded. "Yeah. It's been a while since we've done that."

"Brother is so agreeable tonight. Did your wives put you in a good mood?"

"None of the things you're imagining happened."

"Really?"

"Really."

"Brother... you couldn't possibly be..."

"Don't jump to conclusions. It is my issue, but it's not a physical one."

"That's good then~ Brother, carry me to my room~ Princess carry, please~"

"What are you asking a one-armed man to do?"

Still, I bent down and scooped Aisha up with one arm. She wasn't heavy, and whatever strength I'd built up over the years hadn't gone anywhere.

"Ohh~ Brother is amazing."

I carried her to her bedroom and set her down.

The room was simple. Surprisingly so, for a girl's room.

Aisha sprinted to the bed, dove under the covers, then flipped the blanket open and patted the mattress.

"Aren't you coming up~ Do I have to warm the bed before brother will get in?"

I had no idea where she picked that up.

I lay down beside her anyway.

We talked for a long time that night. Longer than we had in ages.

Mostly about the past. Aisha looked back on our old adventures with a kind of fond glow, or maybe she just missed that stretch of time when it had been the two of us, adventuring alone together.

Just before dawn, we fell asleep.

➤ Next: Some Preparations