Surprises at home.

Will returned to the real world later than he should’ve. He was supposed to simply check on what they were doing and hear the reports, but he ended up helping rebuild the well.

‘We got something nice out of it, though. Ugh, I’m getting excited already! I want to practice more sex magic already!’

‘I’m surprised you’d never heard of Temporary Territory spells before. Sounds like something you’d like.’

‘Hm… Maybe it’s part of the stuff I forgot on my way to this world? Or maybe I never bothered to learn it. I mean, do you really see me as someone who’d care about time and place when it comes to sex?’

‘Absolute degeneracy. You need Jesus in your life.’

‘Who’s Jesus?’

‘....I don’t understand the criteria for what you know and what you don’t know about this world.’

Will went straight back up to his apartment, fully expecting to be chewed out for being late. The faint sound of lively chatter could be heard from the hallway.

He opened the door and found the group talking in the living room. Reina, Ruth, Anna, Nanami, Amelia… and Cynthia. They all turned to him when they heard the door.

“Sorry for being late,” Will said. “I got caught up in something.”

Nanami was the first to stand up and run up to him, worry clear in her eyes. “Will! What happened? You’re covered in dust!”

Will blinked and looked over himself. “Oh. No, no. Nothing happened.” He laughed it off. “I was helping the guys over there with some repairs and it took longer than I was hoping.”

Nanami sighed in relief. “I see. I thought you’d gotten into a fight.”

Will shook his head. “No, they’re holding out strong. They finished the palisade already, and they say their training is showing results.”

“I’m half curious to meet them,” Amelia said as Will and Nanami went over to sit down with the rest. “But it also sounds like the culture shock would be too much.”

“Just going to that other world feels awful, though,” Ruth said. “Your body feels heavy and it tires you out like crazy.”

“I think we’d be able to handle it better now, right?” Reina said. “We can use aether on our own now.”

While the girls theorized (and Nanami explained that, yes, they could handle it now), Will turned to Cynthia with a smile. The mature blonde stood up from her spot on the couch, stepped up to Will, sensually wrapped her arms around him and kissed him tongue first without a word of warning.

“Oh my!” Anna exclaimed, giggling at the sight.

Will didn’t back away. He raised and slipped his hand under Cynthia’s long gray skirt and groped her ass without an ounce of shame in front of the others.

“Hmn ♥️!” Cynthia moaned into his mouth, her legs nearly giving in. She pulled away with a big, proud smirk. “Sorry to barge in while you were away.”

Will shrugged. “They do it all the time.”

“You gave us permission!” Anna pouted, causing Will to laugh.

“I’ve gotta say, though. You two don’t waste time,” Amelia said with a teasing smirk. “Not a day after making up and you’re already all over each other.”

“Weren’t you just the same?” Cynthia asked back, shrugging with a smile one couldn’t slap out of her.

“She was,” Reina confirmed with a merciless smirk. “She stole him from Ruth and I that night and didn’t let him go for hours.”

Amelia blushed and scoffed defensively. “Anyway, now that our dear boyfriend is here, shall we have lunch?”

“Ah, that’s right,” Will said, pulling away from Cynthia’s warm embrace. “I’ll start cooking now.”

“No need, dear,” Cynthia put a hand over her ample chest and smirked. “Since you were late, I took the chance and made lunch for us already.”

“...” Will blinked, looked straight at Cynthia and asked, “You cook?”

Cynthia’s smile faded and was replaced by a frown.

“I was surprised, too,” Anna admitted.

Cynthia looked at her secretary with a look of betrayal. “You too, Anna? What, do I give off the vibe of a spoiled rich woman?”

Anna blushed deeply and shook her head. Maybe the atmosphere made her forget Cynthia was still her boss. However…

“Yes,” Amelia and Ruth bluntly answered.

“H-Hey! That’s rude!” Nanami chided them.

It was Cynthia’s turn to scoff. “I’ll have you know I shared an apartment with two other friends of mine during my university days and I was a pretty skilled cook. I only eat at restaurants because of meetings and time constraints. I actually rather enjoy cooking.”

“When was that? The stone age?” Amelia teased.

“Shut up. You’re only three years younger than me, aren’t you?”

It all sounded like playful bickering, so Will didn’t worry. Instead, he went over to the kitchen and saw the pot there. He took off the lid and was hit by the fragrant, mouth-watering smell of a beef stew. It was exactly what he had planned to make that day. Did Cynthia figure it out by the ingredients he’d left on the counter?

“I’m sorry I did it without asking you first, but when I asked them they said it was okay,” Cynthia said.

“We were getting hungry and you were late,” Reina said.

“It smells great, doesn’t it?” Nanami said, grinning. “I can’t wait to try it.”

Will swallowed. His mouth really was beginning to water. “I can’t wait, either. Anna, will you help me set the table?”

“Sure!” Anna quickly stood up and went to help Will. It almost looked like she was running away from Cynthia, but in a funny way.

…

The girls all looked strangely comfortable around Cynthia. Amelia knew her from before, yeah, but she was Anna’s and Reina’s boss and practically a stranger to Ruth and Nanami.

‘Relax, there’s nothing weird going on. They just hit it off well while you were away. Better this way, right?'

Hm. Yeah, it was.