Leave a comment

“Master… good morning.”
“Right… mornin’…”

I hadn’t verified that in advance, which was probably a bad call, but there was only a single double bed in our apartment. There was no other bed. It did have an impressive couch, so I thought about sleeping there at first, but… then I saw how happy Rir looked at the prospect of sleeping in the same bed as me.

So, we ended up sleeping next to each other.
I never shared a bed with anyone before, y’know.

I couldn’t fall asleep… I seriously had no idea what to do since I just couldn’t fall asleep¹. And while I was lying there, she even started to lick my face.

“Is something wrong? You look tired.”
“Nah… that was just the first time I slept in the same bed with someone. Made my heart pound more than usual.”
“Woof~… So, it was like that for you too, Master? As for me… in any case, I was sleeping next to the one I care about, so it made me happy. But I was still somewhat nervous, I guess?”

This girl… she probably has no idea what effect she has on me… Well, whatever, better not make any comments that might be seen as sexual harassment.

“Anyway… as a man, it might look different for me.”
“You do have well trained muscles and are more than a head taller than me, Master, so how does it look from up there?”
“Ah… well, that wasn’t what I meant.”
“Huh?”

For the time being, I shelved that topic, and we ate breakfast together. Yesterday, we bought some bread, so we now had toast.

“As for what we talked about yesterday… Going on a date… erm… should we just walk around the city for now?”
“Right. Sorry ’bout that, but I ain’t got no experience, so takin’ a walk, goin’ into stores, and maybe watchin’ a play… that’s pretty much what I came up with.”
“That should be enough, you know, at least for me.”

We finished getting ready and then left. Though she no longer wore it inside since yesterday, Rir still put on her red hood when we went out. Even though her ears had been healed.

“Hey, Rir, you did get your ear back, right? So, why are you wearin’ that hood again?”
“It’s because it’s my favorite, Master.”
“I see.”

If she likes it that much, that’s fine.

Then, movin’ on to our date… We did discuss it yesterday somewhat, but… hm~… I wonder how it’ll turn out… To be honest, it’s not like I got some proper plan or anythin’…

“M-Master. We said we’d take a walk in the city… erm, where are we going first again?”
“Hm? Right, ’bout that… I’m pretty sure there should be a public park nearby…”
“Is… is that so? Let’s go there first, then.”
“Alright, let’s do that… for now…”

I tried gently touching Rir’s hand with my own. When I did that, her eyes went wide in surprise, and she looked away, as if embarrassed. Watching her from the side, I tried taking her hand.
Yep… holding hands like that feels kinda embarrassin’.

I tried taking it once more, but… it was so small and lithe compared to mine.
It’s incredible how she’s able to work lumber and swing around her axe… and has more strength than a normal man, y’know.

A moment later, she squeezed it back.

“Eh-heh-heh… Master, your hands are so large and rugged, aren’t they…?”
“You think so?”
“Yeah. I wonder how many years it has been… since I’ve held hands with someone just for the sake of it. It feels warm.”
“I see.”

With our hands linked, we walked towards the large public park. It had tons of flowers and trees, and looked just like a park should look. Though this was the first time I came here.

“We’re at the park.”
“Right.”
“What… what should we do now?”
“For the time bein’… can’t we just walk around… like this? We can talk ’bout stuff as we walk…”

While I said that we could talk, I wasn’t sure about what. For some time, we wandered around silently, just the two of us, while avoiding our faces. Rir was the one who finally offered a topic for conversation.

…I’m pathetic.

“Before you came to this world… what did you do, Master?”
“Huh? Oh… well…”

Gotta give her some answer… Oh, that’s right, I’m sure there’s schools in this world too, so guess I can just normally tell her that I went to one.

“There’s somethin’ like schools here, right? In this world… or rather, this country.”
“Woof, yes, there is. In this country, they are from ages 7 to 10, and those who want to study more can attend them for longer.”
“Well, the ages were different, but it was similar for me. I went to school.”
“I see! So, you were a student…”

Judgin’ from her expression, she doesn’t look like someone who particularly wanted to go to school back then.

“So, how is school?”
“Right… let’s see… you gotta study a lot. It’s separated into classes and grades, y’know. There are some fun events, but… for the most part, it’s kind of a chore.”
“Is it easy to make friends there?”
“Well, I guess.”
“Woof, I see.”

Alright, our talk is moving along nicely. Back when I met her, Rir looked like she might die any moment, but… surprisingly enough, she can hold a conversation².

“Then… would you prefer to go home soon, after all? To see your friends again…”
“Eh… I’m not sure… I am worried ’bout my parents, but not so much ’bout my friends. From what Kanata said, they’ve apparently forgotten me.”
“I see… So, you don’t want to return to this Erf immediately, do you?”
“Yup. I’d be lyin’ if I said I’m not concerned… just not that much, I guess.”

Yep, I mostly worry ’bout dad and mom… and those at Mika’s funeral.

…So, guess it’s on me to offer the next topic.

“What about you, Rir? Are you happy, right now?”
“Hm. In my life so far… today, right now, in this moment, I feel the happiest.”
“T-That much?”
“Eh-heh-heh, yes, that much! I am confident if I started talking about my life… before I met you, Master, I’d only ruin this happy mood, so I won’t… But, undoubtedly, right now is the best point in my life so far…! That’s why I’d like today to… no, that’s not important.”

Hm? What does she mean? She was about to tell me somethin’, wasn’t she? Since she said it ain’t important, guess it wasn’t anythin’ big?

At any rate, Rir’s past… huh? Well, it’s easy to imagine somethin’ real bad happened, ain’t it?

A short time later, we discovered a café, so we decided to go there for a cup of tea. It was a bit early, but we ended up eating lunch there, as well.

“Hey, Master.”
“What is it?”
“Erm… I heard that couples often share their food when they eat.”
“You wanna try that? Here you go.”

I took my fork, which I hadn’t used yet, twirled up some of the spaghetti, on which I hadn’t started yet, and held them out to her. However, Rir looked like she took some issue with that.

“Master, you haven’t eaten any of those yet, have you?”
“Yes, I haven’t.”
“Then there’s no meaning. Please eat some of them and then offer it again.”
“R-Right.”

After eating the spaghetti, I had planned to give her, I twirled up another batch…

I had that in my mouth, y’know? Normally, you wouldn’t use something dirty… right?
Well, if she’s fine with it.

“Here you go.”
“Woof~!”

Without any hesitation, she took it in her mouth.

Hrm… Is this just the culture in this world?
How curious.

“…Huh? I thought it would taste of you, Master, but it’s just spaghetti³.”
“Well… I guess…”
“Hm~… oh, well. Here, try some of mine.”

This time, Rir used her fork to spear a small slice of the meat she was eating, and brought it to my mouth.
Guess I should eat it, don’t I? I’m embarrassed, but… there’s no backin’ out now.

I took it in my mouth.

“How was it?”
“Not much ’bout it… it’s just meat…”
“Is that so? So, there was no meaning to this, other than it being an indirect kiss.”
“I… I guess? Right.”

A short time later, Rir and I left the store.
Now, for our next destination…

TL notes:
More relationship developments, this time with Shuu and Rir who enjoy a (somewhat nervous) date.

I mentioned this back during the side story with Uruto and Parasuna, but the more relationships we observe in this story, the more obvious it becomes that the author seems to have a rather limited repertoire when it comes to those.

We do see some different activities with Alim and Mika, but even then a lot of it feels very same-ish, though maybe that’s just my impression?

1. And Shuu also joined the “can’t sleep due to attractive girl next to him”-club. Thinking back, the only thing preventing Alim from meeting the same fate when sleeping next to Mika and Karua was likely his Gender Conversion compensating for it.
2. That connection doesn’t really make sense. Why should her being in a bad physical state mean she can’t communicate?
3. Should we be worried that she apparently knows how he tastes?

Support Us

Unlock Early Access ------- Select Project ------- Project Gender Bender Project Necro ∴ Support your favorite series and unlock chapters before the public release.