I Was Caught up in a Hero Summoning, but That World Is at Peace (WN)

Chapter 2563 - Housemate ①

My house is almost the same size and exterior as Lilia-san’s…… A Duchy’s mansion, and it has quite a large number of rooms. In Lilia-san’s case, there are many live-in workers, so having a lot of rooms makes sense, but in my house, the rooms are honestly more than enough.

As for those rooms, I rent out some of them at cheap rates to people I’m close with. Right now, there are three people living in my house: one of the cooks from Lilia-san’s mansion, one member of the security team, and one maid. No matter how spacious it is, we’re still under the same roof, so naturally, we run into each other inside the house from time to time.

Today, I happened to run into one of them in the hallway. She was holding a paper bag, looking like she had just come back from shopping, and when she noticed me, she casually raised a hand in greeting.

[……Hm? Ya, Kaito-kun.]

[Vanessa-san…… Eh? Did you really go shopping dressed like that?]

Looking at Vanessa-san, a woman around 160 cm tall with a slightly listless vibe, wearing an oversized, baggy T-shirt and hot pants, her messy black hair loosely tied into a single bundle, I couldn’t help but ask.

I mean, her outfit was way too relaxed…… more like something you’d wear lounging around your room. And since Vanessa-san has a rather large chest, I could kind of tell…… she probably wasn’t even wearing a bra.

[Ah, no, I did go shopping in proper clothes. I just make my clothes with magic, you know. I changed after I got back…… I mean, if I went out dressed like this and got spotted by someone like Illness-san, I’d get a seriously harsh lecture……]

[I’m glad to hear that. Did you buy ingredients or something?]

[I’ve got a day off tomorrow, so I figured I’d have a few drinks tonight. Picked up some snacks to go with it. I mean, the underground bar is nice and all, but bars are, you know, stylish. Don’t you think there’s a kind of work fatigue that can only be soothed by chugging cheap alcohol? Oh, and I wanted to stop by the casino too……]

[That sounds like the main reason, doesn’t it? ……So, how’d it go?]

[I got completely wrecked…… Man, that’s weird~~ I really felt like I was going to win today~~]

This Vanessa-san…… she loves alcohol, cigarettes, and gambling…… how should I put it, she’s very much a hopeless adult woman. But when she’s working, her demeanor is completely different, serious and sharp. In her private life though, she’s basically always slacking off…… Still, she’s an easygoing and kind person. When I was first summoned to this world and came to Lilia-san’s mansion, she was one of the first to casually talk to me without any prejudice. We got along well as we talked more, and now she’s renting a room here.

[I mean, I work hard every day, so you’d think they’d at least let me win a little at gambling~~]

[Is your job really that tough?]

[Well, I think all labor is basically crap. If I could, I’d rather live without working. I’ve got the money, so technically I could…… but, you know, I’m the kind of trash who can objectively look at herself. If I quit my job, I’d probably end up living like total garbage. So I figure having a job gives my life some structure.]

[You’re saying some pretty extreme things……]

[I mean, if you took my job away, I’d just spend all my time drinking, smoking, and gambling. I’d become the perfect example of a useless slob.]

Vanessa-san pulled a cigarette from her pocket and held it between her lips without lighting it, giving a wry smile…… Well, just like she says, her private life leans pretty heavily toward the hopeless side, but she’s straightforward and easygoing. Even now, she laughs cheerfully, her carefree attitude making her someone very easy to talk to.

[……Oh, right, Kaito-kun, are you free?]

[Eh? Yeah, I don’t have any particular plans……]

[Oh, nice. Then come drink some cheap booze with this Onee-san~~]

[……Didn’t you say this was for the evening? It’s still the middle of the day……]

[……Well, you know, if we keep drinking until night, it counts as an evening drink. So yeah, let’s drink in my room!]

[I mean, I don’t mind……]

I do end up drinking with Vanessa-san fairly often. It’s just, it’s usually in the dining hall or at Iris-san’s bar, so this might be the first time drinking in Vanessa-san’s room.

I’ve gone over to her room a few times before to hang out, like when we played video games together. And despite how openly sloppy she is, her room is actually pretty clean.

[Honestly, your vibe when you’re working and when you’re off-duty are completely different, Vanessa-san.]

[I’m the type who keeps work and private life strictly separate. I do take my job seriously, you know. I’ve got a fair amount of sense of responsibility, after all~~]

[Well, I mean…… you are the “Head Maid”, right?]

[Ugh, I really think Illness-sensei should be the Head Maid. I mean, doesn’t it totally not suit me? Man, if Luna-chan wasn’t assigned to Lilia-chan, I’d totally hand the position over to her~~]

Muttering in a somewhat low-energy tone, Vanessa-san really gives off that laid-back, listless Onee-san vibe. When she’s working, she’s incredibly sharp and speaks politely, so the gap between that and her private self is honestly huge.

And so, we started heading toward Vanessa-san’s room, but…… errr…… every time she takes a step, her chest sways a lot, and I really don’t know where to look.

[……Um…… Vanessa-san…… I, uh…… don’t know where I’m supposed to look……]

[Unn? Ah, my chest? Well, yeah, it sways a lot when I walk, and sometimes it rubs and hurts unexpectedly. But bras are tight and uncomfortable…… Maybe it’s just because they’re unnecessarily big?]

[No, I wouldn’t know…… but it’s really awkward for me……]

[It’s fine, don’t worry about it. If it bothers you, just look, look. I don’t mind. I mean, I look pretty good, right? Even if I’m a mess on the inside, my appearance’s decent enough. Not like you need it, but you can use me as material if you want~~]

Because she keeps that low-energy tone the whole time, it really does feel like she genuinely doesn’t care…… but even so…… there’s no way I could just go “Alright, sure, I’ll take a good look”……

<Afterword>

Serious-senpai : [So he’s renting out the extra rooms…… I remember that coming up before. Putting that aside, is she an unexpectedly rare downer-type personality you don’t usually see?]