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

Chapter 2567 - Housemate ⑤

Vanessa-san, who had moved beside me, pulled back the arm she had around my shoulder, but stayed where she was and continued drinking. It didn’t seem like she had any intention of returning to her seat across from me.

[But seriously, Kaito-kun, letting me rent this room really made things easier.]

[Arehh? But weren’t you already living at Lilia-san’s mansion? In that case, isn’t it not that different?]

Vanessa-san…… well, more accurately, the servants and private soldiers at Lilia-san’s mansion could be given a room if they wished. The servants had their own rooms within the mansion; they were smaller than the guest rooms, about the size of a one-room apartment, but the rent was cheap since it was deducted from their salary, and meals were included.

As for the private soldiers, many of them lived in something like a dormitory with a training ground a short distance behind the mansion. However, a few individuals, like the captain of the guards, Sieg-san, had rooms inside the mansion and stayed there.

Of course, there were also commuters like Luna-san, but the mansion itself was located in the central district where nobles kept their estates, essentially a high-end residential area, so it was difficult to rent a place nearby, and even if you could, the monthly rent would be quite high.

If you rented somewhere cheaper, it would be a fair distance from Lilia-san’s mansion, making the daily commute difficult, which is why there weren’t many commuters.

In Luna-san’s case, her abilities were exceptional, and since she could arrive in mere seconds during early morning hours when there were few people around, running at high speed, she was a special case.

Vanessa-san had also been given a room at Lilia-san’s mansion. Given her position as the Head Maid, she had a larger room compared to other servants, so even after moving to my house, it didn’t feel like things would be that different.

[Well, you know, living at your workplace…… it’s like there’s this last-line stopper deep in your heart, holding you back. Even if it’s supposed to be your private time and you’re trying to relax, it still feels like there are limits. Like, you can’t just wander around half-naked after a bath or anything……]

[No, please don’t do that at my house either. But yeah, I think I kind of get what you’re saying. Even if it’s practically next door, does it feel different mentally?]

[Even if the difference is just a single connecting corridor, there’s a big difference between it being your workplace or not. Also, your rooms are huge but the rent is ridiculously cheap…… well, I understand that this bargain rent exists thanks to the bond of the love between me and you, Kaito-kun.]

[I’m only taking it as a formality anyway. Ah, could you pass me the bottle?]

[I’ll pour it for you~~]

The rent I charged people renting rooms, including Vanessa-san, was 100R per month…… about 10,000 yen in Japanese currency. Honestly, I didn’t really need rent in the first place. I already had more money than I could spend, so it’s not like I wanted extra income from rent. I only rented the rooms out because people I was close to wanted them.

That said, making it completely free would probably make them feel awkward, so I set it up as a formal rental arrangement and charged 100R. People said it was far too cheap, but since I was just renting out rooms that weren’t being used anyway, it was basically pure profit for me, if anything, I was the one benefiting.

[We can use the bath as much as we want too. I’m really living well thanks to you.]

[Ahaha, honestly, my place was way too big for me to handle alone, so having people I’m close with living here and making it lively actually makes me happy. Even so, there are still plenty of rooms left over.]

[It’s the same size as Lilia-chan’s mansion, so of course there’d be extras. Well, I assume the unused rooms got State Preservation Magic, so it’s not like managing them is much trouble.]

[Yeah. That said, I don’t feel like renting them out to just anyone.]

[Well, this is your home after all. You wouldn’t want just anyone unless you really trust them~~ Hmm? Could that have been an indirect approach just now? I like you too, Kaito-kun~~]

[Are you drunk?]

[I feel like I’m just about getting nicely tipsy~~]

In reality, just as Vanessa-san said, the only people I rented rooms to were those I genuinely got along with and trusted…… or in other words, people I liked.

Aside from family like my parents and Anima, there were five others, Aoi-chan, Hina-chan, and including Vanessa-san…… and then there was Canalis-san? No, Canalis-san could be counted as family like Anima and the others.

In that sense, what Vanessa-san said wasn’t wrong. When it came to whether I liked her or not, I could answer without hesitation that I do.

[……Oh, this dried shellfish is pretty good.]

[Good eye. That’s…… errr, where did I buy that again?]

[Didn’t you just buy it today?]

[Hmm, I did the shopping first, put everything into the Magic Box, and then went to the casino, so my head’s full of casino stuff and I don’t really remember. I think it was on a street in the north district~~]

[Isn’t there also a place around there that has really good cheese?]

[Ah, yeah, there is. That shop with the slightly unusual sign, right? Their stuff is rich and delicious. It’s more suited for enjoying with wine than as a beer snack, though……]

[For beer, maybe something like smoked cheese?]

[That’s nice. Smoked stuff goes perfectly with it.]

Even just chatting about trivial things like this while drinking, the conversation never really stalled, and it was fun. It made me feel that we definitely had good chemistry.

<Afterword>

Serious-senpai : [These two are getting pretty flirty…… well, that aside, there’s probably a God somewhere out there that got hit by a stray bullet and is writhing in agony.]