Shun sneaked around the gambling house in the morning with his newly altered form. It was a takeover magic, with Shun using Gray's face this time.
'Did they think they could stop me just because they banned me?' Shun smiled as he took another ten million from them and now got Gray's face banned from the gambling house.
He also bought some fake ID and documents before heading back.
It was a whopping 72000 yen, ten times their life saving.
——
Shun returned and checked out of the hotel. Their current location was in the center of Edo City, which was the biggest one in the country. The red-light district, Yoshiwara, was quite far from them.
Shun's group entered a place that had a sign reading 'real estate'.
As soon as they entered, a staff member rushed over. When working in this industry, they know which customer has money and will actually buy the property.
Unbeknownst to Shun's group, the staffs had a small race and a young male staff member won.
"Welcome, Sir. My name is Sutaffu. What kind of house are you searching for?"
"One that has a big yard and furniture already installed." Shun and Kie weren't the type to be picky about furniture.
"Yes!"
Thus, Shun's group followed the staff member.
After a twenty-minute carriage ride, the group arrived. The staff member was moving rapidly, as if his life depended on it, as he unlocked the house.
"Please follow me."
"This house features an elegant, low-profile wooden structure with sweeping tiled roofs and sliding shoji paper screens that blur the line between indoor spaces and the outside world. The massive, meticulously landscaped yard serves as a tranquil Zen sanctuary complete with raked gravel, manicured moss, stepping stones, and a peaceful koi pond."
He began to explain.
Shun walked around and checked the toilet, then the shower room.
'It's better than I imagined.' Shun praised honestly.
"What do you think?" Shun asked Kie.
"I'll go with whatever your choice is." By now, Kie understood Shun didn't like it when she acted too modest.
"How much is it?" Interrupting the middle of Sutaffu's excited explanation, Shun asked for the price.
"It's only 5 million yen now, but in the future, its price will surely increase tenfold!"
"All right, if you can handle the papers and documents within today, we'll buy it. If you can't, we'll look for a different agency."
"L-Leave it to me!" he shouted as he ran back to their agency.
Shun was cruel as he handed over his fake documents and sent him off.
Shun's group was left alone in the house.
"Pick your rooms, then let's buy groceries and necessities."
Shun said, since the group didn't have a single bag of luggage.
——
The night had come.
"Please sign here, and everything is done." Sutaffu breathed heavily. He had worked harder than he ever had in his life.
"Okay."
Shun signed and handed him one of the suitcases.
"Thanks for the hard work, bye." Shun walked him to the gate of what was now his own house.
Kie was cooking dinner.
"Ah, he left without waiting?" Kie, who was still cooking, asked as she noticed Shun arrive behind her.
"Yeah, apparently he is tired because he overworked today."
Slap-!
"Not now, wait at the table."
Kie lightly pushed Shun away.
Shun went back without complaining. The table was still lively despite Nezuko leaving.
Soon enough, Kie arrived with dinner.
The Kamado family seemed to like eating fish, but with Shun's addition, they were eating beef often lately.
To no one's surprise no one complained about the sudden change, after all who would eat fish if they had beef?
"What are your plans?" Shun asked the children.
"Eh?"
"You want to go to school?"
"!"
"School?" The youngsters looked to Tanjiro for an answer.
"I think… I'm too old for school. I want to start working to pay for our meals." It was very much like Tanjiro.
"But I want my siblings to go to school. I'll pay for their expenses after I find a job!"
"You don't have to worry about money and do what you want. I'll just get some from the casino if we're short on money."
"…"
As crazy as his words were, they were reliable. Because they knew Shun didn't work hard for the money, it was less of a guilt for them to rely on him. It was a win-win situation.
'Shun-san seemed to be favored by the god of gambling.' Tanjiro remembered the last time Shun played roulette.
"Well, I'll ask around if there's a school close to us. Let's talk about it later."
"Okay."
"I already gave the housewarming gifts to the neighbors."
"Oh my, thank you, Tanjiro." Kie smiled.
"Also, I already got a few job offers from the grandmas around the shopping street."
"…"
'This guy really knows how to live.' Shun was impressed.
——
After dinner, the children played around the yard with Tanjiro, while Shun and Kie did a light exercise in their room.
Pant-! Pant-!
"I'll go gamble a bit."
'It always sounds bad when I say it.'
"…Yes." Kie fell asleep. Her stamina wasn't even close to Hinatsuru, who was a female ninja trained since a young age.
'Word Magic. No demons allowed around the house.' Shun chanted Freed's word magic with invisibility magic infused.
Then Shun left the house after giving the kids some allowance to play around in the morning. Though it was unlikely to happen, Shun warned them not to leave the house at night.
——
Creak-!
"Welcome!" As soon as Shun entered, the infamous grandma from yesterday greeted him. They were paying close attention from the window, waiting for the wealthy customer from the day before.
Shun gave them his jacket and headed to the room he was in yesterday.
Once inside, Shun asked the grandma,
"So, does Warabihime want to entertain me?"
'I did come here to lessen Hawk's work, but slaying the demon will depend on her attitude.'
"…About that." The grandma hesitated before sighing.
"…She said you can come to her room."
"Huh? What does that mean?"
"…You must try to earn her attention."
'Does that mean I am the oiran in this case?' Shun was speechless.
After a minute of silence, Shun asked,
"Where is her room?"
"Please follow me."
The grandma sighed in relief, after all, she could tell both parties were prideful individuals.
"When you're with her, go along with everything she says. She is very willful, make sure you don't make her angry."
"…"
Creak-!
After opening the door, the grandma ran away at a speed unbelievable for her age.
Shun ignored the weird old woman and entered the room.
In the center of the room was a woman sitting on a pillow in front of a small table. She was dressed in clothes similar to Hinatsuru's. Her hairstyle was in the shape of a butterfly. Everything was similar to Hinatsuru except… her expression.
She looked like she looked down on the entire human race, her eyebrows furrowed with a scrutinizing look.
'She is indeed a beauty, though not on Hancock's level.' Shun thought before deciding to greet her.
"Hi."
"…"
Warabihime ignored Shun's greeting, instead staring at his face and body.
"…You do meet my standards." A beautiful, cold voice came from the woman.
"…Sit."
"Okay." Shun obediently sat by her side instead of the opposite side.
Warabihime seemed to get annoyed by this, and she kicked Shun in the stomach. But Shun swiftly dodged, resulting in her leg ending up on Shun's lap.
"…"
"…What are you looking at? Massage my feet."
'This woman…'
In his long career, Shun had never met a woman like this before.
'Also her feet… they are very cold, much like her personality.'
Regardless… Shun complied with her words.
"Hmm~ mmm~" Shun hummed a tune as he removed her socks and played around with her pale white, cold feet.
"…"
'…What's wrong with this guy? He seems pretty strong for a human. He doesn't have anything on him, no sword or any weapon except the suitcase full of money… he isn't a demon slayer.'
Warabihime, aka the Upper Moon Six demon Daki, thought.
The room turned silent, except for the occasional humming from Shun.
After a few minutes, Warabihime added her other leg too, as if cueing for the massage.
Shun worked hard without complaining.
"…Good." After some time, Daki commented as if she were satisfied.
"Next… lick them."
"…"
'If he dares to refuse, I'll eat him.' Daki thought. She only ate beautiful, high-status people.
Seeing Shun's movement stop and turn silent, Daki asked with a mean smile,
"…What? Are you saying you can't do it?"
'I don't mind doing it, it's not like I haven't done it before, but… those were with women that I actually liked. Well… that's not the point now. Seems like I have to remind her who the entertainer is and who is to be entertained.'
"Hmm, since I paid 5 million yen for today, I'll leave with this at least." Shun said and got up.
"Huh?!!" Daki questioned like the delinquent she was.
Shun moved closer. Daki was momentarily surprised, but reacted fast and tried to punch him.
Shun dodged swiftly and… pecked her lips.
Before she could react, Shun had already left the room.
"!"
'…How is he so fast?!!'
Shun ignored the clothes moving behind him and left.
——
"…I think I'm done with Warabihime, she is a bit too fierce. And it's not like she is an unprecedented beauty that I'm lusting after. It was just an innocent curiosity."
"Hmm, what do I do now? Kie or… Nojiko maybe?" When Shun was leisurely walking around below the moonlight, something unexpected was heard:
[Hey, can you call Shun?]
"Huh? Is this… Lucy's voice?"
Shun pulled out an item from his pocket.
"It's coming from this?"
"What is it, Lucy?" Shun talked into the diamond key that he made using celestial magic as a catalyst.
[Woah-! You really called Shun?! Uhm, can you come over? Papa—, no father is looking for you.] Lucy seemed to be misunderstanding something.
"Okay." Shun agreed, since he had nothing to do.
Just in case, Shun hid behind a corner to teleport, but… his action made him a convenient target.
A beastly roar came from the roof of a nearby building as something jumped at Shun.
"…"
'Did the crazy woman send this after me? I guess not, it's too low-ranking of a demon, and I assume she would want to eat me herself.' Shun thought before enveloping the entire city in a paw bubble to shield it from what he was about to create.
"Your weakness was… the sun, right?" Shun asked, but no answer came back.
"Arc Of Embodiment." Shun chanted as he closed his eyes to concentrate. What he was about to create was probably the hardest thing he would ever create.
"…Sun."
"!"
In an instant, the whole country turned into day, but just as quickly, the night came back.
Shun wouldn't know, but… this small action Shun made out of boredom would become the focus of gossip in the city for an entire month.
The stray demon couldn't even make a noise as he turned to ash in less than a tenth of a second.
"Hmm, it's not even one percent of the actual sun's heat, but it still has the same effect… even the Demon King Muzan wouldn't survive this."
POP-!
"…"
With his signature sound, Shun teleported to Lucy's side.
——
Lucy in this timeline had both her parents, so she didn't live in the apartment from the original timeline.
Due to her father's business partnership with SHFC, her family bought a house in Magnolia.
She often stayed in either Shun's house or her own house.
Lucy was in her room, sighing nervously as she had just finished talking with Shun.
"We haven't met since the incident with Virgo's key…"
Things were peaceful in her room… until.
In the corner of her eyes, Lucy noticed something.
"!"
"Huh? Am I tired? The shadow looked like… it just moved?"
Lucy muttered, but the moment she saw the shadow move again, she pulled out her key decisively.
"Open the Gate of the Maiden. Virgo!"
A bright light shone from her golden keys as a maid with pink hair was summoned.
However, the shadow was growing too big, covering the two of them in darkness.
The shadow smoothly turned into tentacle-like ropes as it tied the two's arms and legs.
"W-What is this?! Who are you?" Lucy shouted while Virgo stayed silent.
"I got you, hateful Fairy Tail wizard!" Shun even changed his voice for this little prank, that's how bored he was.
"Eeekk-!!" Lucy made a weird noise of fear.
"Pfft-!"
"…"
When Lucy turned toward the owner of the voice who dared to laugh… her expression instantly changed from fear to anger.
"Hey! Do you think it's funny?!"
Lucy complained while still tied up.
"Yes." Shun nodded before continuing,
"But it wasn't just for a prank."
"Eh?"
"It's kind of my duty as guild master to check on guild members to see if they're slacking off or not."
"…"
Lucy didn't buy it.
"You reacted fast and barely passed the test."
"Whatever, just release me."
Before Shun could follow her command, her contracted spirit spoke.
"Princess. Please don't summon me for your weird fetish. Heh." Virgo looked at the tied-up Lucy, said her piece, and went back to her world.
'She really has an interesting personality.' Shun thought.
"So… why did you call me?"
"You… totally forgot that you said you wanted to create a tournament with the magic council?" Lucy asked while stealthily trying to remove the weird shadowy ropes.
"Ah, so the chairman already found the investors?"
"Yes. The meeting is today in Crocus. Papa— no, father asked me to somehow call you."
"I see." Shun said and turned around to leave.
"!"
"Unleash me first!!"
"Oh, my bad. It's Serena's magic. I'm still learning the controls, wait for a moment."
"…"
Shun got closer and started touching around the shadow ropes.
"Hey, stop touching weird places!"
"I didn't even start yet, stop complaining like a girl."
Shun didn't hide that he had other intentions.
"I'm a girl!!"
[Lucy? What's happening?] A worried voice was heard from outside.
Creak-!
Worried, she opened the door without waiting, only to find her daughter tied up in front of her husband's friend who was also her savior.
"Mom… it's not what it looks like—" before Lucy could even form her sentence,
"Don't forget to use contraception magic!"
Slam-!
"…"
Lucy's face turned red as she went completely silent.
'Did I go too far?' Shun silently removed the shadow ropes.
"…"
The room became completely silent, until…
"So she is the woman Natsu has a crush on?"
"…"
"Since she already misunderstood, should we do it?" Shun made a smart suggestion, but…
Slap-!
——
"It's delicious! Say aahh-!"
"…"
'Didn't this girl slap me less than an hour ago?' Shun thought, but he took a bite of the strawberry crepe from her hand.
The two had already arrived in Crocus City, which was the capital city of the Fiore Kingdom.
The investors and chairman were starting to gather, but the two still had some time, so they were having a small date around the city.
They bought some food from street vendors and sat on a stranded bench.
'This brings back some weird memories.'
"So, that monster that can be summoned by that key was actually you?" Lucy asked.
"Yes. I thought I made it clear when I said it summons the strongest."
"Yeah, sure."
"It can be used as a communication device too."
"That's cool." Lucy remembered the talk they had earlier when she still thought it was someone else behind the key.
"There's more, it can sense the owner's life force. Meaning if you get injured, it'll send an alarm to me and I can come to you." Shun was still bragging about his magic.
'I stole this function from the Vivre Cards from the One Piece world, but no one has to know.'
"You did so much for me…" Lucy felt guilty for holding a grudge against Shun, because Cana and the others made her tell everything during the last incident when they went to hunt Serena.
"You finally understand now?" Shun took his chance and rested his head on Lucy's lap.
"…"
"You really won't come for the S-Class exam?" Though feeling flustered, Lucy forcefully changed the topic.
"Yeah, I'm busy for the entire month."
"…I see."
"But if you bribe me, I don't mind making you an S-Class mage today."
"…"
"I'll pass on that…"
Lucy knew it was a joke, but just imagining Juvia and the others' reactions gave her goosebumps.
"Should we go to the palace?" Lucy suddenly remembered her duty; she was here to lead Shun to the Grand Magic Games investors meeting destination.
"Okay."
——
Shun was expecting heavy security checks from the patrolling soldiers, but they were smoothly allowed inside the royal palace.
When he used his sensory magic to check on the soldiers' conversation:
"…Hey, was that really him?"
"Yeah… he is the infamous Fairy Tail guild master. A wizard that ranks first in the 'Top 10 Wizards You Don't Want As An Enemy' for five years in a row!"
"It was originally a ranking for dangerous dark guild mages, but… this man has changed its entire content."
"The king gave a special order to let his stay be a pleasant experience without any disturbance."
"…"
Shun heard everything about how he was a legend in the magazine readers' community, and his reaction was… ignore.
"Ah-! Shun-san, you've arrived." An old man speaking to a man in his twenties would be considered embarrassing, but… the man who called Shun didn't feel any shame at all.
"You don't see me?" Lucy asked with her hands on her waist.
"Ah, sorry for bothering you today with the sudden call. But thank you." Jude Heartfilia, the man who had the destiny to go bankrupt and die in the original timeline, was thriving after he started following Shun's SHFC business.
"Long time no see." Shun greeted as he felt pity for the old man.
'Your wife is being sniffed by Natsu behind your back.'
While talking about such things, the group arrived at their destination. It was a big hall made for a party of nobles.
Shun lately was always dressed in his fleet admiral uniform, making him not out of place, though he wasn't the type to care.
Lucy too, said she was just leading Shun to the palace, but she got dressed up just in case.
The hall was already filled with people.
When the founder and biggest shareholder of SHFC entered, the hall turned silent.
Shun had never been a fan of such things, especially ever since he acquired Fairy Heart. He greeted curtly and found a place to sit with Lucy.
Suddenly… A man in a white waiter uniform appeared.
"Uhm, Sir. Please follow me behind the stage."
"Okay." Shun was still holding Lucy's hand.
When they went behind the stage, there were quite a lot of important people, including King Toma E. Fiore, the chairman of the magic council, and Lucy's dad as the biggest sponsor.
"Hi." Shun waved.
"Oh-! Shun-dono. Nice to see you again." The chairman seemed to have gotten older since the last time they met.
"Chairman, are you overworking at your age? Your expression looks bad." Shun said with concern, though his smile made it look like he was mocking him.
"…"
'Why do you think I look tired?!' The chairman cursed inside, but forcefully changed the subject.
"T-Thanks for your concern, but I'm fine… enough about an old soul like me. I'll introduce you two. He is the king of the Fiore Kingdom, and this young man is the guild master of the Fairy Tail guild."
"Hello." Shun nodded without any emotion, but… the short king had been looking at Shun since the moment he entered.
"I've heard a lot about you, Mr. Shun. It's nice to meet you. And I must say, this whole idea about the Grand Magic Games is… nothing short of a genius!"
"…"
The king was surprisingly excited as he shook Shun's hand enthusiastically.
"Cough, cough." The chairman faked a cough.
"A-Ah, sorry about that. Let's talk about the current situation first. All we need Mr. Shun to do is just stand there with us on the stage to show our unity."
'Damn, I almost blew my cover.' The king sighed in relief.
It was a secret to outsiders, but the King of Fiore was secretly an obsessed fan of magic itself. He didn't feel down because he couldn't use magic himself; instead, he became a man who loved watching magic.
So when the rumored strongest wizard of the generation came up with the idea of the Grand Magic Games, it was nothing short of a miracle.
"Really? Okay." Shun was glad he didn't have to do anything annoying.
Meanwhile, Lucy, who was dragged along, was feeling out of place. Seeing the chairman and even the king of an entire country acting humble before Shun…
'He always acts like a pervert and a tyrant, so I almost forget his status…'
Soon enough, the group got on stage.
"Today we've gathered here to be witnesses to the beginning of history." The king spoke into the mic while Shun, Jude, and the chairman stood next to him.
"Oohhh-!"
Clap. Clap.
——
After a party with top investors and obligatory greetings, Shun was told that he could leave if he wanted.
'Well, I came up with the idea. Also, I have nothing else to do anyway.'
So Shun followed them to dinner because SHFC was the biggest sponsor, and they were treated to a grand meal.
'This guy takes his job too seriously, no wonder he was an awkward and dumb father in the original timeline.' Shun thought as he heard about how SHFC would become a worldwide brand, with the tournament obviously watched by people from all over the world.
"It's the greatest advertisement ever! As expected of Shun-san. Hahaha." Jude laughed at the giant dining table fitting for the royal family.
"Of course. It's all according to my plan."
"Oohh-!!" The old sponsors were getting happier with each second they spent here.
Only Lucy was skeptical.
'Knowing Shun, he must've come up with the whole tournament because he had a dream or because he read a comic somewhere. Heh.'
"!"
As if hearing her thoughts, Shun was looking at her.
'Does he have an ability to read minds now?' Lucy's face turned pale.
'…Let's test it then!' Lucy tried hard to think of something that would provoke a reaction from Shun, and after a long time, she came up with one.
Only to become her own victim.
Suddenly, Lucy's face turned crimson red as she remembered the alien sensation on her lips and inside her mouth.
"…"
'What is this girl doing?' Shun was completely clueless. If he wished to, he could probably peek into minds with his accumulated observation Haki from a bunch of monsters, but being Shun, it was against his own beliefs.
"Cough, cough. Everyone, now that we're done dining, let's move to the next step. It's a secret from the public, but… we already have the stadium!" The king was a bit too excited.
"What?"
"Could it be?"
Some elders already had a guess.
Thus began another small journey.
——
Swoosh-!
"It's surprisingly decent, huh?" Shun commented. Currently, the Grand Magic Games affiliates were riding flying carpets driven by professional riders.
"It's better than nothing," Lucy replied.
Currently, the two of them were alone with the poor rider who had to hear those cruel words.
'She became the type of woman who would complain about economy seats because she has been addicted to first-class seats (which were my paw bubbles).'
Soon the carpet landed. It was as Shun and some elders expected.
It was an ancient stadium that was originally a colosseum.
"Ohhh-!"
Clap. Clap.
'Those guys will clap for anything, huh?' Shun thought, but he wasn't disappointed by what he saw.
Parts of it were still under construction by wizards and soldiers.
"By the way, will you compete in the tournament?" The king suddenly asked, hopefully able to see the rumored strongest wizard in the world.
"Of course he would! It will be an eyeopener for everyone. The magic you know is nothing but child's play. Hahaha!" The chairman laughed loudly as he spoke.
"Oohhh-!"
Clap. Clap.
'This opportunist old man is pulling his tricks again, huh? Well, I don't hate his personality, though. If the chairman were an idiot who talked about justice instead of going with my ideas, I might've had to pull strings or, at worst, become a dark guild master.'
The crowd cheered loudly until… Shun opened his mouth.
"No."
"Eh?"
"I'm planning to work as an announcer or referee. The position that will allow me to watch freely."
'That's called a viewer!' Lucy thought, but didn't dare to say it.
Lucy was roasting Shun in her mind a lot today.
"T-That's regretful, but a very wise decision!" one elder commented.
"No cheater can get past Mr. Shun's eyes!"
"Also, think about it! Now guilds can go all out without worrying about serious injuries!"
"Ohh-! He really is a wise young man."
"Just how many steps ahead are you?"
"…"
Lucy's worldview was being changed rapidly today. The guy who always acted like an idiot and pervert around her was actually a myth-like entity to others.
Meanwhile, on Shun's side…
'Are they trolling me?' Shun was caught off guard by those weirdos.
'No, they're just regular rich people without magic. They don't have the courage.'
'I thought of myself as someone who knew the weight of my own words and status, but… it has gotten to this point?'
'The other day when I lied about Dragon Force activating if one focuses magic on their back, Natsu actually activated Dragon Force…'
Shun sighed, then spoke once again.
"Though I plan to appear in some of the magic performances to hype up the crowd."
"!!"
"W-What?!"
"Does that mean?!"
"He can't be thinking about that?!"
"No, he must have thought about it!"
'All right, those old farts are trolling me.'
——
"Ah, that was surprisingly exhausting," Shun complained to Lucy, because it was she who called him.
"…Sorry, I guess?" Lucy said with a smile, finally feeling like she got him back for the previous teases.
"Should we go eat somewhere?" Shun offered.
"Eh? Can't you cook it at home?" It wasn't an answer expected of a young adult lady.
"No. Today I'm feeling a bit lazy."
"Eh? Please~"
"No."
"…" Lucy turned silent. She could do nothing now that her pretty please didn't work.
"If you really want me to cook, you know how to bribe me." Shun shrugged his shoulders.
"!"
Lucy's face turned red as she realized what he meant.
"Let's just try Crocus City's specialty today!"
Lucy said decisively and led Shun around.
After hesitating through a long walk that made even Shun consider just going home and cooking himself, Lucy finally decided where to enter…
It was a restaurant named… SHFC.
"…Really?"
"…"
'This is why I never cooked for Kie and her children. I don't wanna brag, but my dishes are addictive! Lucy is living proof.' Shun sighed.
There were many high-class restaurants that Lucy ignored.
"All right, you win. I'll cook, let's go home."
"!"
"Really? Yay~"
'Did I fall for her tricks?' Shun realized he had been underestimating Lucy's intellect.
——
"Oh my, welcome! Come in, come in!" Layla, aka Natsu's crush who has a nice smell, invited Lucy and Shun warmly.
Though it was cruel, they left Jude behind and teleported here.
"Mom, what is this smell?" Lucy's mind was set on something else.
"Dear, I'm cooking your favorite—!"
"Can you throw that away?" Lucy cut her mom's words off coldly.
"!"
"W-What do you mean, Lucy…" Layla's feelings were deeply hurt at this moment.
"Shun said he will cook personally tonight."
"Mom will go out and throw it in the trash can later."
"…"
'What is this mom and daughter duo?'
"But… it's a bit wasteful to throw it away. All right, mom will give it to Natsu-kun later."
"…"
'Is Natsu a trash can?'
Shun suddenly started feeling pity for Natsu.
Their main house still had all the servants, but this house in Magnolia only had a maid who came by to clean twice a week.
"You guys take a seat. I'll get right to it." Now that he had been told this much, Shun was going to go all out.
"Which meat do I choose?" Shun was deep in thought. He had a wide set of meats in his armory, from normal beef to Sea King meat or even dinosaurs.
Erza would be shocked if she saw how her magic was being used for.
'The monster that's keeping Rudeus' mom, I want to try eating that too.' Shun shook his head as his thoughts wandered.
——
After an hour, Shun returned to the excited mom and daughter duo's table.
"Ohh-!"
Clap. Clap.
"…"
'I'm not a hundred percent sure about the old farts earlier, but this girl is definitely mocking me…'
Regardless, the food definitely deserved the title of the strongest.
"This is… unique looking, but looks delicious!" Lucy's mom was surprised. Since she had heard and tasted Shun's cooking before, she expected a gorgeous-looking dinner, but…
"Is this a rice bowl?" Lucy asked.
"Yes." Shun nodded before continuing,
"When one gets on my level, even boiling water will be delicious."
"…"
What they got was a hearty rice bowl featuring sliced steak, Shun's special sauce, and steamed rice.
"Is this beef?"
"No. It's the meat of a monster I hunted recently."
"Eh? I don't want to eat snake or frog."
"…"
"Do you really think I would feed you meat from those weird animals?" Shun was offended.
'Well, you already fed me weird meat on Tenroujima. I can't trust you…' Lucy responded in her mind, as always.
Meanwhile, ignoring them, someone had already dug in.
"D-D-Delicious!! Ahh~" Layla let out a moan as soon as she took a spoonful, even her breathing getting quicker.
Shun and Lucy could see Layla's clothes being ripped off as she rode a wild dinosaur that roared like the beast it was.
"I'm free!" Layla shouted before covering her mouth.
"…"
'Did I try too hard today?' Shun was surprised. This was the first time he managed to get a reaction straight out of a certain food manga.
"E-Excuse me…" Layla ran off to her room in an instant, though she didn't forget bring her portion of food.
"…"
"Your mother is really interesting."
Lucy had nothing to say.
"Like… now I understand who you got your personality from." Shun had his usual smile on as he spoke.
"…Shut up." Lucy said, but her mind wasn't focused. Every single one of her senses was telling her to just eat the food in front of her.
But…
'What if I react like mom… Ah, mom, why are you acting like my enemy today?' Lucy was beefing with her mom.
Meanwhile…
"Open wide."
Shun had a spoonful of meat, rice, and sauce in front of her mouth.
"…"
But Lucy resisted!
However…
"Here comes the plane." Shun was using the spoon like an airplane.
"…"
"You think I'm a kid?!" Lucy finally couldn't resist her nature. She had been able to hold it all back today, only to lose now…
The moment her mouth opened, Shun put his spoon in.
Lucy couldn't resist anymore.
"Om, nom, nom."
"Ahh~"
——
"Pahahahaha-!" In the dining room of the Heartfilia house, only a man's loud laugh resounded. The defeated Layla hadn't even moved from her bedroom.
Lucy was using the table as a pillow after finishing her food.
"…Is this really that funny?" Lucy complained, as it was the first time she had seen Shun laugh this uncontrollably. Though she complained like this, she knew…
'It was that funny!'
Though feeling a bit annoyed, Lucy's face was completely red as she enjoyed the sight of Shun laughing.
Click-!
Not missing her chance, Lucy took a picture of Shun laughing hard.
Shun noticed and finally stopped laughing, but he didn't mind it too much. It wasn't like she was going to start blackmailing him with it.
"Are you done now?"
Lucy asked with a pout.
"Yeah. Thanks for the laugh." Shun was satisfied with Lucy's sudden call now. The Heartfilia mom and daughter were the funniest duo he had ever witnessed.
"Seriously…" Lucy was exhausted, but truly enjoyed the day off.
Now that Shun stopped laughing, the room became silent, the two of them looking at each other with a weird gaze.
"Hey… your mother is probably asleep."
"…Yeah." Lucy nodded with a blush.
"Mmph-!" That nod was taken as an invitation. Once invited, Shun would take everything from her.
Soon the Heartfilia house was filled with the sweet sounds of the daughter.
Meanwhile…
'Those kids… are really vigorous. Kids nowadays…' Layla mumbled to herself as her hand started wandering inside her underwear.
'I was already feeling agitated from the food, but those kids are making me hear such noises…'
Layla decided… it was their fault!