"And this is the main hallway!" Bell announced with the enthusiasm of a tour guide who had consumed entirely too much sugar. "It connects to the east wing, the west wing, the dining hall, the library, and the really boring room where Katrina-sama keeps all her important documents!"
"It's not boring," Dory protested as they walked past portraits of what Kai assumed were previous Wolf family members. "Those documents contain centuries of magical research and political history!"
"See?" Bell turned to Kai with an expression that suggested her point had been proven. "Boring."
Kai nodded along with their chatter while trying to process the sheer size of the Wolf mansion. After spending a week sleeping on forest floors and eating whatever Juno had deemed suitable for survival training, the luxury surrounding him felt almost overwhelming. Every surface seemed to gleam with careful maintenance, and the subtle hum of protective magic woven throughout the building created an atmosphere of safety he hadn't experienced since his arrival in this world.
"The healing bath is just through here," Bell continued, pushing open a door that revealed what looked more like a small indoor hot spring than any bathroom Kai had ever seen. Steam rose from water that glowed with a faint blue radiance, and the air smelled of herbs that made his aching muscles relax just from breathing them in.
What followed was possibly the most thorough and aggressive bathing experience of Kai's life. Bell and Dory approached the task of getting him clean with the same enthusiasm they brought to everything else, which meant a lot of scrubbing, several different types of magical soap that tingled against his skin, and enough hot water to probably supply a small village.
"You're really dirty," Bell observed cheerfully while attacking a particularly stubborn patch of forest grime on his shoulder. "Like, impressively dirty. How long were you living in the woods?"
"About a week," Kai replied, trying not to wince as she applied what felt like sandpaper disguised as a washcloth.
"A whole week?!" Dory's eyes widened with something between admiration and horror. "With Juno-sama? That must have been incredible! What kind of training did he put you through?"
"The kind that made me question whether he was trying to teach me or kill me," Kai muttered, then yelped as Bell discovered another layer of accumulated dirt that apparently required immediate and violent removal.
By the time they finished, Kai felt like his skin had been scrubbed down to the molecular level, but he also felt more human than he had in days. The magical properties of the bath had done wonders for his various injuries, reducing the swelling in his face and easing the soreness throughout his body.
"Much better!" Dory announced, leading him toward his assigned room. "Now you look like a proper guest instead of a forest hermit."
The room they showed him was larger than his entire apartment back in Tokyo had been. A massive bed dominated one wall, its frame carved from dark wood and draped with curtains that looked soft enough to sleep on by themselves. Windows offered a view of perfectly manicured gardens, and a writing desk suggested that guests were expected to engage in correspondence during their stay.
"These are your new clothes," Bell said, indicating a neatly folded outfit laid out on the bed. "Philip-san had them prepared while we were getting you cleaned up."
Kai examined the garments with genuine appreciation. The black pants were comfortably baggy and reached to his ankles, while brown boots would cover the rest of his lower legs. The white long-sleeved shirt had a v-neck design with collars that extended to support his neck, and a brown belt would tie everything together at the waist.
After the oversized Lichtritter pants and stolen tavern robe he'd been wearing, the prospect of clothes that actually fit properly felt like a luxury beyond imagination.
"We'll let you get changed," Dory said, ushering Bell toward the door despite her obvious desire to continue chattering. "Dinner isn't for a few hours, so you can rest if you want."
"Or explore the mansion!" Bell added over her shoulder. "Just don't go into Katrina-sama's study without permission, and definitely don't touch anything in Olivia-sama's magical practice room!"
As the door closed behind them, Kai allowed himself a moment to simply stand in the middle of his temporary room and appreciate the dramatic improvement in his circumstances. Clean, comfortable, and apparently safe—it was more than he could have hoped for just a few hours earlier.
The new clothes fit perfectly, feeling like they had been specifically tailored for his measurements. The fabric was soft but durable, and the overall effect made him look like he actually belonged in a place as refined as the Wolf mansion.
*Maybe things are finally starting to look up,* he thought as he settled into the room's comfortable chair and tried to make sense of everything that had happened.
His philosophical moment was interrupted by a soft knock at the door.
When he opened it, his view was immediately blocked by an enormous bouquet of flowers that seemed to contain every colorful bloom available in the local area. Behind this floral explosion, he could just make out a familiar figure with orange hair bowing so deeply that she was practically folded in half.
"Olivia?" he said uncertainly.
"I'msorryI'msorryI'msosorryforeverythingIdidtoYouIdidn'tmeantohuryouorbeatyouuportieyouuporuseYouastraiingorthinkYouwereademonI'mjustterribleandIhopereallyreallyreallyhopeYoucanforgiveMe!" The words poured out of her in a single breath, delivered so rapidly that Kai's brain couldn't process individual syllables.
"Uh," Kai replied intelligently, still trying to parse what she had said. "Olivia chan thanks for the flowers but could you maybe slow down a little?"
Olivia finally paused to breathe, her face flushed with embarrassment as she straightened up enough to meet his eyes. "I'm really sorry for everything. I really didn't mean any harm—I was just trying to protect myself when I thought you were some kind of threat."
The genuine remorse in her voice, combined with her adorable expression of guilt, melted away most of Kai's remaining resentment about his basement imprisonment experience.
"I forgive you," he said, accepting the bouquet with a smile. "Though I have to admit, being called a demon really hurt my feelings."
"And I didn't appreciate being called an evil witch," Olivia replied with a small grin.
They looked at each other for a moment, then both burst into laughter at the absurdity of their mutual accusations. The tension that had been building between them since their disastrous first meeting finally dissipated, replaced by something that felt like the beginning of actual friendship.
"Would you like to walk around the gardens?" Olivia asked once their laughter had subsided. "I could show you around the grounds properly, without any unconscious beatings this time."
"That sounds great," Kai replied, grateful for the opportunity to spend time with her under more civilized circumstances.
The Wolf mansion's gardens were as impressive as everything else about the property. Carefully maintained paths wound between flower beds that seemed to bloom in impossible colors, while small fountains provided both decoration and the gentle sound of moving water. The entire area radiated the same sense of peaceful luxury that characterized the rest of the estate.
"I never actually expected you to be a personal guest of Juno-sama himself," Olivia said as they walked past a particularly elaborate rose garden. "He's... well, he's practically a legend. Most people only know him by reputation."
"How do you know him?" Kai asked, curious about the connection between his mentor and his current host.
"He's trained with me a few times over the years," Olivia replied. "Nothing as intensive as what you went through, I'm sure, but enough for me to understand how incredibly skilled he is. He's also friends with my grandmother—they've worked together on various political matters."
She paused, her expression growing slightly more serious. "Well it is necessary as , she's a member of the Lumen Council. Pretty important stuff."
"Daaaaaaam " Kai's eyes widened with genuine excitement. "That's amazing , I heard they're like the most powerful people in the entire empire!"
"Kind of," Olivia said with a slight grimace. "Though to be honest, it's mostly just a lot of stress. All those meetings and political discussions and difficult decisions... I worry it's going to age her prematurely."
Kai found himself studying Olivia's face as she spoke, noting the concern in her expression and the way the afternoon light brought out the starry quality of her blue eyes. "Well, if she starts taking too much stress, her beautiful granddaughter might end up with worry lines before she's twenty," he said with what he hoped was charming sincerity.
Olivia's cheeks flushed pink, and she looked away with obvious embarrassment. "You really need to work on your pickup lines," she muttered, though she didn't sound particularly annoyed.
Despite the casual nature of their conversation, Kai found himself wondering about the larger implications of his situation. Why had Katrina Wolf agreed to let him stay in her home? What exactly did she hope to accomplish by keeping him here? The questions bothered him more than he wanted to admit, but being with Olivia made the uncertainty feel manageable rather than overwhelming.
Their conversation gradually shifted toward more personal topics as they continued their tour of the gardens.
"So what exactly do you do here?" Kai asked. "Are you training to be a knight or something?"
Olivia's expression grew complicated. "It's... complex. Technically, I hold the title of knight, but I'm not really treated like one."
"Why not?"
"People don't have much in the way of expectations for me," she replied with a self-deprecating shrug. "I think they're waiting to see if I'll amount to anything before they take me seriously."
Kai felt a pang of sympathy for her. The insecurity in her voice reminded him uncomfortably of his own feelings of inadequacy back in his old life. "That doesn't seem fair. You're incredibly talented with magic—I saw what you could do with that water dancing routine."
"It's mostly because of my sister," Olivia continued. "People expect me to be as accomplished as she is, and when I don't measure up, they just... dismiss me."
"Your sister's a knight too? Is she really strong?"
"Oh," Olivia said, her voice taking on a note of pride mixed with something that might have been resignation. "She's the Water Sentinel."
Kai's jaw dropped so far it probably created a small crater in the garden path.
"WHAT?!" he shouted, loud enough to startle several birds from nearby trees. "Your sister is a Sentinel?!"
The revelation hit him like a physical blow. Juno had explained during their training that Sentinels were incredibly rare—legendary figures chosen by the spirits themselves to wield power beyond normal human capability. The idea that he was casually having a conversation with the sister of one such individual was almost too much to process.
"That's amazing!" Kai continued, his voice still pitched higher than usual with excitement. "A real Sentinel! That's the first one I've heard about since I learned what they were!"
Olivia looked at him with growing confusion. "Kai," she said slowly, "didn't he tell you?"
"Didn't who tell me what?"
"Juno-sama," Olivia replied, her expression suggesting she was revealing something she assumed he already knew. "Didn't he tell you that he's the Fire Sentinel?"
The world seemed to stop moving.
Kai stared at Olivia with his mouth hanging open, his brain struggling to process what she had just said. Juno—the sarcastic, irreverent mentor who had spent a week beating combat sense into him while making jokes about his pathetic magical abilities—was one of the legendary Sentinels?
The same Juno who had called his sound magic "the magical equivalent of being really good at shouting" was chosen by a spirit to be one of the most powerful beings alive?
"WHAT THE—" Kai began, his voice cracking with shock and disbelief.