Stepping back into the bedroom after a thoroughly refreshing shower, Haruto was greeted immediately by a sharp, dry remark echoing from the pillows.
"Haruto, you really are something else," Mai muttered, her voice dripping with sarcastic disbelief as she glared at him.
She had been tracking the rapid-fire messages popping up in the chat group interface while he was away.
"You barely finish ravaging Akame, and already you're sizing up new prey across the multiverse."
Haruto let out a low, amused chuckle, shaking his head as he tossed his damp towel aside.
Slipping beneath the sheets, he closed the distance instantly, sliding his arms around her waist to naturally draw her supple frame into his embrace.
"I didn't do anything underhanded," Haruto murmured against her hair, his tone entirely unrepentant.
"Every single trade was completely voluntary, weren't they?"
"Hmph, you always have a slick excuse ready," she pouted, flushing a deep, embarrassed crimson as she shot him a sharp sideways glance.
Mai let out a long, defeated sigh.
Deep down, she had long since stopped trying to argue or curb his bottomless appetite.
With Saeko, Ayame, and now the elite assassin Akame all woven into his growing circle, adding a few more across different worlds hardly changed the math.
Still, the reality of sharing her man's body and future with a growing harem of extraordinary women was a bitter pill she was forced to swallow.
Turning fully to face him, a sudden wave of fierce possessiveness washed over her.
Baring her teeth, she leaned in and playfully sank them into the crook of his shoulder, pressing down with a sharp nip.
Though a part of her wanted to vent her frustration with real force, her deep affection stayed her jaws; instead, she left a distinct, flushed red mark against his skin.
"Listen to me," Mai whispered fiercely, her eyes locking onto his with raw intensity. "You are not allowed to ignore me, and you certainly aren't allowed to trade me away or leave me for anyone else... or else!"
"Oh?" Haruto asked affectionately, his thumb lazily tracing the smooth, delicate curve of her waist while his other hand tangled in her dark hair. "And just what will happen 'or else'?"
Mai glared at him with a mock-ferocious expression, her cheeks burning bright. "Or else... I'll bite you until you bleed!"
As soon as the dramatic threat left her lips, a fresh wave of mortification hit her.
Her flush deepening into a brilliant scarlet, she quickly buried her face against his broad chest, burrowing closer to hide her
embarrassment.
"S-Shut up and let's just go to sleep. I'm completely exhausted..."
Haruto could easily tell she wasn't putting on an act; the grueling physical training against high-grade Danger Beasts and the overwhelming emotional stress of the day had drained every last ounce of energy from her.
Deciding to spare her any more teasing, his expression softened into genuine warmth.
He tightened his grip, wrapping her securely in his arms, and whispered softly into the quiet room.
"Alright, let's sleep, Mai. I'm right here."
Lulled by the steady, reassuring thrum of his heartbeat and the protective warmth of his embrace, Mai let her tense muscles finally unwind.
Breathing in his familiar scent, her eyelids grew heavy, and the lingering anxieties of the chaotic world faded away as sleep finally claimed her.
The soft, steady glow of the computer monitor illuminated the dark room, casting shadows across Gabriel's desk.
Right next door, she had settled into her human apartment with grand ambitions, but her noble quest to study human technology had just derailed in the most spectacular fashion.
As a top-tier angel accustomed to the pristine, analog perfection of the heavenly realm, the digital labyrinth of the human internet was already a perilous frontier.
But nothing could have prepared her for the insidious trap of online microtransactions.
Ding!
Another pop-up materialized in the corner of her screen.
This time, a rare-tier paladin in a dungeon crawler flashed across the display, clutching a heavily bleeding wound.
"Help me~" pleaded the automated voice file.
Gabriel's angel radar flared to life, her righteous duty overriding any common sense.
Without a second thought, her mouse hovered over the glowing purchase button.
The "Holy Angel Staff" flashed with a brilliant, digital luminescence, priced at a staggering 2,990 yen.
"As a servant of the heavens, I cannot ignore a soul in distress!" she declared aloud to her empty room, her finger clicking firmly on the buy button.
Transaction Successful.
Inside the game, the staff materialized in her avatar's hands, casting a magnificent wave of golden light that instantly restored the paladin to full health.
"Thank you for saving me!" the character cheered.
Gabriel beamed, puffing out her chest with immense pride. "You are most welcome! Justice and mercy are what I do."
She checked her digital wallet balance in the game store.
Then, she checked her actual, physical wallet lying on the desk, which contained her meager monthly living allowance sent from heaven.
Her golden eyes widened in sheer horror.
The glowing holy staff had just devoured nearly half her food budget for the next three weeks.
"Ah..." Gabriel whispered, her soul practically leaving her body as the stark reality of human economics crashed down upon her.
She stared at the monitor, then at her empty coin purse, and finally back at the game lobby, where dozens of other pixelated NPCs were suddenly flashing warning icons, crying out for assistance.
Her angelic pride warred violently with the impending threat of starvation.
She had spent heavenly funds on digital salvation, and she was already hopelessly addicted.
With a trembling hand, Gabriel grabbed her mouse once more, muttering in sheer denial, "J-Just one more rescue... surely heaven will provide..."
The morning sun cast a bright, golden glow over the quiet neighborhood as the front door clicked open.
Stepping out into the fresh air, Haruto caught sight of his next-door neighbor stumbling out of her house, her mouth stretching wide in a massive, ungraceful yawn.
"Huh? Tenma, you look like you've been run over by a truck," Haruto noted, raising an eyebrow.
Considering he had spent the previous afternoon tearing through alternate dimensions, slaughtering high-grade Danger Beasts, leading a multi-world chat group, and thoroughly exhausting himself with a late-night marathon with Akame, he should have felt physically drained.
Yet, thanks to his overwhelming stats, he felt completely refreshed.
Gabriel, on the other hand, looked like an absolute zombie.
Her halo practically flickered with exhaustion, and her usually pristine golden hair was disheveled and untamed.
"Ah... good morning..." Gabriel rubbed her heavy eyes, offering a weak, sleep-deprived smile.
"Yeah... I spent the entire night saving a lot of precious lives..."
She wasn't technically lying; she had kept dozens of digital party members from perishing in endless dungeon raids until her bank account ran dry at 4:00 AM.
"...Right. Of course you did," Haruto replied, a knowing, amused smile playing on his lips.
He understood the tragedy unfolding before him all too well.
The great heavenly transition—Gabriel's swift and absolute descent into a hopeless, gaming-addicted shut-in—was already well underway.
He let out a soft sigh, shaking his head.
"Even top-tier heavenly beings really shouldn't pull all-nighters for pixelated crusades, you know."
After all, despite their divine origins, celestials and devils in this mortal realm possessed remarkably human habits, biological frailties, and a terrifying vulnerability to the siren song of digital escapism.
Seeing that Gabriel was too sleep-deprived to offer any witty comebacks, Haruto decided not to prod further into her late-night virtual heroics.
"Come on, let's get moving before we're late for school."
"Right behind you..." Gabriel muttered lifelessly, dragging her feet as they set off down the street together.
*****
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