Having bought bags full of groceries from the supermarket and arranged for the supermarket staff to deliver them home, Ryuya returned first with Tohka and the other Spirits.
"Welcome home."
At the doorstep, Nia, wearing casual clothes, had clearly known in advance that there would be a new guest, Tobiichi, and was preparing to welcome them.
As everyone returned home, Ryuya briefly introduced everyone's identities, then started preparing dinner.
"We'll go change clothes first."
Pulling Origami along upstairs, Yamai Sisters carried several new clothes they had bought today, obviously having made quite some preparations.
"Home at last, home at last!"
Plopping directly onto the sofa, a weary-looking Tohka felt that while school was interesting, it was also mentally exhausting.
Her stomach had been growling for a while, so she obediently went to her room to change first.
"Well then, Ryu, I'll go help Nia clean up her mess first."
Because the manga drawn by Nia under the pen name 'Honjo Soji' was a genre Kurumi liked, Kurumi and her clones often helped Nia tidy up her messy studio.
Thanks to Kurumi's help, Nia had managed to find the clothes she needed to change into today in time to welcome Origami.
As Kurumi and Nia took the comic tools bought at the mall upstairs, for a moment, Ryuya was the only one left in the living room.
"Let me calculate... There are five girls and me, nominally six people, but practically it's more. For example, Tohka can eat for ten. Better cook more food."
Questioning whether the usual kitchenware at home could handle cooking so much food, Ryuya pondered that it might be time to find a bigger house.
After all, the apartment he lived in now was bought after he started living with Kurumi and Nia. It was a two-story duplex with a total of five bedrooms and three living rooms. While it usually seemed sufficient, with the addition of Yamai Sisters and Origami, it was clearly getting a bit cramped.
While thinking, Ryuya quickly processed a large amount of ingredients. His cooking skills were decent to begin with, and with the aid of magic, cooking was almost too fast.
Just then...
"Ryu, Kaguya and Yuzuru are here to help you!"
Hearing Kaguya's voice, Ryuya waved his hand, "Good, Kaguya, Yuzuru, can you help me peel these potatoes and devein these shrimp... ???"
He stopped mid-sentence. The reason was simple: Yamai Sisters'... attire!
Although everyone in the apartment now was 'family', and what they wore was Yamai Sisters' own choice, this was truly the first time Ryuya had seen the two sisters dressed like this.
Light orange dresses, paired with frilly, lace-trimmed aprons, and cute cat ears on their heads.
That's right. At this very moment, Yamai Sisters were perfectly dressed in full maid outfits!
Seeing Yamai Sisters dressed like this, Ryuya didn't need to think twice to know this was definitely someone else's idea.
So...
"Origami, come out."
"I'm here, Ryuya-sensei."
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Origami stepped forward, wearing a maid outfit of the same style but in light blue.
Looking at this girl, who would have thought she was the Origami young lady known at school as 'Permafrost', 'River of Sighs', and 'Frozen Princess'?
Her face showed the same doll-like indifference as usual, but it was precisely this gap moe that made it even more heart-pounding.
Showing not the slightest reaction to Origami's appearance, Ryuya glanced at the sides of Yuzuru and Kaguya's outfits, the fabric, etc.
It was clear these two girls weren't wearing anything underneath.
"I don't mind what you wear at home, but at least put on some proper underwear. Go change first, then come down to help."
"Eh? Ryu, don't you like it?"
Thinking Origami's advice was spot on, Kaguya was surprised to see that Ryuya didn't seem the least bit tempted.
"Ryuya, idiot. Big idiot."
Similarly letting out a cry of frustration, Yuzuru also didn't understand. After all, when Kurumi wore things like this, Ryuya seemed quite happy. So why was it different when they wore them?
"It's not that I don't like it. Of course, I like it when Kaguya and Yuzuru dress up like this for me."
Smiling, Ryuya's hands were wet, so he didn't hug Yuzuru and Kaguya. He simply gently kissed each girl's forehead and continued, "In matters of love, changing for your beloved, striving to become a better, more excellent version of yourself… isn't that itself a form of love?"
"I understand Kaguya and Yuzuru's efforts, and I really like Kaguya and Yuzuru. But I hope you both understand that the Kaguya and Yuzuru I love are the ones who are competitive in battle, who made sacrifices for each other… the you that you are, even without any changes, are the ones I love the most."
"So, no matter what you two do, whether it's something to please me or not, I super, super love you both."
"Ryuya~~~!" x2
Not expecting to hear such a deep confession from Ryuya here, Kaguya and Yuzuru's faces instantly turned bright red.
Too flustered to say anything, they could only nod silly and happily, then obediently went upstairs to put on underwear first.
And then...
"Origami, why did you teach Yuzuru and Kaguya such things?"
Looking at Origami, Ryuya knew this definitely wasn't Yamai Sisters' idea. Those two might seem clever, but knowing nothing about love, they would never think to buy maid outfits on their own.
It was as unlikely as Luffy telling you he likes women or Son Goku saying he doesn't want to fight but wants to farm instead… simply impossible.
"Why? Because they asked me for help."
Looking calmly at her own clothes, Origami's answer was simple.
Because Yamai Sisters asked her, she answered. That was her reason.