Bab 86: Habit Becomes Second Nature

As they continued their cheerful conversation, time passed quickly.

After they finished talking, Mrs. Sayuri glanced at the clock on the wall, which showed it was already 8:12 PM. She then asked Eriri, "Eriri, have you all had dinner? Should I make something for you?"

"We've already eaten. By the way, Mom, isn't Aoi-nee home right now?"

Earlier, when Eriri had come out of her room, she had sensed the presence of only Mrs. Sayuri in the villa. Given the time, she was certain that Mr. William hadn't returned from work yet. As for Aoi Kujo, Eriri had no way of knowing her whereabouts without extending her consciousness globally.

"Aoi-nee?" Arifureta asked curiously. In her previous life, she hadn't heard of such a person, so her curiosity was piqued.

Noticing Arifureta's curiosity, Eriri casually explained, "Yes, Aoi-nee is the personal attendant my mother arranged for me. You'll meet her soon."

"Since you weren't home these past few days, Aoi was getting a bit bored staying here all day, so I let her return to the Kujo family for a few days of rest," Mrs. Sayuri answered with a smile.

Just then, the sound of the villa's front door opening echoed from the entrance. A moment later, Mr. William, dressed in a suit and carrying a briefcase, appeared in the living room.

Seeing Eriri sitting on Mrs. Sayuri's lap, his reaction was identical to Mrs. Sayuri's earlier one. He quickly walked toward the sofa with hurried steps.

"Eriri, my precious daughter, you're finally back! I've missed you so much these past six days," Mr. William said, his face filled with excitement and joy as he stood in front of the sofa.

Eriri hadn't told him about her trip to the other world before she left. He only found out after coming home from work, hearing it from Mrs. Sayuri, which left him worried for days.

"Dad, welcome home," Eriri greeted him with a wave of her right hand.

"Welcome home, dear," Mrs. Sayuri also greeted him with a smile from under Eriri.

"Yes, I'm home, Sayuri, Eriri," Mr. William replied warmly, looking fondly at the two of them. He then turned his gaze to the girls sitting on either side of Mrs. Sayuri and asked, "And who might they be?"

As he asked, he sat down on the nearby single sofa.

Hearing his question, Mrs. Sayuri cheerfully introduced the girls, "Dear, let me introduce you. This is Yue-chan, Reina-chan, and Shea-chan, and from now on, they'll also be our daughters."

She then recounted the story of how Arifureta, Shea, and Reina came to know Eriri, and the special bond they shared. The three girls politely greeted Mr. William.

Just like Mrs. Sayuri, Mr. William had no objections to his daughter's preference for girls. He was genuinely happy to accept Arifureta, Shea, and Reina as part of the family.

…

By the time they returned to the room, it was already 10 PM. For now, Arifureta, Shea, and Reina would be staying in Eriri's room with her. Her large bed was big enough for all four of them, and tomorrow they would sort out the other empty rooms and let the girls choose their own bedrooms.

Taking off the indoor shoes she had put on downstairs, Shea casually sat on the carpet in front of the TV, unable to help but sigh, "Eriri, your parents are really nice."

"Yeah, I didn't expect them to be so young. You can't even tell they're in their forties," Arifureta agreed, standing with Eriri on the edge of the carpet. Reina had also taken off her indoor shoes and joined Shea on the carpet, picking up a game controller from the low table to toy with.

"That's nothing. Yue-chan, you're several hundred years old but still look like you're twelve or thirteen," Shea said nonchalantly as she propped herself up on the carpet with her hands. Then, realizing what she had just said, she quickly withdrew her hands and covered her mouth, giving Arifureta a sheepish glance.

But this time, Arifureta didn't say anything, instead explaining, "It's because of the 'Automatic Regeneration' skill that my body is stuck at the age of thirteen, and my lifespan is also much longer than that of ordinary people. I imagine it's the same for Eriri. Maybe decades from now, our appearances won't change at all, and by then, Shea, you'll be an old granny."

"Eh?" Arifureta's words left Shea dumbfounded, the light in her eyes dimming as she lowered her head and placed her hands on her head, looking utterly defeated.

"How could this be? I don't want to be an old granny!"

At that moment, she heard Eriri's angelic voice in her ear.

"Don't worry, Shea, I won't let you become an old granny."

Shea looked up to see Eriri standing beside her.

"Really?" Shea's blue eyes welled up with tears, and she looked up at Eriri with a pitiful expression, making her even more endearing.

Eriri reached out and gently stroked Shea's white hair, comforting her, "Of course. With me around, you'll all gain eternal life and forever retain your youthful appearance."

Eriri then sat down beside Reina, pulling her into her arms and gently stroking her fox ears. Reina, in turn, leaned comfortably against Eriri's chest.

Since Eriri often stroked her ears and tail, Reina had gotten used to it. Unlike at first, she no longer felt shy about it and even found it very comforting.

"I see, so Auntie Sayuri and Uncle William are so young because of you," Arifureta said, nodding with a look of realization.

She then took off her indoor shoes and joined the others on the carpet. Eriri casually tossed the two unused beanbag chairs into the corner of the room with a flick of her wrist.

Those beanbag chairs were originally used by Eriri and Mrs. Sayuri when they played games together, but now that the number of people in the household had increased, sitting directly on the fluffy carpet was much more convenient.

Moreover, Eriri had set up a cleaning barrier in her bedroom, so the room was automatically cleaned by stored cosmic energy every day, keeping it absolutely spotless at all times.