Knock Knock Knock.
A languid voice answers, "Who is it?"
Hajime replies, "It’s the landowner doing a check up. We’ve got to discuss your rent contract and responsibilities."
Valiant responds, "Excuse me, Landlord-san. Give me a sec."
The sound of fine china being arranged on a table follows. A few seconds later, she calls out,
"You may come in now Hajime-kun."
The door slowly opens into a simple cabin home. Hajime spots a gigantic scratching post, some suspiciously placed catnip near a beer bottle... Then he focuses on the décor...
It looks cozy at first impression— its essence is closer to what Hajime's old home used to be — but... the memorabilia gives him a sinking feeling and a deep headache.
Valiant says, "Hajime-kun, are you hungry? I’ve made some salmon."
A tall, red-haired lioness in a white dress and cat oven mitts beckons him to the table. Hajime feels something's off... this way too familiar.
Valiant scolds, "Finally you look decent enough! What would you do if the cops arrested you for indecent exposure!?"
Those words... a memory flashes — a small girl with yellow hair...
Hajime slaps himself to snap out of it.
"This is a dream," he says. "I’m the only true official here."
Suddenly, there's the sound of sirens surrounding the house.
"Hajime!!! Please come out with your hands up!!!"
With a serious face, he looks at Valiant. "Neat little trick you're doing. Just don’t get too carried away!!!"
She smiles. "It’s only appropriate. Who in their right mind does their first meeting with a lady in full nude?"
Hajime, a little guilty but shameless, replies, "I’ve got nothing to be ashamed of."
Valiant, bemused, says, "Such a shameless host aren’t you?" Then she adds, "The salmon is getting cold. Don’t be a bad sport and waste my efforts."
Hajime sits down. "Thank you for the food."
Valiant’s tail stands straight up, and she hums a cheerful tune.
They both sit quietly at the table, enjoying an imaginary dinner.
At the end, Valiant says, "For dessert, I baked cookies. Give me a sec to fetch them Host-san."
Hajime thinks, She’s rather pleasant to be around… but there’s always a catch.
And in this case, he’s absolutely right.
Valiant returns. "Here you go, Hajime-kun. Give them a try!"
She offers him a cookie. Hajime eats one.
The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.
"It’s rather delicious Valiant-san."
She smiles, watching him scarf down the cookies, hands resting under her head.
Then Hajime says, "Now... let’s talk about you, Valiant-san."
Valiant replies, "You want to know about me? Isn’t it a bit too soon to shed light on this mystery? Ladies are more interesting when guys just wonder about them Hajime-kun."
She smiles, teasing.
Hajime shrugs. "If you don’t want to share, it’s fine. But I do need to know your capabilities for the future."
Valiant nods. "Fair enough." She sighs. "In essence, I can analyze and filter information for the host. Some of my functions are still unavailable at this moment."
Hajime then asks, "Those functions are...?"
Valiant gasps dramatically. "That’s a privacy breach, Hajime-kun! That’s the equivalent of asking for my underwear on our first date!"
Hajime thinks, She’s really defensive about that part…
Valiant teases, "I know you’re a man of your word, Hajime-kun. And I quote..." She mimics his voice, rough and mocking: "'If you don’t want to share, it’s okay.'"
Hajime sighs. Already using my own words against me… and we just met.
He clicks his tongue loudly.
Valiant continues, "Sooo? Will you keep me around, Host-san?"
Hajime relents. "Fine. You’ve already made yourself at home anyway."
She does a small fist bump. "Wanna stay over for the night? It’s getting rather late."
Hajime pauses. "That’s true, but… wait a minute!"
The lioness tsks softly.
Hajime glares. "This is a dream! There’s no concept of lateness here!"
Valiant teases, "You know, you really shouldn’t kick a gift horse in the mouth, Host-san."
He laughs it off and walks out the door.
Valiant, cleaning the table:
"It all went better than expected." She hums a soft tune.
Then, with a somber expression, she says, "This time around... I must be perfect."
She continues to tidy up in silence, tail gently wagging.
Saintess Report to Deus:
The materials have arrived as promised, and work must be started at once.
Just in case, I ordered an undesirable advertisement purge on the remaining population.
The only true Ads they deserve are from Holy Deus — never from an interdimensional abomination!
The city of Adlantis has seen significant changes over the last few days. The Church has taken control of the spirit of the people, even the leadership has been subsumed under the Subsidiary Contract of the Holy Union Congregation Group.
Ads now litter the streets. This newly marketed abundance has converted large swats of the population, securing loyal fans for the hero.
To finish I think the portal is making grand strides towards glorious completion!
This is a miracle in the making — and it’s all thanks to the Holy Ad in the Sky!!!
" Leaked excerpt from Elnora's Private Eternal Admin Record. Non Auditable and Blessed by Clout."
Melissa-san, looking out the window:
"What the hell is going on in this city??? One day it’s a ripe market expansion opportunity, then the next it’s a horrible bastion for our enemies!!!"
She makes some urgent orb calls in quick succesion.
Director @##!@(#:
"Yes, Melissa-san, do you require something?"
Melissa says, "Mission failure. The enemy took the initiative before the investment team took root in the city. We must relocate assets to Project Stardoom."
The director sighs. "It’s such a shame for this to happen… Fine. Let’s do that, my long time confidant."
Melissa adds, "If you’ll excuse me now, I’ll be making some calls."
Then both of them forget to hang up at the same time.
Melissa, still listening, hears:
"What was his name again? Ahh, Alphonso. Let’s send him to organize it."
Melissa immediately hangs up and starts packing her things, ready to escape Nocture-san’s arrival under using a very plausible excuse.
