Hospitality

“I’m home.”

The draft from the opening door stirred a wind chime, which let out a clear, tinkling sound. Elka stepped into the entryway and casually hung her bag on a hook on the wall.

“You don’t need to take off your shoes. Just come on in.”

“Eh? Is that really okay?”

“Well, you’re not wearing any shoes to begin with, are you?”

“Haha, you’ve got a point.”

Ewan scratched his head and, without any further ceremony, stepped into the newlyweds’ little love nest.

The air was filled with a faint, pleasant floral scent. The decor didn’t give him a particularly festive or “newly-married” feeling, but all the furniture was arranged in a natural, comfortable way that made him feel inexplicably at ease.

“They’re newlyweds, but the place already feels so lived-in.”

Ewan ran a hand over a spotless bookshelf, his gaze unconsciously drifting to the clean, white wall. A single painting hung there, a portrait of a tanned, middle-aged man with a wide, toothy grin, and a more reserved, gentle-looking middle-aged woman.

“Huh?” Looking at the painting, Ewan stroked his chin. “Elka, the people in this painting… that’s not you, is it?”

“Of course not.” Elka walked over and glanced at the painting. “That was painted when my parents got married.”

“Your parents?”

“Mm-hm.” Elka scratched her cheek, a little embarrassed. “It’s a bit shameful to admit, but even after being an adventurer for several years and doing reasonably well, for one reason or another, my husband and I haven’t saved up much money. Let alone enough to buy a house in Belland, where the prices are astronomical. So, for now, we’re living with my parents.”

“I see. I can understand that,” Ewan nodded with a worldly, empathetic air. It seemed that not being able to afford a house was a major, universal problem, no matter which world you were in.

“You can understand? I thought you were a rich man.”

“Haha, have you ever seen a rich man who can’t even afford clothes, wandering around naked?” Ewan laughed, deftly sidestepping the need to reveal his noble status.

“…Maybe.”

It was hard to tell if Elka believed him. She continued to chat with him idly as she walked into a bedroom. When she came out again, she had changed into comfortable home clothes and was wearing a cute, pink apron that seemed to enhance her charm.

“It will take a little while to cook. Would you like something to drink first?”

“…Some coffee would be great. To wake me up.”

“Alright… oh, wait.” Just as she was about to make the coffee, Elka suddenly stopped, a look of genuine embarrassment on her face. “I don’t think we have any coffee…”

“You don’t?” Ewan froze, a strange, haunted expression on his face. “Did a rat eat your coffee too?”

“What rat?” Elka said, a little annoyed. “I just remembered that my parents never drink coffee. It gives them insomnia, so we probably don’t have any in the house.”

“I see. Well, don’t trouble yourself. Anything will be fine.”

“We have black tea…”

“NO TEA! Just water! Water is fine!”

“Is it? Alright then…” Seeing his sudden, inexplicable look of sheer terror, Elka wrinkled her nose in confusion, then went into the kitchen. A short while later, she came out with a glass of water.

“By the way, where are your parents?” Ewan asked, taking the glass and thanking her.

“Didn’t I tell you? They’re busy with the harvest.”

“Now? But you’re newlyweds.”

“That’s why they’re so busy,” Elka sighed, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear. “Even a wedding isn’t as important as getting the wheat in before the next rain. Besides, I’m the one who got married, not them.”

“I see. That’s even tougher than I imagined.” Ewan was once again filled with a sense of awe, and he was almost tempted to recite a poem about the hardships of the common folk. He decided against it. Reciting poetry probably wouldn’t make him look cool in a fantasy world.

“Did your husband go with them?” he asked, having only seen Elka since he arrived.

“No,” she replied. “He had to go out for something.”

“I see. Well, he should be back soon, right? It’s almost dinnertime. I just hope he doesn’t get the wrong idea when he sees the two of us here alone, hahaha…” he joked, trying to lighten the mood.

“No. He won’t be back for a while.”

“Eh?”

Ewan’s smile froze on his face.

“What do you mean… ‘won’t be back for a while’?”

“Um… it’s nothing.” Elka habitually touched her cheek and sighed. “I just found a note he left in the kitchen. He has something to do and will be back very late. It will probably just be the two of us for dinner tonight.”

“The… two of us?”

Ewan’s eyes widened.

Something was wrong. Something was very, very wrong.

A newlywed couple.

The husband is out late.

The wife is alone with a strange, naked man.

And they’re going to have dinner together, until it gets dark.

There were too many red flags here to even count. This was the setup for a very specific, and very popular, genre of adult film.

“Um… just the two of us… isn’t that a little… inappropriate?” Ewan, who had been feeling quite relaxed, was suddenly on edge, nervously rubbing his hands together. “Maybe I should just leave? If the neighbors see us having dinner together, it might cause some unnecessary, and potentially life-ruining, misunderstandings.”

“Hm? So flustered. Does that mean you really are having some inappropriate thoughts, Mr. Ewan?” Elka asked, her eyes narrowing in a playful, teasing smile.

“Of course not! I just think it’s not right,” Ewan scratched his head, a sheepish, unconvincing grin on his face.

“Then there’s no problem. You can stay here and relax. I wouldn’t be so rude as to let a guest leave with an empty stomach. Besides…” A blissful, radiant expression appeared on Elka’s face. “The bond between my husband and I is not so fragile that it could be shaken by something so trivial.”

“Ah, is that so.” Looking at her happy, love-struck face, Ewan was momentarily stunned, then found himself saying, “The love between you and your husband is truly enviable.”

“Of course. I love him more than anything,” Elka said, her face flushing a deep, happy red, as shy as a young girl, even though she was now a married woman. “Oh, my. What am I saying? My apologies, Mr. Ewan. I’ve gone and said something so shameless again.”

“…” Ewan’s mouth twitched. “N-no, it’s fine. I don’t mind.”

I’m being force-fed a whole bowl of sickeningly sweet PDA here.

“In… in any case, just relax and wait for me to finish the roasted lamb. Don’t worry so much. And of course,” she added, a mischievous, dangerous glint in her eye, “don’t get any strange ideas. Even though I know you’re a pervert.”

“The last part was completely unnecessary!”

“Well then, please look forward to it.”

Elka smiled and disappeared into the kitchen with a cheerful hum.

…

“No sediment at the bottom.”

Ewan held the glass up, examining the crystal-clear water against the light from the window.

“The color is pure and transparent.”

He then brought it to his nose and sniffed cautiously.

“The smell is also normal.”

He dipped a finger in the water and rubbed it on his skin. After a few minutes, nothing happened.

“No adverse reactions either.”

“It seems to be just a normal, harmless glass of water.”

After a series of rigorous, and perhaps slightly paranoid, tests, Ewan finally came to a cautious conclusion.

“It’s not drugged, and there’s nothing strange in it.”

“And Elka’s story is logically sound. But…”

Ewan looked out the window. The sky was growing dark, the last vestiges of sunlight painting the clouds in shades of orange and purple. A single, bright star twinkled in the clear sky. The quiet village was filled with the gentle, rhythmic chirping of crickets, but there were no other sounds.

“Something… still feels strange.”

…

“I love you.”