Upon arriving at the Workshop with Veronica, Cecil was making Potions. Her usually smiling face contrasted with her serious expression now.
When our eyes met, she ran over with a bright expression and hugged me.
“Shaa-nim! Are you back?”
“Ah… yeah. Were you making Potions?”
“Yes! Veronica-nim said it would be good for me to do so!”
“I see.”
When I glanced at Veronica, she was looking at me with a strange expression. It was the look of someone seeing something unsettling. Not knowing the reason, I shrugged and patted Cecil’s head.
To Cecil, who was giggling, I told her she didn’t need to call me Shaa in front of Veronica and sent her back to the table.
“Is there something strange?”
When I asked, Veronica shook her head, saying it was nothing.
It must have been my imagination.
I showed Veronica the Workshop and then the house. Since we’d have to live here for a while, it was a natural sequence. “You’ve spent a fortune,” she remarked, but even Veronica’s eyes sparkled when she saw the shower facilities.
“If you go further in, there’s a bathtub too. It hasn’t been used in so long that I should probably check it, though…”
Veronica frowned and asked.
“Then why did you even make it?”
“…I wanted to use it, but I was so busy I never had time to relax and soak.”
“….”
Avoiding Veronica’s pitying gaze, I checked the bathtub. Fortunately, it seemed the large investment paid off—it was perfectly fine, just a bit dusty. After running water through it a few times, it looked ready to use right away.
But it wasn’t time for that yet, so I postponed it and continued the tour. After looking around roughly, Veronica asked me with a disbelieving expression.
“…There’s only one bedroom?”
“As you saw… but there are two beds…”
“S-so, y-you mean I have to sleep in the same room as you…?”
As if finding it hard to accept, Veronica blushed.
“If you’re really uncomfortable, I can sleep in the living room for a while.”
“N-no! I-it feels like a dorm, and it’s nice. A-and it’s probably better to sleep in the same room in case of unexpected situations!”
“…Really? If you don’t mind, then.”
Veronica nodded vigorously. I smiled inwardly at the sight. I wondered if she’d suggest a pillow fight next.
…Not that I’ve ever done it.
As I turned to return to the Workshop after the basic tour, Veronica grabbed my tail.
“…I told you not to touch it.”
“Ah, sorry, I did it without thinking.”
After pulling my tail from her hand, I asked.
“So, why suddenly?”
“It’s nothing much… what do you want me to help with? Earlier, it seemed like Cecil… she’s already helping well. As a fellow Alchemist, to add anything… what I know… you probably know it all too, right?”
For something she playfully grabbed my tail for, it was a rather… heavy topic. No wonder, since Veronica’s face looked the most sullen I’d seen since she arrived.
What could be making Veronica so discouraged? As the second-place graduate from the Academy, she should be able to hold her head high anywhere.
As if to prove that, I also know Veronica has her own personal Workshop. It didn’t seem like a topic to casually add to, so I felt a bit awkward.
“You haven’t just been idle since graduation, right?”
“That’s… true…?”
“Then, with your talent, you’ll definitely be helpful somehow. I, who attended classes with you, can vouch for that.”
“….”
Veronica looked at me with a strange expression. She narrowed her eyes, scanned my body, shook her head, and sighed.
Somehow, this time I felt weird. Her expression, as if looking at a pitiful human, made my tail swish back and forth. Seeing my tail, Veronica chuckled.
“…You really are consistent. You.”
“What is?”
“Nothing. So, what should I help with?”
At that, my ears perked up.
“…It’s nothing much.”
Veronica, who had been listening quietly, gradually turned red. Then she suddenly shouted, covering her modest chest with her arms.
“T-that’s sexual harassment!!!”
“W-what are you suddenly saying! W-when did I ever say I’d touch anything? I-I just want you to give your impressions and suggestions for improvement.”
“Y-you can just try it yourself! Y-you’re a woman now too!”
Her words “you try it yourself” brought back memories. The time my chest was squashed on the floor… begging Cecil for it in the bathroom… and the next day in bed with the two of them…
My face grew hot. Somehow, my stomach tightened. Since getting a tail and ears, I often feel my stomach tightening.
“Why are you suddenly like that?”
Veronica tilted her head and looked at me with a puzzled expression. I shook my head to clear my thoughts and explained as calmly as possible.
“…I’ve tried it myself, but the effect was too good to distinguish well. I also gave it to Cecil, but there was a big difference from me, so I think one more person needs to try it…”
After pondering for a moment, Veronica asked me an unexpected question.
“…So, which one do you prefer?”
“What?”
“…Never mind. But you said you tried it too? For that, yours seem kind of small.”
Veronica’s crimson eyes scanned my chest. I smiled awkwardly and replied.
“It’s the shrinking type.”
“You’re really wicked.”
…Of course, the goal was to shrink naturally, but there was the minor side effect of having to squeeze out milk to shrink unexpectedly. I tried to compensate as much as possible, but we’ll see the results when we test it this time.
“Anything else?”
“…Not for now.”
Veronica, still looking at me with a red face, muttered as if giving up.
“…I can’t just eat up food like a parasite, so I’ll help… but next time, I hope it’s something more normal.”
“What are you talking about? This is a task filled with hope and dreams.”
Of course… dreams and hopes with a bit of my personal bias… Veronica reluctantly nodded.
“…I’m saddened that I can’t say no to myself.”
Since we’d be tired today, we decided to experiment tomorrow. Veronica, sweaty from various reasons, headed to the bathroom to wash up. After seeing her off, I returned to the Workshop to check on progress.
Cecil seemed to have diligently made Potions without slacking off, as she had almost filled the quota. Cecil, filling the last bottle, stretched and exclaimed.
“It’s all done!”
Her adorable appearance made me chuckle, and Cecil turned to look at me. She ran over again to inform me she had filled the quota once more.
“You worked hard.”
“Hehe… Cecil is used to it now, so I can finish quickly. Asha-nim!”
“That’s good.”
I thought I could entrust her with more difficult tasks now… but I’ll think about that later and patted Cecil’s head.
Cecil, smiling brightly, was fidgeting with her fingers. It seemed like she wanted something. Soon, a cautious voice reached me.
“Asha-nim…”
“Yeah?”
“Cecil has something she wants.”
“Something you want?”
Did she finish the quota quickly because she wanted something?
“Cecil wants a tail and ears like Asha-nim.”
“Huh…?”
“Is it not possible? Cecil wants the same things as Asha-nim…”
It was a rather cute request. In fact, if it was for a change of pace, maybe giving it to Cecil instead of me drinking it would have been better.
I was also curious about the reaction to something other than the chest-enlarging medicine, so I thought it worked out well.
“There’s no reason it can’t be. Can you wait a moment?”
“Yes!”
Cecil seemed very happy, jumping around. Leaving her behind, I rummaged through the Preservation Box. There should be something I made for fun left, but as I rummaged through the messy Preservation Box, I remembered the rooms I was using as storage because there was no one to put in them.
The many tools and utensils I had forgotten… and the Preservation Boxes whose contents I didn’t know…
Since Veronica is here, maybe I should organize them…
Somehow, I couldn’t muster the courage.
After rummaging for a while, I found the Potion Cecil wanted. Looking at the label… it was a different type from what I drank. I scratched my cheek in embarrassment.
“Asha-nim! Did you find it?”
“Ah… yeah, I found it, but it’s a different type from what I drank.”
“What’s different?”
Cecil tilted her head with a curious expression.
“If what I drank is feline… this is closer to… canine.”
“Canine?”
“In a way… you could say it’s the opposite.”
It’s not exactly that kind of relationship… but the image is like that. Cecil, who had been pondering with a finger on her lips, answered cheerfully.
“If I get a tail and ears, Cecil is fine with it! It doesn’t have to be the same as Asha-nim. Even if it’s similar, that’s good!”
“Really? Then…”
I was about to hand it over but paused. My tail and ears suddenly shrank.
“Asha-nim?”
Watching Cecil’s obediently outstretched hands… I carefully placed it on them. Thinking it’s probably nothing.
Cecil, smiling brightly, gulped down the Potion. After placing the empty Potion bottle on the table, Cecil twitched as if the areas where the tail and ears would emerge were itchy.
“S-something’s ticklish. Asha-nim.”
“It’s usually like that, so bear with it a little. But the effect is immediate this time?”
Unlike the chest medicine, the immediate reaction was interesting. What’s different?
While I was speculating, adorable animal ears sprouted from Cecil’s silver hair in the blink of an eye. A fluffy-looking tail also popped out, swaying her dress.
“Woof!”
And then Cecil stood on all fours. Like… a dog.
…Huh?
Then, wagging her lush, fluffy tail madly, she began rubbing her head against my thigh. Standing on all fours, whining and whimpering, as if she had forgotten human speech, only moans came out.
…It seems the formulation was a bit… off… from what I drank. Similar to mine.
As I reached out my hand, watching Cecil lick it as if leaving a mark, I thought.
When will she come to her senses? I hope she does before tomorrow. Unlike my troubled self, Cecil seemed purely happy.
…Well, she’s cute, so it’s fine. Veronica is here too.
I patted her even fluffier head.
Author’s Note (Author’s Afterword)
Hehe... I can finish quickly. Asha-nim.