Vol 1 Chapter 5 – A Woman Named Nemu【Vol 1: A Man Who Wants to Buy a Slave】

While touring the property, I took a flying kick from a cat-eared woman. Thanks to my cheat ability, I instantly recovered, caught her, and dragged her back to the real estate office.

When we returned, Nadia-san was already inside. Apparently, she hadn’t seen the cat-eared woman and was crying hysterically about how “a ghost appeared and ate Yuuki-san!”

I explained to the panicking women that it wasn’t a ghost—just a trespasser. That finally calmed Nadia-san down enough for us to question the cat-eared woman.

“Name’s Nemu. Profession: adventurer. Door was unlocked and nobody lived there, so Nemu moved in.”

The cat-eared woman—Nemu—sat across the table from us. At her words, the real estate employees and I froze with our mouths hanging open.

“No, no, no. Just because the door was unlocked and nobody lived there doesn’t mean you can just move in…”

When I muttered that, everyone except Nemu nodded vigorously in agreement. But the person in question just stared at us with a puzzled expression, as if she couldn’t understand what I was saying.

“W-Well, there’s no point arguing about it now! I’ll let the trespassing slide, okay? Just get out of that house! As of today, I’m the owner!”

I didn’t care whether Nemu understood the situation or not. What mattered to me was getting this complete stranger out of my newly acquired home as quickly as possible. That was all.

Normally, I’d want her to pay the full cleaning costs, but this woman gave off seriously troublesome vibes. Better to handle this peacefully.

However, Nemu didn’t even understand my mercy. She tilted her head, a question mark practically floating above it, and then said something utterly unbelievable.

“What are you talking about? Nemu lived there. So it’s Nemu’s house now.”

At her words, the real estate employees erupted.

“What are you saying?! There’s no way that makes sense!”
“You better get serious! You should be grateful you don’t have to pay a fine!”

Their words didn’t reach Nemu at all. Losing patience with her attitude, I slammed the desk and raised my voice threateningly.

“Gaaaah!! You really don’t get it, do you?! I bought that house today! For one platinum coin! It’s not your house! You trespasser!”

I pointed my finger sharply at her. Finally seeming to grasp the situation, Nemu puffed out her cheeks in dissatisfaction and glared at me. Thinking Nemu would finally understand, Nadia-san pressed her advantage.

“U-Um, Nemu-san! Just because you lived there doesn’t make it your house, you know? We’re partly at fault for forgetting to lock it, but that doesn’t mean you can illegally enter and, what’s more, live there!”
“That’s right! Hurry up, pack your things, and get out of that house!”

Following my words and Nadia-san’s, a “get out” chant started throughout the entire office. At this rate, we could convince Nemu. But she just turned away with a huff, ignoring even that.

After staying silent for a while, Nemu opened her mouth with an expression like a sulking child.

“Can’t. Nemu has nowhere else to live.”
“Haaah!? I don’t care about that! Then just sleep outside or whatever! Better yet, if you’re an adventurer, earn money and stay at an inn!”

At her childish excuse, I found myself getting right in her face and raising my voice. If this had been some pitiful slave girl saying this, I would’ve said “Well, I guess it can’t be helped!” and let her live with me.

But this was just some cat-eared woman. Sure, she had decent looks, but not being a slave was an instant dealbreaker.

However, my intimidation didn’t faze Nemu in the slightest. Her pace remained unchanged.

“If cute Nemu sleeps outside, perverts will attack her. Plus, Nemu wants to do adventurer work. But Nemu failed a quest recently and is suspended, so that’s impossible too. No money for an inn either.”

After hearing Nemu’s story, the employees finally felt guilty enough to stop their chanting and fall silent. Even Nadia-san looked sympathetic toward Nemu.

Admittedly, it wasn’t advisable for a girl with Nemu’s looks to sleep outside. Not everyone walking the streets is a gentleman like me, after all. Still, not being able to earn money was her own problem—ultimately her own fault. She should’ve saved money like I did.

But in this situation, it would look bad if I was the only one still attacking Nemu. I planned to have a long relationship with this real estate office. I’d need to upgrade to bigger houses as my collection of slave girls grew, after all.

Was there a way to get Nemu to leave while maintaining a good impression? Worst case scenario, I could give up this house and buy a different one.

“…Hey, listen.”

While I was lost in thought, Nemu poked my chest repeatedly.

“You’re living in that house alone, right? Just lend Nemu that room for a little while. No rent, of course.”
“Haaaah!? Are you stupid!? I just got my own home, and I’ve got tons to do for my next goal! Why the hell would I live with a woman like you!?”
“?? Cute Nemu is offering to live together… Could you be impotent?”

Nemu looked puzzled as her gaze dropped to my crotch. At the same time, I heard Nadia-san’s voice: “Wait, really!?” The male employees muttered, “Poor guy, so young…”

I hurriedly opened my mouth to retract Nemu’s statement.

“N-No! Look, when I say girls, I mean ‘slave girls’! I’m only interested in cute, devoted girls who look up at me and call me ‘Master’ with fragile expressions!”

At my impulsive words, the area around me fell silent. Under Nemu’s expressionless stare, only the ticking of the clock could be heard.

“Eww…”

Breaking the silence was Nadia-san’s voice, looking at me like I was garbage. Following that, screams and insults erupted from the female employees.

Normally, someone would want to flee immediately. But to me, girls who weren’t slaves were the same as pumpkins lying on the ground. I didn’t care what pumpkins said about me.

Besides, now that my reputation had fallen this far, nothing I said to Nemu would make a difference. Just as I was thinking that, Nemu in front of me nodded and said, “Okay.”

Then Nemu grabbed the hem of my clothes with both hands and looked up at me. Wondering what was happening, I watched as her mouth slowly opened.

“…Master, can Nemu live with you too?”

To avoid losing her home, Nemu’s strategy was to play the type of girl I liked. Despite her expressionless face, there was something compelling about it.

No, this was just because a woman had called me “Master” for the first time. There was no way I’d fall for Nemu when she wasn’t even a slave.

“Haaaah!? You… there’s no way I’d fall for something that cheap! Tilt your head a bit more, and make your eyes a little misty! And since you’ve got cat ears, make them twitch! Also—”

After twenty minutes of thorough instruction, Nemu delivered a perfect “Master, please let Nemu live with you.”

And in the end—

“So this room is Nemu’s room, okay?”

I ended up living with this damn cat-eared woman.