Chapter 24: The Ladies’ Agreement

That night.

In a corner of the tavern where adventurers gathered night after night, located at the edge of the guild district, three girls who normally would never cross paths were seated around a circular table, facing each other with serious expressions.

“…And so. If we continue to rely on him like this, that man will die of overwork.”

Crossing her arms, the one who broke the ice with a cold voice was the nighttime thief — Luna.

“I told you about what happened in the back alley the other day. If we rely on him haphazardly, that man will try to protect us even if it means pushing past his own limits. …That happens to be his good point, though.”

“…I can’t deny that — although I am the one who understands his good points the best.”

Fran, the genius mage, quietly agreed while tracing the rim of her glass with her finger.

“You’re wrong, I’m the one who understands Nagi the best!”

Lise asserted herself over something completely irrelevant to the main topic, but Fran ignored her and continued.

“His processing capacity has already breached its limit. If we each hurl our demands at him and fight at his window, his mind and body will experience a system crash before long. Nagi breaking down is the one thing we absolutely must avoid.”

“…I have no idea what you’re saying, but I absolutely don’t want Nagi to collapse…! I don’t want it!!”

Lise leaned over the table, shouting with teary eyes.

“But I want to be with Nagi! I’ll get anxious if I don’t see him every day! What are we supposed to do?!”

“It’s simple.”

Fran voiced a terrifying proposal with a completely straight face.

“If the resource known as ‘he’ is insufficient, we just need to physically increase it. We will use an ancient forbidden art to ‘duplicate’ him up to three, then allocate and manage them individually.”

“Rejected.”

Luna instantly shot it down.

“Duplicating the soul degrades the original. Besides, the ‘Nagi’ we want is the single original with that clumsy earnestness, isn’t he.”

“Then I’ll kidnap Nagi and hide him in a safe underground labyrinth!”

This time Lise blurted out something outrageous.

“I’ll be the only one with the key, and I’ll bring him meals every day! If we do that, no one will make Nagi tired, and Nagi gets to rest forever — so it’s perfect, right?!”

“That is just confinement, you stray dog.”

Fran shot her a cold glare.

“Blocking out sunlight and keeping him in a closed space will destroy his mind. Besides, you monopolizing the key is the height of unfairness. Nagi and I should be the ones to lock ourselves away alone inside a barrier.”

“That’s exactly the same thing!! You logic-spouting hypocrite!!”

As the two stood up and reached for their weapons, Luna restrained them with a sharp voice.

“Sit down.”

“Extreme monopolization will only invite ruin. In order to keep our ‘ultimate partner’ alive for a long time, we have no choice but to periodically isolate him and let him self-repair.”

Luna unfurled a piece of parchment in the center of the table.

“Rules for us to share him and preserve him for a long time. I call it the ‘Ladies’ Agreement.'”

“…Rules?”

“Yes. First, one day a week, we establish a ‘Total Meeting Ban Day’ where we absolutely do not approach his window, even on his work days. And second, we will cause absolutely no trouble for his private life on his off-duty days.”

At Luna’s proposal, Lise and Fran gasped, their faces turning pale.

“We can’t go see him one day a week, even when he’s working…?! I might die…”

“A rare moment of agreement. That is indeed tantamount to torture.”

“Endure it. It’s better than him dying. — It’s hard for me, too.”

When Luna flatly declared that, the two fell completely silent, unable to argue.

If confinement and duplication were both out, this was the only way.

Precisely because they wanted to monopolize him more than anyone else, they now had no choice but to join hands in order to keep him from breaking.

All three of them nodded to each other, looking as though they had bitten into something terribly bitter.

In a corner of the tavern, the “excessively heavy affection” of three girls was about to bear fruit as a single, solid alliance.

＊　＊　＊

The next day.

In front of me, as I was preparing for work at the guild window with dead eyes, the three of them appeared together.

Another bloodbath from the morning, huh.

Just as I thought that and reached for the bottle of stomach medicine, they shoved a piece of parchment toward me with a slap!

“Nagi. Accept this.”

“…What is this? Another new shift roster?”

Timidly lowering my eyes, I saw an unfamiliar title written there.

“Ladies’ Agreement”

At the very bottom, the signatures of Lise, Fran, and Roux — along with Luna’s — were lined up.

“We have reflected on our actions. That our unregulated contact has become a burden to you.”

Fran announced with a straight face.

“So, we’ve decided! Starting today, once a week, we won’t go to Nagi’s window even on a work day!”

Lise puffed out her chest with a tragic determination, looking as though she were crying tears of blood.

“Yup! So today is ‘No Nagi-onii-san Day’! And of course, we promise to absolutely not bother you on your off-duty day tomorrow either!”

Roux gave a thumbs-up with a massive smile.

“…Eh?”

Confronted with such an incredibly unexpected development, my mouth fell open in a dumbfounded gape.

To think they would be the ones to propose a rule restricting their own interference with me.

Even based on the knowledge from my past life, a client with codependent tendencies voluntarily committing to a “distancing rule” was a massive step forward.

“…Are you all, really…?”

“Yes. Today as a work day, and tomorrow as an off-duty day. We guarantee you two days of peace. Take your time handling your practical business.”

Saying that, the three of them headed off to their respective requests — while looking incredibly reluctant to part, glancing back over their shoulders countless times.

The counter was quiet, like the aftermath of a storm.

Staring at the “Ladies’ Agreement” in my hands, I let out a deep, long sigh of relief.

“…Yesss.”

Finally, a humane and peaceful stretch of time where no one was threatening me was coming my way.

I relished the quiet work day ahead, and internally pumped my fist — deciding that on tomorrow’s off-duty day, I would go to the forest on the outskirts of town by myself and indulge in the ultimate refreshing forest bathing.

【End of Part 1: Roux/Luna Arc】