Waking up felt like emerging from beneath the surface of water, Subaru thought.

As he opened his eyelids, the slanted sunlight burned his eyes, causing him to squint and rub his face. He typically woke up well; once he was conscious, his mind was instantly alert.

“Oh, you’re awake now?”

The voice came from directly above him, from where Subaru lay.

Turning his face toward the voice, Subaru realized he was lying on the ground, dozing off while leaning against something soft.

“Don’t move yet. You hit your head, so you need to be careful.”

The gentle voice expressing concern for him was accompanied by an extraordinary sensation of bliss beneath his head.

Recalling the events just before he lost consciousness, Subaru immediately concluded that he was in an incredibly fortunate situation as a boy.

—Wait, is this really a beautiful girl’s lap pillow?!

Following that heavenly instinct, Subaru turned over, planning to indulge in the sensation of those thighs.

As his cheek rolled against the supreme softness, he was surprised by how fluffy it felt, pushing back against his entire face.

—Wow, beautiful girls are hairier than I imagined.

“Wait, that can’t be right—!”

“I’m so glad you’re awake now (in a mock voice).”

As he quipped back, his vision finally cleared, accurately reflecting the world around him.

Right in front of Subaru, in a topsy-turvy view, was the enormous face of a cat.

The cat had an unusually amiable face and appeared to wear a smile, saying,

“At least let me help you enjoy the moment until you’re fully awake (in a mock voice).”

“For crying out loud, please stop with that annoying mocking voice.”

In this extraordinary situation of being given a lap pillow by a cat as big as a person, Subaru did his best to focus on just that. He decided to enjoy the fluffy sensation against his cheek.

“Fluffy… fluffiness! What on earth did you bring into being, oh God?”

“Well, seeing you so happy makes the effort of me growing large worth it. Right?”

The huge cat, scratching its head shyly, closed one eye as if seeking agreement. In the background stood the silver-haired girl, crossing her arms with a frustrated look at the entrance of the alley.

There was no doubt that she was the girl who had been burned into Subaru’s memory just before he lost consciousness.

“So, you’re the miniature cat from earlier?”

“Hehehe, I can change size at will, making it convenient for transport. Plus, with humor-filled banter, I add some spice to boring daily life. A companion for everyone! For more details, please contact the Spirit Council.”

The cat skillfully snapped its fingers, presenting its sales pitch. Although the content was somewhat vague, Subaru figured that must be part of its routine.

Then, he shifted his attention to the girl approaching.

“Looks like you stuck around until I woke up after all…”

“Don’t get it twisted. I’m only here because I have something to ask, not because I wanted to stay. If it weren’t for that, I would’ve left you behind. Just so you know, don’t misinterpret my actions.”

Being told such a thing repeatedly, Subaru could no longer poke further at that topic.

The girl, with a strong tone, pressed on him. For Subaru, whose communication level with the opposite gender was at an absolute zero, it was suffocating to just nod along while ignoring the content.

“Therefore, the healing magic I cast on your injuries and letting you enjoy Pack’s fluffy embrace until you woke up was all for my own sake. So, you’ll have to return the favor.”

“That’s a rather self-important way to make a normal request.”

A complete embodiment of “a kindness doesn’t benefit the giver,” was the logic Subaru was now subjected to.

In response to Subaru’s answer, the girl shook her head with a stern expression.

“That’s not true; it’s all one-sided. —So, you have an idea about the badge that got stolen from me, right?”

The girl whispered softly to Subaru, who hesitantly accepted her conditions.

He couldn’t help but cock his head in confusion at the question.

Honestly, it felt like he had asked the exact same question just before losing consciousness.

“Did I hit my head really hard while I was out?”

“You were unconscious for maybe five minutes, and to my knowledge, nothing like that happened.”

“So, it’s déjà vu then? Or could it be that my hidden extraordinary ability has awakened, allowing me to experience events a bit ahead of time?”

How about the ability named “Show Up Two Days Ago” for that?

It seemed like it would be useful in being prepared for questions. Or he could even use it to counter tricky questions before an exam. The dreams were grand.

“Oh right, I was a recluse!”

“Could you not ignore what I’m trying to say? Now, about answering your question…”

“Uh… well, I don’t have any leads, I guess.”

When referring to a badge, it was one commonly worn by lawyers, prosecutors, self-defense officers, etc., to signify one’s identity.

Unfortunately, in the past hour, Subaru had no memory of seeing anything that fit that description.

If he could return home, there would be plenty of toy badges collected from his childhood, but he had no way back and offering those would simply turn him into a chunk of ice.

Thus, there was no way Subaru could meet the girl’s expectations.

However, the girl nodded without disappointment at Subaru’s response.

“Okay, then. It can’t be helped. But from you, I at least got the information that you know nothing. So, I’ve already received the payment for healing your injuries.”

In a trickster fashion, she expressed her total loss without a care.

Leaving Subaru dumbfounded, the girl clapped her hands decisively.

“Well, I’m off then. Sorry, but I’m in a hurry. Your injuries should be healed now, and since I warned your attackers, I don’t think they’ll bother you anymore. But entering an empty alley at this hour is like joining a suicide squad. Just so you know, this isn’t a warning; it’s advice. If you run into something similar next time, don’t expect me to help, as there’s no benefit for me.”

Rapid-fire, she babbled away, and as Subaru fell silent, the girl seemed to interpret his quietness as agreement, muttering “Okay” with satisfaction and turning to leave.

Her long silver hair flowed gracefully, shimmering even in the dim alley.

Suddenly, the weight he had been resting against disappeared, causing Subaru to stumble and regain his balance.

When he turned around, the hefty giant cat that had been there moments ago was gone, and it had returned to its palm-sized form, floating whimsically toward the girl’s back like a balloon caught in the wind.

“Sorry about that. My child isn’t very good at being honest. Don’t think anything odd of it.”

Offering a laughter-laden response, the cat softly landed on the girl’s shoulder. She petted the cat’s back as if confirming its fluffiness before it vanished into her silver hair.

As Subaru watched her striking back, he pondered the words of the cat.

—What was that girl’s true intent behind her seemingly stubborn words and actions?

It seemed she had been pursuing a thief who stole something valuable from her.

In her journey, she found a completely unrelated Subaru being attacked and went out of the way to help him instead of pursuing the thief.

Moreover, she treated Subaru’s injuries, stood watch over him until he woke up, reiterated a question she had already asked, and did so all without making Subaru feel beholden to her.

This wasn’t a mere case of her being tough; it was clearly much more complicated than that.

Subaru had never encountered anyone who would deliberately act so problematically.

For the girl, the rewards she would gain from associating with Subaru were absolutely zero.

Considering she lost sight of the fleeing criminal as well as lost time healing Subaru, she would be well into the negatives in terms of cost-benefit analysis.

The girl had every right to blame Subaru, and Subaru had an obligation to accept whatever insults she chose to hurl at him.

However, in the end, the girl did not blame Subaru, nor did she express a desire for an apology.

Because, for her, helping Subaru was all part of her self-serving vision.

“Such a way of living will lead her to enormous losses.”

As he stood up, Subaru dusted off his soiled tracksuit.

His favorite outfit was dirty, but the fabric was mostly intact and not frayed from what he could tell. More importantly, all the pain from being kicked and beaten had completely vanished.

He rolled his shoulders, moved his limbs to test his intactness, and once again marveled at the absurdity of magic.

And now he also recognized how exceptional the girl was, having dealt him such a debt and merely accepting it for a pittance.

“—Hey, wait up!”

At the alley’s entrance, where she was looking back toward the main street, Subaru called out after her.

Stroking her long silver hair, she turned around with an exasperated expression.

“What is it? Our conversation is over. You and I are already unrelated strangers, just two people whose lives intersected for a brief moment.”

“Don’t say such cold-hearted stuff!? Just ‘cause you think it’s over doesn’t mean I do at all!”

Subaru rushed over to the girl, clinging on to her like a rejected guy trying to win back his girlfriend.

In a corner of his mind, he thought it felt like the guy who got dumped chasing after the girl, but with his arms wide open, he blocked her path.

“It’s an important thing, right? Let me help you with it!”

“But you haven’t—”

“True, I don’t know the name of the thief or their background or preferences, but at least I can tell you what they looked like! A pretty girl with noticeable fangs and blonde hair! She was shorter than you, had a smaller chest, and she seemed a year or two younger than you, so something like that, really!?”

When flustered, Subaru had a bad habit of talking too fast and raising his excitement.

This time, that quirk was fully on display, and honestly, he was taken aback by his own speech.

—Seriously, mentioning preferences and chest size is way too much. Plus, what do I mean by a pretty girl and really? What kind of character am I supposed to be? I quit English in the first year of middle school!

In the summer of his first year in middle school, he lost his English textbook during the first summer vacation, and since then, he had completely cut ties with foreign words. It was like a mini sakoku.

How could he be so casual with English in a conversation now—?

Lost in tension and regret, Subaru felt like he was about to spiral into a lengthy conflict.

He was drenched in cold sweat, his back was soaked. His armpits and hands were crazy sweaty. His heart raced, breath was short, he felt dizzy, bloodless, all stuffed up, and struggling with headaches.

From that dire situation, he was saved by,

“—What a strange person.”

The girl tilted her head as if observing some rare creature with her hand over her mouth.

She looked at Subaru as if evaluating him.

“I should let you know that I can’t offer you any compensation. I’m flat broke as it is.”

“Yeah, because it got all taken from you.”

“Don’t worry. I’m practically broke too.”

“There’s no element of reassurance in that.”

Consciously ignoring her occasional interjections, Subaru thumped his chest.

“And besides, I don’t need a reward. The thing is, I want to help you because I want to thank you.”

“You haven’t done anything worthy of thanks. I’ve already received proper compensation for treating your injuries.”

The girl stubbornly held her ground.

Subaru chuckled at her persistent attitude and said, “Well, if that’s the case,” before adding,

“I’ll help you for my own sake. My goal is, let’s say, to accumulate good deeds!”

“Good deeds?”

“Yeah, apparently that’ll get me into heaven after I die. I’ve heard that a dream life full of lazily living it up awaits me there! So let me help you out for that!”

Even Subaru didn’t understand what he was saying, but he managed to get his point across.

With a satisfied look on his face, the girl pondered for a moment. Meanwhile, the gray cat on her shoulder poked her cheek with its paw.

“I can’t feel any bad intentions, so I think you should accept this honestly. Trying to search without any leads is just reckless considering how big the royal capital is,” it said.

“But… I…”

“Being stubborn can be cute, but being stubborn and losing sight of your goal is foolish, you know? I’d hate to think my daughter is a fool.”

The little cat provocatively shrugged, raising the girl’s eyebrows.

After a few seconds of “Um, huh, but…” with a strangely seductive tone, she finally said,

“—I really can’t offer you anything in return, just so you know.”

With that, she took Subaru’s outstretched hand.