DanMachi Universe, Lower World, Orario.
Without wasting time, Tatsuo walked over to the pile of materials in the villa's main hall. Then, he checked to make sure that everything was there.
"Don't worry. James checked everything when it was delivered," Aislynn said casually while watching Tatsuo from one of the main hall's couches.
"Yeah, because as soon as I saw what was coming in, I knew what you were building," James added. "So, I made sure to check it thoroughly."
"Thanks." Tatsuo said without turning around. "But since I have to know exactly what's here for my spell to work, I gotta check everything myself, too."
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"I feel you," James replied with a shrug.
"By the way, what are we doing for dinner?" Elicia asked curiously. "Are we staying in or going to the Hostess of Fertility?"
"Well, Tatsuo-Kun and I had lunch at the Hostess of Fertility," Momo said as she turned to answer Elicia's question. "So, if possible, I'd rather not go there again."
"Why does it feel like the Hostess of Fertility is the only restaurant in the city?" Alfonzo asked curiously. "I mean, no one ever talks about eating anywhere else."
"Probably because it's the best restaurant in the city," Aislynn replied.
"Ah, I guess that makes sense," Alfonzo said with a shrug. "Anyway, my vote is for eating at home. It's cheaper and the food is better."
"Me, too," Tatsuo replied. "I'm probably not gonna wanna cook when I'm done with this, though."
"Is it that complicated?" Akatsuki asked curiously. "Oh, and I vote for eating at home, too."
"Nah, it's not gonna be all that complicated," Tatsuo replied while nodding at Akatsuki's vote. "it's just that I'll be busy with it after I'm finished."
That statement just made everyone who did not know what Tatsuo planned to do with the materials even more curious. Meanwhile, those who already knew were looking forward to what came next.
Time passed quickly after that. By the time Tatsuo was done inspecting the materials, it had been unanimously decided that dinner would be held at home.
"Oh, I almost forgot," Elicia said excitedly. "Apparently, Freya has put out a request to have someone design a conservative, yet elegant outfit for her. For something she intended to do in the near future."
Hearing that, everyone's attention was briefly pulled away from Tatsuo and landed squarely on Elicia.
"And let me guess, you want to put in a design, right?" Violet asked with a smile.
"Of course I do," Elicia said proudly while puffing out her chest. "I've never made any clothes for anyone in this world outside of our Familia. And my first opportunity will be to make something for a Goddess. How could I possibly resist?"
"Maybe because the goddess you're designing it for might try to charm you into joining her Familia?" Aislynn asked in a sarcastic tone.
"I'm not worried about that," Elicia replied while waving off Aislynn's sarcasm. "As charming as Freya might be, there's no way she's more charming than my Fonzie."
Hearing that, Alfonzo could not help smiling. Though, his smile was quite wry. At the same time, he reached up and started combing his fingers through Elicia's hair, causing her to narrow her eyes in pleasure.
"Damn… I thought the head pat was almighty," James said while watching Alfonzo and Elicia. "I mean, all my girls love it. But does that really work, too?"
"It works for me," Alfonzo replied while continuing to comb his fingers through Elicia's hair. "I've never tried a head pat, though. Maybe I should try it some time, too."
"I'll try the finger comb, too," James added. "I'll have to wait until I get home to try it, though. I mean, I don't really see myself hooking up with anyone while we're here."
"Don't you already have enough women?" Akatsuki asked. "You're not just collecting them like figurines, are you?"
"Of course not," James said, sounding almost insulted. "Besides, I only have ten… No, wait, there's more than that. Let me see… Rias, Sona, Akeno, Flora, Kitty Cat…"
"No one was asking for their names," Akatsuki said while rolling her eyes.
"Alright, I'm ready," Tatsuo said, putting an end to the conversations in the main hall.
Once again, all eyes were on Tatsuo, who was kneeling in front of the pile of materials. A moment later, Tatsuo flared his [Energy] while controlling it with his [Mind] as he started casting [Transmutation].
"[Mankind cannot gain anything without first giving something in return. To obtain, something of equal value must be lost. This is known as the Law of Equivalent Exchange. Transmutation]." Tatsuo chanted in a solemn tone with a hint of excitement hidden underneath.
In the next instant, a magic circle appeared on the floor, surrounding the pile of materials. Then, arcs of midnight purple electricity began jumping between the magic circle and the materials. And as time passed, the materials broke down into particles before reforming into the form Tatsuo desired.
And as the new form of the materials took shape, everyone finally understood what Tatsuo wanted to create. Slowly, a black grand piano and the accompanying piano bench began to take shape in front of everyone, causing everyone who had been in the dark about what Tatsuo intended to build to show expressions of pleasant surprise.
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"Yup, that's exactly what I was expecting," James said once the [Transmutation] ended. "It looks almost exactly the same as when he did it back in the Arifureta world."
Violet and Aletia nodded in agreement with James.
"I don't know why that wasn't more obvious," Alfonzo said while shaking his head with a smile. "Then again, since I haven't seen or heard a piano since we got here, I guess I just thought it was natural that T didn't have one."
"He didn't bother building or buying one in the MHA world, either." Akatsuki pointed out. "Honestly, I didn't think it was that much of a deal to him."
"Of course, the piano is a big deal to me," Tatsuo said in a solemn tone. Then, he lifted the piano's keylid and ran his right index finger across the surface of the ivory keys as he continued. "It's one of the few things I got to choose for myself back when DOATEC had me, after all."
That statement caused the room to fall silent. However, before the silence could turn awkward, Alfonzo stood up and started walking towards the kitchen.
"Now I see why T said I'd have to cook dinner alone tonight," Alfonzo said while looking back over his shoulder. "Well, it makes perfect sense in hindsight. Anyway, since I'll be working alone, it wouldn't be too much for me to make a request, right?"
"Of course not," Tatsuo replied as his solemn expression morphed into a smile. Then, he continued after taking a seat on the bench and starting to stretch his fingers. "Just name a song, chances are I can play a version of it on the piano."
"There's no need for that," Alfonzo said just before stepping out of the main hall. "The song is just piano and vocals. So, you won't have to adapt anything."
"Alright, shoot," Tatsuo said while laying his fingers on the keys.
"I wanna hear 'When I Was Your Man' by Bruno Mars," Alfonzo said as he disappeared from the room.
"Got it," Tatsuo replied.
Unfortunately, Tatsuo could not start playing immediately. And the reason for that was simple. After playing the first note, he realized that he had forgotten something.
The piano had not yet been tuned.
So, for the next while, Tatsuo tuned the piano while everyone else chatted or, in Alfonzo's case, cooked. Then, once he was done, Tatsuo once again sat at the piano bench and started playing.
{BGM: "When I Was Your Man" – Bruno Mars}
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Once Tatsuo started to play and sing, time seemed to pass quickly. And before anyone knew it, Alfonzo was calling them all to come and eat. Then, after dinner, most of them decided to turn in early so they would be well rested for tomorrow's Dungeon dive.
*Knock!* *Knock!* *Knock!*
However, before Tatsuo could fall asleep, a knock on his door made him sigh. Because he already had an idea of who was at his door. And because of that, he knew he would have to have a conversation that he was not looking forward to.
A moment later, dressed in only a pair of white shorts with a dragon embroidered on the right leg, Tatsuo stood up and walked over to the door. Then, without hesitation, he opened it. And just as he expected, Aletia, dressed in a white night gown, was standing in the hallway and looking up at him with a hint of resentment in her expression.
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"*Sigh* Come on in, Aletia," Tatsuo said as he opened his bedroom door. "I know why you're here. And I know why you're upset. And to be honest, you have every right to be."
Hearing that, Aletia was slightly taken aback. However, she did not waste any time accepting Tatsuo's invitation to enter. She also wasted no time walking straight to his bed and climbing into it.
Meanwhile, Tatsuo watched Aletia's actions while closing the door. Then, once it was closed securely, he followed her to the bed before also climbing into it.
"I'll tell you everything you want to know," Tatsuo said while sitting with his back resting against the headboard. "But why don't you take a drink first? Hopefully that will keep you from casting your [Elemental Dragon] spell on me."
Despite herself, Aletia smiled a little at Tatsuo's joke. While doing so, she climbed into Tatsuo's lap and bit into his neck without any of the seductive playfulness that usually accompanied it.
"So, there really isn't too much to say," Tatsuo said while stroking Aletia's hair as she drank. "Honestly, I really do like you, Aletia. But… *Gasp*"
Before Tatsuo could finish, he felt Aletia put more pressure than usual into her bite, causing him to feel pain from the action for the first time. Yet, he did not complain, feeling that he deserved it, at least a little, for not clarifying earlier.
"… I don't feel right taking our relationship any further." Tatsuo continued as if nothing happened, the pain tolerance that was beaten into him while in DOATEC custody making that a simple task. "I mean… I know you're not really as young as you look. And my head tells me that all the time. But still, I can't get past it… "
After saying that much, Tatsuo fell silent, allowing Aletia to digest what she just heard while continuing to drink. Luckily, after a few seconds, Aletia lessened the pressure in her bite. And although that did not mean she forgave Tatsuo for not returning her affection, it was a good start.
After a few more seconds, Aletia pulled her fangs out of Tatsuo's neck. Then, she licked up the small amount of blood that trickled from the puncture wounds before leaning back and looking Tatsuo in the eyes.
"Why… didn't you tell me earlier?" Aletia asked in a slightly hurt tone.
"*Sigh* It's because I didn't want it to be this way," Tatsuo replied while letting his head lean back against the headboard. "I wanted to treat you like all of my other treasures. So, I tried to brainwash myself into not thinking it was an issue. But… I just couldn't… I'm sorry."
With his head leaned back and his eyes pointed at the ceiling, Tatsuo missed the smile that briefly appeared on Aletia's face. Although she was not particularly happy about being treated differently from Violet and Sakura, she was happy to know that Tatsuo tried. And for now, that was good enough. As for the issue about her body's appearance, she would find a way to either change it or make Tatsuo accept her as she was. But both of those options would take some time.
"I understand," Aletia said as she climbed off Tatsuo's lap. "We'll figure it out… together."
Hearing that, Tatsuo lowered his head and looked at Aletia. However, when Aletia did not leave his bed, crawling under the covers instead, he found himself confused.
"What are you waiting for?" Aletia asked while patting the covers. "It's time to go to sleep. We have to get up early tomorrow to go to the Dungeon."
In his state of confusion, Tatsuo simply followed Aletia's directions. A few moments later, he found himself also lying under the covers with his arm wrapped around Aletia while she rested her head on his chest.
Before long, Aletia fell asleep with a small smile on her face. Meanwhile, Tatsuo was staring at the ceiling while trying to figure out what was going on.
'So, I told her why I couldn't take things further.' Tatsuo thought to himself. 'And I know she's not happy about it. Hell, who would be happy about being basically rejected over something they had no control over? Yet, she said she understood and told me we would figure it out. Not that I know how the hell to do that. Well… I guess I could see if the Age-Age Fruit is in the [System Shop]. That would probably be enough to fix the problem. But we would have to wait until we got back home for that.'
Reaching that point in his thoughts, Tatsuo lowered his head and looked at the top of Aletia's head for a few seconds. Then, he raised his head again and stared at the ceiling.
'But that doesn't explain how we ended up like this.' Tatsuo continued thinking. 'I mean, I expected her to storm out of here in a huff, at the very least. Hell, when she bit down harder than usual, I honestly thought she might just tear out my carotid artery and be done with it.'
Tatsuo could not help chuckling at his own morbid joke. But before long, he decided that this was probably the best outcome he could have hoped for and let it go. Not long later, he, too, fell asleep.
The next morning, everyone woke up as they usually did, with the exception of Aletia, who was sleeping in Tatsuo's bedroom. Because of that, she was in a better mood than usual. But other than that, everything went normally.
Tatsuo and Alfonzo cooked breakfast, Alfonzo woke up Elicia shortly before breakfast was ready, and the whole Familia ate together. Then, after breakfast, everyone got geared up for their trip to the Dungeon. But before they left, there was one thing to discuss.
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"So, what are the teams gonna be, Captain?" Alfonzo asked with a grin while looking at Tatsuo.
"Seriously, why the hell am I the captain?" Tatsuo groaned while letting his head hang.
"Because you're the [Dimensional chat] Admin, duh," Elicia said before sticking her tongue out at Tatsuo.
"That's only because I was the first one in the [Chat], though, right?" Tatsuo asked, a hint of uncertainty in his tone.
"Who knows," James replied with a shrug. "Anyway, just tell us the teams so we can get going."
"*Sigh* Fine~," Tatsuo said in a tired tone. "This week, Sakura-Chan and I will be going down to the Fifth through Seventh Floors, as we are the only ones with G-Ranked Stats."
*Tch!*
The response to Tatsuo's first team announcement was a chorus of clicked tongues from those who were looking forward to a more challenging Dungeon dive.
"The second team will be James, Lici, Violet, and Aletia," Tatsuo continued while rolling his eyes at the battle junkies in the [Dimensional Chat]. "Oh, and just like I said before, Lici's no speaking rule is off this week. That way, James can get the challenge he wants."
"Yeah, fuck that!" James exclaimed in panic. Then, he turned to Elicia and continued. "You can talk all you want while we're in the Dungeon. But you're not allowed to talk about Irregular Situations, how easy the dive is, or anything like that. Got it?"
"Hmph!" Elicia only snorted, pouted, and crossed her arms. Yet, she did not argue. "If that will help you sleep better at night, fine. Still, that won't prove anything. All the bad luck everyone has been having is not, and never will be, my fault."
"Then, that means the last team will be me, Alfonzo-San, Akatsuki-San, and Zelretch-Dono, right?" Momo asked, though it sounded more like a statement than a question.
"That's right," Aislynn replied with a nod. "And now that your teams have been assigned, go do what Adventurers do best."
And with that, everyone got up, picked up their weapons, and left the Dragon's Nest to start another six-day grind.