Chapter 248 – A nostalgic insult

Sophia and Chloe had reunited with the rest of the group after their little chat, and Maya was immediately on board with finding a partner for the fox after she got over Sophia seemingly being her preferred type. That preference would also make finding someone for her rather tricky as the tiger was somewhat of an odd exception among the regular oddballs, to put it lightly. After chatting some more and making the cat-girl somewhat confused about some implications that involved her tail in some way or another she didn't understand, they headed back to the bar to get breakfast this time.

“Good morning!” Doing their best to leave the tail topic behind them as fast as possible, Sophia and Chloe energetically greeted everyone that could hear them while entering the bar.

“Morning!” Mark happily greeted them back once he spotted the group. “Up already, huh?”

“Sure!” The duo answered them.

“It has its merits to be immune to booze, I guess? Look at my idiot here!” The black-haired fox-man gestured towards the bar counter where his partner, Alex, was sitting hunched over with his head on the table.

“Urgh…” He only reacted with a groan. “Do you have to be this loud… Does everyone have to be sooo loud this early in the morning?!” Alex wasn’t in his best mood.

"My, is there someone a little hungover~?" Sounding as smug as she could be, Sophia walked over to him with a big grin. “Lovely to hear~.”

“You monster…”

"Oho, I haven't been called like that in a while. How nostalgic!" She started smiling after being addressed like that and touched his shoulder. “Still, it isn’t nice to call a girl a monster, you know? Especially not someone as sweet as I am!" A moment later, Sophia's hand and Alex's shoulder were wrapped in a pale blue light.

“I’m not sure if that’s the right description for you- Hmm…?” After everything that happened, the fox-man had difficulties calling the tiger sweet. Still, he suddenly stopped talking and looked right at the blonde. "W-What did you do just now…? I suddenly feel great again?!"

“Healing magic sure is amazing, isn’t it?” He got loud. “Oh my gosh, I love you! Please stay by my side forever!”

“I have very mixed feelings about this!” Sophia didn’t enjoy this confession of a middle-aged man overly much. “Actually, scratch that! They aren’t mixed at all! Just bad!”

“Yes!” Everyone around them agreed with her statement.

"Ahaha, don't worry, my dear tiger, I have zero interest in you."

“Good to know because that’s MORE than mutual.”

“Heh.” He let out a small chuckle. “No, I just thought that having someone around that can cure a hangover in an instant would be nice to have on hand.”

“Oh, so you tried to confess to me just to use me as a tool~?” Her expression and voice suddenly changed.

“I never said that!”

“Sure sounded like that, though.” Everyone disagreed with him.

“Seriously, what did I do to everyone? I’m just a poor guy who doesn’t want to watch every word he’s saying!”

“I know~.“ Sophia sounded much more relaxed again. “I can’t imagine a better base to tease someone as that~.”

“So, you are a monster!” He got loud again.

“I just said that it isn’t nice to call a girl one. I never said you're wrong~. Though, I also am pretty sweet if I dare say so myself!" She still started pouting a little.

“Well, you did cure the hangover of this idiot, so… Thank you very much!” Alex showed her a big smile. “You might be an angel, after all.”

“I wouldn’t go that far.” Fen, Aura, Maya, and even Sophia herself all disagreed with that.

“Ahaha…” He only reacted with a small laugh. “Still, healing magic is amazing! I’ve never experienced it before! I feel better than ever! That’s a tiger for you, huh?”

“I think I’m actually the only tiger that can use it…” Sophia tilted her head while thinking about it. “Although, everyone here in my group is able to. Chloe, you can use it, too, right? I mean, I don’t get why, but you’re able to use chantless magic and all that.”

“Yes.” The fox-girl nodded. “I’m not that good at it, but I can use it."

“That’s impressive! Wait!” Alex suddenly got even louder while he stared at the pink-haired girl. “You’re also able to heal people?!”

“Yes?”

“I would’ve loved to get some healing after a long night of drinking! Especially when you accompanied us! Everyone except you always ends up with a throbbing headache the next morning because we try to beat you!"

“…” Chloe only turned her head away without saying anything.

“Hey!”

“Let me interpret that for you.” Sophia stared at him. “That’s your punishment for always challenging her to do stupid things.”

“I-I wouldn’t go that far!” Chloe got a little flustered.

“Admitting it or doing it?”

“…” She turned her head away again.

“And there you have it.” The blonde looked rather smug while she focused her attention on Alex again. “Never mess with a girl. Especially not with the cute and unassuming ones because they’re often the wildest ones.” She remembered the tail incident from before.

“H-Hey!” The fox-girl started blushing.

“Is that so…?” He looked at the fox-girl for a few moments before dropping the topic. “So, what brings all of you here at this time?"

“Breakfast!” Sophia sounded really excited all of a sudden. "Chloe said that Mark's an excellent cook, and I want to know more about that!"

“Oh my, thanks for the recommendation~.” The black-haired fox-man sounded happy. “So, what can I cook for you?”

“I’ll take whatever you’re best at! After that, I’ll have the dish you’re second-most confident about!”

“Shouldn’t it be the other way around?” Chloe tilted her head. “To end with the best one?”

“You’re right!” She nodded. “I’ll have it that way, Mark!”

“I’ll have the same!” The fox-girl liked the plan.

“Sure thing!”

“I’m good with something light.” Maya wasn’t nearly as motivated as the duo. “I rarely eat much in the morning.”

“No problem~.” Mark nodded at her request. “Fen, Aura, something with a lot of meat, I presume?”

“I like the sound of that!” Fen was a fan of the plan.

“Fine by me, too.”

“Perfect! Alex, get them a table while I prepare the food.”

“No problem!” Afterward, Mark disappeared somewhere in the back of the bar while the brown-haired fox-man guided the group to an empty table.

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"By the way," Sophia immediately addressed him once the fox-man had guided the group to a free table. “When do you think can I get my treehouse~?”

“So, you haven’t forgotten about that, huh?”

“There’s no way that would ever happen!”

“I thought as much…” He hung his head. “Well, sure… That was the promise.”

“Yay!” The tiger’s voice was filled with excitement.

“Almost all of them are uninhabited, so you can basically choose whatever place you want. Feel free to take a look later, and I'll give you the keys once you find something that tickles your fancy.” Alex wasn’t going to back down on his promise after he had lost the bet.

“Chloe!”

“Yes?!” She got a little startled from suddenly being addressed like that.

“Do you want to be neighbors?”

“Oh, that sounds like fun!”

“And there you have it~.” The blonde faced Alex again. "I'd like to get the closest one to Chloe!"

“Don’t want to look inside first…?” The fox-man tilted his head.

“Nope!”

“Seriously…?” He then glanced at Maya. “Is that really okay…?”

“We moved into our mansion in the capital unseen, as well… It’s just how Sophia works.”

“Keys, please!” After all, she didn't care about any of that.

“So easygoing…” Alex let out a small sigh before continuing. “Well, what do I care… Sure, you can have the place nearest to her. After you’re done with breakfast, I’ll have the keys ready for you.”

“Thank you!” The blonde showed him a happy smile. “What a great day~.”

“Sure…” Judging by his expression, Alex didn’t necessarily share her opinion on the matter.

A couple of moments later, Marc arrived with their food, and the group finally ate breakfast together while the brown-haired fox-man went to fetch the keys for the elven treehouse next to Chloe’s place.

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“Haa, that was delicious~." With a satisfied expression and a big smile on her face, Sophia was walking in front of the two other girls while twirling around a set of keys that were wrapped around her index finger. Fen and Aura had decided to stay in the bar as their interest in the treehouse was near zero. “I can’t wait to take a look at our new house~.”

“Are you actually going to live here?” The pink-haired girl looked at her.

“Pretty unlikely.” She shook her head. “Probably a night every now and then. Maybe for more during the summer months. Our mansion in the capital is much more convenient.”

“It’s weird if she says something reasonable, right?” The cat-girl glanced at Chloe.

“Still, it’s an elven treehouse!” The tiger raised her voice. “I’m sooo happy that it’s mine now! This definitely is the best timeline!”

“Did you say something just now?” Ignoring her, the fox-girl looked back at Maya.

“…” She paused for a moment. “No.”

“Oh, okay.” Chloe didn’t question it any further.

“Though, once it gets warm again, I want to travel more! I really doubt the treehouse is going to get used much…”

“It hasn’t even gotten cold yet…” The pink-haired girl rolled her eyes.

“Shut up, you arctic fox!” She got loud again.

With a slight pout, she continued to guide the girls towards where Chloe lives to take a look at their new house right next to it. Although, after a few moments, the fox-girl took the lead because the blonde was going in the exact wrong direction.