Chapter 146: Homeless (2/2)
With a fantastic effort of willpower, Wallace suppressed his rage with a sigh. ”Whatever, everyone just follow me. I'll take you there.”
It was a short hike, and in a few minutes, the assembled group of former Lighthouse Dormitory residents were standing in front of their new home. They stared at the building with a mix of facial expressions, all of which were cramped.
”What in the hells is this?” Hannah asked, pointing at the small, single story building. It was less than half the size of their previous domicile.
”Ah, I remember. Due to the damage done to other University buildings, this was the only one available at the moment. So, we'll have to share rooms for the time being.” Anna announced, looking slightly proud of herself for recalling the important detail.
”How many rooms are there?” Mike asked, while resisting the urge to sigh.
Anna paused to consider this before replying. ”Well…It's usually used for high ranking nobility when they bring a large household. If I recall, there is one master suite and two servant rooms.”
”Three rooms? That makes this difficult.” Wallace broke in, while deep in thought. ”By virtue of rank, Lily should get the master suite, along with her butler. As for the other two. I would suggest dividing the rest of us by gender.”
Lionel, the titled Slacker, who had been silent up to this point, spoke. ”That works. Point me to the male room, I have sleep to catch up on.”
[Not exactly ideal, but I suppose it's better than sleeping outside.] Mike was thinking when he felt his left arm and shoulder embraced by a warm, soft sensation. He kept his eyes closed, suspecting the cause, but not quite wanting to face it. Unfortunately, Sera's voice forced him out of his denial.
”What in the hells are you doing?! Get off of him!” She was yelling.
Lily had grabbed onto him in a distinctly intimate manner, unintentionally making full use of her assets to the shock of the crowd observing. She spoke simply, directing her words to the group at large. ”I'm taking him. He can stay in my room.”
There was a few moments of shocked silence before William started sputtering, ”M-Milady! This is hardly proper!”
The scandalized maids started whispering to each other while Hannah started laughing excitedly. Mike's own group had mixed reactions. Tal continued to affect indifference, but he could sense a hint of irritation creep into her posture. Brenden was grinning at his misfortune while trying to restrain Sera, who was thoroughly pissed
Lily tilted her head in confusion before replying, ”He has what I need. I can't let him get away.”
This caused another round of excited commotion from the maids.
[Is she intentionally trying to cause misunderstandings? Did the genre change to romantic comedy all of a sudden? Whatever. I can try to explain, but I don't really want to show off my extradimensional item, if I can avoid it. Might be best to try and roll with it, I suppose.]
Wallace cleared his throat loudly, getting the attention of the group. ”If Lily wants it that way, I see no reason to refuse, especially since Mike has the largest household. The servant quarters were going to be rather tight, so this works out nicely.”
”Hey! I didn't agree to this!” Sera yelled.
Calmly adjusting his glasses, Wallace replied in a measured tone. ”It is not your decision. As the head of your household, Mike is the ultimate authority.”
[...shit....]
”As such, it will be his choice to make.” He finished.
Mike felt all eyes turn towards him. He knew he needed to say something, but was still distracted by the pressure on his left side. Despite his best efforts, he'd so far been unable to free himself using gentle means. Judging from the strength of her grip, he would be hard pressed to do so even if he tried seriously.
[I guess her giant blood is the cause of this. Seems pretty useful. Honestly though, what is it with me and strong women today?]
Knowing that there wasn't much he could do to avoid the coming difficulties, he resigned himself to playing along. Besides, it was hard for him to turn down the attractive woman's invitation to share a room. Despite his relatively monastic lifestyle of the last few weeks, he was still a healthy young man.
”As someone who is in the middle of an important business transaction with Lady Lilianna, it would be somewhat inappropriate to share living arraignments-” He started, intending to reluctantly agree.
”No, you're staying with me.” Lily broke in firmly. A sudden tension rose out of the maid group, who seemed to be waiting for his response.
Sighing, he nodded. ”Alright then. If she insists, I will accept Lady Lilianna's gracious invitation.”
A round of cheers sounded from the maids, and Mike heard one of them mutter, ”Oh goodie! A love triangle! Or is it a square? Anyway, this is going to be fun.”
[At least some of us are entertained. Ah…..So this is what it feels like to be a rom-com protagonist. It kind of sucks.] He thought, while feeling the burning gaze of at least two of his companions drilling into his back.