Hero Of Harmony

(Note: I might've forgotten to mention it, but Yuki's appearance is on my discord👍🏾)

Walking down the stairs, the thumping sounds of Yuki's footsteps trailed right behind me as we headed toward the kitchen and sat at the table with four seats, and Yuki was using two of them.

"This smells great, Alexander; I didn't know you knew how to cook." Said Yuki with a slight smile as she inhaled her two plates of chicken and rice before glancing at Alexander.

"Well, you never asked, nor have I ever had the chance to actually display my skills as a chef, though don't base my skills off this dish; I had no ingredients to work with." Remarked Alexander with a sly smile as he looked at Yuki, who had grabbed a fork and taken a bite of the chicken.

Watching her take a bite, I waited to see her reaction; I was mainly curious how bland it tasted, though all I got was a large smile of her sharp teeth and four fangs.

"Ahh, this chicken is wonderful! And the rice, it's not hard!" Said Yuki in glee as she used her spoon and shoved a large spoonful of rice into her mouth along with small chunks of chicken.

"Eh? Is it that good?" Muttered Alexander suspiciously as he looked at Yuki enjoying his dish before glancing at his plate.

"Yes! Especially the rice, it's so spongy and soft; I never knew rice could be this great! Whenever I cook rice, it's always hard and doesn't taste that good." Remarked Yuki with a nod as she spoke to Alexander with a mouthful of food, causing him to rub the bridge of his nose.

"Well, I appreciate the compliment, Yuki, but how do you usually cook rice? 'Cause I did nothing special with it; just water and heat." Replied Alexander curiously as he took a bite of the food, causing him to frown at the blandness of his dish.

"Hmm? Water? Why did you add water?" Asked Yuki as she tilted her head in confusion and glanced at Alexander while having eaten a third of her food already.

"Because that's how you cook rice. Wait, don't tell me you've been cooking rice without adding water this entire time, Yuki?" Said Alexander calmly with a raised eyebrow before suddenly freezing as he eyed Yuki, who looked away bashfully.

"Y-Yes." Replied Yuki softly with a slight blush; it was quite the sight when you consider her large, intimidating appearance.

Sighing to myself, we continued eating in silence, which didn't take long for Yuki, who was like a vacuum cleaner, finishing all her food in five minutes at the most.

'That was like at least 5 pounds of food, yet she ate that with ease; in fact, she still looks hungry.' Thought Alexander as he looked at Yuki, who kept glancing at his food, causing his face to twitch.

"Well, I'm full; you want to eat the rest of it, Yu-" Said Alexander as he set his utensil, though he couldn't even finish speaking since Yuki had grabbed his plate and dumped the rest of the plate into her mouth.

'Haa, I'm going to need to teach her basic manners; she's making a mess.' Mused Alexander with a sigh as he frowned while eyeing the mess Yuki had made, leaving grains of rice everywhere.

"Ahh, that was wonderful, Alexander, thanks!" Stated Yuki with a loud burp as she patted her chest before standing up and walking to the living room.

"You're welcome, but where are you going?" Asked Alexander as he waved his hand around while watching Yuki's figure fall onto the couch.

"Taking a nap; we Oni's process our food the fastest when we sleep." Replied Yuki as she yawned before quickly falling asleep.

Furrowing my brows, I stood up and approached Yuki, only to hear her loudly snoring as she slept on the couch without a care in the world, as if she had zero responsibilities.

"She really just went to sleep without cleaning up after herself; this, haa. I guess that saying, 'you really don't know someone until you live with them', is true." Muttered Alexander in disbelief as he stared at Yuki before sighing and returning to the kitchen table to clean the mess she made.

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Once I finished cleaning the mess Yuki made, I left a note saying I was heading out, and that was about an hour ago; currently, I'm walking through the market while acquiring various ingredients to cook with since her kitchen was empty.

"That'll be one silver and 13 copper, young man." Said the store vendor as he gave Alexander a suspicious look.

"Here, you go, sir." Replied Alexander with a nod as he reached into his second space pouch and grabbed the exact amount needed before handing it to the vendor.

"Hmm, pleasure doing business with you." Remarks the vendor as he counted the coins before nodding with a slight smile.

Nodding to the man, I grabbed the sack of fruits, vegetables, herbs, spices, and a few other things before storing them in my space pouch, along with all the other items I'd bought today.

'Heh, I must thank Master for these space pouches; my life would've been a much bigger pain.' Thought Alexander as he held the space pouch containing nearly one hundred pounds of items in his hand.

'I've got the space element; I wonder how hard it is to make one of these? I've stabilized Matser's old space pouch, so they might not be that complicated.' Mused Alexander with a thoughtful expression as he rubbed his chin before shrugging his arms and storing his pouch in his pocket.

Since I wasn't on the clock or anything, I spent a few more hours walking around the market, collecting various items and foods, and only started to return home once I noticed the sun had begun to set.

Exiting the Market district, I walked down the populated streets, wondering what living with Yuki would be like; a part of me felt like it would be fun, but another part told me it would be just as annoying, and I trusted my heart.

'Well, I can't only have the good without the bad; if I want one, I must have the other.' Mused Alexander with a wry smile as he walked through the city, garnering weird glances in front of the populace since he was barefoot.

"Oh, shit; nearly forgot, Talis doesn't know we've moved; she's probably going to head to the Inn. I'll just wait for her there." Muttered Alexander as he hit himself on the head before turning around and jogging, though since he went commando, his massive junk is flinging about against his slime outfit, causing both men and women, mainly women, to widen their eyes.

"C-Casey, did you see that man's thing!?" Whispered an older woman with a slightly blushed face as she watched Alexander disappear into the crowd.

"Yeah, his thing was huge, even though I couldn't see it fully, but it was definitely bigger than my husband's, and it wasn't even hard!" Replied Casey in disbelief as she looked in the direction Alexander went before looking back at her friend with a horny glint.

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Arriving back at the Inn, I whistled into the sky, using the Avian language, and a few moments later, I heard those familiar flapping wings before I felt a pair of talons land on my left shoulder.

"Alex, where have you been!? I've been waiting for nearly half an hour!" Exclaimed Talis in annoyance as she gently slapped Alexander with her wings, which felt quite good considering her soft feathers.

"Sorry, I didn't know you would return earlier than usual, but I must tell you something, Talis: we no longer live in an Inn. We've got an upgrade!" Replied Alexander apologetically as he gently scratched underneath Talis's beak, causing her to purr like a kitten before smiling in excitement.

"Hmm, an upgrade?" Asked Talis curiously with a slight pout when Alexander stopped scratching her sweet spot.

"Yes, while you were gone, Yuki and I had gotten into an altercation with a group called the Firemania party, so be a little careful from now on; they're the kind to hold a grudge, and they aren't friendly at all. However, never mind them; after everything was settled, Yuki offered us to live in her home, and now, we've got an actual house, and you're probably going to love it!" Stated Alexander seriously as he briefly described today's earlier events before smiling again while Talis spread her wings in surprise.

"A house!? Finally! That Inn always felt a little cramped! What are you waiting for, Alexander? Hurry and take me there!" Exclaimed Talis in excitement as she eagerly slapped the back of Alexander's, causing him to chuckle.

"Alright, calm down a little. It's somewhat far away, so it'll take a few minutes to get there." Said Alexander, gently flicking Talis's beak and calming her down as he left the Inn and started walking to Yuki's home.

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"Umm, Talis."

"Yes, Alex."

"I-I think we're lost." Exclaimed Alexander softly while walking down an alley.

"Lost? I thought you said you knew where our new home was?" Questioned Talis as she folded her wings and glared at Alexander.

"No, I never said that; I said it's somewhat far away; besides, we're not completely lost. I know Yuki's house is in the Center district." Said Alexander, though his words weren't very persuasive given their situation.

'Besides, it's probably best we're lost; at least now, I can deal with the person who has been silently following us.' Thought Alexander with an intense frown as he used [Heroes Gaze], allowing him to see behind him and right through the stalker's concealment skill.