Inside the House of Delicia
Standing before the door, Juliette accompanied Mirai as she would introduce her room for her new living settlement. The golden sparkles— including the antiques, decorating artifacts, and even the carpet— displayed around the mansion such as a particular corridor where they currently are. Some doors had exclusive grand designs and sizes that would feel the comers in an essential way, but the door where they looked was pretty decent and lowkey. Although, both of them didn't mind at all since Mirai acknowledged the grateful gift coming from the fat gentleman himself— Jeff Delicia.
Juliette twisted the knob to open the door like giving Mirai a room service.
"Here's your place to sleep… Right now, feel free to welcome here," Juliette said.
"Thank you," Mirai bowed her head toward Juliette. "So this is my place to rest… isn't it?"
"Anytime… after your training."
Mirai nodded with a silent reply as Juliette went in the room for the check-in. It appeared to be a regular stay-in room which was the size of a studio with plain wooden cabinets, white-sheet bed, and a small round window for a bit of outdoor view. It was regularly perfect for Mirai to enjoy the stay here, even if it looked as usual as it is.
"I'm sure you'll be gratefully happy," Juliette smirked.
"Thanks to you… I never feel so lost right now," Mirai said.
"I got to take some bath for now. If you want to join me, feel free to stop by."
With that, Juliette walked away from her room for her bath; Mirai would want to take a bath with her, but there was something that she needed to ask. Something she was curious about from her certain "spiritual persona". She needed to find an answer regarding her limitation on urging her consciousness to be unstable.
She sat on the bed as she called her spirit to enlighten her.
"Vally? Are you here?"
She called Vally for attention about her curiosity. It only presented the voices on her sole mindful ears with a hearing frequency through Mirai's ear.
"Yes? Is there any need for help?" Vally asked despite she had seen nowhere.
"Why does my head feel trembling? It lit the quake over me… because of this, my consciousness somehow shifted to how satisfying I am in the middle of obliteration," Mirai murmured while laying down on her bed.
"Hm… so you had reached way too far for that… every ability has always limitations no matter what the case you wanted to expect it in reality."
Vally mentioned about "limitation" on her ability; it was the same meaning that Juliette told Mirai about — stasis, The depiction of her trembling brain was the effect of her stasis, but the case was unknown for her as the reason she wanted to ask Vally about it. She failed to use her ability — Dark Matter — since the activation ran out dry without noticing that it consumed her external factor to discharge.
"Despite your unconsciousness, you really can tell that you've somehow lost the urge to save the boy even if you wanted to force him away from the three thugs. Safe to say, the boy really had no time to watch your showcase when he needed to buy the medicine for his sick mom as soon as possible," Vally remarked.
"Yeah… at least…. Even though I was reckless for that bit, my body feels hotter, like the heartbeat keeps pumping me with expected fear out of my sweat."
"Hm… honestly as far, it's quite complicated that your prior unconsciousness can really bear with that handle in your care. Really? Not a single word could tell what you truly are… think about that time when you encountered that old smelly priest."
The clue that Vally depicted had occurred around Mirai's mind at the time when she considered herself being "reluctant" of herself. The words, the attitude, and the ponder were the case which Mirai brought herself some trouble within her mind — perhaps there was a way beyond that. Thinking about it, she did really keep her composure of finding her clothes — that unfortunately she barely stumbled on many "bulky" frock coats that despise her feminine taste. Even Juliette noticed her funny behavior, the reason she knew it was the obvious key of "not able to claim it on her".
"For you to be so fussy around those bulky frock coats didn't make you grateful… that somehow led to a worse circumstance… Deserving for just a punch could've been sufficient for you to fight back if I were you wearing some decent clothes in front of three perverted and sadistic thugs," Vally said.
"..."
"In other words, your stupidity had prevailed before your shameless action… but I don't think it matters for you too. Your grip of pulling your escape had thickened with your best will as it may worsen them."
"..."
"And look at you right now, you look good when you wear a frock coat with that… but there're some instances that it won't take much forever."
"Instance?"
"Again, I don't know nor foresee your future, but I got a gut feeling towards that Juliette hag… you know, she is kinda bikini-lover."
"Bikini? Does it me–"
"Ah ah ah! Don't assume it further. There's a reason she was deliberately inviting you to train with her."
"Wha… Nevermind, I actually thought that wearing a bikini can also be good too. I mean, it gives your body some kind of mobility… isn't it?"
"More like… you're into it, do you?"
By what Vally said, Mirai blushed her cheeks as she wiggled her hips while laying down on the bed. Her intentions differed from what she thought — or rather, what she felt like was steaming inside to gain more conduction. Wise to say, it didn't embarrass her from the very beginning despite when she got humiliated. Although her feelings left questionable, she couldn't empathize what her intuition told herself about it. Thinking consciously, she looked at her right hand, gazing closer till the clear wrinkled marks on her palm.
"If I'm able to train harder, wouldn't I need to use my ability if it's necessary to do so?" Mirai asked herself.
"Well… physically, it's possible…. You just have to set it up before it will be settled."
What Vally said made Mirai sighed about her overthinking intentions when it pulled the strings over her head as if someone had forced it to do so. But why did she feel strange when accepting what and how it occurred around her? Mirai confused over herself if there would be things that bothered her the most — maybe that's the reason she needed to train from Juliette's procedure to accustom her with cultivation that might help her around her journey soon.
"Anyway, I understand it would be more pain in the ass if nothing will help me persevere… Thanks for enlightening me, Vally."
"Don't fret, if you're curious enough, I'll lend you a hand."
By that, Vally had disconnected her internal communication from-and-to her physical persona. Mirai regained her composure to stand up from her bed as she headed for a bath. She stank by all the sweat that had produced out of their pores; It left herself with shameful conditions that could ruin the scent of her new home. By all means, she dragged herself out of her room as she headed for the bath — although she couldn't figure it out as Juliette didn't tell her about where the bathroom may be. The confusion worsened her as she roamed around the mansion; it led her to scratch her head as the effect stung over her scalp that the specks of dust might tickle her to its astray.
"Where the heck could the bathroom be? Isn't it the right direction where Juliette had walked away to?" Mirai looked around the corridor.
There was no single glimpse of odd doors other than the room of necessities and other kinds of settlements that the Housemaster Jeff filled with something essential to almost everything. Mirai grew through her sluggish body as her sweats broke even further.
Until she saw someone whom she was looking for — apparently, she appeared being dried, moist naked while the arm-sized towel rolled around her collar, leaving her sensitive parts fully exposed with no worries would happen to her.
"What… the–"
It was Juliette van Vermiculo who shamelessly walked through the corridor while exhibiting herself with leisure confidence. She caused Mirai to be shocked, thinking it was impossible for her to do the same.
"What? What's wrong? Is there something bothering you?" Juliette asked.
"I… I mean… You're kinda… sexy…"
"Why? Is what I'm wearing nothing too eccentric for you? Perhaps you're not getting used to it?"
"I mean…. Nevermind…. Anyway, where did you bathe though?"
"It's near here… like a bit meter from here… I can accompany you."
With Juliette's voluntary escort, Mirai nodded as she accepted the offer to locate where the bathroom was. The two of them once again gave themselves a bit of company. Juliette didn't bother at all since she could be free soon when the night came above her. As for Mirai, she would've given herself a self-tour around the mansion, but she also didn't let herself to move around like a ghost-hunter. The ghosts might roam around the darkest of her glimpse.
Until they arrived at the destination, both of them entered as the lobby with three baskets and a single sliding door had awaited them.
Consciously, Mirai undressed her clothes till fully naked as she approached inside for the bath — alongside Juliette, who wanted to have a company with her. Apparently, Juliette was planning to redo her bathing session, but she leaned against the pillar and crossed her arms while Mirai placed herself into the hot bathing pool. They wanted to have a brief chat between each other.
"Fooo~ It's boiling hot and relaxing… I feel jealous as you married a lucky husband… and the way you exhibited yourself with no shame," Mirai said.
"Thanks for the compliment, and I agree with you…. Like I said, he's literally a gentleman despite how erotically attracted to me…. If you're wondering why I'm naked, then it's just my daily home attire all day and night," Juliette responded with her loose spare.
"Woah~ You're pretty confident with your body."
"It's not like I'm just exhibiting my whole naked body… Jeff is the only male here while all the servants here are purely maids."
"Hm… Pretty conservative as you are."
Despite everything, Juliette didn't bother to show off her daily naked body only in this mansion. She told that hiding was her preference if there were guests who would come before Jeff's aristocratic business and any kinds of interaction since it might cause ruckus around her identity. Thanks to her clairvoyant sense, it gave her no fret to avoid any contact with them if there would likely occur around her. Jeff already knew about this as his wife gave him a voyeur service with their consensual awareness. What was even better was to give their maids a brief pressure for doing some laundry — which most of the clothes had placed in the laundry basket was none other than Jeff himself — together with his wife if there would be available at least. Mercy at her best, she cared nothing but lessen the intensity of household services.
Mirai wanted to ask further about something odd running within her mind.
"Madam… Juliette… right?"
"Just call me Juliette, no need to pressure yourself."
"You seemed that you're highly interested in offering Lord Jeff with daily sex exercise… I wonder if you have some kids around here too."
"Nope, neither of us have some plan with kids," Juliette chuckled. "Plus my ability helps to control my birth supernaturally that could prevent fertilization from happening inside my womb."
"Wow~ It sounds like you can hit with others."
"In fact, I do it often… if it's necessary to do so."
"Hm…"
"Sex is a part of human interaction which isn't for kids and teens alike to do this kind of stuffs… most especially if it��s too early to know what this is for. With the art of your maturity, your body needs to mold with one another… not just to enjoy, but to share the feelings of intimacy and to conform one's will between you and your partner. Once you perform, it creates within yourself through the union of others; it needs desire to promote your aim such as attract money, giving more intimacy, or achieve spiritual enlightenment… One example was the certain poor old priest that I presumed to have happened with you."
"What particular objective he wanted to do with me?"
By Mirai's question, Juliette explained what that old priest back in the Ruined Mansion was thinking of, especially since she hadn't witnessed the actual scenario. In that case, he believed "with all his heart and no brain" that Mirai herself was the image of his loving goddess. The devotion he had was the desire of receiving his spiritual enlightenment — which turned out to be ironic that Mirai sent him to the afterlife for his answer. Thus, it was something to do with his aim through Mirai herself.
"And also, those three guys you've encountered moments ago also had something to do with money… and justice to be added with," Juliette summed up another example.
"So…"
"Even now for you, despite how naked I am back in the corridor, it seems that you have no desire to canoodle with me… not just you're a woman, but as a person with a deep shock of curiosity."
With her enlightenment, Mirai realized about her understanding regarding sex. It came from within one's desire to another despite the will of another resisted against — which the occurrence back in a certain alley with she considered the three thugs' situation as rape-for-purpose. It made her pulsating even the explanation from Juliette sounded weird yet futile from Mirai's perspective. It didn't come across the boundary of Mirai's context since the comprehension couldn't dignify her as a woman, but the essence on Juliette's point went another way around about something it is considerable for Mirai to explore and deepen the erotic art. Through the way of desire, this could be a tricky part to gather the flow using the "impurity" — or perhaps, that term didn't truly come for that.
While Mirai relaxed within the pool, Juliette put her towel down aside and head in for the bath once again as she didn't want to let Mirai alone. She wanted to chat with her for intimate, essentially for a personal relationship between the two of them — with the similar hair color and attraction that Juliette intrigued her with.
