"Wow, what cute wool socks! And they're from Rose! I love it!"
Laurier held up the pair of red wool socks embroidered with a quirky mosaic pattern, waving them at Aura before eagerly diving for the next gift.
Jeanne's present was a bracelet delicately woven from twigs and vines, giving off a fresh, fae sort of charm.
Kureha's gift was a wearable mini-sword pendant. Draw it from its sheath, and inside was a finely made little knife. The present carried such a distinct personal flair that it made you smile knowingly.
Iri's gift was a vial of refreshing perfume she'd blended herself using her family's heirloom alchemy. The crystal bottle was elegant and refined, hinting faintly at noble pedigree. Supposedly, using it could slightly speed up the recovery of one's Mind, and Laurier fell in love with it the moment she saw it.
Margaret went with the local custom too, carefully picking out a ruby hairpin decorated with a cute flame motif. One look at its crystal-clear quality told you it was worth a small fortune.
Finally, when Laurier eagerly tore open the gift from Leon, the brilliant smile on her face froze instantly. Aura, watching the show from the side, couldn't help but laugh out loud.
Three Years of Practice Tests, Five Years of Adventuring
The World's Three Great Secret Realms: A Common Monster Field Guide
A Brief History of the Gods and Orario
Laurier: "..."
It was a solid set of reference books, covering Adventurer practice problems, a monster field guide, and a brief history of the divine realm.
For Laurier, who had never been one for cracking open a book, these three… were a holiday nightmare!
"Aaaaaah! Why, on this happy Christmas morning, do I have to face this horrifying knowledge?!"
"Pfft…"
Aura finally lost it and burst out laughing.
"Looks like Leon really does hope your empty little head will hold a bit more useful stuff, so you don't embarrass yourself out there someday. I suppose this counts as… a roundabout way of showing he cares?"
Laurier: "..."
You're going the long way around to call me an airhead, aren't you!
"Hmph, fine, I just won't read them, that's all!"
She stuffed the three hardcover books back into their box in a huff and crammed them down at the very bottom of the pile of presents, out of sight, out of mind.
"Aura, aren't you going to open your gifts?"
The girl warily clutched her own presents and backed away two steps, shaking her head over and over.
"Stay back! I'm going to open mine in my room, in private!"
"Aw, Aura! Are we not best friends anymore?!"
"Nope!"
"..."
Laurier stared blankly at her friend's back as she went pattering up the stairs, her eyes glazed over, a chill running through her whole body.
She was just about to open her mouth and let out an aggrieved wail when something seemed to occur to her. She froze, and the words she'd been about to say suddenly changed:
"Wait a second…!"
"Aura, where's my Christmas present from you?!"
…
A little past seven in the morning, the sky was still as dark as ink.
When Leon and Rose came stumbling out of the same bedroom, yawning and bleary-eyed, the two of them were surprised to find… the magic-stone lamp in the downstairs sitting room had somehow already been lit.
"Weird. Who's up this early?"
Rose rubbed her sleepy eyes, her body tilting naturally backward to lean fully into Leon's arms.
Leon's hand came up to circle her slender waist, and as he breathed in the fragrance of her hair, he thought back to the faint sounds of horsing around he'd half-heard drifting up from downstairs in his sleep…
"Is that Laurier and… Aura?"
He found this household more and more baffling. Someone was always up before dawn, sneaking around, and who knew what schemes they were all hatching in secret.
As he mused, his palm drifted of its own accord to the soft skin of Rose's belly, drawing a flustered little protest from her, her breathing quickening to match.
"It's the crack of dawn. Get those grabby paws of yours off me."
"We've still got to meet up with Lady Demeter later and go to the festival's opening ceremony!"
Rose said all that, yet her body squirmed softly within the crook of his arm.
But in Leon's eyes, that posture was clearly a case of "no really means yes"…
In this very moment, Leon's emotional intelligence came online with rare and perfect timing.
"Ngh… l-let me go!"
"Rose, right now's the perfect window for some morning exercise, and besides… you don't want Jeanne barging in to ruin it, do you?"
"Uuugh…"
…
…
Nearing nine o'clock.
The morning at the Leon household kicked off in absolute chaos.
Everywhere you looked, someone was scrambling back and forth in a frantic rush.
"Quick, quick, quick! Laurier, stop eating over there! Go wash up, then get upstairs and put your new clothes on properly!"
"Kureha, you too! It's festival day and you still went off for morning training, so now you're drenched in sweat. Go take a shower right now! Iri, Margaret, please keep an eye on her, don't let her soak in there for an hour again!"
"Huh? Where's my belt? Has anyone seen my belt?"
"It's right here!"
"That's Kureha's belt!"
"Sorry, sorry… huh? Who took my hairpin?"
Leon stood silent in the shadows of the corner, a slice of bread clamped in his mouth, looking thoroughly disheveled by all the commotion.
Jeanne and Rose, who had just gotten their base stockings on and were fixing their hair, both shot accusing, indignant glares at the "culprit" behind all of this.
"..."
The whole morning, because a certain someone had clung to Rose for a round of "morning activity," the clock was now creeping toward nine before the family started rushing through their preparations like someone had hit fast-forward.
"Sigh… how strange."
Leon was troubled.
For some reason, even though everyone usually woke up plenty early, today of all days…
Jeanne, who'd been the first to be woken by Leon and Rose, had already slept until seven-thirty by the time she came to. What galled her even more was that when she'd gone storming toward their room, jealous, intending to interrupt a certain someone's "good time," she never imagined… she'd end up the one "subdued" by Leon and Rose working together, and the outcome… well, that goes without saying.
Which was precisely why she ended up getting out of bed even later than the two "ringleaders" themselves.
After all, our dignified Holy Maiden had been "educated" by the pair of them until her eyes rolled back and her mind went hazy. That she'd managed to pull herself together in under an hour, Jeanne deserved to be called downright heroic!
It was a good thing she wasn't in charge of the meals this morning, or at this rate the whole family might not have eaten breakfast by nine.
…
Tick, tick, tick…
The time slipped away fast, drop by drop.
It wasn't until nine-thirty that everyone finally, in a mad scramble, got themselves ready to head out. The price, of course, was that while every single person was dressed to the nines, clean and presentable, the house itself… was a total disaster zone.
Catching sight of the assorted stockings and clothes strewn across the sofa, the corner of Rose's eye twitched a few times.
"This is all your fault!"
Tiny fists pounded against Leon's chest, and the culprit in question didn't so much as change his expression.
"Alright, everyone, let's move out!"
"Hmph!"