I Became the Cute One in the Problem-Solving Team

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How on earth did it come to this?

As I walked forward, led by Alice’s warm hand, that thought suddenly crossed my mind.

Thinking back, it all began when my base became a mess and I boldly ventured out in search of a new place.

However, after wandering for a long while without finding a decent property, I ended up feeling teary-eyed and headed toward Greg’s general store, only to be suddenly caught by Alice.

And then, sensing that I was in some sort of homeless state, she half-kidnapped me and… well, here I am.

“Come home.” If Alice had asked whether I wanted her to come home with me, I probably would have rejected her firmly just to avoid stretching out my hands unnecessarily.

But with her holding my hand and dragging me along with a face that looked like she was about to cry, I couldn’t resist.

Really now. Am I supposed to create debt and force it into her lap?

What a terrifying person she is.

“…”

“…”

Alice and I walked slowly through the city streets without exchanging a word, matching my short strides.

Night had deepened, and the temperature seemed to be dropping slowly as the blizzard intensified slightly from before.

But perhaps thanks to wearing Alice’s outerwear, my body felt much warmer than before.

But wait, the scent coming from Alice wasn’t a perfume but more like her natural scent, a peachy aroma.

As I breathed in that sweet, strong fragrance, I buried my face in the outerwear.

It was slightly obstructed by the mask, but perhaps because the scent was so strong, it didn’t pose much of a problem.

I wondered how far we had walked in the neon-lit nighttime streets of Night Haven.

Lost in thought and staring at the ground with my face hidden in the outerwear, I suddenly bumped my forehead against Alice’s back when she came to a stop.

“…?”

“We’ve arrived. Here we are, my house.”

I lifted my head at Alice’s words.

What entered my sight was an apartment that resembled something quite familiar.

Oh wow, this is exactly like the building from the original story!

As I admired the three-story apartment with impressive synchronization, Alice, whose expression had mysteriously darkened, patted my head and said.

“You have no place to go, right? Stay here for the night.”

“…!”

“No refusals! Come on, let’s go inside!”

“….”

Ugh, escaping seems impossible after all…

I sighed silently inwardly at Alice’s firm attitude.

Well, I didn’t exactly not understand her feelings.

While we were walking, I had thought that my solitary figure wandering the streets in the snow would look quite precarious from the perspective of an observer.

Even I would have asked a colleague if I saw them wandering the streets alone late at night in the snow.

But since I had vowed not to get involved with the protagonist’s party when I first opened my eyes in this world, I couldn’t help but feel conflicted.

It had also led me to enter the office, and now I was even invited to Alice’s home.

Why do I keep getting entangled like this?

‘Nothing seems to go my way. Was it a problem from the start being mixed up with Greg?’

I felt a sense of emptiness wash over me as I looked at Alice’s back, who was holding my hand and leading me.

If it hadn’t been me wandering around there, would she still have brought someone else home?

Yeah, she probably would have.

She can’t resist interfering if she sees someone in trouble.

Somehow thinking that way eased a heavy burden nested in my chest a little.

If her outstretched hand could grab anyone else, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad for me to share that warmth for a moment.

‘And… anyway, once the part-time job is over, we’ll naturally drift apart.’

I took a deep breath and lightened my heart.

I still didn’t want to get entangled in the original story.

But even if I owe her now, in two weeks, we’ll naturally drift apart anyway.

Then there was no need to make excuses or push her away.

I don’t care. This time, I’ll just accept the kindness without any reservations.

Don’t think I’ll be able to repay this favor!

“I’m back~”

“….”

Alice’s home turned out to be a rather upscale, modern apartment.

With a spacious living room suitable for a family of four and two bedrooms, it seemed a bit large for just one person.

However, considering that Alice lived with her older sister Lily, it seemed just about comfortable enough.

“…!”

But as soon as I stepped into the entrance, I froze in shock at the sight before me.

The living room was a horrific mess, clothes and underwear scattered about freely.

Whoa… Why are those underwear so huge? They could probably cover my face!

“Ah! Ahaha… It’s not organized at all, is it? Yuria, could you wait here for a moment?”

Perhaps she completely forgot I was a sudden guest in her home.

Blushing red with embarrassment at her messy appearance, Alice hurriedly left me by the entrance and dashed into the house, clutching a handful of clothes and disappearing somewhere.

I guessed she was planning to hide herself somewhere and stuff the mess away.

A chuckle escaped me at her uncharacteristic disarray, being someone who normally seemed close to a model student.

“Yuria, come in. Take off your shoes… for now, can you sit on the sofa?”

“….”

“If you get bored, it’s fine to watch TV! I’ll clean up quickly and be back!”

Alice disappeared into her room so quickly that my hair swayed against the sofa.

If the living room is this much of a mess, the bedroom must be a sight to behold.

I had a feeling it would take quite a while to clean up, even with my eyes shut.

‘This is how it is when you’re just starting to live on your own. But… is Lily not home?’

I sat quietly on the sofa, swinging my legs while enjoying the increasingly warm air from the heater, and suddenly recalled the existence of the other owner of this house.

I knew that besides Alice, her sister Lily also shared this home.

Since the heating was turned off and it was quiet, maybe she was out.

Well, that’s actually better.

There’s nothing more awkward than meeting a friend’s family when visiting their house, and besides, Lily wasn’t exactly the type of person I wanted to get close to.

‘She’s a nice person. But a stalker with mental issues? Nah…’

Plus, the small camera in the office gets rid of me whenever I appear.

What if she holds a grudge about that? I don’t want to meet her.

As I thought that and took off my outerwear, feeling the rise in temperature, Alice emerged from her room wearing a yukata that was much lighter than before.

She looked like a puppy, full of anxious energy as if she had done something wrong.

Why is she acting like that all of a sudden? The sudden change in Alice’s demeanor made me tilt my head in confusion.

“I, um… I think I brought you here a bit too forcefully… I’m sorry! I wasn’t really thinking of sympathizing with you or anything! Uh, just, um…”

Oh, that’s it.

I caught on to the reason for her sudden odd behavior.

It seemed that as her head calmed down after cleaning up and changing clothes, she was now reconsidering whether she hadn’t dragged me along too much.

Well, that wasn’t totally untrue.

It was indeed true that she had brought me here without even asking for my consent.

If I had any inferiority complex regarding my unfortunate situation, I could’ve gone wild and blamed her without any hesitation.

But I wasn’t exactly the type who cares that much about it.

The only reason I didn’t want help was that it felt burdensome to repay the favor. It wasn’t that I had such a strong pride that I could manage on my own.

Moreover, knowing that Alice’s motivations came not from hypocrisy or pity but from a pure desire for the happiness of those around her,

I couldn’t bring myself to hate her, no matter what.

“Really. I’ve already mentally prepared to spend the night, and here she is, just fussing about.”

What an idiot.

I got up from the sofa nonchalantly and walked up to Alice, who looked nervous.

Then, I gently hugged her, who was fidgeting, with her eyes darting around.

Maybe it was because I had never been the one to initiate contact before.

Alice looked stiff as if she had turned to stone from my sudden embrace.

“Um, Yuria? Are you forgiving me…?”

“…!”

Forgiving? I was never angry in the first place!

You’re doing well. Just keep it up.

I nuzzled the top of her head as if to say, “What nonsense are you worrying about?”

Did my message get conveyed just by that?

Alice cautiously wrapped her arms around my shoulders and whispered a soft thank you that was barely audible.

I was the one receiving help, so why was she the one thanking me?

I chuckled and leaned into Alice, savoring that now even more potent sweet peach scent.

Eventually, perhaps she felt satisfied enough.

She let go of me and comfortably leaned back on the sofa beside me.

And the tense atmosphere that felt precarious just a moment ago had dissipated completely.

With her expression returning to normal, Alice smiled at me and asked,

“How’s the temperature? Should I raise it a bit?”

“….”

“Are you okay? I’m relieved. I was worried you’d catch a cold since your body felt too cold earlier.”

To be honest, my body had warmed up fully when I wore the thick outerwear Alice had on earlier.

But being looked at with such genuine concern made me feel a bit odd.

What does it matter if I catch a cold?

Oh, right, I need to return this. I lifted Alice’s clothes that I had draped over the sofa and handed them back to her.

As she quietly watched me return the clothes, Alice suddenly spoke up as if in disbelief.

“By the way, it’s my first time seeing you in casual clothes. What’s that? Pajamas?”

“….”

“Um, isn’t it a bit short? The fabric doesn’t seem to be that great either… Do you have other clothes to change into?”

Other clothes? I disposed of all of them!

As I fidgeted awkwardly, trying to figure out what to say, Alice leaned in closer, her face approaching mine. Wait, that’s too close…

Sniff sniff. Alice brought her nose closer to my head and took a whiff.

Gah! A chill ran down my spine.

“Is it because Yuria usually has a faint natural scent? You don’t smell too much… Anyway, it would be good to take a warm shower first. I’ll lend you some of my clothes.”

“…?!”

“What’s wrong? Are you worried they’ll be too big? It’ll be alright. If you wear it like a dress, it should fit fine.”

No, no, I was asking why I should take a shower here.

Why is it that she understands perfectly most of the time but doesn’t get it in these situations?

As I looked up at Alice in panic, she seemed to have made a resolute expression after pondering for a moment and said,

“Uh… do you not want to wash? That’s not going to work. If you stay dirty, it’ll be easy to get sick, so you have to wash on time. To be honest, I want to bathe you, but I’m holding back thinking that might be a bit difficult.”

Well, that’s not incorrect.

And it wasn’t a bad suggestion for me either.

I usually just moved water with psychic power to wash every inch of my body.

I’ve never had a proper wash with plumbing facilities.

The only thing weighing on my mind was that this was Alice’s house.

It was a rare opportunity to bathe with warm water after a long time.

Perhaps because I kept up an indecisive atmosphere, she suddenly clapped her hands as if an excellent idea had occurred to her.

“Oh! How about showering together?”

…Wait, what?

My gaze unconsciously shifted down from Alice’s face.

And seeing her impressive chest emphasized its presence, I shook my head vigorously.

No, no, this can’t be happening!

My tiny conscience triangle was going round and round.

Fortunately, it seemed my firm resistance was acknowledged.

Alice’s proposal was rejected, and I ended up showering alone.

That was truly a fortunate outcome.