Doing “the act” with Mimi went relatively smoothly; no doubt all thanks to the “medicine” Elma gave her. Still, it’s good that her first time was virtually painless. Mimi was already mentally exhausted from all that commotion yesterday, and right now I’ve caused her to be physically exhausted as well. Now, she was sleeping soundly right next to me.

I, on the other hand, was busy thinking about the future. It’s necessary to have a concrete goal in mind after all. It’s kinda depressing if you pass each day simply for the sake of living.

First of all, it’s become even more necessary to purchase a detached house with a garden on a residential planet. I’ll make this my biggest long-term goal for now. I was initially all gung-ho about it for the purpose of drinking carbonated beverages, but now that Mimi and I have progressed to this type of relationship, things have changed. We need somewhere we can call home.

Of course, we never know what the future holds, so there was still a possibility that I and Mimi might not end up together. I don’t have any idea about what exactly Mimi thinks about all this too, so I can’t conclude anything.

Whether I do end up with Mimi or with someone else instead, having a place to call home was still absolutely essential. That is if I wanted to live a proper life.

Eh? Don’t I want to go back to my previous world? Well of course I do – if the chance presents itself anyway. I don’t even have any idea how to go back. First of all, I don’t know the exact reason why I was transferred over to this world. I also don’t have any concrete leads to finding a possible method for going back as of now.

In the first place, it seems I can actually have an easier time making a living in this world. I think I got really lucky by having such a powerful ship, successfully registering as a mercenary and obtaining a considerable amount of funds.

But I don’t intend to just blindly focus on this world’s positives either. The mercenary profession was, by its very nature, a truly dangerous job. You’ll always be closely brushing with death. This was no longer a game, so you can’t just respawn whenever you get your ass handed to you. Once you kick the bucket, it’ll be permanent.

If the ship gets badly damaged, I’d likely have to fork out a considerable sum to get it fixed up. It was possible that I’d be forced to sortie in a less-than-ideal condition. If I don’t scrape up enough for maintenance, it was also possible for me to die from going bankrupt as well.

The dangers I needed to face aren’t limited to the times I’m onboard the ship either. I would probably have to get out of the ship from time to time just like yesterday in order to take care of some business. Once I do, there was a danger of getting ambushed and killed present. If I continue to hold on to the same sense of security I had during my time in Japan, I’d probably get done in real quick. And if I do die like that, Mimi would probably have no other choice but to follow suit.

“Hrmm…”

So this is what it means to shoulder someone else’s life huh. It’s quite the heavy responsibility. I have to think of some proper countermeasures. Guess I’ll head over to the Mercenary Guild tomorrow or the next day in order to get some advice from the receptionist uncle.

I’ll be heading out for some shopping with Mimi tomorrow after checking her vitals. I actually forgot to check it tonight because of what happened. Will the medicine she took have any effects…?

Guess I’ll know for sure once I check her up tomorrow. For now, I’ll also get some shut-eye. Once we wake up tomorrow, we’ll first take a shower, eat up and then proceed with checking up Mimi’s vitals afterward.

After finalizing tomorrow’s schedule, I closed my eyes while relishing Mimi’s warmth. Looks like it’ll be a good night’s sleep.

“Huh?”

I woke up due to being assaulted by a ticklish sensation. Wondering just what caused it, I opened my eyes and found a head full of vibrant, reddish-brown hair snuggling up on top of my chest.

“What’re you up to there, Miss?”

“Fuwaah!?”

The head with vibrant, reddish-brown hair trembled after hearing my voice. Her brown eyes met mine. We stared at each other blankly for a few moments.

When I placed my hand on the ticklish spot – in other words, the center of my chest – I found a smaller, softer, more delicate hand groping around on top of it. Looks like this hand was busy doing naughty things.

“Hm? What’s this, I wonder? What were you up to?”

“Fue~e… U-Um… T- This is, uh…”

“You know Mimi, when you do naughty stuff to someone else, you better be prepared to be on the receiving end as well.”

“Eh? Eeeh?!”

“An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth y’know…”

“Eh? A- Ahn…”

We played around first thing in the morning. It felt really good.

“Okay then, for today’s schedule…”

“Yes.”

I talked about the day’s itinerary after having breakfast with Mimi. Because of the little “incident” earlier, we ended up running a bit behind schedule. Well, it wasn’t as if we were in any particular hurry anyway. We had more than enough funds. And after running the safety check protocols, the ship turned out to be in tip-top condition. There wasn’t any particular need for some extra maintenance.

Of course, we couldn’t afford to deplete our assets, so we needed to find a way to earn some cash soon. But it wasn’t that urgent of a priority.

After the meal, Mimi would undergo a full check-up of her vitals. We’ll shop for some daily essentials next. Then we’ll buy a portable data terminal for her as well. Finally, we’ll head to the Mercenary Guild to ask that receptionist uncle for advice about Mimi’s future training regimen and other stuff. It’s best to ask the Mercenary Guild about anything concerning mercenary work after all.

“We’ll go around today following this schedule.”

“Yes. Understood.”

After finishing our meals, I finally took Mimi’s vitals using the med-pod after a quick thirty-minute break. The results of the vital check were good. She was a bit fatigued, but there was no indication of catching any illnesses.

I was relieved with the results. Mimi also seemed glad. Taking care of one’s body is important after all. Health is wealth and all that.

“Alright then. Let’s get going. Wear some clothes with as less skin exposure as possible please.”

“Yes.”

“Let’s meet up at the dining area after you get changed.”

I already got changed earlier, so I just waited for Mimi – who currently wore thin, revealing clothes for the vital check – to change her outfit. We’re going to live together from now on, so it’s best to set up some basic house rules as well. I’ll talk about it with Mimi when we get back.

“Sorry to keep you waiting.”

“Well, that was quick.”

“I just needed to change clothes after all.”

And here I thought women took a while to get dressed. Oh well. It doesn’t hurt that she’s quick. Yep.

We went to one of the stores I researched yesterday in order to buy daily necessities. It was quite convenient that we could buy a lot of the things we needed in a drugstore in the area. They sold various things – from food, sweets, cosmetics, clothing, and underwear to daily necessities for women. And of course, they sold medicine as well.

“When you need to buy things a woman particularly needs, be sure to consult with a female clerk. Tell them you’re boarding a starship and buy as many items you think are important.”

“Um, okay…”

“Listen up. When we depart from this colony on the ship, we may not be able to go to port for at least a few months. If our luck’s particularly bad, we would not be able to replenish our stock for up to half a year. If you mess up and buy too little due to feeling some restraint, it’ll eventually return to bite us back in the ass. Always keep that in mind, alright?”

“Yes!”

Mimi nodded with a serious expression. Actually, I was also a bona fide newbie, so it really wasn’t my place to talk man!

In any case, I talked to a male store clerk and started stocking up on things needed for a long space voyage.

Basing on the clerk’s suggestions, I ended up purchasing three sets of emergency kits for injuries and illnesses and stuff used by the med-pod to treat said injuries and illnesses. I also purchased some spare underwear and shirts, soap and shampoo for bathing and replacement water filters.

“Sorry to keep you waiting.”

While I was having the items I bought confirmed by the male clerk, Mimi came back with the female clerk in tow. Her face was a bit flushed. Was she okay? The female clerk was also grinning mischievously… I have a bad feeling about this.

“Well, isn’t she such a nice girl. Go enjoy each other’s company as much as you like later on, kay.”

“……”

“……”

I looked straight at Mimi, but she kept trying to avoid my gaze with a beet-red face. Yeah, I’m not that much of a dense bastard, so I could already sort of imagine what kind of things she ended up buying. I’ll ask the female clerk, just in case.

“It’s safe to use right? It won’t be funny if that stuff has some serious side effects such as causing addiction or dependency y’know.”

“Rest assured. The safety of our products is guaranteed.”

“So it’s something necessary for her then?”

“Yes, you could say so. It would greatly help her feel better whenever her period comes as well.”

“I see. Well, it’s something we guys don’t get to experience after all. If you say it’s okay, then I’ll take your word for it.”

I was told it was different for each person, but I heard that some would feel so terrible that they would be unable to move around much as a result. Just imagining the fact that you’d suffer from its effects for a few days to more than a week was quite distressing. Looks like we really need something to prevent that from happening after all.

Or rather, if it hits her while in the middle of operating the ship and caused me to make a piloting error as a result, we’d probably be turned into space debris. Well, since this world is a lot more technologically advanced, this stuff should be more safe and effective than the ones I’m familiar with from back in my world.

“Alright then. Please transfer all of them to my ship.”

“Thank you for your purchase dear customer.”

I paid with my portable terminal and completed the necessary procedures. With this, the supplies should already be in the cargo bay when we come back to the ship. I then went to the shop which sells electronics together with the blushing Mimi.

“We’ll get you a terminal and a tablet model.”

“W- We’re buying two of them?”

“Hm, I want a tablet myself, so we’ll buy three.”

The portable terminal would be used for basic communications and monetary transactions. The tablet would be for training, work, and entertainment. I’m planning to let Mimi train in the basics of being a ship operator, and the tablet would be one of the tools she would use for that.

For work, she’ll learn about basic asset management and contact procedures with the Mercenary Guild and other important institutions.

As for entertainment, it would be more convenient to watch videos and play games on a bigger screen. And yeah, I’m buying a tablet of my own to use mainly for entertainment purposes. I could actually just borrow Mimi’s, but that would be too much of a hassle.

“It’s so expensive…!”

It seems Mimi was hesitant about buying the high-end models, but skimping on quality just because you want to save some cash might backfire in the long run. The cheaper ones may malfunction or break down easier after all, so it’s better to be safe than sorry.