Eventually, we reached the city outskirts.
A quieter district where stone houses lined neatly in rows, each one with little gardens, iron fences, and lace-curtained windows.
She pulled me toward a two-story home tucked at the corner, one with a door that was painted in a crimson color.
"I rent it secretly~" she explained as she fished out a dainty silver key from her pocket.
"Nobody knows but me... and now you~"
Click.
The door swung open.
And I blinked.
Inside… was immaculate.
White lace curtains, pale blue wallpaper, bookshelves packed tight with labeled journals and strange potion bottles. The faint scent of vanilla drifted in from the kitchen, warm and sweet.
Her grip finally loosened as she skipped ahead.
"Sit down~! I'll bring the cookies! And tea! You drink tea, right? Oh—wait, I already know that you do~"
She disappeared into the kitchen with a bounce in her step, her silver hair fluttering behind her like ribbons in the wind.
