There had been quite a commotion—actually, a series of two or three shocking incidents—but putting that aside for the moment, we made our way to the foyer to welcome Lunamaria-san’s mother.
Lunamaria-san’s mother wasn’t exactly a person of high standing, but Aoi-chan, Hina-chan, and I were eager to see the woman we had heard so much about. Lilia-san, who was already an acquaintance of hers, joined us at the entrance to greet her as well.
"By the way, what is Luna-san’s mother like?" Aoi-chan asked. "Does she have blue hair, just like Luna-san?"
"Yes," Lilia-san replied. "Luna’s mother is a petite woman with hair the color of a clear blue sky. Her name is... Oh? It seems she’s here."
As Lilia-san began to describe her, it clicked. A petite woman with sky-blue hair... Wait, I felt like I had seen someone like that very recently. Just as Lilia-san was about to say her name, a figure appeared near the gate.
A petite woman walked toward us, dressed in a light blue gown that matched her hair. It wasn't the sort of extravagant attire a noble might wear, but it possessed a quiet elegance. She held a lovely parasol in one hand and a basket in the other.
Her face was... incredibly familiar. Or rather... Wait, isn't that Noah-san? Are you serious? Does that mean... Noah-san is Lunamaria-san’s mother?!
I never expected to see a familiar face, and I stood there in a daze, completely speechless at the sight of her. Noah-san approached and bowed deeply to Lilia-san, the mistress of the house.
"Hello, Lilia-san. I’m sorry for the sudden visit."
"It’s been a long time, Noah-san. I’m glad to see you’re doing well."
After exchanging greetings with Lilia-san with a gentle smile, Noah-san turned to Lunamaria-san and gave her a warm, maternal look. Though she was shorter than her daughter, her expression was filled with unmistakable affection.
"I’m sorry to bother you while you’re working, Ru-chan."
"Th-that’s quite alright, but... Mother, what brings you here so suddenly today?"
It occurred to me that even though they were mother and daughter, they spoke to each other with formal politeness. Perhaps that was just their natural way of speaking.
As Luna addressed her with a flustered air, Noah-san’s cheeks flushed slightly, and she stole a quick glance in my direction.
"There was someone I wanted to see... Good day, Miyama-san."
"......Eh?"
"Oh, hello."
"............Eh?"
As Noah-san turned to me with an elegant bow, all the color drained from Lunamaria-san’s face. She stood there, dazed, muttering to herself in shock. I felt bad for her, but I hadn't expected this either, so I hoped she would forgive me.
Lunamaria-san quickly shook off her confusion and lunged toward Noah-san, looking even more panicked than before.
"Wait—Mother, what is going on?! How do you know Miyama-sama?"
"Well, I fell ill on my way to the clinic the other day, and Miyama-san was kind enough to help me."
"Is... that... so...?"
"Yes. And since I heard from you that Miyama-san was staying at Lilia-san’s mansion, I came today to thank him properly."
"No... way... You two... have already met?"
"Luna?! Pull yourself together!"
As Noah-san finished her explanation, Lunamaria-san’s knees buckled. Lilia-san rushed over to support her. Lunamaria-san turned to her mistress with a look of pure terror and spoke in a trembling voice.
"M-Milady... I... I finally understand how you feel... Miyama-sama is... terrifying."
"I know. I understand all too well, Luna. Please, take a deep breath and steady yourself. You aren't to blame... Kaito-san is a monster. Our common sense simply doesn't apply to him."
"Milady..."
"If it gets to be too much, just say the word. I have stomach medicine ready..."
What was with this conversation? Lilia-san’s words carried a heavy, somber weight. She was treating me like a total freak, but given my track record, I couldn't exactly defend myself.
"Ru-chan? Are you alright?"
"I am not 'alright'! What do you think you're doing, Mother?!"
"Eh? What do you mean?"
Noah-san spoke with genuine concern, but Lunamaria-san practically exploded, standing up and cornering her mother with ferocious intensity. The rest of us could only watch, overwhelmed by her sheer force.
"Coming here to thank Miyama-sama is fine! I'll thank him myself later! But what is with that outfit?!"
"My outfit? Is something wrong with it?"
"It’s not a question of whether it's 'wrong'! Why are you wearing something that shows off your shoulders like that?! And I can see you're wearing makeup, which you almost never do!"
"Well, that’s..."
As Lunamaria-san shouted, Noah-san shyly pressed her hands to her cheeks and kept casting glances my way.
"I’m a woman too, you know... If I’m going to see a wonderful man, I’d like to look my best..."
"What are you doing, acting like a girl in love?! Act your age!"
"Ru-chan... I'm only four hundred and eighty years old, you know?"
"That’s nearly five times a human's lifespan!"
I wanted to point out that Kuro, whom Lunamaria worships, is thousands of years older and wears short pants, but I decided to keep my mouth shut.
Lunamaria-san was clearly frantic because her mother had shown up looking so youthful and flirtatious, but Noah-san just kept smiling serenely. She was tough. It was like shouting at a brick wall. Realizing she wasn't getting anywhere, Lunamaria-san eventually just clutched her head in defeat.
Noah-san then turned back to me, her cheeks turning a lovely shade of pink as she held out the basket.
"Miyama-san, thank you again for the other day. I made some muffins as a small token of my gratitude. I hope they’re to your liking..."
"Oh, thank you. You didn't have to go to such trouble. Are you feeling better now, Noah-san?"
"Yes. Thanks to you letting me drink yours, I’ve been feeling wonderful lately."
"?! Wh-wait a minute! Mother?! You 'drank' Miyama-sama’s...? What on earth does that mean?!"
She was talking about my blood, of course. But Noah-san’s phrasing was terrible, and Lunamaria-san, having clearly jumped to a scandalous conclusion, turned pale. I tried to interject, but Noah-san doubled down before I could say a word.
"When we first met, he was kind enough to let me have some. It was so rich and meltingly sweet... the sensation was so pleasant it made my body tremble."
"Wha—?!"
"Wait... Noah-san, hold on a second."
Again, it was just about the blood, but her delivery was disastrous. When you say something like that with a blushing, ecstatic face, anyone would get the wrong idea.
"Wh-wh-what were you thinking?! Even if it were after a long time, doing that on the very first day you met! Have you no shame regarding Father?!"
"But your father’s was so dry; I couldn't drink it no matter how hard I tried."
"I know half-elves are supposed to be indifferent toward sex, but that doesn't mean you can just go after a young human! And to say such things in front of all these young women—have you lost your mind?!"
"Um, Lunamaria-san... Lunamaria-san!"
"What is it, Miyama-sama?! I am in the middle of a very important—"
She was completely gone. This was going to turn into a nightmare if I didn't stop her. I called out to her desperately, and she turned a cold, murderous glare on me.
"I’m talking about blood, okay?"
"............Eh?"
"I mean, the part about her drinking... it was my blood. It turns out my blood was compatible with her, so I helped her with her anemia."
"...Blood?"
"Yes."
"..."
Upon hearing my explanation, Lunamaria-san froze. Then, her face turned a shade of red so intense it looked like it might actually burst. She covered her face with both hands and sank into a heap on the floor.
Yeah, she was done. I couldn't even bring myself to talk to her. To someone dying of that much shame, anything I said would only be salt in the wound.
"It was just blood, Ru-chan, exactly as Miyama-san said. It’s not as if we were having sex."
"~~!?!?"
She went for the kill! She delivered the finishing blow with a perfectly straight face! Noah-san was a terrifying woman... Poor Lunamaria-san looked like she was about to burst into tears.
"I’ve heard that such acts do involve—"
"Noah-san, stop!"
"—Eh?"
"Lunamaria-san understands perfectly! Please, for the love of everything, don't say another word!"
"Oh... I see. Very well."
Lunamaria-san’s spirit was currently being pulverized by embarrassment, so I had to cut her mother off. Any more and she’d never recover. I decided to give her some space to regain her composure and tried to strike up a conversation with Noah-san, but then I caught the sound of whispering.
"...Honestly, because it's Kaito-san, it feels strangely plausible."
"Right? When it comes to Kaito-senpai, you just sort of expect these things to happen."
"You two... we're going to have a long talk later."
" " ...Eh? " "
Apparently, my juniors had a very unfortunate and dishonorable perception of my character. I’d have to give them a thorough lecture—I mean, explanation—later on.
Dear Mother, Father—
To my surprise, Lunamaria-san’s mother turned out to be Noah-san, the anemic half-vampire I met a while back. When Lunamaria-san is with her mother, she loses her usual cool, and although it might be a bit mean of me—I found her rather cute.