Chapter 65: To the Movies

​The front door chimed as Yuki walked into the apartment, practically radiating excitement as he kicked off his dress shoes.

​"Nyquella! Good news—I managed to secure a day off, so we’re going to the movie theater today!" he called out cheerfully, immediately loosening his tie.

​Nyquella looked up from the couch, blinking in surprise. "A day off? Wait... Yuki, why do you even bother going to work if this entire world isn’t real anyway?" she asked, her voice tinged with genuine confusion.

​Yuki just offered her a bright, innocent smile as he unbuttoned his crisp white dress shirt, tossing it onto a chair before slipping out of his slacks.

​Nyquella’s words trailed off into complete silence. Her cheeks flushed a deep crimson as her eyes locked onto his frame. She tried her absolute best not to make it so abundantly obvious that she was checking him out while he changed, but she failed miserably.

​Yuki, however, being Yuki, didn’t even notice her watching the curves of his body or biting down on her lip.

​"I go to work to get money," Yuki explained casually. "Because for some strange, unknown reason, this world won’t just spawn a bunch of cash directly into my checking account. But when I go to work, the system registers that I’ve been employed there for fifteen years."

​"Aren’t you a little young for no one to question that you’ve been working there for fifteen years?" Nyquella asked, her voice squeaking slightly. "Also... what is a ’checking account’? And how does the movie work? Is it like the glowing box—the TV—just bigger?"

​"Yeah, pretty much! It’s a much bigger screen, but the experience is like nothing you’ve ever seen before. The sound system, the lighting, the acting—it’s all splendid! ...Wait, what was that about my age?"

​"Nothing..." she said quickly, avoiding his gaze.

​"Right... Well, it’s time for you to get ready," Yuki said, giving her a suspicious look. "I bought some clothes for you—they’re the closest ones to your usual style I could find. I hope you like them," he added, handing her a neatly folded bag.

​"Thanks," Nyquella smiled, touched by the thoughtful gesture. "...Wait, where were you keeping these? When did you even buy them?" she asked, confused.

​"Last night," he replied calmly, gathering his long hair and tying it into a ponytail.

​"...Like, when we were heading home?"

​"Uh-huh."

​"...How?" she asked, thoroughly baffled. "Did you go to a store first?"

​"No, I just ordered them online."

​"...I am just going to stop asking questions. Modern life is far too confusing," she sighed, shaking her head as she carried the bag into the bedroom to change.

​Nyquella carefully looked through her outfit options before finally choosing to wear a stunning black dress for their movie date.

​It was an exquisite, black cheongsam-inspired mini dress that struck a perfect balance between refined elegance and tantalizing boldness. The high mandarin collar framed her neck with intricate gold embroidery, leading down to a stylish keyhole cutout that subtly displayed her chest. Detached, cold-shoulder sleeves flowed down into wide, dark bell cuffs lined with shimmering golden patterns, perfectly complementing the fiery, dragon-like red and gold embroidery running along the hem. Form-fitting at the waist, the short hemline cut high along her thighs, making for an absolute showstopper of a date outfit.

​Once they finished getting ready, Yuki grabbed an umbrella in case of a downpour, along with his keys, phone, and wallet. Inside were his IDs and three platinum cards—two debit and one credit.

​Without batting an eye, he closed his wallet, placing his phone and keys in his right pocket and his wallet in the left. Naturally, he didn’t even question the fact that those items hadn’t existed just a few seconds prior.

​He gently took Nyquella’s hand and led her out of the apartment.

​On their way to the theater, they traversed a city that was, in simple terms, a surreal mashup of Earth’s greatest locations and a mix of most of the places Yuki had traveled to.

On their right stood towering glass-and-metal skyscrapers reflecting architectural styles from China and Russia mixed together in strange harmony. On their left stretched a massive city park populated by flora and fauna drawn from various major countries across Earth.

​Nyquella was utterly fascinated by the architecture of modern society, completely baffled by the fact that humans built such mega-structures without using a single drop of mana or essence.

​After spending way too much time wandering through the city center going from shop to shop, Yuki and Nyquella finally arrived at the movie theater complex.

​They started their date inside the theater’s arcade. Yuki showed her how to play the various machines, explaining which ones were the easiest and which ones were blatant scams designed to steal your money.

​However, right after explicitly warning her that the claw machine was a complete scam, Yuki proceeded to draw a massive crowd of spectators as he effortlessly won large plushies one after another. He meticulously bypassed the small ones, deeming them "not cute enough."

​"..., yeah, I am not buying that!" Nyquella huffed, crossing her arms. "If it’s a scam, how do you keep winning?!"

​"...I’m just good?" he offered, looking unsure of his own answer.

​"Hmph! I’ll see for myself!" she declared confidently.

​Nyquella stepped up to the machine, but her attempts ended in tragic failure. The claw dropped too early, or its weak grip dropped the prize before reaching the chute.

​"One more try! I’m so close!" she begged Yuki.

​She then proceeded to fail thirty-four consecutive times before finally screaming in victory as she won a single, small cake plushie.

​After exhausting their time in the arcade, they bought tickets for three movies based on Yuki’s recommendations: an action flick, a romance, and a horror movie.

​The massive screen and booming surround sound made Nyquella jump in her seat, instinctively gripping Yuki’s hand tightly. Seeing something so crisp and high-definition was a breathtaking experience for her.

​She loved the romance movie so much that she made Yuki explain the lore of the entire franchise to her afterward, adorably fan-girling over the main character.

​The horror movie, however, was a vastly different story.

​Even though she knew logically that none of it was real, Yuki had insisted on watching A Quiet Place in a 4D theater. Throughout the entire film, Nyquella was dead silent, her grip on his hand so insanely tight that it actually started to hurt him. Yuki asked her several times if she wanted to leave, but she stubbornly insisted she was fine, claiming she came from a world filled with far more dangerous and terrifying monsters.

​Yuki, however, knew she was lying through her teeth.

​After the movie ended, Yuki took her straight back home to rest. Even though she kept insisting she was perfectly okay, whenever Yuki stepped away from her side, she would freeze up, her body shivering as her eyes darted frantically around the room.

​After doing his best to console her, Yuki discovered the root of her terror, her world actually possessed a monster called the Silent Whisper, which hunted using auditory senses in the exact same horrifying manner as the Death Angels from the movie.

​Back in the safety of the apartment, Nyquella lay curled up in bed. Her arms and legs were wrapped tightly around Yuki’s chest, refusing to let go. Her head was buried deeply against his neck as she finally drifted off to sleep.

​Yuki lay wide awake beside her, staring thoughtfully up at the ceiling. A profound, heavy question weighed heavily on his mind—a matter of utmost importance.

"​...Can a familiar get pregnant? he pondered deeply. If so... hmmm, what would the child be? A Pureblood, or something else? It can’t be a Rabbit-kin just because Vee took that form... is our DNA even biologically compatible for insemination?"

"​...Hmm. Oh, wait! It would be compatible, wouldn’t it? I did get a brand-new body from this world, after all. I should definitely ask Nyquella tomorrow morning since she’s a scientist..."

​...Never mind. He isn’t thinking about anything deep or important at all! Why are you even asking yourself this right now of all times its way too late for that?!