Norn was deep in the library stacks, trying to dig up the deets on that whole “King’s Vessel” thing Misha had mentioned. His brain was working overtime, trying to connect the dots. From what he could scrape together, this “Vessel” gig was the ultimate cheat code: no set “heat schedule,” just the ability to flip the switch whenever, wherever. His special sauce was supposedly a next-level aphrodisiac.
Watching Misha lately had been like watching a volcano on the verge of blowing its top. She’d get this look in her eyes, all glassy and intense. After seeing her go absolutely feral over him, a lightbulb went off in Norn’s head. “Oh snap,” he thought, a slow grin spreading across his face. “The math is mathing. I’m not just him… I’m the main character. I’m the whole King’s Vessel.” The realization hit him like a ton of bricks.
This world was already bass-ackwards. Dudes were rarer than a Wi-Fi signal in the middle of nowhere, so the ladies ran the whole show, fixing the leaky sink. Misha was holding it down, but trying to keep the entire house from looking like a tornado hit it was a solo mission impossible. That’s why they decided to hire some backup: Chise, Misha’s childhood bestie, was coming on board as the new live-in maid.
When Chise finally rolled up, Norn did a literal double-take. She was packing a pair of the fluffiest, most adorable fox ears he’d ever seen.
