At the bottom of the wooden box, he found a note. It had probably been left by Atalanta.
He opened it. It read:
Master, I'm keeping the Golden Apple. I won't give it to you.
Because you don't need something like that, right?
This is an apple I bought yesterday. It looks lovely and tastes delicious. I'm giving it to you, Master. I hope you like it.
Oh, and make sure to peel it!
—Atalanta
After reading it, Yuxian felt terrible. He stared blankly ahead, completely dumbfounded.
Before long, Yuxian's wail echoed through Chaldea:
"Atalanta! You tricked me!"
Chapter One: This Is Bad! This Is Bad!
"Mash, hurry and help me with a Spirit Transfer. I'm going back to find Atalanta!"
Furious, Yuxian found Mash and immediately dragged her toward the Central Control Room.
"What's wrong, Senpai?" Mash asked in confusion. She did not understand why Yuxian suddenly wanted to go back. Had he forgotten something important?
"Look!"
Yuxian tossed the box containing Atalanta's gift to Mash, his face full of indignation.
Mash quickly opened the box, curious about what Atalanta could have given Yuxian to make him so angry.
"A Golden Apple!" The golden fruit before her eyes genuinely startled her.
Yuxian gritted his teeth and said word by word, "It's a golden apple!"
Mash immediately understood. She opened the note Atalanta had left behind, read it carefully, and chuckled.
No wonder Senpai was so upset. Miss Atalanta was really amusing. The more Mash thought about it, the funnier it became, until she doubled over clutching her stomach.
"You're still laughing!" Mash's uninhibited laughter made Yuxian even more annoyed. He felt even more determined to settle the score with Atalanta.
Mash composed herself, struggling to suppress her laughter as she analyzed seriously, "Senpai, I don't think Miss Atalanta did it on purpose. She must have thought her Master would like apples, so she gave you that gift."
Then she started laughing again. She simply could not hold it in...
"She definitely did it on purpose!" Yuxian was in a foul mood. The emotional roller coaster from surprise to delight to frustration left him unable to recover for a while.
Mash found a fruit knife, peeled the apple, and handed it to Yuxian. "Since it's a gift from Miss Atalanta, Senpai should savor it properly."
Yuxian viciously took a huge bite. His cheeks puffed out like a hamster's as he chewed, and he muttered indistinctly, "It tastes pretty good."
After finishing the apple, most of Yuxian's anger faded. He was not truly angry with Atalanta. This sort of prank-like joke was probably her way of showing closeness.
Understanding was one thing, but Yuxian still secretly resolved that the next time he saw Atalanta, he would grab both her ears and rub them hard as revenge.
Once he had calmed down, Yuxian returned to his room to slack off. This time, he planned to rest in Chaldea for a few days instead of rushing into the next world.
No one knew what the next world would look like. If it was some apocalyptic world where death lurked at every turn, there would be no chance to rest properly.
However, his plan was quickly shattered.
At lunchtime, Yuxian walked into Chaldea's kitchen and let out a miserable cry when he saw the spotless, freshly cleaned, utterly empty room.
Emiya was far too dedicated. To ensure that the food he made remained delicious, he prepared fresh ingredients every single day.
Fresh ingredients gave food a better texture, but that created a massive problem for Yuxian now: there was nothing left to eat in Chaldea.
Thus, the six of them gathered once more in the Central Control Room with empty stomachs, preparing to head for the next Singularity.
Yuxian said listlessly, "Mash, start the preparations..."
"Understood, Senpai."
System Broadcast: Spirit Transfer successful. Coordinates unknown.
Looking around and realizing that he was standing on a bustling street, Yuxian sighed in relief. Seeing the lively crowds coming and going, this seemed to be a relatively normal world rather than some desolate, uninhabited wasteland.
"Senpai, this place is quite lively!"
"Yeah, this world should be fairly safe." Looking up at the sign above the street that read "Oborozuka Shopping Street," Yuxian relaxed and smiled.
"Ahhh—!" A woman screamed. "Someone stole my bag! Somebody catch him!"
"Senpai!" Mash stepped forward. Seeing the bag snatcher charging in their direction, she prepared to intercept him.
They had encountered a street robbery the moment they arrived, and Yuxian was furious. He nodded at Mash. "Teach him a lesson, but don't go overboard. Keep a low profile and just catch him."
Before Yuxian could finish speaking, a light-orange-haired woman in a maid outfit appeared ahead of them. She charged over from the distance at incredible speed, sonic booms erupting behind her as she stomped a deep crater into the ground and sent cracks racing through the surrounding pavement.
Bang!
She threw a powerful punch and smashed the bag snatcher viciously into the ground. Even Yuxian could not help shrinking his neck at the sight of that force.
Too violent!
Mash glanced back at Yuxian, her eyes seeming to say: Is this what Senpai called safe?
Seeing the maid being surrounded and praised by the people on the street, Yuxian finally understood what world he had come to.
Dragon Maid Tohru. This maid who shared a name with the thunder god was actually a dragon from another world.
"It's fine. That was just an accident. This world should be safe, so don't worry." Now that he knew where they were, Yuxian felt far more at ease.
At that moment, Little Jeanne stepped forward and said softly, "Master, that is a dragon."
"Oh? Jeanne-chan can see her true form?" Yuxian was curious. It was not strange for him to know Tohru was a dragon, but it was remarkable that Little Jeanne could tell.
Little Jeanne explained, "I don't know why, but I have a very special feeling about her. I don't really understand it either. It just feels special, and I can tell she's a dragon."
Hearing that, Yuxian immediately recalled the reason.
Dragon Witch!
Little Jeanne was Black Jeanne as a child, and Black Jeanne possessed an innate power to command dragons. She was known as the Dragon Witch.
That was probably why Little Jeanne had such a special ability to sense dragons.
After hearing this, Mash said worriedly, "There are dragons in this world. Could there be other special powers too?"
"Don't worry. They're dragons from another world and won't cause any destruction here. There's no need to worry about safety." Yuxian dismissed Mash's concerns and told her not to be so nervous. This was a very everyday sort of world.
"Let's follow them and see where they live."
After Kobayashi and Tohru finished buying groceries and prepared to head home, Yuxian immediately led everyone after them.
As they walked, he considered how to approach them. Showing up at their door uninvited seemed a little inappropriate.
However, he quickly found a solution.
A cute little girl appeared behind a utility pole ahead, secretly following Kobayashi and Tohru.
She had adorable horns, long purple-gradient hair, pink-and-white clothes, and a tail with a fluffy ball at the end swishing behind her.
Kanna Kamui! This was bad! This was bad!
Yuxian only caught sight of her from afar, yet she was already so adorable that he nearly got a nosebleed.
He hurried over, crouched beside her, and said in what he believed was a very gentle tone, "Hello..."
P.S. Jason's Noble Phantasm—Atalanta's kick was truly inspired!
Chapter Two: Kobayashi, Kanna, and the New House
Kanna turned to look at Yuxian, tilting her head as her large sparkling eyes stared at him.
The smile on Yuxian's face grew wider. He tried his best to appear warm and friendly as he waited for Kanna's response.
Suddenly, Kanna pointed at Yuxian and shouted in an adorable voice, "Pervert!"
Pervert... pervert... vert...
The word echoed endlessly in Yuxian's ears. His expression froze, and he stood motionless like he had been turned to stone.
Kanna's blow struck him hard, leaving him utterly devastated.
Mash and the others walked over from behind and pulled Yuxian up so that he would not continue embarrassing himself.
Little Jeanne looked at Kanna in confusion. After hesitating for a moment, she asked, "Are you a dragon?"
"Hello, my name is Kanna Kamui." When Kanna saw Little Jeanne, she proactively stepped forward to introduce herself.
The drastic difference in treatment made Yuxian feel even more emotionally unbalanced, and he retreated alone into a corner to wallow in sorrow.
"Hello, my name is Jeanne d'Arc Alter Santa Lily." Little Jeanne introduced herself as well.
Kanna blinked. "That name is really long..."
"You can just call me Jeanne!" Little Jeanne also thought her name was too long. Sometimes, when she said it too quickly, she nearly bit her tongue.
"Jeanne, are you a dragon too? You feel very familiar." Kanna's eyes sparkled as she stared at Little Jeanne. She had never felt this way around anyone else, and it seemed very special and strange to her.
"No." In truth, Little Jeanne did not really understand why this was happening either, so she could only explain reluctantly, "Maybe my constitution is a little unusual."
"Mm..." Kanna responded as if she half understood. She did not press the matter, but her body unconsciously moved closer to Little Jeanne until they were pressed tightly together.
With the air of an older sister, Little Jeanne patted Kanna on the head and said, "Were you following those two people up ahead? Did they abandon you? Don't be afraid. We'll take you to find them."
Thus, Kanna joined the stalking party, and the group continued secretly following Kobayashi and Tohru toward their home.
Seeing Little Jeanne indirectly succeed in winning Kanna over, Yuxian silently gave Little Jeanne a thumbs-up. He had not spoiled her for nothing.
Kobayashi's home was not far away, and they soon arrived.
Yuxian's group brought Kanna to Kobayashi's door and gently pressed the doorbell.
Ding-dong! Ding-dong!
Tohru quickly came out to answer the door. The instant she opened it, Kanna lunged forward and hugged Tohru, burying herself in her arms.
"Lord Tohru!" Kanna cried affectionately, clinging tightly to Tohru and refusing to let go.
"Kanna?" Tohru recognized Kanna, and her expression turned surprised. How had Kanna come to the human world too?
"Lord Tohru, everyone said you were dead. I missed you so much!" Kanna was referring to the time Tohru fled after being injured. Since she had left that world alone after being wounded, rumors had spread that she was dead.
Tohru hurriedly explained, "Ah! After I was injured, I flew away and was saved by Kobayashi, so I decided to live here."
At that moment, Kobayashi walked over from inside the house and asked, "Tohru, are they friends?"
"Mm, this is Kanna. Kanna Kamui." Tohru pointed at Kanna, who was still clinging to her.
"And they are?" Kobayashi turned her gaze toward Yuxian and the others as she continued asking.
Yuxian did not want Kobayashi to know they had been following them, so he answered first. "We ran into Kanna alone on the road and thought you had abandoned her, so we brought her here to find you."
"Lord Tohru, Jeanne feels very familiar." Kanna finally released Tohru and pointed at Little Jeanne as she spoke to Tohru.
"Oh?" Tohru carefully studied Little Jeanne. She also sensed a particularly familiar feeling from Little Jeanne, but compared to that, she still liked Kobayashi more.
She grabbed Kobayashi in a hug, rubbing her face against her with an infatuated expression as she loudly declared, "My Kobayashi is the most familiar!"
Kobayashi pushed her away forcefully with a face full of black lines.
"By the way, Kanna, how did you get here?" Tohru asked curiously. Kanna should have been in the other world, so why had she suddenly come to the human world looking for her?
At Tohru's question, Kanna became extremely despondent. Her eyes filled with tears, which soon began streaming down her face.
Tohru could roughly guess the reason. Kanna was a dragon who loved pranks, and she had been exiled and could not return.
Kobayashi thanked Yuxian and the others and invited them inside to sit for a while. Although Kanna was not her child, she could not explain that Tohru and Kanna were dragons, so she could only accept the situation.
However, Kobayashi's home was truly too small. If all six of Yuxian's group went inside, they would probably have trouble even turning around.
Seeing this, Yuxian did not plan to stay any longer and tactfully declined Kobayashi's kind offer.
Before you continue