Chapter 11. A family photo
"Huh! This is freshly baked bread!" Shin exclaimed, grabbing the loaf Elena brought in a plastic bag. "Where did you get it?"
Elena, holding the insulin pen tightly in her hand which rested on the bedsheets, looked down and lied. "I just... stole it from somewhere."
"Wow... incredible! That means tomorrow we'll eat until we're full too!" Shin grinned. "And oh—before I forget. We've got good news."
Elena lifted her head, her eyes widening.
"Granny leveled up!!" Shin beamed. "Can you believe it? She completed that quest like it was nothing! And don't even get me started on how overpowered she's gotten—her reflexes are insane now. Honestly, she moves faster than I do, and she's an old woman!"
"Old woman?" Suzune scoffed from the side. "I'm no old woman, boy! I still got some charm left in me."
Shin chuckled. "You sure do! If the old man was here, he'd vouch for that."
Elena looked at them laughing, and concentrated her gaze on Suzune. She sounded happy. In fact, she looked more alive than she had in days.
"I'm glad you're okay," she whispered to herself, smiling softly.
The three of them shared a spaghetti meal, followed by tea made from the sugar and leaves Elena had gotten from Akira.
This peace... the laughter—it made everything worth it. The emptiness she had felt earlier after being used as a cumming tool seemed to dissolve, replaced by a comforting warmth in her heart.