Tula opened the door. She greeted Vincent looking a bit grumpy and restless for some reason.
"Big brother Vincent is late. Quick, I'm getting hungry, and big sister Lupa looks sad without you." Tula hurried Vincent. Then Tula grabbed his hand, and after closing the door, she pulled him to the yard.
As soon as the drooling Lupa noticed Vincent entering the yard, she promptly stopped cooking the two large pieces of skewered meat in her hands and hid behind Ester.
Vincent tilted his head in dismay as Lupa wasn't the type to cower behind someone. Not a second later, Kazumi explained how Lupa might think he was too disgusted to look and touch her shaved wolf's tail. So much that he ran without looking back.
'That's bad... how will I convince her now? Hah...' Vincent sighed and chose to try his best to fix this awkward situation. Lenn, Renn, Yula, and Tula were already looking at him as if he injured her.
Vincent quickly approached Ester and Lupa. He raised the bag with tailoring supplies and reassuringly said, "Don't worry my little wolf. Look what I got for you. I will cover that cute tail of yours and not let it feel cold."
"But, but... you ran away. You didn't look at me and even closed your eyes many times." Lupa sulked, as the person she trusts and loves the most ran away at her weakest. If Lupa shows her shaved naked tail to the public, she would feel utter shame and embarrassment.
However, Lupa felt a little happy after her tail was called cute. Her tail slightly wagged under the skirt, and her eyes stared at the bag meant for her.
"You silly girl. Hehe." Vincent chuckled and patted Lupa's white silky hair. Then he gently placed his hand on her chin and raised her head. When their eyes met, Vincent flirted, "Even if you shaved your hair, you would always be my wolf girl."
Vincent smoothly landed a peck on her forehead and continued, "Come now, don't be sad anymore. The time is ripe, and the meat with its sizzling juices are begging to be enjoyed. We need you to cook the meat, and as a reward, I will share some of mine."
Lupa perked her ears the moment she heard the slight mention of extra meat. Her tail wagged faster under her skirt.
Lupa finally smiled, and her belly took over her body and feelings. Lupa stopped hiding behind Ester and rushed with the half-cooked meat in her hands to continue cooking.
"That is nice..." Ester quietly murmured, feeling left out.
Ester turned her gaze on Vincent to see what he would do next, and their eyes soon met. As if Vincent waited for Ester to look at him, he quickly landed a peck on her forehead and left to check on the twins.
'Did... did he hear me... but, it felt nice.' Ester thought while holding her red cheeks and under the cover of her hands was a bright smile. Ester felt happy not to be forgotten even if she doesn't act like the naive and impatient Lupa.
[Smooth skills Casanova. But I'm starting to worry you are becoming a bit shameful. Well, it's nice, though. You have finally stopped being too embarrassed doing these kinds of things. Even your face is barely red.]
-It's because of what Lupa taught me today. If I continue acting like how I did after I shaved her tail, I will bring more misunderstandings and will never learn to let go of my vir...-
-Ahem... I want to strive and become a respectful and caring adult to all my women-
[Ho ho. Do I smell the possibility of more, ahem, how you want to call them, retainers, hehehe.]
Vincent ignored the last comment and spent some time with Lenn and Renn. The twins seemed to be eagerly waiting for Vincent to finish the flirting show.
The twins appeared to want to talk to Vincent, and as he somehow expected of the twin teens, they asked him how to become stronger and woo women.
Lenn and Renn now thought of Vincent as an exceptional teacher to learn from. Furthermore, the twins secretly started to idolize Vincent and strive to become like him.
One, two, three... the hours passed like a turbulent wind as the feast left everyone satiated with a round belly full of delicious BBQ food. Even the little cute fox couldn't help but roll like a rocking chair on the grass and happily barking *Pho, pho.*
Later, Ester and Lupa started to worry after Vincent and Yula went inside after saying they would clean the plates. An hour had already passed, and a frown soon replaced their smiles. 'Vincent doesn't like Tula's mother, does he?' Both worriedly thought.
The sky gradually got dark, and right when Ester and Lupa decided to find out why Vincent still hadn't returned, he appeared with his hands behind his back.
"Yula helped me make it, but I did all the stitching, and Kazumi helped with the measurements. However, I don't want to ask Kazumi how many times she looked at your tail to know exactly the size... well, let's leave it at that." Vincent extended his hands and opened them.
A long white tail cover appeared in his hands. Its appearance looked similar to an umbrella pocket cover. Furthermore, per Yula's suggestion, two cute red ribbons to adjust the tightness were on both open and closed ends.
Lupa excitedly received the tail cover and grinned at Ester. She pointed at the red ribbons and said, "We have the same red ribbons now. We are like sisters, hehehe."
"Are you happy now? I told you Vincent ran away because of another reason." Ester patted Lupa's head, but when she glanced at Vincent, her cheeks blushed again.
"I understand, but..." Lupa looked at Vincent and continued the question, "What was the reason then, my mate?"
*Cough, cough*
"Ahem... it's getting late. Why don't we help with the cleaning and then call it a day? " Vincent promptly changed the subject.
Vincent then asked Ester and Lupa to bring a large container with dirty water and a smaller one floating inside.
Lenn, Renn, Yula, and Tula approached to see what Vincent was trying to do with a puzzled frown. 'Why does Vincent need water?' Passed in their minds.
"I know water is precious even if it's not clean. However, we need a refrigerator to keep the food from spoiling. Ester can freeze the water, and because of this, the pot in the middle will keep the food cold. Think of it as placing food in the snow or covering it in salt to make food spoil slower." Vincent explained.
Tula's family looked surprised after they learned a way to keep the food from spoiling. They also murmured, "Refrigerator?"
Although Yula is good at balancing nutrition, she never had to worry about food spoilage. The workers in the noble's mansion would share extra food between themselves to take back home. Furthermore, Yula never bought too much food from the shops because of this, saving money and experiencing less food spoilage.
"I told you! Big sister Ester is amazing!" Tula exclaimed to her twin brothers. It seemed Tula was getting used to her brothers. She wasn't wary or shy of them anymore.
Tula felt she had two unknown adopted brothers at first, but it didn't take too long for her to find many similarities and treat the twins as brothers. It might not take too long for Tula to integrate with her family and live as if she never left her house.
Lenn and Renn nodded at each other after hearing their sister praise Vincent. The two stared at Vincent with a deep gaze full of respect. If Vincent had an admiration or respect stat, then it would be getting full by now.
Later, the yard became clean, and the freezing container with cold food inside sat in a corner inside the kitchen. Everyone went to call it a day upstairs.
*Current Bedroom*
Lupa wore the tail cover, and the thin wolf tail looked cute. She became excited and grabbed the knife, then she announced, "I want to cut your hair. It's not fair only I have to shave."
[I think a haircut to change your image might be due. Now that your uncontrollable hair growth has stopped, keeping a hairstyle will be possible.]
Vincent rubbed his chin while thinking Kazumi had a point. However, the excited grin on Lupa's face began to frighten him.
'Will I... become bald? No... there must be a way to save my hair.' Vincent thought with a terrified face.
"How about... yes. How about you let Ester help you give me a nice haircut? But leave some of my ponytail as a memory of the long hair I used to have." Vincent suggested with his heart racing.
Vincent sat on a chair with a nervous expression, and his legs soon became weak. A simple mistake will become a problem now that his hair is growing normally.
*Swish, swish, swish* The sound of a sharp knife passing next to his ears made Vincent almost shiver with fear, and the thought of watching an ear fall before his eyes horrified him.
'Trust, Lupa, trust, Ester, trust, Lupa.' Vincent kept reflecting like a prayer of good luck.
The blade finally stopped, and Ester asked Vincent to look at the mirror. Vincent now had a three-inch small ponytail wrapped with a barely noticeable red ribbon.
Furthermore, Ester suggested cutting more hair at about the same level as his ears. Lupa had no problem cutting more hair accurately with her heightened eyesight.
"Hmm... I didn't think I could look this handsome." Vincent tried his best not to show the cold sweat on his forehead. He seductively winked at the mirror like a narcissistic person to change the mood he was previously in.
Vincent had a baby face. He never had any beard, not a single hair on his face or under his chin.
The more he posed as if taking a selfie; the more Vincent didn't think that a haircut and some muscles could make him look appealing. His self-esteem soared through the roof, and he quickly forgot the risks of the haircut.
"Hehe, I'm glad you like our present." Lupa became happy after Vincent liked the haircut and appreciated her cutting skills. Lupa felt proud and decided to cut his hair again in the future.
On the other hand, Ester shyly nodded and said no words. She felt Vincent became more appealing, and the wink he made almost let her lips drool.
Ester turned around and held her fluttering heart to relax. The wink appeared to have hit her heart like a cupid arrow. Sleeping beside him might prove challenging for her, she believed.
'Will Vincent finally do as Kazumi said? But I'm not ready yet...' Ester thought as if in a world of her own.