Life in Vain: Jobless Reincarnation

115 – The Stellar Baby Sister and her Angelic Babysitters

Part 1

"Onii-chan needs to go on a trip for a while, Stella. Maybe for a week? Are you okay with that? If you don't want me to go, I'll stay. I can... probably put it off for a while."

Stella stared at her big brother. And then she stared at the group of people standing behind her big brother.

Mister Ruijerd, Rika, Mister Roland, and then Miss Astolfo.

While her big brother was casual about it, the others looked a bit tense. In particular, Rika seemed stressed and was making subtle gestures to Stella.

...It seemed like her Onii-chan had to do something important again but was procrastinating by playing with Stella instead.

Honestly... Her Onii-chan was too much of a pushover. If this was what he was like with her, Stella was starting to get worried for when he got married. She had the feeling that he would suddenly teleport away in the middle of an intense fight if he found out that his kid got sick.

So this was no good.

Since her Onii-chan lacked commonsense, it was Stella's job to keep him on the straight and narrow. And to start off, that meant following through on his responsibilities.

Stella put on a bright smile and said, "Is kay. I ca pway wiv fwends."

She did her best not to let her eye twitch and the cutesy words. Instead, she waved her hands and called over the three elemental spirits that Rudy nii-chan summoned for her.

"See? Wata, Fai, an Win!"

A tiny blob of water, a little spark of flame, and a teensy swirl of green wind started flying around Stella, like they were dancing.

Rudy smiled. "That's good. Then..." He hesitated and glanced back at everyone else. "Are Enoch and Eos heading back, Rika?"

Rika's eyes flashed white, and then she nodded. "It looks like Enoch is finished with her research, and Eos is returning ahead of the Survey Corps."

"Alright. In that case..." Rudy turned back to look at Stella and said, "Ena nee-chan and Eos nee-chan will take care of you while I'm gone, okay? They're a bit clumsy, but you're smart so you can tell them to get you what you need. And if anything bad happens, just hold your necklace and call for me. I'll be back in a flash, okay?"

Stella smiled and said, "Kay!"

She definitely wouldn't be doing that though. She didn't know what mechanism Onii-chan left in her necklace, but her gut told her that it would do something ridiculous like rip a hole in time and space... And make him drop what he was doing to return, even if it was something important like fighting a really strong monster.

Rudy patted Stella's head and then said, "Then... I'm off."

Stella nodded. "Bye, Nii-cha!"

"I made a bunch of bottles for you and stored them in the fridge. There should be plenty, so remember to drink your milk so you can grow big and strong."

"Kay~!"

"And don't be afraid to boss people around. If anyone makes you upset, they'll have to answer to me when I get back."

"...Kay."

"And you three." Rudy looked at Stella's spirits and said, "Don't do anything reckless with her or I'll erase you."

"Nii-cha!"

"What?"

"Bad!"

Rudy blinked and then he coughed. "R-Right. Anyway, as to pottybreaks-"

"Lord Rudras." Roland stepped forward and spoke up. "I believe time is of the essence."

Ruijerd stepped up too and then looked at Stella. "I agree with Roland. Moreover... Isn't it about time you let Stella be a bit more independent?"

Rudy frowned and said, "She's a baby."

"Yes." Ruijerd nodded. "But she is no longer a newborn. Moreover... You have other sisters, do you not? Won't they be jealous of Stella?"

Go Mister Ruijerd! Hammer in the common sense!

...Though Stella's big sisters, huh? They really might get jealous of her when they hear about what Onii-chan had been doing...

"Grk." Rudy flinched. "T-That's... right. I promised Norn too, and Aisha... At this rate..." He trailed off and started rubbing his face. "Argh. Why'd you have to go and make life so complicated...?"

One final push. Stella could sense it. One more and Onii-chan would get off his butt and be responsible... And also give Stella room to experiment.

Stella looked at Rudy and said, "Bwing back a pwesent, kay?"

Rudy froze. And then his eyes lit up with determination. "Got it. Everyone. We've got a Dungeon to raid."

With that, Rudy threw his arm out, causing his scarf to flutter, and then started marching down the stairs with his head held high. A proper intimidating and noble figure.

Roland and Astolfo immediately followed after him.

Ruijerd lagged behind a bit and shook his head, amused. "Though he looks like that, Rudy is still a child..."

Rika sighed. "He is. Even Rika is not that immature."

"So you're admitting that you're childish, Great Empress?"

Rika froze and then cleared her throat. "R-Rika will go on ahead!" With that, she ran off after the others.

Ruijerd chuckled and then turned to wave at Stella. "Be good, child. I'll bring back a gift as well."

"Kay! Baibai!"

Ruijerd smiled and walked down the stairs.

And then it was just Stella, sitting in her crib with her spirit friends.

...Her spirit friends who wouldn't be able to help her with anything since they were practically imaginary considering what little they could do to affect the world around them, even after Stella tried teaching them magic circles.

Stella sat in her crib and looked around Rudy's empty office. After waiting a bit and seeing no one around, she pouted and said, "Nii-cha. Baka."

-SNG-

Part 2

Stella was alone for a few hours. Of course, she was fine since she wasn't a real baby. But for Onii-chan to leave her there just because he thought she was a genius...

Stella really wondered what her Onii-chan was like back on Earth. And what he did.

Mostly because an ordinary person definitely wouldn't trust an unattended baby to take care of itself just because it was smart. And Stella was sure that Onii-chan hadn't figured out she was a reincarnator because he was... kind of dense. At least, when it came to her.

If Stella was being honest, she was about 90% sure that everyone else had figured out she wasn't an ordinary baby.

Especially Roland.

That guy was scary.

Anyway, Stella was alone for a few hours. But just as she was starting to get hungry and was wondering if she should try and move some of the weird colors floating around to cast a spell, a pair of hurried footsteps ran up the stairs.

"L-Lady Stella! M-My apologies!"

An elegant but panicked female voice. Shortly after that, a beautiful woman ran into the office.

Shimmering golden hair that fell to her waist, with side-parted bangs leaving a single golden eye visible. Two pairs of fluffy white wings on her back, one by her shoulders and the other by her waist. A curvy and mature body that would make any woman envious... especially due to the fact that her outfit put it all on display.

White silk wraps and a few leather belts covered the woman's chest making it somewhat decent. But for her lower body, she wore a pure white t-string and a single white legging over her left leg. Other than that, the only piece of clothing she wore was a black glove on her right hand.

In short, an angel that looked like she came out of a H-game or a doujin instead of properly serving some divine being.

Enoch- Or Ena nee-chan, like Onii-chan called her.

She stumbled a bit as she ran over to the crib and then quickly bowed her head. "I wished to report to Master Rudeus before he departed, but he was already gone. And then that irksome Cliff stopped me at the tower to boast about resolving a matter between a supposed Demon Empress and a girl claiming to be some Sword God's daughter..." She sighed and then said, "It is unforgiveable, but I hope you show mercy on this lowly self."

"Is kay Ena."

Ena stood up and let out a radiant smile. "Thank you, Lady Stella. Master Rudeus said to feed you around noon... And to make sure that I was properly dressed-" She paused and then looked down. After that, she gasped and said, "I forgot! O-One moment, Lady Stella!"

With those panicked words, she was gone.

Shortly after Ena ran down the stairs, someone else walked up.

"Sheesh. And I thought I was in a rush... What's Sis so panicked about?"

Another beautiful woman. Like Ena, she had shimmering golden hair and wings. However, unlike Ena, the woman's hair was short and windswept. Also unlike Ena, she only had a single pair of white wings and was properly dressed.

A leather jacket with an badge bearing a crimson lightning bolt on her left arm. Blue jeans that were a bit scuffed and faded, matched with black boots.

Eos adjusted her glasses, revealing a pair of shining green eyes beneath the glare. After that, she walked over to the fridge near Stella's crib and pulled out a bottle of baby formula. "It's about time for you to eat, right Little Miss?" She walked back and held it out. "Can you drink by yourself, or do you want Big Sis to hold you?"

"I ca dwink. Gimme."

"Great." Eos handed the bottle over and said, "Makes my life easier. Wouldn't trust myself with anything delicate... Which makes me wonder why Master summoned me back instead of taking me with him-"

A crash echoed from downstairs. After that, there was the sound of a loud rip. Fabric being torn in two. Following that, Ena's moans echoed. "My dress! Uu... I'll have to stay up all night fixing it agaaain!"

"Oh. Right." Eos placed her hand on her forehead and said, "Sis is even worse."

Stella blinked.

...Was she going to be alright with these two as her babysitters...?

-SNG-

Part 3

"Lady Stella is definitely a genius. No wonder Master holds you in such high esteem." Ena stared at Stella with sparkling gold eyes and said, "Not even a year old and already on the journey to become a magician. Wonderful!"

Eos turned the page in the book she was reading and said, "Sis. Master adores Little Miss because she's his baby sister, not because she's amazing. Just like how I respect you even though you're a terrible klutz."

Ena turned around to look at Eos and said, "I'm clumsy?"

Eos sighed and looked at Stella. "See what I have to put up with, Little Miss?"

Stella glanced at Ena.

The older angel sister had managed to fix her dress and was wearing it instead of her ecchi outfit. Unfortunately, it wasn't much better.

Because Ena was so mature, and because a lot of the dress seemed to have been ripped off, when she sewed it back together the dress had turned a size too small and now hugged her body. In short, it *also* left nothing to the imagination.

Particularly due to the fact that Ena didn't seem to be a fan of bras... or panties.

But of course, Ena was oblivious to it all.

"I-Is it that bad...?" Ena turned to look at Stella, her golden eyes watering up. "A-Am I a failure after all...? Is that why Master left me behind?"

Stella gave Ena a blank look.

'...Baka Onii-chan. It's one thing to not have commonsense, but to be this dense... You seriously are a Cheat Isekai protagonist, aren't you?'

-LIV-

"Achoo!"

Ruijerd glanced at me and said, "Are you alright, Rudy?"

I wiped my nose and said, "I'm fine. Must be the distorted mana. And speaking of distorted mana... So that's the place huh?"

A scenic port by the sea. With the sun shining bright and not a cloud in the sky, it should have been a picturesque image.

Instead, a gaping black hole had enveloped the area, distorting the air around its edges like a mirage and shrouding everything in darkness.

I glanced back and said, "Rika. See anything?"

Her left eye flashed white while her right flashed green. After that, she frowned and said, "Rika cannot see within. But Rika *can* see that the 'future' doesn't exist inside the Distortion."

"Which confirms that it's a cut-off chunk of time, huh?" I sighed and ran my hand through my hair. "Of course." I glanced to my left, checking on Roland and Astolfo. "You two ready?"

Roland rested his hand on his sword. "Durandal is charged and my body is in peak condition."

Astolfo gave me a thumbsup and said, "Good to go, Boss! Let's get the hole!"

I decided to ignore her awkward phrasing and nodded. "Alright. Ruijerd? Rika?"

Ruijerd raised his spear, channeling crimson mana through it. At the same time, his emerald mana coursed throughout his body, reinforcing it. "I am prepared."

Rika took off her glasses and frowned. Twelve lights flashed in her eyes before swirling to form a rainbow iris. "...This One is beginning to regret learning how to control mana and This One's magic eyes from you... But yes. This One is ready as well."

Reverting to calling herself 'This One' instead of Rika. A serious expression.

"...Alright. Then..." I stared at the Distortion and focused my mana into my left eye.

The 'Demon Eye' that Master Roxy hypothesized I created by accident. The ability that I sacrificed my right eye to use at an expert level to save Norn.

"Time Alter: Synchronize."

The sound of rusted gears churning in my head. Stalled time slowly marching forward.

The Distortion rippled, like a bubble set to burst- No. It *was* a bubble set to burst.

A stab of pain in my left eye. At the same time, a bit of color faded away in my vision. But I ignored it. Even if I lost my vision, Rika had the handy ability of replacing eyes.

So, instead of worrying, I held out my left hand and summoned the crimson blade I kept in my mind's eye. Feeling the weight in my grasp, I nodded and then walked forward. "Let's go."

Time to see what 'I' had to say about this entire mess.