My Eldritch Horror Wife Followed Me To Another World

It took a while for Nick to gather his thoughts and process everything he had talked about with Eo. She never did explain the entirety of existence. But she had revealed scientifically ground-breaking facts about the truth and inner workings of the universe.

That had been half of it.

The other half had been the more personal stuff about him and their shared existence. The fact that he could one day return to Earth, but that he would not be accepted back, made him feel things he didn't understand. Those emotions condensed into a lump at the base of his stomach.

It was only when he had started digesting it slightly that he returned to the first floor. Night had fallen upon Tiabe, but Nick wasn't tired.

He glanced around the living room until he noticed that the front door was open. He raised an eyebrow and snuck past it to the kitchen.

He only joined Eo on the porch once he had two cups of hot chocolate.

Although she hadn't received any extreme revelations the same way Nick had, it had still been a day for her. The one she considered her husband told her to pull up her pants and wait.

She also hadn't been able to answer all of Nick's questions. And the answers she gave had severely affected Nick's mood.

How could she not worry?

"..." She accepted the cup that Nick handed her without thinking much since she was preoccupied with her own thoughts while gazing at the stars in the sky. But then she realized what had happened.

Nick had returned to the first floor and prepared a cup of hot chocolate for her. It was a good sign. He had even sat down next to her on the porch stairs, even if there was still a gap between them.

She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, unwilling to pressure him to talk with a head-on gaze, as she waited for him to open his mouth.

It took a while, but far from as long as Eo was prepared to wait.

"Thank you." Nick's voice was soft. Soft and sincere.

Eo could, of course, have lied about everything. But Nick didn't entertain that possibility.

Eo had saved him. Six years ago. A month or two ago. And more times than he could count since then.

If not for her, he would have died without even knowing why. If not for her, he would have never experienced the wonders of Tiabe and the joy of having such lively friends and neighbors.

It had been stressful. It still was on occasion. And he was worried about the fighting going on in the forest. Lives were at stake.

But it was only thanks to Eo that he was alive to experience not only the good in life, but the things that made the good parts stand out.

The stress of worrying about Basla and the Lowat tribe made the relief of seeing Nuir alive and well that much greater.

Nick's gratitude toward Eo contained complex emotions that he couldn't convey with words, but it was undoubtedly gratitude. A simple thank you was the best he could do.

Eo smiled and blew on her hot chocolate before sipping loudly, letting the new, sweet, soft taste of the drink mix with the sweetness and warmth welling up in her chest.

Eo wanted to respond and say that it wasn't a big deal. But she would be minimizing Nick's gratitude if she did that. Telling that he was rightfully grateful because she had done the impossible would be patronizing and redundant.

Besides, why do that when she could just respond in kind?

"You're welcome," She answered. She also took the opportunity to scoot closer to him, feeling his body heat and letting him feel hers.

Eo succeeded in making Nick more aware of her by doing that. But he didn't shy away as he might have done earlier in the day.

He wasn't uncomfortable with her presence, so why should he? If anything, it was the opposite. Her presence was familiar. He was used to it, and it warmed his heart when he felt lonely.

Although her appearance was different, and some might consider it a significant improvement, she was still the same tentacle that he was used to. How many times hadn't the tentacle snuggled up against him or massaged his shoulders?

Eo leaning against his shoulder while smirking secretly was not a big deal.

They looked at the stars in silence. Nick's mind wandered as he thought about what lay beyond the stars, not just in this dimension but also beyond it.

Eo had said that there were ways to cross into other dimensions. She had also said that with enough strength, he could return to Earth.

It sounded like a far-fetched dream.

But it at least gave him some direction. So far, he had just gone with the flow after arriving in Tiabe. But with a distant dream to chase after, he could start moving forward.

And if he never reached that dream?

Well, he at least wouldn't have spent his life in vain.

And while far-fetched, it wasn't completely hopeless.

Didn't this dimension have something that could allow one to break or at least bend the Rules of Existence? If he stocked up on power crystals, couldn't he use their power to take him to Earth or something?

It was just an idea, barely even that. But it was enough for now.

In contrast to Nick and his wandering mind, Eo was getting restless. Since Nick had so easily accepted her leaning against his shoulder, she was the one who ended up acutely aware of the other party and slightly embarrassed.

She had studied up on methods to charm Nick once she finally acquired a human body. It had worked well so far, but only because Nick had been the one to react.

Now that he hadn't shown the reaction she expected, she was the one to end up embarrassed. It was something she hadn't experienced before. It was a very human feeling, one she didn't understand.

Why was she embarrassed about showing simple affection? It didn't make any sense!

But at the same time, it made all the sense.