After parting ways with my lord, we set off on foot toward our old training grounds, taking down monsters that appeared along the way.
「Hn-hn-hmm-hmm~♪」
It was my turn to lead for now, handling any monsters we encountered.
In high spirits, I hummed a little tune as I mowed them down.
We didn’t bother collecting dropped items this time since they’d just weigh us down, though we did gather anything edible for today’s meals.
「Sorte, you’re suuuper cheerful right nowssu」
「Yeah. You were smiling so much while slaying monsters that the adventurers we passed earlier looked pretty disturbed」
「Rightssu!? Uwahh… They’re definitely gonna be talking about you when they get backssu. Like, ‘Deranged! A wolfkin who slaughters monsters with a smile!’ or something…」
「Coming from you, Renge, that’s rich. You’ve been hugging yourself and squirming this whole time. That’s way creepier」
Honestly, she’d zone out, then suddenly start fidgeting and writhing.
Even merchants passing by would avert their eyes while walking past.
Still, is it really that obvious on my face?
I mean, when I think about what happened earlier… I just can’t help it. It’s impossible not to smile.
「No way, I’m not like ‘you’, Sortessu…」
「You definitely were. You’ve been squirming nonstop」
「Ehhhh!? Messu!?」
「Yeah. It was honestly so embarrassing to watch」
Yep, to be honest, she had this dreamy look on her face and was pigeon-toeing like she was in a blissful daze.
If anything, I ‘wouldn’t’ want people thinking we were traveling together.
They’d be like: ‘Lewd! A sand wolfkin rubbing her knees together in ecstasy!’
Yeah… total pervert.
「……Just for the record, Aina, your cheeks have been slack this whole time too」
「Wha, me!? I’ve been composed, haven’t I!?」
「Nope. They’re slack ‘right now’, even as we speak」
「That’s impossible… Where, exactly…?」
Where? Like… your ‘whole face’.
Actually, your whole vibe just screams ‘I’m so happy I could float’.
「Aah… so basically, we’re all equally lovestruck right nowssu」
「Can you blame us? I mean, we got a handmade gift from the our lord himself! I honestly wanna scream ‘Kyaa~!’ and go running through the streets!」
「Sorte-tan even started crying ‘cause she was so happy. That shocked messu」
「I couldn’t help it… it just happened on its own」
「No, wait. More importantly… that, um, ‘kiss’. ‘That’s’ the real issue here」
「Yeah, seriouslyssu! Why’d you run ahead and pull that move all on your own!?」
Damn.
They remembered.
Excuses, excuses… Not that I have one.
Alright, let’s just own it.
「I couldn’t help it, okay? It was an impulse, that’s all」
「Then you should just stop with all this complicated stuff and confess to master alreadyssu!」
「It’s not that simple, alright? I need closure. Seeing things through properly will make it easier in the long run」
It’d be so lame to say ‘Never mind, forget it’ after everything.
I’m not going to back out now.
It’s ‘because’ I plan to complete the quest that I want a clean break. Yeah.
But… I kissed him.
I wonder if he noticed? He ‘must’ve’ noticed…
Still, he didn’t look like he hated it, right?
Was it improper…? N-No, it’s probably fine. I think…
「A kiss, huh…」
「Oho, Aina, you wanna try it too, don’t youssu!?」
「I-I mean… want to, maybe… but…」
「Why’re you getting all embarrassed!? You can do way bolder stuff in way weirder situations! If you’re gonna confess, you can’t be shy about a little kiss! You’ll fall behindssu!」
「Ugh… But thinking about it seriously like this… it’s really nerve-wracking. R-Renge, aren’t ‘you’ embarrassed!?」
「Not at all! I’ve already been seen in every possible embarrassing situation! A kiss is ‘nothing’ after that!」
Oh, right.
If I remember correctly… Renge had the my lord, um… shave her.
Yeah, no.
That’s beyond me.
I’d die of embarrassment, and probably punch him out of reflex.
Nope. Gotta make sure I ‘never’ end up in that situation.
「Still, my lord really went all-out with these, didn’t he?」
Just looking at the pendant, I can tell how insanely valuable the materials are.
And my lord’s already a level 9 alchemist, the highest possible rank right now.
Any accessory made by someone like that must be worth a ‘lot’, right?
「Totallyssu… It’s got orichalcum, mithril, ‘and’ diamonds」
「Diamonds, huh… I wonder if my liege knows what giving a diamond to a woman ‘means’」
「…I doubt it. He doesn’t seem like the type who’s into that kind of symbolism」
If he ‘did’ know… it’d make me really happy.
But there’s no way he does.
『A pledge of eternity』
It’s the kind of gem used in engagement rings, exchanged by people promising forever.
He probably gave it to us without knowing that.
Eternity, huh…
I really do want to stay with him. Always.
「Still… it makes me happyssu」
「Yeah…」
「Same here…」
The three of us stopped walking and looked down at the pendants we’d received from our lord.
Though they shared the same embedded diamond, each pendant had a distinct design, similar, yet unmistakably unique.
「He didn’t have much time, but… it’s incredibly detailed work」
「He must’ve worked really hard, y’know…. The way the orichalcum and mithril layer together is already amazing, but the diamond especially… How did he even cut it to shine like thatssu?」
「Who knows…? But my lord’s cut gemstones like this before, hasn’t he?」
Maybe it’s knowledge from his original world.
I sometimes forget, but my lord is a “Drifter”, someone from another world.
It wouldn’t be surprising if he knows things we don’t.
「You two are lucky, y’know… I should’ve just dropped my task and stayed toossu」
「That’s not really an option, is it? You had a duty to fulfill」
「Yeah, I ‘guess’… But still, don’t you wanna know everything about someone you lovessu?」
I totally get that.
I want to hear all about my lord, what he did in his world, what he was like as a kid, and… whether he had a girlfriend back then.
-0-
While we were chattering away about my lord, we eventually reached our destination, the old training grounds where our master once taught us when we were children.
Back then, it felt much farther away.
Now that we’re adults, we made it in no time… Kind of nostalgic, really.
Even that boulder looks so much smaller than I remembered…
「This place really brings back memoriesssu」
「It does… Oh, and that old cabin we used still looks intact enough to use」
The cabin we used to sleep in, simple, barebones, and completely empty, was still standing, aged but sturdy.
For now, we decided to use it as our base and dropped off our bags.
「We made it earlier than expected. Before we settle in, let’s check the area and secure a water source」
「Sounds goodssu. I’ll go fetch water and scout the area while I’m at it」
「Then take the magic bag our lord lent us, it’ll be much more efficient that way」
「These bags really are handyssu… Maybe we should try clearing a dungeon sometime to get our own?」
That might not be such a bad idea.
Would my lord be happy if we gave him one as a gift?
But… he’d probably just worry about us instead.
「Alrighty, I’m offssu!」
「We’ll gather firewood nearby in the meantime」
The only available water in this area came from the river.
But due to the ambient magic power seeping from the nearby caves, drinking it raw could make you sick.
We learned that the hard way during our training days, it always had to be boiled first.
「Hmm. There’s quite a bit of fallen wood around」
As we searched for firewood near the forest, we spotted several dry-looking branches scattered around.
「Let’s keep our guard up while we gather them」
「Yeah, the cave’s nearby, so there’s a good chance we’ll run into some fairly strong monsters」
The monsters around here aren’t too much trouble, any B-rank adventurer could handle them one-on-one.
Even C-rankers would be fine if they moved in a party of three or four.
We fought these things plenty of times as kids, and while it used to be three-on-one, now I’m sure we could each take on multiple at once without much trouble.
「The cave, huh… We weren’t allowed near it back then」
「Yeah, I remember. That was back when adventurers were still trying to clear that quest」
「Right. They’d pass by us while we trained…」
But none of them ever came back…
Once we started to feel confident fighting the local monsters, we got cocky and asked master if we could check out the cave.
Her answer?
『If you want to die, go ahead. I won’t save you.』
She was always strict when it counted…
But it wasn’t just her words. It was her eyes, they were serious, and honestly a little scary. That’s why we gave up on the idea back then.
「So, how do we want to tackle this place?」
「Let’s start by scouting the entrance today. Once we’ve settled in and taken a breather, we can begin the real exploration」
「Good plan. No need to rush things」
Stay calm.
Keep your emotions in check.
Now’s the time to focus on this quest, not get carried away with other feelings.
Rushing or letting your guard down is the fastest way to get killed. That’s just common sense for any adventurer.
「Guess it’s time to put our swooning over my lord on hold for a while」
「It’s a shame, really. I wanted to savor it a little longer…」
「Don’t worry. We can bask in it all we want once we’re back」
「You’re right. Let’s explode with affection then」
「Fufu. We’ll go all out, don’t care who’s watching」
…Really, Aina’s changed a lot.
She always tried to act composed and dependable, being the oldest of us.
But since she met our lord, she’s been letting her softer side show more and more.
Actually, she even asked me for advice about underwear the other day…
「Hey, next time let’s invite Renge and go shopping for lingerie together」
「Wh-where’s this coming from!? W-would you… pick something out for me?」
「Of course! I’ll help you choose something my lord would like!」
「J-just… nothing too flashy, okay?」
I say ‘what my lord likes’, but honestly, I don’t actually know.
Still, I ‘do’ assume he’s into the sexy stuff.
Probably something with a bit less fabric than usual, rather than just fancy frills or cute colors.
But knowing my lord, maybe he’s got some weird preferences too…
Yeah. Maybe we should just drag him along with us.
It’d be embarrassing, sure, but if we don’t do something bold, we might end up falling behind, like Renge said…
…Wait a second.
Am I seriously getting more okay with wearing skimpy underwear?
Has my lord’s influence already gotten ‘that’ deep into me…?
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