the group had been travelling for 7 hours and were getting tired. Marv was still holding Brianna who was laying her head on his shoulder while clutching his shoulder. he had removed his damaged chest plate some time ago after seeing that its stats were no longer worth anything to him. he was now wearing a brown t-shirt and grey pants. he had been stroking Brianna's hair for the past hour and gained a few annoyed glances from Alyssa.
he mostly just ignored these as he was currently enjoying Brianna's low purrs. he was not a lolicon but...who could refuse such a chance to perfect happiness.
Masha was still thinking to herself and had a slight bit of anger whenever she looked at Brianna. she wasn't jealous of her if you hadn't noticed it, Masha, hardly even cares about Marv. it was just Masha felt uncomfortable knowing that she was the child of the monster that nearly killed Alyssa. she just couldn't put that behind her easily.
the carriage slowly came to a halt as Finn steered the horses to pull the carriage into a meadow.
the group then unloaded sleeping bags from the carriage and also a sack. Marv removed a cooking pot from the sack while Masha volunteered to go look if there were any dangers. Alyssa helped Finn with releasing the horses. they had gotten used to this behaviour after a whole week of travelling in a carriage.
Marv looked up to the sky and then back to the green semi-transparent screen before him. he selected the giant salamander meat again and some bell peppers. he first cut the bell papers before he but the salamander meat in a low boil. he wasn't in a rush so he took his time getting out some other ingredients from his inventory. when he was sure that the salamander meat was boiled he added a few leaves of coriander into the pot. he then asked Brianna if there was anything else she would like with the stew. she responded that she would have whatever he had. Marv hadn't caught onto her shy behaviour and just decided to finish the rest.
he covered the pot with a heavy lid before he decided to look for Finn and Alyssa.
notice how Masha wasn't mentioned here.
Marv had found Finn and Alyssa talking with each other about stuff Marv wasn't familiar with. when they saw the approaching Marv and Brianna they both smiled as they invited them to sit down with them on the grass. Marv accepted their invitation and sat down next to Finn. Alyssa indicated for Brianna to sit next to her. Brianna wasn't really happy to separate from Marv but had noticed Alyssa's looks all throughout the carriage ride. so she knew that if she wanted to get closer to Marv she would probably have to get past Alyssa.
the four sat down and talked about a few random stuff. Finn no longer kept his identity as a demi-god secret but had asked the other three if they could keep it a secret.
notice how Masha wasn't one of those 'other three'
Finn talked about a few things from his past childhood and even made fun of some other demi-gods. Marv was only a demi-god by class, not blood so he didn't know much about them. Finn was a really fun guy if you removed his laziness. Brianna was shy at first and only answered with short responses but Finn managed to get her to speak more by asking her question that need detailed answers. then while she was talking he would act really interested and even compliment Brianna.
this worked and Brianna eventually started smiling more and more. Alyssa told some stories about her family and got a few laughs from Brianna. the four seemed to have completely forgotten about the village and were all just having fun.
notice how Masha wasn't mentioned.
that was when Marv heard Pale's voice within his head.
{wow...what a scumbag you are...have you already forgotten you had a member in your party who isn't these guys...}
when Pale spoke his tenor voice seemed to have traces of annoyance. then it hit Marv, he had forgotten about whatshername!
there it bloody is.
Marv got up from his sitting position and apologised to the other three that he wanted to go check on the food. this was just an excuse because if he mentioned Masha it might cause Alyssa to act up. he walked off to the cooking pot and put out the fire. he checked the stew and felt a strong scent hit his nose. he was satisfied with the stew and decided to head deeper into the meadow to try to find Masha. he walked over a couple of branches and twigs before he climbed down a small hill.
he came across a small stream and found Masha sitting down with her hands wrapped around her knees. she hadn't noticed him yet and Marv could hear sobbing. he just stood there with an unsure look on his face. he convinced himself to move and headed over to Masha.
he was now standing directly behind her and could see that her hair and clothes seemed to be wet. he braced himself before he asked...
"what's wrong?"
when Masha heard his voice she suddenly got up and tripped on some wet grass. she fell into the stream causing a huge splash on her way down. Marv was hit by the water and felt his clothes get wet. he opened his eyes to see Masha was now nursing her butt while groaning a bit. the stream was shallow, Masha had her eyes closed as she winced a bit in pain. she then suddenly heard a croak above her head. she placed her right hand above her head only to feel a slimy frog.
"AAHHH!"
Masha suddenly got up tearing her battle skirt on the way up and tripping yet again with her face planted into the bank.
{what is she...a walking disaster.}
Marv couldn't help but think this way before he headed over to Masha and helped her up. Masha avoided Marv's gaze and tried to act normal only for Marv to grab her wrist and pull her face to his. she blushed slightly but Marv pretended not to notice...after all, if he tried anything Alyssa would definitely not let it go. he then asked Masha what was disturbing her and absolutely refused her to turn her gaze away by grabbing her chin with his hands.
having no choice Masha sighed while blushing slightly...she then explained what she was crying about...
"I...saw you guys having fun without me and it...it just felt like as if I was nothing more than a bothersome nuisance on Lady Alyssa just like when we were kids...I'm not there when she needs me, I've seen that you have a closer relationship with her than I could ever have...it just...IT HURT MY FEELINGS OK!?!?"
she yelled these last words with tears forming in her eyes. despite her exposed panties and wet clothes, Marv paid close attention to her tears. he didn't feel sorry for her in any way but realised that he had left her out and yet he was the party leader. he bit his lower lip in anger as he let go of Masha's chin. he was angry at himself...just because she looked like an extremely overrated tsundere didn't mean that he had an excuse to ignore one of his teammates.
he turned around to apologise to Masha for his actions only to feel her clinging to his damp t-shirt. he looked at her while she blushed more. she then asked a question with her head hung low.
"Could...could I just stay here like this...I want to know what Lady Alyssa likes so much about you..."
Marv didn't deny her as he placed his arms around her shoulders and brought her head close to his own chest. she subconsciously jumped back but didn't stop Marv. she was now breathing roughly as Marv's damp t-shirt clung to her hair.
they stayed like this for a while before Marv spoke up.
"I think we should probably head back...Alyssa is probably wondering where we are."
"Y-Yea..."
they split while Masha avoided Marv's gaze. Marv simply smiled as he remembered his quotes about how employees should always feel like they're appreciated. his smile was noticed by Masha who asked why he was smiling in such a manner. he simply shrugged and removed his t-shirt and handed it to Masha.
she was flustered as she saw Marv half-naked. she accepted his t-shirt though and put it on. it reached just above her knees but still concealed her panties.
satisfied with this Marv headed back to the others with a flustered Masha in tow. they walked back to the other three who were eating the stew Marv had cooked. Finn had a small bag of crushed rock salt by his side as he saw the half-naked Marv and flustered Masha. he looked like as if he was struggling to hold back a laugh. unfortunately, Alyssa had a completely different look on her face.
"What happened between you?"
she was smiling but the wood under the cooking suddenly lit on fire and was burning at a quick pace. Marv expected this and simply explained that he had found Masha had fallen in a stream and had torn her skirt. so he helped her with his t-shirt. although this answer made sense the fire under the pot didn't stop. Brianna was watching this whole episode with a confused look on her face. she wasn't slightly disturbed or interested in Marv's body so she just looked to Masha who was now beet red.
"why are Ms Masha's cheeks all bright red?"
Brianna asked this question as an innocent bystander but to Finn, it was the breaking point. he burst out in laughter while holding his sides. Alyssa gave a look at the rolling Finn but then focused her gaze onto Masha who was trying to look away.
Alyssa sighed slightly as she just continued taking her stew. Brianna was tired and Finn took her to an empty sleeping bag. Marv excused himself and went over to Finn and Brianna. Alyssa and Masha were left alone.
"Lady Alyssa...I-"
"no...don't say that you're sorry...honestly I've heard enough of your apologising and just want to tell you that it would probably be better if you taught yourself to live a happy life without getting permission all the time...just that Marvin is off limits...anything else you don't need my permission."
Alyssa got up from her sitting position and headed off to the sleeping bags.
Masha was left alone while clutching the sleeves of Marv's t-shirt.
{teach myself to live a happy life without getting permission...that's impossible.}.