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On our way out of the labyrinth, as we cross the guild exit, we are approached by a group of three adventurers.
I don't know what they want, but they seem to be of veteran rank, at least based on their weathered appearance, which is a bit marred by how drunk they are.
But they don't seem to want to talk to us. They just want to have a better view of us, as they stop some distance away and one of them starts talking to his companions while pointing at Deirdre.
"See, boys, hic, it's like I t-ttold yaa. They're just animals following a masterrrr. Don't you see how she follows this bo-hic-oy, who is obviously using her as a t-t-tool. I don't know what all the fussss is about the foreigners… Orcs are one thinggg, but the other racesss pose no threat" says one of the members of the group, and they walk away in a zigzag, laughing loudly.
"Just ignore them," I say to Deirdre since I am already used to these constant slurs.
I can't wait for the tournament to start, so I can show my and Deirdre's strength.
None of these assholes would come close to making these comments near us if they knew what we were capable of…
But we can't make a fuss every time they come near us.
We already did that the first few days, and we saw that it was not worth our time.
I was walking away from the guild to take Deirdre home when I saw that she had stayed behind.
"Master... That thing those people said is a lie, isn't it?" she says, looking at me with fear in her eyes.
"I..." I start to say, and suddenly the reason I started to make a group with her generates a pang of guilt, preventing me from continuing.
Seeing me hesitate, Deirdre takes off running.
I try to follow her. But, as she turns a corner, I lose sight of her for a second, and her ability prevents me from knowing where she went.
I don't know why the hell I had to hesitate to answer her…
On the one hand, I'm offended that she doubts me, but I'm also annoyed by my doubt.
Agh, where in hell could she have gone?
"Azur, take to the sky and see if you can find her," I say, and the little dragon jumps off my shoulders and flies away.
I jump too, and, landing on the roof of one of the houses, I start running across the rooftops to try to see her. As I run I see how the people in the streets stare at me strangely, but now is not the time to think about that.
…
We find her almost simultaneously, crying and sitting on the edge of the fountain I had come to, what seems like an eternity ago when I had the incident with the wolves in my early days as an adventurer.
Fortunately, her crying has deactivated her ability; otherwise, we would not have been able to find her.
She seems so distraught that she doesn't even notice me approaching.
"Hey, don't cry," I say to her in a soft voice as I get close enough to her to sit next to her at the fountain.
Azur, for his part, descends onto Deirdre's lap and rubs his head against her hands, trying to comfort her, at which Deirdre begins to stroke him unconsciously.
"And what do you care if I cry?" She says, looking at me with hatred and disgust, "The only important thing is that I help you in the labyrinth, right?"
"You can't tell me that you believe that. If that were true, I wouldn't be here with you," I say calmly, resting a hand on her right hand, the one that isn't caressing Azur.
"Then why did you hesitate to answer my question?" she says, withdrawing her hand at my touch and looking at me with a look of pain in her eyes that strikes me harder than the attack of the most terrifying of monsters. "I had never had a friend because of my status as a slave, apart from Miss Charity, with whom I couldn't share much because she was my mistress... when I joined the resistance, they only wanted me for my abilities, but I was used to it, so I wasn't surprised by that treatment. But then we came here, and I was able to start a new life, not as a slave, but as a free person. So, when I met you, I thought... I thought you were different and that we could be friends. But I see that I was wrong and that you just want to use me like everyone else so far."
And with those words, her crying intensifies, and she averts her eyes.
"Listen. I indeed hesitated to answer, and that was because, when I met you, they wouldn't have been wrong. Honestly, I only decided to group with you because of the request of an acquaintance who has a very good heart. And we kept meeting since I needed you to get more money out of the labyrinth, so I could afford my new sword. But I wasn't the only one who used the other for his benefit. You also used me to get into the labyrinth. But now it's not like that, at least not for me..." I say in a calm voice, while sadness seizes me as I see all the damage I have caused her for having hesitated for a moment over a silly thing.
"Not for me either," she says between sobs, still refusing to look at me.
"I'm glad to know it's so..." I say, continuing in the same tone of voice, "It's true that I need you to climb the labyrinth, but it's also true that I like being with you and I care about you..." As I speak, I feel a blush on my face. "If not, why else would I have gone to talk to Lilian to try to get you a reassuring answer when we were attacked last time? Or do you think I would have stepped in like that during the slime attack, risking my life to protect you, if I didn't care so much about you?"
Shit! Why am I blushing? what I'm saying it's just the truth.
Unlike with my previous group, where I was the youngest, this time I'm the oldest.
And, even though we haven't known each other that long, this has led me to think of Deirdre as my responsibility.
Almost like a younger sister of sorts…
When Deirdre sees my flushed face, she smiles and says, "I guess you're right," wiping away her tears, but suddenly her expression changes back to one of horror, and she adds, "Shit! Miss Charity must be worried sick. I haven't been home for days."
...
As we are walking, already in a more relaxed mood, toward my companion's house, she suddenly asks me.
"What did you mean about needing me to get more money from the labyrinth?" she ask, looking at me as she tilts her head to the side.
She's adorable when she's in her usual cheerful and curious mode…
Anyway, if I am going to trust her, I should trust her completely... And, with that thought, I started explaining to her about my user interface.
"And that's partly why you've improved so fast," I say when I finish explaining to her about the loot and experience bonuses.
"Partly?" she asks with a confused expression.
"The truth is that I don't know how you have improved so quickly. The experience bonus surely helps, but there must be something else" I say, not mentioning the fact that she has a singularity because it seems to me that it's irrelevant information to her if she can't see the classes, since she already knows that her abilities are not common.
"Does that mean I'm special?" She asks in a playful tone, as she walks, taking small hops every certain number of steps.
"Do you need to be told that to figure it out?" I reply in a teasing tone, raising an eyebrow and giving her a question as an answer.
"Hmt, you are not funny," she says in response, looking annoyed while pouting.
Seeing it, I laugh, since I am glad to see she's happy, even though she tries to hide it. After a while, she begins to laugh as well.