"Y-Yeah…" Misho agreed.
He felt an overwhelming sense of guilt. He couldn't help but think about what his family would say if they found out about this. They would definitely get angry.
"W-We aren't that much blood-related, but I don't want to go further, Misho," Maia said.
She bit her lips and stood up.
"Alright. Let's go sleep," Misho said.
He lay on the bed and faced towards the wall. He then closed his eyes and slowly fell asleep, fairly quickly.
…
*Thud* *Thud* *Thud*
Misho opened his eyes to the sound of something hitting a tree. He turned to face up and stared at the unfamiliar ceiling. The sun had barely risen from the horizon.
"Huh?"
Misho was confused. He wasn't familiar with the ceiling at all.
He turned his head to the left and saw Maia sleeping soundly. Her innocent face and serene expression surprised him.
"S-So cute," Misho muttered in amazement.
Since he was used to her always being with him, he never really paid attention to her face that much. But after what happened last night, he can't help but notice that part of her right now.
"I wonder who will be her boyfriend…" Misho muttered in thought.
*Thud!* *Thud!* *Thud!*
The sound became louder and louder. And because of that, Maia's eyelids trembled.
She opened her eyes and blankly stared at Misho.
"Hmm? Misho?"
.
. .
. . .
"Ah!"
Maia suddenly sat up in shock.
"What are you doing in my room, Misho!?" Maia asked with disbelief on her face.
Before Misho could say anything in response, she grabbed her body and widened her eyes.
"Don't tell me we did it!?"
"No, No, No!" Misho immediately responded.
"Really?" Maia asked in a quiet voice and with her face red.
"Really!"
Misho nodded his head.
"..."
Maia turned her head away, and for a bit there, Misho could've sworn that she frowned.
"What was that sound?" Maia asked, changing the topic.
"I don't know."
Misho went close to the window and looked outside. A large burly man was chopping down a tree not far from them.
*Thud* *Thud*
With each swing of his axe, some fruits and leaves from the tree would start falling.
[NPC]
Misho doesn't recognize the NPC, so he wasn't named for him.
"Let's go ask Gerald," Misho said and stood up from the bed.
His sleep was comfortable. Even though they were in a rural village, the bed felt like soft cotton.
"Mm."
Maia nodded her head.
They left the room together and immediately found Gerald sipping a cup of tea. He noticed them and put down the cup.
"Good morning," Gerald said with a slight smile on his face.
"What is going on outside?" Misho asked.
"Horpa is cutting down that tree to make our road wider," Gerald said before he suddenly remembered something. "Oh, right. That guy met a caravan before."
"Oh! That's convenient!" Misho exclaimed happily.
"Uncle Gerald, what are you drinking?" Maia asked curiously.
She wasn't interested in the caravan, but at the tea Gerald was sipping.
"This is wheat tea. I actually farmed these," Gerald said with a slight pride in his voice.
"What? You can make wheat tea?" Misho asked in surprise.
"What? Didn't your village farm wheat too?" Gerald asked in puzzlement.
In his understanding, every village in the kingdom farms wheat. There was no other crop that was more profitable than that.
"U-Uhhh…"
Misho's eyes darted around, and he looked at Maia for help.
"Wait, the sound stopped. Let's go, Misho!" Maia said and pushed him towards the door.
The two of them exited Gerald's house and relaxed once they were outside.
"You almost gave us away!" Maia shouted quietly.
"I have never seen wheat tea before," Misho replied and smiled wryly at her.
"Ugh. Anyways, let's go ask that Horpa guy Uncle Gerald talked about," Maia said and rolled her eyes at him.
They looked down the small mud road and found the man walking away with his axe. He was almost out of their view.
"Uncle Horpa!" Maia shouted.
"Hm?"
The burly man turned around and looked behind him.
He was quite tall and had a plentiful beard that made him look very manly. He was what you would picture a lumberjack to be.
Maia and Misho quickly caught up and panted in front of him.
"Hahh… Hahh… Uncle Horpa?" Maia asked.
"Who are you two?" Horpa asked with a face full of confusion.
"Gerald took us in," Misho answered.
"Gerald? I can't believe he took in two adult teens," Horpa muttered in shock.
"We heard from him that you met a caravan before?" Misho asked.
"Oh, you want an answer from me?"
"Yes."
"Well, I was just about to look for help. The two of you can suffice," Horpa said.
"Wait, what are we going to do?" Misho asked.
"Chop the tree I fell into pieces. Anyway, wait here. I will go get two more axes," Horpa replied before he left.
–––––––––––
Normal Quest Accepted!
Goal: Help Horpa chop the tree into pieces
Rewards: The answer to your question.
Issuer: [NPC] Horpa
Failure to do the quest will result in Horpa not answering your question.
–––––––––––
"..."
"..."
Misho and Maia instantly remembered that they were inside a game. Getting answers out of NPCs wasn't going to be easy.
The two of them instinctively stared at each other and remembered what happened last night.
They turned their eyes away in embarrassment as that memory filled their mind.
"Misho… Don't tell anyone, okay?" Maia asked without looking at him.
"Mm. I promise," Misho replied as he did the same and stared at the ground.
A few minutes later, Horpa returned. He looked puzzled when he saw the two of them looking at the ground.
"Here are the axes," Horpa said and passed each of them an axe.
It was heavy and very sharp. Maia became nervous when she saw that edge. She might chop her feet off if she dropped it on the ground.
They walked to the fallen tree and started swinging their arms. Since it was early in the morning, it was still rather cold.
They finished quite fast with the power of their cultivation. Each of their strikes would wedge the axe deep into the trunk, easily splitting it.