Part 4
"No, like, why? Why did you leave Belzerg... Like... Damn." Francis was almost finished with his fourth round of drinks now."
Why did I leave? "What are you getting at?" I slowed my eating pace, savoring the rich flavor of the cockatrice meat.
"Yeah! Why did you leave? It's Belzerg, man! It's like... How should I put it... Money! Yeah, money there is easy! Making money there is as easy as plucking a leaf from a tree! So easy do you understand that!?" He said excitedly, swinging his beer.
At this point, I just nodded at his blabbering.
I noticed he wasn't as drunk as he appeared. Though his face was red and alcohol was clearly in his bloodstream, he seemed somewhat in control.
I was convinced that he had a pretty high alcohol tolerance.
"Like, for example! if you're an adventurer-You're an adventurer, right?"
"Yeah? Of course, I am."
"Then compared to here, you'd make so much more money in Belzerg... Like, way, way more!" He gestured exaggeratedly with his hand.
"I can imagine one day you're out, and the next day you're back with two! No, three gold coins! Three million in one expedition! Isn't that every adventurer's dream?" He looked excitedly back and forth between Lily and me.
At his claim, Lily nodded her head in agreement.
Thinking about it again, it made sense; this country seemed to have a low cost of living.
Compared to Axel, where a meal averaged Ten Thousand Eris, the prices here were quite cheap.
As for adventuring in Axel, there wasn't much for me to compare it to.
Because the only adventure I've had is either the luckiest thing that could happen to me that also ended up being the worst thing that had happened to me.
Demon King's General, Beldia, the Destroyer, and... Cabbages? Would that even count? Is there a normal adventure I've done with those three loose screws.
Winter Shogun? Nah, that thing is just ridiculous. That creature is beyond Demon King General.
Though the money I got was more than just three gold-Wait, what? Three million?
My mind froze, catching on to what he had just said.
"Did you mean three hundred thousand?" He said three gold coins, so the equivalent would be three hundred thousand Eris, right?
"What?" He looked genuinely confused.
So I continued, "Three gold Eris is equivalent to three hundred thousand Eris, right?" I looked at Francis and Lily, seeking confirmation from them.
Instead, they exchanged puzzled looks.
"Huh? Am I wrong?"
"What... What are you talking about?" Francis said. "Wait, don't tell me..."
"T-Tell me what?" I felt anxious, a drop of sweat ran down my forehead.
"Say... How many gold coins do you have?"
"Th-" I wanted to say thirty, but I quickly hedged my bet and chose a lower number. I gulped, clearing my throat before answering, "Ten?"
"Ten..." Lily muttered.
"That's not all, is it?" Francis speculated.
"So what?"
"How much do you think that's worth?" Francis asked.
"One million Eris?"
"That's..." Lily hesitated in her response.
Francis exclaimed, "As I thought, you are rich!"
"What?" Rich?
Yeah, I should've figured it out after he mentioned three million.
Though I still couldn't believe it.
No way, right? Three million for three gold coins?
It's one million per gold. Then it would make my total money...
The thought made me anxious, my heart racing.
"S-Satou-san... Ten gold coins it's more than that, you know?"
I cleared my throat. I wanted to ask "how much," but I couldn't.
"I give you the honor of enlightening him, Lily-chan..." Francis provocatively said to Lily.
With his permission, Lily nodded before looking me straight in the eyes. "Kazuma-san... Maybe you didn't know, but here in this country, one gold Eris is actually worth one million Eris."
One million Eris...
"Y-You're joking?"
"No, I'm afraid it's real. A gold coin is worth one million Eris, Kazuma-san." One Million Eris...
One Million Eris...
One Million Eris...
One Million Eris...
One Million Eris...
One Million Eris...
One Million Eris...
One Million Eris...
One Million Eris...
One Million Eris...
One Million Eris...
One Million Eris...
One Million Eris...
One Million Eris...
One Million Eris...
"Hey! Wake up! Kazuma! Hero! Kaz!" Without realizing it, Francis slapped my face repeatedly.
"O-ow, get away!" I pushed him back into his seat, my head still reeling.
One million Eris for one gold coin.
The scale of this country's economy just feels unreal.
Perhaps inflation... or deflation? I understood from reading the menu that metals like silver and copper were not so rare here.
And the value of everything naturally followed the economy of the country-much cheaper here, likely because copper or silver was common, but somehow the gold was rare?
Lost in thought, I found myself staring into Lily's worried eyes without realizing it.
"So, you realize how wealthy you are in this country now, right? How about treating me more?"
"Yeah..."
Though I had vague sense of coins and money in this world after this revelation.
But it clarified one thing.
Right now, I am insanely rich in this country, especially after the money I received from Old-Will.
Maybe in Belzerg, it was just another mere seven million Eris. But here...
Speaking of money, why is Old-Will didn't inform me about the economy of this country then?
It's strange, knowing that he was born in this Kingdom. Is he just simply forget that or he wanted to surprise me on my own?
I don't understand.
"Rena-chan! One more!"
"Satou-san, are you okay?"
"Yeah..."
My mind was still blank. I couldn't comprehend anything they were saying right now.
It felt unreal. Gradually, my breath quickened.
It felt like I had won the grand lottery.
Not only was the cost of living in this country is relatively low, but the value of gold was high.
"H-Hey, Satou-san... Satou-san!"
"Hm-w-what?"
"Are you okay?"
Why wouldn't I be? I had seventy million Eris in my pocket, and there were no Belzerg guards potentially chasing me here.
Why wouldn't I be okay with this kind of luck, this fortune...
"I don't know... It's just... Unbelievable."
Speaking of money, this revelation also clarified other thing as well.
The money I almost took from Dino and his party wasn't one hundred and forty-it was one million and forty.
That explained Alia and Dino's intense exchange.
"Indeed... That's why everyone wants to go to Belzerg and become an adventurer there, actually," Lily explained.
I silently nodded to her explanation, still lost in thought.
"Hey!" Francis called to me.
But I just ignored him, still lost in thought.
"Hey! Kasuma!" He yelled at me.
"Yeah... ?" Finally stopped my daydreaming, I looked in his direction.
"You still haven't told me, though, why—Hey! are you listening to me!?" Francis snapped his finger in front of my face loudly, bringing me back from reality.
I rubbed my face with my hand before responding. "Yeah? What?"
He took a gulp for a moment before continued. "Ahh~~ Why did you leave Belzerg though? That kingdom is the definition of prosperity itself. If I were you, I'd be building my own castle!"
"That's..." I didn't know how to answer.
I remembered that I had made up a backstory which I could use in case anyone asked, but right now, my mind was too overwhelmed to recall it.
"It's just..." In this case, I tried to think of a simple answer.
"Just what?" He pressed.
"It's just... I don't fit in." Nice save! I thought.
My statement was partially true. Axel's inhabitants, for the most part, were crazy, weird people who lacked common sense.
"Not fit... In?" Francis asked, raising his eyebrows.
I nodded. "That's all I can say."
"I see... I don't understand at all. Why don't you fit in?" He pressed on.
"It's a long story. I... I can't tell you much, but the people in my town... They're crazy... I can't say much."
"Try." No, I really didn't want to try.
"It's just how I feel, okay? It's not the people or the country—it's me. I feel like I don't belong there."
Francis looked at me with a bored expression as if saying 'come on? is that all you got?', while Lily remained unchanged, calmly eating her food.
"I just feel lost. That's why I'm traveling-to find a new place where I belong. A new home."
I eat another cut of the meat before continued, "I'm trying to find myself, mostly. I'm lost... "
I finished the last piece of my meal.
After telling them my story, Lily had a slight pity look on her face when she looked at me.
"Man, that's... Yeah, I... I get it," even Francis showed some sympathy.
"Adventurers, fighting monsters. Everyday facing an unknown death that passes by, testing their luck against this unforgiving world, yet luck eventually runs the fuck out." He explained. "I enjoyed this job, but I know I can't live like this forever... There's a certain time that I must quit and I know that, but somehow... I can't get myself enough of this job... I might die young eh?"
What the hell is he talking about?
I didn't understand everything he said, or even most of it. When he talked, it seemed like he was spouting whatever crap that came to his mind without a filter.
"The sensations, the feelings, the thrill... Gosh, I love all of it, but I'm also lost," he said, gazing into the distance as if recalling something.
"Back then, I was lost, searching for answers. Just like you, I didn't know where to go or what I wanted to do, what I had to do." He took a small sip of his beer before continuing.
"Everything felt... completely crushed, haze. What is my purpose? What is the meaning of my existence? What... am I?" He raised his metal tankard to eye level, staring intensely at it as if searching for something—a dent, perhaps. "I was lost."
He takes a big chug out of his beer before continuing. "Until someone told me-someone close, someone who touched my heart told me," he takes another sip, a bigger one this time.
He looked up at the ceiling, paused for a moment, then continued. "You will never be happy if you keep searching for what happiness consists of. You will never live if you are looking for the meaning of life."
From the way I see it, it's ironically dramatic that I just couldn't believe my eyes.
"I... I see." What the fuck is that? How is this drunkard become so wise in a mere second?
His behavior is certainly rough, straightforward, unfiltered, and he comes across as somewhat dimwitted drunkards.
But despite all the drinks and the blunt talk, he's just another experienced adventurer, living life to the fullest.
Nevertheless, he doesn't seem that drunk, does he? Even with his face flushed red and after so many rounds, he maintains a surprising level of clarity.
"All I say is, do anything you want to do. But do it if your heart is aligned with it. It's your life after all." Then he quickly followed with a panic tone as if he's giving the wrong advice. "Just do what's good for you, but don't overdo it, well, I don't really know what I'm saying, just, relax okay."
Saying that, he quickly emptied his last tankard.
"Ahhh... !" He exhaled, then continued. "Then, What'll you do here? You're crazy rich, right? How much money do you have? If you had Twenty Million more, you could buy a big house, no, a mansion!"
At his comment, many thoughts came to my mind.
I had 70 gold coins on my pocket right now. So, I didn't need to adventure anymore. Buying a house in this country was an option. But this country is close to Belzerg, and I can't ignore that either. Because Belzerg is likely hunting me.
Thus, I shouldn't stay in one place because Belzerg might come to this small nation, and they might catch up to me sooner than later, even with Mammon King as a curtain. Belzerg is not a kingdom to mess around, it's the biggest nation after all.
So the best option would be to move into " ...Alsforth." I subconsciously muttered my thought.
"Alsforth?" They both said in unison.
"How... Amusing. Lily here came from Alsforth, you know." Francis gestures his hand to Lily.
"Eh? You are?" I hadn't seen that coming.
Lily, caught off guard, stuttered, "Y-yes, I am. My party and I, except Alia, were born in Alsforth actually."
"You moved here?" I asked.
"N-No it's... Long story-the short is we just here to accompany Alia back to her... Uh.. home no, school. Here in Lorm actually."
School? High school or some kind of university? Well that's not important right now. "So, you're eventually going back to Alsforth, right?"
"R-right." Lily replied.
"When do you plan to leave?" If she was going to Alsforth, this might be my chance. Sure I could go alone, but having someone to be around is a much better choice.
"We... We don't know yet." She said anxiously.
Realizing I might be prying too much, I backed down. "I-I see."
"So? You're going to Alsforth?" Francis asked this time.
Now, his question somehow feels like a reality check. It made me slightly rethink my option again. "I.. don't know."
"Man you're like traveler and something you know." Francis said.
"I don't understand..."
"Coming from Belzerg and going far into Alsforth? Like, normally people from Alsforth and Lorm would move into Belzerg to make money before returning home with their bags full of coins or even staying there, but, here's you." He said, gesturing his hand to me.
Well, I've got money already. "You can say I am an exception, I guess."
"Indeed you are." He stretched his body and continued. "Well then, let me tell you something. If you're going to Alsforth, the No Man's land is where you want to avoid."
"No Man's land?" What's this again, some kind of place where bandits live or another monster king? "What's about it?"
"Right, let me give you a piece of advice." He quickly jumped and sat beside me.
"Imagine this is the main road." He drew a line on the table. "And passing through the mountain range, from here you have three options to the east." He drew a straight line.
"-north," he drew a line to the left.
"-and then south." Lastly, he drew a line to the right.
"Instead of taking the straight line to the east, through the forest, that's suicide. And I don't want my friend to be suicidal." 'My friend' huh?
"What's in there, actually?" Lily asked.
"Bandits. Don't go there, that place belongs to Bandits who call themselves Blood Eyes bandits... Or is it Red Eyes?" He looked to the ceiling, pondering.
"Doesn't matter, instead, you must go here." He said, drawing a line to the left, to the north.
"North, and past the hill, you understand?" Done with his explanation, Francis took a look at both of us.
"We used that path to get into Lorm. It wasn't because of the bandits, though. We happen to be from the capital actually." Lily said, slightly nervous.
"Yeah, like Lily-chan said, go past here and then just go north, follow the main road and you'll know you're safe when you come to the first city on Alsforth, Einshard. Well, Lily-chan should've known that, so that's that." He explained half-heartedly as if it's not a life and death matter.
"Just remember." He drew a circle in the center, east road. "Don't go here, the No Man's land, or forest. The trees will be drawn in red, having a red eye or a slash of blood on them. That is when you know, you enter their territory."
Lily gulped at his explanation.
"And let's just say, they don't take kindly to outsiders. You guys understand?" Francis held onto my shoulder.
"Y-yeah, thanks for your advice... I guess?" I said.
"You should! Oh! And for the information, can I get another?" He said, grinning and pointing his finger at me.
I lowly sighed then nodded.
"Rena-chann!" He shouted, raising his hand.
A deep blue-haired girl at the main table frowned with irritation and headed to the backroom.
"Oh, by the way, you just got here, right?" Francis turned to me.
"Uh huh? What's wrong?"
"I didn't see you in the fight earlier. Where were you, like, two hours ago?" he asked.
"A fight?" I replied, not really caring.
"Yeah, there was a fight. They—"
"Francis!" someone called out suddenly.
We looked towards the voice and saw a brown-haired woman standing a few meters away, her body fully covered by a cloak. She was glaring at Francis. "It's almost midnight. Time to go."
Oh, is that her mother or something?
No, she looks young... An adventurer, of course. Maybe his girlfriend or something.
"Oh, really... ?" Francis muttered definitely dissappinted at the girl's appearance, he closed his eyes then rubbed the back of his head while sucked his teeth. "Looks like my time is up guys—Just wait a minute, 'kay?! I just ordered my last drink!"
At his response, the girl just frowned, then left the guild.
"Seems like I can't tell you much, but I'm sure Lily could give you some clues." While he said that, a metal tankard was placed in front of us. "That was fast! Rena-chan, I love you~"
At his remark, Rena, the waitress, looked at him with utter disgust. As if someone looked at some cockroaches. "Just shut your mouth. Please." And quickly went off.
Grabbing the tankard, he said, "It'll be the last one." Before he downed it in one go.
How the hell is he still not drunk after all of that?
"Ahhhhh! Shit! I think this is my limit..." He smashed the empty mug before slapping my back firmly. It stung, but I refrained from complaining.
"Damn, Satou Kasuma. Thank you so much for the drinks! I really appreciate it, like, a mother giving her baby a breastfeed, it feels awesome."
"What?" Now that's vulgar.
Even Lily frowned, slightly disgusted by his comment.
"Let's continue our session another day," he said, rising from his seat. "And if you need anything, just look for me. I'll be around and happy to help. Of course, there's a limit to what I can do—I'm broke so I can't buy you drinks and I can't help you setting a fire on someone's stalls or I can't help you steal woman's underwear or something those lines—whatever." From his tone, it sounded like he'd been asked for help with such things before.
As he started to walk away, I grabbed his arm and pulled him close. "I need you to teach me your assassin's skills."
"Heh, that's gonna cost you a lot, you know?" He grinned.
"Let's say that money isn't an issue."
He raised an intrigued brow. "I can see that... but the real problem is that you're not an assassin. How the hell am I supposed to teach you?"
"I'm an adventurer. I can learn all skills, including those of an assassin."
"You..." He grinned once more. "You never fail to impress me, hero."
He straightened up, not caring that Lily could hear our conversation. "Well, I can't right now, but maybe tomorrow I can teach you. Or if you're lucky, maybe in an hour—if I'm still alive in this tavern that is."
Before leaving, he leaned in again. "Maybe it's not relevant, but just so you know, this girl's boyfriend is the real deal." He occasionally glanced over at Lily In between his words. "Like, he punched me in the face once when I talked to her."
I could imagine Francis had harassed Lily, and it would make sense for him to be punched in the face.
"But he's a good guy tho, a jerk kind of good guy. Still, just don't push your luck too far." Honestly, I don't need his advice as I have no intention to have a relationship with her. Added the fact that I'd already met this so called 'boyfriend' of hers.
"I feel like you're talking something bad about me Francis-kun." Lily said, clearly suspicious.
"No, I am not. I'm talking about your boyfriend. Your boyfriend is crazy." He said that while walking away.
"B-B-boyfriend? Wh-who are you calling boyfriend?! I—I don't have a boyfriend!" Lily's face turned red, and she was visibly flustered.
"Well, see you around Kashuma! Thanks for the drinks!" He waved his hand while keeps walking towards the door.
Lily was still flustered. "Is he always like that?" So I tried to ask her.
Surprised by my question, she shook her head, trying to compose herself, and replied, "Seems like it. He's always over-energetic, actually."
"Dino ever punch him in the face?"
"Y-yeah, apparently," she said, taking a sip of her Black-Neroid.
"Let me guess, he harassed you?" I asked, following her example and taking a sip as well.
"Sort of," she replied, staring at her Neroid.
"But you seem... fine with him." They were so casual that it bothered me slightly.
"Actually... It's less than harassment I say, but... I don't know" Lily explained, taking another sip. "At that time he's trying to test Dino-kun it seems, just like the way he tested you earlier actually."
"I see..." I took another sip as well.
She took a big sip then proceeded. "Ahh~~ And just like you, as soon as they fight, they instantly become friends... I don't understand that myself... He's also helped our party-guided us the first time we arrived in the city actually."
"I see..." His way of making friends was questionable, but he seemed to have it under control, an active member of the guild.
"Oh yeah, he mentioned a fight breaking out here?" I remembered him saying about such a thing.
"It's not a fight. Just another argument. They were arguing and almost broke into a fight, actually."
"Arguing about what?" I asked, taking a big sip from my glass.
"Goblin King." She took a quick sip before continuing. "Basically, when the information about the Goblin King is gained, the adventurers were supposed to form a raid party to exterminate the goblin army."
She taking a quick sip again before continue.
"But this goblin army is particularly massive, actually. I suppose Dino-kun already told you?"
Had he? I couldn't remember. "A hundred goblins, right?" I tried to guess.
Lily shook her head slightly. "It's actually around three hundred and fifty goblins."
"T-Three hundred... " At her claim, my eyes widened.
Three hundred? That's just too much.
That means... the horde that chased Lily's group this morning wasn't even half of their entire group.
Then how the hell they'd been able to escape such herd...
"Yeah, it's a terrifyingly massive number." Lily said taking her last sip.
"Is it because of the Goblin King?" I asked.
"That's right," Lily replied with a hint of disgust. "They were discussing what action they should take. The guild elder says they must wait for someone called Goblin Slayer to return to town, an expert on goblins. However, they don't even know where he is right now."
She continued, explaining that the young and confident adventurers didn't want to wait and were eager to take matters into their own hands. Meanwhile, the elder and experienced adventurers believed they should wait for the return of Goblin Slayer.
Three hundred goblins. That many could easily devastate a village or even this city if left unchecked. But they also shouldn't be careless in making the decision to fight with that many goblins.
I know that in this world, goblins are a common sight, usually grouping in numbers ranging from five to eleven.
Back in Axel, the largest group I ever encountered was around thirty.
But three hundred? That's ten times larger.
At least they need careful planning and preparation before engaging such an army.
Though, The younger adventurers also have a point-striking early could prevent the goblins from growing in numbers. However, the elder's plan, relying on the expertise of Goblin Slayer, seemed wiser if he was as skilled as they claimed. Both options carried uncertainties.
"And what did they finally agree on?" I asked.
"I'm afraid they haven't yet actually."
"I see."
"Oh, Actually, the younger adventurers planned to take action tomorrow morning they said." She said.
Part 5
"Thanks for the meal," She said softly to herself after finishing her entire dish and drink.
Then, she reached for her necklace. At a glance, I noticed a distinctive tree symbol on the pendant. Clasping the pendant with both hands, she closed her eyes and began to chant slowly.
Is she praying? It seems like it.
I waited for her to finish before asking, "You're part of Eris' church?"
"Hmm? Ah, no, I follow the Holy Tree Religion actually." She showed me her pendant.
Looking closely, it had a similar symmetrical shape to the Eris church symbol, but instead of an "E," it had a tree on it.
"Holy tree?" I repeated.
"Yeah, you haven't heard of it?"
I shook my head. "No, I'm sorry."
"No, it's okay. It's not common in this region actually, so it's normal for you not to know, especially if you come from Belzerg." She explained further. "In the Alstorth Kingdom, most of us priests and priestesses worship Kamael-sama, the God of Harvest and Nature."
"Kamael, huh? First time I've heard that name."
"Well, it's probably because Kamael-sama originally came from the eastern part of this continent actually. He descended to this world, created the world tree, and saved humanity in the region. From there, the teachings of the Holy Tree spread." She explained with an evident of enthusiasm.
She really likes talking about divinity, doesn't she? Well, of course, she's a priestess, after all.
However, I, on the other hand, found myself getting slightly bored with the conversation.
Don't get me wrong, It's not that I hate gods—Eris-sama has blessed me with her luck, after all. But still, if I'm so lucky, how the hell did I end up in this situation.
Perhaps noticed my silence, she decided to ask, "And you? Do you... believe in a god or goddess, Satou-san? Eris Church, right?"
"Well... I do believe in Eris... But I don't know if I really worship her." Yeah, Eris-sama is real, the same as Aqua, but.. somehow I can't bring myself to worship her.
"That's fine as well. It is said that some gods prefer not to be worshipped. You just need to believe in them."
"Is there?"
"Yes, Kamael-sama himself refused to be worshipped at first. But because of his power, this world continued to exist. The immense power he showed made him worthy of worship from us humans."
Honestly, I just don't really understand the concept of religion itself. A god, a goddess, heaven, and hell... I know they're real, and I've been confirming it thanks to a certain blue anomaly.
It's just... I don't really know how to put it.
The thing is, my image of gods and goddesses has already been shattered by the existence of a certain fraudulent, incompetent water goddess.
Though I don't really know this Kamael guy, so I can't really say anything about him.
Instead of letting my mind run in circles, I decided to ask more. "Are there any gods besides Kamael and Eris?" I intentionally left out another goddess I knew.
"Hmm, let's see... As far as I know, every god has some relationship with one another." She looked up, trying to remember.
"Belzerg and this country are popular with the Eris Church, right? Kamael-sama is Eris-sama's mentor, and if I remember, Eris-sama has a senior named Aqua-sama... And there's Antares-sama in the southern part of the continent. I don't know his relationship, but he's the God of Fire and Rage."
She paused for a little while before continuing, "There's also Trickster God Of Moon Rher and... Regina-sama." She nodded to herself, then looked at me. "That's all I know, apparently."
"I see..." I nodded.
"Umu." She nodded as well.
"I... see..." Man, without Francis, I couldn't think of any topic.
We sat in silence for several seconds. I tapped my foot anxiously, struggling to come up with a conversation.
She just sat there, looking at me with faint smile on her face.
Uh oh... If this continued, I could die of embarrassment. Okay. "D-do you want to order again, Lily-san?"
She flinched in surprise. "E-eh? N-no, I'm full... Actually..." Her face turned completely red.
Oh no, I feel like I've said the wrong thing.
Say something, Kazuma... Or maybe not, it might make it worse.
Uh oh...
"I-If that's the case, then do you happen to know any Eris churches around this city?" What the hell am I saying? At this hour?
"Eh? Uh... I do actually. D-do you want to pray?" She seemed excited about it. So, following her lead, I decided to go with the flow.
"No, I-I want to donate some of my money. I owe her literally everything at this point... as you can see, I'm in luck." Indeed, I am in luck.
"I can see that... actually. Do you want to go right now?"
"Come again?" I almost doubted my ears. Did she just ask me to go out with her? At this hour?
"Umu, that's right." She nodded enthusiastically. "Right now. You want to go?"
It's almost midnight, no, it's basically midnight right now. "Right about now?"
After the third time of asking, she raised an eyebrow, her face wrinkling slightly in worry. "Yeah? Is there a problem, Satou-san?"
"No, just... This late at night?"
"If you don't want to, we could go tomorrow... That's fine as well."
"Isn't it..." Isn't it dangerous? I wanted to ask that, but I chose not to. It's not like I'd let Lily be in danger or let any creep get close to her.
Even though I really wanted to take her up to her proposal and take a night walk with her, somehow it felt wrong... "Aren't you supposed to be asleep right now?"
She looked at the staircase across the guild hall before answering. "Right now, I really cannot sleep. If I force myself, I just stare at the ceiling, hearing all the constant noises from the other rooms... It's distracting." She smiled bitterly.
Constant noises from the other rooms?
"I see... Well, if that's the case, then sure..." Well, it's just a quick donation after all, nothing wrong with that, right? What could go wrong, actually?
Back in Axel, it wasn't uncommon for me to walk around with the three of them late at night.
Practically, Axel is quite a safe town. However, I don't really know about this City.
But it's not gonna stop me from taking a quick date with Lily. "Would you mind waiting a moment? I'll get my gear."
She nodded. "Umu. Take your time."
With her permission, I quickly went upstairs to get my gear. While preparing myself, I heard what Lily meant by noises from other rooms.
If I tried to sleep right now, it would be gruesomely painful, with the build-up and all, it's just not possible.
The constant moaning and bed creaking were really annoying to hear.
Man, they really don't hold back, do they?
There's no succubus dream that could relax my mind to help me sleep either.
After finishing my preparations, eager not to keep Lily waiting any longer, I hurried downstairs.
As I made my way towards the entrance, Lily stood there in her short blouse, her delicate, slender arms exposed.
Leaning casually against the wall beside the door, she gazed out into the night with an air of serene contemplation.
Under the soft, silvery glow of the moonlight, she appeared like a maiden from a painting, her pale skin radiating a gentle luminosity.
I couldn't help but admire her surreal beauty, momentarily forgetting to announce my presence.
As I drew closer, my footsteps echoing softly, she turned towards me with a slight tilt of her head. "Done?" Her voice was calm, yet filled with an unspoken anticipation.
Caught off guard by her mesmerizing presence, I found myself simply staring at her, momentarily speechless.
The moonlight traced the contours of her figure, casting shadows that danced gracefully around her.
A gentle breeze stirred, causing her hair to cascade in a majestic fashion.
In that moment, time seemed to pause, encapsulating the ethereal scene before me.
Lily's serene demeanor under the moonlit sky created a tableau of beauty that resonated deeply within me.
I cleared my throat before responding. "I am..."