After returning to the city, I went to explain the details of the matter to the guild.
About how the Gray Bear subjugation had been done by an adventurer named Dill, and also about how I’d killed Dill because he’d come to attack us.
It seemed that it was rare for adventurers to talk that much without hiding anything, and most of them seemed to hide it, thinking it’d turn into some kind of crime. Setting aside if it was inside or in the neighborhood of a town, it’d be rather hard to prove if the matter took place in a forest, in fact.
So, reporting wouldn’t mean I was somehow to blame. Rather, it was Dill who’d come to attack us, which was warranted based on his usual attitude.
I gave the sample of his blood to the guild. If there was some kind of substance in the blood, it could tell us what had happened to Dill.
Regarding the remuneration… since I’d taken some of the proof that the Gray Bear had been defeated, such as the fangs and claws, it was treated as me having subjugated it. It seemed the guild decided that it was no problem since, in the first place, they’d requested it because I could win.
Although my first job with Aine had turned into an inexplicable result, the job was completed with this for now.
“About today, umm… I’m sorry.” Night—Aine suddenly talked to me like so. Not knowing what she was apologizing for, I asked Aine back, “about what?”
“I mean, that… When Dill came to attack.”
“Aah, so about that. You don’t have to worry about it.”
“I said I won’t be a burden and yet, at the most crucial time I… It’s really pathetic.”
Apparently, Aine was referring to the timing when she’d been attacked by Dill. Certainly, it’d been the worst timing—after all, Aine could’ve been killed if I had been a little slow.
But, with her personality… even if it hadn’t been Aine’s intention, she would end up worrying about it. She was the one who had said she would like to come after all.
“This is just a what-if, but if you were in my shoes, would you blame me?”
“…Eh?”
“Let’s say I couldn’t move for some reason, and you saved me. And then after that, I wonder if you’d say that it’s my fault I couldn’t move.”
“S-such a thing—no way I’d say that…”
“Then this conversation ends here. I also don’t think it’s your fault, and in fact, I was taking you with the intention of protecting you from anything that might happen. Actually, the job turned out a bit off, but it turned out well, didn’t it?”
“…You’re, right. But, like… putting it that way is, unfair,” Aine said, pouting her lips. Even if she told me that, I wouldn’t blame her for something she wouldn’t blame me for.
I was always being told that I’d never been seen angry, and maybe I wasn’t the type to mind about it in the first place—that was why, I’d asked Aine to close her eyes at that time.
When Dill had attacked Aine, anger was all I’d got. Seemingly calm, I’d intended to kill him, no matter the reason.
I had no idea what kind of expression I’d had at that time. But, I somehow hadn’t wanted Aine to see it—I had no idea whether that was my selfishness, though.
“Anyway, today’s job is over. I don’t particularly plan to do any work tomorrow, so go get some good rest today as well.”
“…Okay. Then, can you lie down?”
“Nn, it’s still too early to go to bed, though—”
“Not going to bed, I’ll give you a massage.”
“A massage? Can you do it?”
“D-don’t make fun of me. Even I got complimented when I was in the knight order.”
Although not sure whether Aine got the confidence, I laid down at her urging. Even though she must be tired, too… She applied just the right amount of pressure to my shoulders and waist. It felt rather good, but the one who spoke out the first doubt was Aine. “…Aren’t you too stiff?”
“Well, I’m not using it that much and all.”
The fight with Dill was just about the only time I’d swung my sword. If anything, it should be Aine who’d done her best to fight in the forest.
I got up and pulled her by the shoulders.
“Fueh, hey, w-what are you…!?”
“Well, I’m all good, so I’m just thinking of giving you a massage. You’re more tired than I am, right?”
“Ah! I see, a massage! So it’s a massage!”
I tried to get Aine to lie down, who looked flustered for some reason, but she put up just a bit of a resistance… Perhaps there was something else to do other than that.
“I-I’m also all good!”
“Don’t say that. I know you must be tired.”
“That’s not… Hinyan!!”
When I pushed a pressure point around the waist of Aine who was lying face down, she made a coquettish voice that wouldn’t seem to have come from her. …This was supposed to be just a massage, though.
Aine remained looking down while trembling.
“Aine, aren’t you pretty stiff?”
“…Yep.” Aine gave an honest nod. In the first place, it should have been a while since she’d moved her body.
Thinking about it, it also wouldn’t be surprising that the fight in the forest was becoming a burden.
Of course there was that too, but… seeing Aine’s reaction was just fun. When I, once again, put a pressure on my thumbs to massage Aine’s waist, “uhiiii!! W-wait, give me a pause!” Aine moved her body and tried to resist in response to my acupressure. However, I just held her down in a horse-riding fashion.
“It’s all right, just leave it to me. I became an S-rank adventurer with this massage, you know?”
“T-the Lunois I know is not someone who would say something like that!”
“I suppose people do grow up.”
As a matter of fact, Aine used to be the better one with the sword, and also the type to pull some kind of pranks on me. Although not a payback by any means, Aine’s reaction like this was very refreshing to me.
So, I would like her to think of this as a kind of light skinship.
“Lu-Lunois… I did apologize, right?”
“Yep, I’m really not angry about that, or even bothered by it. I’m just thinking of returning back a massage since you massaged me.”
“Wa-wait… I don’t need any kind of massa… ah, aaahhhhh!!”
…I really was just giving a massage and yet, for some reason, Aine sounded like I was doing something even more questionable than usual to her.
While I was giving Aine a massage, her voice continued to echo in the room.
＊＊＊
Aine sometimes would dream about the past; and that, about the time when she and Lunois had been training with swords.
Aine’s father, an adventurer, would return from time to time, to accompany her in her sword training. Aine’s mother, who had been an adventurer, would always watch. And Aine, who had been raised by such two people, had got her talent as a swordswoman blossomed from an early age. …And as a result, there were things she could understand despite being very young.
That was: Aine certainly had the talent, but she couldn’t become an adventurer like her father and mother.
Aine’s father was an A-rank adventurer, and her mother had also been an A-rank adventurer. However, she could tell from seeing her father’s swords—that he was much, much better than that.
And that Lunois, who had been training with Aine, was more talented as a swordsman, and not Aine.
Therefore, Aine would have a teasing attitude towards Lunois.
That was not at all because she hated Lunois—she’d wanted him, someone with the talent, to grow stronger. Aine had had the feeling that if Lunois were to become stronger, she could become even stronger.
That If the competing partner were to be stronger… Aine could grow more. It was at the age of thirteen that she’d understood that this was what ‘running away’ was all about.
Aine had come to harbor a certain feeling as well as expectation for Lunois, who was growing remarkably.
—She liked him for being kind at all times, she liked him for trying to protect her even when he was weaker, and she liked him for being so competitive when it came to a sword match—
She couldn’t become stronger together with him while harboring such feelings—feeling this way, she’d decided to leave Lunois’ side.
Aine had tried to be strong, not as an adventurer like her father and mother, but by living a different path as a ‘knight.’ …And the result, she’d ended up in the way of life of a slave. No way she would have imagined it.
Since the severals days of Aine becoming a slave, no, since she’d been fitted with the ‘Sexualification Collar,’ Aine had not had a single day of peace of mind.
If she were to go to ‘heat’ in the dead of the night, there would be no one to help her relieve it.
Rather—perhaps to harass Aine—there had even been times where she would be left alone the whole day with arms bound.
Aine’s feelings had nearly been broken many times… even so, she’d act brave on the outside.
An every day of simply having her body harassed, just to be sold as a virgin sex slave, without even a plan to break out of it—the dreams of the past she had had during those days simply had made her miss them, feel miserable, and cry.
“…Nn.”
Morning; Aine woke up. Still only four days since Lunois had bought her—despite it being such a short time, she felt that she was able to close the distance between him and herself significantly.
Seeing Lunois asleep in front of her eyes, Aine made a small smile.
After several years of not seeing Lunois, she found nothing had changed about him, but he had become very strong… and, this made her feel at ease when she was with him.
She never would’ve thought that the day would come when she could dream about the past and miss them normally.
“Lunois, it’s already morn—”
Aine hushed as she tried to wake him up who was sleeping next to her.
He had said no job today, that it was a rest day. In that case, there would be no need to wake up early.
Quietly, Aine lay down on the bed again and slept, snuggling up close to Lunois. …When she was close to Lunois, she could smell his smell.
Although it was not even the effect of the collar, thinking about Lunois with him being close made her… feel weird.
Despite being forced to go into heat, being touched by Lunois gave her a feeling she’d never felt before. Even though that was exactly what she had been trying to endure with her willpower so far, she couldn’t in front of Lunois.
Could it be that I’m… a pervert?
She even ended up thinking such a thing—if it were to be known that Aine was harboring such a wicked feeling towards Lunois, would he scorn her?
Lunois is kind so he would never… despite thinking so, she was afraid of having her feelings be known.
For this reason, Aine tried to close the distance between Lunois in a roundabout way.
Trying to take a bath together, trying to give a massage—she thought: if she increased the amount of skinship, Lunois could turn to feel that way.
Not doing the ‘act’ simply because it was necessary to Aine, who would be brought into heat by the effect of the collar… but to yearn for Aine. In the end, she also scorned herself for being able to only have such fawning thoughts towards Lunois. Now that she was a slave, did she have the qualifications to fall in love with Lunois?
Therefore, Aine made every effort to be as helpful as possible. Lunois had told Aine that he would protect her—whether this was from his ‘liking’ or just pure kindness… Aine currently didn’t know.
Even supposing it was just from kindness, if they could be together then… Aine was content simply with that.
But if we can be together, that’s fine. I’m… not wishing for more.
Thankful to be with Lunois like this, Aine continued to live her day today.
＊＊＊
TL notes:
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