Sloth (2)
I stirred awake from the faint sensation of restless fidgeting. The feeling against my chest startled me for a moment, but I quickly remembered the situation and let out a careful sigh.
Ar was nestled in my arms. It seemed I'd fallen into a deep sleep like this. No matter how much I'd upgraded our inn, this was still pretty careless of me. Falling asleep so soundly... But nothing bad had probably happened. Not only because of the inn's security, but because Ar, still held against me, appeared to have stayed awake the whole time.
She couldn't bring herself to push me away or escape my embrace. That must be why she kept squirming like this. Out of embarrassment. Or maybe awkwardness?
Still, it felt wrong to let her go now. Some part of me worried that releasing her at this point would only make things even more distant between us. So instead, I loosened the arm wrapped around her just a little. Then I shifted it slightly to give her a proper arm pillow.
Red eyes lifted to meet mine. Her pupils trembled faintly.
"I'll keep holding you like this while we sleep. So you should rest too."
I went full shameless mode. After all, even if I did more than this, it wouldn't really matter. With that thought, I pulled her closer with my other arm. I heard Ar draw in a small, sharp breath.
"You smell nice."
At that, Ar clenched her two gathered hands tightly. I wasn't sure what that meant, though.
Yeah. Why try to figure everything out? If it feels good, that's enough.
Feeling the soft warmth of her body, I drifted back to sleep. She probably wouldn't be able to fall asleep anyway, so I might as well rest deeply. Besides, it looked like we wouldn't be going hunting tomorrow either.
When I opened my eyes, it was morning. The room was bright, and I was still holding Ar. Surprisingly, she had actually fallen asleep.
This was unexpected. I'd assumed she'd stay awake all night. Was she that exhausted?
Ar, sleeping while held in my arms, looked incredibly defenseless. A beastperson girl who resembled a human one. And here I was, holding her. Honestly, dirty thoughts did cross my mind. After all, Ar had originally been sold as a slave for that kind of purpose.
But that was as far as it went. I had no desire to force myself on a woman who didn't want it, even if I was her master. The moment might feel good, but what came after would be irreversible. Considering my relationship with Ar, that was something I absolutely could not do.
Ar shifted slightly in her sleep. Then she jolted awake. I watched through half-lidded eyes as she realized she was still being held and let out a long, thin breath. She blinked tiredly a few times before dozing off again.
She must have been doing this all night. She looked utterly drunk on sleep.
So I just kept holding her. Honestly, this felt way too good. I didn't want to let go. And it seemed like Ar had resigned herself to it on some level. Maybe for someone as cautious as her, this kind of gradual closeness was actually the better approach.
It was only after the sun had risen high that I finally released my arms. Ar startled awake again. Her sleepy eyes met mine.
"Go back to sleep. Hunting's off the table for today anyway."
Only then did Ar sluggishly get up and head to her own bed. She collapsed into it like she'd fainted. I felt a pang of guilt.
Another day passed like that.
Thankfully, Ar didn't seem angry or sulky about it. She acted pretty much like usual. I wondered if this was really okay, but decided not to overthink it. To be honest, I was already treating her with remarkable restraint. Where else would she find a master like me? I barely even acted like one most of the time.
Well, I didn't really see myself as her owner anyway. If anything, we were more like comrades.
Night fell once again. Ar kept glancing at me, reading my mood. I hadn't been thinking much of it, but seeing her like that stirred up a mischievous impulse. Or rather, how could anyone stay still after seeing her act that way?
"Ar."
She flinched at my call and looked at me cautiously.
"Come here."
I regretted it the moment the words left my mouth. I'd called her like she was some kind of dog. Ar bit her lip, then slowly made her way over. Her steps were neither fast nor slow. I couldn't quite read what she was thinking. But she didn't look particularly unwilling.
"Was it uncomfortable?"
No answer. But she still didn't look upset. So I pushed forward. Shamelessly. Boldly.
"I'm going to hold you while we sleep tonight too."
To be honest, just holding her was getting difficult. I was a man, after all. There were physiological reactions to consider. Still, I said it. Shamelessly. Boldly.
"If you really hate it, I won't."
Still no reaction. But it didn't seem like a rejection. So I could take that as agreement, right?
"Come here."
This time I spoke more gently. Ar climbed onto my bed. Unlike yesterday, I lay on my back and simply offered my arm as a pillow. She seemed to find this position more comfortable than yesterday's.
"Tomorrow we're definitely going hunting. So sleep. I don't think any uninvited guests will show up here."
"...Yes."
Now that I'd heard her answer, it was fine. With a much lighter heart, I lifted the arm serving as her pillow and wrapped it around her. The soft body beneath my hand. The side of her chest pressed against my ribs as she lay on her side.
I'd noticed it yesterday too, but Ar's breasts were quite large for her frame. Large enough to feel this clearly.
Ah. I shouldn't. I really shouldn't be thinking like this.
I casually gathered more of the blanket and pulled it over my lower body. That should help a bit. Or maybe not. Whatever. Time to sleep.
By the time I woke up, Ar had fallen asleep in my arms. She looked far more comfortable than yesterday. Her sleep seemed deep too. It had been a bit forceful, but the result didn't seem so bad. Was this a relief?
With that, we prepared to go hunting. Once we were ready, we left the inn and reached the monster habitat around sunrise.
"Here."
When I spread my arms, Ar stepped into them. It was much more natural than before. She didn't even sigh. Well, after sleeping wrapped up together like that all night, this much was nothing.
Haste. Full-speed sprint. Grade 6 monster habitat. Ar dismounting. Deeper in. Grade 5 monster. Ar's interception after receiving Strength magic. The horn of a Grade 5 monster.
We soon entered the Grade 6 habitat and quickly encountered a monster. Another Vailie. It seemed there weren't that many different kinds of Grade 6 monsters around here. Maybe because we'd fought one before, Ar under Berserker magic took it down even more easily than last time.
Our bag still had space, and it was still early. If things went well, we might even get two.
"Let's look for something a bit smaller. If we can't find one, we'll head back."
Ar nodded. Out in the hunting grounds, all traces of her earlier embarrassment and awkwardness had vanished. We moved carefully, passing several Grade 6 monsters. They were all too big. Wouldn't fit in the bag.
Then we found a suitable one. A Grade 6 Coily. It resembled a monkey but had four arms and a tail nearly twice a person's height. The Coily's tail was expensive. It was incredibly tough, and when properly dried, it could be used for all sorts of things.
I nodded at Ar. She immediately dashed toward the Coily. The creature was fast, but Berserker-enhanced Ar was faster. The panicked Coily tried to whip its tail at her like a lash, but she dodged it effortlessly, grabbed the tail instead, and yanked hard. Then she seized its head and slammed it into the ground.
Whoa. Brutal. That was definitely Berserker mode.
It didn't take long for the Coily to die under Ar's assault. Its body had taken quite a few wounds, but that probably wouldn't lower the price much. The tail was still intact. That was what mattered.
I released Ar from Berserker and went over to the corpse, stuffing it into the bag. Two monsters in one day. I was already excited to see how much we'd get.
We returned to the village. Ar felt completely natural in my arms now. It was like she'd been carried like this for years. Thanks to that, my movement had improved too. Having someone pressed tightly against you and holding on firmly naturally improves your posture.
We reached the village quickly. I left Ar at our lodging and headed straight for the trading company.
"You didn't come the day before yesterday or yesterday, but today you've brought two. Impressive."
The appraiser wore a genuinely surprised expression. Someone like him could probably tell exactly when these monsters had died. He'd know they'd been killed today, and not too far apart in time. That explained his reaction.
After a while, the appraiser handed me the estimate. Written on it was a total of 290,000 marcas for both monsters. There was no need to argue. If they were offering that much, I'd take it immediately.
That left me with a staggering 750,000 marcas in hand.
Whoa. Was this okay? Was it really safe for me to be walking around with this much money? I should leave town as soon as possible tomorrow. Whoa. This was making me anxious. Please, I really hoped no one got any funny ideas.
That night, I held Ar as I slept, as usual. At dawn, I woke her and we left the village early. Thankfully, it didn't seem like anyone was following us. But I couldn't let my guard down. From here on, we'd be out in the open with no help nearby. 750,000 marcas was enough money to make people want to gather a group and attack. Even split among several people, it was still an enormous sum.
Fortunately, no such people appeared even after we left the village. That was a relief. At least the chance of being ambushed had dropped significantly.
Our carriage continued heading south. After traveling for a while, we got off and switched to another carriage. The one we boarded now was heading straight for Luise.
Man. 750,000 marcas. How the hell was I supposed to use this? I needed to think long and hard about it during the trip. About how to spend it in the most efficient way possible.