Royal Audience (3)
"Whoa~ Sorry, Oppa! I couldn't contain my joy and went completely overboard!"
After being forcibly peeled off, Shasha scratched her head and apologized once she regained her senses.
"No, it's fine. Don't worry about it."
To be honest, it had felt good. Endorphins were surging through me, and I felt strangely invigorated.
"Doesn't Si-han's skin look all smooth and shiny now?"
"D-does Si-han like k-kisses?"
"Hmm, that turned out well! The piece shall be titled 'Lee Si-han, Helpless Before Women'!"
"Atsbal, did you seriously take a photo of that?"
"It was a great shot! That's just the kind of shutter chance I never let slip!"
"We're truly sorry, Lee Si-han! Our president caused you such trouble…!"
Even though I'd said it was fine, the dismantling department staff kept bowing their heads to me.
"No, really, it's all right. More importantly, shouldn't we start dismantling it?"
"…!"
At my words, the dismantling department employees' eyes lit up as they gathered around Praton's corpse.
Though startled by Shasha's sudden action, they were also immensely excited at the prospect of dismantling a sacred beast's body.
And a moment later—
"I-impossible!"
The dismantling staff cried out.
"The lower half of the Water Sacred Beast—!"
"Has no reproductive organs!"
"None at all! It's just covered in fur! This can't be!"
"As expected, a sacred beast is a sacred beast!"
"The long-standing debate over whether sacred beasts are male or female has finally been settled!"
"Camera! Someone bring a camera! This must be preserved as evidence!"
"What's all the commotion about?"
At my question, Shasha answered.
"Ah~ Sacred beasts take on animal forms, right? Some scholars have long wondered whether they can reproduce and what their gender might be. But even if they wanted to check, sacred beasts aren't easy to encounter. And above all, no one would just attack one out of the blue! Most people only get a brief glimpse, so it remained an unsolved topic that was only ever discussed in theory!"
"I see."
I'd gained some new miscellaneous knowledge.
"Then how much is Praton's corpse worth, Shasha?"
"Ah~ Well, you see~"
Before I knew it, her gaze had settled on the lips that had just kissed my cheek.
Recalling it again, they had felt incredibly soft.
"As I said, the value of a sacred beast's corpse is basically whatever the seller demands. We can't set a price right away either! So instead of settling the payment immediately… could we pay you after we've properly appraised it and sold it?"
Even Shasha couldn't make a snap judgment on something as extraordinary as a Water Sacred Beast's corpse.
"Understood. Let's do it that way."
We received the magic stones and monster corpses excluding Praton's body.
The magic stones were divided equally among us, while the proceeds from selling the corpses were set aside as group activity funds as usual.
And then—
"Ooh! So this is that Poison Boar Steak!"
Thanks to today's deal, Shasha was in an excellent mood as she guided us to the restaurant operated by the Cats Trading Company, where we could enjoy Poison Boar Steak.
After a short wait at the restaurant, five perfectly cooked steaks were served before us.
"Hehe, it's really delicious, so please enjoy!"
Listening to Shasha's confident words, we sliced into the Poison Boar Steak and took our first bites.
"Mmm!"
"Ah…"
"This is…!"
"Ooh."
"Mmm~!"
The moment the steak entered our mouths, rich juices and the meat's characteristic sweet-savory flavor spread across our tongues. At the same time, a faint tingling sensation stimulated them.
It wasn't unpleasant—just a pleasant, stimulating tingle that made the meat's flavor even more intense with every bite.
"Delicious."
"So this is Poison Boar Steak! That tingling sensation is exquisite!"
"I-I was worried it might be poisonous because of the tingle, but it's really good."
"This is definitely a delicacy!"
"I never imagined a steak like this existed."
"Hehehe, looks like everyone likes it! The charm of Poison Boar Steak lies in that tingling sensation! In fact, the tingle comes from actual poison! Of course, the cooking process removes all the harmful toxins while leaving only the tingling feeling!"
"This isn't something we can eat just once! Lee Si-han! We're adding regular Poison Boar hunts to Portis's requests!"
Atsbal seemed thoroughly enamored with the Poison Boar Steak.
Well, Poison Boar hunts could be done as a day trip, so adding one every two weeks or once a month wouldn't be a problem.
"I'm fine with it. What does everyone else think?"
"I-I think it's fine too."
"Ohohohoho! It's good to enjoy delicacies once in a while!"
By unanimous vote, Portis's first regular request was decided.
"Oh, right, Atsbal."
"Munch munch, what is it!"
"Give me one of those photos you took earlier."
I wanted to keep it as a memento.
"Mmm~!"
After treating us to Poison Boar Steak, the Portis members used the warp stone to return to Lukedia Academy.
Shasha returned alone to her office, stretched, and recalled the day's events.
"I really did something bold, didn't I?"
Lee Si-han had brought her the corpse of the Water Sacred Beast Praton—nearly half of its lower body, no less. Overwhelmed by the immense value contained within that corpse, Shasha had completely lost control.
In that moment, Lee Si-han, who had brought her a literal fortune, no longer looked like a person but like an incredibly precious lucky charm. She had wanted to hug him, cling to him, absorb his luck, and kiss him because he was just too adorable.
But looking back now that she was in her right mind, it had been terribly rude. As the president of the Cats Trading Company, it was unbecoming behavior.
'But it was the Water Sacred Beast Praton's corpse! How could I hold back!'
Fortunately, Lee Si-han himself had said it was fine, so the matter had passed without issue.
Thus, Shasha felt somewhat relieved as she replayed the moment in her mind, interpreting it in her own way—specifically, the moment she had hugged and kissed him.
'I'd expected it, but Oppa's body was quite sturdy and well-built.'
It had the feel of a martial artist's body trained to perfection.
But what impressed her most was that Lee Si-han hadn't pushed her away at all.
From what she'd heard later, his companions saw him as surprisingly weak to direct physical contact from women—a bit of a late bloomer in that regard.
She never would have guessed he'd freeze up until someone else pulled her off.
'So even Oppa has a cute side.'
The sight of Lee Si-han, who always calmly assessed everything, looking so flustered was oddly endearing.
Moreover, Lee Si-han was the type to openly say when something was pretty or attractive. He'd even told Shasha before that she was attractive.
In other words—
'He froze up because he got kissed by the attractive me.'
It was proof that Shasha held enough influence over Lee Si-han to affect him that way.
'Hehe, not bad~. So in the end, Oppa doesn't dislike my kisses either.'
Grinning, Shasha wagged her tail happily.
'Next time… if I kiss him a little more, would he like it?'
Shasha gently traced her lips with her thumb.
Several days had passed since they handed Praton's corpse over to the Cats Trading Company.
No major events occurred afterward. Portis spent their time as usual, taking on minor monster subjugation requests centered around Valendia or focusing on physical training and light sparring with all members present.
Today, after sweating through their usual physical training, Pamela was stirring a cauldron as always to make more incense, Yeon-hwa was leisurely sipping green tea, and I was looking through an album Yeon-hwa had bought, enjoying the photos of the Portis members taken so far.
"Kuuuul~."
Atsbal, having worked up a good sweat, was peacefully sleeping on his bed. He'd even bought a special pillow to hug while sleeping, claiming it improved sleep quality—though he only napped for about fifteen minutes at most.
Several days had passed since the main quest appeared, but I wasn't particularly anxious. The description in Rukpan had mentioned it would happen a few days after meeting Praton.
Probably, the next time we visited the Valendia Adventurers' Guild, they'd give us the next quest objective.
Just as I was thinking that and relaxing—
"Pardon me. Is this the Portis group?"
A guest had arrived at Portis.
'Hmm?'
And it was someone I never expected to see here.
A ponytail of deep sky-blue hair, like the clear sky. Golden eyes a shade brighter than Yeon-hwa's. Her base outfit color was blue, accented with yellow trim and white details. A sword hung at her waist, and she wore a slit skirt that was slightly bolder than Pamela's but more modest than Yeon-hwa's.
But what stood out most was the top that left nearly her entire sideboob exposed.
She was the character who had taken first place in the sideboob rankings, surpassing even Yeon-hwa who dominated most other categories. She was also the character I'd been trying to establish contact with in order to recruit her into Portis.
"That's right. And you are?"
"I'm Adelia Laden."
Adelia Laden.
A character who was picked up early but remained relevant all the way to the final stages—an all-rounder sub-dealer and area buff buffer had come to find Portis.
"The second princess of the Laden Kingdom."