The Village Inn and a Heated Confession
We rode our horses at full gallop and finally reached a village. We tied the horses briefly in the inn's stable, then stepped inside.
"Welcome, sir!"
"Do you have rooms?"
"We have plenty!"
"We need rooms for four of us."
The innkeeper glanced at our group of four, tilting his head slightly.
"Four of you in one room?"
"...Yes."
*I hoped he wouldn't make that wrong assumption. We were just trying to save on room fees...*
"Condoms?"
"We don't need any!!"
"Ah, I see. Why are you shouting?"
"...I'm sorry."
Every time I checked out of a place, I ended up reacting a bit too sensitively to that sound.
"Here are your keys."
"Thank you."
I took the keys and immediately headed to our room. The reason we entered the inn so early today was simple: to make Alicia a little more human-like.
Right now... she was just a dirty little girl, no matter how I looked at it. I could tell from the way the innkeeper's gaze had turned icy the moment it landed on her. She was that filthy.
The moment we stepped into the room, I told Alicia:
"Alicia, go wash up."
"...Huh?"
"Abel, are you serious...."
"What?"
I saw Estelle giving me a strange look, and suddenly I realized there had been a misunderstanding.
"No, not at all! It's not like that. We just need to make her a little more human-like. We're going to wash her, then go buy clothes right away!"
"...Oh, I see. I was startled."
"I was startled too."
...What do these women think I'm like?
I handed Alicia a towel and said:
"Go in and wash up."
"But... I don't know how to wash."
"Huh?"
Thinking about it, Mother never had to wash or bathe much anyway. She just sat in the nest the whole time...
"...Why are you looking at me like that, Abel?"
"What do you think I'm going to say, Estelle?"
"You want me to wash her!?"
"...Couldn't you help? Celine already takes Alicia around with her..."
Estelle looked conflicted. It seemed she felt a bit uneasy about having to wash a monster herself.
"Please, Estelle."
"...All right."
Estelle reluctantly rolled up her sleeves. Then she told Alicia:
"Come here."
"Okay."
After Estelle and Alicia entered the bathroom, I plopped down onto the bed. I was going to sleep at an inn for the first time in a while. I'd have to wash up the second they came out.
"Ah, should I just tell them to wash first?"
"That works."
"Estelle!"
I called for Estelle, and the door burst open. Not that I had to open it—she just stuck her head out from the bathroom and said:
"What?"
"Go wash up too, Estelle. We haven't properly bathed in a while after camping."
"...I was planning to wash at night."
"...What?"
My startled expression made Estelle giggle.
"Pu-hu, I'm just kidding~♡ I know. I'll wash up too. Celine, can you pass me a towel?"
Estelle took the towel Celine handed her and headed inside. I turned to Celine and said:
"Don't you think you should wash up with them, Celine?"
After all, we're all girls, so it would be faster if we did it together.
But Celine shook her head.
"I can't, because it would trigger memories of the Saint from last time."
"...What?"
"The day the Hero shamelessly devoured me and the Saint♥"
"...Cough!"
A cough came out from Celine's bold statement.
This woman...
"I can't remember whether it was me being greedy or you and Estelle begging me to eat you."
"...W-what are you saying?"
Even though she looked like a mesugaki, she was already well-trained. I couldn't just get teased like this.
"It was you who kept pressing me because it felt good. What did you say... 'Eat more...'"
"Kyah! S-sorry! I'm sorry, so please stop!"
"Pu-hah!"
Celine's face turned as red as an apple. Who was teasing her?
"I'm sorry for teasing you too."
"Ugh... You were so much cuter before... I can't beat you anymore these days."
It sounded like she felt sorry for not being able to tease me?
"What makes me cute? That's something people like Estelle or Celine say."
"...Hero, you're pretty cute too."
"Huh? That's a bit..."
"Really. Although you're a little less so lately, you were always adorable following right behind the Saint."
"...When did I ever follow right behind?"
"You didn't? Well, when anything happened, you'd run straight to the Saint and report..."
No, that was because Estelle was worried. And in the early days, I didn't know much...
...Now that I think about it, that was following.
"Showing off your dumb side sometimes is also cute."
"...Am I that dumb?"
"Sometimes?"
"...Haha."
While I was chatting with Celine, a voice came from the bathroom.
"Abel~!"
"What?"
"I'm coming out now. Will you be there?"
"...I'll be right here."
"I don't mind~♡"
...I do mind.
I opened the door and said:
"Celine, wash up too. And call me. I'll be downstairs."
"Okay."
#
After Abel left the room and Estelle and Alicia came out of the bathroom, their faces were fresh and clean.
Especially Alicia—she had lost that grimy look and looked like a truly adorable girl. Celine let out a small surprised sound.
"Alicia, come here."
"Ah, okay."
Since this was her first proper bathing experience, Alicia's body was still a bit stiff. Following Estelle's guidance, Alicia sat on the bed. Estelle then climbed onto the bed behind her.
"W-what are you doing?"
"I'm going to wash your hair. The water's flowing, right?"
"Huh?...W-what!?"
When Estelle rubbed her head with a towel, Alicia squeezed her eyes shut. But Estelle only wiped her hair—no harm was done. Realizing that she wasn't being hurt, Alicia blinked and opened her eyes.
"It feels refreshing, doesn't it?"
"Y-yeah."
Alicia felt a strange warmth and accepted Estelle's touch with delight. Seeing this, Celine smiled and said:
"Estelle, will you wash my hair when I come out?"
"Go wash yourself, Celine."
"You're so stingy. I wanted to have it done too."
"You were taller than me anyway, so it was hard to wash yours."
"Hmm, that's true."
Celine understood and headed back into the bathroom. Estelle continued wiping Alicia's hair and said:
"Alicia."
"Huh?"
"I have a question."
"What is it~?"
To the now relaxed Alicia, Estelle whispered softly.
"What did you talk about with Abel in the nest?"
"...Huh?"
Alicia tried to turn her head to look back. Estelle firmly held her head straight and said:
"Don't turn your head. You still have to dry your hair. Answer my question."
"...I don't know what you're talking about."
"Should I pinch you precisely?"
Following her words, Estelle pinched her exactly.
"What kind of dangerous thing happened to Abel? That's why you had to take a monster like me with you, right?"
"...Y-yeah?"
Alicia was startled. She could answer, but she remembered Abel's reaction when he asked about it. Abel fidgeting with the Saint's memories. Alicia shook her head vigorously.
"I-I don't know! I don't!"
"You don't know? Don't lie. You said it yourself in the nest. That you could tell Abel if something dangerous happened."
"I-I really don't know! I don't!!!"
"Haa."
Estelle set the towel down. Then she whispered quietly to Alicia.
"The Hero isn't the only one who can kill Mother♡"
"...Eh?"
"I can borrow the Goddess's power. If I want, I can slice you right here and now. You'll get scolded by Abel for talking too much, but since I'm his lover... he probably won't scold me much for killing a monster, right?"
*Glug.*
I heard Alicia's throat bob. Alicia, who was a Mother, couldn't have missed what borrowing the Goddess's power meant.
"H-hiiik!?!"
Alicia tried to run away, but Estelle grabbed her arm and wouldn't let go. She pulled her close, flipped her onto the bed, and pinned her so she couldn't escape.
"Answer quickly."
At that moment, Alicia felt it. This woman was ready to kill her at any moment. The cat covering the mouse named Alicia lifted the corner of her mouth and said:
"If you don't want to die...♡"
#
"Estelle?"
Estelle, now dressed in her priestess robes, had quietly descended to the first floor. She approached without a sound and sat down in front of me.
"?
Something felt off. The atmosphere was heavy. She seemed a little angry?
"Alicia didn't run away, did she?"
"No. Alicia is waiting quietly in the room."
Then what?
Still feeling upset, I tried to soothe her.
"Would you like some tea, Estelle? The tea here smells good."
"...Abel."
"Huh?"
I was startled. Had Estelle's voice ever been this cold toward me? Her tone was slightly chilly, enough to make me feel it.
"...You're angry?"
"Yes, I'm angry."
"...At me?"
"Who else do you think I'm angry at?"
...Yeah, she was angry at me, so that's why. But I had no idea why...
I racked my brain, but Estelle hadn't done anything that would make her angry. Talking a few words with Celine wasn't enough for that.
I asked without knowing the reason.
"Why all of a sudden...."
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"Huh?"
What was she talking about? Feeling completely lost, Estelle let out a small sigh. She looked up at me slightly.
"Why didn't you tell me that the Demon King is targeting Abel?"
...How did you find out?
The question arose, but thinking about it only a little made it clear.
Alicia, that kid...
"...He probably said something unnecessary."
" 'Unnecessary' speech? How is that unnecessary?"
"It is. You talked about something that didn't need to be mentioned."
"...You say it didn't need to be talked about?"
Exactly. It was just a story that brought needless worry and anxiety. Nothing had been confirmed. As Grandpa said, it was best not to tell anyone else right now.
But Estelle glared at me and said:
"How could it not need to be talked about? And not anyone else— you had to tell *me*!"
"...There's still nothing confirmed. That's why I didn't say anything. It would only bring unnecessary worry."
When I heard my words, Estelle bit her lip.
"Why is there nothing confirmed? At the very least, the fact that the Demon King is targeting Abel is confirmed."
"That..."
"Besides Alicia, who did you tell? You couldn't have judged it alone."
"...The Pope asked for a little help."
"...Haa."
Estelle let out a dry laugh. Seeing her, I frowned slightly.
"Why are you doing this?"
"Why don't you understand? Really?"
"The Pope said it was best not to tell anyone but himself. I agreed too. If the others knew that I was targeted... things would get complicated...."
"That's true. You can't tell others. If the citizens learned the truth, they would force you, as the Hero, to sacrifice yourself."
Estelle said this while staring straight at me. Looking into her eyes, I couldn't help but feel a little surprised. There was sadness in them.
"But Abel, you should have told *me*. When I first met you, you talked with my grandfather— why didn't you ever talk with me?"
"That..."
"I spent much more time with you. I'm your companion. So shouldn't you have consulted and told me first, not anyone else?"
"........."
I couldn't say 'I didn't want to bring worry.'
"...You don't trust me?"
"Th-that's not true...!"
"Then why didn't you tell me? Did you think I would blindly fight just because the Demon King is targeting you?"
A dagger pierced my heart. Her words cut straight through my thoughts.
"I know the difference between right and wrong. I know I can't blindly fight just because the Hero, Abel, is in danger."
"...The Pope also said it would be best...."
"Don't bring Grandpa into this. Of course he wouldn't want me worrying about someone else's matters. But Abel, I'm your companion..."
Suddenly Estelle hesitated. Then, as if she had made up her mind, she spoke directly.
"...You're my lover."
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