This Makes You the Fourth to Know Rin's Name
Night fell over the city once the dinner hour—satisfying to both the one who prepared it and the ones who ate—came to an end.
Although Labin disliked Lucy, she gave the Hero several changes of clothes, including underwear, purely out of goodwill toward Rin.
"Neither the bra nor the panties fit at all. They aren't just tight; I can't even get into them."
"Well, sorry about that!"
When Lucy complained while trying on the clothes, the slender beauty Labin snapped back.
"Don't you have anything bigger?"
"They're my clothes, you idiot, so no!"
"Hmph."
Looking around the office, Lucy spotted a bandana lying around.
Picking it up and unfolding the fabric, Lucy wrapped it around herself to support her breasts.
"Want me to help you tie it?"
"No, I'm going to tie it in the front."
"Oh, tying the knot in the front like that? Interesting."
Despite her grumbling, Labin's attitude was surprisingly amicable.
But Lucy paid it no mind.
While not as worldly as Rin, she had enough experience to know that this kind of subtle kindness usually returned later as a favor that was hard to refuse.
Once she finished tying the knot, Lucy gave a light hop in place.
Bounce.
Though she had bound it as tightly as she could, her naturally large size created a rather desirable display of movement.
"Hey, Sir Hero."
"What?"
"When they're that big, aren't they heavy? Doesn't your shoulder stiffen, and doesn't it hurt when you run? Especially during battle."
"They're incredibly heavy, my shoulders feel like they're collapsing, and they bounce around and hurt when I run."
"Heh, I knew it. Bigger isn't always better."
Labin rubbed her nose, claiming a small mental victory.
The Hero tilted her head at the thief.
"What are you talking about? Bigger is definitely better."
"What?"
"Breasts and hips are weapons to captivate the man you love. If it's to win him over, it's a small price to pay."
"Ha. Ha. Ha. I wonder who Sir Hero's beloved could be?"
Labin gritted her teeth, her expression stiffening, but Lucy didn't care.
Deciding it was still too loose, she untied the bandana and wrapped it tightly around her body once more.
"Well, he might become mine, or he might not."
"Even the great Hero can't guarantee victory?"
"I have sins to atone for."
"Then did you apologize properly for those sins?"
Tying the knot firmly, Lucy looked at Labin.
Labin did not look away either.
Neither woman could maintain their sly, relaxed composure once the topic turned to Rin.
Lucy, in particular, was chanting a mantra in her head not to hit the thief in front of her, solely because she was Rin's acquaintance.
"I heard through the grapevine that Sir Hero did some pretty awful things to the man she wants to make hers."
"Don't worry. Soon enough, you'll hear rumors through that same grapevine that I've been forgiven and showered with love."
I have to endure. I am not Arciel. I am not the type to blow up instantly like Arciel.
Labin's blood was boiling as well.
But she held it in.
She would wait and see who would be the one smiling happily by his side in the end.
"If you're done dressing, get lost. Your room is over there."
"Where is Rin's room?"
"Rin?"
"Ah, so you don't know."
Lucy feigned surprise with exaggerated drama.
"His family name is Lee, and his given name is Rin. Lee Rin."
"What?"
Lucy sneered at Labin, who could only ask back blankly.
"Since you said you two have been connected since childhood, I assumed you knew."
She walked away with slow, deliberate steps.
With every stride, her chest swayed dramatically.
"Then again, he did say only three people in the world knew his real name."
Opening the office door, Lucy looked back with a seductive glance.
"Thanks for the bra. Consider telling you Rin's name my way of paying you back."
Her lips curled into a wide, triumphant arc.
It was the smile of a victor.
"Congratulations. With this, you're the fourth person to know Rin's name."
Click. She closed the door gently, oozing composure.
Listening to the fading footsteps, Labin bit her lip hard.
"That fucking bitch..."
Scattered on the floor lay the panties Lucy had torn apart while trying to force them on.
A sense of defeat—one she recognized but refused to acknowledge—weighed heavily on Labin.
Rin returned to his room, his face fresh and clean.
He couldn't remember the last time he had taken a proper bath.
Labin really made it big.
Earlier, he had noticed that besides basic ingredients like bread and potatoes for sandwiches, she also had plenty of fresh produce like cilantro and herbs.
The fact that she could instantly prepare hot water for a bath showed just how successfully she had settled in Waltercroix and how much her quality of life had improved.
Back in Gutter Alley, finding food was incredibly difficult unless they managed to forage something from the mountains or rely on hardy crops like potatoes and sweet potatoes.
According to the behind-the-scenes lore book, it hadn't been long since Labin arrived in Waltercroix, took over a thief guild that was treated as mere lackeys by the Triumvirate, elevated its status by several ranks, and earned their rightful place as a member of the ruling coalition.
"It's nice not having sticky hair."
Humming to himself in satisfaction from the bath, he stepped into the room.
Drying his hair with a towel, Rin closed the door and turned around. There, he saw—
"You're back?"
Lucy, half-naked with only a bandana bound tightly around her chest, was waiting for him.
"Uh... Lucy?"
"Yes, my Rin?"
"This is my room."
"And my room too."
"I'm pretty sure I asked Labin to prepare a room for you as well..."
"What are you talking about, Rin?"
Lucy smiled softly and hugged Rin.
"I can't rest or sleep without you, so why would we use separate rooms?"
Wait. We aren't in a forest or a mountain anymore; we're in the middle of a proper city.
Do we really need to stick together like this?
"But how did you know this was my room..."
"Shh."
Lucy pressed her face against Rin's neck and chest, inhaling deeply.
Taking a long, deep breath to drink in his scent, she pouted after a few moments.
"I can't smell you very well because you just bathed. There's only the artificial scent of soap."
"Isn't soap a better smell?"
"No. Your natural scent is the best, Rin."
Grabbing the towel resting on his head, Lucy gently began to dry the moisture from his hair.
As she dried his hair, their eyes naturally met. Instantly, Lucy felt the love and lust pooling deep in her lower abdomen flare up with heat.
"Haa... Haa..."
Oh, what do I do?
The more I look at Rin, the hotter and wetter I get.
Just looking at him brought a smile to her face.
She unconsciously bit her lip, her gaze tracing his lips, nose, eyes, and forehead in turn.
She wanted to kiss and lick every inch of his face right this instant.
No, endure it.
Before she was the Hero, she was a woman.
Rather than taking him first, she wanted the man to approach her.
She didn't want to seem easy.
Of course, she could throw away all her pride for Rin, but she didn't want him to see her as a woman who only approached him using physical temptation.
Rin had walked right past the brothels in Epaltelga and brushed off a succubus's seduction without a second thought. Lucy knew a simple physical assault wouldn't work on him.
She wanted to carry herself with modesty during the day, but transform into a wicked, seductive temptress for her beloved at night to capture his heart.
To achieve that, she had to suppress her immediate desires and wait until Rin was ready to accept her.
However...
Instead of enduring this secret lust, Lucy ended up revealing a different kind of darkness.
Covering Rin's eyes with the towel, the Hero wore a seductive smile.
"Rin, is that thief from earlier your childhood friend?"
"Well, it's hard to call her a simple friend since we used to clash, but it's not like we don't have any affection for each other either."
"I see."
She nodded, pretending to be completely unbothered as he pondered.
It was a tactic to show him: Look, Rin, I'm a broad-minded woman who doesn't get jealous over trivial things.
"When we were really young, she teased me so blatantly that the other kids would complain."
"She teased you? How?"
"Just, you know, the usual teasing for a shy boy of that age."
"So, what exactly did she say?"
Oops. She had let too much edge slip into her voice.
My expression... what does my face look like right now?
"Uh... she said a guy like me would never find a woman to take him in if it wasn't for her?"
Snap!
Lucy's expression stiffened instantly.
"And? What did you say to that?"
"I didn't say anything. There was no point in responding to her teasing."
"I-I see."
As expected of Rin.
Wise and handsome since childhood...
"She kept calling me ugly and weak, yet claimed she was the only one who would marry me. It made no sense."
"Who's ugly?!"
"Huh?!"
Rubbing his hair roughly with the towel, Lucy snorted in indignation.
"You're handsome, Rin! I guarantee it!"
"Uh... Lucy, I appreciate the compliment, but even I know my looks are pretty average..."
"You are handsome."
Lucy slipped under the towel with him.
Their noses brushed. When Rin looked up, her amber eyes were staring at him with desperate longing.
Embarrassed and flustered, Rin tried to pull his head back, but Lucy laced her fingers behind his neck to stop him.
Just by locking eyes, without either of them looking away, a strange, heavy tension filled the space between them.
"See? I can't even take my eyes off you."
"Yeah..."
"You're handsome, Rin."
Rin figured he would only get scolded if he denied it again.
As he nodded slightly and tried to pull the towel away, Lucy whispered as if possessed.
"I was so horrible to you when we first met, but I'm actually glad I forced that mask on you."
Lucy's gaze swept over him, tracing from his forehead down to his lips.
"I put the mask on you without even looking at you properly back then. But thanks to that, no one else could ever find out how handsome you are."
She was glad that she had been the very first to meet him, ahead of all the other party members.
Lucy couldn't tear her eyes away from Rin's lips.
She tried to swallow and calm herself, but she desperately wanted to steal those lips.
The moment they touched, it would surely feel hot enough to burn.
And within that heat lay the sweetest pleasure in the world.
Slowly, Lucy's thoughts and mouth began to disconnect.
"Rin."
Can I kiss you?
"Did you know Arciel when you were young?"
Let me kiss you.
"...I was in Arciel's gang when I was a kid."
"...I see."
It's fine. You're by my side now.
More importantly, can I kiss you and take you right here?
The distance between their lips closed bit by bit.
"Were you... really close with Arciel?"
What do I do? I can't stop licking my lips.
"We were very close. Inseparable, even."
She froze.
"What?"
What?
"I was called Arciel's left hand."
Her thoughts ground to a halt.
It was an unexpected answer.
The towel slipped and fell to the floor.
The expressions revealed on both their faces were remarkably calm.
"I don't care."
Lucy spoke coolly.
"If the Saint were that precious to you, you would have taken off your mask for her."
She wasn't angry at all.
"But you didn't."
She was only reassured that there was nothing between them.