Den's Desperate Confrontation
I was secretly impressed by that sweet proposal. We'd just been devouring each other, biting and sucking until we were both spent and sprawled out, and now she was suggesting we head to her room for a second round all night long? The widow's desires, pent up for ten years, were beyond imagination.
"Sis, you sure about tomorrow? You won't be able to get up in the morning."
At my blunt words, she jumped in surprise and waved her hands frantically.
"N-No! I meant it literally... just lying side by side and sleeping! Who said anything about all night...!"
Ah, I must've misunderstood. Come to think of it, after that intense lovemaking earlier, it was impossible for her stamina to keep going all night.
"Alright, let's sleep together then. But first, let me wash you up. You can't even lift a finger, right?"
"Mmm... I'm so tired..."
"Sit down. I'll take care of it."
For some reason, she seemed embarrassed and covered her front with a towel as she sat. I scooped up plenty of warm water from the wooden tub with a ladle.
Whoosh—
I lathered up some soap and started gently rubbing her back.
"Gotta buy ingredients tomorrow, right? Heading out early in the morning?"
"Yeah... the market gets meat and flour deliveries early, so I have to get up at dawn."
We exchanged casual everyday chatter as I meticulously cleaned her back and waist, my hands naturally flowing around to her front. Then I cupped her voluptuous breasts fully with both hands and began working up the lather.
"Hngh... Sian, you're supposed to be washing me, but your hands feel a bit off..."
"I am washing you. Gotta lather up thoroughly to get rid of that sticky oil. Still slippery down here."
I replied shamelessly, lifting the soft flesh slightly and slipping my hand under her underbreast. The plump, sticky sensation clinging to my palm had long since made me forget the excuse of washing her. When I teasingly rubbed her nipple with my finger, a lewd moan escaped through her lips.
"Ahng... What an excuse. For real."
She shot me a light glare but didn't push my hand away. If anything, she seemed to be savoring my touch, prolonging the afterglow of her climax.
But playtime was over. If I kept fiddling around here, we'd end up spending the night in the bathhouse.
"All done."
"Thanks, Sian."
We carefully slipped out of the bathroom and headed upstairs. Her legs seemed wobbly on the stairs, so I supported her waist, and she leaned into my chest like she'd been waiting for it, matching my steps.
Soon, we reached the door to her room.
"In you go, sis."
I reached for the doorknob. Suddenly, she grabbed my hand, looking troubled.
"Um... Sian. About that."
"What's up? Something wrong with the room?"
At my question, she fidgeted with the hem of her robe. After hesitating, she spoke in a mosquito-like whisper.
"Well... I'm really sorry, but about sleeping together earlier."
"Yeah."
"I think I said something stupid in the heat of the moment. Sleeping together... it just won't work. Sorry, really."
In the blaze of passion, she'd lost her reason to instinct, but now standing at her door, rationality had returned. Plus, even though we'd shared our bodies, spending the whole night—and waking up in the morning—in the same bed with an outsider must have made her belatedly shy.
I understood her feelings and took a step back.
"Got it, sis. Thinking about it, having me next to you might make it hard to sleep anyway. Good night."
"It's not like that... Sian... Good night."
She gave a small, relieved smile, patted my arm lightly, and slipped inside.
Too bad. We could've gotten even closer.
- No need for that. You've maxed out the energy from that lady.
'What? Maxed out already?'
- Yeah. I told you last time, right? The Resonance Energy you can get from Marina is capped at what you got in the bathroom earlier. Even if you bite and roll around with her all night now, it won't go up by even 0.01%.
Ria's voice dripped with the nuance of "business done, move on to the next target already."
But I chuckled and strolled leisurely back to my room.
'Oh yeah? Doesn't matter.'
- What? Doesn't matter? Hey, no more energy gain!
Ria sounded flustered and nagging, but I opened my door, went in, and flopped onto the bed. Sprawled on the soft mattress, I stared at the ceiling and muttered.
'It doesn't change anything.'
- What?}
'Sure, I approached her under the energy pretext at first, but now I don't give a damn about that.'
The thrill of crumbling a widow's reason with pleasure. The way her plump skin helplessly yielded and heated up under my touch. It wasn't just her who was hooked on me now. I was plenty satisfied with that seductive, lewd body of hers too.
'Actually, it's for the best. I wasn't paying attention to it anyway. Now I can just purely indulge whenever I want to hold that woman.'
- You horny lunatic hero. Forgot all about the holy sword's noble duty, huh?
'Hey, don't get mad. Of course I'll fill it... someday.'
Tomorrow, if I teased her purely out of desire, what slutty face would she make? Just thinking about it had blood rushing downstairs already.
**
Click. Leaning back against the door after closing it, I slid down and slumped to the floor.
"Haa..."
Droplets from my wet hair soaked my clothes, but the chill of that was nothing compared to the absence of Sian's body heat, which had so softly washed every inch of me moments ago.
I was thrilled when he said yes. I wanted to nestle in his arms, share breaths all night, and fall asleep.
But I forced him away.
Stumbling up, I curled into a ball on the bed.
Sian is... destined to leave someday.
Sian was like the wind. Just like five years ago, when he saved our village from becoming ashes and moved on, he'd pack his bags and wander off again one day.
Me? I'm just rooted here, tied to this little village, guarding the inn.
I could justify giving in to momentary pleasure somehow. Tell myself it was ten years of loneliness bursting out, that my body just overheated and instinct took over.
But spending the long night pressed skin-to-skin, waking to morning sunlight while gazing into each other's eyes—that was a different story. That's lovers' daily life.
What if I fell into that tender warmth? If he suddenly left later, I might end up clinging to his back, begging him pathetically not to go.
"That... I absolutely can't."
**
"Hngh!!"
Behind the inn, in the open lot. Beyond the tautly drawn bowstring, a faint but distinct mana had gathered at the arrow tip in a circular shape.
"Hoo, haa...!"
Mari sweated as she strained to maintain the mana at the arrowhead. Though it scattered after just a few seconds, she'd barely succeeded in manifesting the form of the Secret Technique's first stage.
"O-Oppa! Did you see? That was it, right?!"
Releasing the string, Mari waved her bow-holding hand excitedly and bounced around. Her triumphant cheer, like she'd conquered the world, put me in a good mood too.
I approached and gently stroked her sweat-dampened bangs.
"The form's a bit shaky, but yeah, definite first-stage success. Delicate mana control is the core of this technique, and you nailed it in just days."
"Hehe! With you holding me steady from behind and showing me the feel, it clicked right away!"
At my praise and touch, she squinted like a happy puppy and grinned.
"Grabbing the knack this fast means stages two and three will come quick too. Just train steadily without slacking."
"Think I can shoot it like you did?"
"The final fourth-stage envelopment is pure instinct and talent, so I can't guarantee it... but at your pace, you can definitely do it."
"Yeah! I'll work hard."
"Alright, training's done for today."
"Huh? Already? One more and I'll have it perfect!"
I took her bow from her protesting hands.
"You're meeting your party in the morning, right? Like I said, let's go check your gear."
"Oh... yeah, gotta pick up the armor repair and buy arrowheads too."
"Let's go. I'll buy you something tasty and escort you all day."
"Yay! Be right out after I get ready!"
Soon, Mari came bounding down the wooden stairs, her face lit up with excitement. Not her usual comfy adventure gear, but a neat outfit she'd clearly put thought into. She latched onto my arm.
"Wait long? Let's go, oppa!"
Our first stop after leaving the inn was the blacksmith at the village edge. Stepping inside brought a rush of scorching heat and acrid metal fumes.
Mari went straight to the owner and grabbed her repaired leather armor.
"Oppa, how's it look? Anything off?"
"Shoulder seams are stitched solid. Looks good."
For a squishy archer with weak defense, leather armor condition was life or death.
After inspecting it, we bought plenty of spare arrows. Checking feather fletching and tip sharpness one by one, Mari looked every bit the proper adventurer.
While she focused, I wandered to a display rack. Amid the weapons, one caught my eye instantly: a dagger forged purely for combat, no fancy decorations. Clean finish, perfect balance, light weight, razor-sharp. Perfect sidearm for Mari.
"Mari."
"Yeah? Oppa, I picked mine! Time to pay and—"
I held out the cool new dagger toward her turned back.
"Huh? What's this?"
"Saw you didn't have a good dagger, so it's a gift."
She took it, examined it closely, then hugged it to her chest with a beaming smile.
"Thanks, oppa! I'll treasure it!"
Next, we hit the general store for hemostatic ointment, bandages, jerky, preserved rations—adventurer essentials—on the way to her meetup spot.
"Nothing else?"
"Nope."
"Then let's eat. Nice clean restaurant just opened over there."
Clinging to my arm en route to the eatery, I spotted someone kicking up dust ahead, rushing desperately toward us. Familiar bulky build: Den, the ranch owner's son who'd challenged me to arm-wrestling in the inn hall days ago and got crushed.
"Huff, huff...!"
"Huh? Den? What's up?"
Mari tilted her head. Den skidded to a stop before us, flinching at how close I was to her. Fear and inferiority flashed in his eyes.
But it passed quickly. He clenched his fists, stared straight at Mari with a soldier's grim resolve before battle.
"Mari! Wait—just talk to me for a sec!"