Daughter of the Sun #1
Daughter of the Sun #1
"R-Really? You want to be next to me?"
My heart started pounding at Kate's voice.
Hearing a remark like that from a beautiful blonde, of course anyone's heart would flutter.
A sudden remark without the slightest warning!
My firmly resolved heart wavered, if only for a moment.
Kate looked at me and hurriedly added.
"We're friends. Wh-What's wrong with friends being together?"
An excuse if I ever heard one!
But I couldn't bring myself to say anything to Kate. She was, after all, my irreplaceable old friend. Though I hadn't expected her to use friendship as an excuse to stay by my side.
I nodded, looking a little dubious.
"You're right. Friends can do that."
"R-Right? Mongma-nim is my friend! A slightly secret friend... to the person you're dating, I mean."
A secret friend? Seriously?
Kate's voice reeked of danger.
Before I knew it, I seemed to have become Kate's secret friend.
But I had no intention of keeping my friendship a secret from Rebecca.
"Fufufu."
Kate seemed to regain her energy at my affirmative answer. Soon, her usual shamelessness crept back into her voice.
"Mongma-nim! Since we're friends... don't you think we could have some light physical contact?"
"Physical contact?"
Kate nodded at my dumbfounded expression. She swallowed and spoke.
"L-Like holding hands?"
.......
"Holding hands isn't too much to ask, is it?"
We're slowly escalating the demands here, aren't we?
Even if they're a man and a woman, friends can hold hands.
But Kate didn't seem to be aiming for purely platonic hand-holding. I recalled ten days ago, when the after-party ended and I walked through the city alone with Kate.
That was the first time I held Kate's hand.
While holding my hand, Kate kept fidgeting her fingers, maybe from embarrassment. To the point where her palm was damp with sweat. It was unmistakably the behavior of someone acutely aware of the opposite sex.
Kate stealthily extended her hand toward me, palm up, stopping it between the chairs.
I was silently flustered by Kate's offered hand.
"What do you think? We're friends. It seems fine to build intimacy through physical contact, don't you think?"
.......
I had no choice but to remain silent at her blatantly transparent question. I figured if I just waited, Kate would lower her hand on her own. But time passed, and Kate didn't lower her hand. She just kept her palm open between the chairs, an awkward smile on her face.
Time passed.
Kate's arm trembled like she was being punished.
"Mongma-nim?"
"Fine."
In the end, I took Kate's hand after much deliberation. I'm not some old fogey who preaches about keeping the sexes apart, and this level of physical contact was within acceptable limits.
Our palms met, and I intertwined my fingers with hers. The soft, squishy feeling of a woman's palm was truly addictive. Every time our fingers interlocked, Kate let out a small sound.
"Eep."
"Why? Did I hold your hand too tight?"
"N-No. It just tickles... and feels good."
"Okay."
The moment our hands were perfectly clasped, Kate relaxed her arm. Our joined hands hung limply between the chairs.
I'd held hands at Kate's request, but honestly, I felt good too. Because the smooth feel of a hand without a single callus was so pleasant.
"Let's just stay like this until the others come back."
Kate leaned back in her chair, closing her eyes. It seemed she meant to catch a quick nap until the break ended. I thought holding hands might be uncomfortable, but for some reason, Kate looked utterly serene. Left like this, she really seemed like she'd fall asleep.
"Isn't it about time they came back?"
Quite a long time passed after that.
But our clasped hands never came apart. Because the two adventurers who had gone to rest hadn't returned. The Lizardman spearman and the Halfling swordsman.
Weren't they just stepping out for some fresh air?
"Kate!"
"Eek! Wh-What's wrong?"
Kate, who was half asleep, woke with a start. I released her hand and spoke. Because I figured we couldn't afford to rest any longer.
"The party members aren't back. The Lizardman and Halfling I saw earlier."
"Y-You're right! What happened? Where did they go, saying they'd just rest and come back?"
"We should go check. If we keep waiting, the sun might set."
An hour had passed since Wendy finished explaining the quest. If they'd been gone for a whole hour, something must have happened to them. But whatever happened, could it really be more important than the promotion match?
'Something feels off.'
Come to think of it, when they left the reception room, they didn't really say anything. They should have at least acknowledged my suggestion to take a break, just out of courtesy. What the hell are those bastards doing?
"Let's go together!"
"Come on."
I opened the reception room door and walked around the annex with Kate. But even after scouring the area around the building, the Lizardman and Halfling were nowhere to be seen. Finally, after wandering around, I spoke to a guard stationed at the annex entrance.
"By any chance, have you seen a Lizardman with a spear and a Halfling with a sword and shield? They should have been resting around here."
"Ah. Those two? I've seen them."
"Do you know where they went? Those shitheads."
"Those shitheads? Both of them left the guild a while ago. I saw them heading downtown."
"They left?! Together?"
"Ah, no. They didn't leave together. The Lizardman left first, and the Halfling followed. Are you acquainted with them?"
"No, we're not. But anyway, thank you for answering."
I was utterly dumbfounded by the guard's answer.
I said we'd rest and regroup, and they just left?
"What the hell are those pieces of shit doing?"
"Did something urgent come up? Even so, they should have at least told us before leaving."
The reason I'd called for a break to regroup was to have time for introductions. To check the party members' specs before leaving today. I thought it was common sense.
And they just ditched us without a word?
"This!"
I was suddenly seized by a terrifying thought. From my past life, when I had the misfortune of being the team leader for a group project in college. The bastards who left my messages on read back then had exactly this vibe.
"Are they goddamn trolls? Should I just ditch this right now? A-Ahh...."
"Honestly, I felt something off about them too. For a nun to enter the room and not get a single word of greeting... I've never met party members like that before."
It seemed Kate also had her suspicions about the two party members. In this moment, I seriously considered quitting the promotion match. If it's a promotion match, I could always just take the next one, right? Rather than getting stuck with trolls and suffering a cancer-inducing headache.
"We have to meet them again tomorrow morning anyway! We can ask about their circumstances then. If it's some lame excuse, we can just disband the party at that point."
"Still, leaving without a single word is just incomprehensible."
"Leave that to me! I'll give them a piece of my mind! Surely they wouldn't dare ignore a nun like me!"
"You ignore me all the time."
"Ahem. That's only because it's you, Mongma-nim."
After talking it over with Kate, we decided to deal with those two party members tomorrow.
I parted ways with Kate in front of the Adventurer's Guild.
After sending Kate off to the church.
I was walking through the city alone.
"Hm?"
Suddenly, I spotted a familiar face in the middle of the street.
Rebecca was walking toward the Adventurer's Guild.
The moment our eyes met, Rebecca smiled brightly and waved at me.
"Luke!"
"Hm?"
Rebecca approached me with a gait that was almost a run. In her hand was a paper bag stuffed with strawberry pie. Didn't I ask her to bring me some? Strawberry pie.
I asked Rebecca, looking surprised.
"What brings you here, Rebecca? Do you have business at the Adventurer's Guild?"
"No! I just came to see you!"
"You could've just waited at home to see me."
Rebecca looked at me with a dissatisfied face.
"You said your promotion match starts tomorrow! That means we won't see each other for a while again. Shouldn't I look at your face often while I can?"
"I see!"
To think she'd run all the way here from the inn just because she wanted to see my face. My heart swelled at her coming. The moment I unconsciously reached out and pulled her into a hug, Rebecca let out a puzzled voice.
"Hm? But why do you smell like a blonde?"
"Uh oh."
"Luuuke-?"
Rebecca stared at me with a frown.
I realized I needed to explain things to Rebecca. To walk through the city together in peace, we definitely had to clear up this misunderstanding.
*
After a brief explanation about Kate.
Rebecca nodded as if she understood. A bright smile had returned to her lips.
"So you ended up taking the promotion match with the blonde nun? The smell is because she was next to you. Well, she does seem like she's been an adventurer for quite a while. It's not strange for her to have her promotion match on the same day as you."
"Yeah, something like that."
My explanation was short, but Rebecca didn't press me any further. I was about to mention holding hands with Kate, but in the end, I decided against it. No need to make a mountain out of a molehill by bringing up unnecessary things.
"Let's go home, Luke!"
"Alright."
Rebecca smiled brightly and linked her arm with mine. My arm was buried in Rebecca's ample chest. The springy pressure of her breasts against my arm made me feel blissful just standing there. Or, looked at another way, thoroughly entranced.
Big boobs really are the best.
After that, Rebecca and I walked through the city together. I moved in sync with Rebecca's strides. Returning to the inn took much longer than usual.
"Rebecca. This is the long way around, isn't it?"
"What, you don't like taking the long way? I just wanted to walk a little longer, together."
"No, of course I like it."
"I like it too."
With our arms linked, Rebecca led me not on the direct path, but on the scenic route. Thanks to that, I was able to enjoy the bliss of walking arm-in-arm down the street for quite a while.
We were walking near the city hall of Yoen-su. Because we had twisted and turned the route so much, we were passing by the city hall. I had no choice but to stop there.
"Because I saw a familiar face."
The wide pond in front of the city hall building.
A girl standing by it caught my eye.
She looked just like Wendy. Rebecca tilted her head as soon as she saw the girl I was pointing at.
A young girl who looked to be about ten years old.
She had fine chestnut hair, styled in twin braids.
"A face I've seen a lot somewhere?"
"It's Wendy's daughter. I've seen her come to the Adventurer's Guild a few times. Even talked to her before."
"The receptionist's daughter...? She really is cute! Is that little tyke going to grow up into a boob-monster like the receptionist?"
A boob-monster!
Had Rebecca been looking at Wendy with that kind of gaze all this time?
Regardless of Rebecca's gaze, I couldn't just pass the kid by. Because the way she was leaning her upper body over the pond looked dangerous. If she were a stranger, I wouldn't care, but she's Wendy's daughter.
Wendy's daughter, Mary, knew me, so there was no reason to hesitate to talk to her. Wendy had introduced us, and we'd chatted a few times at the Adventurer's Guild. Since she was a naturally bright kid, she'd quickly let down her guard around me, an incubus.
"What are you doing there? You could fall in."
"Huh? Luke! Hi!"
Mary waved at me.
As I approached the pond, I asked Mary.
"Is there something in the pond?"
"My ball fell in."
"A ball?"
"I was playing with it and kicked it too hard."
Mary stared into the pond, looking like she was about to cry. Just as she said, a small ball was rolling around at the bottom of the pond. The water looked quite deep, so it wouldn't be easy even for an adult to get in.
I told Mary without a second thought.
Since I'm always indebted to Wendy, I wanted to repay the favor. If I help out her kid, maybe I can snag some benefits later, right? A veteran receptionist at the Adventurer's Guild is bound to know a lot of things.
"Wait. I'll get it out for you."
"How?"
"Liquid."
A moment later, Mary's ball was in my hands. All I had to do was manipulate the water and scoop the ball up to the surface. Mary was so surprised by my magic that her mouth hung open.
"Luke. Your magic skills have improved quite a bit."
"Right."
"It feels completely different from when you got my hairbrush out of the well last time. You were struggling just to breathe back then."