Chapter 358: Guwon's Counterattack
Chapter 358: Guwon's Counterattack
The moment I heard Diana's words, the name of Sara's passive Hero skill suddenly came to mind.
Hero's Bloodline. The name of this ridiculously overpowered skill, which drastically increased the growth rate of all combat-related abilities, made it obvious to anyone that the Hero job was passed down by blood.
But wait, didn't Sara say she had no family left?
Her grandfather was dead, and her father was definitely... Don't tell me the story about her father's death was just a rumor, and that guy is actually her dad? That can't be the plot twist, right?
No. There's no way someone with a face like that could have a daughter like Sara.
Even if this is a fantasy world, that would completely ignore the laws of genetics.
I immediately discarded that possibility.
Thinking about it calmly, there was no way he could be Sara's father in the first place.
That guy looked like he was around my age.
People say you tend to look younger as your level increases, but that's only because the level bonus is applied to your Charm stat.
Judging by his killing intent, his level seemed pretty high, but there's no way a guy with a Charm stat so low he still looks average even with the level bonus would appear young.
That means he's definitely around my age.
The possibility of him being a half-brother wasn't zero, but even with a different mother, there's no way a guy who looks so drastically different from Sara could be...
I just couldn't bring myself to accept it.
Maybe the 'Hero's Bloodline' skill was just named that to sound cool?
Maybe the Hero job has nothing to do with bloodlines at all?
No, but I think I remember hearing that Sara's father was also a Hero...
“What's the matter? Surely the Saint isn't that fascinated by a Hero, is he?”
Just then, Diana looked at my face and spoke with a playful smile, as if she found the idea absurd herself.
Right. What's the point of worrying about this by myself?
I've got our little pocket of wisdom, the great Diana, right here, who can answer most of my questions.
But I have to be careful. Whatever the reason, as long as Sara hasn't revealed that she's a Hero, I can't be the one to spill the beans before she does it herself.
“Um... Diana. There's something I'm a little curious about.”
“Hm? What is it?”
“Is he really the only Hero in the world? Were there no other Heroes before him?”
Right. If what Sara said was true, then her father must have been active as a Hero openly, without hiding his job.
If so, there's no way Diana wouldn't know about it.
“Of course there were. That man's family has been Heroes for generations. His mother was one, and so were his ancestors going back.”
Diana didn't give me the answer I wanted, but she did give me one that offered a glimmer of hope.
She just said his mother was a Hero, not his father, right?
That means there's a chance he's not related to Sara after all.
“A family of Heroes, huh... So there have been no others?”
“There was one, just once. So you can rest easy.”
“Wh-What do you mean?”
“...You seemed quite concerned that a man like that was the only Hero. Have you suddenly developed an awareness of your duty as the Goddess's messenger?”
“Ah, ahh! W-Well, yeah!”
Phew. That scared me. I was startled because I thought she was talking about Sara.
“Well then, can we be done talking about the Hero now?”
“Uh, huh?”
“Here you are, finally alone with me, and yet you only talk about other people. Isn't it proper manners to give me your full attention at a time like this?”
“Eh, hey. I was just curious. Come on, Diana. Getting jealous over some dude?”
“About a man?”
“Yeah. The Hero was a guy, right? Don't tell me he was a woman with that face?”
“Mmmph... Hmph!”
I tried to play it off smoothly, but Diana shot me a small glare, made a cute pouting sound as if she were genuinely sulking, and whipped her head away.
Oops. I guess my timing was really bad.
Normally, Diana wouldn't get pouty over something like this and would have kindly explained, but since we were finally on a date, just the two of us, it seems my barrage of questions really got on her nerves.
“Alright. I'm sorry. It was my fault. Don't be mad.”
“Hmph!”
“Hey, come on.”
I tried to soothe her, but Diana refused to look at me, turning her head away again and again.
“Come on, we're on a date. Are you really going to stay mad? Even after this?”
“Hyaang! A-Are you an idiot! Where do you think you're touching me out here!”
But when I placed my finger on her lower abdomen, right where the Apostle's Seal was engraved, and wiggled it like I was tickling her, Diana yelped in surprise and lightly slapped at me.
“Yeah. I'm an idiot, so I wasn't paying attention. I won't ask any more questions and I'll only look at you from now on. Let's go eat somewhere else.”
“You really are...”
After I said all that, Diana finally looked at me properly, as if she found it hard to stay mad any longer.
“We won't be able to see each other for a few days starting tomorrow, so you'd better escort me properly.”
“Of course. My wife.”
“Wife?”
“Ah, not in the sense of an old lady. I meant it as in my wife...”
“Mhm! Now, let's be on our way!”
Diana's mood brightened in an instant. What a cutie.
*
“Fufu. Not that one. That fork is for cutting meat. You use this one for the fish.”
Thankfully, this time we were able to enjoy our meal at a leisurely pace.
So much so that no one bothered us, even with both me and Diana having our hoods down.
The lunch rush had passed, so the crowd had thinned out, and there were no loudmouths like before.
Well, in a high-class restaurant frequented only by nobles, those guys from earlier were the exception anyway.
Anyway, since we were having a rare meal at a place like this, I tried to eat with proper etiquette, but table manners were far more complicated than I'd expected.
Back at Diana's mansion, I never worried about that stuff and just ate however I wanted.
It says a lot that even Diana, an expert in table manners, would sometimes feed me or let me feed her. I'm so glad my Diana isn't someone who cares about empty formalities.
Anyway, that's why I was now in the middle of an intensive table manners lesson from Diana.
Unlike when she was telling me about the Hero, Diana was now smiling as if she were truly enjoying herself, kindly teaching me one thing at a time.
Table manners are a pain, but just seeing that smile of hers makes it all worth it.
“So, this one is for the fish, and this one is...”
“Holding the knife and fork in one hand is also a breach of etiquette.”
“Ah, really? Whoops...”
And then, I ended up dropping a fork on the floor.
As I hurriedly bent down to pick it up, Diana stopped me.
“Don't pick it up. In situations like this, you call a waiter.”
Diana rang the bell on the table to call a waiter and had the fork replaced.
“Making someone else do something like this... I don't think I'll ever get used to it.”
“Fufu. And this is the man who wanted to join us in the bath? We have maids handle everything, even washing our bodies.”
“If that's the case, don't worry! No problem at all! Since I can entrust my whole body to the maids...!”
“Hmph!”
“Nope. It's nothing.”
Diana was about to furrow her brow again, so I had no choice but to quickly shut my mouth.
She's the one who brought it up, the cheat...
“But still... you can't even pick up a fork you dropped. You wouldn't even know if something was under the table.”
This restaurant had long tablecloths that hid the space underneath the table, so you couldn't see anything.
“What foolishness are you spouting? Of course there's nothing there.”
“There might not be anything there, but something could still happen, right?”
“What do you m—Hieeup!”
Diana was about to tilt her head in confusion when she hurriedly clamped both hands over her mouth.
Because, under the table, I had taken off my shoe, stretched out my leg, and nudged my toes into the space between her legs.
“Wh-wh-what are you, heung...”
“See? No one around us has noticed a thing. Table manners are dangerous, after all. If more than two people were eating together, and two of them were doing this, no one would notice, right?”
“Wh-who would do something so perverted... Heup. O-Okay, I get it, so just stop.”
Diana desperately suppressed a moan, speaking urgently as if terrified someone would see.
The way her eyes darted back and forth showed just how nervous she was.
But for my cute and adorable Diana, that kind of tension just turns into excitement.
“Oh? Are you getting a little wet?”
“Th-heup! Of course not! Now take it away!”
“Really? No, I'm pretty sure you are. Did this get you wet just now?”
“A-Absolutely not!”
“Then that means you were already wet before. Ah, maybe from when I touched you here outside?”
As I said that, I moved my foot up and gently pressed my toes against her lower abdomen, where the Apostle's Seal would be.
“Hieuuup!”
At that, Diana clamped her hands over her mouth again.
“Haah, y-you really are...!”
She said, glaring at me with tears welling up in her eyes.
“Shhh. Diana. Table manners. You shouldn't try to cry out like that during a meal. Let's just continue eating.”
With those words, I moved my foot back down and rested it against her crotch.
I didn't try to stimulate her, though; I literally just rested it there.
“Haah, haah. A-Aren't you going to move it?”
“But I want to keep touching you, Diana. No one can see, so it's fine, right?”
“D-Do you take me... heut, for a fool? Don't try to... gloss over this with sweet words. There's no way this is fi—haah.”
“That one just now wasn't me. You know that, right?”
“U-Uuuuhh...”
Diana kept her mouth covered, just staring at me resentfully.
But it was true.
I really hadn't moved at all, just kept my foot resting there.
Diana had been fidgeting on her own, rubbing my foot with her thighs until the stimulation reached her crotch.
“Now, Diana. Let's hurry up and eat. I'm going to keep this up until we're finished.”
“Uuuh...!”
Diana kept one hand clamped over her mouth and picked up her fork with the other.
I had no idea how she planned to eat while covering her mouth like that.
But that wasn't the real problem.
The food on her fork never even made it close to her mouth.
“Hnngh...!”
With a clatter, the fork Diana was holding fell to the floor.
“Oops... Ah!”
I deliberately pretended to bend down before straightening up again with an exaggerated motion.
“I almost forgot my table manners. This is when you call the waiter, right?”
“Hnngh! Mmph! Mmph!”
Diana, her mouth still covered, shook her head frantically from side to side as if begging me not to.
But to me, her tear-filled eyes didn't seem to say she hated the situation at all.
No, in fact...
I picked up the small bell on the table and immediately rang it, calling for the waiter.
“Did you call?”
“Ngh...!”
“Pardon?”
“N-fufu.”
The moment the waiter arrived, Diana flinched and let out an involuntary moan. When the waiter gave her a puzzled look, she immediately forced a laugh and took her hand away from her mouth.
Her face was bright red, there were faint tears in the corners of her eyes, and the corners of her mouth were trembling.
It was incredibly unnatural. But then again, my Diana is incredibly beautiful.
The waiter seemed less confused by her unnatural smile and more flustered by the fact that someone as pretty as Diana was smiling at him.
So much so that his face turned bright red and he quickly averted his gaze to me.
A waiter at a restaurant for nobles should be quite used to beautiful women, but that's my Diana for you.
“Haha. My apologies. I've dropped another fork.”
I spoke on behalf of the speechless Diana.
“Ah, not at all, sir. Please don't apologize. It's no trouble. One moment, please.”