Chapter 748: A Dating Novice's Misunderstanding
Chapter 748: A Dating Novice's Misunderstanding
“Hmm… so this goes… huh? Ah, if I do this…!”
Leaning forward slightly, Rachel peered at the panel floating above the magical device, muttering to herself as she fiddled with it.
Even if it was her first time seeing such a machine, she was a receptionist at the Guild. Her job required her to handle all sorts of tools, like when she calculated Magic Stone payments. It made sense that she could figure out a new device’s purpose after just a few moments.
Her hesitation was brief. It seemed Rachel had quickly succeeded in operating the panel and booking a room.
Well, actually, it might have taken quite a while. Perhaps it only felt short because my attention was elsewhere.
Where was my attention, you ask?
Well, you see… As I said, she was leaning forward to get a better look at the panel.
Which meant she was sticking her rear out in my direction.
In her haste, Rachel hadn't even changed out of her receptionist uniform. Thanks to her tight skirt, just that slight bend was enough to emphasize the curve of her bottom, revealing the faint line of her underwear pressed against the fabric.
And that wasn't all.
Today, she was wearing a pair of sexy garter stockings.
As she bent over, her skirt rode up slightly, revealing the top of the bands and the dazzling expanse of pale skin above them. It was almost blinding.
Between that and the unbuttoned top of her blouse, hidden beneath her necktie… I had to wonder if this woman studied her reflection in the mirror every day, researching how to make her uniform look even more alluring.
Her uniform was just that captivating.
It was as if she were born to wear it.
It was enough to make even me, someone who never thought he had a uniform fetish, think such things.
Not that her other outfits weren't stunning—like that revealing, elf-like costume I saw in the dungeon, or even her casual clothes. She was dazzlingly beautiful no matter what.
In any case, for that reason, I currently found myself unable to tear my eyes away from her backside.
“Guwon. I got the room.”
But she booked the room in no time. Straightening up, she turned to face me and spoke.
The movement caused her necktie to flutter for a moment. In that fleeting instant, I didn't miss the glimpse of her cleavage through the gap in her still-unbuttoned blouse.
“…Honestly. Where are you looking?”
And it seemed Rachel had noticed exactly where my eyes had landed.
With one hand on her necktie and the other smoothing the hem of her skirt, she tidied her clothes, shooting me a charming look from under her lashes along with a relaxed smile.
It appeared she was more than prepared for my eyes to wander to such places.
Maybe she had actually practiced this, too—putting on her uniform and sticking her butt out just like she did a moment ago.
“Ah, uh, nowhere. Nothing.”
“Hehe.”
When I mumbled a vague denial, she smiled as if she found my reaction cute. She playfully tapped the tip of my nose with her finger before taking my wrist again and turning away.
“Let’s go, then. We just have to get on over there.”
With a practiced air, she pointed to a glowing pillar in the middle of the lobby.
Considering her muttering earlier, it was obvious she wasn't familiar with a place like this, but I decided not to point that out.
Rachel, trying so hard to act like an experienced woman, was just too adorable.
The place Rachel was heading toward contained a familiar pillar of light—a teleportation circle.
I’d suspected as much, since I hadn't seen any stairs. This must be how you get to the individual rooms.
It seemed like an absurdly extravagant feature, even for a high-class motel, but this was a city of adventurers and dungeons. They probably had more Magic Stones than they knew what to do with, making such facilities possible. Besides, teleporting between rooms in the same building likely wouldn't consume a massive amount of mana.
In any case, we rode the teleportation circle and finally arrived in our motel room.
“Here… we can finally talk in peace.”
Rachel looked around the well-decorated room, which was as impressive as the facilities below, and spoke with a carefully composed smile.
Unlike before, however, her smile was a little stiff this time. It seemed that no amount of mental preparation could completely control her trembling.
Of course, it made sense. To be honest, I was the same.
It was only natural, considering how long it had been since Rachel and I had last touched skin to skin.
And even then, it had been to save my life, not to properly explore each other’s bodies.
Actually, come to think of it, the time before that was also Healing Sex to save an injured Rachel. In reality, you could say we’d never truly explored each other’s bodies for pleasure’s sake.
In other words, this was the first time we would be touching in a truly pure sense.
Yeah. Thinking about it like that just made me feel even more nervous.
“…What should we do?”
“Let’s sit down first.”
I reflexively pointed to the bed in response to Rachel’s shy, upward glance, then immediately regretted it.
Wait a minute. Was she just asking who was going to shower first?
“Y-Yes? Oh, right…”
And just as I’d thought, Rachel, though flustered, forced an awkward smile and walked over to the bed, perching delicately on the edge.
Damn it. I got all tense because I started overthinking things.
Since I couldn't take back what I’d just said, I went and sat down on the bed next to her.
An awkward silence fell as we sat there side-by-side on the edge of the mattress.
“Hoo… Guwon? I… I…”
Once again, it was Rachel who broke the awkward silence.
She must have felt that, as the supposedly experienced one, she had to do something, but it was obvious to anyone that she was nervous.
How nervous? So nervous I could see the pupils of her beautiful eyes trembling as she looked at me.
Rachel. You’re way too tense.
“We’re finally alone.”
Seeing her so incredibly nervous had the opposite effect on me, and I felt myself calming down a bit.
Alright. For the sake of my dear dating novice, I, the one with vast romantic experience, will have to take the lead.
Well, my experiences might not be very helpful, considering every single one of my relationships with the girls had started and deepened under bizarre circumstances.
Come to think of it, my relationship with Rachel was the most normal of them all, in a romantic sense.
Of course, we’d been through our share of incidents in the dungeon, but the whole process—being drawn to each other without some grand reason, confessing our feelings, and developing our relationship through dates—was all quite ordinary.
“Wha—?! Oh, right. Hehe. Is your… heart pounding?”
Startled by my sudden words, Rachel, who had been about to say something herself, quickly forced another smile. She placed a hand on my chest, trying to act composed.
But she clearly wasn't used to this kind of gesture; the hand on my chest looked incredibly awkward.
As time passed, it began to tremble and twitch, until she finally, awkwardly, straightened her fingers and began tracing circles on my chest plate with their tips.
I can guarantee you, if my chest hadn't been covered by armor right now, I probably would have died of a heart attack.
That’s how adorable she was, trying so awkwardly to act experienced.
No, really. I’d love to praise her efforts and call her beautiful and seductive, but seeing this, the only word that comes to mind is “cute.”
“Yes. A lot. We can finally talk in peace, just the two of us.”
“Heh, heheh… r-right…”
As I deliberately let my gaze trail from the top of her head all the way down to her toes, she seemed to be slipping into a state of panic from the overwhelming tension.
Her tone was trying to be relaxed, but I could hear a slight quiver in her voice.
“Shall we begin?”
“Eek…! Hmph. Oh, Guwon, really. You don’t have to ask for things like that.”
Rachel, are you trying to pass off that ‘eek-hmph’ as a laugh?
The words nearly escaped my lips, but for the sake of her desperate, tear-jerking effort, I decided to let it slide.
Not that it really mattered.
Because…
“Ah, you’re right. My apologies.”
“Hehe. No. W-Well then…”
“Yes. So, before we get to the main topic, there’s something I’d like to ask first.”
“…Huh?”
Though she was in a full-blown panic, Rachel had somehow managed to maintain her composed act. But my question finally made her mask crack, leaving her with a completely blank expression.
“…Um, Guwon? What exactly are you…?”
After a brief silence, her eye began to twitch as she posed the question.
Of course, I already had my answer ready.
“Hm? We’re here to have a quiet talk, aren’t we?”
“…A talk. Yes. A talk.”
Her eye twitched again as I answered with a perfectly straight face.
I’d said it to help ease her tension and, as a bonus, to justify why I’d suggested sitting on the bed right away. But it seemed my actions had dealt her a much greater psychological blow than I’d anticipated.
“Hm? Was I wrong?”
“N-No! A talk it is! Yes! So, what did you want to talk about?”
But since I couldn't very well admit I was just teasing her now, I decided to continue the conversation.
To be honest, her reaction was a little fun to watch.
And it seemed Rachel, for her part, had decided to go along with talking for now.
“Ah, yes. In the end, why did you think I was going to abandon you?”
“Ugh…?!”
The moment she heard my question, an expression of instant regret flashed across her face.
Her face flushed crimson as she let out a pained groan.
“Rachel?”
Why that topic of all things! Couldn’t you have just let it go?!
She was sending me that desperate plea with her eyes, but once again, I pretended not to notice.
No, this time I wasn't teasing. This was something we couldn't just let go.
I needed to know how she came to have such negative thoughts so I could prevent it from happening again, right?
“Th-That! I mean! Um! It’s that thing! That!”
But it was clearly a difficult topic for her to discuss with me. She stalled for time, desperately shouting meaningless words.
Rachel, I can practically see the gears turning in your head.
Well, when this woman panicked, her ability to cope plummeted, so she probably wouldn't come up with a decent excuse anyway.
“That thing?”
“I-I mean…! I was actually giving a friend some relationship advice!”
And in the end, she threw out that Hail Mary of an excuse.
Rachel, if you were talking about relationships with someone, wouldn’t you be the one asking for advice, not giving it?
“I see.”
It was already obvious that it was a lie, but I decided to listen quietly to what she had to say.
“You see, for certain reasons, my friend can’t be with her boyfriend every day!”
Yep, that’s us.
Thinking that, I kept a straight face.
“Is it a long-distance relationship?”
“Y-Yes! Something like that! Anyway, her boyfriend used to visit her regularly, but lately, she’s been feeling like he’s become a little neglectful, you know?!”
Yep, that’s completely our story.
“In what way?”
“W-Well… even when he comes to see her, their timing is off so they only see each other for a moment, and sometimes he doesn’t even show up on the day they planned to meet…”
…Yes. Of course. Because that’s our story.
Wait, Rachel. If you say it like that, aren’t you just exposing yourself?
The thought crossed my mind, but I decided to just apologize obediently.