Chapter 780: Enhancement Period
Chapter 780: Enhancement Period
Even after we spent the night together, Sara’s sweet, lovey-dovey mood hadn’t faded by morning.
Unlike when we were at the mansion or in the dungeon together, there was no need to get out of bed at a set time.
Well, since this was all for my growth, I couldn't laze around for too long, and I did have to switch with the next person.
Still, it seemed Sara wanted to fully savor this private time with me, which was more relaxed than usual.
“Mmm… mwah. Hehe. Are you still half-asleep?”
Sara was on top of me, just like any other morning.
She gave me a quick kiss from above, then suddenly pulled her lips away and spoke with a soft chuckle.
“Hmm? Why?”
“It’s just… your tongue is moving slower than usual.”
As she said that, Sara stuck her tongue out slightly, slipped it between my lips, and poked my own tongue with the tip of hers.
Then, she chuckled again as if she found it amusing and gazed at me with a sweet expression.
“Really? Did I overdo it last night?”
“Pervert.”
Even as she said the words, her voice was brimming with affection.
Sara wrapped her arms around my neck and buried her face in the pillow next to mine, pressing her cheek against me.
Her soft hair tickled my face, making the hazy, half-awake me feel even cozier.
She then turned her head slightly to give my cheek a light kiss before whispering sweetly into my ear.
“So, are we just going to end the morning like this, without doing anything?”
Of course, I wasn’t the kind of man to hear that and actually do nothing.
The drowsiness that had been languidly enveloping my body vanished in an instant. I immediately sat up, grabbed Sara by the waist, and…
“Sir Guwon. Lady Sara. It is almost time for your meal.”
“Ah… Eek?!”
The very moment I managed a single thrust, a knock came from the door, accompanied by a familiar voice.
Sara, who had been about to let out a soft moan, gasped and clamped a hand over her mouth. I, too, was startled and pulled her body into a tight embrace.
W-We’re not at the mansion, are we? Why all of a sudden… Ah. Right. Yeah. That’s right.
Damn. Even though I knew this was coming, being caught off guard like that still made me jump.
“I-Is that you, Vanessa?”
“Yes.”
Unaware of the situation, Sara called out toward the door in a slightly raised voice, her insides clenching tightly.
Vanessa, of course, answered immediately, and Sara looked at me with a crestfallen expression.
“Should we send her away and go for a round?”
“You idiot! Didn’t you hear how clearly her voice came through?!”
“I-I’m kidding! It was a joke!”
I tried to tease Sara, but all I got in return was a sharp sting in my chest.
Well, it healed instantly thanks to Healing Sex, not even leaving a reddish mark.
“Just wait downstairs for a moment! We’ll get ready and be right out!”
“Understood.”
It was a real shame, but I couldn’t just leave Vanessa waiting.
I suppose our sweet time together had to end here.
I sent Vanessa downstairs and pulled myself out of Sara.
“…Wasn’t Diana supposed to come today?”
“Something came up. I asked them to switch.”
“Ugh…”
Sara glanced at the clock and let out a disappointed sigh.
“Are you disappointed?”
“…It’s not like that, you idiot.”
But, as expected, it was just like Sara not to admit her true feelings when I asked.
After creating such a lovey-dovey atmosphere all night, she had finally started acting so openly affectionate this morning.
And now she was back to her old self again.
“Sorry, sorry. But Vanessa was sent by Diana, so I don’t think the timing would have been much different even if Diana had come herself.”
“I know that much.”
If you know, then there’s no need to make that face… Wait, were you planning to keep going if Diana had shown up?
…Well, I guess that makes sense. If it had been Diana, we might have actually continued.
No, I’m not saying it’s harder to do something like that with Vanessa, or that teasing Diana in that way would be fun.
I’m talking purely about their respective positions.
Diana is on equal footing with Sara, so if Diana had arrived and Sara had ignored her to continue being lovey-dovey with me, it could have been passed off as a joke.
But since Vanessa is usually a butler, if Sara acted that way, it would feel like she was using her superior position to be cruel.
That was probably why Sara bickered with Diana the most.
For that reason, Sara and I washed up and headed down to the dining area below.
We didn’t do anything special while we washed, but Sara was incredibly cute as she meticulously washed my body, as if trying to enjoy every last second we had.
Though, true to form, she verbally pretended that wasn’t what she was doing.
“Good morning.”
Anyway, when we got down to the dining room, Vanessa was already seated and waiting.
I had only ever seen her waiting behind us while we ate, so seeing her waiting at the same table to eat with us was quite a fresh sight.
However, for some reason, she was wearing her butler uniform, not her casual clothes.
“You’re so stiff. You’re not here as a butler today, are you?”
“……”
Normally, Vanessa would have reacted to that comment in some way, but today she remained perfectly still with a completely blank expression.
It didn’t feel like the usual silent treatment she gave when she was at a disadvantage, either.
“This is a bit of a surprise, though. I never expected you to come to the dungeon, Vanessa.”
“Yes. I was surprised as well.”
As she said that, Vanessa glanced at me.
Seeing that, I was finally able to grasp the situation.
Is she… angry?
I mean, yes, it was my fault for getting her hopes up yesterday only to postpone it.
And she had shown more anticipation than anyone, even saying she couldn’t do it right away.
But I did end up making this private time for us, so isn’t there at least some room for extenuating circumstances?
Once Sara leaves after the meal, it’ll be just you and me all day, you know?
I tried to plead with my eyes, but Vanessa’s stiff expression didn’t soften in the slightest.
And the quick-witted Sara must have noticed that Vanessa’s demeanor was even more rigid than usual, as she didn’t say a word to her throughout the meal.
“Well then, Guwon. Do your best today. And don’t try to mess around too much just because you’re alone with Vanessa.”
After finishing our meal in a somewhat stiff atmosphere, Vanessa and I stood up to go hunting, while Sara prepared to head back up.
As we all walked to the teleportation circle to see Sara off, she gave me a stern warning.
“It’s fine. If I was going to do that, I would have messed with you yesterday.”
“I guess that’s true. It seems you’re planning to be serious for once.”
“Hey, what do you mean, ‘for once’? For your information, I can be surprisingly serious when I need to be.”
“What good is it if you have to say ‘surprisingly’ yourself, you idiot.”
Sara said that and gave me a light kiss on the lips.
“See you later.”
Then she stepped onto the teleportation circle and vanished.
The moment Sara was gone, I turned to Vanessa and spoke.
“Alright, shall we head to the inn first?”
“Did you not just hear what Lady Sara said?”
Of course, Vanessa’s response was to retort with a slight frown.
Even I had to admit it sounded like I meant that.
“I just have something I want to talk about before we head out.”
“…Understood.”
But when I used my finger to press between her eyebrows and smooth out the wrinkle, explaining that wasn’t my intention, Vanessa gave a nod after a moment of silence.
“Alright then… Whoa?!”
I had intended to talk with Vanessa and soothe her mood, but the moment we entered the room, I was suddenly slammed against the wall.
What’s this all of a sudden? Am I supposed to say something like, ‘Oh my, Vanessa. You’re so cool. You just made my heart skip a beat’?
“Why did you do it?”
“Do what?”
“Why did you postpone Lady Diana’s turn for the sake of someone like me?”
…Ah.
Hearing those words, I was finally able to understand why Vanessa had been in such a foul mood.
So it wasn’t because I got her hopes up and then made her wait a day.
Once I understood the situation, all of Vanessa’s actions started to make sense.
“So that’s why you came in your butler uniform. To protest. As in, ‘I’m only here as a butler. I never would have come if it weren’t for Diana’s orders.’”
“……”
My words must have hit the mark, because Vanessa didn’t answer.
So that was it.
But if that’s the case, then I have something to say, too.
“So, you’re saying you’re not happy at all to be alone with me like this. Even though I wanted to be alone with you so much that I asked Diana to let me have her turn.”
“Ngh…! That’s not what I meant…!”
“If that’s not what you meant, shouldn’t you show that you’re a little happier? Or at least look conflicted. I don’t think just standing there looking angry is the right response.”
“But…”
“Diana is Diana, and being happy to be alone with me is its own thing. The two aren’t one and the same. And Diana understood in the end, which is why she let you take her place, right? Or do you think I forced her to do it against her will?”
“……”
“It’s just guilt, isn’t it? Guilt that you pushed Diana aside to spend time alone with me first.”
“……”
“…So, are you here right now as my woman? Or as a butler?”
“…As Guwon’s woman… I am here.”
Only after saying that did the answer I wanted finally come from Vanessa’s lips.
Seeing that, I let out an inward sigh of relief, contrary to the calm facade I had maintained while pushing her.
Phew. Thank god. I didn’t actually need to push her that hard. I was worried she might blurt out a different answer.
It’s not like I’m the type to push my women around like this in the first place.
…Except in certain situations, of course. Like at night. Or at night.
Anyway, since this issue was related to Diana, I deliberately spoke a little more forcefully this time.
Her being too bound to Diana is closely tied to her Dragonian trauma, so it’s necessary to sometimes tell her that she doesn’t need to be so excessively tied down.
“So, is that all you had to say to me?”
“…What more am I supposed to say?”
When I spoke with a smile, Vanessa shot me a wary look.
“Well, that’s for you to figure out.”
“…I am happy to be alone with you.”
“Me too. I love you.”
“Ngh…!”
Perhaps because I’d been so lovey-dovey with Sara from last night through this morning, the word ‘love’ slipped out of my mouth more easily than usual.
While Vanessa’s body tensed slightly at my words, I gave her a light kiss on the lips.
Then I wrapped my arms around her and moved toward the bed…
“You may not.”
“Wh-What?”
“Not right now.”
“Absolutely not?”
“Absolutely not.”
“Tch.”
So it’s a no-go.
Faced with Vanessa’s iron-wall-like reaction, I had no choice but to release my arms from around her body.
As I did, Vanessa stared at me with a cold gaze.
“No, it’s just that you’re not a combatant. Taking you hunting is…”
“I am well aware that you are able to see my abilities in detail, Sir Guwon.”
I tried to make an excuse, but Vanessa replied while stroking the top of her head.
“Ah, speaking of which, if you’re here as my woman now, you should release your transformation, right?”
“And please refrain from repeating this in the future. It is not that I am unhappy, but…”
Seeing her, I hastily tried to change the subject, but Vanessa countered with different words, her expression unchanging.
Tch. She countered by changing the subject to something I had to answer.
“I know. I’m only doing this now because of what I said yesterday. I don’t plan on making this a habit, okay? You think I want Diana to hate me? And I care about Diana just as much as you do, no, even more.”
“……”
“You just made a face like you don’t believe me, didn’t you? What? You wanna go? Here, have a seat. Let’s have a heated debate right now about who cares for Diana more…”
“Trying to subtly get me to sit on the bed won’t work.”
Why is she so damn sharp?!
I mean, after I just pushed her like that and she even admitted she was my woman and acted all shy, shouldn’t her guard normally be a little lower?