Confession under the tree

"Ugh! This a**! Damn! I never missed my floating board so much!"

As civilization evolved, floating technology became the standard for transportation inside space colonies to the point Apollo had even forgot the last time he had used a ground transportation to move around.

The differences were not much when visually comparing both side by side, but the floaters real performance was leagues ahead when it came to comfort, versality and speed, losing only in fuel consumption which was not really a problem anymore.

But this only applies when we are comparing vehicles of the same generation, if we compare any floating transportation with the ancient cart Apollo was making use now, the difference is so huge that it's impossible to compare.

"Why the hell does this thing shakes so much!? Was there a problem in it's construction? I can't even feel my b**t anymore!"

To make things worse, what Apollo was using now was a cart, not a carriage. This meant such vehicle was not made to transport people, only supplies. It had no shock absorbers, no security belt, heck, it didn't even had chairs to sit on!

The cart was as simple as one can make. A box with wheels and two pulls. It was great for transporting things through a short distance but far from enough to make a trip through the middle of a forest, passing over a terrain full of holes, roots, stones and tree branches.

Well, at least it was still better and faster than walking on foot. In the end of the day Apollo was just a normal human, he couldn't walk as fast as the girls were marching for more than some minutes, much less keep it up through the whole day.

Hey! There is always the option to let them princess carry him...

(No! No way! Forget about it! Even if I sacrifice my b**t, I will not sacrifice anymore of my pride!)

And there we have it. If the fool want to suffer, let him suffer I say!

To distract himself from his lower back, Apollo tried to distract himself watching the scenery around him, trying to find anything that could distract his mind from the numbness he felt.

"Later on when we stop I have to praise them! These girls sure work hard!"

Watching up front, there were Beatrice, May and Mika making sure to cut down all tall grass in their way, a few meters behind them there were Daisy and Leilani swinging their axes right and left. With each swing a tree would go down and then the other girls behind them would move together to move the fallen trunks out of the way.

Apollo wasn't sure if they had gotten stronger but he surely felt that impressions seeing Daisy cutting down trees with a single swing of her ax no matter if the trunk measured more than twenty centimeters in diameter or less. It all looked so easy but Apollo still had in mind his own experience with the ax.

Watching they work, Apollo felt like watching a machine. Each of the girls worked like a cog, in synchrony with all around them, making them work in the most efficient way.

"Yeah, nothing better than leaving the professional job for the professionals... Can humans even compare?"

It's not like Apollo had no desire to improve himself, but he knew well enough to know that such things were impossible for normal human being. Actually, while he still mostly treated those girls like normal humans, he wasn't sure when it began but slowly and surely he started to accepting they were different from him. This, of course, didn't mean he would treat them like tools or slaves, ignore their human rights and discard them after using them as he please but at least he wouldn't hold back in asking them the supposed impossible like they were doing right now if he felt they could somehow actually do it without hurting themselves.

Noon arrived and the crew stopped to rest for a bit. Funny as it may sound, it was not the girls who were doing all the work who needed some rest, but the lazy bum over the cart that couldn't stand anymore.

"Master, do you want another massage?"

(Yes, I do! You have no idea how much I do! But even if I do...There is no way I can let you massage that place, RIGHT!?)

"No, thank you. I can deal with it. Don't mind me, you have worked hard so have some rest."

Feeling disappointed Rose stepped back but stayed right behind him in case he changed his mind.

A smell of fragrant soup spread in the air. Apollo looked to the side and saw Alice was cooking some soup in a huge caldron, even bigger than herself.

(Hmm.... should I ask? No, I think it's better if I don't...)

"Master, is there anything troubling you?"

"I wouldn't go that far, but, where did you get that caldron?? I don't remember seeing it in the Palace."

"I-I-I-I'm extremely sorry!!!! We borrowed one of the idle printing machines in the factory without your permission to make it yesterday night! Alice said it would be necessary if we wished to provide food for everyone, so I allowed it without a second thought! I will take all responsibility for this mistake! Please punish only me as you see fit! Whip, candles, rope, I will prepare them right away!"

As Rose quickly turned around and started walking to one of the carts, Apollo also quickly stood up and stopped her midway, pulling her close to him.

"Wait! Calm down! It's fine! It's great that you are taking initiative to solve problems on your own. For little things like this, it's all right to do so without telling me anything."

Feeling that she had somehow calmed down, he moved closer and whispered in her ear.

"Actually, I'm extremely grateful for all the support you are always providing me. Please continue to stand by my side from now on as well!"

"Eh?-That-I-I'm not-I....!"

Rose's face turned bright red, she mumbled some incohesive words but due to the close distance Apollo wasn't able to see anything, he just noticed something was wrong when the arm he was holding suddenly vanished in thin air.

"Eh???"

(Did she just ran away? Well, it's pretty obvious she did, but was there a reason for such exaggerated reaction? Maybe she is feeling embarrassed? Hahahahaha, it's kind of refreshing seeing Rose act like this. Most of the time she holds herself back trying to act all mature and cold so seeing this side of her is truly a rare sight!)

Apollo went back to his seat with a smile on his face as if he had accomplished something great, but once he looked around and saw all other girls with a red curious face, his smile disappeared and a question mark sprouted over his head.

(Wait, did I say something wrong? Why are they all looking at me like that?)

...

A few dozen meters right in the middle of the forest, a little green maid with a red face crouched down behind a tree holding her head with both hands.

"Master, you are too much! Saying such words right next to my ear is completely unfair!!!"