Changes

The mountain peak on the east side of the Kobolds' quarry was the best spot for watching a sunrise. That wasn't even an opinion but an objective fact that no one would have quarreled about, although no one would bother themselves with that in the first place.

Especially not the pair sitting in the best spot to enjoy that exact view.

A large white-haired man with monstrous features was sitting cross-legged on the bare rocks, and a petite gold-haired girl dressed only in an oversized shirt was in his lap.

"Pu-aahh~! Hmhm~ Care for a sip?"

The girl was using a simple spell to create a water spout from the top of her hand and after having her fill she offered it to the young man.

"I'm good. You need to watch out for it, though. Humans shouldn't really be drinking water created by mana. It's not the same thing as the water containing mana."

The monstrous man shook his head with a soft smile before pointing out.

"Hmm? And who was it that made me dehydrate myself like that?"

Melinda chuckled playfully, shifting on Zane's lap, clearly intending to tease out an embarrassed response from him.

"You got me, Miss Officer. Better arrest me right now because I am going to be a repeated offender in this regard."

"...!"

But instead of getting flustered, Zane smiled so wide that some of his triangular teeth showed. Otherwise unbothered, he moved his hand alongside the line of the girl's back, causing her to jolt.

"Nn-nnnh…! U-unfair…"

Melinda mumbled, leaning forward and using the water spell again, this time to douse her head, cooling it, and hide how much she was blushing.

"..."

"Nn-whoa…? Z-Zane…?"

The white-haired man watched her for a couple of seconds after which he wraped his arms around her waist and pulled her much closer. This caused her to call out in surprise and look up at him while the water was dripping down and turning her shirt transparent.

"Mel. I am not as mentally strong as you. I cannot promise that I will not act like an idiot and pick a fight with every single being that will approach you from now on. I want to be the only one allowed this closeness."

Zane moved one hand, sliding it up Melinda's stomach and chest until he finally reached her chin. He lifted her head while looking down at her face as if he wanted to burn her image into his retinas so that they would never reflect anything else.

"~!"

Melinda's eyes glistened as she trembled in his arms, leaning in and clinging onto him so hard that even if he tried to push her away, he wouldn't be able to.

"If so, then we could disappear from the public right now. Or I could immediately announce my Gargantuan ability and break off the engagement with the prince. We'll go far, far away, and if somebody tries to come after us, I will erase them together with the nation that sent them."

The gold-haired girl reached her hand up and started to affectionately caress the monstrous man's face before declaring without a second of hesitation.

"..."

"...?"

Zane closed his mouth and blinked a few times, making Melinda tilt her head in surprise, not quite understanding his reaction.

"It seems that I finally realized why you originally wanted to take things slow. It will take a bit longer, but if we play things right, no one will bother us, and we'll even get everyone's blessing to boot."

"Zane… Plans change. Especially if you wish for it. If this world will not submit, then I will destroy it."

The white-haired young man pointed out, expecting the girl to agree with him, but she only tilted her head to the other side and announced without batting an eye.

She then shifted in his lap until she was facing him, pressing her body against him and leaning into him as if she were trying to merge the two of them.

"Nhnhnhn~! It seems that I have been officially out-yandered~"

"Ehhh? But I was being serious…!"

Watching her made Zane chuckle before fully accepting and reciprocating the hug, humming into Melinda's ear, although that reaction made the gold-haired girl pout and declare grumpily since it felt as if she was being made fun of.

"Hey, aren't you cold? Should we get back already?"

After he felt Melinda shiver, Zane pointed out with a worried voice.

"Nnn… no… I'll be fine if you just hug me tighter~"

The gold-haired girl lowered her head, burrowing into the white-haired man's chest and nuzzling against him while declaring.

"My spoiled young lady~"

Zane chuckled and did exactly that.

Only after a couple of minutes, when the shivering didn't stop, the monstrous man realized something…

"...Mel… you aren't cold at all, are you…?"

He took a deep breath before asking, unable to hold back a grin.

"Ehehe… NNNNGHNGHH~! Bu-busted~"

In response, the girl with heart-shaped pupils lifted her head and showed off her flushed face, sweetly breathing out a response as her body twitched uncontrollably before burrowing back into his chest, completely exhausted and satisfied.

—----

—----

If one of the locals or a traveler who had knowledge of the Kobolds' quarry before walked in and saw what it has become, they would not believe it was the same place.

Instead of a barren rocky valley, with some burrows where the scaly humanoids slept, there was now what looked like a prosperous little town with slightly bluish grass covering the ground except for the road, of course.

The only other plant except for the lush grass would be a peculiar flower similar to an overgrown dandelion, except its petals were deeply blue and it reached almost three feet in height, casting shade around it with its long jagged leaves.

Those peculiar plants were growing in front of almost every building almost as if they were grown in a veggie-garden, as well as behind the town on a larger scale, taking over the rest of the valley.

The plant life didn't extend over the crevice around the perimeter of the valley, the same crevice Melinda created on the first day.

The buildings with the dandelion-like plants were houses, and the ones without them were workshops and watchtowers placed at strategic points.