Chapter 28 - The Girls Found Out!

(AN: Merry Christmas, yet I'm frustrated; my 3-years-old annoying cousin f*cked my laptop! F*ck him! By the way, I'll publish 3 chapters today!)

…

…

…

As they waited for their lunch to arrive, Merlin opened a new topic to converse. "By the way, would you mind telling your reason for joining us, Miss Aina?"

After gathering her thoughts, Aina began speaking. "Well, I'm not tooting my own horn, but I'm considered as a talented mage despite my young age; learning the arcane arts is my passion."

After pausing shortly to catch her breath, Aina continued, "Then, I heard the rumor about the revival of the Dark Lord and the summoning of a hero circulating. I know that the Dark Lord's revival is bad news. After careful deliberation, I decided to volunteer myself to help the hero and his companions to defeat the Dark Lord. Thus, I came here after discovering where and when the hero would be summoned."

Aina stopped briefly to mull over something. Moments later, she turned her attention to Merlin and gave him a sharp gaze, though it was ruined by the rosy hue on her pale cheeks. "Well, I couldn't deny Miss Llusse's suspicion. To be honest, I'm also curious about the unique power of the hero—the power to unlock the latent power of women."

"Ha! I know it!" Llusse suddenly exclaimed with a smug expression. She then turned her attention to Merlin and became surprised because Merlin's expression didn't change as if he'd known.

Sensing her gaze on him, Merlin turned his head to Llusse and saw her expression; he raised his eyebrow and said, "What? I have guessed it. Besides, nothing is wrong with having an ulterior motive as long as it doesn't harm the related person and innocent people; asking someone to risk their lives without rewards is too much, don't you think so?"

In Tianne's perspective, having ulterior motives against the hero is so wrong; it's a sin. In the church, she was taught that the hero was a sacred figure and an apostle of God, so trying to take advantage of him is a sacrilege.

"But… That's just wrong! We're here to save the world from the threat of the Dark Lord!" Tianne argued, her face flushing red in anger.

All the while, Filia and Aina had a calm expression; the former was the most level headed one in the hero's original entourage, while the latter was ready for any outburst.

"Calm down, Tianne," Filia suddenly said, her tone firm. "Just like what the hero said, not everyone is ready to jump into danger without a reward. Not everyone is selfless to the fault."

Of the three, Filia was the most mature and had experienced the world. She knew that true selflessness and altruism didn't exist in the world; even saints help people because of the sense of satisfaction and fulfillment derived from the actions they've done.

"Indeed. Since Miss Aina has been frank with her intention, it looks like she wants to show a sign of sincerity," Merlin added and turned his head to Aina.

Taking the hint, Aina nodded her head and said, "Yes. I'm trying to be open and straightforward, so there won't be any understanding that can damage our cooperation in the future."

Llusse had been listening to the talk silently. She had to admit that it was better than hiding something despite it causing a shaky beginning. With Aina being open and straightforward, they didn't need to be on guard around her.

Tianne seemed to have a hard time accepting it. But, since Merlin and Filia had said it, she decided to defer to their opinion.

"All right. Let's talk about something else," Merlin exclaimed, diverting the topic to the safer one. "So, how long are we gonna stay here?"

Filia, Tianne, and Llusse looked at each other silently. They had an uncertain expression that made Merlin raise his eyebrow in curiosity. Aina seemed to understand the hesitancy of the trio but chose to keep silent.

"Well," Filia began hesitatingly, "It looks like a landslide is blocking the main road to the capital, so our departure will be delayed."

Merlin nodded in understanding; he'd guessed that it'd come to this. "How long will it be delayed?" He asked.

Filia shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know. Several days, perhaps."

"I see," Merlin replied shortly and added inwardly, 'Well, it's good that our departure is delayed. I can ask Filia and Llusse to teach me swordsmanship and archery.'

Merlin had decided to learn them for self-defense. He still remembered the useless feelings he had when they were on the way to Füs after his arrival yesterday; he didn't want to be useless and left the fighting to the girls.

Perhaps, it was due to his vanity and pride as a man, but he didn't want to seem useless when he had the power to contribute. He wasn't like Naoki who cared only fucking the girls.

Merlin was an ambitious sort of person; he wasn't content with staying behind and being only a sperm dispenser for the girls. He also didn't want to waste his body's fighting potential.

When Merlin mulled over that, Natalia returned to his table while pushing a small cart carrying their meals. He snapped out from his thinking when Natalia moved the food to the table.

"Please enjoy your lunch, my Lord, girls," Natalia said with a charming smile; her gaze lingered on Merlin a little longer. "If you need anything, please feel free to call me."

There was an inexplicable atmosphere between Merlin and Natalia, but it was nothing bad. They seemed to get along so well.

The girls noticed that and made varying expressions; Filia and Tianne seemed curious, and Llusse and Aina had a small frown on their faces, though they had different thoughts.

"You seem to be getting along with the landlady," Llusse remarked after Natalia returned to the kitchen.

Merlin had guessed that the girls would ask him when they realized the distance between him and Natalia was getting close. With an unperturbed expression and calm smile, he said, "Yup. We got along 'really' well when you three were out somewhere."

The girls nodded in unison; the deep meaning in Merlin's words wasn't lost to them. They then turned their attention to their food and started eating.

'Another one, huh? What's more, it's an old lady like her — geez… can't he keep his dick in his pants when we weren't around?' Llusse seemed to be displeased, though.

Meanwhile, Aina started eating with an undisturbed expression, but in her heart, she felt angry and frustrated, 'He even sunk his claws into the landlady! How despicable!'