#28 Babara Oarburgh

We found our room and entered it.

"*SIGH*" Ichika released a loud sigh and dropped down on the nearest bed.

"What do you think you are doing?" I asked with a strange expression and gently pulled her long ponytail.

"Ah, I am sorry, young lord. It's-I ate too much and I can't move. I just want to dip my body in those hot springs and then go sleep." Ichika said with moist puppy eyes.

"I am fine with that but how come you walk in the room and the first thing you do is to drop down on the nearest bed? Look at Kurome here...she is standing near me, swaying back and forth, wanting to lie down on the bed but she can still behave. You are not a good example, Ichika." I said and shook my head with a forced smile.

"Well, she behaves only because she is still afraid..." Ichika muttered while puffing her cheeks which was understandable because if Kurome behaved in the same way, I wouldn't have called her out.

"What was that?" I closed my eyes and asked with a "bright" smile.

"Eek! Nothing, I am all good!" Ichika immediately jumped from the bed, standing right next to me with a puffed chest, making her breasts look even more provocative with those black elastic clothes.

"...Don't ever do that again if you don't want the entire village of men running after you. That's just my advice but if you will ignore it, I will act as if I don't know you when that happens." I said and rolled my eyes upon seeing Ichika's act.

"...Yes" Ichika hanged her head in shame with red cheeks.

"Kurome, you can go take a nap. There is still some time before that woman will come to receive us. I will wake you up once she will come" I patted her back to encourage her with a friendly smile.

This will probably be her worst night, her probably first night without her sister...I already expect her to have nightmares but if she will be able to survive this night without any difficulties then she will slowly adapt to it.

"Mm...Alright...T-thank you" She said with a small smile, at least she tried to form a smile but she was still behaving awkwardly whether she was talking to us. It was different when she was only listening to me and Ichika talking, she could even smile when we weren't talking directly to her.

Kurome nodded at me and went to the bed near the window and when she lied down, she instantly stopped moving.

"...That was fast" Ichika was dumbfounded by how fast Kurome has fallen asleep.

"She will most likely wake up a few times before that woman will come for us." I muttered and went to sit down next to sleeping Kurome.

"What do you mean, young lord?" Ichika asked with a serious expression.

"This is her first night with us, away from her sister. It's only given that she will keep on having nightmares. Not to mention that cruel exam in Gifnora Forest, it must have left some gruesome images in her head. While she was with us, she was distracted from all of that but the time has finally come when she has to face it." I said while gently moving Kurome's hair behind her ears.

"...Young lord? Is there any specific reason why you are so gentle towards that little girl?" Ichika asked with a curious expression.

"Hm? Of course, there is a reason." I turned at her with a slightly surprised expression by her sudden question that was out of Ichika's style.

"I want her to become loyal to me and how else to instill absolute loyalty other than treating her the way how I want her to think about me? Making her loyal to me through drugs or her sister wouldn't be so effective. My opinion is that there are only 2 feelings that are on par with each other and they are: Love and Hatred. And even if I am slightly reluctant to admit it, I think that love is the stronger one. If I want her to love us like her own family, we need to love her the same way and it's nearly impossible to fake that affection. You can fake it but it will never have the same effect as the genuine one and even if you started to fake it at first, with some time, you will eventually find yourself to really care for that person. I still don't know her that much so maybe you think that my actions are faked and forced but they actually aren't. I just accepted the fact that I will care for her sooner or later so I can act gently towards her without being awkward." I explained with a small smile and a calm expression.

"..." Ichika just had surprised expression as she kept thinking about my words.

"You might think that it sounds impossible but it's possible because Kurome is still kid." I said with a forced smile when I saw Ichika's expression.

"No, young lord, I understand you. Even though I don't know little Kurome for long, I already have a favorable opinion of her." Ichika nodded with an understanding expression.

"Mm!!" Kurome who was peacefully sleeping next to me started to fidget in her sleep and tears started to appear in the corner of her eyes.

"Looks like it has begun..." I muttered with a neutral expression. Although it is nice to show her love and affection, she will still need to overcome some obstacles and her training will also come. I don't need for her to become cold-hearted assassin but I definitely don't want her to become naive. I will have to be gentle yet ruthless to her...It won't be only her test but also my test. I am not sure if I can be ruthless to a people I care about so it's going to be a good test that I must overcome. Good thing that Ichika is already trained...

I thought and determination was fully visible in my narrowed eyes.

? While Kurome was fidgeting she grabbed my hand out of nowhere and suddenly stopped moving around.

Maybe she thinks that I am her sister...Well, I might as well ease her suffering a bit.

I thought and grabbed her hand with both of my hands while using a bit of my energy to send comfortable warmth to her through her hand.

Her expression immediately became more peaceful.

...

After a few more hours of talking with Ichika and calming down Kurome from time to time...

"Mm?" Kurome finally opened her eyes, maybe we were talking too loudly or perhaps she woke up on her own due to all those nightmares.

"Eh?" She immediately opened her eyes wide in shock when she noticed that she was tightly holding my hand.

"I-I am sorry!" She sat up, retracted her arm and said while looking downward.

Hm? I am the one who is on your bed...

I thought with an awkward expression when I noticed her guilty expression.

"Don't worry about it. I am the one sitting on your bed, I was just comforting you since it looked like you were having nightmares." I explained with a small smile to calm her down.

"...I-!" She looked surprised by my words was left speechless for a few seconds before she gathered some resolve to say something just to be interrupted.

*Knock* *Knock* *Knock*

"We are coming!" I said and nodded at both Ichika and Kurome.

I opened the door and the young woman from before stood there with a bright smile while carrying a few towels in her hands.

"Please follow me, everyone." She said and started to walk towards the stairs leading to the main hall.

We followed right after her. After we descended the stairs, we went behind the counter and to the kitchen where we stopped.

"Please wait a second!" The woman said and moved the table and carpet under it away, revealing a pretty big trapdoor.

Hmm...To show us such a secret. I guess I really caught her interest.

We used a ladder leading to the underground and traveled for some time through the tunnels before we once again used a ladder to go up above the ground.

We appeared inside some kind of cottage.

"You can change here, hot springs are just a few meters away from here." The woman said with a smile.

"Alright, you girls can change, I will wait outside with this kind young lady." I said and didn't leave any chance for that woman to remain here with them.

"Young lord, I don't mind you changing here with us..." Ichika said with a straight face.

"Don't be an idiot." I only left her these words before leaving together with the woman who led us here.

----Inside the cottage----

"Hauu, so cold. Is that because of my age?" Ichika muttered with a depressed expression.

"Um..." Kurome wanted to say something but she wasn't sure how to call Ichika, she knew her name but she wasn't sure if she can call her the same way as she is calling Akashi.

"Hm? What is it, little Kurome? You can call me Ichika Onee-san!" Ichika puffed out her chest while pointing at herself with a thumb with a wide smile.

"Um...Ichika, do you like...Akashi?" Kurome asked a question that surprised Ichika.

"That's...I don't know. I definitely respect young lord a lot and he will definitely become extremely handsome once he grows up but I am not entirely sure what exactly "like" means..." Ichika muttered with an absent-minded expression while she was taking off her clothes.

"...So even Ichika doesn't know?" Kurome asked with an innocent and confused expression.

Girls continued to talk while they were taking off their clothes.

----Akashi's POV----

When we walked out of the cottage, I immediately noticed small mountains not too far away from us. I even noticed a bit of steam in the air which must mean that the hot springs are really close to this cottage.

While we were waiting for the girls, I was talking with the woman about this place.

Until I felt something sharp poking my clothes.

"Your guard is too lax, son" Older woman's voice came from behind me.

I turned my head to the side to look at the person behind me and to show them my wide grin.

"Are you sure about that, granny?" I asked and gestured for her to look down.

"?! When did you..." She muttered when she saw a dagger sticking out from under my armpit, aiming for her heart.

"I know how irresistible is the feeling when you see someone with a lax guard. Even the most experienced assassins can't turn down that offer of a free and easy kill. I made myself look unguarded on purpose because I knew that you would try something like that." I said with a smirk while glancing at her with my half-asleep eyes.

---

'This kid actually led me, legendary Babara Oarburgh, into a trap? He actually read my intentions without even meeting me...This kid is really scary. I have to keep a good relationship with him or kill him immediately. But it's the truth that I really underestimated him due to him being a kid. What a failure.' Babara thought with a defeated expression.

---

She stopped pointing her dagger at my back so I also took my dagger away and put it back into my sleeve.

"Kid, you are really good. It's almost unbelievable that you aren't one of us yet you are so experienced. I am Babara Oarburgh, the one you are looking for." She said and extended her arm for a handshake.

Hm? I would have never thought that "legendary" assassin would actually offer a handshake for a kid. It seems like she acknowledged me after this little exchange but I still need to be careful around her. This was just a little game, nothing more.

"Akashi Phoenix." I accepted her hand and told her my name.

From what I have heard, they shouldn't have any problems with my family.

"Hm? You are from the Capital, from that family, huh?" Babara seemed slightly surprised when I told her my name.

I nodded my head and took a better look at her.

Gray hair and purple eyes, purple clothes. Interesting, those clothes are also made from the material I am unaware of. Her aura is quite fierce and violent for an assassin. I guess she also likes to fight head-on.

"I must say that I am flattered to be eyed by such a handsome young man but I am no longer young...You should focus on girls around your age category" Babara noticed me observing her so she tried to tease me to stop me.

"Haha, you still look very young, miss Babara!" I said with a wide smile while showing off my white teeth.

This type of teasing might work for a normal boy, not for me, I know why you are saying that, heh.

"Well, well, what a nice and polite young man!" She immediately retracted her violent aura when she heard my words and smiled happily.

Huh? Was this enough to make her satisfied? To mention that she looks young?

I thought with a weird expression on my face.