94. Uta: The Relationship Between Adults Is So Complicated!

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Rob's departure was imminent, and his words made her reflect deeply.

The turmoil in Makino's heart gradually subsided, and her mood returned to normal. She nodded seriously:

"I understand, Mr. Rob. This time—I will seriously consider your invitation!"

Hearing Makino's words, Rob nodded with a satisfied smile, then changed the subject, and the atmosphere at the dinner table quickly calmed down.

That night, after everyone fell asleep, Makino lay on her boat, staring at the ceiling with bright eyes. She thought about Rob's second invitation and recalled her mother's wishes.

Suddenly, Makino found it hard to decide whether to leave with Rob or stay and manage the tavern.

"Is this the last chance?"

With confusion in her heart, Makino said:

"Mr. Rob won't invite me a third time. If I miss this chance, it might be a matter of a lifetime! If I don't leave with Mr. Rob now, it could mean saying goodbye forever!"

"What should I do? Mr. Rob... Mr. Rob..."

With chaotic thoughts, Makino didn't know how long she pondered before falling asleep in a daze.

When she woke up the next day, faint dark circles surrounded Makino's eyes, showing she hadn't rested well and had stayed up late thinking.

Seeing Makino like this, neither Rob, Robin, nor Uta said much. It was up to Makino to decide if she wanted to join them on the boat.

Nine days passed.

In the following days, Rob and his siblings began making preparations for their journey. As their scheduled departure time approached, Makino grew more and more distracted each day. 

In the meantime, her tavern was taken care of by the village chief.

One evening, on the shore of Foosha Village—

Makino sat on the grass she and her mother loved as a child, staring at the sea with dull eyes and a blank expression. She sat there quietly, like a piece of wood, unable to recover for a long time.

Even when the village chief came behind her, Makino didn't notice.

Seeing the dazed Makino, the village chief sighed, raised his hand, and coughed lightly:

"Cough cough cough!"

Hearing the village chief's light cough, Makino snapped back to reality in a panic.

She turned to look at the village chief beside her, flustered:

"Village chief! When did you get here?"

Seeing Makino so disturbed, the village chief didn't answer her question. Instead, he said:

"Mr. Rob and the others have already returned to their boat! All the preparations for sailing are complete! Little girl Robin asked me to tell you they will set sail at nine o'clock tomorrow morning!"

Hearing the village chief's words, Makino's heart grew even more chaotic. The reluctance and sadness in her heart swelled into a sea of emotions, and a thought began to take root.

That thought was--

The world is so big, she wanted to see it!

"Makino, go!"

The village chief's voice sounded again, with deep wisdom:

"Listen well—a person's life is too short!"

"One day, at some point, you'll realize that time has slipped away, and by then, if you look back on your life filled with regrets, how sad would that be?"

"Leave the tavern to me! Don't let pity and regret mark your life when you're old. The tavern is your mother's legacy, her dream. I will protect it with my life!"

With that, the village chief's face grew serious. He turned and walked back towards Foosha Village.

Seeing the village chief's retreating figure, Makino smiled and the confusion in her eyes disappeared. She had already made a clear decision in her heart.

After a while on the beach, a smile reappeared on Makino's face:

"Mom...you will support me? Hee hee hee... I didn't expect that you and the village chief had such a past! The village chief swore to protect your legacy, your dream!"

Although Makino knew the village chief must have had a special relationship with her mother, hearing it confirmed was still surprising.

She thought about many things.

Makino stood up straight away, then jumped up and down, heading towards Foosha Village.

Once a decision is made, with Makino's gentle yet tenacious character, she wouldn't let herself regret it, nor make any changes, just like how she never wavered after falling in love with Rob.

On board the Angel.

swish

swish

Swish—

Rob was constantly practicing sword swings, seemingly meticulous and focused. But anyone who truly knew him could see that he wasn't concentrating at all at that moment!

Rob's body moved naturally, following his instincts, executing perfect sword swings without conscious thought.

After a few minutes.

Swish—

Rob made the final cut, then frowned and stopped, casually putting Shinto aside with a helpless look on his face. He glanced in the direction of Foosha Village:

"Emotional matters... they're really complicated! I thought this wouldn't affect my focus... But it's true, after all, humans aren't robots!"

"It's normal to be distracted by anticipation, apprehension, and anxiety!"

Recently—

Not only was Makino troubled by her decision, but Rob was also affected, unable to concentrate, and his training efficiency had greatly decreased.

There are 80 million strange poisons in the world, but only emotions are hard to cure!

Rob was a straightforward man, but he wasn't a playboy. He didn't get involved with just any woman. Despite seeming strange for someone like him to say, Rob preferred to follow his heart and mind rather than just his desires. Makino had undoubtedly touched his heart.

So it was normal for Makino to disturb his usually calm state of mind!

With his practice efficiency greatly reduced, Rob simply stopped training and sat on the deck of the Angel, lost in thought.

Inside the training room, Uta looked at Rob below with big curious eyes.

She spoke up:

"It's so rare! Ni-chan is in a daze! Onee-chan, what's wrong with him?"

While speaking, Uta turned her head to look at Robin, who was standing on her hands with a huge barbell on her feet, doing handstand push-ups, sweat dripping from her body, a questioning look on her face.

Hearing Uta's words, Robin, with sweat on her face, looked calm but slightly annoyed:

"Oni-chan is thinking about Makino! Leave him alone. After Makino makes her decision tomorrow, he'll return to normal! Huh... I hate seeing Oni-chan messed up because of another woman!"

Tilting her head, Uta looked at Robin with thoughtful emotions in her big, watery eyes. After several months of secret observation, Uta gradually understood the situation.

It was probably—

Onee-chan liked Oni-chan, and Sister Makino also liked Oni-chan, making Onee-chan jealous, but she didn't intend to stop it, so the situation was very complicated.

But as long as there were no conflicts, it would be fine.

Of course, Uta also knew very well that it was impossible for them to have real conflicts!

Nothing significant happened all night.

Early the next morning—

At the port of Foosha Village, on the Angel, Rob stood in his casual attire with a magic tunic at his waist, hands folded, looking in the direction of the village.

After a while—

"Um?!"

When he saw Makino, who was carrying a backpack and dressed in clean, crisp clothes, walking towards the shore, Rob's eyes lit up. A satisfied smile appeared on his face, and his mood visibly improved.

In an instant, Rob's mind, which had been in turmoil for days, regained its usual calmness.

"She's coming!"

Seeing Makino approaching, Robin, who was also waiting on the deck, came to Rob's side:

"Are you satisfied, Oni-chan?"

He nodded confidently.

Rob smiled and said:

"Hmm! I'm satisfied. Hahaha..."

As he spoke, Rob laughed out loud.

Seeing Rob in this state, Robin's face softened, and a smile appeared on the corner of her mouth. Although someone wanted to share her brother who originally belonged to her alone, seeing Rob's happy face made it all worth it.

When Makino boarded the boat, Robin was supportive. The siblings didn't have many friends, and Makino was definitely one of the best.

Soon, Makino came to the deck of the Angel.

She smiled at Rob:

"I'm not very talented, but please teach me a lot in the future, Mr. Rob."

Hearing Makino's words, Rob nodded seriously:

"Well! Leave your future to me with confidence! Makino, I will keep my promise! From now on, I will make you happy!"

Feeling Rob's sincerity, Makino raised her eyes and looked directly at him:

"Yes, Mr. Rob!"

After Rob greeted Makino, Robin came forward with a smile on her face:

"Welcome, Makino!"

Uta, tilting her body with her hands behind her back, grinned:

"Sister Makino, please help me!"

Quickly, after everyone said their hellos, under Rob's order, the Angel raised its anchor, automatically turned on the ship's power, and slowly left the port of Foosha Village. Only when the Angel had left the port did the villagers, including Makino's guardian, the village chief, and little Luffy, a friend of Rob's siblings, come to say goodbye.

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