Discussing Next Steps

Lumine could feel something wasn't right the instant the trio consisting of her, Paimon, and Iris walked into the main room of the inn.  

Luckily, none of the staff or guests seemed to be nearby, so it was a perfect place to discuss how to move forward.  

Yomite seemed distracted, and while Lumine didn't want to pry too much, she was interested in knowing what disturbed him enough to stare into the ground for a good while.  

Her pupils constricted as she stared at him for longer than she should have before speaking.  

"Party Leader? Is everything alright?"  

It wasn't like him to worry so much.  

Something bad must have happened.  

"I have something to share with you," Yomite finally said, looking up at them from his spot on the couch.  

His voice wasn't loud, but he made it clear that he was serious and that now was not the time for joking about.  

They all looked at each other in concern, unsure of how to interpret the situation at hand.  

It only took a moment for the group's concern to be replaced by curiosity, and their focus went back to their leader as they listened intently. 

"Paimon thinks this atmosphere is a bit... suffocating...could you quicken up the pace a little! Paimon's yet to eat a breakfast!" The last part was more shouted in frustration to satisfy her desire than anything else.  

A few seconds of silence passed before they heard Yomite let out an annoyed sigh, rubbing his forehead and getting ready to speak, "Fischl and Hu Tao already know this, as I've mentioned it to them during the night, but we might be in trouble..."  

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"You're saying an assassin... might eat Paimon!?" Paimon stared up at Yomite in horror.   

Her voice was as high pitched and incredulous as it normally was whenever she was shocked.   

"Kill, it's kill, Paimon… Then again, being eaten alive might actually be worse..."  

Yomite sighed and shook his head, "Don't panic. That's the last thing we want. Just…keep it in mind for now. It might not even happen."   

The future was not constant, after all.

Lumine nodded at his words.  

It was still too early to draw any conclusions.   

They didn't even hear his explanation of how he got information like this, but Lumine assumed it must have been some special ability of his.  

"Indeed, no need to worry! We have me, after all! I will protect us!" Hu Tao announced without shame, her long brown hair falling around her shoulders, as she sat down next to him and leaned her head onto his shoulder.   

"Ouch!" The moment she sat down, she rubbed her butt. The pain after yesterday's exercise was still present. That wild ride.

Hu Tao was dressed in a black tank top and shorts with nothing underneath, which only added to her charm.

She had no worries in the world, and assassins were the farthest thing from her thoughts; instead, she concentrated on painting her toenails black as that was much more important at the moment.

Somehow, after their night activities, Hu Tao ended up in her own bed, so Yomite sighed in relief that Fischl didn't see them in bed together…but he was still sure she knew.

(It was really scummy of me, I should control myself better. Hu Tao should also take Fischl into consideration more…)   

In any case, he relayed the disturbing information about the assassin to the rest of his party, making them vigilant.   

At least, he thought they were…   

"Let's go shopping! Paimon wants to eat some local sweets!"   

"Good idea. We can go to the hot springs afterwards, it's been such a long time since I've been to one!"   

"I want food, Master…"   

(These guys…I just told them they might die. Are they just not scared at all!? Then again...they are all monsters and weirdos...jeez...)  

He complained in his mind with as much indifference as possible.  

He was already used to his party members' outrageous behaviour and overall weirdness... But he couldn't allow himself to get caught up in their pace.  

(I am normal. I am the only normal person here. Yes. I am still normal, and it will stay like this.)  

He reassured himself, albeit feeling that he was slowly changing as well...  

While he was contemplating, Fischl sat next to him on the couch.   

Yomite now possessed a pretty flower on both of his sides.  

Fischl's back was against the fluffy couch, with her legs spread out in front of her.

She was playing with her earrings, which she got as a present on their date.  

Yomite's eyes were strained to look at her face from time to time, as he played with his own hands, nervously tapping them together as if he had something to say but couldn't bring himself to speak up.  

He messed up yesterday, there was no doubt about it. He didn't have enough self control to ignore a naked girl offering herself to him.

He didn't believe many men would be able to restrain themselves, but still, it was his fault.  

Hu Tao noticed something was going on, so she motioned to everyone, "Let's go eat, everyone! I believe Assistant-kun has some sort of serious "discussion" to lead with Fishy-Fishy! So we shall not interrupt them at any point in time!"  

Upon hearing what she had to say, the group had different kinds of reactions...  

Lumine was red in the face and awkwardly shifted her gaze from Fischl to Yomite.  

Situation misunderstood. Objective complete.  

After the deathly silence, the only words heard in the room were:

"Ew...Gross..."  

By Paimon, who also misunderstood the situation, thinking they were about to perform the "ritual of love".  

Objective complete.  

Iris didn't understand the hidden implied meaning and instead, focused on the first part of the sentence only.  

(Food, Food, Food, Food...)  

Iris didn't care. Objective complete.  

(Damn you, Hu Tao, couldn't you have put it better? These people will get the wrong idea... but thank you...) 

Hu Tao's brilliance had no limitations at times... Despite the fact that the manner she utilized to accomplish her aim was a little... awkward...

Still, she could tell that Yomite wanted to have a serious discussion with Fischl, even if he wasn't himself sure what to discuss...