A Very Good Morning

Under the harsh glare of sunlight shining directly into my eyes, I suddenly woke up. I tried to lift my left arm to block the ray of sunlight but I couldn't. As I blinked away the cobwebs of my sleep, I suddenly became aware of a soft but warm body lying to my left. I slowly turned my head to the side and saw that it was Amelica!

My heart started to panic at her unexpected presence. Calm down, Larry! Let's think it through rationally. What was the last thing I did before I fell asleep? I was examining my player screen when I heard the bell tolling ten times and decided to sleep earlier than usual. And—I was alone.

Somehow, Amelica had used her spare key to sneak into my room in the middle of the night. Why did she do that? Did she want payment from me for her healing song? Or did she have something else in mind? Regardless of the motive, she was here in my room. Using my right hand, I quietly patted myself and confirmed that I was still clothed. In other words, we didn't do anything physical aside from sleeping on the same bed. I didn't know if I should feel relieved or disappointed.

Of course, it will be difficult to convince others, such as Vern and even Gendun, that we did nothing but sleep together. Fully clothed. From the feel of the fabric against my left arm, Amelica was probably wearing something expensive, like silk.

The question before me was what to do about Amelica. Should I wake her up and try to convince her to leave my room—quietly? Or should I simply let it ride and let the pretty lady decide what she wanted from me? Even if it meant that others would have a false impression of our relationship? It was quite a dilemma.

"How are you feeling?" a voice suddenly interrupted my train of thought.

I froze in fear at the sound of her voice. Taking a deep breath, I slowly turned my head to face Amelica. I saw that her eyes were looking right into mine and that she had a bright smile on her face. There was mischief in those angel blue eyes. "I feel great, thanks to your healing song," I replied sincerely. I steadied my nerves for whatever happened next.

"Good!" my angel smiled again. She poked me in the back. "Come on! Let's get dressed. I want to take you to the Lucky Shrine; you need to give thanks to Lady Luck properly for her protection," she said.

"We're going now?" I asked in both surprise and relief. Apparently, she chose to gloss over the fact that she had visited my room in the middle of the night without my permission and slept in my bed. She was not going to address it at all. Sighing in defeat, I looked out the window and saw that a major portion of the sky was still purple; it couldn't have been long after sunrise.

"Yes, we need to go NOW," Amelica confirmed as she rolled off my bed and landed lightly on her feet. "I want to take you to the shrine and then come back here before my morning shift starts." She looked down at me and folded her arms across her chest. "If you don't do as I say, I'll tell people that you're a lousy lover," she added mischievously.

I barely heard her threat. My eyes were mesmerized by the sight of my lovely angel in her black silk gown. It was see-through and very revealing. I started blushing at the sight of her chest and looked away.

Amelica saw my reaction and looked down at her gown. A moment later, she understood the reason for my sudden shyness. She approached the bed like a ferocious tigress and sat down next to me. She touched my hair and pulled an errant strand away from my eyes. "It's been a while since you've had a woman," she remarked as she put her hand on my chest and felt my heartbeat.

Hearing no denial from me, she continued. "I haven't been with a man since the father of my child was gone." Seeing my eyebrows raised, she added, "I'll talk about Gendur another time. Right now, we need to visit the shrine." Amelica rose to her feet. "I'm going back to my room to get dressed. I'll meet you in front of The Noble Lady." With that, she finally left my room.

I shook my head at Amelica's departure. Women were full of mysteries. Amelica could have demanded payment for her healing song. She could have blackmailed me into doing whatever she wanted. Instead, she simply wanted me to pay my respects to Lady Luck by visiting her shrine so that the goddess will continue to protect me. Amelica had my best interest at heart. She was truly an angel and I never met anyone like her, even back home.

I decided to listen to Amelica and visit the shrine. I quickly got dressed and waited for Amelica in front of the tavern.