Envy and Jealousy

The next morning, Ad woke up Iman looking at his face with total focus. If he could, he would've pried into her mind, trying to discover what she was thinking. Still, he just smiled at her, as warmly as he could.

It seemed to work as it stopped her from looking at him like that, but he knew she was acting weird. Where was that usual "Darling!" of hers? Ad kept thinking to himself until he felt Hestia moving atop him. She smiled at him lovingly while lifting her head up.

Before Ad could react, Hestia had given him a soft peck on his lips. Her face had a healthy blush that covered even her ears. Even though he wanted to enjoy more of that, he decided against it. He had an idea of what was happening with Iman, and he wanted to solve it.

Before that, though, he had to go to the Pantheon to report his Level Up and choose a Development Skill. He knew perfectly which one he was going to choose.

After getting dressed, he went out of the room, reminding Hestia to get up too, as Natsuki should've already done breakfast. He was gleefully surprised when he saw Natsuki and Ryuu making breakfast together, but his surprised expression soon turned into a frown.

Adalwulf: 'Natsuki is feeling envy... and Iman is feeling jealous.'

He felt slightly worried, as he knew the reason for the girls' feelings. He had connected with two girls in their first meeting, and later that same day with their Goddess, but he hadn't connected with them.

Only he knew that he had known Hestia, Ais and Ryuu way before he met the two girls. He knew everything about their pasts, and he believed he knew them even better than themselves. But he couldn't tell that to anyone, so he had to fix this in a different way.

He decided to take the two girls on a date. One to one, face to face, he would talk to them and learn about their life. He would also tell them more about himself. That way, they would have a bigger chance of connecting. He cared for them, but somewhere in his heart, he knew that he didn't see them in the same light as the others. At least yet.

But he had priorities, and the breakfast Natsuki made was one of those. He was sure that, given time, he would connect with her because of his stomach.

*

After breakfast, Ryuu left the Hearth Manor, saying she would be visiting later. Ad promised to pick her up at the Hostess of Fertility from time to time, to make sure no man had any weird idea with her. Once she had left his sight, he called Natsuki and Iman to the backyard.

Adalwulf: I want to take you on a date. Each of you, just the two of us. I promise to focus only on you during that time.

Natsuki: Wh-wha-what are you s-saying all of a s-sudden?!

Iman: Yay! I knew Darling liked me!

Adalwulf couldn't help but chuckle seeing how their mood brightened upon his words. Iman still being her usual air-headed, cheerful self, whereas Natsuki acted as bashful as she usually did when teased.

He could feel it, though. He could feel the relief they both felt when he asked them out. To them, it meant that he was interested in them and wanted to give them both a bit of his time.

After they had both accepted, Iman by jumping on his arms and Natsuki by slightly nodding with a huge blush on her face, Ad told them to please inform Hestia that he was at the Pantheon, reporting his Level Up.

*

During the short walk to the Pantheon, Ad was greeted by most people on the street, and some Adventurers even asked him about the Minotaur. It would seem that his move at the Pantheon had worked, and the Hestia Familia was now thought to have the strongest Level One Adventurers in the whole Orario.

In a short time, though, that would be the strongest Level Ones and the Strongest Level Two.

After a long and almost annoying walk, Ad finally reached the Pantheon. Once inside, he was yet again bombarded with questions. He decided to simply ignore everyone, as he couldn't channel his annoyance in them. Once at the reception, he asked for Misha.

It would seem that she had been taking a nap, as one side of her hair was firmly pointing to the side, defying gravity. Somewhat bashful about her current state, she asked Ad what his reason was to be looking for her.

Adalwulf: I want to report that I Leveled Up.

Misha had a look that reminded him of a dead fish. It lasted only a few moments, as she recovered from it and went back to her usual self. It would seem that Misha was already immune to the amount of surprises that the silver haired could bring.

Misha: I see, then, you have to choose a Development Skill. Which one is it going to be?

Adalwulf: Luck. That is the Development Skill I am picking.

Misha: I see... I'll be back in a second. Wait here please.

Misha then went to the back of the building. Ad, not having anything better to do, hopped his Samkennd from person to person. He got a wide variety of emotions. Some were feeling annoyed at having to wait, some were angry and some were just relaxing. He also caught slight feelings of infatuation and lust, but decided to ignore them. None were towards him, after all.

After a while, Misha came back and told him that everything was taken care of. Ad, seeing the pinkette, felt a sense of comfort he only felt around the other females that were close to him. He then remembered that the first person he had had contact with when he arrived at Orario, besides the Guard, had been none other than Misha.

Thinking of how well they got along, he decided to see if she would jump on the wagon of his developing Harem.

Adalwulf: Say... would you like to go eat something with me any other day?