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EP.25 Rest Time-A Date with the Demon King
After returning to the village, we headed to Flora's house.
Since Flora was well-known here, being seen at the inn could have started suspicious rumors.
Of course, if we were careful, it wouldn't be a big problem.
But mostly, I just wanted to visit Flora's house at least once.
"It's pretty ordinary."
"What kind of house were you expecting?"
Flora answered with a playful smile.
She looked much like she did before, but there was a clear difference.
She was obviously trying not to think about all that had happened between us.
The glances she gave me now were something I'd never seen before.
"Do all humans live in places like this?"
"That's about right, Demon King."
"It's not even worth comparing to a hero with no home."
Before I knew it, Flora and Satiana had become friends.
It seemed they'd grown close while bathing together.
Being in similar circumstances probably helped them bond.
"I didn't expect you two to become friends so quickly."
"Well, since we have to work together from now on, it's best to get along quickly."
"I guess you don't become a guild branch chief for nothing."
Flora had always been good at making friends.
She was the type to approach others first, so it wasn't surprising.
"The king doesn't know about the rebellion plans yet, right?"
"He has no idea. He probably just thinks of me as a disposable mercenary."
"So we can relax for now?"
"Even if he suspects, it'll be hard for him to act directly for a while. There are bandit problems, and there are rumors others are planning rebellion too."
Right now, the king didn't have the luxury to worry about me.
Our Maro Kingdom had as many problems as it had territory.
If he moved the army, there could be rebellion elsewhere or attacks from other countries.
"Oh… you mean the rumors about rebellion inside the kingdom?"
"Yeah. Only a few know, and most people are unaware, but there are lots of rumors about the female general in the east."
In the east of Maro Kingdom, there was a noblewoman known as the "female general."
Her power was among the strongest in the land.
"Thanks to her and the bandits, I'm benefiting."
"The king must have a headache."
"She's too powerful and well-positioned to touch, so provoking her is risky."
Her territory bordered another country.
If the king tried to purge her, it could backfire, or she could even flee to another nation.
"Speaking of nobles, what about the noble here?"
"Oh… you mean the lord who governs this place?"
"Yeah. I never cared before, but now I think I should know."
"She could be a threat, or not."
It was a vague answer.
Maybe I should be grateful she wasn't a clear enemy, but I felt I needed more details.
"What do you mean?"
"Literally, the noble here-Milleille-is neutral. She's not blindly loyal to the king, but she also doesn't stir up trouble."
"So we should assume she's an enemy for now."
The king would certainly try to win Milleille over.
Unless he could offer her a deal she couldn't refuse, we had to assume she was an enemy.
"She's an enemy, but not a threat."
"Why?"
"She's not the type to attack you at her own loss. The king's most loyal dogs are already clustered near the capital."
"I see… If I get attacked, I'll just destroy her, so she probably won't act rashly."
For now, it was a limiting factor.
She might not attack, but she also wouldn't refuse the king's orders.
She was someone we'd need to win over without causing conflict.
"By the way… her name sounds feminine?"
"She's a young noblewoman. She's very capable and well-liked. She's one of the few nobles I respect."
"Hm… Honestly, I'm a little curious about her…"
"You're not thinking of seducing that noble too, are you?"
At Flora's exasperated comment, Satiana chimed in.
"If it's him, he definitely would."
"I'll take that as a compliment. But I'm not planning on it-at least not yet."
"Hmph… For you, that's pretty restrained."
"There's no benefit to making a move now."
There was no need to provoke her first.
If she turned fully hostile, it would only make things harder for me.
"For now, let's just watch and see."
"That's probably best."
"By the way… it'd be nice if we had a house to stay in here too…"
Seeing Flora's house made me want one of my own.
We couldn't move elsewhere right now.
If we were going to stay, it was better to have a house than to keep staying at the inn.
'It'd be hard to call Flora over to the inn.'
Once or twice might be fine,
but if I kept calling her, people would start to notice.
If the guild branch chief regularly visited the inn,
it would definitely look suspicious.
But staying at Flora's house in a residential area was also difficult.
"Are you looking for a house?"
"If possible, somewhere secluded. It's easier to spot if we're being followed, and it's safer."
"Most of those places are abandoned now… Oh!"
Suddenly, Flora seemed to remember something.
"There is one."
"It's not already owned by someone, is it?"
"It's a troublesome mansion listed in the guild's records."
It was an even more attractive prospect than I'd hoped.
I hadn't expected to afford a huge mansion, but I was willing to settle for a secluded house.
"If we clear it and do the paperwork, it'll be ours."
"But it's an old quest, so we should check the details. Honestly, I don't remember much about it."
"I'll leave that to you."
Flora smiled as if to say, "Leave it to me."
She really was a reliable companion, even if she sometimes made mistakes.
"It'll take some time to check, so just wait quietly for now."
"Alright. When will you check?"
"I'll go to the guild tomorrow."
"So we're doing nothing today? Well, since we have to wait quietly… how about we enjoy ourselves while we wait?"
Flora's face showed a flash of embarrassment.
She probably expected something like this, since she'd already said she wanted more.
But she hadn't expected me to bring it up so quickly.
She looked flustered and got up in a hurry.
"Ah…! Actually, maybe I can check today! There's not much difference between checking today or tomorrow!"
"Wait…"
"J-just wait! I'll let you know the results as soon as I can!"
Flora's face was red with embarrassment as she left the house.
She was clearly pretending to be calm.
The way she rushed out, afraid of being caught in bed, was pretty cute.
'By the time she comes back, she'll probably have steeled herself. For now… maybe I'll just spend a normal day.'
In no time, only Satiana and I were left in the house.
With the owner gone, there was no reason to stay any longer.
"It's not good to leave late and draw attention, so let's go out."
"Ugh…! You're not planning to do anything weird to me, are you?!"
"I just want to go on a casual date."
"D-date…?"
"I mean let's just walk around the village and have some fun."
She didn't look convinced.
But this time, I really did plan to spend the day normally. Sometimes, a normal day isn't so bad.
"You're not planning to take me to another weird shop, are you?!"
"I'm really not. Unless you want me to."
"Hmph…! Of course not…!"
"There's a saying that strong denial is actually affirmation, you know…"
"S-shut up…! Ugh…! Let's just go, so stop talking nonsense!"
Satiana stood up, her face bright red.
Honestly, I wanted to pounce on her right then, but I decided to hold back for once.
"Is there anywhere you want to go?"
"Uh…?"
"What's with that face?"
She looked like she couldn't believe it.
She probably never expected an offer like that.
Her eyes were full of suspicion.
"J-just take me somewhere normal! And don't do anything weird!"
"Alright. I won't touch you this time."
Watching her act so awkward was pretty entertaining.
I gave a meaningful smile, and Satiana looked none too pleased.
'Should I take her to a bar where we can drink together…? She is a Demon King, so she can probably handle her liquor.'
I wouldn't make the first move.
But if Satiana made the first move, I couldn't guarantee what would happen.
Especially since the way she kept glancing at me looked almost expectant.
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