"Talking"
"Thinking"
[Status Magic or other reference to a system or power]
...
Raphtalia's sword, Monti's Unicorn horn, and Filo's Wyvern claws were in rough condition. Chips and cracks littered them throughout. Leon's weapon was just recently upgraded greatly and neither Teal's swords nor the holy replica had such issues. With the amount they used their weapons the last two days and the fact they were not meant to be used by people as high a level as they were currently, it seemed only right that the equipment had outlasted their usefulness. They'd need to look into alternatives.
All the heroes and their parties returned to the main island to rest and maybe more.
...
As soon as they landed back on the main island, Naofumi took the weapons from Monti and Filo. Monti's face told Naofumi what he was about to say.
"I'm sorry I didn't take better care of it..." Monti apologized, his cat ears tucked down.
Naofumi patted his head and ruffled his hair slightly. "It's not your fault...These weapons just don't hold up anymore. They were made for people 20 levels lower than us."
"If anything, it's a mark of progress." Raphtalia added.
"But what about your weapons? Are you guys gonna go at them with your hands like me?" Keel asked.
"Monti... Can't you shift that thing into a spear or sword?" Filo asked.
Monti clutched the replica tightly. "Why would I wanna do that? I'm the shield hero's son, so I'm keeping it a shield." Monti told them defensively.
"I'm going to need to have a talk with him later." Both Naofumi and Raphtalia thought separately.
Naofumi went through his drops again, hoping there was something at least half-way decent. He found himself truly lucky at what he found.
.
[Karma Dog Claws]
Agility Up, Magic Reduction, Attack Up, and Defense Reduction
.
[Karma Rabbit Sword]
Agility Up, Magic Reduction, Attack Up, and Defense Reduction
.
[Usauni Kigurumi]
Defense Up, Size Correction, Increased Dig Efficiency, Race Change - Rabbit
Attack Resistance (small), Earth Resistance (large), Shadow Resistance (small), HP Recovery (low), Magic Up (medium), Automatic Recovery Function, Skill Adjustment (small), Monster Equip Time, No Alterations other than Type
.
There was a sword for Raphtalia and a set of claws. That last piece of equipment was insane, but he knew no one would wear it if asked to... except maybe Monti. He focused on the sword first, pulling out of the drop menu and looking at it. The [Magic Reduction] and [Defense Reduction] seemed to be a curse of some kind.
The family and Keel watched as Naofumi attempted to use [Cleanse] on the sword. He paused for a moment and was disappointed. He handed the sword to Raphtalia who took it, studying it.
While she examined it, Naofumi explained. "This was dropped by that rabbit boss... It's cursed to lower your magic and defense. I couldn't remove it."
"Still, it's great and a lack of defense doesn't really matter with you at my side." Raphtalia reasoned.
"That was my thought. I got something for Filo in the meantime too." Naofumi pulled out the claws and presented them to Filo.
"Ah, those are so cool!" Keel exclaimed.
"They're sorta similar to your [Cerberus Dusters], huh? If we get another set next time we fight it, I'll see if Erhart can do his thing and combine the two." Naofumi offered.
"Cool, thanks!" Keel said, not looking away from Filo's new claws.
While Leon made a point to tell Filo that his weapon was cooler than her new one and started a whole new fight, Naofumi looked at the other drops. There was more [Oreikul Ore], but nothing else of note. He placed the ore into the [Family Crest Shield] and turned back to the others.
When he did, he caught sight of Itsuki and the others exiting the boat for the day. Itsuki and Rishia went towards the hotel immediately, the others walked towards Naofumi.
"Good news! We got room in the party for Keel now." Godiva explained in place of a greeting.
"Hmm, I'm still not sure. Leveling with you people isn't going to be as fast as with Raphtalia and the others, even without the party size penalty." Keel complained.
"Heh, you wait and see. There is more to strength than levels. I was told you want to fight with your firsts. If that's true, I'm the best teacher you're going to get." Godiva bragged about herself a bit.
"You talk big, but can you back it up lady?" Keel wasn't impressed.
"Lady? Do I look like a proper lady!?" Godiva complained in jest.
"...This is what I get to look forward to?" Mia commented at the pair's instant and annoying exchange.
"At least you'll have that Walter guy to distract you tomorrow." Godiva offered.
As Mia, Godiva, and Keel talked, Fitts stepped towards Naofumi.
"Greetings Naofumi, Raphtalia, kids." Fitts greeted.
It was odd that Fitts seemed to be the only person with manners, when everyone there was to be nobles or close to nobles. He seemed like the only one putting in the effort. Or perhaps he simply adopted a more polite manner because many people currently disliked him.
"How are things going?" Raphtalia asked Fitts.
"Now that the bow hero is not our charge to monitor, better. And even better still after I hit the hot springs." Fitts waved away Raphtalia's concern.
"Hot springs!?" Several people exclaimed at once, ending all other conversations.
"...Yeah? The hotel we sleep at has a huge hot spring section. Apparently it's famous for some reason. Have you... Have none of you asked the locals here for any information?" Chloe asked, looking at the others
"..." Everyone shifted gears immediately.
The kids all saw this, and Leon asked. "Father, what's a hot spring?"
"Oh... Well, it's a lot of naturally warmed water that feels really nice and helps lessen fatigue."
"Warm? How warm?" Leon was now on board.
"Hmm, let's just head there after a light meal. Better to just experience it." Naofumi told the party.
They all seemed excited, but Keel's excitement was somewhat dampened. Everyone went out to eat, needing two tables to seat everyone. Mia was even lucky enough to find Walter and explain to him that he could join their party tomorrow and should come with her to meet them and eat a free meal. All he heard was 'free meal' and he was there.
Naofumi, Raphtalia and the kids sat at one table, while Keel and Walter sat with their new party for the duration of Cal Mira. Walter and Keel were equally embarrassed despite the age difference. Walter's embarrassment went out the window when he was told who Naofumi was. He was shocked to say the least and immediately wanted to shake his hand and introduce himself. This seemed very unnatural for Walter and Naofumi was made equally uncomfortable.
"Shield lord, I am originally from Siltvelt... My name is Walter. It is good to meet you. Please let me know if there's anything I can ever do to help you." Walter offered.
Filo's head jerked as Walter spoke, she stood. "That's not... Mel-chan!"
Whatever Filo was going to say was interrupted by her seeing Melty. Melty, Liviccic, and Sophia spotted Naofumi and the others and took the next closest table as the others soon joined.
It took this moment for Naofumi to see what had happened. He came to this world with no one and was made an outcast in as little as two days... And yet here he was at the center of a large group. 18 people all gathered around. Many had several other allies and as Walter reminded him, many demi-humans thought highly of him. There were probably countless people who would take his side or fight in his name, given the right circumstances. More importantly, most of the people here cared more about him than the few friends he had in his old world.
Not as many and not as loyal.
While Filo went back and forth between the family's table and Melty's, they also heard of the hot springs and found the idea appealing. Though, there were some nay-sayers.
"Princess, let us secure a private area for you. You can't allow yourself to be-" Ida went to dictate to her future leader again.
"But Filo wants Mel-chan to play with Filo." Filo protested.
"If these hot springs follow the same common sense as what I'm familiar with, then men and women have separated baths. Isn't that enough?" Naofumi asked.
"It is. I have a limited amount of time to spend without such restrictive oversight and I wish to use it." Melty said, standing up for herself.
"...If that is your wish…" Ida surrendered the dispute.
After eating, the rather large group made their way to the hotel. Once there, Liviccic was the one to approach the staff and ask about the hot springs,
"Yes, it is quite famous, great for removing the fatigue after a hard day. It's also famous for having a purifying effect. Some minor curses could be removed in as little as one night in its warm waters." The staff informed him happily.
"..." Liviccic paused after hearing about curse removal.
Everyone overheard the staff's explanation and went straight for the hot spring.
The entrance separated men and women into changing rooms before they entered the bath proper. Most of their group quickly separated into the two changing rooms. A few did not.
Naofumi, Raphtalia, Teal, Keel, Liviccic, and Sophia.
Liviccic and Sophia went to inquire about the private bathing areas they saw, wanting one for the two of them. Naofumi and Raphtalia waited for Teal to choose an entrance before they'd enter. Teal was deciding, but that decision was on hold.
Leon and Monti ran back out. "Hurry up!" They grabbed Keel and ran back in.
To this, Teal took one small step towards the boy's side, but stopped and waited. Raphtalia had to ask.
"Teal, what's wrong? Choose whichever one you like." Raphtalia encouraged.
"Wait a moment." Teal said knowingly.
"Ehhhh!?" Was heard from the men's side.
Monti quickly came to the entrance with a look of embarrassment. "M-Mom, dad…we… kind of have an issue…"
"What is it?" Naofumi asked in concern.
"Well, um… Mom, we need you in here. It's just Leon, Keel and me in here."
"...Understood." Raphtalia said with a sigh.
She followed Monti inside. Naofumi went to follow, but Teal motioned him to wait.
"...Teal, you seem to know what's going on. Spill it?" Naofumi inquired.
"And then where would the fun be?" Teal deflected.
"Seriously, what's wrong?" Naofumi wasn't having it.
"Nothing serious. Better to let mom deal with it, though." Teal gave only the slightest bit of insight.
…
With Keel
…
Leon stood outside of the changing room, seeming more annoyed for having to wait than actually concerned about whatever situation was actually going on. Raphtalia went to ask again what was going on.
"Did Keel get hurt? What happened?"
"It's just dumb, get her to leave already." Leon pointed to the changing room.
Raphtalia decided to just enter the changing room. "Keel, are you…?"
She fell silent as she entered the small room to find Keel there. Without the baggy clothes to hide it away, the curves that Keel developed from her level-based aging were clear to see, as was the reason for the concern. With Keel's level being around 60, his (or rather 'her') appearance was clearly that of a girl's.
Keel was a girl.
"Um…What?" Raphtalia was stunned.
Keel immediately became defensive. "Shut up. I-I just have some swollen injuries from the battles. Once I get into the hot spring, I'll-"
"Keel… clearly you are- Teal! Did you know!?" Raphtalia yelled in paranoid realization.
Outside, Teal's only response was a small smirk that formed on her face. This only served to make Naofumi more confused.
"..." Raphtalia waited a moment, hoping Teal would respond. After the pause, she began to have the conversation that she REALLY didn't want to have.
"I'm a boy! I'm going to be a man of the sea!" Keel said with some resolve.
"Keel, what's between your legs?" Raphtalia hated having to have this conversation.
…
About 15 minutes later
…
Raphtalia found out that Keel's father would say things about 'men of the sea' or 'fishermen' with admiration and Keel thought that men were simply the ones that went out to sea. Not only was Keel a girl, but a sheltered life with a loose-lipped father had Keel not even knowing what it meant to be a boy or a girl. Keel legitimately thought that she'd grow into a man downstairs… Raphtalia was hard pressed to explain that Keel was a girl. When Keel attempted to reject her words, Raphtalia reminded Keel of Sadeena.
Sadeena was a powerful demi-human they both knew. One who went out to sea all the time. And she was a woman. Raphtalia reminded Keel that her instructor for fighting was going to be Godiva, another woman. Keel was also trying to catch up to Raphtalia, a woman. Her being a girl did not affect her chances of being the person she wanted to be, nor would anyone treat her differently outside of things like the hot springs.
After batting away every excuse and half-hearted disagreement, Keel relented, but was still upset. Who wouldn't be? It'd take her some time to adjust. Maybe the hot springs would allow her the time to consider things.
Raphtalia and Keel exited the men's side. Keel was wearing her gear again. Naofumi's face asked the question for him. Teal stepped forward.
"So, we're going to the women's section, right?" Teal asked.
"...Yes…" Keel replied, her eyes looking downward.
Naofumi flinched at that. As Raphtalia walked towards the other side, she mouthed a few words to Naofumi, "I'll explain later".
Once Raphtalia, Teal, and Keel joined on the women's side and Naofumi joined the men's side, there was finally time to relax.
Leon nearly drowned several times as he kept submerging himself over and over again to obtain further warmth. At first, Monti would simply grab his horn and raise his brother's head out of the water periodically so he could breathe. After that got annoying, Monti used some rope to keep Leon from sinking.
Filo wasn't much better on the women's side, treating it like a pool and swimming and splashing about. Normally that would have been unwelcome, but it helped Keel loosen up more.
Upon seeing Keel, Godiva had to comment. "Oh, I thought you were a boy. So much for even gender in the party." Godiva seemed to care little about the fact and was more simply making an observation.
"Is that really important?" Mia said, with herself almost completely beneath the water, seemingly shy.
"About as important as that Walter guy." Godiva said in jest, before falling back into the water herself with a sigh of relief.
"Even if he's weak, I'd like to keep him around to learn more about firearms. He built his own. It might even be a good idea to hire him." Mia defended.
"Hmm." Godiva considered that. "Hiring people… Still seems so weird that I'm going to have those types of responsibilities soon. I'd have been happy returning to my old career as a city guard." Godiva admitted, not realizing the relaxing water and atmosphere was making her lower her defenses.
"Indeed. Fitts isn't looking forward to it at all. He fears that the people will reject him." Chloe also admitted.
"Gwaah!" Godiva nearly launched herself out of the water in fright. "Don't scare me like that! You're so light on your feet that I lose track of you… Say… why didn't you and Fitts get a private bath like Lord Blackcrown did?" Godiva placed the pressure on Chloe instead.
In response, Chloe pulled out a knife from seemingly nowhere.
"What is it that you are implying?" She asked in a grave voice.
Godiva saw the children having a good time and decided the fight and conversation was not worth having… Even if she believed she would win both.
"Tsk, you're no fun." Godiva backed off.
On the men's side, Leon yelped as he tried to get away from where he had been, but the rope that Monti tied to him to keep him from drowning kept him from escaping.
"Get him away from me before I fill this whole place with fire!" Leon threatened.
He was trying to distance himself from Walter, who had accidentally drifted too close to the boy to sit his pistol and alcohol down. The effort Leon was putting in to get away was quite unusual and quite genuine.
Naofumi intervened. "Leon, what is it? Why are you freaking out?"
"Look at him! I sense a negative value from him. Negative! That shouldn't even be possible! He is poorer than broke. If he touches me or my stuff, it may spread!" Leon ranted and raved like the world was ending.
Naofumi's worry went away as he realized that Leon was just being Leon again.
He sighed. "Could you keep some distance from Leon? He's… temperamental."
"Um, sure, but… what was that about 'negative value' and 'poorer than broke'… What is he talking about?" Walter asked, but seemed to worry about the answer.
"Just as I said. You are worth less than nothing. I can sense value and yours is negative." Leon said, hiding behind his dad.
"Wha-How does that work!?" Walter exclaimed in confusion.
"I don't know!?" Leon said, matching Walter's energy.
"..." There was a pause.
"This is supposed to be relaxing… Why must there be bullshit?" Naofumi questioned life.
Fitts stayed in the corner of the water and did well to mind his own business, a rare quality.
Luckily, things died down after that and they had about a half hour of relaxation that really did them all some good. Even Filo eventually tired herself out and began relaxing more.
But nothing good can last. Ren, Itsuki, Motoyasu, and L'arc entered the men's side, along with two of Ren's other party members (Welt and Bakta). On the other side, Rishia, Therese, Wyndia and Ren's two other party members (Farrie & Tersia) entered.
Wyndia saw Raphtalia and immediately went to her side, hesitating only a moment when she saw that Filo was right next to her.
"I assume Leon is with the men?" Wyndia asked, sliding into the water on the opposite side of Raphtalia.
"Yes. It's good to see you doing well. I'm surprised that you allowed Ren a moment of rest." Raphtalia observed.
"...Even he needs some rest. He's been disappointing today, hopefully this will improve his performance." Wyndia said, her face turned away.
"Dragon girl is lying." Filo spouted.
"Gwak! Shut it, you bird brain! And my name is 'Wyndia'. You should already know that." Wyndia shouted playfully.
"Wow, Filo interacts with you the same way she does with Leon."
"Of course, she's basically another dragon." Filo defended.
That made Wyndia flinch before she lowered herself into the water completely to hide her face. While unintentional, Filo gave Wyndia a huge compliment. The fact that Filo was so obviously sincere about it made it all the sweeter.
Ren's teammates stayed quiet and kept to themselves. They seemed to dislike that Naofumi's allies were in here too. They were likely ashamed of the actions they took only a few weeks ago. Luckily, the others in the women's side left them be… The men's side though?
Ren was already finding a spot away from Leon. Leon knew this, but still gave him a deadly glare. Itsuki entered into the water at the closest point and refused to travel further. Ren's other teammates mirrored the two in the women's section, opting to stay near Ren, which was near Walter.
Ren spotted his weapon and had a double take. "That's a gun… There are guns in this world?"
Itsuki was surprised by that and went over to see it too. From Ren's words, Walter could tell he was a hero. He only spotted a small knife that looked like a sword in design attached to his forearm. He went to pull away, but Itsuki was behind him now.
"Can I see that? Just a moment." Itsuki asked.
Walter didn't like this. He was being cornered and asked to hand over his gun. He looked to Naofumi for assistance, but found he was also preoccupied.
Over with Naofumi, Motoyasu and L'arc were laughing up a storm. The way L'arc was waving towards Naofumi told him that his brief peace had ended. L'arc knew nothing of the bad blood between Naofumi and the other heroes, so he forced Naofumi to have to deal with Motoyasu.
"Hey, Kiddo… Don't give me that sour look, I know you're happy to see us." L'arc said too loudly, his overly positive attitude working against Naofumi's current mood.
"I told you, I'm not a kid. I have my own for fuck's sake." Naofumi argued.
Motoyasu kept a bit of a distance and never looked at Naofumi or Monti and Leon.
L'arc picked up on the hostility. "C'mon, lighten up. We're here to have some fun, not search for new reasons to be mad." L'arc continued with that odd pressure he showed before. Not ordering, or even so much 'telling', more like he was suggesting with applied pressure.
Because he suggested things instead of being more assertive, it made it more socially awkward to go against him. Naofumi still couldn't tell if L'arc's way of speaking was natural or done purposefully.
He shifted uncomfortably and grunted. "Whatever."
Walter was channeling his inner cat and tried to keep Itsuki from his gun. He put up a valiant effort, but he still ended up getting it with Ren's help. After a small confused delay from Itsuki, he went to hand it back. Walter wasn't having it. He began making angry badger noises. Which made no sense. He was a cat demi-human, not a badger demi-human. But clearly those were angry badger noises.
"Listen, I'm not sure what Moto has done in the past to get you riled up, but do you really think he'd do it again?" L'arc said some words, but it sounded like he wasn't trying.
"...Like you just said, you don't know." Naofumi dismissed him.
"Wow. That's some grade A sourpuss right there. Do we need to form an emergency alliance to cheer you up?" L'arc was not intimidated by Naofumi in the least, and threatened him with further annoyance.
Naofumi had to either cheer up or deal with whatever 'emergency alliance' he could muster.
"Like hell I will." Naofumi determined immediately.
Without a moment wasted, L'arc turned to Monti and Leon. "You two want to help cheer up Naofumi?" He asked with enthusiasm.
"Oh god dammit…" Naofumi knew they were easily influenced.
"Of course!" Monti answered.
L'arc nodded. "Moto, what should we do to cheer up the kiddo?"
Motoyasu's shame and worry were no longer present. L'arc seemed to quell his indecisiveness easily. The group talked for a bit while Naofumi hoped they'd just stop.
Finally, they got around to suggestions and Motoyasu had the one that would win the hearts of the men there. "Well, there is the obvious. This is a hot spring. Let's peep in on the girls! No man can ignore such an opportunity!"
Everyone on the men's side perked up, except Monti and Leon. Naofumi, Ren, and Itsuki immediately began arguing against it.
"We've caused enough problems lately, Motoyasu. Let's try to be better than we were." Ren argued.
"Peeping is a crime, Motoyasu. If you try committing a crime when I am here to see it, then I'll be forced to stop you." Itsuki threatened.
"I'm not stupid, Motoyasu. Filo is over there. Just try it and see how fast I beat your ass!" Naofumi threatened even more directly.
"Guys, guys, it's just a quick peep. Think of all the cute girls over there. If you are a man, you will know in your heart what the answer is." Motoyasu tried arguing.
No one was having it, but L'arc came in again, arguing persuasively. "I don't see the problem. Those of us who want to peep, do so. Then those who are innocent can feel that self-imposed pat on their back. Everyone wins."
L'arc didn't directly argue in favor of his side, instead belittling the argument as a whole then insinuating negative connotations to those that disagreed with him. Naofumi was sure of it now. L'arc was a subversive guy. With a much different personality, he'd have been an excellent leader of some sort.
"Hmm, I mean… It's not like I want to pretend to be better than everyone else…" Ren began to buckle.
"I'd have to wait until you did something wrong to stop you…" Itsuki mostly buckled.
"No. My woman and my daughters are over there. Not to mention a number of other people I trust. You. Will. Not. D-"
"Already doing it." L'arc told him as they moved towards the wall. Itsuki and Ren were moving with them. Even Fitts and Walter were heading that way.
"O-Oi. Oi!" Naofumi had no control of the situation. "Fitts, what the hell!?"
Fitts half-turned. "What? I deserve to peep. Life's been rough."
"Same." Walter added.
"Seriously, stop." Naofumi's anger was more genuine, but it did nothing.
They collectively began climbing the short wall to gaze at the paradise on the other side.
"I wonder what's so important about looking over there?" Leon asked aloud.
"Wanna just fly up and see?" Monti asked.
The two agreed.
After a moment more of Naofumi trying not to blow his lid, he stopped trying. He ran through the water towards Motoyasu, attempting to drag him off the wall, but it was too late. They caught more than a sight at the women's section.
All the girls were there and several other strangers as well. Everyone took a quick look through those there and found their 'favorites'. Monti only caught sight of a few of them, including Melty, before realizing what he was doing. Monti immediately stopped flying, dropping back into the water to hide in embarrassment. Leon followed soon after, finding the sight worth less than the effort.
"Wow. That Rishia girl has more curves than first thought." Motoyasu said to Itsuki.
Itsuki immediately felt bad about doing this to Rishia and stopped himself. Motoyasu didn't notice. Ren also got the tiniest glimpse of Wyndia and his other teammates. He also regretted going along with this and stopped right away. His other two male teammates followed his lead.
This left those peeping to just Motoyasu, L'arc, Fitts, and Walter.
Teal was the first to notice. The pheromones were suddenly so much higher. Her whole head jerked to lock her sight on those peeping.
"Oi! You can't peep on us unless we get to peep on you!" Teal declared.
Teal's voice alerted everyone else in the women's section to what was going on. A number of them sank in the water or tried to cover up while yelling at those peeping. They collectively looked up to see the perpetrators. Therese was chewing them out the loudest, knowing Motoyasu and L'arc had to be the ringleaders.
Chloe threw a knife at Fitts, but he was already retreating, dodging her attack like he had become used to it.
Teal and Godiva sprang into action. Godiva launched herself out of the water and began running at the divider. Teal soon behind her.
"You pervs want a show!?" Godiva yelled.
"You all better line up and present yourselves!" Teal demanded.
Mia grabbed Godiva and tried to calm her. "Hold on, are you going over there? Naked? That just gives them more of an eye-full." Mia knew that convincing her friend was a long shot.
"And I'll give them an ear-full and a fist-full to go with it!" Godiva announced.
This short exchange gave Walter much to look at the two of them and the moment to retreat that might save him from Godiva's wrath. Motoyasu and L'arc finally retreated when Raphtalia used the [Inventory] to pull out some of Teal's [Iron Garden] blades for Chloe and her to throw at the pair, just moments from Naofumi using a skill on them both.
Things got loud and crazy after that. Walter was the only one with the right sense of caution to try and leave as soon as he could, while L'arc laughed off the whole situation. The situation was being downplayed and laughed about…
Until Teal landed on the other side of the divider. She had grown herself about a foot taller and cleared the wall in one powerful jump, blocking the exit for them. Walter was so close to escaping before that.
"What's the matter?" Teal said, they all collectively shivered.
"Oi, Naofumi… handle her, okay…?" Motoyasu was in a panic.
Naofumi and the kids got out of the water and grabbed their towels before walking past Teal.
"I warned you." Was all Naofumi said as he left without another word.
Teal's smile grew into something sinister and the guys collectively began to panic.
"I'll be over there in a sec!" Godiva promised.
"As will I!" Chloe declared.
"I have the perfect weapon for this situation." Mia said with an ominous tone.
The men realized they started a war without the will to win.
"W-Wait!" Walter was already begging.
"Be reasonable." L'arc said with his hands up defensively. He was worried now, but still less worried than the others.
"I have magic lessons later, can this wait?" Ren attempted to appeal to Wyndia.
As Naofumi and the kids exited the men's side to meet up with Raphtalia and Filo, they began to hear some screams from the men's side. A number of women ran into the men's side for their pound of flesh.
Naofumi was pleased, the hot springs were indeed relaxing in the end.
…
Later on that night
…
As the peepers were punished for what they did, Naofumi and Raphtalia decided to retire for the night. Monti needed to go to bed quickly. He felt that if Teal was near him, she'd somehow know that he had peeped too, and she'd be right. Filo and Leon were also really tired from the hot spring and retired early.
About an hour later, the guys had received their punishment, with those who didn't get caught directly, like Ren, Itsuki, and Walter receiving far less punishment. Motoyasu and L'arc got it the worst, while Fitts had to deal with Chloe attempting to assassinate him for roughly an hour. They had lost a lot of time, but Itsuki and Ren needed to study their magic script and reading. Itsuki had not been trying as hard as Ren, but he committed an hour each night to studying with Rishia.
She had been extremely helpful in his studies. She was endlessly patient and accommodating, had shown him she had a strong academic prowess and had even shown the best memory he had ever seen. Able to recite whole pages from memory, being able to remember the book, chapter, and page number. Once again, this showed Itsuki that he had been completely ignorant of her talents.
And on top of feeling bad for not seeing her talent sooner, he had new guilt for having seen Rishia while peeping. He had disrespected her further. He'd need to fess up, but he couldn't. Just as he couldn't forget what she looked like.
"Dammit, stupid brain." Itsuki berated himself.
As he waited for her to re-enter the room, he tried forgetting that very generous view he had. Just as it was working, a noise began.
"..." Itsuki's face was getting redder.
His room was next to two others, one of them being Naofumi's. What he was currently hearing was, yes, it was unmistakable. In their room the two were engaging in the most thrilling of physical activities. Itsuki needed it to stop. He could not handle talking to Rishia right now with THAT happening so loudly.
"..." Another noise joined the first.
"No, please."
It was from the opposing wall.
"You cannot be serious!"
It was Liviccic and Sophia's room.
"You assholes, stop!"
Itsuki was about to leave the room, when Rishia entered the room. She saw his blushing face and quickly took note of the… vigorous noises.
"F-Fueeeeeeee!?" Rishia lost it.
.
[Author's Notes]
They have some replacement weapons, but Monti doesn't want to use the replica as anything but a shield. Will he find a replacement weapon?
The reveal that Keel is a girl. Which is canon for those unaware. She was just comically ignorant of such things.
And the hot spring bit is over. Not trying to be to… sexual with this one, but based on the subject matter, I had to do some things.
I have successfully tortured Itsuki with the clapping of cheeks, I am a monster.
I will be playing Elden Ring upon its release… as such my chapters may slow or cease for a time.
Please leave a review!