“Warlance Queen, here is your bounty. This Ironclaw Ape was considered of ordinary rank this time. With your skills and your partner’s, would you like to challenge the Rhinoking Beast, which currently offers the highest bounty in this region?” The guild member asked casually.
“Don’t call me that, or I’ll stab your throat with my blade,” Lofisso replied fiercely. She detested being addressed that way. The savage title felt like an insult to the young noblewoman.
“Okay, okay! Don’t get mad. I just wanted to ask if you’re interested in high-bounty monsters. The most troublesome one lately is the Rhinoking Beast. So far, no team has dared to act rashly. I was thinking that with your partner’s unique aura, maybe if you gather a few more people, you could take down this monstrous beast.”
“It depends on his decision; I can’t make decisions for him. However, as you said, he’s not an ordinary person. Anyway, we haven’t planned on such a thing. You should look for someone else.” After saying this, Lofisso picked up a bag of bounty and walked to Thrett’s side. She took his arm, and the two of them left intimately in front of everyone.
“Sorry to keep you waiting. Here, this is all your bounty.” Standing on the road near the guild, Lofisso handed over an entire bag of bounty to Thrett.
“Thanks. If I had gone to collect it myself, I would have been bombarded with endless questions.”
“Those people love to ask a lot of questions. Besides, extraordinary contracted demons like you are so rare. Even among demons, I haven’t heard of anyone who can single-handedly kill a monster.”
“It doesn’t matter.” While demons might not manage it, a demon king would undoubtedly succeed. Not wanting to delve into the topic further, Thrett casually replied, and Lofisso, understanding his reluctance, tactfully changed the subject.
“Well, I won’t allow you to say it casually, okay?” Lofisso suddenly lifted herself onto her tiptoes and gently pressed her face towards Thrett.
It was an old habit; after completing a mission together, Lofisso would seek a kiss from Thrett, expressing “well done” or “we make a great team,” although she knew she was the only one who thought so.
For Thrett, it was just a gesture of lips meeting, without any significant meaning, and since he didn’t mind the sensation of a kiss, he had never refused.
Thrett lowered his head and naturally drew Lofisso’s slender waist closer. For a moment, the face that even in deep sleep frowned slightly flashed through his mind.
Through the fingers, feeling the softness and warmth, what would it feel like to kiss those lips carefully once again?
Returning to reality, Lofisso’s face appeared large in front of him, and Thrett immediately stepped back.
“Huh, what’s wrong?”
“Nothing.” Thrett shook his head, suddenly feeling his head heavy and sluggish.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
“Forget it if you don’t want to continue. I’ve dealt with your tactless demon ways for a long time.” Lofisso, unable to proceed with the kiss, pouted her cheeks and lightly tapped Thrett a few times with a complaining tone. Then, she asked, “After finally meeting you again, we should continue traveling together, right? I know you can’t stand being ordered around by others, so you’ve been traveling alone all this time, haven’t you?”
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“Thrett.” A familiar voice interrupted Lofisso halfway through her sentence.
“Ell, is your work finished?” Thrett immediately turned his head, his attention completely diverted.
It was now late in the evening, and Ellyad’s working hours had long ended.
“Yeah, I just went to the restaurant to find you, but the owner said you were fired this morning. And who’s this?”
“She’s Lofisso, a former travel companion.”
Using the word “former,” Lofisso suddenly felt a pang of heartache.
It seemed that the person before her was Thrett’s current companion. While she had considered that Thrett might find someone else to travel with during her absence, she wasn’t worried. Thrett didn’t get along with most humans, and it wouldn’t be long before he left this person behind. Then, she, who remained by Thrett’s side, would be the true winner.
“I’m Lofisso Gururu, probably the closest partner Thrett has had. Nice to meet you.”
“Hello, I’m Ellyad.” Ellyad didn’t go out of his way to explain the nature of his relationship with Thrett. Faced with the term “closest partner,” he wasn’t sure how to position himself.
Since Thrett had never told Lofisso his full name, she wouldn’t notice any peculiarities between Ellyad’s and Thrett’s names.
“Thrett, I’ll head back to the inn first,” Ellyad decided to return to the inn alone, thinking he might be intruding on their reunion.
“Wait, I’ll come with you,” Thrett hurriedly caught up with Ellyad.
“Aren’t you going to chat a bit more?” Lofisso inquired.
“There’s nothing more to talk about,” Thrett replied with a cheerful smile towards Ellyad.
He knew that while Ellyad rarely showed emotions, a simple smile from him occasionally warranted a faint and shy smile in return. Thrett particularly enjoyed that shy and genuine expression.
“I see,” Ellyad didn’t respond with the smile Thrett had hoped for. He just continued walking forward in silence.
“Thrett, are you leaving?” Lofisso called out, but Thrett ignored her, didn’t say goodbye, and simply followed Ellyad away. Lofisso was surprised by Thrett’s behavior in front of this person; it was entirely different from the Thrett she had known before. However, she decided to dismiss it as a momentary whim.
“It’s just a fleeting mood; everything’s fine,” Lofisso encouraged herself inwardly.
She still believed in the Thrett she had known before – self-centered, arrogant, lacking any hint of compassion, and certainly devoid of what some might call humanity. After all, Thrett was a demon; it wasn’t possible for him to spend too much time with someone who seemed as formal and reserved as an ordinary person.
—
Back in the inn room, Ellyad, in a fit of irritation, pulled off his scarf and tossed it onto the bed. He then threw his boots and cloak onto a low table in a release of frustration.
This was what his former companion, Thrett, had said.
But if it was just that, then why the need for a kiss?
“Feeling so suffocated,” Ellyad muttered to himself, a tangled mass of black emotions pressing against his chest. Each breath seemed to leave him gasping for air.
In fact, Ellyad had seen them from the moment they left the guild. Originally intending to call out to Thrett from behind, he witnessed the scene where the two of them seemed about to kiss. For a moment, Ellyad was left speechless.
Then he heard Lofisso say, “Let’s continue traveling together.”
He didn’t let Lofisso finish, timely interrupting their conversation.
“She wants to take Thrett away, no, perhaps not take away, but Thrett will go with her. The two who kissed, if they’re not lovers, then what are they?” Ellyad suddenly thought.
He remembered that their journey was to go to the Demon King’s castle to see the Demon King. Thrett had promised to go with him and, in case of any mishap, protect him. Thrett also said he was special.
But between this “special” quality of his and Lofisso’s “closest partner,” which carried more weight?
Moreover, with two people who could share a kiss, they were definitely more than just partners, weren’t they?
Ellyad sighed heavily.
Welcoming dinner with this heavy heart made even the food taste bland.
Halfway through his meal, Ellyad suddenly felt Thrett lifting his chin with his fingers, scrutinizing him. “Ell, what’s wrong? You seem really down,” Thrett asked quietly.
Ellyad silently pushed away Thrett’s hand, continuing to eat without saying a word.
“Don’t want to talk about it?” Ellyad nodded, and Thrett didn’t press further. He lightly tapped Ellyad’s forehead with his fingers and said, “But I’m really worried.”
“There’s nothing to worry about,” Ellyad said, almost letting out an unreasonable accusation. He had to swallow the words back, afraid that if he spoke them, it would provoke Thrett’s displeasure.
After finishing the meal, Ellyad returned to his room alone, falling into a profound silence once again. Once it was quiet, he couldn’t help but start overthinking, contemplating the possibility of Thrett leaving with someone.
A crisp knock on the door interrupted his thoughts. Opening it, Ellyad found Thrett on the other side.
“I’ve been thinking. If we really want to save on travel expenses, we can just share a room,” Thrett said with a cheerful smile.
Indeed, Thrett would often return to his room and sit on the bed until dawn. As soon as he heard Ellyad getting up, he would run to the adjacent room. Renting two rooms was, in essence, meaningless.
“Why do you keep saying that? One room only has one bed. Even if you’re a demon, you still have limits on your stamina. You need rest every day,” Ellyad shouted back, almost as if he were transferring his anger onto Thrett.
“Then, I’ll be direct. What’s going on with you? Even though you don’t want to say, I want to know,” Thrett suddenly dropped his smile, taking a step closer to Ellyad and asking in a deep voice. He had never been so persistent with someone’s question, but this time he wanted answers from Ellyad no matter what.
Ellyad averted his gaze. He didn’t like being deceived, and so he couldn’t treat others the same way. Since Thrett was relentlessly pressing for answers, Ellyad decided to be frank. It would be easier on his conscience: “Can you travel with me?”
“Huh?”
That’s not what I wanted to ask.
Why did you kiss her? Do you like her? Is she just a former companion to you? Are you two in a romantic relationship? If you choose her, can I still travel with you?
Now I’ve got so much anxiety!!! Girl why’d you have to show up you’re not gonna be a winner, stop lying to yourself 😭
Ellyad 😭 Even if that girl feels like a plot device for Ell & Thrett to realize their feelings, I still cannot bring myself to like her. After all, Thrett did sleep with her… there is no way Ell can compete with that at present 🥺
I actually like the girl. She’s persistent, she doesn’t hold a lot of illusions about what she means to Thrett. It will be a sting for her to realize the scope of his emotional capacity was never expanded fully with her.