Celes, who had just been rejected, was a little down at first, but the moment she heard those words, her spirits lifted immediately.
Ayla said I would definitely come up with the best solution—how could I let her down?
“I’ll head out first!”
The Sword Saint Maiden grabbed her sword and left the house, the Little Witch went back to her room to sleep, the Saintess started writing a letter with paper and pen, and Zero went out to coordinate with Lisa and the others.
Only Ayla, with nothing to do, returned to her room, lay down, and stared blankly at the ceiling.
In a way, wasn’t she the only real victim in the Harbor City incident?
“And my servants too.”
A mournful voice echoed in her mind.
“They put in so much effort, but because of a few mistakes, they ultimately failed.”
Ayla ignored Him.
Saying it like that, pretending to care about them, acting as if He had feelings for the trading partners—just trying to use emotion to make her less resistant to the deal, right?
Lala wasn’t falling for it.
Put simply, if there really were feelings, why take their souls in the end?
“The transaction required it. In order to oppose you, they had to ask me for things that could only be traded at the cost of their souls. As for the result, it was never my wish.”
Ayla closed her eyes.
If you say so, then so be it.
At that moment, outside the Inn, in a teahouse near the Market, several Royal Guard captains came up to see Celes, reporting the results of this morning’s beachcombing operation.
Compared to the Demon Tribe Army, these forty-some guards were indeed lacking in physical strength.
On the Sword Saint Maiden’s suggestion, they adjusted their duties, focusing mainly on coordinating city affairs.
The Demon Race called this the Street Office—rumor had it the Demon King heard it from somewhere else.
“Because of a lack of tools and experience, the fishing wasn’t very fruitful, far less than what the Sirens usually bring in.”
“But everyone’s technique is getting better, and our later hauls were obviously more than at the start.”
“Counting the city’s stored grain and everyone’s personal reserves, we can easily last ten days to half a month.”
“The Workshop has already taken orders and will start making fishing gear right away.”
“The new garrison brought some mountain specialties and said if needed, they could organize people to go hunting in the mountains.”
Hearing all this, Celes quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
All good news—the situation was much better than she’d expected.
This wasn’t the Royal City, something she’d overlooked before.
The people of Harbor City mostly relied on natural resources, so they didn’t need long, difficult production chains.
As long as they could gather natural resources, food and drink wouldn’t be a problem.
As for production, the few fields in the Northern Region were more than enough.
A weight lifted from her heart, and Celes finally felt at ease.
“Just stick with these methods and take it step by step.”
The Harbor City reconstruction plan was set, and Leah’s letter was finished.
[To the Church Branch Bishop, May the Goddess of Light above grant Her Blessing to you and me. Recently, I have lingered in Harbor City, finding the people here simple and pure-hearted. They just joined forces to drive away the Sirens and broke the Evil Cult of Foreign Race—these hearts are worth relying on.]
[You must take this seriously. Send Messengers to help the locals build a Chapel, establish a Harbor City Church Branch, and spread the Goddess’s Blessing to these new lands. Saintess of Light, Liraleah Light Yalbetrys]
Finished, sealed in an envelope, with a temporary wax seal crafted using the Blessing of Light, then handed to the guards outside the Inn to deliver to the post station.
Done!
And it was getting late!
By evening, all the girls who’d gone out had returned.
They went downstairs together for dinner and to share information.
Celes had finished her planning, Zero and Lisa had finished their discussions, Leah’s letter was sent, and Vina had a good nap.
Ayla blinked: “In that case…”
“We can leave for the Royal City tomorrow,” Celes said.
“It’s best to set off before noon.”
If they left by noon, they’d reach the supply point before dark.
None of the girls had any objections.
As for Harbor City, they’d left their personal mark here and earned high prestige—when they had time, they’d come back to visit.
“Rest well tonight.”
After dinner and saying goodnight, the girls returned to their own rooms.
Ayla didn’t rush to undress or lie down, but sat on her bed and looked out the window, watching the dusky sky fade into complete darkness.
Knock, knock, knock—the sound of someone knocking at the door.
“Come in.”
“Ayla, I’m coming in~”
Even though the door was already open, Leah still had to make a show of saying that—maybe it was just her way of adding a ritual to life.
She turned and carefully closed the door, tiptoed to the bedside—even so, her steps were still the loudest among the four of them.
Nothing could be done about her physique.
“Ayla, why are you still dressed?”
The Saintess pouted and reached out her righteous hands.
“Let me help you take it off.”
Ayla made a token struggle, but before she knew it, she’d been stripped bare.
It felt way faster than doing it herself.
“I’m here, Ayla, to purify the evil from your body!”
With a soft call, something big and soft pressed against her chest, that familiar elasticity rippling across her heart.
Ayla couldn’t help but let out a little “mmph.”
So soft and comfortable—the moment those big mochi touched her, all her fatigue vanished and all her troubles were swept away.
“Is this what you want? The satisfaction of a sentient creature’s desires, the most primal intimacy—what a wonderful experience.”
Not listening, not listening, evil god chanting, Lala didn’t hear a thing.
With such soft, fragrant warmth, she didn’t mind being underneath at all.
“Actually, if you’re willing to pay a tiny price, I could let you be on top.”
Ayla’s little heart skipped a beat, but she quickly regained her senses and firmly refused.
No matter how small the price, using it for something like this was just too embarrassing.
One day, Demon King will rely on her own strength to be on top!
“Are you sure you don’t want it?”
No!
Stop talking, I won’t fall for it, just give up.
“Nothing else either?”
Ayla sneered inwardly.
If she could resist even the temptation to be on top of Leah, what else could possibly shake her?
No!
“Even if there’s a girl standing in the corridor outside your door, you still don’t want it?”
No… what are you talking about?
He didn’t give an answer, just left a string of silvery laughter in Ayla’s mind.
Then suddenly, her vision changed, as if she was standing in the corridor outside her door.
In the silent, pitch-black hallway, a petite figure was slowly approaching the room.
It was Zero!
“If you don’t do anything, in twenty-seven seconds, she’ll open the door and come in.”
A precise number—sounded like it was made up on the spot, but the exact seconds didn’t matter.
Judging by her posture, she was definitely coming in!