Chapter 34: Holiday, what’s coming?

Eze, rarely caught off guard by questions aimed at his soul, was momentarily stunned, his glasses slipping from his hand and clattering onto the floor.

Right, before running away he was a 007, and after running away he was still a 007—so all that running was for nothing!?

Having been ravaged to the core as a workaholic, Eze only just realized this.

For a moment, he doubted his own life choices.

But driven by habit, he still decided to resist a little:

“No, no, no, it’s still different from before. Look, at least now I can sleep four hours a day, have time to eat two meals, and even take a shower…”

Eze calmly spoke the honest truth, but listening to him, Virlian felt such pity she was almost about to shed pearls of sympathy, sighing as she covered her face.

“Besides daily work, you don’t have to endure your teammates’ scolding or deal with those troublesome matters, so actually…”

Bang——

Miss Witch slammed her fist heavily onto the table, causing the stack of documents Eze had just set down to scatter onto the floor.

Startled by the imposing momentum, Eze’s body instinctively leaned backward, while Virlian took advantage of the moment to climb onto the table, looming over Eze’s face.

“It seems, what you were used to in your old team wasn’t just the work.”

“…What do you mean?”

“You were also used to deceiving yourself, weren’t you?”

“Uh…”

“Hm?”

Eze averted his gaze guiltily, but Virlian immediately pressed closer, refusing to let him dodge.

After a few rounds of this somewhat comical cat-and-mouse chase to an outsider, Eze finally sighed:

“…What choice did I have? I’ve been here for two years, and I don’t know anything besides the work as a hero.”

In his previous world, Eze was a textbook homebody—well-versed in games, anime, manga, and collectibles.

No worries on rest days: a bottle of cola, a pack of chips, and sitting in front of the computer all day.

But here? None of that existed.

His dissatisfaction with this stark contrast became the motivation for wanting to return to his original world, and the initial reason pushing him to work so hard.

Yet now, those reasons were nothing but empty words.

Saying this, Eze thudded his head onto the table.

Because Virlian was kneeling on the table, the area between her legs was immediately visible.

Purple, adorned with lace and garters.

This… really isn’t just lingerie, is it?

Going all out.

It felt rude to stare, so after only five seconds, Eze turned his face away.

“Mm… I know I should use this time to rest and take a break, but I have no idea what to do.

Before I know it, I’m back to working.”

Saying this, Eze pressed his face into the table and sighed deeply.

“Honestly, what is a ‘break’ even for? I’m starting to forget…”

Seeing Eze getting more and more depressed, nearly curling into a ball, Virlian’s head ached along with her heartache.

She only knew he was tormented by his teammates in the group, but hadn’t realized he was putting pressure on himself too.

Look at how much this kid’s been worn down.

She lightly hopped down and circled behind Eze, pulling him up from the table with a smile as she wrapped her arms around his neck:

“If you don’t know what to do, why not come spend time with me?”

“…Do what?”

“Don’t ask, just come!!”

Half-forced, he was dragged out of the study.

The Golem Maids inside the house immediately swarmed him, seven hands and eight feet working to change him into a black overcoat.

Then, Virlian grabbed his hand and led him out of the mansion into the bustling commercial street.

Compared to his previous noble attire, the coat he changed into looked plain, blending in perfectly with the crowd.

Virlian, too, wore a black, hoodie-like jacket paired with a plaid skirt and boots, tying her proud long purple hair into a ponytail.

Unlike her usual noble, mysterious gowns, this casual look was quite cute, giving off an inexplicable sense of comfort.

From the moment they stepped outside, the witch clung tightly to Eze’s arm without letting go.

Not only smiling, she occasionally hummed an unfamiliar tune, clearly in a very good mood.

It was the soft touch at his elbow that made Eze’s heart a bit restless.

“So, what exactly are we doing?”

“A date.”

No surprise—so that’s why Eze felt so listless.

Actually, it’s not just that—right now, he genuinely felt unmotivated about everything.

“Let’s go have lunch first. Is there a particular place you want to go?”

“No… no, there is.”

The two arrived at a corner of the commercial street, at a restaurant with carefully researched decor but packed with people.

They sat at a table by the street.

Virlian glanced around curiously and asked:

“Why this place? Though it’s good, Tafiah should have better restaurants. Anyway, I’m paying, don’t hold back on me, okay?”

“Nothing special, I just happened to see it before and thought to give it a try.”

Actually, that wasn’t the real reason.

He chose this place because right across the street was the restaurant run by the half-demon mixed-bloods he had visited two days ago.

And it was just the right distance—not too close to be noticed, yet close enough to observe the comings and goings and the inside situation fairly well.

So far, the restaurant’s condition hadn’t changed much since what he saw two days ago.

Except for the near absence of customers, nothing unusual stood out.

That incident from two days ago still baffled him.

Anyone with the ability and funds to hire a top-tier Adventurer Team wasn’t ordinary.

Destroying a restaurant, especially one run by mixed-bloods, should be easy—just hire someone to smash it up.

Considering the discrimination against mixed-bloods, even the local guards might turn a blind eye.

But he didn’t do that.

Instead, they spent a large sum to have high-level adventurers use slow and troublesome acting methods to torment others.

It was hard to say whether that was extravagant or petty.

But whatever it was, something strange was definitely going on.

And Eze’s gut told him it was no small matter.

Now, with the Adventurer Team responsible for the harassment wiped out by Virlian, and the local Guild plunged into unprecedented chaos because of Eze’s actions,

No matter who was behind it, they would certainly make a move.

As long as he kept observing the restaurant over the next few days, he was sure he could…

“Hot—pfft—cough cough—what!?”

While watching and casually taking a sip of water, Eze was caught off guard by the sudden burn.

Looking down, he saw that the cup beside him had been replaced by Virlian with fresh hot coffee without him noticing.

The witch sitting opposite propped her face on her hand, eyes squinting as she gave him a subtle expression.

“Still thinking about work?”

“…No.”

“Lying.”

“…Really not.”

“Lying! Your eyes are different when you work—I can tell!”

Saying this, Virlian sipped the coffee, wearing a face full of grievance.

“Here we are, on a date, you picked the place, and yet your head is full of things unrelated to me. Boohoo, am I really worth so little in your heart?”

Her tone even had a bit of a whimper.

Eze was one hundred percent certain she was acting, but since he was clearly at fault, he had no choice but to apologize honestly.

“Sorry, I’m just used to it…”

Virlian’s expression suddenly flipped, instantly changing into a mischievous smirk as she tilted her head and hurriedly said:

“Then it’s a deal—if you bring up work again before we get home today, I will…”

“Will what?”

“ Kiss you in public~”