“Eeeek~”
I clung tightly to him, imitating a creature I’d once seen in the Southern Country islands that hugged trees and slept twenty hours a day.
“I said hold on, but you’re holding on way too tight! And we’ve already landed, so you don’t need to keep clinging to me like that!”
According to my intel, he was supposedly good at dealing with girls… but his flustered, beet-red face didn’t look fake in the slightest.
Hmm, I’ll have to give that intelligence team a proper scolding later… No, actually, maybe I should just replace all of them entirely?
“G-get off! What kind of proper young lady clings to a strange man like this?!”
He frantically pried me off of him. How strange… I thought my appearance was still considered pretty even among Human women?
Even that particularly appearance-picky child shouldn’t be able to find fault with this face—
“Alright, had your fun, haven’t you…? Now give me back my wallet! Otherwise, I’ll have to take you to the guards!”
Even after prying me off, he still clamped down on my wrist, restricting my movement.
“Hee~ So you’re saying that if I return your wallet, you’ll let me go? You’re quite the soft-hearted fool, aren’t you?”
We had landed in an alley far from the bustling streets… There wasn’t a single other person in the entire alley besides him and me.
“…With your skills, the guards in this city wouldn’t stand a chance at catching you. Even if you were locked up in jail, I’m sure you could escape with ease.”
“You’ve got a good eye, huh.”
“But you’ve picked the wrong target this time. If you keep being obstinate, I’ll have no choice but to dislocate your shoulder and break one of your legs… then hand you over to the guards.”
“Wow, you can be that cruel?”
“Precisely because I’m not that cruel, I’m giving you one chance. Hand over my wallet now!”
“Hmm… with you gripping my hand like that, how am I supposed to get it for you?”
“…Don’t try any tricks.”
He released the restraint and freed my right hand… but his grip on my left wrist remained firm.
“Alright, alright… catch!” I pulled out the wallet and hurled it with all my strength into the shadows of the alley.
“You—!”
The moment I threw the wallet, he darted after its trajectory… If I hadn’t already seen what was inside it, I would have thought the only thing he cared about that much were the few gold coins within.
“Phew, the money’s all here… wait a second!”
He spun around from deep in the alley where he’d been checking the contents of his wallet… Those eyes that had seemed completely harmless just moments ago now flashed with a fierce glint.
“Let me see here. ‘Saint Calendar 1435, Flower-Bloom Month, Day 14… This letter greets you with my understanding. Today, I arrived at the Union of Autonomous Cities with my companions. By the roadside, I spotted a large crimson wildflower, and it reminded me of you—'”
“Give it back!”
His face flushed deep red as he frantically lunged to snatch the unfolded letter from my hands, but having lost his composure, his movements were all over the place.
I simply sidestepped and dodged with ease.
“‘Don’t misunderstand, of course I’m not saying you’re a roadside wildflower… I just wanted to tell you that this flower was really red—exceptionally red, about the same shade as your hair…'”
“Wh-what?”
Seeing me suddenly stop, he froze for a second as well.
“Pfft… sorry… that’s just too awful… so awful I can barely hold back my laughter. I really pity the girl who’s about to receive this letter.”
“Mind your own business! Besides, that was just a draft… I’ll have someone help me polish it before I send it out anyway!”
His face swelled to a deep sauce-red as he shouted and lunged at me again.
I folded the letter paper he called a draft neatly, then tucked it into my pocket—
“That’s enough.”
An icy voice came from behind me… Knowing better than to push my luck, I raised both hands to show I was giving up resistance.
“Iyue… good timing!”
Pressing a short blade against my back was his companion, the Elf archer.
Though I had sensed her approaching, her actual speed exceeded my expectations.
“Hah, hah… did you catch her?!”
At the same time, the blue-haired girl’s shout came from the alley entrance.
She was being carried on the back of a female priest, and she looked somewhat better than before.
He and I had been sprinting at full speed across the rooftops… And this Elf had arrived only a step behind us?
“You two, slow down a bit… I’m carrying Lady Vera back here, you know.”
And that female priest had moved that fast while carrying someone. Clearly, she was no ordinary person either.
These people are quite interesting right now… But treating them as opponents at this point is still a bit too early.
Stories with predetermined endings have always been dreadfully boring—I know that better than anyone.
“Hand over everything you stole. Otherwise, you’ll be saying goodbye to this world.”
“Fine.”
This Elf was far colder than him. The killing intent seeping from those emerald Eyes was utterly genuine.
If I dared tease her like I had him, she wouldn’t hesitate to plunge that knife into my heart… I was certain of that.
In that case, I’d have no choice but to kill all of them right here… And that ending would be far too dull.
To avoid that, I pulled out the letter and handed it to her.
“What is this? Where’s the money you stole?”
“Don’t look at that!”
The moment the Elf archer started to unfold the letter, he rushed over and snatched it from her hand.
“Ah… this idiot. Now I know what that is.”
“It’s that, isn’t it.”
The blue-haired girl lying on the priest’s back pressed a hand to her forehead and sighed softly, while the priest gave a small nod with a quiet “Mm-hm.”
“…What’s going on? What was that thing?”
Only the Elf archer still looked completely confused. She glanced left and right before finally asking her companions.
“Oh, Iyue, you just joined so you wouldn’t know… This kid writes letters to girls he fancies every single day.”
“And the scariest part is that his writing is absolutely terrible, yet he never gets tired of it—”
“Shut up, you nag! Don’t ruin my grand image in Iyue’s eyes!”
“G-grand…? I never once thought of you as having a grand image…”
“You called me a nag…?”
The Elf archer stood frozen in awkwardness… Meanwhile, the blue-haired girl hopped down from the priest’s back with a dark look on her face, cracking her knuckles as she approached him—
“Ah, here we go again. Iyue, keep an eye on them. Make sure they don’t get thrown in jail by the guards.”
After leaving those words, the female priest turned and walked away, leaving the flustered Elf behind.
“Wait, Linxi, where are you going?”
“A drink… no, the Church. Once they’re done causing a ruckus, bring them to the Church in town to find me.”
“I’m going to teach you a real lesson today!”
“Who’s afraid of you, you nag?! Had enough rest, have you? Watch me beat you flat into the ground!”
The blue-haired girl and he started brawling in the alley… completely leaving me out of it.
The Elf hesitated on the spot for a while, then finally ran over to break them up.
“Stop fighting! Fighting like that won’t kill anyone… no wait, stop fighting! If you keep this up, the guards will come!”
“See? Aren’t these people fun? That’s why I like them.”
I watched them and laughed… then spoke to the girl who had been screaming at the top of her lungs inside my mind without a single moment of rest.