“Still sore all over…”
After being thoroughly milked by Naji, Torina felt a bit better, but she was still weak all over.
The feeling of being completely drained after working overtime for dozens of hours in her past life… was probably like this? Is this the misery of a corporate slave? It’s so uncomfortable, and she still has to fight a boss with Anna-veil tonight…
Torina lay in the pavilion outside the inn to rest, and after a long time, she finally felt a bit better.
It was then that she remembered something important.
“Speaking of which, where’s Milora…?”
Torina had been trying to get closer to her over the past few days.
If she didn’t take the initiative to show up today, would Milora become suspicious or even doubtful? She really needed to see her…
Speak of the devil.
As soon as she stepped out of the pavilion, she ran into Milora.
“Ah… Milora-chan!”
She immediately greeted her warmly, trying to open her tired eyes and appear cheerful.
“…Oh, good afternoon.”
But Milora just nodded slightly.
Her expression was a bit stiff, her voice somewhat wooden, and she kept a physical distance from Torina.
(??) Torina was puzzled.
Something felt off.
Was the look in Milora’s eyes… “indifference” and “alienation”? But after spending so many days together, she felt that Milora’s guard had almost disappeared yesterday.
Why was it back now? It was like the affection level had reset.
“Milora-chan? You seem to be in a bad mood.
Did something bother you?”
“……No.”
Milora’s gaze wandered, avoiding eye contact, not out of guilt, but out of anger, with visible resentment.
Milora was angry, very, very angry.
Why?
Torina, still exhausted both mentally and physically, tried to think of the reason with her muddled brain.
“Ah! Could it be that you’re having menstrual cramps? Should I call Naji to give you an anti-cramp blessing?”
“What are you talking about!? You, you shameless jerk!!”
Milora’s face turned red with anger, like an angry little cat, puffing up and glaring, though her angry face only made her look cute.
Before Torina could say anything else, Milora turned and walked away briskly, not even looking back.
Torina was confused.
Why did her attitude change so suddenly? Just like a wild cat…
At this moment, Torina’s brain, downgraded by fatigue, couldn’t process what had happened.
————————
————————
[According to my scan results, Deville is now in a weakened state, likely due to last night’s battle, indicating she’s planning to put on a full act.]
“Cunning fellow…”
After “accidentally” hearing the “truth” last night, Milora’s goodwill towards Torina dropped to zero.
She felt not only anger but also sadness.
Originally, she had already forgiven Torina’s past arrogance in her heart, and even subconsciously started to see her as a friend, even something… beyond a friend, but the truth revealed by the system extinguished the warmth rekindled in her heart.
She didn’t want to see Torina now, didn’t even dare to think about her, the more she dwelled on it, the more pathetic she felt.
[Never trust anyone, just trust me, all my decisions are to maximize your benefits, I am your absolute and only friend.]
Since last night, the system had been repeating these words to her.
Over and over, over and over, letting the sweet and reliable words seep into the depths of her soul through the cracks in her heart.
[I have already planned the tactics for you, now you just need a companion, a companion with enough output capability, just follow my arrangement.]
“Um… but, who should I find?”
[Someone you can trust, and who currently has no reason to harm you.]
“You mean… ah!”
That would be Wenren Ji Xue.
She was also of civilian origin, very friendly to Milora, and had expressed more than once that Milora could come to her if she had any difficulties, and most importantly, her strength was quite formidable.
However, Milora hesitated a bit.
“If we form a two-person team to fight the boss… although we already know the boss’s weakness, it will still be dangerous, right? If possible, I don’t want to involve unrelated people in danger.”
[But, as I said, to become the proud phoenix, you must be ruthless, how can you achieve great things if you are entangled in such trivial matters?]
“But Ji Xue is probably the only one who truly cares about me…”
[How do you know she’s sincere? Haven’t you learned your lesson yet?]
“But…”
[Alright, if you’re really worried about her safety, you can, but it might increase the difficulty of the boss fight.]
“What do you mean?”
[I originally hoped you would find a teammate to attract firepower, and you seize the opportunity to attack the boss’s weakness from behind… but if you’re worried about your teammate’s safety, then switch roles, you take the risk to attract firepower, and your teammate attacks the weakness.]
“No problem, I have no objections, and Ji Xue’s output capability is stronger than mine, so let her handle the ambush.”
[But in that case, the one who delivers the final blow to the boss will be her, and the killer can choose the dropped items first, the key we need might be taken by her.]
“Then I’ll give her everything else, I just want the key!”
[Since you’ve made up your mind, let’s do it this way, during the battle, I’ll try to give you reasonable advice to ensure your safety.]
So, a few minutes later, Milora found Wenren Ji Xue practicing swordsmanship outside the town and selectively explained her intentions under the system’s guidance.
“Us as scouts, to explore the secret passage to the boss room…? Just the two of us?”
“According to the information, if too many people go, they might be wiped out by the boss, so the leader wants to send a small number of people to investigate first, and this task was given to me, with me… choosing a companion.”
Lying to Ji Xue made Milora uncomfortable, she repeatedly apologized in her heart, vowing not to let her fall into danger, and she would give her whatever she wanted except for the key.
And the kind-hearted Ji Xue believed her immediately.
“I see… this is a good thing! The leader entrusted you with such an important task, it means she truly trusts you! Okay, I’ll definitely help you!”
She agreed wholeheartedly, and the matter was settled.
Having overheard the leader and deputy leader’s conversation, Milora knew they would act at night, so she and Ji Xue had to act before them.
“At dusk, let’s meet at the thirteenth entrance of the Amana Forest, see you then… oh, and please don’t tell anyone about this, okay?”
“Mm!”
…
…
…
At dusk.
Without informing any teammates, the fully armed Milora and Ji Xue arrived at the thirteenth entrance, a secluded route rarely traveled by Adventurers, perfect for keeping a low profile.
“Then let’s go, Ji Xue, I’m counting on you.”
“Mm! I also want to help you!”
