Chapter 559 – Reporting and Remuneration

000

Even at the base installed in front of the gorge, preparations for meals are busy in the morning.

It is said that the number of troops in the unit is not that many, but no, because of that, it must be proceeded with more care.

The steam rising from the bubbling pot and the smoke rising from the fire beneath it rise toward the sky like traces of a beacon signaling the location of the base.

“If you don’t mind, let’s have a meal and go. Our unit’s cook is pretty good, right? I’ll vouch for it.”

“I’m sorry for being treated that far…”

With her back lightened, Cleon, who was holding her bag and broken boots in her hands her, followed her while answering her Aaron who said so.

Amelia … Became her sullen face her and hung on Galatea’s back her.

Hearing Cleon’s remarks her while glancing back at her, Aaron answers him with a small smile.

“Huh, it’s okay. I told you to use the remaining supplies sparingly and make it grand.”

“…Are you okay? Even if you do that.”

Aaron nodded her head slightly at Cleon’s words and brought his mouth to Cleon’s ear her and whispered softly.

“Yes. Besides, eating delicious food might make you feel better.”

“—Haha. That might be the case.”

Aaron’s sensible answer must have eased the burden on her heart her a little, and in the end, Cleon accepted her offer her and nodded her head.

If you look at them from a little distance, they look like a fresh couple. They matched so well.

“Somehow… Don’t they look good together? Those two…? We met just yesterday…”

And, while looking at such Cleon and Aaron, Amelia muttered while being carried by Galatea.

“It’s not even a day or two that Cleon gets along well with girls… Especially, he’s weak against those slightly professionally minded warriors.”

A representative example would be Aruru Tromeia.

Should I say that the strong recognize the strong? After the relationship starts from a place where you face the sword, see your skills, and acknowledge each other, it develops into a physical relationship before you know it.

‘What. In Aaron’s case, she didn’t look at skill, she saw something more severe than that…’

If you think about it calmly, it must be strange that she looks calm even after showing a man the naked body of a woman of her age.

It is clear that Cleon would have been in a position to say nothing no matter how harsh he heard on the spot.

Did it happen because I lived with men?

Thinking about that, it seemed that Amelia still couldn’t escape the shock of Cleon’s words, ‘You look like a little sister’.

Yes, of course, Amelia herself, too, had thought that if Cleon had been her own brother her…

Of course it is before. Before realizing the heaviness of her own heart her.

From there, her feelings for her for Cleon only grew bigger as she went through various incidents, but Cleon still treats herself with the gaze of those days.

She felt a little resentful of it, though she was Amelia well aware that she was childish.

‘At this rate, even if romance luck increases, romance itself cannot be established…’

She thinks that way and sighs ha ha.

How bleak that figure was, as usual, Galatea, who was holding back women other than herself who clung to Cleon, wanted to comfort her without realizing it.

“That… What is it? Think carefully Amelia. Isn’t Amelia also one of those girls? Yes. She likes to fight, and she’s healthy.”
“Well, I don’t like fighting very much, but… “

Not encouraged by Galatea, Amelia mumbled a little, but sighed softly after hearing her words.

“Thank you, Galatea. I’m fine now. I think I was too childish.”

“When you recover so quickly, I feel a little shabby for being squeamish, but… Well, if you say it that way.”

By the time they start to acknowledge each other, feeling that something like a strange friendship has developed between them.

“Then, I’ll receive the report on what happened in the dungeon from inside the tent. Prince Cleon, go inside… If you don’t mind, Miss Leah too.”

When Aaron says so, Galatea looks at the two for a moment, then raises one of her hands to her.

“Before that, can you give me some shoes for Amelia to wear…?”

001

With a clicking sound, a wooden teacup is placed on the desk.

Aaron quietly listened to what Cleon and Amelia had told him about in the dungeon, pretended to think for a moment, then nodded to her.

“That means… That the dungeon inside is completely closed…?”

“What we’ve confirmed is that the entrance is blocked by a rock. Although the stone slabs inside are missing. Even if that’s enough, there’s nothing really to be found inside.”

After Cleon answered Aaron’s words like that, he exclaimed ‘Ah’ and added.

“And there will be no ghost disturbance.”

At Cleon’s words, Aaron widened his eyes a little, then leaned back in the chair and seemed to be thinking about something.

“…You don’t look happier than I thought.”

Cleon thought she would be happy to hear that she would no longer be possessed by anyone during her nights her, including the soldiers at her base her and herself, as she had hoped.

Her reaction was a little far from that.

When I point out the look on her face her, as if she’s thinking a little more about what’s ahead, Aaron says ah. She let out a short exclamation and shrugged her shoulders.

“No. Actually, it’s nice that that part was resolved…”

Shedding her horsetail, she glances out of the tent.

There, the sound of the footsteps of the soldiers walking around in the morning was chok, chok, chok. It was heard at regular intervals.

“If that happens. There will be no need to maintain this base anymore.”

At her words her, Cleon and Amelia had no choice but to shut her mouth.

There are no inhabited villages in the vicinity of this place, nor are there any important resources produced.

The reason the base exists here is to protect the dungeon inside the gorge.

So, now that the dungeons were gone, there was no reason to have this base.

“And… Along with the duty to protect the dungeon, which has been passed down from our ancestors.”

While Aaron said that, she was talking with a somewhat relaxed expression.

“Are you okay?”

“Yes. It’s okay. It’s just that, ever since I was born… I’ve spent most of my time on this base.”

Even if the base here disappears, her status is still that of an official.

Although it would be a different story if she gave up the position of the official and she stopped working.

“Well. I’ll have to clear my mind slowly. Thank you, Lord Cleon.”

“No, rather, I caused you trouble because of me. The reason Nemea manipulated you was to finish the preparations there before I arrived…”

Cleon scratches his head as he replies, and when he lowers his head, Aaron shakes his head and talks to Cleon.

“That, too, must have been the necessary finishing touches. In the end, no one was hurt.”

Regarding that, Cleon bowed her head once more in appreciation for her generosity in responding as if he understood her situation in her.

Aran gently lifts the teacup again, she empties her tea in it, and she talks.

“Then… I have to submit a report to Asteris. Then soon after that, an order to reorganize the troops will arrive. Prince Cleon, can I ask you one more thing? I won’t bother you…”

“Ah. Of course. Which one?”

“I’m going to write up the report I just said before Prince Cleon leaves and give it to you. Could you deliver it to Mr. Beauty?”

As if there was no problem at that level, Cleon nodded her head and readily accepted.

A request like delivery of a letter was a guy I often received even when I was an adventurer.

“Thank you. The reward for this… Ah, by the way, Prince Cleon said he would reward you if you solved the ghost problem.”

At the sudden mention of such compensation, Cleon shook her head.

“It was by chance that we solved the ghost situation… We get a lot from the dungeon. The pay is fine.”

“No, you can’t do that. If you receive grace, you will repay it. It’s natural for people in the East.”

“Didn’t you let us use this base too? That’s enough.”

“No no! That’s not enough!”

Even as she stood up from her seat, Amelia and Cleon were a little overwhelmed by her spirit of insisting on handing over the reward.

“Ah, okay… But really, any pay is fine. Don’t push yourself too hard…”

In the end, when Cleon responds as if he were surrendering, Aaron smiles and sits down again.

“Of course. Because I know very well that it’s fair. Oh, but please be patient. That way, the person giving the reward will also enjoy it.”

When Aaron, who had completely erased her troubled face from before, said that, Cleon felt relieved as he looked at her, thinking that she had cleared her mind a bit.

“Oh, and… Lia-sama. Do the shoes fit your feet?”

“Ah, yes…! Thank you…”

I forgot to listen to Cleon’s story, but Amelia was wearing the shoes Aaron gave me.

It’s a little big for me, but at this level, it shouldn’t be too much of a hindrance to movement.

“I’m sorry I only have the shoes I’ve worn before. Even so, they’re for women, so they’re a little softer than the military boots worn by other officials. These are the ones I wore when I was a trainee.”

Amelia looks at the shoes she inherited from her, nodding her head.

The item, which was made by attaching an iron plate to leather, was a little heavy, but I hardly felt any discomfort in wearing it.

Somewhere, it felt like a little custom leather boots that even adventurers would wear, so it was a favorite item for Amelia, who longed for adventurers.

“Thank you very much.”

“No, I can’t wear them anymore… If there’s a new owner, I’ll be grateful.”

She is a person who smiles and smiles with a kind smile.

What I felt while talking about this and that is that he is a person who is like the incarnation of kindness…

It was then.

Knock on the outside! And something, the sound of metal colliding with each other echoed repeatedly.

“Ah. Looks like breakfast is ready! Then, shall we go together?”

As Aran says that, she first walks outside the tent to lead the two of them to the dining room, followed by Amelia.

Then, Galatea’s voice hanging from her waist echoed in her.

[Hey, Cleon. I think that payoff is-]

“No way…”

Cleon cut off Galatea’s prediction with a short answer, and followed the two who had left first.

002

Meals in military bases must be designed to obtain balanced nutrients.

Moving the body is work, but it is a place that is directly connected to life.

You shouldn’t lower your stamina, and you shouldn’t drop your body’s functions.

However, food that always emphasizes good things for the body tends to value the contents rather than the taste, so it does not stick to the mouth because it is boring and does not have a stimulating taste.

It was not possible to drink alcohol well in a rural area like this, and the only entertainment was jokgu, which could be played during breaks.

For such soldiers, the recipes painstakingly created by the cooks at this base were only those that were as good for the body as possible and high enough to appeal to the taste buds of the government officials.

Both Cleon and Amelia couldn’t help but look surprised at the quality of the food served at Asteris’ restaurant.

Like that, after the meal, all you have to do is wait for the report that ‘Aaron’ is supposed to send.

He said it would n’t take that long, and that it would be over before noon, so in the meantime, Cleon, who could n’t sleep a wink, lay down on the bed and pretended to close his eyes her, just like yesterday.

Slowly, slowly, in a situation where your body is heavy, as if you can quickly fall asleep even if you stay like this.

The moment his consciousness his sank into the swamp of soma, a hand came up on Cleon’s shoulder his.

“Cleon? Are you sleeping?”

It was Amelia’s voice in her.

“Ah… Yes. Sorry. Amelia. I’m going to take a break. The horse has to go back here and return it to the tavern where the dog was. You’d better sleep too.”

“Come to think of it, I see…”

Amelia agrees with Cleon’s words her, but she sheds her words her as if there is something creeping up on her.

Then, her hand slipped off her shoulder her, and as she felt her her presence her she went over to her own bed and sat down.

It was a squeaking sound coming from the old bed.

And- the silence that followed.

However, Cleon could tell from the irregularity of her silence that she did not want to fall asleep at all.

Although he wasn’t looking at him directly, the gaze he could feel was that Amelia was watching him.

Cleon then raised his face slightly, turned to Amelia, and sat down.

“What’s wrong? Amelia. Do you have something to say?”

“I’m sorry, Cleon. But I’m a little worried…”

Amelia seemed ashamed to know that she had disturbed his sleep of her, but she soon spoke as she took a deep breath.

“…Cleon. Just before, you said that I felt like your little sister…”

“—Ah, that’s it…”

Cleon felt that her roughly expected answer her had returned, but he nodded her head in order not to provoke her as much as possible.

“Actually… When I heard that story, I was a little… Glad. To me… The concept of ‘family’ was such a faint fantasy.”

I have an older sister named Ruba and an older brother named Cleon. And-

Aurelia was instead of her own mother, and she thinks she would be like Gray if she had a sister.

It was still a bit shocking to not be recognized as a woman by Cleon, but it was pure joy that Cleon considered him like a younger brother.

Then, to Amelia’s words, Cleon answered quietly.

“… Wasn’t he angry? He said It’s just me… A mediocre adventurer who does n’t come from a good family, even with empty words, pretending to be a brother… “

“Did you think you were angry because of that!?”

At Cleon’s words her, Amelia raises her voice in bewilderment.

“Brother… That’s not…”

And Schrödinger is also in a situation where he is going to die by wearing a tuft.

“…”

Cleon looks at Amelia without saying anything, then she lets out a small sigh.

“I’m kidding. …I know. Amelia, me-“

“For a moment!”

Amelia cuts Cleon off as he tries to connect, and then she looks right at him.

“…From there, let me… Talk, please.”

“…”

Cleon, her voice her trembled slightly, squeezed her hand on her chest.

She looked a little, desperate, and she felt her throat clenching and choking at the sight of herself.

That’s why-she looks at her without answering her words of her.

“…That- Amelia Chaldearis.”

And- Amelia’s voice continued softly, as if singing.

“…Cleon, you”

Hangul, Hangul. The act of concentrating on expressing one’s feelings verbally.

“Love, I am doing it. Not family love or camaraderie – man and woman… As the opposite sex…”

My cheeks turned red, I overcame all my shame, barely. Inje, a word in your heart that you do not know how long you have cherished.

Will tell him

Even when Cleon heard her story of her, he did n’t look too surprised.

He had already communicated with many women, but Amelia was not a stone of hers to the extent that he could not notice the occasional gaze toward him or her intentions her in her actions her.

But even so, Cleon did n’t accept her feelings her or respond to them.

“I know. The admiration and dependence a young girl harbors for a man close to her that she can rely on can be mistaken for ‘love’.”

It is a phenomenon that occurs without distinguishing between nobles and commoners.

Especially among the nobility, the first love of a young lady is her butler who is slightly older, a bodyguard who protects her, or a tutor.

It is also true that most of that love often ends in childhood.

“But, I mean. This is not an illusion like that. Eh, I don’t want to end it with an illusion.”

Amelia speaks in a stronger voice as she unwittingly gets up from her seat.

“This feeling is sincere! I… Love Cleon! I think it’s okay to give birth to Cleon’s child!”

“Ah, Amelia!? You’re still 10 years old, what are you talking about…!”

When Cleon raises her voice at the radical remark, Amelia’s eyes her speak.

“That’s how serious it is…! Cleon, in fact, you should understand. This feeling I have for Cleon—”

Then, Amelia slowly approaches, and she takes his hand her and places it on his chest her.

“Because it’s the same feelings Cleon has for Lecia.”

“──…”

Cleon listened to her and closed his eyes as if he had no choice but to admit everything.

And what comes to her mind is her childhood self her, who stretched out her hand while looking at Lesia.

And—with that same composition, Amelia’s now, reaching her hand toward her own back her.

“I didn’t mean to embarrass you. But- well, I didn’t want it to end like that.”

Inside the tent that had become quiet, Amelia held Cleon’s hand a little tight as she spoke.

“I’m not asking for an answer right now. But- I want you to promise me one thing.”

“…What?”

“…When you return to Asteris, please engrave Cleon’s mark on me once again.”

At those words, Cleon slowly opens his eyes and meets Amelia’s gaze at her.

“…”

Amelia looks at herself as if she won’t back down.

And, Cleon seemed to be thinking for a moment – then he nodded his head.

“Okay. But… I’ll put safety first.”

“Muh, of course…!”

At Cleon’s answer her, Amelia imagined the scene of her her and her Cleon’s bodies overlapping in her head for a moment, but she shook her head and brushed her chest.

Then, clenching her fists, she spoke to Cleon with a determined expression.

“I’ll make her look at her little sister her with her dirty eyes her.”

“…Really…”

Cleon sighed as he scratched his head at Amelia’s oath.

003

After that, both of them fell asleep peacefully.

There was quite a bit of time until noon, so I thought that I would be able to take a good rest.

Cleon fell asleep without even dreaming.

However, as soon as he heard the sound of the tent curtains opening, he immediately opened his eyes and reached for Galatea, who had been placed right next to him, for a moment.

“Shhh…”

With a ringing sound in his ears his, his hand his gently grasped Cleon’s arm hers.

Even if it was a small voice, it was not difficult to know what it was when it came from so close.

“…Aaron? Did you finish the report?”

“That’s right. And- the reward for Prince Cleon.”

As Aaron says so, he makes Cleon sit on the bed, and Cleon covers his eyes her while talking.

“…The time is now…”

“It’s still around 10 o’clock.”

“You’re faster than I thought.”

“Writing papers is my specialty.”

Aaron smiled as he traced her V her with her fingers her, then she held out her hand her to Cleon.

“Then… Will you come with me?”

“Ah…”

Cleon nodded her head at her words her and stood up from her seat, feeling a bit drowsy and following him.

Open the tent and go outside, and when you walk, you will arrive at her large tent

——No, it was to go past that place and exit the base in a slightly circling fashion.

“Where are you going?”

“It’s a place where I’ve prepared a reward. It’s because it’s outside.”

“…”

Cleon sensed something strange about her in her words her —but he did n’t sense any malice on her part her, so the rest of her trusted her and followed her.

“It’s inside.”

And, the place where the two of them arrived is inside the cave where the spring where she washed her body she was located last night.

Cleon stops where her guidance her ended and looks at her for a moment.

Then, the image of Aaron smiling with a smile comes into his eyes her.

“Don’t worry. I won’t do anything that threatens Cleon.”

While saying that, she tells Cleon, ‘Inwardly,’ Aaron.

As if he could n’t help it at Aaron’s words her, Cleon took her steps first and entered the cave.

Aaron, who watched him from behind, smiled and went into the cave next-

The entrance to the cave was suddenly blocked.

“…”

“Don’t worry, the security just worked! You can open it from the inside.”

“Is this- is that so?”

If Cleon asks her questions like that-

“How about it?”

Aaron responded with her mischievous smile and her eyes shining.