8. I’ll Help You Clean Up (3000 words)

Kefir’s audacity yesterday, daring to have “thoughts” about me in “someone else’s home in a foreign land,” had already shocked me enough. Who would have thought that today, Nilu’s boldness would know no bounds.

You see, the situation we were in didn’t even qualify as “alone”; it was a genuine public space! This was a “tourist spot” near the office area of the Grand Leader of the Merli United Kingdom, and there were plenty of onlookers visiting just like us. Nilu kneeling on the ground, leaning forward as if she were about to kiss me, was nothing short of eye-catching!

Putting that aside, with Nilu’s current maid outfit, her very presence was impossible to ignore. My goodness, can’t you be a bit more mindful of the occasion?

“Mr. O’Keefe, I should remind you: every time you use your ‘power’ now, it poses a threat to your safety. Even if you said those words on the way here just to make me happy, I have no intention of changing my mind.”

“When I can’t see you, I can’t keep an eye on you, but… when I’m right next to you, I won’t allow you to use it casually.”

So close, our eyes met, and Nilu slowly lowered the finger that had been pressed against my lips, her cherry-red lips parting slightly.

“Next time, it won’t just be my hand stopping you from saying or thinking nonsense. Can you guess what it will be then?”

If this was a threat, then I was certainly at an advantage here.

“Haha… so, what will it be?”

Nilu then sat back, satisfied: “Aren’t you very clear about it?”

Yes… very clear, but I didn’t want to guess at all.

I hurriedly reminded myself to stay calm. I couldn’t possibly leave Kefir’s bed, still bare from the morning, and then cuddle with Nilu during the day. I wouldn’t be able to forgive myself for that!

However, Nilu didn’t give me the chance to “calm down” at all. She might have “sat back down,” but she still had plenty of tricks up her sleeve!

By the time I realized what Nilu was up to, she had already laid out the tablecloth for me and taken out a basket filled mostly with the lunch she had prepared that morning. Nilu was already armed with knife, fork, chopsticks, and spoon, and before I could even see what she was poking at, she had already brought the prepared food to my mouth, her smile clearly conveying a singular message: Let me feed you.

No, that’s just the ordinary way to put it. To phrase it a bit more ambiguously, Nilu’s actions could be described as “feeding play,” something only the inexperienced boys in school would enjoy when girls did this to them. However, combined with Nilu’s maid outfit, her actions took on a more embarrassing connotation.

It was called—serving.

Isn’t this just too embarrassing!? When no one was around, I could endure it, but in front of so many people, I could already feel the eyes of many onlookers turning towards us, their expressions clearly indicating their displeasure at the “sour atmosphere” we were creating!

A death script was about to unfold, Nilu!

“Don’t… don’t do this, Nilu, it’s so awkward.”

I reached out to stop her. After all, while I did see Nilu as a maid, to the onlookers, it probably looked like I was making a girl play some kind of cosplay, and the resentment of all the single dogs around would surely double!

However, the reason Nilu insisted on this ultimately struck a nerve, making my hand tremble!

“Clearly, you weren’t embarrassed at all when you spent an unforgettable night with some woman in a foreign land yesterday, but today you feel awkward just because I’m feeding you?”

“Cough, cough, cough!”

I started coughing, wishing I had misheard due to my nervousness. But when I looked again, Nilu’s expression was a mix of dissatisfaction and smugness from uncovering my secret, clearly reminding me that “I owed her some compensation for the emotional distress from last night.”

“N-Nilu, what are you talking about, hahaha~”

“Ah… what am I talking about? Aren’t you very clear on that? Or should I allow you to ‘take a look’ now?”

[Nilu knows what happened last night.]

The script appeared, each word clear, shattering my last shred of hope. Of course! How could Nilu possibly use this topic to tease me!? She must have known! Truly, Nilu was impressive, my capable maid!

“!”

“I surrender…”

You can feed me however you like, just don’t bring up what happened last night with Ke Fei Er, because I really can’t handle that.

“Then I’ll take that as a command, Mr. O’Keefe.”

With a smile, Nilu, feeling pleased, suddenly looked puzzled, “But why do you look so ‘at a loss’?”

That’s because I’ve known from the very beginning that your so-called “feeding” is just a facade for what you really want to do!

“Well, never mind, please try this first.”

After shoving what was mostly an egg roll into my mouth, Nilu let out an exaggerated sound, “Oh dear, you’ve got sauce on your face!”

Um, Miss Nilu, you just stuffed it in there directly; saying I have something by my mouth is more reliable than saying I have something on my face.

“This is troublesome; it seems I forgot to bring a handkerchief. There’s no helping it…”

Yeah, I can’t help it either.

Look, here it comes…

Though she didn’t bring a handkerchief, Nilu certainly had “other ways” to clean up, like… her lips and tongue.

She leaned in, and her kiss was anything but hesitant! Probably feeling the need to “put on a show,” she held my cheeks and, while kissing, extended her tongue to lick.

Honestly, the slippery sensation of both kissing and licking was quite delightful; no wonder those romantic French folks love their wet kisses. If my cheeks are already like this, what would it be like if it were directly on the lips!?

However, the gazes around us were quickly shifting from “displeasure” to “jealousy,” piercing through my entire being, reminding me that this was not the time to be enjoying myself.

“Nilu… that’s enough, don’t forget where we are…”

“Just one last time; your face isn’t clean yet.”

With your “cleaning” method, my face wouldn’t be clean all day! What’s the difference from next time?

Nilu, still unsatisfied, took a breath and wanted to continue, but this time it wasn’t me pushing her away; a familiar voice came from the side!

“Hello~ sir! We meet again!”

That casual English—could it be Rinka?

Turning my head, I indeed saw her in a suit and sunglasses walking toward us. However… her glancing around, as if afraid of being recognized, likely meant she only noticed me and, due to the angle, didn’t see Nilu clinging to me.

“It’s so lucky to meet in a place like this! By the way, would you like to come to my office to…”

I’m not sure if I’m lucky, but Miss Rinka, you probably have nothing to do with luck right now…

“Ah…”

I didn’t even need to remind her; Rinka suddenly noticed Nilu’s presence before she could finish her sentence, and the words she had just started to say got stuck in her throat.

“Ah… ah-ha! Wow! Miss Nilu is here too! How… lucky… haha~”

If yesterday evening, Kfir’s mood was written all over her face when Rinka interrupted her “good fortune,” then Nilu, who had to leave me and fell silent, was writing her feelings deep inside her heart.

However, that was far more terrifying than having it written on her face!

“Miss Rinka, what brings you here?”

Even if this response wasn’t directed at me, I could still sense Nilu’s current mood of displeasure.

As for Rinka, facing her directly, it was even more impossible for her not to understand.

“Ah, haha!? Nothing at all! Nothing! Just a coincidence! Lucky! I, I have things to do! Bye!”

With that, Rinka turned and ran off, this time much faster than she had last night.

“This woman… she really came looking for trouble, didn’t she…”

“Alright, alright, Nilu, don’t be angry. I’ll let you continue feeding…”

I hurried to comfort Nilu; otherwise, if Rinka offended this big shot, we wouldn’t have a good outcome.

“But she clearly came for you, right!? Last night was one thing, but today too… ah…”

You slipped up, Nilu. Just where were you watching me and Kfir’s every move last night?

“Don’t worry, I just chased her away, right? And at least from my perspective, she didn’t seem to have any ‘hostility.’ So it shouldn’t be anything sinister.”

Seeing that Nilu still wanted to “get to the bottom of it,” I knew that continuing down this path would only damage the already tenuous relationship we had. Reluctantly, I had to resort to the tactic known as “the beauty trap.”

“Alright, alright, I’ll keep an eye on her every move, so you don’t have to worry so much. Aren’t you supposed to be feeding? Come on, you can feed, feel free to feed. After you’re done, I can feed you too.”

Using my sense of shame as bait, I managed to reel Nilu’s attention back in.

As for Nilu’s thoughts… it’s definitely not that I’m overly optimistic; I just want to wait a little longer, until Lin Ke finally becomes the “weaker party” before taking action, because I can’t actively reveal our eagerness to obtain information about the ruins.

And it seems that this moment is almost upon us. The script doesn’t specify any “hostility” in Lin Ke’s repeated approach towards me, but her actions alone indicate her intentions.

She is coming for me; otherwise, it wouldn’t be such a coincidence.

【Lin Ke has something to ask of Oujili De.】

The script appears, and its content makes it clear: the time has come.

However, before I find an opportunity to contact Lin Ke…

I should first deal with the trouble at hand.

“Nilu, wait… wait, don’t…”

Sauce is fine on the face! Why has it ended up on my mouth again this time!?

——

A 3000-word chapter. PS, the end of the month is approaching, everyone remember to cast your monthly votes!