- VOL 1 – THOSE UNITED BY THE FATE -
Chapter 3: Final Preparations (10/10)
----------------------------------------------------
The first thing Shin did when he entered the inn was to carefully examine his surroundings. Not noticing any problems, he took quick steps toward the stairs to the right of the entrance. However, not everything went as smoothly as he wanted.
"Shin?!"
The sharp and confused voice he heard behind him made him speed up as much as he could.
"Not now, Rina-san!"
By the time he reached the top of the stairs, the woman behind him had already caught up with him. Shin sighed in resignation.
"Huff... Look, I have my hands full, Rina-san. Let me drop these off in my room."
"Sure, right after you. But since you're here now, you can't leave without giving up your stupid little plan."
Shin walked wearily toward his room. He had told Minato that he would be right back, but it looked like his work here was going to take a while.
"Huh?!"
The boy jumped for a moment as he was about to reach his room. The door next to him opened and he was suddenly face to face with the person coming out of it.
"Sa-Sana-san?!"
Hearing that name, the woman behind the boy was also startled. When she saw the maid coming out of the door, she felt a sense of apprehension.
Her long black hair which had shades of blue at the end of it was tied up with a ribbon that matched her dress. Her deep blue eyes looked compassionately at the boy in front of her. When she noticed the bag in his hand, she quickly took it from him and began to speak.
"I think you were going to your room, Shin-kun. Let me help you."
The blue-eyed woman's attention was focused on the boy's back as she spoke. For a few seconds, those compassionate eyes turned cold and sharp.
"Tsch."
The short woman clicked her tongue and turned away with great irritation. But as Shin and Sana entered the room at the end of the corridor, she hurried back to the front of the room with quick steps. Her purpose was to listen to what was being said behind the door.
"Thank you Sana-san."
The servant woman took the bag from the boy's hand and placed it next to the chest in front of the bed. Shin had nothing else to do here, so he wanted to leave the inn. With the woman in front of him having driven Rina away, now was the time to escape.
But Shin could not move when the tall woman fixed her blue eyes on him. Those eyes had changed from the seriousness Shin was used to into sadness.
For a few seconds, they just stared at each other as the boy was at a loss for what to say. When Shin decided to break the silence, the woman in front of him cut him off and started the conversation instead.
"I apologize on behalf of Rina. I never expected her to attack a customer, especially a child. She said something ridiculous to justify herself, but don't worry, she will be punished."
She felt remorseful as if she had created the problem. She bowed to the boy and began to apologize.
Shin was taken aback. He couldn't understand what was happening, but after a few seconds, he came to his senses and approached the woman bowing to him. He grabbed her by the shoulder and tried to lift her up.
"Please Sana-san! You had nothing to do with it, why are you bowing down and apologizing to me for no reason?"
But the woman was resisting in a way he had not expected.
"Don't be ridiculous! All the servants in this inn are my responsibility. My little sister's actions are also my responsibility. How could she raise her hand to a child for any reason?"
The woman became emotional in a way Shin had never expected. He had already noticed that outside of work she was a more cheerful and emotional person. But now she was acting as if she had committed a great crime and Shin couldn't understand why.
"Calm down and get up Sana-san! I don't understand a thing you're saying!"
The two were in a rather awkward situation. After arguing like that for a while, the chestnut-haired boy used all his strength to get her up.
‘Why was it so hard? Sana-san is ridiculously strong.’
Still looking at the boy in front of her with sad eyes, the woman decided not to bend down again. Still, she continued to blame herself for what had happened.
"There must be something I can do, Shin-kun. After all, it's my fault too."
"Huhh..."
The chestnut-haired boy had now accepted that he had lost this battle. He took a deep breath and began to think calmly.
‘There's nothing for her to do... It's best to ask for something small and let it go. Minato is waiting for me too, so I shouldn't drag it out.’
He was about to open his mouth and speak, but at the last second, had an epiphany and continued to think without breaking his silence.
Love what you're reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.
‘Of course! Hahaha, how lucky I am! The opportunity to get Rina involved has officially arrived!’
A big smile of joy appeared on his face. Sana was surprised for a moment, but soon she put her sad expression aside and smiled back.
"Actually, there is something very nice you can help with Sana-san."
He seemed to be beating around the bush. The other woman realized he was taking it slow and decided to go along with it.
"I'd be happy to help in any way I can. What is it you want?"
"It's quite simple, and I think it would solve the problem we're having. I wonder if you could get Rina-san to help me with a business matter?"
The tall woman looked at the boy in front of her with puzzled eyes. His request seemed quite reasonable and useful to her. Shin continued to speak.
"You said you would give her a punishment, but I am also to blame for this, no matter how much you don't want to admit it. So it would be unfair if I leave Rina-san to you. If you agree to do as I ask, no one will be punished and the matter will be settled."
Sana nodded at the idea. Now their problem seemed to be solved.
"You sly brat!"
But as the two heard an unexpected voice, they both remembered the crux of the problem. It was clear from this voice that even though they had made a plan between them, they hadn't figured out the actual problem yet.
While Shin was thinking about the owner of the voice and what he had to say, Sana slowly moved towards the door of the room where the voice came from. Her steps were very slow and quiet. When she reached her destination, she opened the door quite nimbly and rushed out.
"Ahh! S-sister stop, don't pull!"
With just one arm, Sana dragged the woman who was eavesdropping at the door into the room. The other person inside the room had an evil smile on his face. For some reason, only Rina saw this smile.
‘Now you are caught in my trap.’
Sana literally threw the woman she was holding and closed the door slightly. The woman thrown to the floor by Sana spun once and fell to the center of the room. She wore a painful expression while holding her waist and slowly straightened up to get up.
But when she locked eyes with the woman closing the door, she gave up and decided to sit on the floor on her knees. She made a tearful and innocent expression towards the maid who looked at her with very sharp eyes, but when nothing changed, she turned to the boy in front of her.
"Servants don't seem to respect the privacy of their customers. Sana-san spends so much time and effort educating everyone. It's a shame that her efforts are wasted on a bunch of nonsense-"
The boy in front of her was staring at her, taunting her. Unable to take it any longer, Rina shouted in a very loud voice.
"SHUT UP!"
Her innocent and harmless expression had just vanished and a monster had awakened inside her. She had her hound teeth out and looked as if she could pounce on the boy at any moment. The boy in front of her seemed unaffected, just grinning.
"Snap out of it, Rina! Shin-kun is right about everything! This is the second time today you've disappointed me! I didn't say anything yesterday, but did you have any idea what Minato was like when you beat him up?!"
The woman on the floor was being crushed by the pressure from both sides. Already on her knees, she was about to sink to the floor. If her sister wasn't here, she would have jumped on the boy and smashed him, but unfortunately in this situation, she had no choice but to sit and listen in silence.
So she sunk her fangs into herself and tried to resist as the blood slowly dripped from her lips.
"Huh... I'm sorry Rina, I'm just tired, I shouldn't have yelled, please listen to what Shin-kun has to say."
The woman standing at the door spoke in a tired and sad voice. Then she covered her face with one hand and turned her head to the side.
"S-sister..."
Rina was the most surprised by the tall woman's expression.
‘We were just going to do a simple job, what did I get myself into again...’
The chestnut-haired boy was also surprised, but it was nothing compared to the shock of the woman sitting on her knees on the floor. Rina stopped biting her lips and stood up with a sad face.
She pulled the chair in front of her and sat down. Her face stared blankly at the table.
‘What am I supposed to say now? I never expected to start a family quarrel...’
The room was filled with an awkward silence for a while. Sana was standing with her face to the door, Rina was sitting with sad eyes staring into space, and Shin was standing on the other side of the table thinking about what to say.
The auburn-haired boy finally decided that thinking wasn't going to do much good and chose to let all of his words flow.
"Ahem."
He faked a cough and tried to draw attention to himself. And he succeeded. With both sisters staring at him, he sat down in the empty chair next to the table. He turned his eyes to the short, dark brown-haired woman across from him and began to speak without waiting.
"I know things were a bit tense this morning, but after what happened, I am even more certain..."
After a pause, the woman in front of her opened her mouth and asked. Actually, there wasn't much interest in her eyes, but she seemed bored with the silence.
"What are you sure of? Whatever nonsense you're going to say, hurry up, and let's end this conversation here. And I guarantee I won't interfere in your business from now on, so do as you please."
The woman's eyes were soulless as she said these words, but the resentment in her words was clear. She seemed to regret what she had done.
"I'm sorry I brought you into this, Rina-san. I just needed someone reliable and strong. Even though we'd only just met, I thought you had both. But there's nothing to do if you don't want to. Still, I'd rather tell you about it now that we've had a chance to talk properly. So even if you don't agree, I would appreciate it if you would listen to me carefully."
He looked expectantly at the woman in front of him and waited for her to acknowledge him. Rina glanced once more at the woman at the door and then nodded her head up and down before replying.
"Without further ado, we need a trustworthy bodyguard. And by trustworthy I mean both strength and loyalty."
"Huh?"
The dark brown-haired woman had heard something she hadn't expected, and the uncaring expression on her face was replaced by one of surprise.
"What are you talking about?"
"Like I said, I'm looking for a bodyguard. As you know, this city is sometimes too dangerous."
With those last words, Shin winked at the woman in front of him. At that moment, the surprise on the woman's face gave way to anger again. She began to grit her teeth again. Soon she opened her mouth to reject the boy's offer outright.
"I'm sorry, You have to pass-"
But before she could finish her words, she felt someone behind her and tried to turn around. What greeted her was a pair of gentle breasts. Her speech was interrupted as she found her head in those breasts.
"This is your chance, Rina. You know you're not cut out for this maid's job. Besides, didn't you always want to be a warrior?"
It was none other than her older sister Sana who wrapped her in her caring arms. Yes, that person was not the head of the maids at Dom's Inn, but Rina's only sister Sana now.
"Let go of me, sister! What do you think you're doing like this?!"
Rina tried to resist but her sister's arms were too strong.
"Don't worry Rina, I'm approving this job so you can take it with a clear mind."
Finally, with a little more freedom in her arms, Rina managed to pull her head out. But she still couldn't move because Sana had wrapped her around the back of the chair. Red-faced, she looked at the boy in front of her and muttered.
"You!"
She was about to speak in frustration, but her heart softened as her sister patted her on the head, making her mouth lock.
"Ahem."
It looked like the two could have stayed like this until morning, but they ended their embrace when another person in the room made a noise.
"I think you might want to learn a few things about your new work. I'll leave you two alone."
The tall woman in the maid's dress put a big smile on her face and looked at the boy in the chair. Then she walked to the door of the room, turning to her little sister and saying one last thing before she left.
"It would be good for you to be Shin-kun's bodyguard. After all, he's not a bad person, and I'm sure you'll get along well."
The look of anticipation she gave before leaving the room made Rina's heart flutter. Shin was surprised that this monstrous woman, who had just wanted to tear him apart, had become like cotton wool in such a short time.
But now he too wanted to end this conversation. Thinking of the young man waiting for him outside, he called out to the short woman who was still facing the door.
"So, are you taking the job? Maybe it would be better if you had my back instead of trying to talk me out of it?"
"Shut up, brat. I don't give a shit about you or that self-righteous asshole anymore. Just tell me what I have to do and worry about the rest yourself. Besides, I cost more than you think."
She slammed her arm down on the table and showed her teeth again, the fangs of a beast. Her expression was very serious as she focused her sharp gaze on the eyes of the boy in front of her.
- End of Chapter 3: Final Preparations -