The camp had changed much when they arrived, it was cleaner and had more buildings as new ones were built up and repairs made on the already existing ones, lampost were erected in intervals around the camp to provide lighting and the tower was now manned by a guard who upon seeing them emerge from the cave called out to his allies,

"A troupe came up!"

A bell was rung and people ran to meet them, servants quickly collected whatever luggage they still had while Junior was rushed off to the medical tent. That said, apart from Junior, there were no casualties or injuries amongst them much to the surprise of Hannibal who came the moment he heard the news.

"Isaiah, Senzuki, Hugo."

"Easy." Isaiah grinned as Hannibal nodded,

"Not an injury, wow. Even against a viper, I was expecting something."

"Eeh... I did get hurt but like, it's just me."

Iska, whose hands were covered in a thick bandage oozing a green liquid, rushed towards Hugo embracing him tightly.

"Hey." He flinched, somewhat annoyed that the pungent liquid was sticking to his shirt

She took a deep breath, "You're alive."

"Always."

She sighed as they both chuckled,

Isaiah watched the two interact with wide eyes causing Hugo to scratch his cheek, "What? You guys do it down there too."

Senzuki bumped him playfully,

"Y-yeah..."

"Anyway." Hannibal sighed, "Is he alive?"

"Mostly." Senzuki replied, "If proper aid is administered, I believe he can live, but there will be scars."

"That's good, what about the viper, is it dead?"

At that moment, there was a commotion from behind as the viper emerged from the cave.

"What the fuck is that!?" They started taking out their weapons as the man at the tower franticly rang his bell,

"A Viper!"

"It's titanic, oh god!"

"Prepare for a fight!"

"No!" Isaiah got in front of the soldiers who tried to attack the snake, "Don't."

"What?"

Hannibal was just as confused as everyone else but when he saw how calm Senzuki and Hugo were, despite their backs facing the beast, he started to realize what had transpired.

"You-you tamed it?"

Isaiah snapped his finger, "I did. Great isn't it?"

Hannibal could not believe what he had heard. This beast was a green viper who underwent titanification, greatly enhancing its capabilities. Titanic creatures are notorious for being the most difficult to tame, even the weaker ones, as these creatures have extremely high egos.

"How?" He asked

"With a skill..." Came his simple reply,

The guards were all confused, they weren't sure what to do since the viper did not show any hostile intentions, and the adventurers simply stood there without fighting, one of them claimed to have tamed the creature but that was no sure answer. Their leader, gnashed his teeth as he tried to figure out what to do.

"Should we attack or..." He overheard someone ask, but then...

"Move away, move! Ser Galland, the knight of her ladyship Duchess of Mango, passing through." The duchess' knight, Galland, made his way as his squires parted the crowd. He was in full battle armor of a silverish tint the make of which resembled that of a European knight though his was built for speed and had noticeably less armor in some places, behind a red flowing cape attached to his right pouldron proudly showing the Mango's sigil of a double-headed eagle and with his hand on his ornate sword he moved to the front. One of his squires presented him with a large axe but he did not take it instead his eyes were focused on the beast at large.

He was, like the soldiers, confused.

"This beast?" He looked at the three adventurers, "Why isn't it attacking?"

"I tamed it... Sir." Isaiah replied, adding sir after Senzuki lightly elbowed his back.

"You did?"

"Yes."

"How?"

"With a skill, sir."

"A skill, yes, a skill. A taming skill, powerful enough to subjugate a green titanic viper." He walked towards Isaiah but kept an eye on the snake. "I've faced my fair share of titanic beasts, terribly monstrous and hard to kill, but never once did I think that someone would be able to tame one... Who are you?"

"Isaiah, from Silver Spoon. This man here is our leader, and they," Pointing at Senzuki, Hugo, and Iska, "Are my buddies."

"We have one more member at the tent," Hannibal added.

"The female mage, I am aware." He removed his gloves and scanned the viper before turning his head, "Tell your men to stand down."

"Is it safe to do so sire?" Asked the leader of the watch

"Isaiah here states the viper is tamed."

"And if it attacks?"

"I am more than enough to deal with this. It won't be the first titanic serpent I felled."

"Stand down men, stand down... Back to work." Came the orders as the soldiers left the area. That said, they kept a heightened vigil over the creature.

It is common knowledge that a tamed creature doesn't mean that it is safe. Monsters are still monsters after all and though a skilled tamer can suppress their wild instincts, it doesn't completely erase them.

"Now then, I am sure Richter would like to speak to you about this matter. As for the snake..." He turned to one of his squires, "Fetch me some nightshade, make it strong too."

"Nightshade?" Isaiah asked,

"For the safety of our camp. That must sleep."

"..."

The squire returned and handed Galand a large bag of the drug. "Have your creature drink this."

"It's not poisonous isn't it?" Isaiah asked Senzuki.

"No, but, animals might react to it differently." She replied,

"Have the animal take it, or we will cull it."

"Do you not trust my abilities?" Isaiah asked,

"Why should I? For the safety of our camp, let the animal sleep or I will make it."

"It's best to follow them, Isaiah. If the viper turns wild, there will be casualties."

"If."

Senzuki sighed, "Let's not try fate."

Isaiah saw her disappointed look and felt guilty so he relented, "Alright."

"Good... Once you are done go to the main building. We need to talk."

...

Isaiah made sure to secure the viper, which was sleeping peacefully near his tent, Hugo and Iska offered to watch it, before heading to the camp's headquarters. There, Senzuki was waiting for him, her eyes checking her nails.

"You're not resting?"

"Oh, ah, I am curious as to what the topic may be. You don't mind me joining yes?"

Isaiah shook his head and both entered the building and instantly, all eyes were on Isaiah. Isaiah nodded to the men as he and Senzuki sat in one corner.

"Isaiah" Richter greeted,

"Herr Richter." Isaiah greeted back,

"I have heard, you brought a new pet along." He then looked over the window, "A giant viper."

"A green, titanic viper," Isaiah replied.

"Indeed, congratulations on taming one. I am sure it will be of tremendous help for our efforts."

"Tremendous, indeed." Isaiah's eyes glinted with gold, he knew the opportunities the Viper would bring him would be in gold.

Everyone's eyes were fixated on him, and though Isaiah found it nervewracking he did like the attention, he then took a seat around the table and looked at everyone in the room. There were the merchants Richter and Maxie who were both softly arguing over the contents of a paper, a junior merchant, the captain of the guards and the knight Galand, and finally Hannibal, Lea, and a troupemate of hers.

"Hi." Upon seeing Isaiah's gaze she reached her hand out, she was a head shorter than Isaiah with a baby face and shiny eyes, her smile was infectious and could improve the mood within the room, and her green hair was tied up in a ponytail only enhanced her innocent style as she introduced herself, "My name's Fern, second in command of Taro Troupe."

"Fern... I am Isaiah."

"A pleasure..." They both shook hands, "As a gamer myself, it makes me jealous seeing others with better monsters than mine."

"Ahh well, I got lucky."

"Luck huh... Oh well, what I would give for a viper." She then slightly revealed her cleavage in a calculated move, naturally, Isaiah's eyes were drawn to the area, though she revealed nothing sensitive it was enough to stimulate his brain,

She chuckled as Isaiah looked away, finding a rather annoyed Senzuki.

"Not for sale, sadly."

"The viper, maybe, but you... We can work things out now," She started assuming seductive poses as her eyes shined, it was difficult to resist her charms but knowing that Senzuki was around, Isaiah kept his calm.

"Well, I'll always be happy to lend a hand to Lea's troupe, provided I get paid of course."

Fern would have continued had she not met the terrifying gaze that Senzuki was sending her way, she felt her hair raise at the bronze ranker and immediately she backed off.

"That would be best." Fern chuckled as she returned to her seat,

Richter, finishing his review, coughed to get their attention,

"Right. While you were not here, we were discussing our next course of action. So... U-r, Uwr, U... How do you pronounce her name?"

"Uir," Maxie replied

"Right... That..." Richter nodded, "Her, she is one from Jair's troupe and she emerged from the caves awhile ago to tell us that they all were ambushed."

"The elf?" Lea asked.

"She did not say, so we can safely assume that there might be another one of them." Richter then placed the map of the caverns and pointed towards the general area where both troupes went, "They were both ambushed somewhere here while Sommo was chasing after Jair... Then things went bad and U-the woman left to tell us about it."

"Then we have to go and save them."

"Yes... That is why I have called you all here to discuss the situation..." Richter sighed, he was already having a bad feeling about the mission, he knew it wasn't going to be a simple cavern exploration in-and-out kind of deal, but as it turns out, and it always happens all the time, every mission he dealt with always turns bad in the most unexpected ways. "And with the issue regarding the Noted Troupe, sigh..."

"They should pay for what they did... I almost lost my entire group because of the stunt Jair pulled." Lea raised her voice,

"And now we might lose another troupe, that man... I do not know what went into your minds when you hired him but you should have done better." Hannibal added.

"Those are orders from the top... The people at the main branch said they would send us someone strong to help with the situation. This was not our problem in the first place but from a different branch we were simply forced to deal with it, how can we refuse?!" Richter screamed from Hannibal and Lea's demands before he took a deep breath and lowered his voice, "What is done is done, we have to salvage the current situation."

"Not me though..." Lea stood up,

"What?"

"I'm leaving... This is too much."

"Wh-why?

"Look you hired me to scout out the cave and maybe kill monsters... But elves and now a sabotaging platinum-ranked bastard?"

"You are aware that abandoning this quest will mean losing your commission."

"A much better fate than dying, I might as well spread the word that Orkellion underpays its adventurers and sends them to death traps. Oh and let's not forget that the quest is for us to launch an investigation, not a rescue operation/extermination. The lawyers might want to listen about it."

Richter heard the word pay and quickly understood what Lea was trying to do. "You, you want more!? 15,000 marks is not enough?"

"I don't plan on dying for that low."

"W-We can't..."

"My feet are itching." Lea interrupted him. "Tell me why can you not? Isn't this project a top priority? I am sure top priority comes with top money."

Richter grimaced at the thought. Sure it was a top priority as it involved a rather influential person but the budget that was allocated was already running low, and that is before counting the upcoming extra expenses due to the many new problems they were facing. If the troupes were to ask for a raise it would make his financial situation far worse.

Richter turned to Hannibal for support but seeing his nonchalant attitude he knew that he would speak up in support of him. The knights have no concern over this issue, they are only here to observe.

This was problematic. He couldn't afford to lose Lea's troupe as they were the only ones within the guild who had a healer, hiring one from the church would be far too costly, financially and politically. Hiring a new troupe was out of the question after what Jair did, and that man was part of the guild, only that he was from a different branch. He cannot allow another headache to arise.

Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

And so he sighed and decided to negotiate...

"2,000 marks more." He said first.

"3.5 and it's a done deal."

"3... Fine... 18,500 marks per week and 63,500 marks for completion." He then looked at every adventurer, "No more complaints?"

"About Jair."

"Great what about him."

"I want him punished! His actions almost caused me an arm and a leg."

"He didn't summon the goblin army now did he?"

"He didn't, but him running away meant that I had to deal with that elf all by ourselves."

"Well there is nothing we can do, that man was sent here by a different branch so we cannot touch him at all."

"Well, I want a guarantee that I would never be assigned to the same task as that bastard ever again."

"I cannot give that guarantee, but know this. Our branch does not like him as well. Anything else?"

"No."

"Good..." Richter was about to speak another matter when Lea gave her last demand.

"Set it on paper."

"Where is the honor in you lot... For goodness sake, this is why I hated the idea of hiring adventurers." Maxie, the other merchant who served as Richter's assistant complained, "We should have raised our own army and used those instead, there are plenty of men around the capital who would do anything for a few marks..."

"Maxie, get me the paper," Richter said,

"Mercenary companies would do much better than this lot."

"Honor? What use is honor if you die." Lea spoke to him cutting Richter off.

"Is money everything to you? Are you without dignity or respect?"

"Tell me about respect young man, as if you desknuts know anything about respect when all you do is sign papers sending people to their deaths. I wonder how many sailors drowned or merchants died on missions you signed them to."

Maxie responded raising his voice. "I am not responsible for their deaths."

"Okay, okay, that is enough! Maxie. Get me the paper." Richter raised his voice prompting the other two to shut up,

Maxie turned to Richter and took a deep breath.

"Forgive me, master, it was not right of me to speak."

"Good, now get me the paper with the new details..."

"Y-yes..."

He glared at Lea as he left, and before long a new contract was drawn up based on what was negotiated. Though he was clearly against the idea and made that very obvious with his facial expression and dilly-dallying, in the end, he gave up and the contract was signed by all parties involved.

"Good, and with that out of the way..." Galand took a step forward and faced Isaiah, "Let us talk... Shall we?"

"Y-yeah." Isaiah nodded, having stayed quiet the whole time.

"The rest of you could leave, there is a need to rest after all."

"What about the rescue mission?" Lea asked.

"Right..." Richter looked around, with Junior out of the picture, Maxie would have to join the fray for tomorrow's fight but he knew that it would cause problems, another issue would be who would lead them with Sommo still stuck down there.

But it seems that the answer would be solved rather easily,

"I will... The mission will be led by yours truly." Galand smiled as he stood up,

"Sire?" Richter turned, "But..."

"I am aware we are to remain as observers but this elf you keep on speaking of interest me much. There is a nuisance back at home that I wish to remove, this elf happens to match the details of said pest. Secondly, there are no rules that say I cannot join the fight now?"

Richter didn't reply as he thought about the ramifications of such an action,

"And you did say that your forces are depleted, I am no ordinary knight my martial prowess is equal to that of a gold-ranked adventurer, I am more than able to lead these people." He declared.

Richter seemed to want to say something, but Galand's empty smile was directed at him, and so he acquiesced. Lea nodded multiple times, as if she was unsure, before leaving.

"Then, there is no more need to discuss things, go and rest for tomorrow's operation. I only wish to talk to Isaiah myself." Galand told Hannibal, the latter nodded but then Isaiah spoke up.

"She, ah, Senzuki, she stays."

Isaiah knew that negotiations were about to happen, he knew that Galand might want him to sign up for the service of the Duchess or perhaps to sell the viper, either way, he wanted Senzuki to be present as he felt nervous about negotiating with someone with a higher social rank than him. Though he had engaged in negotiations before he wasn't sure if he had been offered fair deals and he also tended to just accept whatever was offered to him as he was too shy to say no or try to negotiate for much better terms. There was also his general lack of knowledge over what is the norms in this society so he had little information to work things through.

The same cannot be said with Senzuki who has demonstrated her ability to retrieve better terms and he wanted to borrow her confidence and intelligence.

"Wha-?" Senzuki, who was prepared to leave, looked up,

"The kitsune?" Galand tilted his head, he was about to reject the offer when Richter tapped his fingers and lifted two up, he relented. "Very well, your wife can stay."

"Wife..." Isaiah shook his glowing red head. "No, she is not my wife."

"Well... Your fiancee then?"

"No... She... I trust her judgment."

"I see..." Galand smiled seeing how red the two are. "Ah, young love."

Neither of the two denied it.

When Hannibal left Senzuki went to sit beside Isaiah, hearing his words made her feel happy, so happy that she had trouble masking her cherry cheeks. She was partially freed from this spell when Isaiah asked her.

"Are you alright with it?"

"Uh, huh, y-yeah, uhm, yeah... Thank you for trusting me."

"Oh mhm."

"Now then..." Galand sat in front of him, "I will get straight to the point, the Duchy of Mango is a small nation, no doubt about that. When compared to our neighbors, our land is not large, and our people are not plenty. But that doesn't mean we are weak nor are we poor. Our nation rules over the waves on the Germanic coast, for we, alone possess the most formidable navy in the region. Not even Swadia's mighty Grey Fleet can match ours. And so we possess not just a strong navy but a great merchant fleet that sails the seas delivering our goods and destroying those who dare disrupt our trade. Mango is no small kingdom, we are just as powerful as our much larger neighbors."

He then slid over a medallion,

"Have you ever thought of becoming my squire?"

The medallion was made of bronze with the double-headed eagle clutching what seems to be a mango on its foot etched in the center.

Isaiah's eyes were glued onto the medallion, especially Senzuki who could not believe her eyes what was being offered. Squires, after all, are the first steps to enter into the world of nobility. One cannot be a noble without first becoming a squire, and being someone's squire was not an opportunity anyone could just obtain, she had thought that their troupe would be forever stuck as just a third-rate silver-class troupe but now they might even join the ranks of nobility.

To Isaiah, this would make his goal much easier. To marry Nicole he needed not just the money but the rank, he knew he couldn't just buy himself a nice title as that would only diminish his actual name and so he had to earn one. If he became a squire, he was confident that he could become a knight in no time at all. And once he is a knight, climbing the ranks would be easy as pie.

But then the question of Senzuki grows strong, would they accept her? He knew that there was some sort of xenophobia amongst the people in the camp, and by extension, the people of Mango should also bear the same feelings.

Galand saw him look at Senzuki and quickly assured him,

"Just because you are a squire doesn't mean you have to give up on love, being a knight is all about romance after all."

"I... I see," Isaiah chuckled as Senzuki lowered her head and sighed to remove the butterflies floating around her face.

"That said, though the official policy of Mango towards beast kind is, well, neutral, many may not be too welcoming towards her. My lady is kind and just, but others not so much. Regarding them, I may be able to provide security to the kitsune, but the feline and the others..."

"You mean they cannot join me?"

"No, unless you are an official knight, as a squire you will not have anyone to serve you. And I am sure as adventurers they need money to feed themselves, they cannot stay idle for long."

"My salary should compensate for that. How much am I getting paid."

"Squires do not get paid."

"Oh."

"But, I can arrange for them to have some jobs around the town. However I fear that the Feline might not be welcomed, and the wages not enough but it should suffice. And as for the kitsune, she can serve in my castle as a maid, that should earn you something to spend."

Isaiah's face turned grim when he heard those, thinking that he was slipping away Galand tried to uplift his mood,

"Still, I must say. With your abilities and power, you will only be a squire for a couple of weeks or months at most. Though as a squire you will be my servant I will treat you better and will not require you to render me any manual service at all, you must simply follow me like a bodyguard but you are free to do as you wish afterward, protocols must be followed of course. The Duchy has two castles without lords, I am sure that the lady, once she hears of your ability will grant you a knighthood and have land to rule over. Thereby ensuring that your family will also inherit your title. And once you become a knight, well, you can employ them as your squires or stewards."

Isaiah looked up, seeing his lighter mood Galand relaxed.

Being a knight sucked, it was expensive, and had many responsibilities but offered very little compensation, not just that the title was pretty much the highest of what most can achieve, baronship was something too far for many knights and so most would die without their children inheriting their titles. But the same cannot be said if a knight became the lord of a castle, once you have land, being a baron is a simple matter of growing and developing your territory, once it meets certain criteria a knight can immediately become a baron and be a proper noble. Of course, this only applies to the Duchy, other kingdoms have different systems.

'Hook, line, and sinker...' He grinned in his mind, 'All you adventurers are easy to sway on my side, just dangle money and land and they come swooning in like a moth to a lamp. But that woman, to think she wants to be a lady? I'd chop my dick off before I'd allow a beast to feel equal with us nobles, such filths are fit only to serve my house as a servant while her husband becomes my puppet, killing my enemies and advancing my career as my squire. There is a matter of their love, that said an accident or two can settle the issue, give him my older sister to marry instead and seal him into our family. '

The Duchy was in political turmoil, and Galand was busy stacking his cards to come out on top. Though he originally had his eyes on Jair, with him gone and a potential liability he decided to look onto Isaiah, who proved himself to be on par with a platinum ranker. If he could have his strength, his positioning would only grow stronger.

'I might even be king.'

While the knight was happy and slowly wrapping his fingers around Isaiah, the mage was deliberating the Galand's offer.

He wasn't sure what to do. Deep down, he wanted to accept the offer as it would expedite his progress towards Nicole, he was confident of his powers, and with what the knight said he should make it to knighthood very easily, and obtain a castle in the process. Though he was worried about Senzuki and his slave status, he was wondering if it was worth the risk.

There were plenty of things to think about, and so he deliberated.

He was afraid that someone else might discover the tattoo, but considering how close he was with Senzuki and how she'd never discovered it, he was confident he could hide it even more. Though Senzuki would have some trouble trying to live in a place that might be hostile to her, so long as he protects her she should be safe. Eventually, he would prove himself too valuable for the Duchy, and with that, his slave status would be resolved and the duchess should be more than happy to promote him, lest they risk Isaiah moving to another place.

By that point, he could marry Senzuki, raise a family, appoint the troupe as stewards or captains then develop his land using modern ideas.

He could already envision it, him a lord. Their mansion, their orchards. Senzuki on his left, Nicole on his right, their children playing happily in the garden. Beyond them, a town, rich and lively.

Living happily ever after.

Isaiah made his choice,

"YOLO." He murmured as his hands touched the medallion.

Galand's smile grew wide but then...

"Wait..." Senzuki held his hand. Isaiah stopped to look at her,

"Senzuki-san?"

"What?" Garland's voice dropped by a few decibels as he glared at Senzuki. "Is there a problem?"

"Uh, well... Yes, sir, there is."

Galand squinted but calmed his face, he did not want to miss this opportunity. "Speak."

"Well... How do I say this, but... You are, only a knight."

"Only? Ho-" Galand bit his lip to stop him from continuing his sentence, he quickly changed his words, "What about it?"

"I find it hard to believe that a knight has that much influence over the Duchess of a powerful country"

"Are you suggesting I lied?"

"No, sir... I-I believe you are ov-, for a lack of a better word, o-overestimating yourself." Senzuki bowed when she replied, she became nervous and scared but kept calm as she held Isaiah's hand.

Galand leaned back when she finished. Isaiah was surprised at Senzuki, he had already decided to agree to the terms but suddenly she began saying this, now he felt mad but at the same time confused.

Then Garland began tapping his fingers onto the table.

"I did not overestimate myself, kitsune, I know what I am capable of and am stronger than what you think. You know nothing about politics in Mango."

"I apologize, I might have overstated myself. But I still wish to talk to Isaiah before we, no, he makes the decision. Our troupe depends on him so this also affects us all."

"Wait Senzuki, I already agreed."

"Isaiah-san... Let-let us talk..."

Isaiah felt angry that Senzuki placed him in this position. But he felt compelled to give Senzuki a chance to talk him out even though he already wanted to accept so he was in a dilemma. However, Galand's next words completely changed his mind.

"Then you should have known your place. When men are talking, women like you should keep their mouths shut."

Isaiah's face changed, no his entire view of Galand made a complete 180 when he heard him disrespect her. Galand did not see the change as he was too busy staring at Senzuki. His mask had now been unveiled. He hated the fact that this woman violently yanked away his prey.

'I should teach you a lesson... One that you will never forget.'

"Isaiah-san, you must remove yourself from such a stupid beast. She says I have no influence over the duchess yet the fact that I am here to oversee an important mission states otherwise. Trust me, Isaiah, I can bring you to a place higher than the clouds."

"Sir Galand, I have heard from the guards you are the lord of Castle Hartfall, located over the other side of the border. And yet the Duchess sent you on this side? Wouldn't a landless knight be better, or perhaps the lord of Burkas be a better choice?" Senzuki spoke,

At that instant, his vein snapped.

For he was not here because the Duchess trusted him, but because he was being punished.

He had offended a lord and as punishment, he was sent to oversee the problem with Burkasmine, a land under the territory of his childhood rival, the Knight of Burkas. He hated that now he had to spend his resources and perhaps his men without gaining anything in return for the benefit of his most hated rival. Though Isaiah and Jair showed some promise, the fact that he might go home empty-handed made him mad.

The fact that it was a kitsune, a beast woman, who robbed him of his treasure made him even more furious.

"You dare insult me monster!" Galand stood up and took his sword, "I would have your head on a spike!"

"Oi!" Isaiah stood up, his face full of anger, "Do not speak to her like that!" He then took the medallion and threw it at Galand, "Here, have your stupid bronze medal, I don't need it."

Galand turned to Isaiah, "Isaiah... Are you a fool? Gold, fame, titles, women, I can give you all of them! This monster is whispering you lies, rid yourself of this beast, I can offer you a much better woman far smarter and wiser than this one shall ever be!"

"Senzuki is all I need, and if you cannot even respect her then do not even think I will talk to you!"

"I'll kill you, I'll have your head." Galand raised his sword. "You will forever regret raising your hand against me!"

"Try me!" Isaiah covered his hands with electricity "Go ahead!"

But before the two can clash,

"Of for fuck's sake, stop this at once!" Richter raised his voice as loud as he could, causing the house to shake from his voice.

"You... You two are going to kill each other over a fucking bronze medal, oh for goodness sake are you two children?"

Galand glared at Richter but the fat man glared back,

"They will die. Seize them." He ordered his squires but they were hesitant against Isaiah's awesome magics.

"For what?" Richter asked

"Insulting me!"

"And then what? We fail the whole mission and all of us die as well?" Richter then turned to Isaiah, "Leave, both of you, go away! Now!"

Isaiah and Senzuki hurriedly left the tent but just before they could reach the door, Galand shouted,

"You disappointed me thrice Isaiah, you better watch your back!"

...

Senzuki crashed into the ground the moment she reached the tent while Isaiah sat beside her. Hannibal and Hugo quickly gathered around them,

"Wha-what happened? I heard those shouts."

"I... Forgive me Isaiah-san." Senzuki then lowered herself to the ground, prostrating to Isaiah, "I spoke too much."

"No..." Isaiah sighed before patting her head, "I-I kinda blinded myself for a while when I heard the good stuff. You saved me there."

"Still, now the knight hates us because of me."

"Senzuki-san... Its fine,"

"What if..."

"With Jair gone and Sommo missing, I am the only one who can salvage this mission. Richter knows that so he would make sure I wouldn't be touched, same as you and the troupe. They will not do anything to us while on a mission."

"But once it's over."

"I doubt Galand has any say outside Mango. Once we leave we never come back. Ever."

"I... I think we should leave, Hannibal. Let's leave them both alone." Hugo told Hannibal and the latter agreed.

Once they were alone Isaiah remained quiet while Senzuki was still prostrating.

"Senzuki-san... Please, get up. It's uncomfortable seeing you like that."

Senzuki slowly got up, but she kept her head low and her body was shaking in fear. Isaiah felt his heartache when he remembered his thoughts back at the house, he neglected to think about her back then and she found herself alone which might have affected her much.

He reached out to embrace her. Senzuki flinched but did not resist.

"I am sorry," Isaiah said. "I did not think things through, I was so blinded by what they offered that I forgot about you and the troupe. Had you not warned me it would have been hard for you guys."

"But still, because of me I-"

"It's fine... It's fine. I would have never accepted him, especially after what he said and it is suspicious that a knight could offer me those things. Plus he said I could keep land and be promoted. He is only a knight, I doubt he has that much influence. You saved me back there."

"Mm." She nodded,

And so the two remained quiet in each other's embrace until Isaiah decided to release her. Once her warmth had disappeared only then did Isaiah feel embarrassed over what he did.

'Damn, I got too bold...'

"Anyway..." He coughed to stop his burning cheeks, "Let us rest now, so many things happened that I am so tired already."

"Hai..." She murmured as she turned to him.

Isaiah slowly got up and was just about to leave when Senzuki grabbed the hem of his shirt,

"Isaiah-san..."

"Ya?"

"Can you stay here?"

"Hmmm?"

"Can you, can you sleep here, with me?"

"..." "..."

Isaiah blinked twice,

'Did she just... Ask me to sleep with her?'

"I feel unsafe... I don't want to be alone for now."

"Oh... Okay..."

Isaiah gulped as he lay down, he was surprised about how bold he was right now but at the same time happy that things were progressing very smoothly in their relationship. Senzuki then followed and lay beside Isaiah, facing him.

He could see her beautiful face, her red eyes, and her sharp nose. The fluffy ear that radiated its fluff to his nose. Then that beautiful smell of hers, despite the exhausting day still smelled great. Isaiah became worried about his odor but he could not check.

Senzuki kept fidgeting as she stared at Isaiah, it felt as if she was expecting something.

Isaiah realized that and knew what he had to do. And so he gathered his courage and inched his face closer, Senzuki closed her eyes. He was too shy to kiss her on the lips or her cheeks, so he went for her forehead instead.

She giggled cutely as she covered her face with her arms.

"You've gotten bolder today."

"Well... You like it?"

"Yeah... I do."

She peeked from her cover and then pulled herself closer to Isaiah,

"You know, when you said that I am all you want, that made me happy."

Isaiah felt shy, his heart beat quickly and it only made him more anxious knowing that Senzuki could hear and feel that.

"I-I meant that."

"I know." She buried her face deeper into his body, "Thank you."

Isaiah began to rub her head like a baby, he was in a state of bliss in this position.

The woman he loved, cuddling with her.

Indeed, life was good.

'Looks like this is it.' He thought, 'The day I lose my virginity.'

He became excited, Junior even woke up just for the occasion. It had been a while since he let loose the beast and Senzuki only made it difficult for him.

But the day has finally come.

And so he waited.

'Anytime know... She should start asking. Start saying...'

And he waited.

But nothing came.

He wondered. He was too excited to sleep despite being tired so he thought he should wait.

But nothing happened.

He looked down, and that's when he realized.

'She's asleep. Deep sleep.'

Even when he moved around she was still sleeping. She was snoring, albeit cutely.

The day was tiring. They fought monsters, fought a viper, fought a knight.

Indeed, he wondered why he wasn't sleepy yet.

As soon as his horniness wore off, his energy faded as well.

Things began to calm for him.

He sighed.

This was fine. Cuddling was a good consolation prize.

'Good things come to those who wait.'