Ch.220Side Story: Afterwards, the Beginning

“Thank you all for gathering here. I commend you.”

Clap, clap, clap. Latina applauded. No one joined in. Embarrassed, she lowered her arms and muttered dejectedly.

“Clapping alone is quite disheartening. It’s even sadder when no one joins in.”

“Enough of that. Just explain why you called us here. You didn’t summon us just to show off some pointless comedy act, did you?”

Rozaria glared at Latina with her arms crossed beneath her chest. Latina’s gaze lingered momentarily on those ample breasts. Even as a woman, one couldn’t help but notice their impressive size.

What was more intimidating was that there were three others present with even larger chests than Rozaria’s. Strictly speaking, one was a Succubus Queen and another was a Dragon, so they weren’t exactly human.

“Looking at everyone’s faces, I can guess who this is about, though I’m not sure if my assumption is correct.”

As she said, there were seven people in the club room. Excluding Priscilla, these were the seven who could move within stopped time and had crossed over to Earth to begin new lives.

Beatrice wasn’t present. Unless Mira came looking for her, she would typically remain secluded in the dormitory waiting for her master, and even if not, she wasn’t someone who would fit in here.

“I believe everyone knows that Priscilla went on a date with Mira.”

“Of course we know. So what?”

Since the news had exploded in a place where everyone was gathered, it would have been harder not to know. Everyone’s expressions turned peculiar, wondering why she was bringing up something they already knew.

“The two of them won’t just end with a date. They’ll definitely have sex too.”

“Pfft?!”

At that blunt statement, Leona spectacularly sprayed the tea she was drinking. Rozaria, who got half-tea, half-saliva all over her left side, restored her clothes with magic in horror.

Nika hurriedly brought something to wipe up the mess. Elysier and Laura edged away with disgusted expressions. It was chaos caused by a single statement.

“……”

The only exception was the Chairwoman. Erestica had stepped back from the commotion and was carefully massaging her chest.

Hearing those words made her chest tingle strangely. It felt like something was swelling inside, and beyond that, something seemed to be pooling within.

“Keh! Cough, cough! W-what on earth are you saying?!”

Leona, who had been coughing continuously while helping Nika clean the tea-soaked sofa, shouted. But Latina remained confident.

“I said Mira and Priscilla will go on a date and have sex. I can guarantee it 100%. If Priscilla returns still a virgin, I, Latina, will give up my position as a saint. Absolutely.”

“You’re not even a saint anymore! And besides, no matter what, having sex on the first date—”

“It may be their first date, but it’s not their first meeting. If we include the time we’ve waited for Mira, it’s been a good eight years. Eight years is enough time to have tried everything and even be browsing catalogs for new plays to try.”

Leona, who had been trying to argue, soon closed her mouth. There was nothing incorrect in what Latina said.

If Mira hadn’t disappeared, their relationship would have been going on for eight years by now. While this might be their first date, considering the time it took to get to this point, it wasn’t strange at all.

“Besides, isn’t it more abnormal for nothing to happen when a man and woman are together? It’s human nature for a man to desire a beautiful woman, and for a woman to desire a handsome man. It was the same in the world I came from. You shouldn’t be embarrassed about it, Leona.”

“If it’s instinct, then you too—”

“I wasn’t like that.”

Latina proudly contradicted herself, puffing out her chest.

“That’s why I was revered by people. Resisting human instinctual desires isn’t easy. There was a reason people called me a saint.”

If Mira had heard this, he would have been dumbfounded, wondering if this was really something the Latina he knew would say.

The seven who didn’t know the past Latina well were equally bewildered. Laura snapped at her.

“What does that have to do with why you gathered us here?”

“Since Priscilla has crossed the line first, I’m saying there’s nothing stopping us from doing the same. Whether we make the first move or make Mira make the first move is up to each individual.”

“…?”

Laura and Elysier looked as if they’d misheard. Leona wore an expression suggesting she would have sprayed her tea again if she’d been drinking, and Nika unconsciously swallowed her saliva.

The Chairwoman was still massaging her chest. The pain seemed to ease momentarily, only to return as something seemed to pool inside again, causing a throbbing sensation.

“Mira has overcome his past trauma, but he’s not completely healed. It’s like a building that’s been completed but still has old furniture inside.”

“Are you suggesting we should create new furniture for him?”

“Exactly. We should let him express his desires with us whenever he feels them. Restraint is a virtue, but not expressing oneself is abnormal.”

“…That sounds no different from turning him into a beast. If all of us indulge whenever we want, spending all day in bed wouldn’t be enough time.”

Despite Laura’s incredulity, Latina remained confident.

“There’s a Korean saying that a ghost who died after having sex has a beautiful complexion. If you can’t do it, you’ll harbor tremendous resentment. Negative energy will accumulate. There’s a reason virgin ghosts exist.”

“Make sure to say that in front of Mira too. I’m quite curious about his reaction.”

“No way. I refuse.”

“Delicious, isn’t it?”

“Yes, it is.”

Priscilla beamed at me. It was just a simple combination of kimbap and ramen, but for Priscilla, whose mood had been soaring since yesterday, the menu didn’t seem to matter.

“Are you sure this is enough? We could go somewhere nicer—”

“I like this. Other places make me uncomfortable.”

I had asked several times, but Priscilla was adamant. I had originally planned to take her somewhere nicer, but she insisted this was enough, which is how we ended up at this snack shop.

After breakfast, we spent some time sitting on a park bench. It seemed I would have to discard all my plans for today as well.

“I’m curious about something, Mira.”

Priscilla, who had been happily leaning against me with her arms crossed, suddenly asked.

“Curious about what?”

“Yes. If I hadn’t approached you first, could we have done that?”

“No.”

I stated firmly. There was no motel in my original plan. I had just intended to walk around, enjoy some date spots, and then return to the Eternal Guild headquarters.

Thinking about it now, I would have been terribly disappointed if it had ended that way.

“I see.”

Priscilla smiled happily again and leaned on my shoulder.

We parted ways late at night. Despite spending the day simply walking around and entering random restaurants when it was time to eat, Priscilla’s smile never faded.

“Let’s do this again.”

Despite the obvious reluctance in her eyes, Priscilla withdrew obediently. She only left the words “let’s do this again,” without specifying whether she meant the first day’s activities or the second day’s.

“You’re back?”

After sending Priscilla off, who said she had something to discuss with the Sword Saint, I returned to the club room and was greeted by somewhat ambiguous gazes.

Laura and Elysier with subtle looks directed at me.

Rozaria, tense for some unknown reason.

Leona, embarrassed and unable to make proper eye contact.

Nika, staring at my lower body while repeatedly swallowing her saliva.

And Erestica, massaging her chest which somehow seemed to have grown larger.

As I stood there confused, wondering what they had been doing, Latina came bouncing over.

“Welcome back, Mira. Did you have a proper date?”

“Huh? Oh, yes.”

Hearing my answer, Latina nodded with a satisfied look.

“That’s a relief. I was worried you might have spent the whole day in bed, but it seems that wasn’t the case.”

“What do you mean ‘relief’?”

“I’m relieved that you didn’t just have sex but also properly went out on a date.”

“……”

“Judging by your expression, you seem curious about how I know. Since I’m in a good mood, I’ll explain it specially.”

Latina cleared her throat with an “ahem” and continued.

“If you had spent all day in bed, you would have either hesitated to answer out of guilt, or it would have taken you much longer to respond. But while you did look confused about why I asked such a question, you answered properly, so that option is ruled out. And since it’s unlikely you didn’t get intimate at all, considering it took you two days to return, there’s only one conclusion.”

I just listened blankly to her words. There was nothing incorrect in what she said. That I would hesitate out of guilt, that it would have taken me much longer to respond.

“On the first day, you intended to go on a date but couldn’t resist when Priscilla seduced you first, and only today, the second day, did you properly enjoy a date before returning. How about it, am I right?”

“…How did you know?”

“That’s just who I am. You can be even more amazed.”

Latina puffed up her shoulders with a smug face. This was clearly a 180-degree difference from the gentle, quiet Latina who used to inspire hope.

They say the position makes the person. According to her, she only acted in accordance with being revered as a saint, and this was her true personality, but still.

“Well, I won the bet. Time to pay up.”

“Ugh…”

The smug Latina turned her head. Rozaria disappeared somewhere, trembling.

“Bet? What did you bet on?”

“We bet on what you were doing. The loser has to spend the whole day wearing a saint’s outfit. For reference, I bet that you would spend only the first day in bed and go out on the second day, while Rozaria bet that you would spend both yesterday and today just in bed.”

A saint’s outfit—was that the one she wore when we first met? Judging by Rozaria’s mortified expression as she disappeared, that seemed to be the case.

“Oh, by the way, we discovered something while you were gone. It wasn’t intentional, just a coincidence, but anyway.”

“Discovered what?”

“Yes. About why Erestica’s breasts keep getting bigger.”