episode_0057

57. Lukewarm (3)

It wasn’t Mion who was in charge of Cain’s party from the beginning.

The processing was delayed because one of the other colleagues omitted something on the paperwork, and then the responsibility was transferred to Luk-on when that colleague quit his union job.

The first time I saw Claude’s party after the change of person in charge, they had already explored the labyrinth twice, equipped only with the basic equipment provided by the union.

Mion, who was shocked to see their miserable state after only two labyrinth runs, quickly matched Hawk, an explorer she believed she could trust and was close with, with Claude’s party as a mentor.

So I was going through my daily routine of watching three new recruits struggling to survive in this city…

She was easy to spot as she was confident in dealing with people she had never dated before.

Claude Party’s love triangle.

Working as a receptionist, she had seen countless parties ruined by women, so their behavior caught her eye right away.

It was salty at first.

From Mi-on’s perspective, who had never been in a relationship, Cain’s actions were just foolish.

Usually, he would either suddenly break out of his shell or run off to find another woman, but even after a year, Cain remained the same.

There, whenever there was a problem or a party was creaking, he would take the lead in solving it, and although he was clearly a commoner, he had no higher education, but his memory and learning ability were surprisingly fast and he handled things smoothly. I found him amazing.

About a year after Claude Paty came to the city, her heart began to slowly move.

Whenever Claude, Sia Cain and the three of them would come to the group together, Mion would secretly cheer him on, seeing his hazy expression and eyes filled with excellence.

Mion, who wanted to feel vicarious satisfaction by telling herself that dating a man was out of the question because she had to find her older sister, secretly cheered for him and Sia to get together.

In fact, Claude, who was being dragged around by this woman and that woman in a mean manner, was handsome, but if there was a rumor among the explorers that he enjoyed brothels, then… he was too unsightly in her eyes.

Even though Mi-on said she had no interest in dating, since most of the receptionists were women, she often heard stories about dating, and it was rare to find a man like Cain.

Among the men who have given up on exploring, there are those who push their lovers to go to the brothel and earn money, and then just play around and eat without exploring.

There is no limit to the growth of each person, but there are differences in speed, so it would be like a couple with quite a difference in status having sex and the woman just kept fucking him, regardless of whether she got hurt or not, and the woman ended up dying.

There are people who say they have normal relationships, but in this city, there are a lot of men who treat women badly.

In the meantime, Mion told Cain’s story, saying that she had heard it somewhere, and the employees’ reactions were chaotic.

‘Hmm… is that right?’

Mion tilted her head in confusion at the reaction of her colleagues who were making a fuss about having to catch a man like that no matter how bad his looks were.

“Luke~ When are you going to date? Isn’t there a good detective in charge?”

“There’s that rookie, Claude! He looks like he’d be a great hitter by his size, hehe!”

“That’s right~ I should try dating. If I hesitate, I’ll be thirty in no time.”

“What the heck!!!”

She didn’t really care about her colleagues who told her such bad jokes and encouraged her to look for good-looking, fit male explorers.

“No, judging from the way she talks about her behavior towards guys, she looks like she’s been smothered by dozens of guys. She’s never been in a relationship? That sounds like a lie.”

“Ahahaha… My family is originally a bit strict…”

“That’s right, and you came out of that house and came to this city, right? Have fun. There’s no joy in life.”

“Are you okay…? Haha….”

It’s been three years since she came to the city… Where on earth has the older sister she’s been looking for gone? Since most of the people in this city are commoners, there are so many people with the same name that it’s impossible to find them by name alone.

It’s hard to pinpoint unless you’re a veteran explorer who just happens to have a nickname for someone.

When creating a Explorer Card, nobles with status would mostly register using only their names, keeping in mind the reverse discrimination that secretly occurred in the city. My sister probably did the same, which made it even harder to find her.

So for the first two years or so, I tried to find it by taking out personal requests, but after spending a lot of money, I felt that that was also hopeless, and I always told my close friends, even veteran investigators like Mr. Hawk, about my sister’s name and appearance, but I never got an answer.

As I watched Cain, who was becoming more and more devastated because he couldn’t find the person he wanted to find, and who was becoming more and more devastated because he couldn’t have the heart of Sia, who he wanted to have, I somehow sympathized with him more and more.

When Cain came to the union and talked, Mayuna and her colleagues would remember the mischievous jokes and actions they made towards men, and when they would do the same to Cain, she would see his stiff movements and be flustered reactions, and she would secretly laugh to herself, and little by little, the man named Cain began to seep into Mi-on’s heart.

“Ah… Thank you so much, Ms. Mi-on..”

“Hehehe, I’m glad I left it to this older sister, right?”

“Yes.. Thank you!”

Sometimes, when he would quickly take the easy and well-paying requests that individuals made through the union and give them to him, Cain, who usually had a gloomy expression, would show a faint smile and express his gratitude.

These weren’t actions specifically intended to win over Cain’s favor.

It wasn’t that he paid the receptionist a lot because he received more requests through him, or because the explorers explored a lot and settled a lot of magic stones. He often took care of Cain purely out of favor.

It was mostly because I felt my heart flutter when I saw his smile occasionally, and I wanted to see that smile more often.

Cain’s sweet gaze was always directed at Sia, so Mi-on was satisfied with just that much.

Looking at the growth of the party of Claude, Cain, and Sia, it seemed like they wouldn’t die in vain while exploring, so it seemed like they would be able to watch them for a long time. Mion consoled herself by thinking that this was just right, since she couldn’t fall for him any deeper until she found her sister.

It definitely was like that…

A year passed as my feelings for Cain grew little by little, and after the class reorganization this month, Cain changed.

When Claude heard that Cain, who had just returned from his exploration, had been taken to a shelter, vomiting blood, he was worried and his heart sank.

Mion felt it from the moment she saw Cain, who had entered the union later.

I didn’t feel anything magical at all, and it wasn’t like I had any memory problems or anything like that.

However, when he, who had only looked at Sia for two years, turned his gaze to her and gave her a look as if he was evaluating her body and face, Mion thought something was wrong.

She was as attached to the other members of the group as Cain was to her, as he was to her.

Claude felt like a little brother who wanted to be squeezed, and Sia felt like a cute baby who needed protection. Although her breasts were more vicious than cute.

Rather than Claude and Sia running to the brothel as soon as they have money, Mion had always thought that it would be better to be with Cain, but after receiving Cain’s strangely sticky gaze that day, all the determination she had been holding onto collapsed in an instant.

And the way he looked at other women as well as himself made me feel like he was a different person.

In Cain’s dramatic transformation, she…

“I like it!!!!!”

From that day on, in preparation for Cain coming to the union, she bought all her underwear that was slightly more sexy than the ones she usually wore, changed her makeup to a style that was popular in the city these days, and even bought new clothes.

Although I don’t visit every day, I started to dress up diligently in case Cain came to the union and looked at me with that same gaze.

And as if he had granted her wish, Cain’s gaze, which she saw again at the reception desk, passed over her body and face again.

“Sia… Sorry… I won’t do it hehehehe!”

There was absolutely no problem with him interfering and deepening their relationship since Sia and Cain weren’t even lovers.

And when he talked about tattoos, Cain’s gaze became more intense than before, and Mion’s insides raced like a crazy woman and she didn’t calm down until she went to bed that night.

“Tongue…tongue…! Huh!!! Ugh!!! Ugh!!”

I have no experience in dating, but after hearing dirty jokes among my female colleagues for four years, I can’t help but know about things between men and women, even if I try to ignore them.

I remember hearing from Mayuna and other colleagues that when they were dating, men would always make them do fellatio before and after sex, so I licked my tongue, but that look…

“Mi….you’re crazy, Kaiin! I’m dying!!”

Her goal of finding her sister was still clearly her top priority, but having been alone in the city for four years without much income, her desire to get closer to Cain had grown just as much.

“Uh…I don’t know when I’ll find my sister…Uh…If things go well with Mr. Cain, the chances of finding my sister double!!!!I can’t stand this!”

However, there was nothing that Mion could do, as she had never been in a relationship, let alone held a man’s hand.

The behaviors that Mion often heard of flirting with others were just natural behaviors that were ingrained in the body regardless of gender, and when she tried to ask Cain, who had changed, out on a date, she was at a loss for words.

One day, when she was determined to get along with Cain, but was frustrated because there was no progress.

“Kiyooo …

“Ouch! Mi-on, what’s wrong? The baby almost fell!!!”

“Ah… Sorry, sis.”

“Is something wrong? That guy….”

“Ah… No, nothing!”

Cain was the first to suggest that we go out for dinner together, so I got ready with excitement.

Since the mood got better while dating, I thought I might come to his house for a second round of drinks and spend a hot night with Cain, so I bought birth control in advance and put it by the bedside. I also prepared alcohol, which Cain usually likes to drink.

Mion, who had been worried about what to say on the date, confessed to Mayu and received coaching.

Mion had been looking forward to the date a lot, seeing Cain staring blankly at her for a moment at her clothes prepared for the date and her makeup that she had put on more force than usual.

Mi-on had no idea that she would faint and bleed from her nose while being held in his arms, trying to catch her from falling.

A series of awkward and embarrassing situations.

I didn’t pass out until dawn, but when I woke up, the restaurant Mayu recommended was taking last orders and it was an ambiguous time where I couldn’t even order.

Mion felt very unfamiliar with herself for acting so foolishly when dealing with people in her life.

Mi-on felt suffocated because she was so nervous, not for any other reason.

When Cain suggested that they pack some snacks and eat them at her house, she barely managed to suppress the feeling of her heart bursting out of her mouth. She went to his house with him, set the table, and brought him some drinks.

From the beginning of their date until now when he came home and brought her a drink, Mion’s mood had been getting gloomy as she had seen Cain acting so mean to her so often.

‘Ka… That drink that Mr. Cain likes is really strong, right? Haa…. See… I don’t know!!!’

Cain showed a smile that strained her heart and Mi-on drank the alcohol in one gulp.