Chapter 5

The day after treating Fran.

When I woke up, Yuel's face was right in front of me.

She was lying on the single bed, just like yesterday, using me as a pillow, and breathing peacefully.

Still, it feels much warmer with someone else in the bed.

It's spring, and it's still quite chilly.

This world also has four seasons.

Or rather, the calendar is almost the same as Earth's.

The only differences are the names of the days of the week and the way months are referred to; basically, they are the same.

It's now the first month of spring.

In Japanese terms, it would be March.

Mornings are quite cold.

As I thought about these things while checking Yuel's body, she woke up.

Her face turned slightly red, and she looked at me with a slightly surprised expression.

Then, she lifted her chin and slowly closed her eyes.

No.

It's a misunderstanding.

I was just checking her body's condition and health, not indulging in lustful thoughts and playing with Yuel's body.

However, what should I do?

Yuel seems to be waiting for a kiss.

A kiss might be okay, considering she's a slave.

But no, that's not right.

I don't want to be labeled as a pedophile.

Moreover, if I respond, I won't be able to correct her misunderstanding.

If things escalate from a kiss, it could get really bad.

As I thought about this, the situation was changing.

Specifically, Yuel started trembling and her face turned bright red.

She might have realized it was a misunderstanding since I didn't respond.

This is embarrassing.

It's a real blush-inducing moment.

But is it okay to leave it like this?

If it were Fran from yesterday, she would have burst out laughing, but Yuel is pure and innocent and adorable.

If I handle this wrong, it might affect her and make her smile less.

What should I do?

Mission: "Get through this without hurting Yuel" has been issued.

The quickest solution would be to kiss her.

But this could create problems in our future relationship.

There's a risk of things escalating.

A decadent relationship with a young slave girl.

I feel a slight shiver, but I want to maintain a pure relationship for a few more years.

It would be too scandalous to take advantage of a young slave girl.

Even the relatively sexually liberal Ruruka would definitely be shocked.

Besides, while she does look up to me, if I start seeing Yuel in that way, it feels like I'm deceiving and exploiting a young girl.

I know it's not true, but I still want to choose a different path.

What else can I do...?

Ah, no time to think.

Yuel's ears are red, and tears are starting to form at the corners of her eyes.

"..."

It's bad.

Yuel's embarrassment is bad.

She's at her limit.

I need to care for her immediately.

I'll stroke her.

I immediately hugged Yuel and stroked her back and the back of her head.

I combed her silky silver hair rhythmically, like soothing a child.

While stroking her, I kept thinking.

What should I do?

What should I do?

I've always mocked others' failures, so I lack experience in comforting girls.

The only thing that comes to mind is something crude like, "Hehe, I'll comfort you on the bed, little lady."

No, that's not right.

I'm not suited for this.

"Ah, well, that's something for when you're a bit older. For now, just eat a lot, sleep a lot, and work moderately."

It's a generic response for children, "When you're older."

I've used it before, but it's the only comforting skill I have.

It's not really comforting.

I wanted to say, "Just eat a lot and sleep a lot," but I can't afford that.

Lack of money limits kindness.

"Um, do I not have any charm?"

Seeing Yuel's dejected expression, I desperately held back the urge to say, "No, you do."

Words without action are shallow.

I can't act on it either.

"You're still a child. But in a few years, you'll definitely become a charming girl. I guarantee it."

"Charming girl... Yes, I'll try my best!"

Yuel's face lit up.

Easy.

Too easy, Yuel.

It seems like a little positive encouragement is all it takes.

But the mission is complete.

I successfully fulfilled my duty as a caretaker.

---

We decided to stay at a cheaper inn, with a basic room for 500 zennies per night.

We could stay at a place with a bath, but Yuel needs new clothes.

So, we decided to eat at a tavern.

The tavern we usually go to has good taste, good quantity, and good prices, with energetic mini-skirted waitresses.

Plus, they change the menu and staff and operate 24 hours a day, making it a true izakaya.

I used to come here for the mini-skirts, but now my goal is to make sure Yuel eats well and gains some weight.

I ordered enough food for four people and started eating with Yuel as soon as it arrived.

I also ordered sandwiches for lunch and stored them in the item box.

Four servings.

Our Engel coefficient is bad.

---

The entrance to the dungeon is in the adventurer's guild.

We quickly descended the well-maintained stone stairs.

At the bottom is the first level of the dungeon.

The rough, hard stone walls emit a faint light, illuminating the way.

The dungeon is like a roguelike game dungeon.

There are corridors wide enough for a person to swing a sword, leading to large rooms.

From these rooms, several corridors branch out, leading to more rooms or dead ends.

It's a maze-like structure of small rooms and corridors.

It might seem easy to get lost, but it's actually not.

The shortest route between levels has stakes driven in at regular intervals, serving as markers.

The adventurer's guild regularly maintains these, and apparently, stakes have been driven in up to the 56th level.

As long as you follow these markers, you won't get lost.

Even levels that would take hours to explore normally can be quickly navigated using the main route.

However, there are fewer monsters near the main route.

Many adventurers frequently use this route.

To hunt a lot of monsters, you need to explore side paths.

And the deeper, less-traveled side paths are more likely to have treasure chests.

Today's plan is to hunt goblins and search for treasure chests on the third level.

---

I watched Yuel slice through goblins while eating a spicy sandwich for lunch.

This time, she took on four at once.

But she was still unscathed.

When Yuel cut down the second goblin, another goblin tried to attack me, but I took it down with a thrown knife.

Then I finished off the remaining goblin by stabbing its eye.

Still, it's brutal.

However, if monsters start coming at me, I might be able to handle only four at a time.

Yuel might be fine with a large number of goblins, but I'd be pummeled from behind.

I don't have any weapons.

All I have is a spicy sandwich for lunch.

I don't want to interfere with Yuel's fighting, but I should have some means of self-defense.

Even if I use my excess magic to heal myself every time I get hit, I don't want to be in that situation.

The easiest solution would be to let Yuel explore the dungeon alone, but I can't do that.

I can easily imagine myself waiting anxiously at the inn, worried and guilty if Yuel doesn't return.

I've grown attached to her.

It would be strange not to, given her kindness and smile.

So, I need a means of self-defense to continue exploring the dungeon with Yuel.

---

After collecting the drops, I gently stroked Yuel's head and fed her the lunch sandwich.

Yuel's hands were a bit dirty, so she was in the "ahh" position.

Watching Yuel munch on the sandwich made me feel calm, as if the brutal goblin massacre had been a dream.

The sandwich was filled with leafy vegetables like lettuce and thick ham, generously dressed with various spices and a sweet and spicy white dressing.

The sandwich in my right hand quickly disappeared into Yuel's mouth, shrinking to a size I could hold with two fingers.

I put the last piece in Yuel's mouth and tried to pull my hand away, but Yuel grabbed it.

A warm sensation crawled over my fingers.

She licked them.

Yuel licked my fingers.

Yuel slowly licked the white dressing that had dripped onto my fingers, starting from the tips.

Middle finger, index finger, and then the thumb.

When I tried to pull my hand away, Yuel firmly held my wrist.

The thumb had the most dressing.

Yuel took it in her mouth.

The heat from her tongue and the inside of her mouth was intense.

She sucked on my thumb, as if savoring it, while breathing shallowly, licking the entire thumb.

"This dressing is spicy."

I almost felt a jolt in my lower body.

No, maybe Yuel was just cleaning my fingers as a slave.

Sure, sure, that's it.

I shouldn't misunderstand, or rather, I don't want to misunderstand.

Still, this is too much.

Why does Yuel always try to make me feel guilty?

My rationality is at risk.

---

I managed to maintain my rationality and went to the buyback counter.

Today's earnings were 3,100 zennies.

We hunted until around 3 PM.

But we didn't find any treasure chests.

According to the guild's buyback counter, treasure chests are more likely to appear in deeper levels.

There are fewer adventurers in deeper levels, making them harder to find.

Even when a treasure chest is found, it apparently takes a while to respawn.

I want to go to deeper levels, but I don't want to be pummeled.

I'll continue hunting goblins until I can afford self-defense equipment.