Chapter 26 - Guild. (Patreon)

Listening to Bella's words, I smiled before saying, "Be more careful from now on. You were lucky I was here."

Hearing my words, Bella turned to me and said, "Even if you hadn't been here, I would've found a way out of it."

After saying that, she started to walk away. Before she could, however, Tiona spoke up.

"Hey, at least thank him properly! Rui helped you, you know? He could've gotten hurt!"

"Tiona..." Tione grabbed Tiona by the shoulder and pulled her back. "Just be quiet."

"But..."

"I already thanked him, okay?" Bella clicked her tongue.

I wanted to talk to her a little longer, but with Ais, Tione, and Tiona here, Bella simply left. I guess she doesn't like the three of them very much.

Or maybe she just doesn't feel comfortable around them.

"You look sad," Tiona said.

"Of course not."

"You didn't get hurt, did you?" Ais asked, looking at me with concern. Even though she could be a little cold, Ais genuinely cared about her friends.

"I'm fine. They were just two idiots. They wouldn't have been able to lay a finger on me even if they'd used all their strength." I chuckled.

"Even so, this is a problem. Do you know which Familia they belong to?" Ais asked.

"Honestly, I don't even know if they're part of any major Familia. Those idiots wouldn't be accepted into any Familia I know. Maybe some small, obscure one?"

"There are a few like that. But be careful. They might try to get revenge."

I thought Ais would tell me not to get involved in other people's problems, but instead she simply told me to be careful and rely on her if I needed help.

She thought protecting Bella had been the right thing to do.

Well, anyone decent would think the same.

"Are you all heading home now? I think I'll stop by somewhere before I go back," I said.

"Yeah, we're heading back. You should go home and get some rest too. You need it, don't you?" Tiona smiled at me before lightly punching me in the stomach.

"I'll head home later. You three can go ahead."

"Don't tell me you're going after that girl."

"What if I am?" I asked, looking at Tiona.

Seeing my smile, she let out a sigh.

"Do whatever you want."

Unlike her, Tione and Ais didn't seem to care at all. They were already used to this sort of thing. They were probably thinking something like, 'It's been a while since he's openly flirted with a girl like this.'

Well, I'm not going after Bella just because of Bella or because of the system's mission.

Honestly, this is the perfect opportunity to get closer to Hestia.

I watched the three girls walk away before heading in the same direction Bella had gone. She was probably on her way to the Guild. This would be my first time visiting the Guild since arriving in this world.

####

As I approached the Guild, the building immediately caught my attention.

'It's even bigger than I expected.'

Since I hadn't run into Bella on the way or outside, she was probably already inside.

The moment I entered the Guild, quite a few adventurers and Guild employees looked my way, but they quickly went back to acting as though I didn't exist.

I recognized the faces of some of the Guild staff. There were more employees than I remembered.

Then I spotted Bella talking to someone.

'I remember her. That's Rose, isn't it?'

A werewolf girl with red hair.

She was smiling at Bella as if the two of them were very close.

Rose then handed Bella a pouch—probably filled with money.

A moment later, someone approached me.

"May I help you, Mr. Rui?"

Mr.?

I turned around and saw a beautiful elf with shoulder-length brown hair. Her emerald-green eyes were striking. She wore glasses, and although her gaze was sharp, it was also incredibly gentle at the same time. I couldn't really explain it.

"Ah, it's alright. I'm here to meet someone."

"Meet someone?"

I remembered this woman. Her name was Eina Tulle.

According to my memories, she was my advisor.

"Yes, that girl." I pointed at Bella.

"Bella? The only member of the Hestia Familia? Are you two close?" Eina asked, surprised.

"Not really. We only met a little while ago. I helped her earlier, so I decided to make sure she got home safely."

"Hmm... but she seems perfectly fine."

Bella was laughing as she chatted with Rose.

"..."

Without saying anything, I took a step forward.

As soon as I got close to Bella—

Before Bella noticed me, Rose looked my way.

"You..."

The smile vanished from her face.

"Hm?"

Bella turned toward me.

"You! W-What are you doing here?!"

"I came to see you, of course."

"What about the girls in your group?"

"They went back to the Familia home." I smiled.

"Are you two close?" Rose asked.

"No!"

"More or less."

Unlike me, who already considered Bella a friend, she denied it immediately.

But you seemed to agree to being my friend earlier...

What a strange girl.

"Don't tell me you're following Bella around. I already told you not to do that, Rui." Rose glared at me, clearly irritated.

"I'm not following Bella. Don't say things like that."

"You think I'm an idiot?" Rose let out a sigh. "If I find out you've done anything to Bella, you'll have to deal with me."

Should a Guild employee really be saying something like that to me?

Eina, who had been listening to the whole conversation, didn't try to defend me either.

She simply gave me a wry smile.

"It's alright. I won't hurt Bella in any way. I just wanted to make sure she's okay."

"Hm? Did something happen?" Rose asked.

"Didn't you tell her?" I looked at Bella.

"Come on, it wasn't a big deal. I have to go now. My Goddess is waiting for me."

With that, I followed Bella out of the Guild.

Once we were outside, she turned to me and asked,

"What do you really want from me?"