Chương 87: Beware of pretty ladies, please! part 4

What lied behind the counter left me with no words, If the rest of the place was rundown, this could only be described as tragic. I expected to find a working lab, not necessarily as good as Ayumi's, but I didn't expect something as pitiful as what I saw.

"What's this Mia? I thought you were running a business here"

"It's my crafting station"

"But there's only a table and a shelf!"

"I don't have any merchandise, I was starving when I found your friends, I was so desperate I gave them all my money and drank the potions immediately"

"Just how many potions do you need to survive!?"

"I don't know, but I was starving I couldn't help myself!"

"How am I supposed to work here? There's nothing I can do without materials and equipment"

"I don't have any reagents, but you could buy them downtown or request them at the adventurers guild. About the equipment, why would I need anything else? Can't you see my crafting station? It's one of the best ones money can buy"

"Hey Luke! could you come here please!?"

I shout.

"What do you want?"

"How would you like to become an adventurer?"

A broad smile is painted on his face as he jumps forward.

"Of course! I'll become an S rank adventurer in no time!"

"That's great, but before you go taking difficult quests you'll need a party and better gear"

"What do you have in mind then?"

"I need you to go to Ironwoods with Hiraku, and come back with Bob"

"I don't think he needs help getting back, after all most beasts are pretty weak even for him"

"That may be so, but there may be bandits or worse. We can't allow anyone to travel alone. So you go with Hiraku and come back with Anne, Bob and Helena. Also, I need you to inform Rina about my new... pet..."

I stare at Mia who looks like an ordinary upbeat girl, if she hadn't confessed she was a succubus herself we wouldn't have notice there was anything weird with her. Fortunately she seems to be an airhead and that played in our favor.

"By the way, should we wait for Karl?"

"Luke, this is really important, you cannot trust the mayor. I find it hard to believe that everything that he didn't realize what was happening in front of his face. Maybe he's not behind it, but he should at least be an accomplice. I'm asking you to do all this because you're the most reliable in the group, especially now that he's worried about Ayumi's safety"

"Yes leader!"

After talking with Luke I went to the second floor where Hiraku was still inspecting the construction.

"Young Ryu, now I'm certain this building can be repaired and even enhanced without having to tear it down. I could bring back some materials from Ironwoods to make some renovations"

"There's not need Hiraku, I know you want to stay by Ayumi's side. You can go back to Ironwoods today, be sure to send us some materials to make potions. Also, If possible, I'd like to make a lab for myself in here"

"Understood, I'll arrange things. There's only one thing that worries me young Ryu, are you going to be ok with that thing in here?"

"You mean Mia? she's harmless... after all its true that if she wanted us dead at least one of us would have died. Also, she feeds on life essence, but dislikes feeding on men. Before you say that it might be a lie, I don't think so. Look at this place, it's obvious she's been spending her earnings in potions and that she drinks them right away. How else can someone explain that there's not a single potion in here? So, as long as she thinks I can provide her the potions she need, she'll behave"

"You don't know what it was like to be under her charm"

"Was it painful?"

"No, not really. It was like being drunk on emotions, and I felt that the sole purpose of my entire existence was to serve her"

"So... it was like... marriage?"

"Hahaha, you're right young Ryu, it was almost as I feel when I think about Ayumi"

"Well then, I shouldn't be at risk anyway, like I said she needs us more than we need her. If anything happens to me or if you come back and I am under her charm you can just let the authorities know that she's a succubus and they will take care of her"

"Also, if she tries to do anything funny I'll make sure she pays dearly. So much so that she will not dare do that again"

"I must say I missed you Ryu"

Hiraku lets out a sigh.

"What do you mean Hiraku?"

"You've been so immersed in different tasks that we barely had the time to chat lately. In the end, if it wasn't for the curse we wouldn't have made this trip. I have to tell you, things have been awkward in the group ever since you started your relationship with miss Rina. Miss Anne and Miss Helena have been drifting away, also I don't know what's the deal with Bob but every time we talk about you he looks depressed and he avoided you like the plague when you came by the trade outpost"

"I think Bob is still mad at me because he thinks I let a lot of people die back at the hill, even though I did my best to save them. I bet things will go back to normal, especially now I asked Luke to bring him so they can become adventurers together. About Anne and Helena, I don't know what to do. They said they were going out of town for a while, but then many things happened and I ended up leaving Ironwoods before them"

"Let me give you a piece of advice young Ryu, I don't really know if you are from the same place we are, but in this world things are different. A man can have more than one wife, just as a woman can have more than one husband"

"You say that, but I know you only have eyes for Ayumi"

"Uhm... Well, things are complicated"

"Don't tell me the rumors are true, do you really have a thing with Sophie!? I mean, I've seen her get into your room many times but I always thought it was to clean up or something... she's a slave! And how did you get Ayumi on board with this? You must tell me"

"Like I said... things are complicated. Ayumi would have killed me if I had laid eyes on another woman, but things are different because it was she who did. She took interest in Sophie and it was mutual at first I was against it, but it improved our life so much"

I can't even begin to understand how things developed that way. They were so close and I've seen Ayumi act jealous so many times I never thought a scenario like that would be possible.

"Why are you telling me all this?"

"Well young Ryu, it's more than obvious that there are many girls interested in you and I think that's one of the problems that made us all drift away in a sense. What I mean is, if you had accepted them both from the start you would have spared yourself and the rest of us a lot of trouble"

"Maybe, but I don't know how I feel about being with more than one person"

"And feelings are important, im not saying they're not. But take me as an example, my love for my wife knows no bounds and still in the end we were just another married couple back at our world. We had been together for so long that we were no longer attracted physically to each other, at least not as much as we were when we first started our relationship. It wasn't bad, but just like any other marriage things got cold eventually. Then we came back to a different world and our bodies are at our peak, it was like a second honeymoon. I may not look like it but I'm well past fifty you know, and Ayumi, no, wait... I can't tell you her age or she would kill me. Anyways, my point is, that even that lasted only for a while and then she went her own way doing experiments."

"Could it be that she no longer feels the same for you as she did before?"

"Please young Ryu, don't say such things. I completely understand her, she's always been driven by her studies, I knew her like that and I have always respected her scholarly side. But as you know, being in a younger body also means having a young man's libido"

"I don't know if I feel comfortable with this conversation anymore Hiraku"

"Well, you should. I know you and Rina have been playing doctor, everyone knows so there's no point in trying to hide it. If you can do the deed you can talk about it, at least that's what I told Bob when he brought Veronika to live with us. Anyway, you should talk with miss Rina about this, worst case scenario things will remain the same, but if there's at least a small chance for everyone at our group to be happy, you should go for it. Anyways young Ryu, I should get going now, so if you excuse me"

Hiraku's words kept floating on my mind even after they left. All I could think about was in how would my life be right now If I had taken Anne and Helena too as my girlfriends. Well, my nights would have been a lot busier that's for sure. But it also would have made things easier for Rina, I know some nights she wasn't really in the mood but she still tried to make me happy. I have a lot more stamina than her so it must have been troublesome for her too.

I also know how Anne feels, after we talked it was clear to me that she could hear me and Rina those nights. If only I could turn back time.

These were my last thoughts until I fell asleep in the only bed available at what used to be Mia's shop.

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