Two peerless beauties, one with hair as white as snow and the other with a cascading mane of blue, bowed in unison toward the innkeeper.
The owner’s head was spinning.
“This...” He hesitated.
Sophie tapped the back of Chengzhong Dino’s head again. Dino looked up and said reluctantly, “We are truly sorry for the trouble we’ve caused.”
“Here are fifteen Silver Moons. Let’s just act like nothing happened, alright?” Sophie immediately handed over the shiny coins.
“This... well, fine.” The owner accepted the money with a sigh. “I know young ladies like to experiment with some spicy things, but you two...”
He stopped mid-sentence, realization hitting him.
He remembered.
Was that blonde nun gone again?
He looked at Sophie’s frail frame, her shoulders trembling slightly with “guilt.” He recalled the tragic scene of her being abandoned the other morning, then saw the blue-haired girl looking depressed, as if she had suffered a great injustice.
A ridiculous but logically sound thought took root in the owner’s mind and began to sprout.
That blonde nun.
It was that ice-cold blonde nun who never gave anyone a kind look!
Especially that ice-cold blonde nun who never gave anyone a kind look!
Yesterday morning, that nun left without a word, leaving this poor white-haired girl to weep silently over a blood-stained bed.
This morning, that nun was gone again, but there was a gaping hole in the room and three terrifying coffins.
And an extra person!
What barbaric abuse!
To satisfy some twisted desire for control and sadism, that nun had forced these two fragile girls to sleep in coffins!
And if they resisted even a little, she threw them into the ceiling like sandbags!
How inhumane!
“Sigh...” The owner let out a long breath, his tone softening instantly.
He draped his rag over his shoulder and looked at Sophie with a mix of pity and disappointment.
“Child, I’m not trying to make things difficult for you.” The owner shook his head. “I understand. In Solitude, everyone endures whatever humiliation they must to survive the night. The Companion System forces you together.”
Sophie looked up, utterly bewildered.
Chengzhong Dino blinked.
What was he talking about?
“But!” the owner raised his voice. “There has to be a limit! Look at this beam! This is destruction of private property—you could go to jail for this!”
“If it’s truly unbearable, you can change your Companion. No one in this world should have to endure endless violence... If you need, I can provide this ceiling to the guards as evidence.”
Sophie blinked.
She finally understood.
The Hero’s reputation was dropping again. -1, -1, -1, -1...
The innkeeper’s old habit was acting up again...
“Sob, sob...” Chengzhong Dino whimpered.
The Puppet Witch’s doll-like face, which had been slightly annoyed at having to bow to a mortal, melted into a look of heartbreaking sorrow.
Dino lowered her head, her shoulders trembling as she wrung her small white hands together.
It was a stifled sob, the sound of someone who had suffered a great wrong but was too afraid to speak out.
[Log: You are observing [Chengzhong Dino]’s [Acting Lv. Max]. Skill proficiency is increasing.]
Sophie, who had intended to interrupt: “...”
“Just thinking about what she did to us...” Dino’s voice faltered, heavy with tears. Her moist eyes were full of anxiety. “We... we tried so hard to please her... but she still... she still threw Big Bro... Big Sister up there...”
She raised her hand, dabbing the corners of her eyes with the back of her hand.
“We didn’t dare resist... If we made even the slightest sound, she’d look at us with those cold eyes...” Dino sniffled and looked at the owner with a gaze mixed with fear and gratitude. “Thank you... if you’re willing to testify for us, that would be... but she’s so scary. We’re afraid the guards can’t stop her either.”
Sophie stood there woodenly, staring at Chengzhong Dino, who was clearly enjoying herself.
This brat... she was ruthlessly destroying the Hero’s reputation. Sophie really should...
[Log: Your [Acting] has reached Lv. 2. Skill proficiency is increasing.]
But then again...
Dino hadn’t had it easy all these years. Everything she did was just to please her.
Sigh, let’s let her off.
[Log: Your [Acting] has reached Lv. 3. Skill proficiency is increasing.]
The owner’s eyes turned red.
He rubbed his rough hands on his apron, looking distressed.
“Ah! You poor children!” The owner sighed heavily and fumbled in his pocket for the money Sophie had just given him.
He counted out three Silver Moons and shoved them back into Sophie’s hand, brooking no refusal.
“Take these three Silver Moons back! I’ll only charge for the cost of the wood to fix the ceiling!” the owner declared righteously. “Take this money and go get a good meal to nourish yourselves. If that wicked nun ever lays a hand on you again, come find me anytime!”
Damn.
Would a Witch and a former Vampire True Ancestor care about a commoner’s three Silver Moons?
“No, no, we can’t take this.” Sophie pushed the silver coins back.
“No, no, you must take it.” The owner pushed them back.
“No, no, we can’t.”
“No, no, you must.”
...
Rate on N.U.
