Chapter 238: Dormitory

"Our Baby Daddy has a lot of girlfriends, doesn't he?"

It was a statement that would naturally make any married man's heart drop.

The good thing was that I wasn't a married man yet.

"...Ms. Rebecca?"

There was only one person who used that kind of title for me.

Turning my head, I saw the red-haired mage. It was Rebecca.

Looking at me with the slightly raised corners of her mouth, Rebecca had the face of a witch who had found a good toy.

With her red hair, snow-white skin, decadent impression, and strong magic power combined, I couldn't help but feel a little scared even knowing she was a good person.

"What's the point of diligently teaching my Baby Daddy the Rune Barrier... and providing support. I looked away for a second and you're already rolling around with other women."

"...."

That was scary.

Of course, I didn't feel my life was threatened.

Just at the level of a lover's quarrel?

Although it was a bit intense.

"It's not like that. This was a promise made a long time ago, so...."

"Hmm, I suppose so. I'm a newcomer, so I should be understanding. But I didn't know you'd have a local girlfriend as well as a woman you're in cohabitation with."

It hurts. That hurts.

Every single one of Rebecca's words pierced me like a dagger.

When I slightly averted my gaze, pricked by my conscience, Rebecca shook her head, her red hair swishing around.

I opened my mouth to change the subject as much as possible.

"...You should have made contact before coming."

If she had, I wouldn't have shown her such an ugly display.

Besides, I wasn't in a condition to do it with Rebecca right now.

I might actually die.

"You didn't give me your contact information. Baby Daddy."

"Ah.... You're right."

Only then did I offer my smartwatch to Rebecca.

We just had to tap them together to exchange contact information, and I hadn't even done that.

Beep-

Rebecca, having exchanged contact information via smartwatch, approached me.

"Anyway... You seem to be overflowing with energy, so can you do it for me today?"

As we got close enough to feel each other's breath, I genuinely started to get scared.

And I immediately came up with an excuse.

"Uh, well. Isn't my proficiency with the Rune Barrier still a bit lacking?"

"Just what kind of amazing genes are you planning to give me?"

Rebecca pressed her finger firmly against the center of my chest.

From the playfully raised corners of her mouth, I caught a glimpse of a smile that wanted to tease me.

"I can tell you're exhausted just by looking at your face. I'll let you off today. But you definitely have to do it for me next time."

"...Understood. I'll do it right away once I finish taking care of this."

It was a bit awkward to say, even from my position.

Anyone watching would think I was doing her a massive favor.

I continued speaking while looking at the smiling Rebecca.

"Smack. Did you come here to say that? Or to exchange contact information?"

"That too, but I also came to see you because I was lonely."

"Excuse me?"

That was another unexpected answer.

She found a survivor of the Rune Clan, so what was there to be lonely about?

"I checked for traces of brainwashing like Baby Daddy said, and it turned out all my subordinates around me were under brainwashing."

Rebecca smiled bitterly.

"Ah...."

"I specifically brought in and raised talented rookies so we wouldn't be taken out by Pandemic... but it was all for nothing."

"....."

I couldn't exactly guess how Rebecca felt.

Because I had never been the head of any organization before.

Still, I could understand the feelings of Rebecca, who had been lonely searching for the Rune Clan.

On top of that, it was entirely understandable to get depressed if the subordinates she personally raised turned out to be under brainwashing.

"That's why I haven't been able to bring Suhyeon, the Rune Clan survivor, from the orphanage yet either. I don't know what Pandemic might do if they find out I found a survivor."

Rebecca was in a cooperative relationship with Pandemic.

Pandemic helped Rebecca find the Rune Clan, and Rebecca cooperated with Pandemic in return.

Since it hadn't been long since the brainwashing was undone, there was no need to deliberately be stirring up trouble.

"...This is exactly the timing where I should hug and comfort you. But I'm too exhausted to give you a hug. Let's at least have a meal together later."

"You're too honest. Baby Daddy."

Rebecca met my eyes with a dumbfounded laugh.

"Anyway, what is it that Baby Daddy has to do?"

"It's a personal investigation, but it's pretty important. Do you know about the Centaur that appeared in France?"

The Centaur, an Apostle of Pandemic.

Rebecca, being an executive of Pandemic, probably knew about it.

"I know it extremely well. He's an F-Rank mercenary, isn't he?"

"Yes, yes. F-Rank... Huh? How do you know that?"

Wait a second.

Him being an F-Rank mercenary was information from Liriana, who was from Hell.

There was no way Rebecca could know that, right?

"Naturally, that damn strong horse talked about it himself. I don't know the details either. I just helped Maestro with the brainwashing."

"Oh...."

Surprisingly, she seemed to know the Centaur well.

Come to think of it, this person was an executive of Pandemic.

I didn't know how Pandemic operated, but as an executive, wouldn't she have been there during the Apostle's summon as well?

And if she put her mind to it, couldn't she extract some information about the Centaur too?

"Ms. Rebecca. Please help me out a bit."

With a slight smile, I asked Rebecca.

*

"Competent women really are the best."

Both Im Sol and Rebecca; competent women were the best.

In the end, after hearing my request, Rebecca decided to return to Pandemic to gather information for me.

Rebecca also said that she only helped with the initial brainwashing and paid no attention after that, so she needed to do a separate investigation.

Then again, she was busy finding the Rune Clan, so she wouldn't have gone out of her way to care about an Apostle.

'...I should get her pregnant once this is over.'

Of course, I didn't know when that would be, but I was grateful to her.

Helping me without even asking for the detailed circumstances meant she had faith in me.

Even if it hadn't been long since we met, I could recognize a good person.

I worried if it was okay to spread my seed so easily, but wouldn't it be fine as long as they were raised well? It wasn't like Rebecca would commit child abuse.

To think a day would come when I'd worry about something like this in my life; you really do have to live long to see everything.

'I haven't lived that long, actually.'

You just have to live diligently.

Ddiring-

As I opened the door to my dormitory room and went inside, I heard familiar voices.

- Scout-! Stay still!

- Sister, sister. This is pretty.

Hearing Liriana and Nam Da-hee's voices from the entrance, I walked into the living room.

"Hiyah. Hiyah."

"Sister, sister. Cheer up!"

"You look very cool."

In the living room, Scarlet was playing along with the strange game Liriana and Nam Da-hee were doing.

In the kitchen, I saw Nam Da-eun making coffee.

"Ho-yeon, you're back. Do you want some coffee?"

Seeing me, Nam Da-eun took out a coffee cup.

"Yeah. A sweet one."

"Ooh, do you want to come and look at Scarlet's abs too?"

Liriana made an incredibly tempting proposal.

"...No. I'm fine."

Honestly, I really wanted to.

Looking at Scarlet's abs.

Scarlet must have a great body, considering she ran around sweating in the field and clung to ceilings.

But I couldn't join in on bothering Scarlet too.

I decided to just sit at the dining table and drink the coffee Nam Da-eun gave me.

"...It's instant coffee mix?"

A familiar scent and taste.

It was the taste of the coffee Im Sol had made for me countless times.

"Yeah. It's cheap but delicious."

Sip.

Nam Da-eun wore a satisfied smile as she smelled the aroma of the coffee.

"It's fine if it's expensive, so you should buy and drink something better. Liriana has a card."

"No. It's not a meal we're sharing, so I should buy things like this with my dignity maintenance fee. Plus, I bought it after checking all the ingredients. Just because it's expensive doesn't mean it's all good."

Seeing Nam Da-eun drink her coffee while speaking so sensibly, it seemed I wouldn't have to worry about housekeeping in the future.

"Right. I had something I wanted to ask you. How do you usually eat lunch at the academy?"

"Lunch?"

"Yeah. I was wondering if you were eating well."

Nam Da-eun looked at the empty air and sipped her coffee.

"I used to go to Da-hee and eat with her... but Da-hee told me she made friends this time."

"...Is that so?"

"Yeah. I've been eating alone in the cafeteria."

Ah, just as I thought.

I was a bit relieved when she said she ate with Da-hee, but it seemed Da-hee had been eating with her peers lately.

It was a huge relief that Da-hee made friends, but I couldn't cover for Nam Da-eun.

"...Should we eat together? Though Lucy and Rumi are there too."

It was something I'd have to ask the twins, Lucy and Rumi... but hearing that Nam Da-eun was eating alone made my chest ache.

Nam Da-eun, smiling subtly at my words, placed her hand on top of my hand holding the coffee cup.

"Don't worry, I won't eat with other men."

"No, it's not like that. Really. I was just...."

"It's fine. I get to eat with you at home, after all. You have to give Lucy and Rumi some time too."

Smile.

Nam Da-eun laughed with composure and squeezed my hand firmly.

"...Thank you."

I ended up feeling like a husband being forgiven for cheating... but regardless, I was grateful for what I was grateful for.

No matter how used she was to eating alone, watching me eat with other women wouldn't make her feel good.

Honestly, it would be a problem even if I asked them to eat together.

It was a slightly awkward topic to bring up to Lucy and Rumi as well.

They would allow it, but neither side would feel good about it.

"It's nothing, really."

But what was with that smile?

That face full of composure, as if saying she was in the lead anyway.

Smack.

She probably possessed such composure because she didn't know I had a threesome with LucyRumi today.

I should just stay quiet.

"Lord Ho-yeon."

"Damn it. What a surprise!"

Just then, Scarlet spoke to me from behind.

Having failed to notice her because I was focused on my conversation with Nam Da-eun, I flinched in surprise, while Scarlet widened her eyes and nodded as she looked at me.

"Oh, Lord Ho-yeon's guard drops when you feel sorry toward a woman. I've learned something new."

"Please stop spouting nonsense."

Looking past Scarlet's body, I saw that Liriana and Nam Da-hee were already focused on the TV.

Nam Da-hee was one thing, but why had Liriana undergone infantile regression?

Were succubi originally that stupid, no, pure?

"Are you done boasting about your abs?"

"...I received a contact from the Guild Master. It's regarding the Centaur."

I wanted to tease Scarlet back for startling me, but she immediately brought up the main point.

Of all things, it was too important to ignore.

"Ah, what did he say?"

Alice's father and my father-in-law.

He was a very strange person, but a strong and capable man.

"Actually, the search for the Centaur is always ongoing... He says that if Lord Ho-yeon gives him a convenient time, he can accommodate you."

"Mm-hmm...."

I wanted to do it after Rebecca brought the information first.

"Does it not matter when? I need some time."

"It does not matter. Then I will tell the Guild Master, 'I will think about it and let you know.'"

"No, that's way too rude."

"Then please tell me exactly what to convey."

"...You're doing this on purpose, aren't you. Because I teased you about your abs."

"That can't be. Do you view me as such a pathetic person?"

★ Heroine Status Window

[Scarlet]

- [ Favorability : 57 ]

- [ Libido : 30 ]

- [ Appetite : 30 ]

- [ Fatigue : 40 ]

Current Status : He's so quick-witted, so why is he like that with women? Is he doing it on purpose?

Scarlet stabbed me with a dagger in her mind.

But it wasn't wrong, so I couldn't even refute it.

In the first place, reading minds was a secret.

"...Ahem. Understood. I'm sorry. It's because I have my own personal investigation going on too. Tell him to please wait until the results for that come out."

"Understood."

Only when I apologized did Scarlet finally bow her head.

The corners of Scarlet's mouth slightly turning up as she bowed her head definitely wasn't my imagination.