It was already night by the time the four returned to the town.
Specks of starlight dotted the black curtain of the night sky.
A brilliant full moon hung high above, gently watching over Loren Town in the night.
After bidding farewell to the middle-aged adventurer who had suddenly appeared and then hurriedly left in panic, Ed took the bag containing the kobold ears from the group and went alone to the town mayor’s residence to settle the quest.
Kelta and Sylvia drew close to each other.
The youth and the girl quietly discussed private topics.
Their heads lightly touched together.
From time to time light laughter rose between the two.
Bailis could not quite hear what they were talking about.
She secretly glanced at the pair from the corner of her eye.
Sylvia seemed to notice the scratch on Kelta’s face made by a kobold sentry.
She showed a distressed expression and gently stroked the young adventurer’s face with her hand.
“Does it hurt?”
Bailis heard clearly this time.
“No, not at all. It’s just a small cut, Via. You don’t need to worry so much…”
“We’re lovers. It would be strange if I didn’t worry about you.”
Lovers?
Because they were lovers, they worried about each other?
Or was it that because they worried about each other, they were lovers?
She could not figure it out.
The girl lightly kicked a pebble on the ground with her foot.
The pebble rolled away with a clatter.
But.
What if.
What if it was Ed who got injured?
The image of the golden-haired youth covered in blood flashed through her mind.
The girl shook her head vigorously, hurriedly driving that terrifying scene from her thoughts.
She pouted.
Sure enough, saying she would not worry was impossible.
Then, were she and Ed also “lovers”?
Lovers.
The girl carefully chewed on the word.
A simple, pale, and ordinary word she had only heard from her parents’ mouths suddenly took on a vague shape in her heart at this moment.
Perhaps it was a relationship even closer than “companions”?
But Ed had clearly said before that Sylvia was Kelta’s “wife.”
Bailis still remembered that the young adventurer seemed to have been pinched by Sylvia because of it.
Could “lovers” actually mean “wife”?
The silver-haired girl, who had lived alone since she was twelve and lacked certain common knowledge, pondered in distress.
“Bailis… miss. That is your name, right?”
The girl’s gentle voice came from behind.
Bailis turned warily and quickly took two steps back.
After seeing it was the somewhat familiar light purple-haired apothecary girl, her guarded expression softened a little.
“Yes… Is there something you need from me?”
Sylvia smiled warmly.
“I just heard Miss Bailis sighing earlier, so I was a little concerned.”
The girl touched her own cheek.
“Was I… sighing?”
The girl blinked.
“It was quite noticeable. The kind where you can tell at once that something is bothering you.”
“I… I see.”
Bailis turned her face away in embarrassment.
A strand of silver hair slipped out from the edge of her hood.
“Sorry for disturbing you and Kelta,” she said softly.
“Not at all.” The girl stared at that fleeting bright silver strand and slowly shook her head.
“It’s just that if Miss Bailis has any worries, you can tell me. Maybe I can offer some advice.”
“Worries…”
The silver-haired girl looked at her toes and murmured softly.
She suddenly thought that if she could not figure it out herself, asking the person in front of her might give her the answer.
Bailis hesitated for a moment.
“Sylvia.” She spoke slowly and tentatively. “Are you and Kelta lovers?”
The apothecary girl raised her delicate eyebrows in surprise.
“Miss Bailis is actually thinking about something like this?”
“Mhm.” The girl nodded lightly. “Because I’m very curious about it.”
She stared into the girl’s eyes, as if searching for the answer there.
“Yes, we are.” Sylvia smiled gently. “Kelta and I are indeed in a romantic relationship, and eventually we will become husband and wife.”
“Hus… husband and wife?”
Bailis covered her mouth in shock.
Her ruby-like eyes trembled slightly.
Although she did not fully understand what “lovers” meant, she did understand “husband and wife.”
“So does ‘lovers’ mean the same as ‘husband and wife’?”
The girl asked nervously.
The apothecary girl thought for a moment.
“Not exactly. Many lovers never manage to become true husband and wife in the end. But that definitely will not happen to Kelta and me.”
“Then what exactly does ‘lovers’ mean?” Bailis asked urgently.
“If it’s like you and Kelta—helping each other and caring for each other—does that make you lovers?”
Sylvia hesitated for a while.
“Not necessarily. Family members, very close friends, and companions do that too. But the fact that Miss Bailis is asking this question… Could it be that you have fallen for someone?”
“Fallen for…”
The girl instantly recalled the face of the golden-haired youth.
She opened her mouth to explain, but the words of denial would not come out.
“I…”
The girl lowered her head dejectedly.
“I do not know.”
“Then that means you do like him.”
But the girl gave a direct, affirmative answer.
“When you find yourself hesitating like this, it means you have already started to develop feelings for him.”
“Is that how it works?”
The girl looked dazed.
“Of course!” Sylvia chuckled softly.
“Back when I realized I was starting to look forward to Kelta coming to the shop every time, I understood that I had already fallen for that somewhat silly, straightforward, yet earnestly adorable person.”
“So ‘lovers’ means liking each other?”
The silver-haired girl clutched her clothes and asked in a low voice.
“It also requires both sides to clearly understand each other’s feelings,” the girl said seriously. “If only one side likes the other, that does not count as being lovers. And if both know they like each other but neither says it out loud, that also does not make them lovers. It might even cause unhappiness between them and eventually drive them apart.”
Drive them apart?
Bailis suddenly shivered.
The moment she imagined Ed leaving her side, she felt a large empty hole open up in her heart.
Absolutely not.
That could never happen!
“So if you realize you like someone, you should bravely confess your feelings,” the girl said with a gentle smile.
“Do not wait until you have lost them to regret it. That would be too late.”
The hooded girl nodded slowly.
“You are right.”
“Go for it, Miss Bailis.”
The girl struck an encouraging pose.
“I believe that you and Mister Ed will definitely end up together.”
“Mhm, mhm… Huh?”
Bailis responded instinctively, but then suddenly realized something was off and looked up sharply.
Her crimson eyes met the gentle, smiling gaze of the young woman.
“You… How did you kno—”
“Bailis, we should head back to the inn.”
The golden-haired youth’s voice came from afar.
The silver-haired girl turned around stiffly and watched the youth running over quickly, carrying a bulging little bag.
“Do not worry, I do not know anything,” the girl covered her mouth and laughed secretly, her voice leaking out between her fingers.
“This is between you and Mister Ed. I am really looking forward to seeing how things turn out between you two…”