"I want to go with you on your journey! Please let me go with you 3!"
This is what the expectant and eager rabbit-girl said to the survivalist trio, though more specifically to Hajime, who was a little confused and raised an eyebrow.
"Why do you want to travel with us," he asked in uncertainty.
In response to this question, Shea blushed and shied away a bit, fidgeting with her fingers and squirming.
"W-Well, it's because…mmmm," she said as she continued to squirm.
"Come on, out with it. Why do you want to go with us," ushered Hajime a little impatiently.
Yue and Sargon also were intrigued by her reasons for going with them, especially when she had her entire tribe, who thanks to Hajime's training – if you could call it that – were no longer helpless and could fight for themselves.
Though none of them could've prepared themselves for the actual response from Shea, especially one specific person.
"It's because I want to be with Sargon! I love him," she said with closed eyes and a red face.
….
….
Silence. That was all that could be felt after the, quite explosive, confession. Though it didn't take too long before that silence was broken by a very stunned and baffled Sargon.
"Me? You want to travel with us, to be with me?"
Shea opened her eyes and looked at him seriously and nodded just as resolutely. Despite feeling waves of embarrassment welling up in her, faced with the situation now, she had no choice but to own it and push forward.
Sargon, even being who he was, hadn't really been exposed to romantic affection before and so, was completely shocked and caught off-guard by this situation.
"I-I, uhm," for the first time in his life, Sargon couldn't bring himself to say anything coherent at the moment while a small blush came across on his face. This, however, was equivalent to bleeding in front of a shark in the ocean. The shark in question being Hajime and he did not hesitate to capitalize on this rare opportunity.
"Of course! It all makes sense now," he said while placing his fist on his hand.
"After you saved her from the clutches of that terrible monster, all gallant like a hero on your noble steed spear, who wouldn't fall in love at first sight," Hajime said all of this with a giant smirk on his face while theatrically emphasizing key points.
Yue, meanwhile, although she didn't say anything, had an equally huge smirk on her face, though it was also mixed with a little relief and hopefulness.
Sargon, in response to Hajime's abrupt teasing, chose to pay him no mind, as reacting to the situation even more than he already has will make things easier for Hajime, which he most certainly didn't want right now. He looked back at Shea, who was still looking at her expectantly.
"Shea, I am…thankful that you think of me this way. But I unfortunately can't answer your feelings at the moment," Sargon said slowly.
Shea's face morphed into worry and concern, "Are you already taken?"
Sargon shook his head, "No, I'm currently single. It's just I can't really answer your question right now without confusing you. I've never been in this situation before, so I'll need time to process how I truly feel about you."
Shea sighed in relief, "Then that means I still have a chance, right?"
Sargon nodded while smiling, "If you're serious about this, then you may succeed in making me fall for you yet."
Shea pumped her fists while smiling big. Then she looked back at Sargon with confident determination,
"Then I'll vow to win your heart and make you fall for me!"
At this, Sargon smiled softly while thinking, 'Knowing her, she won't stop until she does. It may not be long before she accomplishes that vow.'
"Hey, uh, sorry to interrupt your touching moment, but we've got to get going soon," said Hajime, still sporting that smirk.
"Yes yes, we should get going," Sargon agreed readily.
[Later]
The survivalist trio along with Shea made their way out from the Sea of Trees and then went off.
After the group hopped onto their respected mounts (Hajime & Yue on Steiff | Sargon and Shea on the Dark Horse).
As they were riding back to the canyon, Shea asked about the horse she and Sargon were currently riding on.
"By the way, Sargon, does this horse have a name?
Sargon replied, "He doesn't have one. At least, not yet. Would you like to give him a name?"
Shea, sweatdropped a little, "I would but, eeehhh, I don't think I'm the best at coming up with names on the spot."
Sargon smiled and chuckled a little, "That's fine. How about you list qualities you think this horse has, and I'll see if I can't come up with a name that fits those descriptions or comes close."
Shea looked down at the horse, then at the ground that they've been covering, then towards Hajime and Yue, who were keeping the same pace. "Well, he certainly is fast to be able to keep up this speed," Shea pointed out. "He can also go faster than this if I allowed it," Sargon said with a smirk.
Shea's eyes widened a little, "Really?"
"How else would I have made it in time to save you from that 2-headed dinosaur," he replied.
Hajime seemed to spot another opportunity for teasing and said with the same smirk he had previously before, "That was so heroic, by the way!"
Yue chuckled at Hajime's provocation, but didn't say anything herself. Sargon rolled his eyes and shook his head at his teasing, yet didn't offer any other response and instead held his attention towards Shea.
"Anything else," he asked.
Shea thought for a moment, before speaking again, "Well, it's obviously dark and kind of brave, considering it helped you save me, so I'd picture it like some type of dark knight horse or something."
Sargon hummed in thought, before smiling, "I think I've got a name for him now. Calicio. A formation of 2 names, Caliban, which means darkness or mist, and Gacio, which means fast."
"Galicio," Shea repeated in a little astonishment.
"That sounds kinda cool actually," Hajime said, a little intrigued and proud.
Sargon smiled, "I'm glad it has your approval Hajime. How about you 2?"
Yue simply nodded, "I don't mind it. It makes sense."
Shea nodded happily as she hugged him from behind, "Yeah, let's go with it! I'm happy I got to help name a creation of yours, Sargon."
Sargon was a little surprised at the sudden contact, but didn't really resist at the same time and let the moment resonate. Hajime, seeing this, smirked once again, though this time, it was mixed with both smugness and happiness. Yue also smiled fondly at the growing bond between Sargon and Shea.
A few moments later, they neared the entrance to a village up ahead and they got off of their respective mounts. Before they got close enough, Hajime spoke up.
"Let's stop here for now."
Shea looked confused, "Eh, why? Also, I thought that we were going to conquer the other labyrinths? Why are we stopping here at a village?"
Hajime sweatdropped and looked away for a moment before sighing, "Well, it's because I wanted to try and eat food that's not made from monster flesh."
Sargon nodded in agreement and acceptance, "Huh, now that I think about it, I believe that my diet also consisted of mostly preserved meals. It would be nice to enjoy something freshly made for once."
Shea meanwhile stared at both Hajime as if he grew another head. Hajime, noticing the baffled expression, looked back at her.
"What're you staring at me like that for?"
Shea, upon being caught staring, shook her head and hands in defense,
"Sorry, sorry. I just kind of thought you ate monster meat out of the heck of it."
Hajime's mouth and eye twitched and a small vein appeared on his cheek,
"The hell do you think I am? And why isn't Sargon getting that level of shock? He's done the same thing!"
Shea smiled wryly, "Well, with him I could tell that he didn't enjoy it as when I asked him, he always made this small grimace. After that, I've tried not asking him about it again."
Sargon gave a small smile at Shea's thoughtfulness. Hajime sighed once again and got back on topic.
"Alright, well the reason I stopped us is because we're going to need a cover up story to enter the village. They're probably not just going to accept us without a good reason to. I was thinking that we could say we're her to supply food and sell materials, I've got a lot of those things that we could use."
Sargon nodded, "I don't have a problem with that."
Hajime then held his hand up and with a flash from his ring, a collar appeared in his hand, which he threw towards Shea.
"Here, put this on, Shea."
Said rabbit-girl was shocked, "What?! Hajime you're so mean, why are you making me put on this collar?! Aren't people going to think of me as a slave?!"
Hajime was about to respond, but Sargon beat him to it, "It's for your own good, Shea."
Shea looked at him with wide eyes, but he continued, "You'd be hard pressed to find people in this world that has a good opinion and view on demihumans, and even then, your kind was ridiculed and banished by the people of Faea Belgaen. It may have been due to your birth, but it still happened. Not to mention, you're a rabbitman, so the low opinion of demihumans may be even lower with you as rabbitmen are collectively known to be weak. We know you're not, but they don't."
Shea looked down in a little frustration, unable to refute Sargon's words.
"I'm aware of your aversion to this, Shea. I also don't like it, but it's better for people to believe you're a slave that already has a master, then one who's free. At least in the former's case, people won't readily bother you. Even if they do, you're strong enough to defend yourself. Not only that, we're also here," he finished with a reassuring smile.
Shea's eyes remained on him for a little bit before smiling softly. She then put the collar around her neck. Afterward, Hajime beckon everyone,
"Alright, let's go."
They made it to the entrance of the village where a guard was posted. Said guard stopped them before they could move forward anymore.
"Halt. I need to see your Status Plates as well as hear your reasoning for coming here."
Hajime handed over his Status Plate to the guard and responded with the excuse they had prepared beforehand,
"Mainly to supply food and sell materials."
The guard responded, "Then you're going to want to head over to the Adventure's Guild. You'll be able to do your business there as well as get a map of the village," he said as he looked at the status plate.
His eyes then widened in shock, confusing Hajime. Before the latter could ask what was wrong, Sargon stepped in telepathically.
{'Hajime, did you the true info of your Status Plate?'}
Hajime starred blankily and buffered mentally, but once again before he could respond,"
"Everything's over 10,000?! And just how many skills are there in this thing?!"
Hajime sweatdropped and had a strained smile on his face while Sargon facepalmed,
{'*Sigh* Nevermind. I seem to have my answer already.'}