Let’s Settle This Face-to-Face

And so, under the active participation of this nameless king… no, a nameless hero, Ancient Dragon Peak… cough Sandra’s Abyss returned to tranquility.

I, too, resumed my role as a hostess… ahem a guild receptionist.

The guild hall was warm and bustling on that autumn afternoon.

The Abyss had been temporarily sealed, and the idle mercenaries simply rested and chatted in the spacious hall.

My nerves, taut for so long, finally began to relax.

While I was a little concerned about Aimira’s hasty departure, it seemed she truly hadn’t exposed me.

Otherwise, various powerful figures would have already come knocking.

This brought me a small measure of relief.

Relaxation inevitably brings drowsiness.

Moreover, I had been working overtime for several consecutive days, hadn’t slept at all last night, and my mind was under immense strain.

I desperately needed some rest.

Now… it was only three in the afternoon, wasn’t it?

Two more hours until closing time… By then… by then I’d… Oh no… my eyelids were growing heavier and heavier…

Leaning against the counter’s desk, I inhaled the comforting scent of wood, warmed by the afternoon sun.

Slowly, I drifted into a hazy dream.

The nominal wedding night.

After fumbling through a throng of guests, I was vaguely ushered into the bridal chamber.

Now, with her wedding dress half-shed, she calmly inquired of me:

“Will you not come?”

“…Come for what?”

“Should Lord Corvus desire it, this humble maiden is ready to offer the chastity she has guarded for eighteen years.”

“…………”

I gazed at her, kneeling respectfully on the bed.

She looked at me, half-changed into my pajamas and feeling somewhat bewildered.

For some reason, no excitement stirred within me. Only a profound weariness.

As a result, we did nothing that night.

We simply slept on opposite sides of the matrimonial bed.

She was, without a doubt, a talent rarely seen in the world.

Her beauty, intellect, and status were all impeccable.

I should have felt immensely honored to have such a wife.

Yet, I felt no pride whatsoever.

“You must be tired from your mission.”

“Yes.”

“Then, please rest quickly. The maids should have prepared the bed.”

Such exchanges were commonplace.

“The weather is quite pleasant today.”

“Indeed, this humidity is ideal for concocting potions.”

“I’m off to my mission, then.”

“Very well, goodbye.”

Such conversations continued.

Leaving early and returning late, I would only cross paths with her roughly every three days.

Each time we met, we would exchange polite bows.

She would offer a perfect yet hollow, professional smile, and I, too, would offer a forced, insincere grin.

We’d exchange a few perfunctory, dull words, then part ways without the slightest lingering glance.

There were never any quarrels.

Never a single argument.

To say we treated each other with mutual respect, like honored guests—that wasn’t quite right.

We were more like strangers who happened to share a house, neither interfering with nor caring for the other.

I knew nothing of her preferred foods, her habits, her hobbies, or the things she liked to use.

The only expression I had ever seen on her face was that professional smile.

The same, of course, held true for her.

This thick, almost pathetic, barrier always stood between us.

Ultimately, our relationship was merely one arranged by our elders and fathers.

I was a rookie Apostle, and she was a young lady who dutifully followed her father’s arrangements.

In short… that was all there was to it.

“Damn it all… hell…”

It was the dead of night when I returned from my battle with Gail.

I practically crawled through the door, every inch of my body aching, every limb utterly exhausted.

My consciousness was fraying, and I yearned to collapse right there at the entrance and fall asleep.

But then I noticed—she was home, too.

A faint light bled from beneath her door.

That was truly rare.

Intrigued, I temporarily commanded my nerves to suppress the pain.

I crept to her door, only to witness an unexpected sight.

She sat angled away from the door, using the dim light to… well… assemble a plastic robot model?

It seemed to be a humanoid robot character from some animated series, perhaps from Fusang or Amerigo.

Her head was bowed, as she meticulously filed parts with a small knife and pliers.

Listening closely, I detected faint sobs.

Was she crying?

I held my breath, watching for several minutes.

Her sobs grew louder, until suddenly—she hurled the half-assembled model to the floor, scattering its pieces with a clatter.

She covered her face, sniffling and muttering what sounded like curses.

Unable to bear it any longer, I tentatively spoke.

“…Hello?”

“!!!”

She was startled.

“You… wait… when did you get back…?”

“Just now…”

“…”

“…”

“…”

“…”

“…”

“…”

“…You… you’re quite pleased, aren’t you?”

“…………Huh?”

“I said—you’re thrilled to see me in such a pathetic state, aren’t you!”

Jadette suddenly erupted, her usual calm and aloof demeanor completely gone, like an enraged wildcat.

“Pleased, aren’t you? So happy, right? Don’t think I don’t know you despise me, because I despise you too! You’ve always disliked me because I’ve always ignored you, distanced myself, never even looked you in the eye!!!”

“Uh…”

She was actually right.

“Do you think you’re so great? Do you think everyone should cater to you and follow your every whim?! What ‘Apostle’… what ‘hero’… you’re nothing but his merchandise! Just like me, we’re both merely commodities!”

“But…”

“I am nothing! And you are nothing! A down-to-earth pragmatist is worth less than a celebrated illiterate. The lives of common folk are cheaper than a plot of land. Saving money instead of spending it has become the greatest sin! This is the world my ‘esteemed’ father desires! Look, how magnificent it is!!!”

“…………”

“Only profit in their eyes… no mercy… no bottom line… leeches… even… even I… sob… wuwu…”

“…”

“Wuwu…”

“…”

“…”

“…”

“…”

“…Are you… calmer now?”

“…Mhm.”

“That thing you were just assembling… uh… I think it was called ‘Transformers’?”

“It’s Gundam… strictly speaking, it’s Gunpla…”

“They’re all big robots, what’s the difference?”

“…If you posted that online, you’d get flamed to death.”

“Ahaha…”

“…”

“…”

“…”

“…So, have you had a falling out with Mr. Dochido?”

“…………What if I have?”

“I see… well then…”

I scratched my head, feeling I should say something, yet also sensing that any pointless comfort would only agitate her further.

“I’m going to sleep now. Good night.”

“…………Good night.”

With that, I left her room.

Sigh.

‘Perhaps I should go have a word with my esteemed senior.’

“Senior Dochido, are you free?”

“Oh? My esteemed son-in-law, welcome, welcome. But shouldn’t you be working at this hour? [Imposing aura]”

“I have something important to discuss. I came to speak with you about… Jadette.”

“What, a marital quarrel? A trivial matter, young people always—”

“I merely wish to confirm your attitude towards her.”

“…………What do you mean by that?”

“Exactly what it sounds like.”

“…That’s certainly unusual.”

His eyes, behind his monocle, narrowed.

Thorn-like patterns began to appear on my hand, held behind my back.

I knew I was clumsy with words; arguing directly would only lead to a beating.

Therefore—no need for formalities. Let’s use the oldest form of communication between men.

“Senior, I like you!”

Before the words even faded, I unleashed a punch directly onto the First Apostle’s broad face—

Yet, his stout frame didn’t even sway.

“These young ones nowadays, each one ruder than the last…”

With a crack, he seized my forearm. His grip, heavy as the Earth’s core, made my bones groan.

“Come on, let this old man see what value you have left, huh?”

“You… what is this… are you insane…?”

She stared, dumbfounded, at me as I crawled through the door.

“I thought it was a false alarm at first. You actually… with Father…”

“Anyway… cough… just… had a bit of a fight… ugh…”

My face was bruised and swollen, I looked like a dead fish, and my teeth felt like they were about to fall out.

So strong. The First Apostle, truly, so strong. He utterly convinced me.

Even with Chaos Champion Mode activated, I’d probably only manage a draw.

“You… tch! You should heal your wounds quickly! If you leave them—”

“They’re just… minor injuries… But more importantly… here?”

I handed her the blood-stained box I’d been clutching.

She took it, her eyes widening.

“For… me?”

“Yes… it’s a big robot called ‘Gundam,’ right? I made sure to distinguish it from Transformers… Uh, just consider it… how should I put it… a small compensation for you? You seemed quite upset earlier…”

“Don’t go doing unnecessary things on your own…”

“Well, it is what it is… I’m going to rest now…”

I willed the room’s floor to transport me like a conveyor belt back to my room.

She stood there, clutching the box, staring blankly after me.

Then—

“By the way, what you bought isn’t Gundam or Transformers, it’s Mazinger Z.”

“Huh!? But—but they all look pretty similar, don’t they?!”

“There’s a huge difference, you idiot! To the purists, Mazinger Z is like the ancestor! How could you mess that up, you idiot! Idiot! I—DIOT!”

“I’m not an idiot!”

“Your punishment is to watch all the anime from these three series, thoroughly!”

“But I’m not interested!?”

“Then watch them until you are interested! Idiot!”

“Why is it like this… [Pochita.jpg]”

I had half-expected her to be so moved she’d give me a kiss or something, but it proved I was overthinking.

Shrugging helplessly, I retreated to my room like a dead fish.

She remained standing there, watching me until I disappeared into my room.

“Idiot…”

“Kos Blavin! Have you grown a spine?!”

“Gah!!!”

A thunderous roar from above jolted me awake instantly.

I snapped my eyes open to see a messy desk and my furious superior.

Ah, this.

“Sleeping on the job, are we? Huh?”

“Uh, let me explain…”

“Explain your mother’s explanation!”

As expected, my boss subjected me to a thorough dressing-down and, for good measure, docked all my bonus pay.

What terrible luck.

Yet, more than the scolding, the dream I just had intrigued me.

How strange.

I had only been asleep for less than ten minutes, yet I’d had such a long dream, recalling fragments of the past, and… moments with Jadette Dochido, my nominal ‘first wife.’

Was there anything to miss?

Not really.

For the first six months of our marriage, we were practically strangers, keeping a polite distance and never interfering with each other.

That was until I got into an argument with the First Apostle, that big capitalist, because of her.

We fought, and I even became a laughingstock.

Thinking back, it still left a sour taste.

However, after that incident, she began to speak more freely in front of me, and her expressions became less uniform.

Unfortunately, our relationship didn’t become sweet and harmonious; instead, inexplicable arguments often erupted.

I gradually came to understand the regretful personality hidden beneath her iron mask.

When I occasionally found myself alone with my other wives (or perhaps, the women who were my wives?), she would often inexplicably appear to disrupt things.

As a result, her relationships with everyone else became strained, and she made no effort to conceal her true nature in my presence.

Oh, and by the way, I eventually watched all of Gundam, Transformers, and Mazinger Z.

I managed to watch them during the brief intervals while traveling to mission sites, and it finally gave me a little common ground with her.

This, in turn, led to a series of arguments sparked by my teasing her about her inexplicably terrible model-building skills.

It seemed that in the last month before I ran away, all we ever did was argue.

I simply couldn’t understand her… or rather, I simply couldn’t understand women.

If that group of wives ever came to capture me, she would be the one I’d least want to encounter, bar none.

…Never mind, why am I worrying so much here?

She can’t just poof into existence before my eyes, can she?

Some kind of time assassin, perhaps?

“Excuse me, Mr. Receptionist, are you free?”

“Yes, what can I do for you, madam…? Hmm?”

Hmm???

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Dun dun don!