Morning. The first rays of sunlight filtered through the gaps in the curtains, gently sprinkling into the room.
Roland slowly opened his eyes and found himself lying beside Alise. He moved slightly, and Alise's lazy and slightly groggy voice immediately sounded in his ear: "Don't move... I still want to sleep."
The corners of Roland's mouth curled up. Looking at the lovely girl curled up like a kitten with her eyes closed tight before him, a warmth surged in his heart.
He carefully took the arm that was tightly hugging his body, lifted it gently, and tucked it under the blanket, as if afraid to wake her from her sweet dream.Because they had embraced each other all night, their bodies were already pressed close together. Roland looked at the main culprit preventing him from getting out of bed—their legs were intertwined like a twisted pretzel.
Roland smiled helplessly and began to gently manipulate the tangled feet.
Every slight movement required extra care to avoid waking the soundly sleeping Alise. After some effort, he finally succeeded in untangling their four feet.
At this moment, Roland sat up gently. Looking at the gradually brightening sky outside the window, he took a deep breath of fresh air.
The new day began as a body pillow.
Although his desires hadn't been completely extinguished after Lyra's deep and passionate kiss, things changed when he entered Alise's room.
At first, Roland merely joked around with Alise, chatting about recent events. However, as time passed, the atmosphere between them gradually became ambiguous.
In this temptation-filled night, they embraced, gently kissing each other's lips and necks. Every touch felt like an electric current running across their skin, making their hearts race.
But in the end, they just messed around under the covers for a long time before falling asleep. Nothing further happened—just kissing.
...
When Roland slowly stepped out of the solemn gates of the Twilight Manor, he took a deep breath, feeling the lively atmosphere brought by the bustling crowd on the street.
He hadn't walked far when he arrived at a potato snack stall on the main street, which was emitting a mouth-watering aroma. The stall owner skillfully flipped the golden, crispy potato snacks in the oil pan, enticing passersby to stop and buy.
Roland didn't hesitate to order several servings of different flavors. Among them was, of course, the red bean cream flavor that Ais loved most. He also bought some other flavors, intending to give them as thoughtful little gifts to others.
Carrying the paper bag filled with delicious potato snacks, Roland soon arrived in front of the tall, majestic gates of the Loki Familia. As usual, the familiar and enthusiastic gatekeeper smiled warmly as soon as he saw him and greeted him cordially.
After a brief chat, the gatekeeper readily opened the door to let Roland in. Before parting, Roland didn't forget to offer him a serving of fragrant potato snacks as a token of appreciation.
Seeing a side door of the castle open, Roland carefully poked his head into the Familia grounds. He quickly noticed the cute golden-haired girl sitting quietly on a chair like a doll—it was Ais.
"Ais..." Roland called out in a hushed voice, but after uttering just her name, he quickly pulled his head back.
Immediately after, he closed his eyes, focused his mind, and used his powerful mana to sense and capture any reaction or movement Ais might make.
Ais seemed to have heard her name being called. Her gaze shifted slightly around, but finding no one, she returned to staring blankly from her chair.
Roland carefully poked his head out again, a silent, imperceptible smile appearing on his face. Then, lowering his voice again, he called out softly, "Ais~"
To avoid being discovered, he quickly retracted his head, anticipating what interesting reaction Ais would have next.
However, after waiting for a while, Roland found that Ais didn't seem to make any movement. He couldn't help but wonder to himself, Hmm... No reaction? Did she not hear me?
With this doubt in mind, Roland decided to try one more time. If Ais still didn't react, he would just go over and greet her directly.
Especially when he thought about Ais, who might not have discovered him yet, the corners of Roland's mouth couldn't help but turn up. It was as if he could already see her surprised expression—even though her expressions were usually rare.
So, he quietly leaned sideways, wanting to check on Ais again.
"Huh!?" Roland let out a sound of confusion.
Unexpectedly, he was met with a pair of clear and innocent golden eyes staring right back at him. The corners of Ais's mouth were slightly curled up, revealing a faint smile as she quietly looked at the peeking Roland.
It turned out Ais had known it was Roland playing tricks all along. Not only had she clearly heard his calls from the start, but the faint scent of potato snacks drifting from the doorway had instantly allowed her to guess the perpetrator of this little prank was Roland.
After all, Roland was the only one who would play such jokes on her.
Since he had been discovered, there was no point in hiding. Roland walked through the gate, raised his hand, and waved gently at Ais. "You caught me, Ais. Long time no see! Look, I even brought you your favorite potato snacks."
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My : https://[email protected]/AuAuMon
Danmachi : Mage's Infinite Journey (168 Chapters – Ongoing)
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Before he could finish speaking, Ais rushed over like a storm, diving directly into Roland's embrace. She said excitedly, "Roland! It really is you. are you here to take me adventuring?"
Caught off guard by Ais's sudden pounce, Roland involuntarily took a few steps back.
Fortunately, his reaction was quick. He hurriedly wrapped one arm around Ais's slender waist while the other tightly gripped the paper bag containing the potato snacks, afraid that the delicious snacks might accidentally fall to the ground.
"Whoa, that was close..." Roland exclaimed softly. Looking down at Ais in his arms with lingering fear, he teased with a smile, "No need to be so excited."
Hearing Roland's words, Ais blinked innocently but showed no intention of letting go. She just looked at Roland expectantly and asked again, "So, are we going adventuring today?"
Roland shook his head gently and answered tenderly, "We won't go adventuring today. I came over to see you, Ais, and also to discuss something with Captain Finn."
"Is that so... Ugh..." Ais showed a slightly sad expression, her small mouth pouting slightly. It seemed that going to the Dungeon for an adventure was the only thing that made her happy.
"Can Ais duel with me later?" Roland suddenly asked, adding, "Of course, that would be after I finish settling matters with Captain Finn and the others."
Recently, in his sparring sessions with Alise and the others where he didn't use magic, Roland's physical prowess meant that basically no one could beat him, except for Kaguya and Ryuu who slightly outmatched him in technique.
Facing Roland's growing strength, everyone in the Familia felt a sense of urgency. Their training had become increasingly strict, leading to a significant increase in their status values.
Not to mention, Roland's numerous spells had enhanced their emergency response capabilities against special magic and skills.
Currently, Roland's status was as follows:
Roland LV 2 Strength: E421 → D531 Endurance: E425 → D512 Dexterity: D503 → C623 Agility: E489 → C609 Magic: B702 → S965
Aside from his magic, which improved rapidly as always, his other stats were becoming harder to raise because his physical capabilities naturally strengthened as he leveled up. Without a more powerful opponent to confront him, progress was difficult.
"Mn!" Ais nodded happily. Dueling with Roland would also satisfy her desire for battle.
Roland handed her the potato snacks. After she took them with her right hand, he took her left hand and asked, "Could I trouble Ais to take me to Finn's office?"
While happily savoring her favorite potato snacks and feeling the warmth from Roland's palm, an adorable expression of pure bliss appeared on Ais's face—the previous blank look was now completely gone.
Hearing Roland's request, Ais nodded without hesitation, held his hand tightly, and led him through the castle under the surprised gazes of others.
Like this, after several turns, Ais finally stopped in front of a closed door.
Roland released Ais's hand and knocked gently on the door. Shortly after, Finn's familiar and steady voice came from inside: "Come in."
Pushing open the door, Roland greeted the three surprised people inside.
"Yo, long time no see, Captain Finn, Miss Riveria, and Uncle Gareth."
"Hehe, isn't this Roland? It has indeed been a few days," Finn stood up to welcome him.
Gareth moved two chairs to the table, while Riveria gathered and organized the documents on the desk before responding to Roland.
Ais and Roland sat down one after another.
Then, Roland took out a potato snack from the bag, handed the entire bag to Finn and the others, and asked with a smile, "Want some?"
The three looked at each other, then smiled tacitly, each taking one. Just as Gareth was about to return the bag with the few remaining snacks to Roland, Roland waved his hand.
Pushing the bag back to Gareth, he said, "Uncle, you finish the rest. I'm full after eating one."
"As a growing child, how can you not eat even this much? That won't do. You'll end up not growing tall like Finn, hahaha—" Gareth laughed, tossing a whole potato snack into his mouth without standing on ceremony with Roland.
Finn shrugged helplessly, following up with his own advice, "But don't eat too much either. If you end up with a rough physique like that dwarf over there, it would be a waste of that handsome face."
"Alright, what is there to argue about? Your physiques haven't changed since forever anyway." Riveria interrupted their mutual depreciation, looking at Roland. "As an elf, this child will definitely grow up to be handsomer than both of you."
Although theoretically, I am a Demon, Roland thought to himself.