“Miss Su Yao, you’ve really disappointed me!”
“How could you lay hands on a child of that age? You’re a monster!”
After putting out the fire raging in the heart of the Dungeon, Su Yao returned to the room to care for the naked pink-haired little mage, a scene that Clorel and Sofia happened to catch in full view.
What was with those accusatory words, as if she had done something shameful? Alright, she admitted she did see the pink-haired girl naked.
But isn’t it normal to dry off the water with a towel before helping her change clothes?
Su Yao: “???”
“There’s nothing to say! It’s one thing to stare at me and Sofia all the time, but to strip such a young child bare—monstrous! Worse than a beast!”
There were too many points to argue about. After all, didn’t she herself technically qualify as a “loli” among human women? How could such a cute little girl harbor any ill intentions?
“Clorel, what are you talking about? What staring? I don’t understand.”
“Don’t play dumb! When we bathed together before, when Sofia and I changed clothes, and even when we were all together…”
“That’s right, Miss Su Yao, sometimes you’d even flash a weird, meaningless smile while looking.”
Su Yao was stunned. Were they really that sensitive about where someone looked? And how could she possibly smile like some pervert?
Impossible, absolutely impossible!
To clarify, all their claims were baseless. She was merely appreciating art (or so she thought).
She definitely wasn’t fantasizing about Clorel and Sofia wearing swimsuits, bunny girl outfits, nurse uniforms, or white-collar OL attire… none of that, absolutely none!
“Sofia, look, Su Yao’s smiling foolishly again.”
“Ahem, ahem.”
Suddenly some inappropriate thoughts popped into her mind. The blonde loli coughed twice, realizing the more she argued, the worse it looked. She decided to ignore their slander.
Her mind and actions were as clear as a mirror, and all her deeds were for…
Speaking of which, they had immediately assumed the pink-haired loli was the victim. But she was the one who needed care the most!
She was nearly “roasted loli” just now, and to calm this frenzied social-anxious mage, she had spent nearly 10,000 DP!
Not to mention the damage caused by Dungeon monsters…
Sigh… the DP she painstakingly saved for expanding the Dungeon was gone in an instant!
The delicate face of the blonde girl puffed up like a pufferfish. “Do I look like such a shallow person? Aren’t you curious why I suddenly brought someone back?”
At this, Clorel and Sofia walked over to the bedside and carefully examined the pink-haired loli.
“She looks familiar, but I can’t quite place her.”
Clorel had some impression of the child, but for the busy Princess Kroel, forgetting someone she’d only met a few times was understandable.
“Clorel, I think she’s Latina from the Mage Tower near the Capital.”
“Eh? Now that you mention it, she does look like her. But I remember she left the Capital about three years ago.”
“That’s right. Time flies, but she hasn’t grown much taller. Her hair has definitely grown a lot though.”
…
They exchanged bits of information, and from their conversation and the following clarifications, Su Yao learned the basic details about the pink-haired loli.
Her name was Latina Latifa, the adopted daughter of Duke Gerald. At age eight, she was taken in by the Grand Mage Royal as his sole disciple and entered the Mage Tower to study magic.
Two years before the war broke out, for unknown reasons, she left the Capital, and her master perished on the battlefield alongside the Vichy Kingdom’s Grand Mage.
That man, who had renounced his title and family to pursue the dark path of magic, had resolutely chosen death to protect the Capital—one of the few “nobles” Princess Kroel respected.
Perhaps Latina returned to this country upon hearing this news.
Come to think of it, the time she left coincided exactly with the deterioration of relations between the two nations.
The imaginative Clorel was already speculating about the true reason for her quiet departure.
Talking about war cast a heavy shadow over the atmosphere. It was unexpected that this pink-haired loli carried such a tragic backstory. Truly lamentable.
But to get back on track, Su Yao had almost been steamed alive by Latina’s huge fireball.
Not only that, but she lost 20,000 DP for nothing! Even if they were old acquaintances, Clorel and Sofia wouldn’t let it go easily. No compensation for emotional distress, but the rest absolutely had to be paid!
Since she was a duke’s adopted daughter, she had to take responsibility!
Su Yao had already checked Latina’s body. Thanks for the hospitality— nothing at all. There was no way she was hiding two hundred gold coins under that nakedness.
Space Magic? That made sense— she could hold out some hope.
However, Clorel had said that very few mages nowadays could wield Three-Tier Space Magic: Void Storage. This pink-haired loli was unlikely a space mage.
Better to be cautious and start thinking about how to make this girl repay her debts.
Thinking this, Su Yao pondered quietly while Clorel and Sofia helped Latina change clothes.
The Maid Uniform she had wagered in the bet with Clorel fit her perfectly. It wasn’t that Su Yao was stingy, but she really had no DP left.
Come to think of it, dinner would have to be “that” again, wouldn’t it? She hoped Clorel wouldn’t scold her when she saw the ingredients…
——
A moment later, the pink-haired loli woke up slowly, stretching and looking around.
Besides the familiar Sofia, there were several strangers in the room, especially the blonde girl who seemed to be radiating a certain resentment.
This made her shudder involuntarily.
“Where am I? Lady Sofia? Did you save me?”
Hearing this, the blonde’s resentment seemed to deepen. Had she said something wrong?
“Well, Latina, it was actually Miss Su Yao over there who helped you.”
Upon hearing this, Latina quickly jumped off the bed and hurried over to the blonde called “Su Yao,” respectfully bowing.
“I’m sorry, so it was you, Miss Su Yao, who helped me. I’m truly… very grateful!”
She had bitten her tongue! But the other’s aura suddenly weakened. A sincere apology really did help.
“You seem not to remember me, but I’m very ‘grateful’ to you. Here, take this staff.”
For some reason, she emphasized the word “grateful” heavily.
After Su Yao said this, a magic staff appeared out of thin air in her hand. It seemed to be Space Magic, but something was a little off.
“I don’t recall doing anything that deserves thanks…”
To be honest, she could cast magic without a staff. But a good magic staff could greatly enhance a spell’s power.
Besides, the aura the other radiated made her reluctant to refuse.
What was going on? Though her smile was sweet, it felt like she was being stared down by a large magical beast.
Well, forced by the other’s presence, she finally accepted the staff.
“What’s this?”
She infused a bit of magic into it, and the power spread instantly through every inch. This staff was even better than the one her master used!
“Thank you very much. I’ll cherish it!”
“As long as you like it. Now, let’s talk about ‘compensation.’”