Chapter 59: Is Chapter Fifty-Nine about me?

It’s undeniable that Letia possessed an extraordinary beauty.

Those delicate features, fair skin, and that silky, silver-white long hair—she looked just like a character straight out of a fairy tale.

But… the moment she said those words, that entire image was ruined!

That blatant invitation reminded Red of a radio segment called “World of Warcraft.”

A deep, melodious voice—scholarly and vibrant—narrated in his mind.

“Spring has come, life awakens everywhere…”

“It’s once again the season for animals to mate…”

Who could possibly keep a straight face at this?!

And with her petite figure that could hardly intimidate anyone, the moment Letia spoke, Red started hallucinating the sound of police sirens wailing by his ear!

Luckily, Letia’s voice wasn’t loud.

If anyone else had overheard, he’d have ended up having a meal at the station before he could leave.

“I’ll have to refuse.”

Red finally snapped out of it, shaking off the persistent “World of Warcraft” voice echoing in his mind.

There was definitely something off about all this; he couldn’t fall for this girl’s tricks.

“Oh, okay.”

Rejected, Letia acted as if nothing had happened, turning to the stunned Liz not far away.

“That’s pretty much it. Why don’t you try too?”

“Try my ass!”

This… this was way too straightforward!

No way to learn that, absolutely no way.

Or rather, with Letia’s bizarre train of thought, who on earth could possibly keep up?

But with such an unexpected interlude, Red and Toss finally noticed Liz’s presence.

When he saw his former teammate, Toss gave her a careful once-over.

“Red…”

Toss leaned in close to Red’s ear and whispered, “If you ask me, that proud but not coquettish woman isn’t right for you. You’d be better off picking Litt.”

His voice was quiet, and since Liz was still lost in a year’s worth of shock, she didn’t overhear their little secret chat.

Liz snapped back to herself, face cold as she came to stand in front of Red.

“Mind if I share this table?”

“…This is a public place. Do as you please.”

Red and Toss were sitting at a large table, and since it wasn’t a private room, they had no right to keep Letia and Liz from sitting with them.

If it was just Liz, Red probably would have left without looking back.

But fortunately, Letia was also here.

With her around, things between him and Liz wouldn’t be so tense.

Letia, ever the social butterfly, plopped down right away, while Liz kept standing.

After a long, awkward silence, Toss spoke up.

“Back to the main topic—Red, what do you really think about Litt? From what you just said, she’s definitely got feelings for you, right?”

Toss’s voice seemed just a bit louder, as if he were saying it for someone in particular to hear.

“A girl like Litt is a rare find. You should cherish her—don’t let her slip away.”

Liz felt a stuffiness in her chest at that.

She glanced at Red and, almost involuntarily, spoke up.

“Red, are you really going to give up being an adventurer? Just for that Litt, and choose to waste away here doing nothing?”

Red’s hand paused in midair.

He thought for a while before answering.

“Even if there was no Litt, I’d still choose to stay in Nightfall Town.”

He smiled suddenly as he spoke.

“And besides, I can’t deny—being with Litt is a lot of fun. As long as I’m alive, isn’t any way of living still living?”

“And live an uneventful life for the rest of your days?”

“What’s so bad about being ordinary? I’m just a Grassfolk, not someone with grand ambitions or lofty goals.”

Red smiled as he responded to Liz’s challenge, but she seemed anxious.

Of course, she wasn’t happy to see things end up this way.

But before she could say anything, Letia cut in.

“All right, all right, let’s not talk about this anymore.”

Letia sat between them, blocking their mutually stubborn gazes.

She didn’t take sides; she just spoke in her usual tone.

“Since we’re already on this topic, I have a small question… Red, what do you think about the other half?”

Liz cared about this too, so she didn’t say anything more.

She closed her mouth and got ready to listen to Red’s real thoughts.

“How come you’re suddenly asking about that?”

“Didn’t you all just seem to be talking about romance? I was just curious, so I asked.”

Toss nodded enthusiastically at Letia’s words.

“Yeah, yeah, besides beautiful feet, what else do you value?”

“Why are you emphasizing beautiful feet?”

Red nearly choked at that one.

“Who says I’m into that? Am I that kind of person?”

“All right, then let me put it another way: aside from desire, what else matters to you?”

“…”

That’s even worse!

“Let me think…”

Everyone perked up their ears, listening intently.

After pondering for a while, Red finally gave his answer.

“I guess it’s still white stockings.”

“How is that any different from desire?”

It wasn’t just Letia—even Toss couldn’t help but complain.

“Exactly, how’s that different from beautiful feet?”

“Of course it’s different,” Red said matter-of-factly.

“There are all kinds of beautiful feet, but very few can actually pull off white stockings. So white stockings are rare—beautiful feet aren’t necessarily so.”

“…That actually makes sense.”

No one had a retort, and Letia’s face remained expressionless.

If nothing else, she understood Red’s preferences better than anyone.

“And after that?”

Red started listing them out one by one.

“Next is being comfortable together, a sense of freedom.”

“Then, being able to be open—none of that ‘guess what I’m thinking’ stuff.”

“And finally, being mature, none of that petty attitude. That’s probably the most important.”

“I see…”

Letia nodded thoughtfully, lifted her huge mug of beer, gulped down a big mouthful, and slowly said, “So, to sum up, you want to feel comfortable together, express your true self openly, and have a partner who’s mature and steady, right?”

“Yeah, that’s about it.”

Red nodded, agreeing with her summary.

But after he nodded, the atmosphere suddenly grew silent for some reason.

The other three said nothing.

Liz was deep in thought; Toss was too.

Only, one was thinking about herself, the other about Litt.

As for Letia, she too was thinking.

After a while, she set down her now-empty glass, her expression grave, her gaze intent.

Under Red’s gaze, she pointed at herself.

“I see… You were talking about me, weren’t you?”

“In my eyes, you’re not even an opposite sex—just a female, that’s all.”