Ch 66 – Finally, the town

"What are you laughing at!?"

"Hal, stop... You're gonna make it worse..."

"Huh!? The hell are you saying Bid?! They need to Respect us. Respect!"

"Hal... There's no respect in this shit..."

The two boys talked as the girls burst into laughter after seeing them.

It was fun. It really was. Picture, a tall guy wearing an armor that is too short for him, ending a couple inches over the bottom, which also ends a handful of fingers above the end of the boots.

The other one, the height seems okay... But the armor is bloated. As in, it's just too wide for him, whose arms float to the side of the armor unable to be lowered.

"Stop laughing and come here, let's just go and end this before my arms become numb." Bid yells to the girls, making them hold back their laughter as they walk towards them, only to burst into laughter a second later.

"Sorry... Bhahaha~" Ace tries to apologize before bursting once again as she stumbles towards the pair of armored nitwits. Behind them, the driver's faces are tense... from trying to hold themselves from laughing at their hirers... Such professional gentlemen...

It didn't take long before all the laughing got old, rather, as Necro and Ace sat on the barrels and only Mary accompanied the two on foot, the image of them wearing such ill fitted armor became somewhat normal.

"What are we doing when we get there?" And as such, Necro was far more worried about what she would do in an unknown town than about the funny armors.

"Huh? I guess going to the Commerce Guild to try and sell all of this... Then, we'll probably go to the Adventurers' one to see the quests for tomorrow and for Mary to drink."

"I see..."

"Do you think we'll get a lot of money?"

"Eh?" Necro was confused by Ace's sudden question.

"I mean, there's a lot of stuff, and we killed a lot of bandits. Our share must be pretty hefty, right?"

"Ah, I see. I think so, but you're the one who should know it. Like, it's not like we were there when they got the rewards."

"You don't trust them?" Ace tilted her head as she asked Necro about it. It wasn't that she trusted Bid and Hal, but more that it'd never happened that they tried to take an unfair advantage.

"It's not that... I just... I've never been with anyone other than my family, you know..."

"It's fine, don't worry." Ace pulled Necro's arm, lowering her head to her bosom, as she patted her head. "I'll make sure we get our fair share."

"Thank you." Necro closed her eyes, resting her head on Ace's lap. Them being small was very convenient, else, they'd have a hard time fitting over the barrels on a single cart, which was narrower than a single bed.

While combing Necro's hair, enjoying the rocking of the cart, Ace looked up to the blue sky.

'I wonder how they're doing without me...' After a long time, Ace was reminded for the first time of her parents, whom she'd left behind a while back. 'They probably don't even care...' She thought, as she looked at the fluffy clouds in the distance.

"What's wrong?" Necro asked, looking up at her.

"It's nothing. I was just thinking about something pointless..." She looked down towards her, unaware of the tears that flowed down her face.

"Nothing my ass!" Necro sat back up, pulling Ace down towards her lap. "What is it?" She asked. Now, their places had swapped at a moment's notice. Necro had turned as she felt Ace's hand stop,  but seeing her crying had worried her quite a bit.

"It's nothing, really... I just got reminded of my own family... That I had one at some point."

"What are you talking about? Don't you still have them?" Necro was confused, as she slowly felt her thighs getting wet from Ace's silent tears. As far as she knew, Ace's family was alive and kicking.

"Not really... They didn't even come after me when I left. In the end, I was just a means for diplomacy." Ace clenched her fist.

"Forget about them if they only want to use you." Ace's eyes widened and she looked up, hearing such heartfelt words from Necro. "After all, you already have a family that loves and cares about you right?"

"..." Ace stared at Necro's dark eyes. She understood what she meant, and her eyes felt like they were going to swallow her whole. Such penetrating eyes... "Yes... I have you, don't I?"

"Precisely." Necro leaned down, while Ace lifted her head just enough for the two of them to kiss.

'Yes, I have you... So long as I have you, I don't need them at all.' Such a dangerous thought crossed Ace's mind, as she lowered herself down to Necro's lap, succumbing to the gentle touch of her hands and falling asleep, despite the gritty sound of the cart-wheels on gravel.

"Wake up."

"huuu~?" A gentle voice called her, making her leak a small moan as she woke from a highly needed nap.

"Did you sleep well?"

"Uaaaah... What are you even asking? I just closed my... Eh?" As she opened her eyes, Ace was surprised to see completely different scenario. "Why didn't you wake me up!?" She sprung up, sitting back besides Necro, who grinned.

"Why would I? You looked incredibly cute while sleeping." Necro had kept combing her hair for the handful of hours it took them to reach the town. The forest was nowhere to be seen, instead, large fields spread around the sides of the cobblestone road. They were waiting at the town's gates.

While having someone sleep on her lap made her legs numb, it was a cheap price to pay. Moreover, Necro felt responsible for Ace's tiredness. Letting her sleep as long as possible was a given.

The two jumped from the stopped cart, as Hal, Bid and Mary made their way towards them from behind.

"Morning Sleeping Beauty." Mary teased Ace as soon as she got to them. She and the boys had been following the carts from behind all morning and part of the afternoon. Behind her, the two dragged their feet along the road, taking a minute to arrive, with ragged breath.

"We're finally here!" Bid rejoiced, while Hal mumbled his grievance.

"Thank God... I thought I was gonna die..."

"You two are too delicate. Look at Mary, she looks like she barely walked." Ace teased them, taking out Mary's joke on a weaker target.

"Easy for you to say it, you slept the whole way here!" Bid snarled back at her.

"It's not my fault that I didn't sleep tonight!" Ace retorted, making Necro smile wryly... While Mary flushed entirely beneath her armor.

'Thank God nobody can see me under this helmet... All I have to do is stay quiet and...'

"Mary,-"

"Kya-!"

She raised her hand to her helmet inadvertently as she shut her mouth. Being called out scared the living shit out of her, revealing her embarrassment.