With a final, graceful leap, the Sonic Thief Vivi burst out from the shadowed depths of the Garden of Hell's inner forest, landing lightly on the sunlit expanse beyond.
The endless stretch of twisted trees and tangled undergrowth was finally behind her—replaced by the vast, open wilderness that rolled out like a sea of golden grass...
The sun hovered at the horizon, casting its brilliant orange light that slowly dimd as it sank.
"Sigh… finally out…"
The solo adventurer dropped the bloody cloth bag from her shoulder to the ground, then began stretching her arms above her head in a languid, cat-like motion... stretching out the kink and even the built-up frustration from days stuck in the forest.
"No more endless trees for at least a week. Period."
Her eyes then scanned the open wilderness with its comforting familiarity, tracing the seemingly simple dirt path that stretched from the heart of the Garden of Hell... to the mainland of Florentia...
And of course, along this dirt road lay the supposed "rest stop" owned by that precious, upstart redhead noble... alongside that cheeky-looking butler of hers.
When that thought crossed her mind once more... a small smirk curled onto her lips as excitent slowly bubbled up within her chest.
It was a strange yet also familiar feeling within her... sothing that Vivi herself had co to recognize as a sign that sothing quite... interesting was bound to happen.
"Hehe... I wonder what those two are up to..."
And so... she picked up her bloody cloth bag from the ground, then stepped onto the dirt path as she began her leisurely stroll along it.
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After venturing through the dirt path for quite so ti, the sun had finally touched the horizon, and the vast wilderness was slowly succumbing to the abyss of the night...
But...
"Ah... there it is~."
The amber-haired adventurer had already found her destination: the strange region wall made entirely of two massive logs stacked horizontally.
Vivi let out another giggle, still finding amusent over the sheer simplicity and effectiveness of this upstart noble's region wall.
She couldn't help but wonder who had co up with such a "bright" idea to build a make-shift border wall out of purely stacked giant logs, imagining them to be soone who was quite the eccentric.
"It couldn't be the noble brat—she's too much of a prim-and-proper type to even think of such a wild idea..." she mused to herself as her steps carried her closer and closer to the peculiar border wall. "...so, it must have been her servant's idea..."
With a casual sway in her step, Vivi continued toward the young noble's region... before finally reaching the border wall of that noble, Lord Anastasia.
The sheer size of the structure didn't impress her much, but... the way it was built?
Now that was another story.
Without breaking her stride, she slipped through the open "gate" section—a simple gap between the two massive logs. Even the entrances here were charmingly straightforward...
Yet, there was sothing peculiar about it.
Her sharp gaze lingered on the edges of the opening—cut sections of the logs.
The cut was too clean.
No ordinary tool—no matter how refined, sophisticated, or magical—could ever produce such a smooth, seamless slice through wood this thick…
And to her, that ant only one thing.
"Soone around here is playing in my league…" Vivi murmured to herself, the corner of her mouth curling once more into a playful smirk.
But before she could entertain the thought further—
—her eyes caught sight of the figures standing just beyond the gate, at the center of this region itself.
A small group, positioned as if… they were waiting for soone.
One figure stood in front of the others... with her vivid crimson hair shining under the fading sunlight. The young, almost-naive lord of this land… Lady Anastasia, standing tall and noble with a determined expression.
The other three behind her were her subordinates—the servants of Anastasia. Two won and one male, each holding their own disposition...
One female knight—the grumpy, always-serious one—stood tall, ready for any sort of mishap or trouble that might happen.
One maid—the anxious, clumsy one—was being a nervous wreck, eyes darting from here and there like a frightened rabbit.
And finally... the lone male between these three flowers... the very one who was the most peculiar in this female adventurer's eyes.
The nonchalant yet confident expression that he wore—a clear contrast against those possessed by the won near him—struck a chord within her that really, REALLY stirred sothing she'd thought had been lost from quite while...
But, this female adventurer still held so semblance of manners, alright, as she shifted her gaze back to the lord of this region, Anastasia, who still maintained her poised and composed expression.
"Yahoo~! Lord Anastasia~!" Vivi chid, breaking the tension that was quite evident in the air. "What's with the groupie here? You guys are partying or sothing~?"
Anastasia took a single step forward, her posture flawless as she responded with a graceful nod. "I have been expecting your arrival, Miss Vivi. It is a pleasure to welco you back to my territory."
That… wasn't what Vivi had expected.
Blinking in surprise, she tilted her head with an amused chuckle. "Oho~? You were expecting ?"
"Indeed so, Miss Vivi," the redhead lord affird with a calm yet knowing tone, "I understand quite well that you have—or had by now—a matter of importance in the deeper part of the Garden of Hell—"
"I sure am~," the amber-haired adventurer chirped, hoisting up the bloody cloth bag and presenting it to Anastasia and her entourage. "I just got done hunting down my quest target~."
"...I-Indeed so, Miss Vivi," the redhead lord affird once more, trying to regain her composure after being so rudely interrupted. "...I understand quite well that you are an adventurer… a high-ranking one at that—bearing the title 'Sonic Thief Vivi.'"
"My~? So even a young fledgling noble like you knows my na~?" Her tone dripped with mock surprise, her voice airy and carefree. "I must be pretty famous if you're addressing so politely too, huh~?"
For the briefest mont, Anastasia's eye twitched—an involuntary reaction to the thinly veiled sarcasm lacing Vivi's words. But, as expected of a noble, her composed mask held firm.
"...As I was saying... Miss Vivi, as an adventurer, you must be quite exhausted after completing such an arduous hunt, correct...?"
"Hehe~, you're not wrong there, little lady," Vivi quipped, shifting the bloody cloth bag back onto her shoulder with ease. "I've been working these legs off non-stop... so, I sure as heck could use a little… relaxation."
The female adventurer's playful tone lingered as her amber eyes flicked—oh-so-casually—toward a certain butler standing quietly behind Anastasia.
The butler for his part... maintained an easy, unreadable smile.
He neither beca flustered nor fazed by the amber-haired adventurer's wandering gaze that seed to be sizing him up like a prize worth claiming.
Of course… that only made Vivi's grin widen.
"...And, you know..."
The Sonic Thief stretched her arms above her head again... a light moan escaping from her lips as she arched her back with a satisfied sigh.
"Mmm~, this whole job really took a toll on and made crave a little leisure ti… like being pampered and praised for my hard work... especially if it cos from a handso butler... wouldn't that sound lovely~?"
This ti, the twitch of Anastasia's eye was much more visible.
And she wasn't the only one. Both the female knight, Martha, and the anxious maid, Bella, cast uneasy glances between Vivi and their ever-unflappable butler—clearly unsettled by the adventurer's not-so-subtle implications.
But—
"Uhm!"
Anastasia cleared her throat sharply, the sound infused with her irritation cutting through the thick tension in the air with enough weight to imdiately draw all eyes back to her!
"Miss Vivi, I'm afraid that I cannot provide you with such… indulgences," Anastasia declared in a firm, resolute voice, her narrowed eyes locked onto the vixen-like adventurer.
Vivi herself... only pouted, brushing off the pointed glare coming from the young lord.
"Aww… what a sha then~."
"Indeed... what a sha... however, I have another proposition for you instead."
"Hmm?" The sudden shift in tone piqued Vivi's curiosity. "What do you an, Lord Anastasia?"
"Miss Vivi," Anastasia continued, lifting her chin with a touch of pride, "I can offer you the opportunity to rest within my territory."
That… made Vivi pause.
Her gaze sharpened—just a little—studying the young noble with renewed curiosity. She hadn't expected Anastasia to be this accommodating… especially after the teasing and all.
"Oh~? You're offering a place to kick back?"
The redhead lord answered... only with a confident smile—one that spoke of a woman proud of her accomplishnts.
With a graceful gesture, she extended her hand toward a new structure standing proudly in the distance.
A wooden manor that—Vivi was sure—hadn't been there the last ti she visited—!
"Miss Vivi," Anastasia declared, her voice clear and unwavering, "I offer you the pleasure of becoming the first guest... to my newly built lodge house!"
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