NOVPUB
Chapter 125: Upper Soul Energy Points~
She gently dabbed the corner of his lips with the napkin, her hand brushing his chin.
Her fingers were soft.
Her eyes, locked in on her mission, sparkled slightly in the warm light filtering through the window.
When she realized how close they were, she hesitated for a split second, then finished the wipe and quickly retreated to her seat like she’d just defused a very personal bomb.
"There. Clean," she mumbled, looking anywhere but at him.
Zayn touched the spot she’d cleaned, oddly flustered for a guy who could swing a sword at giant monsters without blinking.
"...Thanks," he said.
"Y-Yeah. You were, uh, kind of a mess." 𝔫𝖔𝖛𝖕𝔲𝔟.𝔠𝖔𝖒
"I’m always kind of a mess," Zayn replied. "It’s part of my charm."
Althea giggled behind her hand again, her ears twitching slightly in that half-elf way that was way too cute for Zayn’s peace of mind.
As they slowly returned to their food, the conversation shifted into a more comfortable rhythm.
There was something relaxing about the little restaurant, the way the window caught the morning light just right, and the way their plates slowly emptied between bursts of laughter and stolen glances.
"So," Zayn said, breaking off a chunk of his bread roll, "what’s it like working at the guild?"
Althea blinked. "You mean besides yelling at adventurers who smell like wyvern sweat and forgetting to fill out their reports?"
Zayn nodded solemnly. "Especially that part."
"It’s... weirdly nice. I get to meet all kinds of people. Some are arrogant, some are sweet, some are total disasters in armor — "
Zayn raised his hand. "Hi, yes, that’s me."
She gave him a mock glare. "You’re more of a disaster in trousers, honestly."
"Fair. My charm is unmatched though."
She burst into laughter, her head tilting back slightly, her blond hair shimmering in the light. Zayn stared for a second longer than he meant to.
When her laughter settled, she looked down at her plate, poking at a leftover piece of fish.
"What about you?" she asked. "Why’d you become an adventurer?"
Zayn paused. The question hung in the air a moment longer than he expected.
"...To be honest, I don’t think I had much of a choice," he admitted, rubbing the back of his neck. "I just joined the Hero’s party and we had arrived at Timberstead, so we were meant to you know raid and get stronger."
Althea’s expression softened. "That sounds... lonely in a way."
He shrugged. "It was. At first. But I got lucky. I found people who I could trust. A party. Purpose. A reason to not completely lose my mind."
She looked at him with a small smile. "You don’t seem like the losing-your-mind type."
"Oh, I absolutely am. I talk to my sword when no one’s around."
Althea giggled again. "What do you talk about?"
"Mostly why it refuses to glow during dramatic moments. Like, what’s the point of being a soul-bound weapon if you’re not going to glow dramatically at the climax of a battle?"
"You’re unbelievable."
"Thank you," Zayn said with a proud nod.
They continued sharing bits and pieces about their lives.
Althea talked about her childhood, growing up with Clara, learning how to charm adventurers while also learning how to throw them out when they got too handsy.
Zayn talked about his travels, the first time he nearly died when fighting a dungeon boss, and well some other stuff.
They laughed again, and for a moment, everything felt easy.
Zayn leaned back, stretching. "Man... I could sit here all day."
"You better not," Althea teased. "Your party would probably assume I kidnapped you."
"I mean," he said with a smirk, "if you did kidnap me, I wouldn’t complain."
Her face immediately flushed red. "Zayn!"
"I’m just saying. This food’s good, and the company’s better."
Althea hid behind her napkin again, trying to suppress a smile. "You’re seriously flirting with me now?"
"I’m not flirting. I’m appreciating," he said dramatically. "There’s a difference."
"You’re incorrigible."
"I’ve been told that by many people."
Althea shook her head, still smiling.
She reached over and nudged him gently with her shoulder. "Thanks for coming with me."
Zayn gave her a soft look. "Thanks for dragging me out."
Their plates were nearly clean now, and the soft murmur of the restaurant hummed around them like a gentle soundtrack.
Zayn looked down at his empty cup and sighed.
"So... what now?" he asked.
Althea tilted her head, lips pursed in thought. "Well, the day’s still young."
"Don’t tempt me. I’ll start pretending this is a date."
She looked at him with wide eyes for a beat — and then smiled, tucking a bit of hair behind her ear.
"...Maybe it is."
Zayn blinked. Then blinked again.
"...You know, this would be the perfect time for my sword to glow dramatically."
Althea laughed so hard she nearly choked on her drink.
...
The sun was beginning to blaze, high enough in the sky to sear every cobblestone with the intensity of a fireball spell gone rogue. Zayn squinted up at it.
"Are we being punished?" he mumbled, already regretting wearing a black shirt.
Althea giggled beside him, her fingers interlaced with his. She hadn’t let go since they’d left the restaurant, and honestly, Zayn didn’t mind.
Her hand was soft, just a little warm, and trembling faintly like she was trying really hard to act casual while her brain was doing cartwheels.
He glanced over at her.
She was red. Not a little red — strawberry ice cream in summer red.
Her cheeks were absolutely glowing, and she kept tucking her hair behind her ear for no reason. "You okay there?" he asked, nudging her.
"I’m fine!" she squeaked, then cleared her throat and tried again, "I mean — I’m okay. Totally normal. Nothing suspicious happening here."
"Didn’t ask if it was suspicious, Althea."
"I — well — maybe I’m suspicious," she said, her tone suddenly mischievous. "Maybe I lured you into picking clothes for me just so I could get you to admire my um upper soul energy points."
"Upper soul energy points?" Zayn raised an eyebrow.
She coughed into her hand. "That’s what I call boobs when I’m nervous."
Zayn laughed, leaning slightly into her. "I’m stealing that."
As they walked along the path, Althea suddenly squeezed his hand tighter. Her eyes had landed on a quiet alleyway tucked between two flower shops.
"Hey," she said, tilting her head toward it, "You wanted to get out of the sun, right? We could... uhm rest over there? Just for a bit?"
