Soulgros had fought long and hard to secure her private outing with Master. Every member of Yerkchira worshipped the very ground he walked on and clung to him every chance they had, meaning that none of them could flirt with him without interference. Should they learn of her current outing with him, they would do everything in their power to sabotage her. She’d do the same in their shoes, after all, which was why it proved impossible to get him alone before now.
The rules had changed when that bratty, deceitful little loli-alraune bitch Laladie abducted him. She’d finished her work ahead of the others and returned to find the other members were all out. That coincidence was all she needed to take him outside and spend a worrying amount of time alone with him. Granted, they ran into the Hero’s Party soon enough, so they weren’t truly alone for long, but had they been truly alone, Laladie would surely have lost control.
I must slay her, Soulgros thought with a grim nod. Guildmates or no, her hatred of the girl was genuine. None of the women in Yerkchira cared for the others, and they had every intention of murdering the others sooner or later.
Soulgros had underestimated the alraune’s feelings for their Master, let alone her desire to abduct him, and the episode had only deepened her hatred for the little liar—but perhaps more importantly, it gave her an opportunity. There was now a precedent for leaving the guild alone with Master, which meant that she could finally have the hot date she’d always plotted with him.
“Like fucking hell Lala will let you!” Laladie had spat when she caught wind of Soulgros’s plans, her fluffy green hair bristling with rage. Soulgros might’ve stopped to admire how undeniably cute she was if she was any less inclined to kill the brat where she stood. All she could see was the guild’s crest emblazoned on the girl’s cheek, filthy slut that she was.
“Didst thou not abduct him first, Laladie-dono?”
“Yeah, but that was because Lala was smart and capable, unlike some bitches! She deserved that reward!”
The alraune puffed her flat chest out with pride—an odd move, considering how insecure she felt about her lack of endowment. Soulgros shook her head in confusion, as she possessed thoroughly average breasts herself.
“If that’s true, Soulgros deserves a turn,” came a voice from beside them.
“What?!”
They both whipped about to see a young woman with short black hair in knight’s armor—Ritter, as expressionless as always.
“Th-This isn’t fair!” Laladie huffed. “Why’re you siding with Soulgros?! You’re always following Master around like a cat in heat!”
Thou art scarcely better thyself, Soulgros thought.
The ninja shot a wary glance at her unexpected ally. “Hast thou lost thy mind? Thy words do naught but sicken me.”
The petite knight shook her head. “You gathered the Hero’s Party, the gray guilds, and the Royal Knights together… You did okay.”
“Well, I must admit I am flattered.”
She narrowed her eyes. Ritter never showed emotion for anyone except Master—something was afoot. For now, though, there would be no harm in taking the girl’s aid at face value.
“Ngh… No fair!” Laladie stomped her feet. “You won’t get the others to agree so easily!”
Coline and Vampille had plenty to say on the topic, granted, and Schwarte had already chewed her out in her taciturn way. Soulgros had her answer, however, and she wasn’t about to spare Laladie from it.
“Anat-dono hath given me permission,” she declared.
“Whaaat?!”
Anat was their leader, in a sense, and her word was final. Soulgros loathed having to go to her for permission, but Laladie had no means of protesting now. Perhaps more importantly, Anat’s decree meant that she had the consent of half of the guild members, making Soulgros’s sojourn with Master as official as possible.
“L-Lala always knew everyone was stupid except her and Master, but she never thought you were this stupid!” She fell to her knees, hands grasping toward the heavens as if she were already at Master’s feet. “Ahh, Master… Lala will save you from these bimbos, she promises!”
“Truly, thou art a vile soul.” Soulgros shook her head before turning to Ritter. “I must thank thee for thy aid. Laladie-dono would never have accepted this willingly.”
The knight had already turned to wander out into the hallway by then, and she turned disinterestedly back at Soulgros’s words. She noticed Soulgros was insincere, but she curtly nodded regardless.
“Don’t mention it… Just remember this when it’s my turn.”
Soulgros smirked from behind her face scarf. Of course Ritter didn’t help her out of the goodness of her heart—nobody in Yerkchira would. They needed something more personal as motivation, and in this case, Ritter was plotting a trip or two of her own with Master.
“Very well,” Soulgros conceded with a nod.
Ritter was a great help, but of course that didn’t mean she had to support the knight when the time came.
“I suppose the time hath come.” Soulgros grunted with a stretch before leaving for Master’s study.
A minute later, Laladie finally managed to climb to her feet and trotted into the corridors herself.
✦ ✦ ✦
Soulgros was more cheerful than she’d been in ages. Normally, she was forced to derive what paltry pleasure she could by shadowing her beloved Master—and while that was ostensibly what she was planning to do on their outing, she knew Master would soon be hers and hers alone. She even found herself humming as she slipped down the corridor toward his room.
That only made the interloper’s presence more bitingly obvious.
“Curses!”
This intruder was far more troubling than that brat Laladie could ever be. Without so much as a thought, she flung a kunai in her rival’s direction. Sadly, she was not met with the sound of a blade biting into flesh.
“Wha?! A-Are you trying to scare me to death?!”
The returning voice was crisp and clear, with a charming inflection that could make lesser minds melt with elation. Soulgros was, of course, above such cheap tricks.
“Thou art no affiliate of Yerkchira,” Soulgros spat back. “Thou should expect no less of a greeting.”
The intruder strode closer and rubbed her elbow into Soulgros’s side jokingly. “Oh, but you knew it was me, didn’t you?”
“Hahh… Enough of these games…”
She—Rimmil—had a tendency to take over any conversation she butted into, and worse, she had no appreciation for personal space. In fact, Soulgros doubted the woman would know personal space if it came up and bit her, though her… “personalities” were significant enough that few would care. She had long, silken, black hair, and the way her locks swayed when she walked made even women look twice—though Soulgros wanted nothing more than to yank it all out by the roots. Her eyes were large and opalescent, which only made the way she wore her heart on her sleeve all the more charming. On top of that, there was a maturity to her face that Laladie could only try to imitate with her saccharine facades. What truly pushed Rimmil over the top, however, was the ampleness of her bosom, which could easily drive the likes of Laladie or Krankheit insane. Even Soulgros was vexed by them, as despite her general disinterest in breasts, she was shamefully jealous. They even eclipsed Coline’s in sheer mass, and she had the curves to support such monsters without seeming unnatural.
“Hm?” Rimmil’s eyes went from Soulgros’s face down to her chest, then back up. “Don’t tell me you’re into me?”
“My thoughts are for Master, and Master alone.”
“Of course they are,” the invader sniggered knowingly.
“Pray tell, Rimmil-dono, what bringest thou here? Only guild members are permitted within these halls. Did I not warn thee the next time I caught thou skulking about would be thine last?”
“Hehe, don’t worry about it! I just dropped by to say hi to Master. He’s pretty great, isn’t he? He’s funny and warm.”
“Of course! How could he not be?”
That was frankly all it took to put Soulgros into higher spirits. She smoothly stowed the half-dozen kunai she’d retrieved during their conversation, her eyes glossing over with joy.
“Great!” Rimmil grinned. “In that case, I’ll be back soo—”
“… And that is but one of his many charms! Best of all, naturally, is the stoic strength of his back. Simply standing behind him fills me with comfort beyond compare, as though he could truly take on the entire world single-handedly and emerge victorious!”
Rimmil smirked just once more before vanishing. It was only a matter of time before other Yerkchira members would sniff her out, after all, and Soulgros was left alone to enthuse about her love of Master for hours.