Chapter 9: Kynemeia suddenly pointed at Eian's shoulder while he was still lost in his predicament.

Kynemeia suddenly pointed at Eian's shoulder while he was still lost in his predicament.

"Hey, what's that?"

"Huh?"

When he turned his head, he found the lark perched on his shoulder, belting out a pretty cry.

"Ah, this is the Magic Tower's—"

Before he could finish his sentence, the lark pecked at his lips with its beak.

'It pecked him?! It looks so pure but why is it so violent?!' Kynemeia was gaping when Eian smiled and continued from where he left off.

"It's a familiar that followed me from the Magic Tower."

"Familiaar?"

Kynemeia was so interested, her eyes twinkled.

"It's my first time seeing a familiar. Seems like it doesn't listen well."

"It's a bit cheeky."

The lark was about to peck his lips again, but Eian dodged the assault fluidly. Kynemeia moved to approach the lark and stroked its head gently, causing it to emit a sound before it proceeded to relax under her touch. Feeling its soft plumage, a slight grin crept across her face.

"... So cute."

With an impassive expression, Eian watched the lark's despicable act of rubbing its face into the girl's hand before he grabbed her wrist and pushed it away.

"Please don't touch. It'll wear down."

"Huh! Wear down, you say?"

'How could you say that when I only touched it?!' Her shoulders trembled, so he blurted out,

"I'm not saying that to you, Miss Lady."

"Then?"

"Let's be off now, Young Lady."

He didn't answer anything else and led her away. The lark, with a face that made it known it was observing something peculiar, trailed behind them.

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can someoene dip their balls into soy sauce to see if they can taste it

"Sayre, is there nothing today as well?"

Behemoth's Lana Redmayne asked as she dumped her long hammer onto the ground.

"Does it look like there's anything?"

A bleary-eyed Sayre Redmayne rejoined from where she laid sprawled on a chair. She raised her svelte legs onto the table, heaving a sigh, while Lana sounded off irritably,

"Here we are, two very capable women, so why is it that can't we make ends meet?"

"I told you to go to Brian and apologise to that jerk for that incident, and tell him that we're in need of a referral."

"Apologise for what?! I'm the victim here!"

Lana's body trembled.

The reason why the sisters—who could barely eke out a living in the first place from crafting farming tools or weapons—found it more challenging nowadays was all because of Brian, the son of their locality's chief.

He had set his sights on the beauties, Sayre and Lana, and consequently, something had come to pass. Lana had gone for a shower one day when she discovered him trying to take a peek into the bathroom.

"This demented bastard!"

Lana had swung her hammer with abandon and it happened to graze Brian's arm.

"Ack! What have you done?! My arm! What are you gonna do about this?! Huh?"

Although it wasn't quite that great of an injury, he threw a hissy fit, his face purple with rage. As a result, his crime of peeping into the bathroom was covered up just like that. While that was already plenty maddening, it was even worse when they stopped receiving commissions the very next day.

Brian's parents owned about five buildings on their street, including the Behemoth's building. The folks who didn't want to get dragged into something problematic for getting on the wrong side of the village chief's son stopped coming to Behemoth altogether.

"Ah, how annoying. And that Brian doesn't hold an interest in me but my breasts, you know?"

Lana explained as she covered her breasts, to which Sayre nodded.

"I think you're right."

"That jackass is a freaking madman. He gives me the heebie-jeebies. I really want to hammer the back of his head once before we leave this neighbourhood."

Lana's Aura emanated around her as she swung her hammer around.

Of course, Sayre understood where Lana was coming from since she was also the one who promptly revolted with a hammer when she discovered that the bastard was peeping at Lana through the bathroom window. She would probably be the one to hammer the back of his head when they leave this neighbourhood instead of Lana.

"But we still need to eat and survive..."

Sayre sighed and spoke in a small voice. She also yearned to leave because of his foul and tawdry ways, but they still need to have the money to move away. Relocating somewhere else wasn't a straightforward matter either.

At that moment, Lana shouted fiercely,

"Sayre, what do you think your beautiful face is for?! You should just go out and solicit someone!"

"Where in the world would you find a guild member who would encourage the guild leader to solicit someone?"

"Right here."

"I'm gonna preserve my beauty and cherish it, you crazy thing."

Sayre flung the nameplate at Lana who caught it and tossed it back to her.

"You were the one who advised me to do something so we wouldn't starve, and now you keep your mouth shut?"

"You should be the one soliciting if you don't want to starve! You're the more popular one anyway."

"When did that ever—"

JINGLE.

The bell tinkled as the door opened. Both of them instantly locked eyes.

"Are they commissioning?"

Lana asked instinctively as she stood upright while Sayre lowered her feet and put on a serious face. However, it was a pretty boy with pitch-black pupils that entered their line of vision. Maybe it was because of the boy's pitch-black hair and pupils that his face appeared much paler. He gazed at them languidly.

'He's so young, but he's already so handsome.'

There was no mistaking that he was still a child, but his appearance suggested that he would be peerless in terms of looks once he grew up a little more.

'12 years old? Maybe 13?' Lana unconsciously began guessing his age as she stood aslant and asked,

"Are you commissioning?"

"Nope."

"I am."

Someone else spoke up at the same time as the boorish boy. The voice belonged to a little girl.

"...?"

Lana looked left and right to locate the owner of the voice before she noticed a few fingers waving from below. She peered down and found a pretty and petite girl who stated,

"I'm the guest."

Lana tilted her head to one side.

'What is this cute creature?'

They were sisters who had lofty standards since they grew up accustomed to hearing the words pretty and cute, but this was the first time in her life she ever witnessed such an adorable girl that she couldn't help but gawk.

'She would be 8 years old at most? Or 9?' It was hard to gauge her age.

"How old are you?"

"Eleven."

Such a tiny girl is already 11 years old. But where are the adults? Lana glanced behind the kids with eagle eyes, then crouched down to meet Kynemeia's gaze.

"Is it only the two of you? Where's your mom?"

"Why do you need my mom? She went somewhere."

"Well... Nevermind, where did she go? Is she around here?"

"She passed away."

Lana was so startled, her eyes flashed back to Kynemeia.

"Huh...?"

"She passed away."

Kynemeia repeated in a firm tone, ensuring that it wasn't a mistake.

'She what?! Passed away? Suddenly? You don't normally say she went somewhere in this case!' Lana glanced at Sayre, breaking out in a cold sweat, terrified that she might have involuntarily hurt a child's feelings. Sayre rose to her feet, feeling distraught.

"Uhm, little girl, where's your dad?"

"He passed away."

"Ah..."

Sayre also froze in her spot then. Both of them could taste the uncomfortable silence hanging in the air.

'This child, how strong...'

Lana then posed another question with a glare, as if she refused to concede defeat.

"... Then how about your grandfather..."

"He passed—"

"We get it. We're sorry for asking."

Sayre placed her index finger on Kynemeia's lips to stop her from talking. Eian, who had been standing aside absently, grabbed onto Sayre's wrist and removed it.

"Don't touch her."

Lana inclined her head.

"Ho, what is he?"

"My bodyguard."

Only

Kynemeia answered.

"You have a bodyguard too?"

"Do you usually treat your customers this way?"

Lana and Kynemeia said simultaneously. Sayre looked at them both and shook her head.

"Sweetie. I don't know what you were thinking by coming here, but this is not the kind of guild you're thinking of."

"That's right, kids should leave."

Lana chimed in. Kynemeia then slowly pulled out something from her neck and displayed a necklace bearing a seal.

"I'm not just any child but Kynemeia Lyonne. Will you accept me now?"