'S-something came up…?!'
As Rey stared into Adonis' eyes, he could tell that something was terribly amiss.
An expression of concern swept through his face and it felt like anxiety was welling up within him.
Before Rey realized it, his heart began to race.
"Am I in trouble again?" He asked, a bead of sweat formed on the side of his face.
"A-ah! No! No! This is something else. You'll understand once you come with me. Everyone is waiting…"
Adonis had never lied to Rey before—at least not to his knowledge. There was no reason to think he was doing so now, though Rey knew he couldn't be too sure.
After a few seconds of silent considerations, Rey decided there was no other option than to go with Adonis and see what was going on.
'I've not done anything wrong or suspicious lately, right? Or could it be another scheme by the mastermind of last time…?'
Rey shrugged off his complicated thoughts and left his position, carrying the book he was reading in his hand without realizing it.
"Don't you need to return that?"
"A-ah! True…"
Rey didn't know which section to place it, so he simply put the book on the closest shelf and skittered off to catch up to Adonis, who was already waiting for him at the Library door
"Alright! Let's go!"
*********
At first, Rey was on his guard.
He kept glancing around him as inconspicuously as he could to see if there were some hidden guards waiting in ambush for him somewhere.
He couldn't see any, though.
'Why would the guards need to ambush me, though? Why would Adonis even lie about anything?'
If he was in trouble, guards would have just stormed into the Library with Adonis, who would probably just explain the situation to him.
There would be no need for elaborate lies.
'That means something else came up! Could it be related to Alicia?'
Rey was about to ask Adonis about what he knew about the current situation when the Hero's voice echoed in the air.
"You've been working out a lot, haven't you?"
"E-eh…?"
The question surprised Rey, but he was able to maintain a respectable reaction thanks to his Class Effect.
"I've noticed it. It's well hidden underneath your baggy clothing, but I know you've really bulked up and toned up your body."
Adonis turned to Rey and smiled like any good guy would.
"That's good."
"Um… thanks?" Rey could only manage to say, completely forgetting what it was that he wanted to ask Adonis.
"I would like to make a wolf guess and say that the reason for your everyday disappearances is linked to your current growth."
Rey didn't understand what Adonis was driving at, but he wasn't wrong.
Thanks to hunting down Monsters and Leveling Up, he was becoming more and more physically fit.
… More than most guys in his class too.
'Just how much does he know?' Rey wondered, but chose to smile a little.
"You're not wrong. I work out a lot, but in secret."
Hunting Monsters and grinding Levels was a kind of workout for Rey, so he didn't think he was necessarily lying about it.
"Haha! I figured! Well, keep it up, Rey." Adonis made a slight chuckle and nodded.
He placed his hand on Rey's shoulder and even gave him a thumbs up.
Rey personally felt it was unnecessary to go so far, but he laughed a little and nodded along.
"A lot of people underestimate you because of your Class and Skill, but I don't necessarily think having power is everything. Do you agree?"
Adonis' statement sounded like a pretentious thing to say—an equivalent to a rich man saying stuff like "Money isn't everything."
If any other powerful guy had said this to Rey, he would have frowned in annoyance.
However, he recognized that Adonis said this from a good place.
And he wasn't exactly wrong.
'Even among Monsters, like the Goblins, it is the ability to learn, adapt, and grow… that's what matters most.'
"Yeah. I agree." Rey ended up smiling genuinely as he replied to Adonis.
Even the people of the United Human Alliance proved Adonis' words to be true when they chose to summon Otherworlders in response to the overwhelming threat of the Dragons.
If the people of this Nation were to survive, it wasn't due to their strength, but the ability to change with the times and come up with a solution to their problem.
Of course, all of this was meaningless without some measure of power, but Rey agreed that having power simply wasn't enough.
One needed to be resourceful with it.
"The will to improve yourself… it's admirable. You workout every day, and then you go to the Library to study at night. I don't know if there's anyone here who matches your level of discipline."
As Rey heard this, he felt like Adonis was buttering him too much.
'He sounds so genuine, but come on!'
"What about you? You train a lot too, right, Adonis? You're definitely more hardworking than I am."
As Adonis heard this, he scratched his head and laughed a little awkwardly.
It felt like he was a little shy about the whole thing.
"N-no… that's not it. It's not the same for me…"
Adonis did not elaborate any further, but Rey could see a distant look in his eyes.
He must have had his reasons for training so hard, but Rey couldn't tell what it was.
He could only respect it.
"I understand. We all have things that haunt us, right? For me… I just want to stop being weak and become strong." For the first time, Rey took the initiative in the conversation.
Adonis appeared a little surprised by this.
"I'm sure you have a similar reason, right Adonis?"
'What the hell am I saying?!' Rey screamed internally as he completed his question.
Adonis was always the one who started conversations with him, and every time he did so, Rey always ensured he remained passive through most of it.
This was the very first time Rey was so assertive towards their Hero.
'Look at how he's staring at me? Now I feel like an idiot!'
He had gone to say something cheesy about himself, but how did he expect Adonis to relate to that?
Rey was still struggling to recoil from what he had said when he heard Adonis' footsteps suddenly stop.
Two hands landed on Rey's shoulders, and he found himself stopping as well.
"Rey…"
Adonis' voice sounded sullen. It had hints of sadness within, but Rey could clearly see Adonis smiling at him.
"… Thank you, man."
Rey hadn't ever felt this awkward in his entire life, but he allowed the moment to happen.
'I don't think this is necessary, though. Why is he thanking me for what I said?'
The look on Adonis' face proved he wasn't joking, and his bright eyes had never been so honest.
Thankfully, this didn't last for too long.
"A-ah, I apologize for being so forward. Everyone is waiting, so we better hurry."
"N-no, it's fine…"
Both the Hero and the Extra looked away from each other, expressing something like an awkward tension that one would normally find among teenage lovers.
It was difficult to explain, or even describe what was going on between these two guys.
Despite Adonis saying they should hurry, neither took a step forward.
At least, not immediately.
*
*
*
Thanks for reading!
I hope you enjoyed the chapter. I know what you all are thinking, but no.
There's no romantic tension between the two of them. It's just an awkward thing.
'Bromance' maybe, but that's even reaching too far.
