’Still nothing.’
Grey took the exact route he had before. As such, there were no monsters to fight. There were nothing but ruins he had already cleared.
However, he could feel Sabrina getting antsy behind him. It seemed like she wanted to attack him, but he wasn’t sure.
’No. She’s nervous about something else. She hasn’t made any attempt to reach for her weapon.’
Grey looked back at random times under the guise of making conversation, and he hadn’t caught her trying to reach for something dangerous even a single time. It was odd.
’Unless... timing.’
Grey was taking the route he knew. Was she maybe not expecting it to be this quick?
If she was trying to lure him into a trap, she was doing a very bad job of it. After all, she was letting him lead the way. If there was a trap she wanted him to reach, shouldn’t it be her trying to lead him? But she hadn’t done that either.
The only explanation was...
’The city. The goal is to reach the city, so she doesn’t care whether I’m leading or if she’s leading. The end destination is the same. If there was an ambush planned, it would have already come, I think.’
"Can we... can we stop for the night?" Sabrina’s voice came in a small whisper.
"Hm?" Grey looked back.
"I’m sorry, I’m pretty tired. It took me all day to make it to the point I did, and I actually ended up getting pretty lost. If we run into more monsters, I don’t know if I’m in any condition to fight."
Her words tumbled out after she started to speak as though she was speed-running an explanation before Grey could get anything in.
’Delay tactic...’
"If we come across any monsters, you don’t have to fight. I’m pretty strong." Grey said calmly.
"Are you sure? You said you didn’t have any food, so I assume you haven’t eaten in a while."
Grey chuckled. "That’s true, but sleeping and resting will only make me hungrier unless you have a way to magically make food."
Sabrina nibbled at her lip. Everything Grey said made perfect sense; she really didn’t have a way of making him change his mind.
She balled up her fists and closed her eyes, stomping a foot.
"Can’t you tell when a girl is coming onto you?!"
Grey’s eyes went wide and then he started laughing. He couldn’t control it at all. His gut was practically splitting.
Sabrina went as red as a tomato, her body trembling from head to toe.
"Forget it! Forget it! Just stay a virgin!"
"Whoa, whoa, who said I was a virgin?" He pressed a hand to his chest as though he was well and truly offended.
Sabrina snorted, looking away. She was truly irritated. If he was a pervert, shouldn’t he be jumping at the chance to spend a night with her? Or did he only like corpses? What were all of these excuses?
Grey turned to face her, crossing his arms over his chest.
"What?" she asked, not bothering to hide her annoyance.
As though he hadn’t heard her, Grey didn’t respond immediately, looking her up and down.
She really did look like a girl from Spain. She had dirty blond hair, eyes colored in hazel and pale green, and that skin... it was just a touch away from caramel and was tanned to perfection. Her hips were as full as her lips, and the pinch of her eyebrows somehow made her feel sexier than before.
It wasn’t that Grey hadn’t noticed how attractive she was before; it was just that that was that, and this was this. He was still looking for the right chance to drive a sword through her chest.
"You want to hook up with me? Is that right?" Grey asked with a raised eyebrow.
Sabrina ignored him.
Grey chuckled. "Remember when I said I’ve met a Sabrina before? She was much more reserved than you were. It took a lot more effort. But I have heard that Europeans are more open with that sort of stuff. I guess some stereotypes are real."
The only response he received was a roll of the eyes, it almost made Grey wonder if she was still looking for a chance to kill him or not.
Well, they had been talking for an hour or two. It would be hard for her not to humanize him. But at this point, she was riding a tiger she couldn’t easily hop off of.
"It’s no wonder you’re a virgin. Comparing women isn’t going to get you laid."
Grey smiled. "You know, this is a dangerous place. And when we met, you almost took my head off. Now you’re saying you want to hook up with me while I’m wearing a mask of worms and after my jaw was replaced by a hunk of metal. Do you think I’m an idiot?"
Sabrina’s heart skipped a beat, but she kept her arms crossed as she looked off into the distance toward the side.
"Do I have to explain myself to you? You’ve already lost your chance anyway."
"Did I?" Grey stepped forward until half a foot separated them. He towered over her, and he smelled something foul. He hadn’t taken a shower in over a day, and all he had done the entire time was sweat, and then sweat some more.
Unlike everyone else, he didn’t have a Nexis Suit with an automatic cleaning function.
Sabrina’s nose wrinkled, but she quickly hid it.
"... Maybe." She said through gritted teeth, half trying to sound seductive and another half trying not to lop Grey’s head off.
Grey took a sudden step back, and she could finally breathe.
"Is that so? Prove it."
Sabrina frowned. "Prove what?"
"Well, I think you’re talking a bunch of nonsense. If I waited around here, losing stamina due to hunger just for a hookup that’s not happening, then wouldn’t I be the idiot?"
"Prove it how?"
Grey shrugged. "Strip."
Sabrina’s eyes flashed with rage. Unable to restrain herself any longer, she shrieked.
A ball of energy blasted right at Grey’s head.
He sighed inwardly. ’I gave them too much ammo. It really is too difficult to be a good guy in this world. I wonder if she’ll still be cute with her head chopped off.’
Grey suddenly moved.
The moment he did, there was a huge shift in the forest.