Aiz rested a hand on my shoulder and spoke in a low voice.
"Were you just looking at another woman?"
"Is that a woman?"
"..."
From the start, Vine had been wearing such a large robe that it was hard to tell what sex they were.
But whether it was a woman's intuition or a spirit's intuition, Aiz seemed to have figured out Vine's sex.
[Scary... a woman's intuition...]
Are spirits usually this possessive?
[Hmm... some spirits are, and some aren't interested at all. They're just like humans...]
Just like humans?
[Aria had a little bit of that possessive streak toward Albert... or was it?]
...A little?
[Maybe Aiz inherited that possessiveness... probably because you've spent so long together.]
Then how do I get out of this possessiveness thing?
[Hmm... if you knock her out until she faints-]
Rejected. It's still broad daylight.
[Then at least give her a hug.]
A hug?
"Don't think about anything else and just-"
I pulled Aiz into a tight embrace.
"..."
"I'm not interested in any other woman."
"...That's underhanded."
"Then don't do it?"
"No."
After somehow settling that, we went back home.
By then, the moon and stars were already out.
"...Still, what was Vine?"
[Who knows? Maybe a monster evolved and gained a human-like sense of self?]
"Or maybe a mutant... maybe?"
[If so, there could be at least dozens more.]
"Are they hiding out in the Dungeon?"
[Or maybe... the Guild is hiding them.]
Either way, it was plausible.
If it was the Guild, which hid countless secrets, or the Dungeon, which was still full of the unknown, either could be true.
"What a headache."
Would it be better to dig up the secret?
Or
Would it be better to leave it buried?
Either way, I was planning to investigate the Dungeon a little.
I was curious about the modification made to the Excalibur Urrs had been dwelling in.
But could I really break through the Dungeon on my own?
What if I poked around and ended up touching something I should never have touched?
"Hmm..."
My head hurt...
"Bellf, are you asleep?"
"No."
As I lay on the bed, lost in thought, Aiz opened the door and came in after a knock.
"You look like you've got something on your mind."
"I was just thinking about the Dungeon a little."
"Should I go with you?"
"With me?"
"Yes. I want to test my strength."
Strength? Ah... spirit form...
"Then let's go tomorrow."
The expedition was five days away,
so there was more than enough time for a quick trip in and out.