“Where are we going, by the way?” Ayuna asked, tilting her head.

 

Liana pointed up ahead. 

 

Ayuna’s gaze followed her finger and saw another thick forest at the other side of the prairie, across the river with a small wooden bridge connecting the two lands. 

 

It looked just like the BloodHorn forest—very ordinary, nothing fantastical about it—though, it did give off a different air. It’s like light and dark, Yin and Yang—that forest being light, BloodHorn forest being dark.

 

“There,” Liana said, “that’s Greywood. I live there.”

 

“You live in that forest? Is there a village settled there?”

 

“Well, there is, but…” She paused a bit. “I don’t live in the village. My house’s actually a bit distant from there.”

 

“You don’t live in the village?” Ayuna tilted her head. “Why?”

 

Liana smiled faintly. “Why not? Living alone is very comfortable. The atmosphere in the village is very rowdy. I enjoy peace and quiet more.”

 

She enjoyed peace and quiet more? Didn’t like living in a rowdy place? Ayuna could definitely relate to that. 

 

She was a NEET in her past life and also a borderline shut-in. As Eric, he still went out from time to time, like when he was out celebrating the new year party with his two buddies before he got transmigrated, but most of the time, he chose to stay at home, enjoying his alone time. Being in a peaceful and quiet atmosphere was a blast for him. He could definitely relate to that.

 

Ayuna nodded understandingly. “I see. Living in peace and quiet sounds like bliss, but you still have to go to the village from time to time, right? Like doing a trade or something?”

 

Liana shook her head. “Well, not really. I haven’t come in contact with the village for a long time now.”

 

Ayuna’s eyes widened. “Really? But what if you get sick? You’d still need to go find some healer, wouldn’t you?”

 

Liana smiled. “Not at all. I rarely get sick, and even if I do, I can take care of myself.”

 

Take care of herself? Ayuna thought back to the conversation they’d had back in the BloodHorn forest and realized that indeed Liana was a healer of some kind. But, if she was a healer, then…

 

“Liana. You told me back then that you’re a healer of some kind, right? But then aren’t you supposed to be in the village? Like, helping people there?”

 

Liana’s smile cramped a bit, but they reverted back to normal right after. “I’m not a village’s healer. Making medicine is the skill I’ve kind of just picked up.”

 

“A skill you’ve kind of just… picked up…?” Ayuna repeated in amazement.

 

That sounded very impressive. She said she’d just picked up the medical skill like it was nothing…

 

Ayuna hadn’t seen much of this world, yet, but from the knowledge she’d got from reading isekai novels, the worlds the protagonists isekaied into were mostly based on medieval Europe where medical stuffs wasn’t that advanced yet. But even so, to be able to pick up some life-saving skill like that was already an impressive deed.

 

Her respect for Liana grew stronger the more she learned about her.

 

Ayuna tilted her head. “How many skills have you picked up. You seem like a very capable person who can do a lot of things.”

 

Liana smiled proudly. “Just a few. I live alone so I have to rely on myself all the time. I’ve picked up all types of skills out of necessity.”

 

Ayuna’s eyes sparkled as she looked at Liana admiringly. “Wow, how admirable~”

 

[+ 15 AP]

 

Liana blushed a bit and smiled confidently. “Yes, I am, aren’t I~?”

 

“Yes, yes, you definitely are~” Ayuna giggled and squeezed Liana’s hand.

 

The two of them advanced forward in a happy atmosphere, chatting away with each other merrily. The system notification rang out constantly as their relationship grew more and more. Though, Ayuna didn’t pay them any mind. She decided to check them out once she got to the safety of Liana’s home.

 

———

 

The duo had crossed the small wooden bridge and had walked another fifteen minutes into the GreyWood forest. Finally, they reached their destination at last.

 

Ayuna looked at the wooden cabin in front of her. No, it could even be called a decent house. It was a nice-looking house made out of wood and logs. It wasn’t big, but it wasn't small either. Just a moderate size that screamed, “there’s only one or two residents living comfortably in this house!” 

 

Surely, a cozy-looking log house.

 

Living in this kind of house surrounded by forest and nature was a dream for a lot of modern people. It could even be said to be a luxury where a lot of rich people would fancy. 

 

In Ayuna’s past life as Eric, as an heir to a rich family, he also had his own log cabin in the woods, on the beach side, and in the mountain. She remembered going there with her family and friends a few times a year for a vacation. Those were good times.

 

Now, seeing such a nice looking log house surrounded by nature while standing beside one of the fantastical races—a cat-woman Liana—Ayuna suddenly felt like she was dreaming. Well, if all these were a dream, then she certainly wouldn’t want to wake up!

 

Ayuna followed Liana into the house. The moment she went inside, she suddenly felt at ease. It wasn’t because of the tensions she’d been piling up the moment she’d woken up in this new world being released—well, maybe that’s part of it—but mostly due to the cozy atmosphere inside.

 

The furniture was mostly made out of wood and some fluffy-looking fabric. There was only one whole room inside but different sections consisting of—sleeping area with one moderate-sized bed, a kitchenette with some medieval-looking utensils, and a large space with a table, a chair, and a wooden bench with a mattress on top (that seems to be a living room).

 

The room was still dark as the windows were closed. Ayuna’s gaze followed Liana as she went and opened every window in the room, letting the sunlight inside, illuminating the room in the golden glow.

 

Ayuna’s eyes sparkled as she looked around the room once more. The golden sunlight made the room look even cozier!

 

“Nice house,” Ayuna said.

 

Liana smiled. “You like it?”

 

Ayuna nodded with a blooming smile. “Very. It looks so cozy!”

 

Liana giggled merrily. “It is, isn’t it?” She went toward the wooden bench with the mattress on top (it kind of looks like a sofa) and plopped on it with a satisfying sigh.

 

She turned to look at Ayuna and patted at the space next to her. “Come here, Ayuna. Today was a tiring day, wasn’t it? I think we deserve some rest, don’t you agree?”

 

Ayuna smiled faintly, nodded, and went to sit next to Liana. She looked around the room once more, admiring the beauty of it. “Truly, the craftsman who built this place is really skilled.”

 

Liana smirked faintly, hopped into a sitting position, and looked at Ayuna. “Maybe she is~”

 

Ayuna looked at Liana and noticed something strange with her expression and the way she spoke. She tilted her head, wondering for a while, until her eyes went wide in realization!

 

“D-Don’t tell me. Y-You…” Ayuna studied Liana's beaming expression once more and said what she’d wanted to say, “You built this place…?”

 

Liana nodded with a proud smile. “Yep.”

 

Ayuna was beyond astonished! She actually built this nice-looking house!? 

 

Sure, it didn’t look that hard to build compared to the modern day building, but to be able to build a house by herself was still beyond astonishing!

 

Ayuna suddenly heard a giggle, breaking her out of her astonishment. Liana was giggling at her as if she had successfully played a prank on someone.

 

Ayuna realized that she might have been fooled and began to pout.

 

Seeing this, Liana giggled louder. After a while she stifled her laugh, wiping a tear in the corner of her eye and said, “Sorry, sorry. You have a very nice expression right there. I couldn’t help myself~”

 

[+ 10 AP]

 

Ayuna pouted some more. Geez, this woman! The nerves!

 

After pretending to be angry for a few seconds, she too broke out into giggles also, and they both laughed together for a while.

 

“But really, though. This house looks really good,” Ayuna said with a serious expression. “I sincerely pay my respect to the one who built it~” 

 

Liana smiled and nodded. “Thank you, Ayuna. I appreciate such kind words~”

 

Ayuna tilted her head and pursed her lips. “No, I was talking about the craftsman who built this house. Not you.”

 

Ayuna smirked. “Why, indeed. But that craftman in question is—” She paused for a second, pointing her thumb finger at herself. “—me~”

 

Ayuna snickered. “Hah! I’m not gonna fall for the same trick twice, you know?”

 

Liana giggled. “I see, I see~” 

 

She placed her hand on Ayuna’s head and began patting it soothingly. 

 

“But really, though. I really built this house by myself…” Her expression suddenly turned melancholy as a faint smile appeared on her face. “For all my life, I always do things by myself. I’ve learned to do a lot of things but never really get a chance to show it to anyone.” She looked at Ayuna with a warm smile. “You are the first person I’ve ever shown anything to.”

 

Ayuna’s eyes widened. 

 

What was this? Was she for real? 

 

Suddenly, the notion of Liana being the one who built such an impressive-looking house wasn’t much of a big deal anymore. Although achieving such a feat alone was unbelievable, if it was someone like Liana, then she might be able to do it. 

 

Ayuna hadn’t known her for that long, but she could tell that Liana was a very admirable and reliable person. She was beautiful and gentle on the outside, could be very vicious in a fight, and was very capable at a lot of things. 

 

Surely, she was…

 

Ayuna caught Liana’s hand on her head, grasping it gently and interlocking her fingers with hers, looked into her eyes and said with a sincere smile. “You really are amazing, Liana.”

 

Liana seemed to receive a huge impact! 

 

She began blushing profusely and went into a daze. 

 

[+ 20 AP]

 

Though, after a while, she snapped out of it and gave Ayuna a very gentle smile. “Thanks, Ayuna. That means a lot to me.”

 

The two girls kept looking and smiling at each other silently for a while.

 

At that very moment, Ayuna really felt like hugging her. She’d been wanting to do this for a while now, and now seemed like the best time of it all! 

 

She didn’t wait further and wrapped her arms around Liana’s body, burying her face in her neck, closing her eyes and letting out a satisfying sigh.

 

Liana was surprised by Ayuna’s sudden gesture, but she didn’t resist. She quickly regained her smile and hugged Ayuna back…

 

[+ 30 AP]

 

Mission Success! Ayuna was beyond happy! 

 

Though, it was regrettable. She actually wanted to bury her face in that pair of soft pillows on Liana’s chest, but she decided this would be enough for now…

 

She had been reincarnated with a dating sim system. Surely, she knew full well what that implied. 

 

Liana was a very beautiful woman—and one with cat ears and cat tail at that! Other than that, she was also good in a fight and very capable at a lot of things. She also had a very gentle personality and was simply delightful. Although they'd just met, Ayuna felt at ease around her.

 

She decided right there and then.

 

Even if the world turned upside down, the heaven collapsed on earth, or the devils in hell came up and terrorized people, she would do it.

 

She wouldn’t let her go.

 

She—would make Liana hers no matter what.