When Noah and Dahlia exited the brothel, walking down the crowded and loud red-light street, she wished to ask him where they were going but the visibly perturbed expression on his face stopped her from speaking out. Deciding to allow Noah to contemplate whatever he was bothered by in peace, she simply looked around carefully as he seemed to be not even watching where he walked. They entered an alley they weren’t in before but Noah walked with a determination as if he knew where he was going.

Finally, after a few minutes of contemplating Noah stopped smacking his forehead with his palm.

“Of course. Damn, I am an idiot.” He said with a sigh.

“What’s wrong, Master?” Asked Dahlia.

“I am sorry.” Said Noah turning to her with a shy smile. “There’s just been something bothering me but I could not figure out what.”

“I noticed. You found an answer, Master?”

“Yeah. I can’t believe it took so long. It hasn’t been long since I left my birth home and already it seems like a distant past. I haven’t been away even close to half a year yet I've struggled to remember things from back then. My life recently just has been so hectic it feels like years instead of months.

Dahlia simply nodded in silence watching him.

“When Isabella said about the bachelor party of a local lord’s son it irked me but I simply could not figure out why, that’s what I was contemplating. This is the Western region. The place I grew up in. My family knows every noble in this region, so it dawned on me that I might know the ones we are targeting?”

“You want to cancel the plan?” Asked Dahlia.

“No.” Said Noah, a strange smirk liting his lips. “But I might want to add some flair to it depending on who it is.” He said before closing his eyes and calling out to Theressa through their connection, asking her to call Isabella and ask the name of the family they were going to rob.

But before she even replied a small half-transparent window opened up in the side of his view. His ‘Roleplay’ skill that, as Noah learned, reacted in specific situations relatable to his system advance because it was recycled from a special guide function within the system, gave a list of choices indicating that Noah was on the right path in his contemplation.

A few seconds later Tessa contacted him recounting Madam Irene’s words, making a smirk on Noah’s lips widen into an all-out smile as his face took on a wicked tint.

“Oh, you poor bastards. This has to be fate.” Said Noah tapping with his finger on one of the choices that the Roleplay skill presented him.

“Ugy.” Said Noah in his head. “Give me your worst idea.”

“Oh! Now that, I absolutely approve, user.” Said Ugy’s voice as he watched the sentence ‘Ruin the party’, being chosen by Noah.

“We should go join the party then.” Said Noah.

“Ummm…Master?” Sounded Dahlia’s concerned voice from his side, which plunged Noah back to reality, making him realize that he stood in the middle of an alley with his finger extended forward into empty space and muttering to himself with a scary smile on his face.

“Khem…Sorry. Been having conversations inside my head.” Said Noah, his cheeks going slightly red.

“I figured this much. What I am more concerned about is where are you going?” Asked Dahlia raising an eyebrow.

Noah looked around and noticed that he stood in a quite familiar place. It was the alley that led to public bath houses behind the inn that he was staying at the last time he was in Greenville town. Looks like he walked the familiar road from the red lights district to the inn unconsciously while deep in thought. This made his thoughts turn to the time when he was living here, as well as…Lina. 

When his thoughts swirled to the sweet girl he met at the reception of Adventures Guild he felt being a big asshole. He left without telling her anything as he was afraid to bring danger to her. Then everything just swirled so fast around him that he barely had time to think about her. 

Noah did feel occasional pulls at his skill ‘He who hears the call’ from her, which means she still kept thinking of him and calling out to him in her dreams or fantasies, but he never ‘answered’ these calls. He never went to meet her in dreams again. Deep inside he thought that it might have been better for her not interacting with him. To not get into all his trouble. At the same time, he felt like a total prick for making choices for her and simply ghosting her. There was also his promise to her he never fulfilled. And his father taught him to always fulfill promises. Even those that were given lightly.

Noah sighed heavily. This was not the time to dwell on it.

“Let’s go back to the forest.” Said Noah stretching his hand to Dahlia.

Dryad looked at him for a moment seeing his mood change and nodded slightly without commenting before they both disappeared from the alley.

*****

“You’re drinking too much lately, Ria.” Said calmly Granny Paula as she dragged her team’s ranger Ria out of the bar holding her by the scruff to help her walk straight.

“Why is that a worry all of a sudden?” Asked the girl with a slur. “It’s our day off. The brats went away. Why can’t I drink some?”

“I did not say you can’t. I said too much.” Answered Paula.

“It’s fine, I can detoxify in a second anyway.”

“Which is bothering me that you don’t. What’s on your mind lately?” Asked Paula.

“Damn, Gran. Why are you going all shrink on me? Nothing going on. I just felt like getting drunk more often lately.” Answered the girl as her demeanor started to change, her expression more sober by the second.

Paula did not say anything for a long time, simply walking at Ria’s side as they moved through the town streets toward their inn.

“You liked Rei or something?” Asked Paula finally after a moment.

“Pffft! What!? No. Where did that come from?” Asked Ria almost choking from surprise.

“You’ve been drinking more ever since their marriage with that Catgirl Keena. So I wondered…” Said Paula calmly.

“No. It’s not like that. It’s their behavior that irks me. Every time I go to the guild the atmosphere there is so sugary it makes me want to puke damn it. That cat bitch just keeps rubbing into everyone's eyes their lovey-dovey relationship with Rei, with that disgusting smug face of hers clinging to her hubby like suckling baby, showing him off to everyone. Look what a guy I have…tsk…fucking annoying.” Said Ria rolling her eyes. Her gait now was completely straight and had no indication she could barely walk when they left the bar.

Paula remained silent, simply listening and waiting for Ria to continue.

“Well, not all can find a decent fucking guy, bitch, so take what you found and fuck off.” Grumbled Ria gazing down as they walked.

“So it pisses you off that even that catgirl found a man? You want a dick, go get it, why get drunk so much?” Asked Paula.

“It’s not…ughh…I can have a fuck any time I want…like there is no lack of sex in my life, but…there is no one I would want to…you know….do twice or something.”

“I see. So you are jealous that you can't find a decent boyfriend.” Said Paula.

“No!...well…maybe. But still, that bitch just keeps rubbing it into eyes as if knows I am jealous. Bitch.”

“Then find yourself one, what's the deal?”

“Yeah well, I was going to but then you showed up and ruined my plans for the night."

“You should stop searching for a quick fucks just like the guy you were almost blowing in the bar and look at decent guys if you want a real boyfriend. And stop adding to your slut reputation. Who would want to go out with a lose woman?” Said Paula.

“Wow, Gramma, as if you are an example of decency.” Joked Ria with a smirk.

“I am not the one whining about my boyfriend here.” Said Paula

“Ugh. It’s not about me being slutty, ok? It’s like there are just fucking no decent guys in this shit hole at all. This is adventurers town for fuck sake. Half a town is noble silky pants coming out of his mansion for the first time in his pampered life. The other is shitten pants dirty villager coming here for glory and barely a screw in the head to hold the sword with a sharp edge toward the enemy instead of themselves. The ones that have a few decent screws are too old for me to even consider. Adventurers grow brains with their rank and get barely above a monkey level by the time their willy dries off. Who are these decent guys you talk about?”

“There are if you just looked.”

“Pfft. Gran…You start getting dementia or something. You forget who I am? Believe me…no one looks better than me.”

“I know what you're capable of, brat!” Said Paula lightly smacking the girl on the back of her head but even just that ‘slightly’, made the girl stumble with a scrunched in pain face and rub her head. 

“I taught you all you know. What I mean is not your skill. Not your eyes…but…just look at the people as people, instead of what it is you see through the system. You may be addicted to the use of your eye’s ability too much, Ria. You use them for every slight thing to see more but that makes you miss the most crucial part.” Said Paula before stopping and noticing that Ria suddenly stopped.

She turned back and saw Ria extending her hand to the side, smacking her palm into the chest of a man who was just walking by and stopping him. The man looked back at the girl with an expression of bewilderment on his face before he gazed back at her companion. Then his face lost a few shades as fear flushed him, while his eyes kept jumping from one woman to another.

“I..is th…the.. there a prom..blem ladies?” Asked the man stuttering as he recognized who they were.

“Where were you this night?” Asked Ria, her face an emotionless mask.

“Wha..what?” Asked the man his legs shaking.

“I asked, where were you coming from, right now? Don’t fucking make me repeat it again.” Said Ria. 

Granny Paula simply stood at her side with a raised eyebrow not understanding what the ranger girl was doing, but kept her face as emotionless as her.

“Red lights district.” Said the man with a trembling voice. “I am sorry!” 

“Why the fuck you apologize to me? Fuck off.” Said Ria, shoving the man away. The guy stumbled, barely holding himself from falling, and started to run away.

“What’s the point you tried to make?” Aske Paula.

“No point, Granny. That guy…he had Noah’s spirit trace on him. It’s faint so I couldn’t see the trace clearly through the street. It disperses too much in all the surrounding spirit traces as a fog. So I thought of asking.”

“Noah’s? Here? Is it a new or old trace?” Asked Paula surprised.

“Looks fresh. Less than an hour of degrading. But too dispersed. They must have simply bumped into each other on the street.”

“That little….!” Hissed Paula. “He comes back after making everyone worry so much and the first thing he does is visit a brothel? That brat has some nerve!” She added her fist clenching so hard that an air cracked around it.

“So do I notice the most crucial part or not?” Asked Ria with a smirk.

“You missed the whole point of my words, brat. Let’s go for a walk. I feel like visiting the red light district today.”

“Woohoo. Party continues! You should have said from the get-go that you wanted some dick too, I would have found you some old….oops” Said Ria dodging an almost flash-like swipe of Paula’s hand, that could have sent her flying if she was slowed by just a fraction of a second.

"Shut it." Growled Paula. "If I find that brat having a party there, I'll ruin more than a party for him."