As I open my eyes, I see Yuna-san staring at me with a gentle smile in her eyes. Both of us are still buck naked on the bed, facing each other. My cheeks redden as I recalled the intense sex we have earlier. Couldn’t bear her teasing gaze anymore, I quickly lower my head, hiding my already red beet face.

"Fufufu~ I’ve never expected the usually serious Eve-chan to turn into a beast when she gets into bed."

Yuna-san’s teasing words make me fluster even more. Perhaps due to my libido, I always get swept away and can’t control myself well when having sex.

It’s so embarrassing…

"Um, I'm sorry. In the end, I'm the only one who feels good..."

"That’s not it, Eve-chan. I've had my share of fun too. In fact, that was the first time I felt so good. You should be more confident in yourself."

After saying that, she leans her head closer, lifts my chin with her hand, and gives me a gentle peck at my lip while lightly caressing my cheek.

Her words and actions make me a little bit relieved. I’m glad that Yuna-san felt good too.

However, I still sense uneasiness in her eyes.

Why? If both of us felt good, why did she still have that worried look on her face?

As expected, she said those words just to comfort me, didn’t she?

My eyebrows crease into a frown as I start doubting myself once again.

Sensing my anxiety, Yuna-san smiles wryly and pulls my head to her firm but comforting bosom while wrapping me with her slender yet strong arms. The natural fragrance that is emitted by her body, which smells like the sun, gradually makes my mood lighten up.

"There, there. Calm down, Eve-chan. You always think too much, what a serious person Eve-chan is."

She pats my head several times while trying to comfort me.

It’s not good, I’m already a mature adult, but I always get spoiled by Yuna-san’s kindness. If this continues, she’ll see me as a troublesome child.

She hugs me even tighter, refusing to let me go as I wiggle around trying to get off her arms.

"I’m fine already, Yuna-san. Can you let me go?"

"Really? But it looks like you’re very comfortable. Why don’t you stay like this for a little longer?"

Letting out a resigned sigh, I give up trying to convince her and let myself enjoy her warmth until she releases me on her own.

"So, why were you frowning like that?"

"That’s…" I pause a moment, trying to arrange my words. "I just feel that I’m really not good and that’s why Yuna-san tried to comfort me even though you’re not satisfied at all."

Hearing my answer, Yuna-san let out a chuckle, which actually rings pleasant in my ears. Why did she suddenly laugh at me? I’m not trying to make joke here!

Her finger suddenly pokes my bulging cheek as I unconsciously pout while she watches me with an amused look.

"Hey Eve-chan. You’re actually quite a stubborn person, aren’t you? Haven’t I already said that you’ve done a good job before? That was the first time I screamed so loudly when making out, you know?"

She speaks so frankly that I can’t help but blush again, which earns me another chuckle from Yuna-san before her expression turns more solemn.

"Actually, I’m worried about something else. Eve-chan, how do you feel right now? I mean about the PKers."

Ah…

Because the pleasure from the sex earlier was so intense, I momentarily forgot about the cruel thing that happened to me before.

It’s true that the experiences have instilled a fear in my heart, but I think it’s alright now.

Rather than fear, anger blazes on my heart as I recall those PKers right now. I can’t wait to have my revenge on them. Well, not that I know their identity, though. They wore black masks, so I couldn’t see their faces clearly.

Furthermore, [Eternal Phantasia Online] strives to be as realistic as it can be, so just like in the real world, we couldn’t know their characters’ names except if they told us themselves or were introduced to them by someone else.

Fortunately, I can still remember their overall figures and appearance. There’s no way I could ever forget someone who killed me in such a brutal fashion: the joyful laughter in their eyes as they watched me scream; their menacing figures that were towering over me as they kicked, fisted, sliced, and shredded me over and over.

As the painful memory replayed in my head unwantedly, faint warmth and softness encase the shaking me, and strong yet gentle palms get a hold of my trembling, clenched fist.

"It’s terrible."

"Yes, yes."

"I cried… they ignored me… I begged… they mocked me, hurted me more… they laughed at me… It was terrible…"

"It’s okay… It’s okay now, no one will hurt you here…"

I borrow Yuna-san’s shoulder for a while. Her skin is wet, certainly not out of sweat. I pour my feelings into her; she receives them in silence without a word of complaint. I’m really, really being spoiled by her kindness.

This was just a game, a reality that I could just abandon at any time. In fact, I should just do that, returning to my dull reality where there’ll be no malice and pain that would be done to me out of other people’s whims.

I could do that, but I can’t.

This place has people who accept me for who I’m. I made connections that I can’t bear to abandon. So, I have to brave myself to move forward, facing the fear and pain as I protect the place and people precious to me.

"Hey, I don’t mean to…"

"It’s okay Yuna-san. I’m alright now. Thank you for taking care of me."

"Fufufu~ don’t mind it."

It’s a lie, but I can’t make Yuna-san more worried than she already is, so I force myself to smile at her, which she's kind enough not to point out.

"So, what’s about those PKers?"

"They came in a group right? It’s most likely they are a part of Thieves’ guild. PKer doesn’t usually work in a group, especially in this game where working in a party means that you expose yourself to each other."

"Thieves’ Guild again?"

I grimace at the mention of that damn guild. Why did they, ever since I heard of them, become more and more like a den of evil? Is that kind of group really necessary? Why did people leave them alone with such an atrocity?

I can’t understand it at all.

"Well… just like how birds with the same feathers flock together, so do mud and filth stick at each other. That’s happened in the real world, and so did here."

I nod at Yuna-san’s word. The world isn’t just flowers and rainbows, there’s also the dark side in human hearts. I understand that much.

But still…

"Anyway, there's a more important thing to do. You should check your inventory."

I have no idea why Yuna-san told me so, but I do it anyway.

As I open my status window, my eyes turn into saucers in shock.

Oh my Lord.

I can’t believe what I see.

"My status… and my items… all decrease in a half! And I'm down by 1 level too!"

Yuna-san nods and lets out a bitter smile.

"This is the first time you died in a game, right? That’s the status penalty when you’re killed, either by the hand of a monster or another player. In addition, when you are PKd you will lose half of your current items in inventory. If you store weapons in there, they'll be instantly dropped when you’re PKed. The status penalty lasts for 24 hours, so we need to be careful."

"It’s harsh…"

Not only me that has half of my items lost, but Yuna-san has also suffered the same fate. Half of our hard work goes to waste just like that.

"Anyway, it’s good that you experienced it early on so you can make preparations in the future, don’t you think?"

Yeah… I need to be more careful in the next hunt. I also need to find another way to secure my items later on.

Fortunately, I didn’t lose anything important this time.

"Yosh. For now, let’s go back to Lucia’s store to deliver the hemp plant. We spent much longer time than we thought."

"Yes."

That’s right.

We still need to deliver the goods to Lucia-san. I almost forgot because there is so much going on today.

Well… to be honest, it’s not all bad for me though.

At least, I can grow closer to Yuna-san this time, despite only having a physical relationship… for the time being.

Maybe I’m a bit greedy, but just like Celia, I don’t want it to be one time only.

I want to get closer to Yuna-san.

"Umm, Yuna-san..."

She quickly catches on to what I'm trying to say here.

"Fufufu, of course, it's fine. Eve-chan is so cute, and above all, it feels good. I'd like to do it again with Eve-chan in the future~."

Yuna-san winks at me and gives me a playful smile.

In such a way, I’m able to maintain my relationship with Yuna-san in the future.