Chapter 247: Who Has the Best Boyfriend?
Alexandra logged in shortly after sunrise and opened her friends list before the Light Tree’s glow had fully faded from her vision. Every familiar name was gray, but she found Martin’s first.
Of course I checked his name first.
He was probably already at work. Katherine and Elisebeth had schedules of their own, while Cassandra rarely had a morning she could truly call free. Forest Hidden had not fully woken either. Only a few players wandered beneath the Light Tree, and most looked as though they had logged in before remembering to wake themselves up.
Alexandra stopped beside the bench where her party usually met and searched the canopy above.
She could not pick out the branch where she and Martin had ended their date, but her eyes kept trying. Somewhere up there, he had listened when she stopped joking, admitted that he wanted to try the future they had discussed, and asked her on another date himself.
Her fingers touched her lips before she caught herself. Alexandra lowered her hand and checked the nearby paths, but nobody appeared to be watching.
She opened her pet menu.
"Come here, Kumoe."
White light gathered beside the bench and expanded until San Kumoe appeared within it.
The three-headed wolf had long since outgrown the tiny pup Alexandra could carry against her chest. She was now roughly the size of an adult dog, with thick white fur, three wagging tails, and enough strength to knock Alexandra over whenever all three heads demanded affection at once.
Kumoe bounded forward with the curious left head barking excitedly. She planted her front paws against Alexandra’s waist, and the eager head immediately began licking her cheek. The sleepy middle head contributed an enormous yawn, while the right head looked past Alexandra toward the empty path, apparently checking whether she had brought anyone more interesting.
Alexandra smiled despite herself.
"Good morning, my beautiful girl."
The left head barked and resumed licking her. The middle one closed her eyes again, while the right continued looking inconvenienced by the early summon.
Alexandra sat on the bench, and Kumoe immediately crowded in beside her. Two heads stretched across her lap while the curious one sniffed at her dress, clearly searching for breakfast.
"I need an impartial opinion," Alexandra said.
All six ears shifted toward her.
Crossing one leg over the other, she slipped into the bright, polished voice of a television host addressing a respected guest.
"Today, we are joined by San Kumoe, one of Forest Hidden’s most promising young beasts. She is an experienced dungeon hunter, a future terror of the battlefield, and the only member of Night Espresso with three times the usual number of opinions."
The left head’s tongue hung from the side of her mouth. The middle one slept through the introduction, while the right offered a single unimpressed blink.
"A difficult audience," Alexandra murmured.
She reached into her inventory and removed a small leather pouch. The scent of dried meat woke Kumoe’s middle head at once, and all three noses swung toward the treats.
Alexandra hid the pouch behind her back.
"No bribery until the interview is over."
The left head whined.
"You’ll survive."
After clearing her throat, Alexandra restored her professional smile.
"First question. Who has the best boyfriend?"
The left head barked before Alexandra had even finished. A soft, delayed woof came from the middle, while the right checked the path behind Alexandra once more, perhaps making sure Martin was not about to appear, before adding a single bark of her own.
Alexandra nodded with satisfaction. "Unanimous. Correct."
Martin had never officially used the word boyfriend. Still, he had been the one to ask for their next date.
That was close enough for a private conversation with her dog.
"Second question. Who has the most handsome boyfriend?"
All three answered at once, though their eyes remained fixed on the pouch behind Alexandra’s back.
"You aren’t even pretending this is about Martin."
The left head licked her wrist.
"That will not improve your score."
Alexandra leaned closer and lowered her voice.
"Who has the most perverted boyfriend?"
The curious head tilted sideways, and the sleepy one yawned. On the right, Kumoe’s gaze slowly dropped from Alexandra’s face to her chest.
Alexandra stared at her.
The head stared back without a trace of shame.
"He had permission."
One white ear twitched.
"I guided his hand there myself. If anyone was being perverted, it may have been me."
The right head continued looking at her chest.
"That was not an invitation to judge me harder."
Encouraged by their sister, the other two heads barked as well.
"You’re all traitors."
Alexandra lightly pinched the tip of the right ear, but Kumoe responded by shoving that head beneath her palm and demanding scratches. Alexandra’s stern expression lasted less than two seconds.
Soon, she was rubbing behind all six ears, moving from one head to the next until Kumoe relaxed against her. The curious head stretched farther across her lap, the sleepy one pressed into her stomach, and even the judgmental right head closed her eyes beneath Alexandra’s fingers.
Alexandra looked down at them.
"All right. One real question."
The change in her voice caught Kumoe’s attention. One by one, the heads lifted.
"Who has the boyfriend who actually listens when I stop joking?"
The left head nudged Alexandra’s hand. The middle one rested her chin against Alexandra’s thigh, while the right watched her without glancing toward the treats.
Alexandra’s teasing smile softened.
"That one wasn’t for the snack."
When Martin nearly fell from the Light Tree, she had expected him to make a joke and move on. Instead, he had listened when she explained why it frightened her.
Later, when she admitted how jealous the harem might make her, he had not tried to soothe her with a perfect promise he could never keep. He had simply said he would pay attention and that she did not have to deal with everything alone.
She had kept thinking about that answer.