132 -) Homecoming (1) (Volume 3)
Year 1452, month 08, day 08
As the carriage rolled forward and the rumbling sounds of other wagons and caravan personnel filled the air, three girls sat huddled together in the back, their expressions half-eager and half-sad.
Despite the noisy atmosphere, the girls were not eager to talk for some reason. They either had complicated emotions or something on their mind. Especially the girl with brown pointy ears on top of her head; she looked particularly troubled.
“... Huuuh!” She sighed in the end. The atmosphere must have oppressed her, so she decided to break the tense situation. “I can’t believe we are going to see father and mom. It has been a long time, hasn't it?”
“Yes. I hope they are okay.” Woya murmured and joined, then continued after lifting her head. “Mom was looking so sad before we parted ways. And Father... he was also in bad shape, despite the fact that he was the one who sold us.” Her voice trailed off into a faint murmur, a trace of resentment in her tone.
Wyn could not say anything to defend her father, although she was a bit restless since she was their father and it was instilled into their bones that they could not speak harshly about their father, even behind his back.
“... It has been a long time, and we have spent most of this time with our master. I nearly feel like I am departing from home rather than returning home after a long time.” Wyn added in the end, after waiting for a while, then continued with a bit of a worried tone, “I hope master would be okay without us around.”
“... I already miss the master…” Woya added while looking toward the road they had passed.
Then the two of them grimaced and stopped talking again. Despite it being just the exact day they departed, they are already in a bad mood. It is understandable since this is the first time they will be separated from Han this long.
“C-come on, big sister Wyn, big sister Woya! Don’t be like that!” The other girl, Elaris, who has been listening to them with worry the whole time, interjected. She seemed to be unable to continue to watch them act sad any longer, so she decided to cheer them on, “Who do you think the big brother Han is? Wasn’t he already alone before he had you? A-also, we just departed today. How will you withstand the whole journey if you start to complain from the start, huh?”
She looked like lecturing them while she put both her hands on her waist and straightened her back. She would look angry and authoritarian to anyone if they didn't know her. However, knowing who she is, the girls didn’t pay much attention to her. If anything, Wyn looked indifferent while Woya looked offended.
“Look here, Elaris. You can’t talk to your seniors like that.” Woya chided as if teaching her little sister. “I know the master will survive, of course. But will he be as comfortable as we were around? Won’t he have to take care of everything himself? Not to mention the Questers Guild. He has been much busier since he started to found that organization. He will have a much tougher time without us around.” She looked cute rather than frightening despite being mad. Then her tone was a bit shaken, and she lowered her voice as she continued. “A-and, you know… He won’t have anyone around t-to accompany him at the b-bed.” She said while she blushed like a rose.
“Whatever it is, I would prefer to be beside him,” Wyn added without changing her indifferent tone.
“Hmph! You worry too much.” Elaris pouted and tried to retaliate despite being clearly shaken. “You know how popular Big Brother Han is. He can easily find another woman if he wants company. Y-you know, there are many cute girls around there…”
“Come on, Elaris. How can you say that?” Woya seemed frightened by the idea as she raised her voice without noticing. “The master is not a person who lies around with just anyone.”
“W-what do you mean by just anyone? You can’t have him just for yourself, big sister Woya.” Elaris jumped.
“Huhuhu.” Just as Elaris got worked up, Wyn started to chuckle. “So this is all about that.” She looked at Elaris with a mocking smile. “You know that it is not our fault that the master refused to take you to his bed, right, Elaris? Come here, let the big sister cuddle you.” She said as she opened her arms wide.
“W-what are you talking about, big sis? I didn’t talk about myself. I-I am fully confident that my big brother will hold me w-when I am big… enough?” Her words trailed off as she looked toward her chest.
She really believed so; at least she wanted to believe.
After Elaris started to live with Han and her sisters, she got used to them in no time. Although the first few days were painful after her loss of the party members who were like siblings to her, everyone’s attention made her recover quite fast.
She was given one of the rooms on the second floor. She didn’t notice at first, because of her own problems, but as time passed, she started to understand what kind of relationship the girls and Han had.
She did want to meddle at first, but since she was at that age, she started to ask Wyn and Woya questions. Wyn wasn’t eager to give info about her master, and Woya had startled whenever the topic came up and just ran away.
In the end, she succumbed to her curiosity. One night, she decided to peek from the keyhole into the master room when she began to hear strange noises coming through. She was curious but afraid at the same time. It was unknown to her, and she was afraid of getting caught. Despite that, she chose to quench her curiosity.
What she saw was beyond her expectations. The kind big brother she knew was nowhere to be seen. He was frightening. He was tossing aside, groping girls here and there, pulling their hair and tails, and doing various things to them. He was clearly bullying Woya and Wyn. The worst thing was that the three of them were completely naked.
She couldn’t comprehend at first. She was aware of what they were doing as she wasn't an idiot or a little kid. However, as soon as she put her eyes on the three fierce animals, she lost her ability to think for a few minutes. When she regained her focus, she started to see details she had missed.
Despite her worry, he wasn’t worried at all. Yes, Han, whom she was watching, and Han, whom she knew, looked completely different, but he wasn't trying to harm the girls. And the girls weren’t trying to get away from him at all, even reflexively. If anything, they were clinging to him as if they wanted him to focus on them more. However, the most apparent clue made Elaris sure that this was not bullying; no, it was actually the opposite.
She saw the faces of the girls. As soon as she gained focus and noticed how they looked, she understood that the girls were not in any way in harm. They were rather in high ecstasy. They were clinging to Han, looking like about to pass out when he was onto them and looked at them with affection as if to ask for his attention when he was onto the other.
She looked dizzy. She could not tear her gaze away from them. She stood there until her legs started to shake. Since she was crouching down, her legs started to hurt. It was also what pulled her away from the scene. She was tired and getting sleepy. Satisfied her curiosity, she decided to return to her room for today, as she continued to hear that the others had no intention to sleep just yet.
After that day, she continued to watch them stealthily every night. On the fourth night, something weird happened. As they were doing what they were always doing, she thought that her eyes met with Han’s. She shivered and quickly returned to her room.
She was cautious and restless in the morning. She thought that she was in trouble. She wasn’t sure whether Han had noticed her or not, but it did not help to alleviate her worries. Unfortunately, after breakfast, Han left the home, and Wyn and Woya called her with a bit of a serious expression.
“... You know what you did wrong, right, Elaris?” Woya looked down at sitting Elaris for a while and asked with a bit of a stern and motherly voice as if to lecture her daughter.
Knowing her fault, she always kept down. Then answered, “Yes. I am sorry.”
“You know it is wrong to peep at others without permission, right? Why did you do that?” Wyn joined in and asked as if wanting a reason behind it.
“... I am sorry. I was just curious. It was my first time seeing something like that.” Elaris said with a dejected voice. “B-but… How did you know?” She asked hesitantly.
“Of course, it was the master. He said that it feels like someone is watching us a few times. Then he said that he saw you peeping from the keyhole.” Wyn answered and continued, “He wasn’t angry, so don’t worry too much. However, he asked us to inform you that what you did was wrong.”
“... I understand. I apologize; I was just curious, a-and… It was so intense.” She apologized as she trailed off her sentence shyly. Then she added reluctantly, “B-but… C-can’t I also join?” Like that, she dropped the bomb.
“Huh?!” Wyn and Woya were both surprised by what they heard.
“...” Woya tried to say something as her mouth opened and closed several times, but couldn’t utter a word. As Wyn looked intently toward her, Elaris had already stopped looking down and looked at them with expectant eyes.
“... Why do you ask that?” Wyn continued to look at her a bit more and asked afterward.
“... I saw you. And I heard you. You looked like a mess.” She said with a resolved tone, and what she said made both Wyn and Woya flinch. “However, you also looked like you were enjoying it so much. I-I just… I just felt jealous of you two. I am sorry.” She reluctantly added the last part.
“...” The girls did not respond and looked toward her. Wyn had no emotions on her face while Woya looked worried.
“Okay,” Wyn answered in the end.
That made Woya flinch and turn toward her in a hurry. “W-Wyn! Y-you can’t decide that on your own—” Woya tried to object, but was cut off.
“I understand. I will tell the master about it.” Wyn is assured she would convey Elaris’s will to Han.
“Wyn, are you sure it is okay? Didn’t the master order us to reprimand her?” Woya asked with worry. It was clear that what she was worried about was something different.
“It is okay. The master just wanted her to be aware of what she did wrong. And Woya…” She said and turned toward Woya with a bitter expression as she continued, “Since the master got her home, he might have already planned to get her to his bed. So don’t try to stop his will.”
“... I see.” Woya did not pursue any further.
When Han came at dinner time, they informed him about it after the meal. Contrary to their thoughts and worries, Han refused to let Elaris into his bed. Elaris seemed flustered at first, but she was convinced by Han, albeit barely.
“It is not that there is something wrong about you, Elaris. If anything, you are the cutest girl I have seen so far. It is just that I am not feeling that way toward you yet, and… You are still a bit young for me… I think.” Han tried to explain his reasoning to her. But his eyes focusing on her chest area a bit during the pause did not escape Elaris’ attention.
“Huh? S-so because I am not big enough? I-is that the problem?” She dejectedly asked as she also looked to her own chest and continued as if in denial, “I-if it is really about the age, I already passed 15. So it should be fine, right?”
“A-ahem, hmm!” Han coughed nervously. “N-no? I already know that you are 16, already past the age of maturity. I have no problem with the minimum age limit for your age or others. Right, I may feel a bit uneasy, but it should not be that much of a problem.” He frantically tried to explain his reasoning, then started to calm down. “Anyway, to indulge that kind of intimacy, we should get to know each other more, and even if I had no problems with your age, I still prefer that your body be more… mature. So we don’t have to be in a hurry.” In the end, he firmly stated his terms.
To Han, he couldn’t treat Elaris the same as the twins. The one reason was that she is younger, and the other reason was that she was not a slave like the twins. Even though Han wasn’t treating them like one, it was still the truth.
This was the reason why Elaris couldn’t help but want her body to develop as soon as possible. And she tried to express her frustration by voicing it in another way. However, in the end, it backfired.
“Huhuhu” “Hhahah” Wyn and Woya started to laugh when they saw Elaris’ frustration.
“... Hmph! A-anyway, you are returning to your hometown after so much time. Aren’t you happy?” Elaris watched them laugh for a few seconds and pouted. Then asked to change the frustrating topic. “Come to think of it, you hardly mention your hometown and your parents to me. What kind of place is there?” She then kept her cool and genuinely asked.
“... Hmm?” The twins stopped laughing as they wiped away their tears and looked toward Elaris again. “It is a mid-sized town that is not very far away from the main trade road toward Yargan. That is why, although it may seem like it is for us to visit our home, our main objective is to establish a foothold there for our master’s guild.” Wyn started to mention their hometown and why they are going there besides visiting their parents and home.