"Running away... it's not cool to run away."
I said in a deliberately nonchalant tone.
Andrea tilted his head to the side. His jewel-like pink eyes blinked slowly. An inexplicable smile slowly, spread across his lips. Not liking that smile for some reason, I spoke as if in protest.
"If you run away just because it's scary, you'll keep running away afterward. It becomes a survival mechanism. That's not really good."
Recalling Cain's words, I found myself convinced once again. There are times when someone, without me even realizing it can understand my true nature. Now that I'm conscious of the truth, it can take over your mind.
I am a natural runaway. Cain made me aware of that.
At that moment, Andrea suddenly pressed my cheeks with one hand. As a result, my cheeks were pressed, and my lips stuck out into a comical pout. Frowning with all my might, I asked with my eyes what he was doing. He shook my face gently from side to side.
"You fool."
"...What?"
"Our guild boasts a success rate of 90%."
Suddenly boasting about your guild?
I looked at him puzzled, but Andrea continued without hesitation.
"But sometimes we miss the target. Why do you think that is?"
"...Because the opponent is too strong?"
"We aim for when the target is off guard. When they're sleeping, eating, resting, or even having sex, there aren't many people stronger than a trained assassin when they are caught off guard. Even if you try to fight back, they'll die quickly without weapons or with sluggish movements."
Andrea released my cheeks. My cheeks and the inside of my mouth felt tingly. As I explored the inside of my mouth with my tongue, Andrea suddenly flicked the tip of my nose with his index finger. I stepped back, holding my nose, and he smiled, lifting his index finger.
"The escape is a basic and instinctive survival strategy. Who cares if it's not cool? What's important is that I live."
Andrea reached out and pulled the door handle. The door opened quietly. There was no one in the corridor. It seemed like Khan and Alan had entered Phlos's room.
"Have you ever used someone else's life as a shield to survive?"
"No?!"
"Have you ever stabbed someone in the back, either physically or psychologically?"
"No!"
"Then Del is neither vile nor cowardly."
He wrapped his arm around my waist. Naturally, my body pressed against his. Andrea's lips, now only an inch closer, let out sweet words.
"Actually, what's important is not whether you run away or not."
"......."
It was truly an angelic face with a devilish whisper.
"Do whatever you want, Del."
***
His words were so cunning that, fitting here and there according to the situation, they could mean anything.
"Yeah, who cares if it's not cool."
Despite Andrea's words, I couldn't help but wonder if sacrificing someone or betraying someone was a big mistake. I was just an ordinary person who didn't want to open my back hole to someone else's dick. It certainly didn't make sense to stand against male protagonists.
First, there's Khan Alexis, the owner of the Ice Prison, towering at nearly 2 meters tall with muscles bulging. He's the guy who can take down a monster in one shot, literally skin it, and wear its fur as clothes. His personality is twisted, and he could be threatening at any moment. Add to that severe mood swings, and touching him the wrong way could lead to sexual torture. So, fighting against him was impossible. Dismissed.
Next is Alan Bates. This divine priest once comforted me in front of my face in a bright and clean priest's outfit. His cock looked so horrifyingly scary-looking that if I met a pervert on the street, I would rip it off his dick and use it as a weapon to defeat both of them. The more I thought about it, the more I realized this guy was the craziest and hopeless. As I speak, my words are getting rough. Anyway, this guy was the most perverted. Trying to fight against him would surely plunge me into mental shock with unimaginable perverted antics. Therefore, Dismissed.
Hunter Mellion. That man... was raising a murderous tiger. As someone who has been crushed by Woofu twice, I knew how heavy and merciless that tiger could be. Even if I tried to fight back and Hunter showed mercy, Woofu wouldn't leave me alone. Naturally, it was also dismissed.
Moreover, even in sports competitions where they face each other head-on, athletes have weight classes. I was in a different class than those three. Again, the right choice to survive was to run away.
"Have you made up your mind?"
Andrea, dressed in a robe distributed from the Magic Tower, covered himself with the black cloak and asked. I was wearing the same clothes.
We were now near a village close to the Magic Tower. If escaping directly seemed daunting, Andrea, who decided to carry me and teleport through a magic circle claimed that if it was too scary to run away, he would just kidnap me, but after thinking about it carefully, I concluded that leaving the Magic Tower was a good choice.
"Khan and Alan entered Phlos's room. Phlos unaware that I was a prisoner in the Ice Prison, was ready to answer without any hesitation to questions from her sponsor.
'Del Narcissus? The apprentice? Yes, I know. He was just here a moment ago? The strange kid is staying on the 99th floor, right? He has a talent for botany.'
That was all she knew about me. But even that was enough. Khan and Alan would have headed straight to the 99th floor, likely figuring out the location of my room. Since the room was opposite to Cain's, they would go and ask him. Cain, due to his personality, might not easily reveal information, but their questions could spark curiosity about my whereabouts. If I were inside the tower, Cain would quickly sense my mana and determine my location. Because of that, leaving the tower was the best option.
Let's hide until Khan and Alan leave the tower. Since both had enemies in the north, they wouldn't stay in the tower too long.
"Just in case it's troublesome to wander around and be noticed, it's better to grab a room and stay in."
Andrea said so, tightening my cloak even more. However, at the mention of grabbing a room, memories of a past incident suddenly surfaced. When I spent a night with Andrea in a room, how embarrassing it was. I still unconsciously punched and kicked the air when I thought about that time.
".......... Can't we get two rooms?"
I asked with a forced casualness. But Andrea seemed to immediately understand my intention. He smiled gently without giving away any hints and nodded.
"Sure. But it has to be the room right next door. That way, I can know right away if anything happens to Del."
"Okay, got it."
We went to the most run-down and shabby inn in the village. The nauseating smell and the unusually damp and dirty inn made it feel strange. The innkeeper was sitting alone, idly playing chess even when a guest arrived. When Andrea tapped the counter with his fist, the innkeeper, looking very annoyed, simply muttered, "3 silver for one night."
Andrea placed 1 gold on the counter. It seemed like he was buying peace with a bribe. The innkeeper sighed deeply and took the gold, but he didn't seem pleased even with the money.
"We won't be having meals. Bath is in the communal bathhouse, available only from 8 PM to 10 PM."
The innkeeper handed over the room keys while saying this. Andrea smiled and accepted the keys. Whether it was from the cold in his smile or something else, the innkeeper slightly tensed his neck.
Andrea took me upstairs. Passing through creaky stairs and stepping on the somewhat grimy corridor, the room we arrived at was as expected – narrow and dirty. After Andrea inspected the room, he nodded.
"It's a bit dirty, but not dangerous."
He left briefly, mentioning that he would check his room. I walked to the window and untied the dusty curtain. Since we were only on the second floor, it was necessary to block the outside. Without the curtain, people walking by could easily make eye contact. Even now, a handsome blond man passing by the inn was turning his gaze in this direction...
"Huh?"
That man... is that Hunter?!