* * *
A voice I didn’t recognize suddenly called out my name, full of irritation.
A mage?
I guess there are plenty of mages who admire Bati too.
Well, he is the strongest human alive, after all!
“He may be strong… but nowhere near as strong as Zerbin!”
Is this guy still going?
Also, aren’t you way weaker than Bati too?
Seriously, how many people in the world aren’t way weaker than Bati?
“The only thing he’s got going is his face! And he’s such a shameless flirt, you can’t even tell if he’s being sincere—!”
Ugh!
I’m not a flirt!
I had planned to just stay nestled in Bati’s arms out of sheer exhaustion, but I’m cancelling that.
Words like “flirt” or “promiscuous” could seriously upset Bati.
I need to clear this up!
I tried to pull away from his arms, but Bati wouldn’t let go.
Instead, he kissed me on the cheek again.
“Ugh…”
He’s doing this on purpose.
It’s like he’s saying he doesn’t care what anyone says.
My heart is pounding.
No, my whole body is trembling.
I couldn’t just sit there doing nothing, so even though I was shaking, I carefully pressed a kiss to Bati’s cheek.
Ah… what the hell.
Seriously, what the hell.
It’s just a kiss, so why is this so embarrassing?
I could feel my face going up in flames.
I was just standing there, but I was burning up.
I guess it’s only natural, being in the middle of a crowded street, getting all this attention.
And I’m someone who’s used to being in the spotlight!
“…Holy shit.”
As soon as I made eye contact with one of my fellow adventurers, he cursed under his breath.
Like he’d seen something he really didn’t want to.
I get it though.
In all my life, before getting involved with Bati, I had never blushed this hard.
“Is he actually serious about this?”
“Wow… What the hell did he do to him?”
Don’t look at me like that.
I’m already mortified.
But I didn’t have to open my mouth to drive away my annoying friends.
Maybe Bati’s patience had finally run out, because suddenly, a chillingly sharp aura of hostility radiated out from him.
It wasn’t directed at me, and I knew that—but I still got goosebumps.
“If you get it, then beat it.”
This is so not how a hero should act!
“Bati, seriously—maybe think about your reputation a little…?”
I whispered frantically, but he didn’t budge.
“You handle that kind of stuff. I’m staying with you.”
T-that’s incredibly touching, but still!
Most people, more concerned about their lives than gossip, backed off.
A few who were still curious about the “Adventurer King’s first love affair” also ended up fleeing because of the intensified murderous aura.
My friends, especially, shot me looks that said, ‘We’re talking about this later’, and bolted faster than anyone.
Typical adventurers, those guys.
In the end, thanks to Bati, the whole street cleared out.
I felt kind of bad for causing such a scene.
But unlike towns filled with regular civilians, this place was mostly crazy mages or adventurers, so I didn’t feel that bad.
If he hadn’t scared them off, we probably would’ve been swarmed by nosy onlookers dying to pry into our love life from A to Z and wouldn’t have been able to get anything done.
It was a bit extreme, but still.
“A distinguished guest has arrived! What brings you here today, sir?”
A mage suddenly popped out.
Slick and smiling, but his face was pale, probably from fear of Bati.
Judging by how he came out to deal with us, he was probably the most powerful mage around here.
The really strong ones were likely holed up in their labs, busy with experiments.
That made him more of a middle manager type.
Probably the most overworked job of them all.
“We’re here to buy an artifact that enhances mental strength.”
We weren’t here to torment innocent mages doing their best to smile.
As soon as I gave a straightforward answer, he seemed relieved, his expression easing up.
“Right this way, then! I’ll scour every stall in the Grid market to find something worthwhile for you!”
“Let’s go, Bati.”
I subtly reached for his hand.
Bati took mine immediately.
My heart fluttered at the warmth of his touch.
Hand in hand, we walked down the street.
Young mages called out, hawking their wares, an endless stretch of shops ahead.
From a quick glance, everything looked kind of the same.
The mage who offered to guide us darted around to the various stores, gathering up any artifact related to mental strength.
I wasn’t sure if it was fear of Bati or just a desire to get rid of us quickly before we stirred up more trouble.
Either way, I appreciated the efficiency.
After sweeping through the entire market, he gathered all the artifacts in one place—and the pile was huge.
But even with all that volume, I wasn’t satisfied.
“This is it?”
It was all junk.
Not a single decent item.
I knew what the good stuff felt like—one time, during a noble’s commission, I’d borrowed an artifact when sneaking into a political rival’s mansion.
The real deal gives off a static-like zap when you touch it, like it’s brimming with magical power.
That subtle zap must be the force of the magic it holds.
But I didn’t feel that at all from anything here. Meaning: nothing usable.
“…I’m sorry.”
The mage bowed deeply.
“Recently, monster numbers have skyrocketed, so the nobles snatched up all the mental-enhancing artifacts. This is all that’s left.”
Ugh, of course.
The good stuff’s already in the hands of the nobles.
They probably sent out their knights with artifacts to deal with the monsters.
You’d need them to fight mind-affecting creatures…
Bati and I have money too! Money!
“We’ll take everything here.”
What?
Maybe Bati doesn’t know how to judge artifact quality, since he’s never needed to use one?
“These things are expensive just because they’re called artifacts, but they’re practically useless! We’re better off not buying them!”
There’s so much too!
“You said you’d get me everything you could, didn’t you?”
Bati was incredibly calm. I felt embarrassed for shouting like that.
I mean, yes, I did say that—but I didn’t expect him to literally buy everything.
“There’s no harm in keeping them.”
“I guess, but still…”
Mental strength was crucial in fighting demons.
Stocking up was definitely the smart move.
There’d come a time when even the weakest boost would matter.
“You’re also the one who said we can always make more money.”
“…”
Yeah, I did say that.
But now that he’s spending the money he earned through hard work, why does it feel so wasteful?
More wasteful than if it were my own!
“What are you doing? Start packing.”
While I was shivering over how much money Bati had spent, he had already bought a mountain of artifacts.
Still… they’ll come in handy somehow, right?
And honestly, the fact that he believed my words enough to invest this much money was kind of touching.
If he didn’t truly believe me, frugal Bati would never have spent that kind of fortune.
“Thanks… You’re the kindest, coolest hero in the world.”
Worst case, I’ll just wear rings on all ten fingers and pierce a few more holes in my ears to put the earrings on.
“I’m only keeping my word,” Bati said calmly, though he seemed to be in a good mood as he pulled me into a hug.
I felt happy too.
* * *
