363. Joint Passion
●
Even though the world had settled and an unprecedented era of peace had arrived, the landscape of Kasa Gada remained unchanged.
In other words, even after Kasa Gada ascended to the position of Chief, wielding an unrivaled power, his relationship with his granddaughter remained almost the same.
Dinner was always simple. According to the custom of the tribal alliance, regardless of social status, there were no servants. The family shared the food prepared by the family.
Although Kasa’s age was what it was, most of the cooking and serving duties fell to Riru.
The stew, in which the vegetables and meat were well mixed and boiled, gave off a fragrant smell, but the atmosphere in the house somehow seemed very tense.
“Men are naturally simple creatures.”
“…”
From Noble mtl dot com
“They say you’re a real fool for missing that, my granddaughter. Do you know that?”
“…Stop talking nonsense and eat your food, Grandma.”
Before her eyes was an answer so blunt and unparalleled in rudeness, yet Kasa, unfazed, glared at Riru with folded arms.
The expression on Riru’s face clearly conveyed an insistent pressure, as if asking, “Is the food going down well in that state?”
“So, you came back after having that snatched away right in front of you.”
“…”
“What do you think, Kariya?”
If she were called Kariya, it was more of a title used by the Confederation of Tribes rather than a name.
It referred to a woman one step below an elder in the Seed clan. Originally a term used for Riru, the person addressed with such a title at the moment was someone slightly different.
“Oh my, calling me that way is quite an honor.”
Riru’s face contorted at the feminine words, something utterly unbearable for a proud woman of the dignified Confederation of Tribes.
Perhaps the fact that the person uttering such words closely resembled her in every aspect only intensified her reaction.
‘Kariya,’ sporting a perpetually smiling expression on her face— the azure demon— tapped her fingers against her lips.
“…This guy is nothing like my sister.”
“To this old lady’s eyes, it seems quite the contrary.”
“…”
“And if I’m like that, wouldn’t it be the case?”
In reality, that was true.
Within the Seed clan, all authority was always dictated by the elders.
“Well, leaving behind a woman who excels in household chores, looks beautiful, and does cute things, isn’t it too much for a man to do?”
“But please, stop…!”
Fighting against the nonchalant figure of the azure demon, trying to grab her own cheeks and stretch them, Riru convulsed in distress.
Experienced unmanned movements were imbued with destructive physical force in every single action, yet the sight of Leeloo avoiding all of them as if knowing the moves in advance and pulling on Rilou’s cheek was astonishing.
Oh my. It’s a bit strange not to fully utilize Leeloo’s advantage, even though it’s her own.
“But still, not properly utilizing this is a bit odd, considering it’s Leeloo’s unique strength.”
“…What?”
“Surprisingly, there aren’t many people around that have advantages in such ‘mundane’ things. Everyone is good at handling grand tasks effortlessly, but finding someone who can clean and cook is rare, right?”
…”
Well, that’s true.
Except for Elia, most of them were born and raised in ordinary households, so they haven’t really struggled.
Perhaps one of the reasons Elia and she quickly became friends was because they easily formed a connection in that kind of environment.
You might wonder why Leeloo doesn’t strongly appeal to Dawood with those advantages, but she shrugged and explained the reason while avoiding eye contact.
“…It’s embarrassing.”
For her, who was born and raised as a warrior, appealing her femininity while trembling before a man was an act that evoked almost instinctual rejection, as it was a difficult task.
Purely, that’s not the only reason though.
“And, what else?”
“And, what?”
“If that guy complains…”
Leeloo unconsciously swallowed her dry saliva, and the emotions condensed in her appearance were undoubtedly evident.
It was frightening.
Since Leeloo had never shown such a side to anyone other than her family, it was impossible to predict the reaction.
In response to her appearance, Casa felt sorry for her and jokingly mentioned the dish she had cooked.
“The taste is out of this world, but that’s just talk.”
“…”
“It’s infuriating that my granddaughter, who can’t catch a decent man, is doing this. Seriously.”
“Please, just…!”
Liru’s face turned red as she hastily got up from her seat.
Or, rather, that was what she intended to do.
“Oh, Grandma is scolding big sister again!”
“Sister, what’s happening this time?”
“…”
Unfortunately, at that moment, the noisy children barged into the house, so I couldn’t say anything in annoyance. Perhaps they had caught a whiff of the food she had prepared and come running.
“…”
In the end, apart from grumbling under her breath, Liru, who had sat back down with determination, couldn’t muster any other reaction.
“…He wouldn’t even like this kind of thing.”
Where Dawud was at the moment, finding that out had only happened a day ago.
●
“…Ah.”
“Shut it. Don’t say a word.”
“…”
In that respect, it was probably an act born out of quite a desperate sentiment for her to be serving up a piping hot meal directly to Dawud right now.
When he usually thought of this woman’s image, it seemed like she was a million light-years away.
Daud blinked and looked at the plate in front of him.
Cyrus, who had come along, had insisted on being alone with him, shaking as if he had made up his mind to do something, and now he was holding out his hand with trembling fingers.
“…”
Daud, who didn’t know how to react, began to scrutinize Riru’s reaction closely.
It was clear that she was nervous.
“Riru.”
“…What?”
“Did you do this yourself?”
“…”
Riru blushed as if she were about to explode and reluctantly nodded.
“…”
Daud, who had been silently watching her for a while, nodded with a wry smile.
“You’ve made a big decision.”
“…It’s nothing much.”
Although her response was curt, it seemed to have struck a chord with her, making her flinch involuntarily.
“…You’ve never done anything like this before, it seems. What’s the reason?”
“…”
Indeed, she had always shown a strong aversion to looking ‘feminine’ in any way.
But it would be strange for her to have prepared something like this without any reason.
Indeed, as he heard those words, Riru hesitated for a while, his body fidgeting, and eventually began to speak hesitantly.
“I, I…”
Closing his eyes tightly, his ears turning crimson, his trembling voice revealed how embarrassed he was right now.
“…Compared to, to other guys, maybe my, my lack of, uh, feminine charm…”
“…”
“This time, seeing you, you getting along so well with another girl…”
Though his sentences were interrupted by swallowing dry saliva.
Unless one were a fool, they couldn’t miss the meaning between the lines.
That he, not looking like a woman, might prioritize taking care of other guys first. Suspecting such a thing.
In this way, he was trying to showcase his ability to display a universal ‘femininity.’
I am also, a respectable woman.
So, please.
Love me. Dawood Campbell.
“…”
In that case, what needs to be said is also clear.
“I’m glad.”
Dawood, who spoke those words, looked at the startled Riru as if struck by lightning and slowly emptied his plate.
Simple and warm food.
It feels like this person has poured in a lot of sincerity.
“It’s, it’s not that great…”
“If it’s not you, I absolutely can’t eat.”
“…Empty words.”
“I don’t have anything as amazing as this. It’s really delicious.”
“…”
“I’m really fortunate to have you by my side.”
“…”
Stuttering, unable to speak properly while closing his eyes and mumbling something, leaving Liyu behind.
Dawood chuckled and finished the meal with a smile.
“That was delicious—”
Perhaps it would’ve been perfect if he could manage to say such greetings.
Before uttering those words, if only someone hadn’t grabbed his arm firmly by the wrist.
“…Liyu?”
Huh.
Did I do something wrong?
The way his arm was gripped so tightly as if it prompted reflexive thoughts.
But it wasn’t hostile.
It was like…
[…Is he in heat?]
“…”
From Noble mtl dot com
He wanted to retort to Kallivan about what that meant to a woman, but it was a challenging sight to deny.
The pupils seem to have hearts embedded in them.
For some reason, it’s almost as if the lower abdomen is trembling peculiarly.
Even now, an immense heat seems to be rising from that direction, as if deliberately suppressing it.
“…Follow me.”
As if declaring, Ryuu uttered those words with breath that seemed notably rough.
“Don’t just say it, prove it properly.”
“…”
As Dowd, it was an incredibly ominous sentence.
●