Victoria's sudden words made Greg's shoulders tense for a fraction of a second, and Silvia's fingers holding Victoria's arm tightened slightly for a moment as well.
However, Victoria was looking directly at Greg at that moment, so she failed to notice Silvia's momentary lapse.
Silvia quickly adjusted her expression, her voice carrying a trace of hard-to-detect guilt, yet she still gently persuaded:
"I-It must all be your imagination... After all, both of us have only cleared a dungeon with Senior Greg once, haven't we? How could he have so many opportunities to hog all the action behind your back?"
Victoria tilted her head in thought, a gleam of consideration flashing through her gray eyes.
A moment later, she nodded. "Hmm... You seem to be right."
Only then did she turn back to Greg, her tone carrying the last lingering trace of anger along with an irrevocable agreement: "You promised, so you'd better compensate us when the time comes!"
"Definitely this time, definitely this time!"
Greg felt as though he had been granted a grand pardon. He hurriedly scrambled up from the ground, dusted off his knees, and decisively changed the subject.
"By the way, Silvia, how are things on your end? Is your Instructor nice?"
Victoria also immediately turned her attention to her friend, a look of concern surfacing on her face.
"That's right, Silvia, I'm sorry... I originally wanted to pick the same Instructor as you, but now you're all on your own..."
Silvia hastily waved both hands, her pink hair swaying gently with the movement.
"There's no need to worry about me so much! My Instructor is very nice too, and I'm not actually alone, it's just—"
Before she could finish her sentence, a fiery-red figure appeared before the three of them like a whirlwind.
It was a girl with brilliant red hair that looked like burning flames.
Her appearance was like a burst of raging fire barging into this quiet corner, instantly attracting everyone's gaze.
She glanced at Silvia, then swept her eyes over Greg and Victoria beside her, her tone carrying urgency: "Silvia, what did you suddenly come over here for? Instructor is still looking for you."
"O-Okay, I understand. Thank you, Princess Lilith."
Silvia nodded hurriedly, then looked at Greg and Victoria with a somewhat apologetic expression:
"I'm sorry, my Instructor is still looking for me, so I'll head over first."
With that, she hurriedly took her leave.
However, Lilith did not follow her away immediately.
"Got a problem?"
Victoria spoke without an ounce of politeness, her tone loaded with obvious hostility and friction.
She hadn't expected Lilith to share the same Instructor with Silvia, but even so, her attitude wouldn't soften in the slightest.
Ever since the incident during the Placement Exam, the relationship between the two had shown no signs of improvement.
They were like two felines with fierce territorial instincts; every time they met, their fur would stand on end as they bared their teeth at each other, striking an unmistakable posture of 'this world isn't big enough for the both of us.'
This gave Greg, who was watching from the side, quite a headache.
Lilith unhurriedly raised a hand to stroke her beautiful hair behind her, the movement elegant yet tinged with provocation.
She raised her chin slightly and spoke in a condescending tone, "Hmph. My exam score was higher than yours this time as well, you defeated loser."
Victoria clicked her tongue, an unyielding flame igniting in her gray eyes.
"Tch. If this had been actual combat, I'd never lose to you like last time!"
"Heh, as if you—" Lilith originally intended to throw out a few more taunts, but halfway through her sentence, she suddenly shut her mouth.
Her gaze fell onto Greg once more.
There was no hostility or contempt in that look; instead, it carried an indefinable, complex emotion.
Greg's heart began to drum.
What did that look mean?
According to the premise she set herself, we should still just be people who aren't very familiar with each other right now.
She herself should still remember that whenever she spoke to me before, she maintained a disguise, right?
But if she blows her own cover first right now, what kind of expression would be appropriate for me to make?
Pretend I don't know anything?
Or play along with her acting?
Just as Greg was undergoing a violent storm of thoughts, Lilith suddenly pulled her gaze back.
She lowered her eyelashes, her fair fingers gently twisting a strand of red hair dangling beside her ear in a shy, awkward movement completely at odds with her usual demeanor.
Then she turned toward Victoria and spoke in a tone that tried to sound indifferent, yet was noticeably awkward and soft:
"Well~ N-Not that it matters, but... for a commoner, your score is already quite good, so I suppose I'll praise you a little."
Having said that, a faint blush rose on her cheeks like the evening glow just appearing on the horizon. She immediately turned on her heel and departed with hurried steps.
Her departing figure carried a desperate, fleeing haste, as though that single sentence had exhausted every last bit of her courage and reserve.
Although it was just a brief sentence, it made Greg distinctly feel that Lilith seemed to have changed a bit. At the very least, she was no longer a terminal tsundere patient like in the original game.
Victoria froze in place, blinked, and then turned to look at Greg with an expression full of confusion and disgust. "What kind of episode is she having?"
Greg shrugged, feigning ignorance. "Beats me. I was only her former brother-in-law, and I'm not close to her now. Why are you asking me?"
Victoria cast a suspicious glare, her gray eyes sweeping back and forth across his face like searchlights. "Then why was she looking at you just now?"
Greg kept a straight face. "Maybe she was accidentally captivated by my handsome looks."
Victoria stared at him for two seconds, then decisively turned around and walked toward where Alice was standing. "Mhm, that must be it. After all, that's your only redeeming quality."
"Hey! Apologize to me!"
Greg immediately gave chase, his tone laced with exaggerated indignation:
"What do you mean that's my only redeeming quality!? I have plenty of other shining qualities, okay!? For example—for example, my modesty! My low-profile nature! My personal charisma!"
"Do you actually have any of those?"
"...No."
As the two bantered back and forth, they walked back to Alice's side.
The petite, purple-haired Instructor stood in place, her oversized professor's robe wrapping her up like a bewildered purple penguin.
She looked to the left at the bickering Greg and Victoria, then looked to the right, her ice-purple eyes filled with confusion.
She hesitated for a moment before cautiously speaking up, a note of uncertainty in her voice:
"Um... Could it be... that you two actually knew each other long ago... and are on really good terms?"
Victoria: "I'm not close to him."
Greg spoke up at the exact same time: "Victoria, you make me sick!"
The two exchanged a look, sniffed in unison, and turned their heads away from each other.
Looking at the incredibly synchronized pair before her, a deeper level of confusion and self-doubt gradually surfaced in Alice's ice-purple eyes.
She lowered her head slightly, her wide sleeves swaying gently with her movements as she muttered to herself:
"Could it be... that right now... I am actually being fed dog food?"
Rate on N.U.
