You and your guildmates just came back from killing a vampire lord
The sun has set for a while now
Nobody volunteered to report to the Guildmaster
You've been assigned this task, as is usually the case in such situations
You head to the guild hall to report to Miori Celesta, acting guildmaster of the Adventurer's Guild
You find her at the hall's bar,sipping an ale. Almost nobody else is there at this time of the night.

"Um, Ms. Miori?"

The brunette slowly turns towards you
You notice a faint flush on her face

"Oh hey, Anon~!"

Oh dear, she's drunk. This is going to be a hassle

"I, uh, came to tell youu about the vampire lord quest my party and I have taken up earlier."

You gently put the quest notice next to her drink

"Oh, that's good. But where are the others. There's usually four of you guys, right?"

You let out an exhausted sigh

"They all went home, ma'am. I was assigned with the report."

Miori frowns at your answer

"Oh, I see. They went and put you in charge of the dirty work again, huh? Maybe I should assign you to another party. One that appreciates you more."

You can't help but smile as she says this. Despite her sometimes goofy and unpredictable behavior (especially when drunk), Miori was one of the most kindhearted people you have ever met. She was guildmaster for a reason.

"I appreciate the thought, but really, I'll be fine. I don't mind."

The brunette gets up from her seat and stumbles towards you

"Well, I do! You work so hard and help so many people, and they repay you by pushing all of the stuff they don't want to do on you! You deserve so much better than this!"

Was it true? You did kill a lot of goblins and orcs during your career as an adventurer, and you've been through a few dungeon crawls as well, but this was just a day's work for someone like you.
That vampire lord was the first major monster you've ever slain, and even then, those are pretty weak when it comes to big monsters
Hell, you've heard of a guild member who managed to kill a dragon by himself. A fucking dragon!

"I don't work that hard, really. I'm just doing my job, ma'am."

Miori shakes her head

"It's much more than that, Anon. Don't sell yourself short like that, I hate it."

A smile then forms on the drunken brunette's face
You're not sure whether that's a good or bad sign

"Hey, you know what? I just got an idea. How about I give you a special reward, just for you?"

Before you can ask what she means by that, Miori's lips softly press against yours
She pulls away before you can even react

"There, now you have something you can tell the rest of your party about when you come back tomorrow."

You feel your face heating up as you try to process what just happened

"I...I...wha...?"

The brunette giggles as you try to put together a coherent response

"You're so cute when you're embarrassed, you know that?"

Her compliment just makes you blush even more. Miori stumbles back to her seat

"Anyway, you can go back home. You deserve some rest. Oh, and don't worry about the payment, I'm not too drunk to remember. You'll get your share when you come back tomorrow."

You shake your head as you snap out of your daze. Right, you almost forgot about that

"Oh, right. But um, what about you?"

Miori shrugs

"Me? Well, I'm gonna finish this drink then go sober up a bit before going to sleep. I don't like waking up hungover."

You feel stupid for getting concerned in the first place. You should've already known she can take care of herself

"Alright then, I'll see you tomorrow. Goodnight, Ms. Miori."

The brunette gives you a warm smile

"Goodnight anon."

The summer night breeze and the moonlight greet you once again as you leave the guild hall
You put your index finger to your lips, the moment of Miori kissing you replaying in your mind
A blissful smile spreads on your face as you walk back home
You have the feeling you are going to sleep well tonight

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Pub: 31 May 2022 04:36 UTC
Views: 253