Chosen By The Lover's Constellation-Chapter 20: Preparation, Part Two

"One... Two... Three..."

Enverna took slow, methodical breaths as she performed some squats in the middle of the room, just in front of the coffee table. The TV at the back was going over the latest news in the city of Telvan while Enverna did her exercise.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we’ve just received breaking news that another Greater Fiend has been found in Sacred Sands Beach, to the southwest. Rank 9 Player Ulys Goldwater of the Silver Blade Guild ran into this horrible threat when he..."

"Fifty-one..." Enverna continued, feeling her glutes burning. "Fifty-four... Sixty."

"On other news, the Players’ Gala has been postponed to September the 30th, as self-proclaimed Constellation Follower, Ralphia Sialys is rumored to be gathering several of the strongest players in Telvan for a mission far to the north. This, of course, could have massive implications regarding..."

"... One hundred."

Enverna stood up straight.

She wished she could keep going but her legs refused. The instant she stopped the exercise, that moment back at the gym returned to the forefront of her mind.

[... What was that woman grabbing? Ugh.] She got chills just thinking about it.

The door opened just as Enverna was starting to blush, recalling the way the girl’s hands clutched her hips.

Lianna appeared, holding a paper bag that was filled to the brim.

The girl flinched.

"..." Lianna just stood there for a couple of seconds, silent and wide-eyed. Until, Enverna asked:

"Do I have something on my face?"

Hearing that, Lianna snapped out of it.

"Sorry," she said, smiling just a little. "I’m just... not used to seeing someone when I come back home like this."

"..." Now, Enverna was stunned to silence.

"How’d your workout go?"

"It was..." Enverna shoved those indecent thoughts out of her mind. "It might be better for me to just work out here."

"Not your kind of scene?"

"... Something like that."

"Hm." Lianna walked over to the couch, placing the paper bag on the coffee table. She pulled out a strange bottle and handed it over to Enverna. On its label was the word, "Energade".

She accepted the yellow drink and twisted the cap off, taking a quick sip.

"Very sweet."

"Hey," Lianna said, "how about we go for a bite to eat?"

Enverna considered it briefly.

"Sure. Let me take a shower first."

---

Side by side, the two of them reemerged in Telvan’s streets.

Enverna still wasn’t used to the eyes that fell on her here. Back at Garriden, she would draw attention, sure, but here, there was something else in the gazes of those other Players around her. A sort of appraisal, like hunters trying to decide whether she was prey or a predator like them.

It was enough to make Enverna feel quite tense. Lianna, however, didn’t seem to care much.

"The coffee here’s nice," she noted, walking into a peculiar little shop, nestled on the side of the road, between two much larger buildings. "Oh and just thinking about the pastries is making my mouth water."

"I’ll keep my expectations high, then," Enverna replied quietly.

"Have I disappointed in any way, yet?" Lianna asked her with a smug grin.

"We haven’t known each other for long... You have plenty of time."

"Plenty of time to sweep you off your feet too. And, who knows, maybe it’ll start with these pastries."

[My fiance certainly does not lack confidence.]

That thought almost ruined the easygoing atmosphere. Every now and then, that word would pop back up in Enverna’s mind as she looked at the blood-haired woman and she’d think, "oh, right. I’m going to marry her."

"Take a seat," Lianna instructed.

"Shouldn’t I go order with you?"

"Trust me," Lianna told her. "I’ll order the best this place has to offer for you."

"... Expectations, Lianna. Expectations. Don’t set them too high, now."

Shrugging, Lianna walked back to the counter while Enverna tried to get comfortable in a chair by the window. With the sun pouring in like this, Enverna almost felt like she was back home.

Some soft, acoustic guitar played from a radio at the back. The sweet scent of vanilla reached Enverna’s nostrils. As she looked over at Lianna from her seat, she almost felt intoxicated.

Inhaling slowly, Enverna’s half-lidded eyes fell on Lianna’s back.

She couldn’t see her face or hear her voice, but Lianna seemed to be having a casual conversation with the barista behind the counter. Enverna’s eyes lowered, moving absent-mindedly to the dimples on Lianna’s lower back that her shirt failed to cover. Lianna leaned on the counter then, pushing her butt out.

[... I suppose her choice of clothing does still look good on her,] Enverna thought, tilting her head, failing to pry her eyes away. [Even if it is so shameless.]

Soon, Lianna went back to the table with the barista following behind her, holding a tray with their meals on it.

One cup full of steaming, brown liquid was placed before Enverna, one was placed before Lianna. On their plates were what looked like arching pieces of bread, with some cream next to them.

Enverna’s brows went up. She knew this dish.

With an excited look, Lianna gestured at the bread in front of Enverna and crossed her arms.

"Go ahead."

"Hmph."

With as much cold elegance as she could muster, Enverna took a fork and a knife, cut a piece of the bread off, dipped it in the cream, and brought it to her lips.

"..."

It was incredible. The vanilla and the bread melted in Enverna’s mouth together to form an explosion of flavor that nearly elicited a moan from the foreigner But, just so she could mess with Lianna, she held back the foodgasm she just had and instead said:

"Meh."

"Bullshit."

Thanks to Lianna’s quick response, Enverna cracked, laughing as she went to have another bite.

"It’s great. But, I’m shocked," Enverna stated. "I didn’t know they served Garriden-style food here."

"Hm? What do you mean?"

"The bread," she highlighted. "I’m fairly certain it’s from Garriden. Maybe I’m wrong, though," Enverna conceded. "The world does seem to be expanding fairly frequently for me, these days."

"How’s it been so far?" Lianna asked, as she finally began to cut into her own food. "Travelling here and all."

"I need more time to produce a meaningful answer to that."

"I’ll show you around more," Lianna promised. "Plus, I’ll walk just a few steps in front of you so you can keep staring at my butt."

Enverna almost choked.

Lianna giggled.

Flabbergasted, Enverna blinked repeatedly, trying to find the right words to push past her lips.

Lianna simply said:

"The barista noticed. She snitched on you."

Knowing this, it was decided. Enverna had her first enemy in Telvan. And she was called, "Nameless Barista Who Needs To Learn To Keep Her Mouth Shut".

[Whatever... Lianna is a good-looking individual. Anyone would stare at her for a while.]

"Hey, no need to blush like that," Lianna told her. "It’s understandable... My ass is one of my charm points, after all."

---

{August 20, 239 2E}

"Harder," Lianna pleaded.

"A-Are you sure?" Enverna asked. "I-I don’t think it’s going to fit."

"Trust me."

"Uhm... Very well..."

With no small amount of effort, Enverna stuffed a folded towel into the travel bag sitting in front of her.

She and Lianna were standing in front of their bed, their bags placed before them as they packed the things they felt they could need on this mission.

"Our instructor might want to take a break or something," Lianna said. "Then, what are we gonna do? Just sit on the dirt?"

"I feel like my travel bag is going to burst."

"It’ll be fine," Lianna promised. "I was trained to do this."

[Trained? Is this really all that goes on in the low-rank course? I mean, Lianna mentioned it but I didn’t think this was *all* they were doing...]

"Will you not be putting on any armor?" Enverna asked. Lianna was standing there in a very casual outfit comprised of some shorts and a white tank top that showed her black bra to anyone curious enough to peek. The only indication that she was even going to be fighting today, potentially, was the bow on her back and the quiver full of arrows next to it.

"They’ll be handing us some armor at the site."

"Ah, I see... Wait, they will?" Enverna asked, looking down at the leather she’d brought for protection.

"Yep. You can just use that, though."

Once they were done, the two of them went to the living room. Lianna made sure that they weren’t missing anything.

"You’re prepared, right?" Lianna asked, as serious as Enverna had ever seen her. "You learned a few Spells, a few Techniques?"

"I did," Enverna nodded. "Lianna, calm down. This is merely a practice mission. We’ll be fine."

"Yeah..." Lianna muttered. "I hope so."

[Why does she sound so nervous?]