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Join the ServerAfter dinner, Elara and Hilvyn strolled leisurely home along the street.
The evening breeze caressed their cheeks, dispelling the day’s weariness.
The streets were already adorned with yellow and orange decorations, anticipating the Harvest Festival set to arrive the day after tomorrow.
‘The festive atmosphere is truly growing stronger.’
Elara gazed at the decorations hanging from the eaves along the street, a sigh escaping her lips.
She had never truly celebrated a festival; in the past, she felt no particular joy, and now, she simply saw no need.
It was primarily a combination of laziness and loneliness.
But this year’s festival—no, all future festivals—would no longer be spent alone.
Her gaze settled on the swaggering figure ahead, and a faint smile touched her lips as she unconsciously let out a breath.
A dishevelled, limping man passed by Hilvyn, reeking heavily of alcohol, a bucket of strong liquor clutched in his hand.
Hilvyn glanced at the drunkard’s face, then stood rooted, staring at his retreating back.
“What is it?”
Elara wrinkled her nose, also looking back at the figure. She couldn’t stand the strong smell of alcohol.
“That man, he seems to be…”
“You know him?”
“Uh… he seems to be… from that squad we met in the underground desert.”
She had only caught a few glimpses of him under the glow of the fluorescent lamps back then, making it difficult to recall clearly.
“Who?”
“The one who bought that fake dungeon guide at an exorbitant price.”
“The Thundercloud Squad?” ‘Then is this drunkard Rex?’
“Mhm.”
Elara looked again. The slovenly drunkard’s clothes were soiled, one leg limped, his steps heavy and uneven, and his hair, long neglected, was a chaotic mess.
Aside from the color of his hair, he was completely unrecognizable as Rex.
“Are you sure?”
Ever since their encounter with the bald strongman during the assessment, Elara had acknowledged Hilvyn’s exceptional memory. It was far from ordinary.
Yet, Hilvyn had only met Rex once, and to claim this disoriented, limping drunkard was him still made Elara somewhat disbelieving.
She remembered Rex’s arrogance vividly.
“I can be roughly certain.”
‘He must have suffered some kind of shock.’
To be honest, whether it was him or not, it had nothing to do with Elara. As for the reason, she could always inquire at the guild tomorrow.
“Let’s not bother with him.”
Elara nudged Hilvyn, urging her to continue walking.
“Oh.”
****
Upon returning home, Elara arrived at her most anticipated moment of the day: bath time.
“Sister, you said you’d ‘deal with me’ tonight,” Hilvyn brought up, “How are you going to ‘deal with me’?”
Elara tilted her head.
“I won’t tell you.”
“Tell me, please~ Just give me some psychological preparation, since I’m so scared.”
‘Heh heh, as expected…’
Elara had long anticipated this situation.
“The punishment is, you’re not allowed to touch me tonight.”
“Huh?”
Upon hearing this, Hilvyn’s silver hair seemed to turn even whiter with fright.
“Sister, no~”
She pressed close, attempting to hug her, but Elara sidestepped and evaded her.
“Don’t touch me.”
“No, no, please.”
Elara felt the brilliance of this punishment deeply, a strange sense of vindication swelling in her chest.
“A loophole!”
Taking advantage of Elara’s distraction, Hilvyn suddenly lunged forward, locking her fingers tightly around Elara’s stomach.
“Heh ha ha ha, Sister!” Hilvyn’s fingers were tightly interlocked, impossible to pry open. “I’ve touched you now, so the punishment doesn’t count.”
“Let go, let go!”
One struggled, the other embraced. Elara tried forcefully to pry apart the ten fingers, but those hands were like a lock, even she couldn’t break free.
If she used any more force, she would hurt Hilvyn, so Elara had no choice but to give up.
“Stop hugging me. Punishment cancelled, punishment cancelled.”
Hilvyn instantly released her hands, triumphantly declaring her victory.
“Yay! Sister, let’s bathe together.”
“Mhm.”
“Then I’ll go fetch hot water.”
Hilvyn swiftly darted to the washroom to get buckets of water.
‘Such a childish temperament.’
Although Hilvyn was only about two fingers shorter than herself, at her core, she was still a naive little girl.
Speaking of naive…
Elara suddenly recalled what the other party had done to her clone that afternoon…
‘Ugh… to be precise, she was a lewd girl.’
“Sister, you go first.”
Hilvyn brought the first bucket of water, then spun around and went to fetch the second.
Elara quickly washed her body and settled into the tub. It was only then that Hilvyn arrived, somewhat belatedly, with the final bucket of water.
‘Time for a bath.’
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