Guild Boss's Ambition

She suddenly talked about herself: "When I was a child, when I was practicing courage and calmness, the adults would let me take a knife to cut my own flesh, because once I understood and conquered the pain, I would no longer avoid its intimidation, and I would be able to see the things that were hidden by it, and recognize the absurd self that exists..."

Her tone gradually became harsh and sarcastic: "And you, do you lack the courage and calmness to face the pain? Can't you see the truth hidden by it? No, humans are far from being that dull. You just turned a blind eye to that stain because you think you are perfect. Why do you always ask questions when you know the answer?"

After she said that, I couldn't help but feel annoyed: "You said I was asking questions even though I knew the answer?"

She smiled playfully again: "Look! You are asking questions even though you already know the answer. Are you sick of asking questions without knowing the answer and will die?"

"I'm beginning to regret coming to you, a necromancer. You don't speak human language at all."

"Young man, what you just did is typical occupational discrimination! I can sue you!"

"Occupational discrimination? Will the procuratorate still accept such a boring case?"

"Yes, it will not be accepted - that's why I always say that Ulu's code of conduct is full of loopholes."

"..."

Looking at the black-haired girl with a playful face, I gradually felt that I was actually wasting my time, so I bowed politely to this hateful woman with a cold face and said goodbye: "It seems that you are not going to answer my questions, so I think it is better for me to leave on my own initiative. Sorry to disturb your research time."

However, I did not succeed in opening the closed door.

For some reason, the door was locked tightly by some force.

I turned my head and looked behind me—

Then I saw the necromancer smiling grimly -

She walked towards me step by step, following the devil's footsteps.

"Don't leave in a hurry! You want an answer, and I am willing to tell you the answer. Don't worry, I won't charge you any consulting fees, because I gradually discovered that the way to make evil become justice is to increase the number of sinners. As long as rebellion becomes the majority, evil becomes justice. At that time, the little poster girl may agree with my approach, right?"

She stood in front of me and held out a mirror for me, in which my face was reflected.

The necromancer sneered coldly and said, "You just fell in love with that man named Korolo. That's why you came to me to confirm his feelings. You hope that he will fall in love with you first. In that way, as the passive party, you can avoid those moral guilt and accept his love with a compassionate attitude."

Her laughter was incessant.

"Haha, strong man, do your muscles give you the courage to face contempt? Or do you have the awareness to become a shield to endure the pain? Do you know what the stupidest human beings are like?"

"Just like how self-righteous you are now! You try your best to ignore your own flaws, not wanting to admit your unconcealable flaws, and then blindly blame others for this imperfection, trying to beautify yourself into a man who is simply loved by men, rather than a man who loves men."

"Hypocrisy, stupidity, cowardice and ignorance."

"This is the answer you just shouted at me for. Now that you have it, you can go away."

Suddenly, the door lock made a loose sound.

I turned my back to her mocking smile and fell out.

……

……

50. Half-elf's Wine (Strohn)

(Strohn Gasol)

I escaped to the kitchen, the place I was most familiar with.

I originally thought that this would be my sanctuary, but I forgot that Luo Luo was waiting for my return in the kitchen. We all left many memories in this place. His presence seemed to be everywhere in my career as a chef. His smile and his stupidity had already filled my life without me noticing.

It suddenly dawned on me.

If there was no Korolo...

What kind of lonely person would I be?

Looking at Korolo who was silently busy at work, my heart, which was shaken by the necromancer, only became more annoyed. The smell of oil smoke floating in the room became the driest gunpowder. So, I escaped from this uncomfortable space.

There aren’t many safe havens for me in the stone house.

I could have gone back to my room, but I didn't dare to be alone.

I took off my uniform and went to the bar.

The bar serves drinks to customers from 1:00 p.m. to 11:50 p.m., and including the time for cleaning up the utensils, the ladies in charge of this area usually have to wait until midnight before they can officially leave. Although their salaries are generally at the middle and lower levels in the city, behind the glamour are hard work and sweat.

I sat down at the bar and ordered a whiskey from the half-elf Annie.

Unlike other poster girls, the half-elf Anne who was in charge of cocktails was wearing an elegant tuxedo. In the black and white color combination, her outstanding and full breasts stood high in a revealing posture. This should be the type that could attract me very much. My ex-girlfriend Kate was exactly this type of sexy stunner.

But somehow, I found myself losing my initial enthusiasm for them.

As a result, he gradually became cold towards Kate, and was finally dumped by the sensitive Kate.

After pouring me some wine, red-haired Anne spoke to me in a caring and tender voice: "What a rare guest, Mr. Stallone. You look so frowned. Are you worried about something?"

I laughed at myself and asked her, "Do you ask this question to every guest?"

In addition to the whiskey, she brought me some peanuts.

"There aren't as many people who get drunk because they're sad as everyone thinks. In the past month, you're the second man who made me say this. And my intuition tells me that your troubles are more complicated than the last minotaur's. And complicated things are generally not suitable for one person to worry about, and they can't be solved by drinking two or three glasses of whiskey."

She was absolutely right, but could I really share my troubles with others?

It is such a shameful thing for a man to fall in love with another man.

I hesitated, smiled, and changed the subject: "People get drunk because they are troubled, and you are trying to solve their troubles. Isn't that the same as betraying your own business?"

She looked at me with her cloudy and calm eyes, smiled faintly and said, "In Mopolis City, the wine business is very good. For adventurers, drinking is the last thing they need a reason to do. If they have no worries, they can just drink some happy wine and sing some happy songs. With songs and wine, this bar will naturally have the popularity it deserves."

Finally, she winked at me mischievously and said, "Go ahead, I'm very tight-lipped."

It is also true that a troubled man orders a glass of whiskey alone, which shows to the outside world that he has a lot of grievances and wants to find someone to confide in. Thinking of this, I decided to reveal a little about myself to her.

"Some people say that I am a sinner, saying that I pretend not to see my own flaws and use the stains of others to beautify myself. She described me as an ugly hypocrite, but I also agree with her statement, which made me not know how to face myself for a while, just like... like an executioner who found out that he had killed a good person by mistake after the execution."

After listening to my story, she showed a puzzled look, but said something insightful: "Although I don't quite understand what's going on behind your words, I believe that true kindness is not about not making mistakes at all, but about knowing how to sincerely repent and then correct yourself. Since you know how to regret, it means that there is still goodness in your heart."

I savored the whiskey carefully, and the half-elf's words slowly seeped into my heart, calming me down a little. I also gradually had a clear direction in my heart, just like what the necromancer said, unless I chose to escape, I would never be able to see the truth hidden behind it.

What I should worry about is not my own cleanliness.

It's just about what my next step should be.

"I'm in love with a man."

I was like a devout believer confessing my uncleanness to a lofty god.

But she was not as serious and fair as a god. She just smiled like a friend and joked about my situation: "If I am not mistaken, that man must be Miss Korolo, right?"

"How did you guess that?"

She covered her mouth and smiled: "Should I say that you look like people from that world?"

"..."

Hearing this, I could only lower my head and continue to sip my whiskey in silence. To be honest, until now, I still can't accept the fact that I am gay. At this moment, my thoughts are as messy as if I had experienced a volcanic eruption.

Seeing my silence, she poured me another glass of wine. In her eyes, who was twenty years older than me, I was probably just a young boy who was deeply troubled by emotions, so she smiled gently.

"So, after you know your feelings, what do you want to do?"

I answered, “I don’t know myself.”

She urged, "Confess, tell her you love him!"

I looked up at the half-elf and shook my head. "I heard from them that Luo Luo already has a man he likes. I don't know what the consequences will be if I confess to him at this time. To be cautious, I think I should wait and see what happens."

“Oh—”

She forced out a disdainful voice and said teasingly, "Why are you so timid as a man? If he likes you, then he likes you. If he doesn't like you, then he doesn't like you. You two have been working together for more than six years. If he doesn't like you, then even if you observe him, there is only a tiny chance that he will transfer his love to you in the future."

"Wait, how do you know we've only been together for more than six years?" I asked warily.

She casually waved her handboard and said with a smile, "As a man, please don't pay too much attention to details, okay? You come to my place to drink because you are too concerned about these trivial things. If it were Hayato-kun, I think he would definitely run to confess to his sweetheart like a good kid. Anyway, he is always prepared to be rejected."

"Why do I always feel like you know everything that happens in our kitchen?" I suddenly got goosebumps.

The half-elf gave me an extremely suspicious smile. "Illusion, illusion, Mr. Strom, you are a little oversensitive. Annie, I am just an ordinary bartender. I work here all day long. How can I have the time to gossip about your kitchen? Everything I know is what I heard by chance."

"Is it really like that?"

"That's really the case──"

Miss Anne blinked her eyes cutely, put on a calm expression, and said softly, "Mr. Strom, if you really love her, then confessing your love would be your best choice. Even if you might fail, you can at least let her know your feelings and give her a place to place your thoughts."

She poured another whiskey.

for myself.

She said in the tone of time: "Your youth is very short, and your love comes too quickly. If you hesitate for a moment, you may miss the moment of mutual understanding. In the end, even if you spend all your time waiting, you will not get the lost moment, because someone else may have already lived in her heart."

It seems like he is a senior in the field of love──

Maybe I should listen to her advice?

but……

"Even if you want me to confess, you still need some strategy, right?"

"Mr. Strom, you already have a girlfriend, right? So there must be no problem!"

"How do you know he had a girlfriend?"

"It's just hearsay - it's just hearsay -"

I cast a look of the highest level of suspicion at the red-haired bartender and warned her solemnly, "Miss Annie, although I am now very sure of my sexual orientation, I hope you can help me keep this secret as much as possible. After all, the customs of this society are not so open yet, and I don't want us to suffer too much unnecessary nuisance because of this."

Hearing this, Annie sighed and said with understanding: "Lilies are blooming brightly all over the streets, but for some reason roses have to hide in the corners, as if they are plants that cannot stand the sun, and even produce rotten and corrupt fruits. But the world works that way. We long-lived species may be able to see them change one day, but humans are──"

Her voice suddenly stopped and she gave me a happy smile.

"Would you like a cup of Morningstar?"

"Ok."

I drank my whiskey, and replaced the empty glass with a shining star. In a state of intoxication, I seemed to be able to see the reflection of Miss Lannon in the crystal water. She was a girl who symbolized change. She brought the morning star to the cold night of the stone house and brought a chance for our kitchen to revive. Then...

Can she bring more changes to this country?

Ha ha.

I immediately laughed at this ridiculous drunken idea of ​​mine.

What could a little girl do?

Can you change the world by being cute?

……

……

51. A Million Ways to Confess Your Love (Strobel)

(Strohn Gasol)

The time was 8:45 pm on the same day.

I sat in the kitchen of the stone house, smoking a cigarette as a mental sobering cigarette.

Whenever it is this time, the hostesses will tacitly stop writing orders for customers and let the chefs prepare to clean up before going off work. Basically, after three months of practical operation experience, we are able to get off work on time at 9 o'clock, so that everyone can go back to rest after a busy day and come back to suffer the next day.

As with all guild kitchens, the staff always work most closely together at this time.

I also sat in the middle of the kitchen and supervised their cleaning work.

Okay, I admit that supervision is nothing but empty talk.

My mind is now full of Ke Luoluo's affairs.

"Why didn't I think confessing was that difficult before?"

That's right! I'm 25 years old, I once had a girlfriend, I'm a middle-class chef, and I'm stuck in the philosophical question of confessing my love. In order to stop myself from getting scared, I've made an agreement with half-elf Annie to make a quick decision. That is, I must clearly express my feelings to Korolo tonight, and don't drag it out any longer!

However, wanting to do something and actually doing it are two completely different things.

Moreover, judging from my operational experience, I have only had the experience of being confessed to in my life...

"The person I confessed my love to for the first time is a transvestite. Shouldn't God make the difficulty level for me a little higher?"

"Or should I consult other people first?"

I looked at Hayato-kun and immediately rejected the idea.