"Let go already, Lynn!" Kurea grumbled, struggling to shove Lynn aside, who was clinging to her waist like a kid throwing a tantrum at her mother, refusing to let go. It wasn't because she was weaker than her; if she wanted, she could just punch Lynn in the face. Yet she was being considerate and holding back her strength.

"No! ...Not until you agree to take us with you!" Lynn retorted, refusing to let go or back down, pushing Kurea's patience to the very limit until she could get what she wanted.

It was familiar scene that Arezu watched with exhaustion—Lynn's repeated unreasonable tantrums and dramatic flair, all for the same kind of reason as before.

Once again, Lynn was demanding Kurea take her and Arezu with her to another gathering—A meeting with the leader of the Beastkin Nation: the Beast Lord.

---

The Beastkin Nation, a country in the southern region of the Eileen Kingdom, was ruled by various demi-human beastkin races.

Although it was the largest of the three demi-human nations—holding a territory as wide as the Eileen Kingdom's capital and a population nearing a hundred thousand—only a third of its inhabitants were beastkin.

From bird-kin, wolf-kin, dragon-kin, and many other smaller races, each had their clans within the Beastkin Nation. But the one who ruled them all was the Beast Lord, a title not earned through monarchy or bloodline but by pure strength:

And the one who had held the title for two hundred years was a demi-human of the phoenix-kin race.

An independent nation with a kingdom—that was the kind of alliance the Beastkin Nation had with the Eileen Kingdom.

That much was what Arezu could say about the Beastkin Nation to answer Lynn's questioning while the Annual Caravan was traveling after the fight against the wyverns and Arezu's performance—with the towering wall of the nation visible on the twilight horizon.

That much was all he needed to say to hide the truth of his real origin from her, pretending that he had indeed come from the southern fortress town of Aiden, at the Eileen Kingdom's border.

The Annual Caravan arrived at the Beastkin Nation at night, and despite the late hour, the locals excitedly welcomed them with grand festivities, decorating the streets with lanterns like beacons of light guiding them safely through the rest of their grand expedition. Yet all were shocked by the small number of arrivals—barely half of the usual participants.

They spent the night at inns reserved for their arrival, but the unoccupied rooms only reminded them of those they had lost.

With news of the caravan's losses and the fall of Mirare Town reaching the Beast Lord, an urgent meeting was called for the commander of the expedition and the leaders of the participating guilds.

Which brought about Lynn's still ongoing tantrum in the inn's lobby early the next morning, in front of all their companions, pestering Kurea to take her and Arezu with her.

---

"Unlike the caravan meetings," Kurea said, grabbing Lynn's face with both hands and squeezing her cheeks as she began to lose patience, "there's no need for me to bring escorts along."

"Then give us your position even for a day…" Lynn mumbled through squished lips.

Just how rude could she be? Everyone thought the same but didn't say a word—partly because they were still exhausted from the journey, and partly because they didn't want to tire themselves further with Lynn's tantrum.

All they could do was look toward Lynn's supposed caretaker and loyal follower of the infamous Lady Impaler.

I know, I know… Arezu sighed, understanding the meaning behind everyone's glares.

"As if I'd let you have the position of Guild Master even for a day!"

"Then I won't share any pudding or cake with you anymore!"

"You already promised my share!"

"I already ate your share!"

As Lynn and Kurea's debate slowly devolved into childish squabbling, Arezu finally stepped in to stop Lynn's antics.

"Stop making unreasonable demands, Lynn," Arezu said, grabbing her robe and pulling her away from Kurea—and as everyone expected, Lynn didn't resist at all.

"If you could easily do that, why didn't you step in right away, Arezu?" Kurea snapped.

He was still exhausted and didn't want to tire himself further like everyone else, but it wasn't like Arezu could say that to Kurea—it would only make both her and Lynn mad.

"I wasn't exactly sure what to do…" he murmured, averting his gaze from Kurea's doubtful stare and speaking to Lynn's pouting face instead.

"If we can't come with Ms. Kurea, we could just wait for her return and ask her the details of the meeting."

"Hey! At least give me time to rest from her pestering!" Kurea complained.

Feigning ignorance of Kurea's complaint, Arezu continued consoling—or, as everyone else saw it—pampering Lynn.

"But I want to see the Phoenix-kin Beast Lord too, Mr. Arezu!"

"She'll probably make an appearance to send off the caravan, so just wait until then."

"She?..."

Here comes the jealous and possessive girlfriend, everyone thought, expecting another lover's quarrel between Lynn and Arezu. But before the usual "entertainment" began, Brandon came down to the lobby, catching everyone's attention.

"Everyone seems to be having fun. Mind if I join in?" he said, sitting on the couch reserved for him by his knight and valkyrie.

After receiving a detailed explanation of the situation from his guards, Brandon gave his opinion—or rather, his approval.

"Sure, you can come with us, Ms. Lynn."

—"EHH!?"—

Everyone exclaimed in shock—even Arezu.

"Even you, Arezu. I'll vouch for both of you."

—"HUH!?"—

Everyone shouted again, though this time Arezu was left speechless, a troubled expression crossing his face.

Just what the heck does she have on the commander?

The suspicious thought crossed the minds of those who'd noticed that Brandon had been favoring Lynn since the baseball bat tournament—and the most suspicious glare came from Liz, still trying to figure out what Lynn had used to bribe Brandon into keeping Arezu's secrets.

"My, my... I guess I don't need your permission after all," Lynn said, flashing a smug, victorious grin at Kurea.

"You, Lynn..." Kurea growled, gritting her teeth and clenching her fist in frustration and annoyance at Lynn's audacity.

"Cause me any trouble in front of the Beast Lord, and I'll suspend your rank-up again."

"So it really was you, Kurea the Tyrant!"

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