Chapter 125: Smoking Out The Curious Merman

Sora, meanwhile, was completely unconcerned.

She took another bite of her raspberry cake while occasionally glancing toward the grass in the distance.

The grass swayed gently in the evening breeze.

A faint smile appeared on her lips.

Ryan was still hiding there.

She had known for a while.

That fellow was obviously curious about the food, but he was too proud to simply walk over and ask for some.

Let’s see how long you can endure.

Sora calmly took another bite.

Then—

Ding!

Ryan’s attraction value has increased by 10 points.

Sora’s eyes immediately brightened.

Finally!

She had been waiting for this.

It seemed her plan had worked.

Ryan’s curiosity had finally overcome his pride.

Sora glanced at the grass again.

She decided it was time to give him a little push.

She picked up the remaining piece of cake from the table, stood up, and casually walked toward the grass.

As she reached the edge of the bushes, she parted the tall blades.

Sure enough, Ryan was crouching behind them.

Their eyes met.

Ryan’s expression stiffened.

For someone who had been hiding so carefully, he had been caught in an incredibly embarrassing position.

Sora wasn’t bothered in the slightest.

She simply smiled and held the cake toward him.

"If you want to eat, just say so."

Ryan stared at the cake.

He didn’t immediately reach for it.

Sora raised an eyebrow.

"I’m not that stingy."

Ryan remained silent.

His eyes moved from the cake to Sora’s face.

Sora rolled her eyes.

Was this man really going to keep pretending he wasn’t interested?

She wasn’t going to waste time being polite.

Using her chopsticks, she picked up a piece of cake and directly brought it toward his mouth.

"Here."

Ryan’s eyes widened slightly.

Before he could react, Sora had already placed the cake in his mouth.

"Delicious, right?"

Ryan froze.

The sweetness of the cake spread across his tongue.

But that wasn’t what caused his body to stiffen.

When Sora had leaned forward to feed him, she had moved close enough that her shoulder brushed against his face.

The sudden closeness made Ryan’s ears turn slightly red.

It reminded him of the awkward incident at the hot spring earlier.

Sora, however, completely misunderstood his reaction.

She assumed he was simply embarrassed.

She straightened up and smiled.

"If you want to eat with us, that’s fine too."

Then she held out her hand.

"But you’ll have to pay."

Ryan’s expression changed.

"Pay?"

"Of course."

Sora smiled innocently.

"I want your night pearl."

Ryan’s expression instantly darkened.

The night pearl was one of the most valuable things he possessed.

And this woman had actually thought of asking for it in exchange for cake.

He looked at her for a long moment.

Then he turned around.

Without saying another word, Ryan walked away.

Sora stared after him.

She blinked.

Then she sighed.

"So aloof."

She looked down at the cake in her hand.

"The food is so delicious, and he still doesn’t want to pay."

She didn’t realize that Ryan wasn’t simply refusing the cake.

The thought of handing over his precious night pearl to this woman had caused him to retreat before he did something he would regret.

Sora shook her head and returned to the table.

The others were still focused entirely on their food.

Nobody had noticed what had happened between her and Ryan.

The evening passed peacefully.

As darkness gradually descended over the tribe, Sora eventually returned to her home.

She spread out her fur blanket and lay down, enjoying a rare moment of peace.

She had spent the entire day working.

Between the bread oven, the cake, the new ingredients, and dealing with several troublesome beastmen, she was exhausted.

She was just beginning to relax when—

Knock! Knock!

Someone knocked on the door.

Sora frowned.

Who would come looking for her this late?

She sat up and walked toward the entrance.

After opening the door, she glanced outside.

The moment she saw who was standing there, her expression changed.

Ace.

But it wasn’t ordinary Ace.

Tonight, he was dressed differently.

Sora stared at him for several seconds.

Then she calmly closed the door.

What is Ace doing dressed like this?

She was genuinely confused.

The system immediately sounded in her mind.

Ding!

The system has detected that the current strategy target has developed a favorable impression of the host.

Please prepare to begin pursuing Ace.

Sora froze.

"What?"

She stared at the closed door.

"System, are you mistaken?"

The system remained silent for a moment before responding.

Host, this is the ideal opportunity to begin your strategy for Ace.

Sora’s mouth twitched.

"Now?"

She couldn’t believe it.

Sora’s expression became complicated.

She had known that Ace would eventually become one of her strategy targets.

She had already mentally prepared herself for it.

But she had expected everything to happen naturally.

She hadn’t expected the system to suddenly tell her that the opportunity had arrived tonight.

"This is too sudden."

Host, please trust the system. This is an excellent opportunity.

Sora narrowed her eyes.

Could she really trust this system?

It wasn’t as though the system had always been reliable.

Sometimes its rewards were strange.

Sometimes its calculations were frustrating.

And sometimes it seemed to enjoy watching her struggle.

Sora crossed her arms.

"What exactly makes this such a good opportunity?"

The target has voluntarily come to your door. You do not need to think of a way to approach him.

Sora fell silent.

That was true.

Ace had actually come to her.

She didn’t have to chase him.

She didn’t have to invent an excuse to spend time with him.

She didn’t have to create another strange invention just to attract his attention.

The opportunity had practically been delivered to her doorstep.

Still...

Sora glanced toward the door.

She wasn’t sure.

Something about tonight felt strange.

Perhaps it was because Ace’s outfit was so different from his usual appearance.

She couldn’t even describe what was wrong with it.

It simply looked...

Too deliberate.

Too carefully chosen.

It was obvious that he had spent time preparing himself.

Outside, Ace was equally confused.

He stood before Sora’s closed door, his expression slowly becoming puzzled.

He had planned everything carefully.

Today, he had deliberately chosen the evening.

During the morning, Sora was usually busy preparing breakfast.

At noon, she had her own projects to handle.

Ace also had his responsibilities within the tribe.

The evening was therefore the most suitable time.

He had even taken a shower before coming.

Afterward, he had put on his best beastkin clothes.

He had made sure everything was clean and neat.

He had also deliberately chosen a time when none of the other beastmen were around Sora’s house.

After what had happened previously, Ace didn’t want another situation where several males suddenly surrounded Sora’s home.

He had observed the surroundings before coming.

Everything was quiet.

No Xavier.

No Lukan.

No Lucas.

No Damien.

It was the perfect opportunity.

So why had Sora closed the door?

Ace stared at the wooden door.

His brows slowly furrowed.

This wasn’t like Sora.

The last time she had approached him, she had been much more direct.

She had practically thrown herself into the situation without hesitation.

But tonight, when he had finally taken the initiative...