Chapter 353: Friends and Enemies - Part 3

Kael had wanted to get used to his new office soon, but that did not mean that he wanted to spend days inside it, reviewing documents and reading through texts long enough to be books.

But there was just so much he had to read through in order to draft efficient contracts, and then he had to take a look at the currently active dungeons.

Not to mention that smaller guilds had started to pop up and cause all kinds of trouble around the world in the name of freedom.

It wouldn’t take long before a rival guild to his own stood up. But he doubted it would be a bother for him since he had exceptional help.

But right now, the main problem was the lack of staff.

Since this was a guild, most people who applied to work here were awakened. And most of them wanted to go out into the field, which left a lot of manpower lacking in most places. So new civil posts were going to be opened soon.

The number of applications had already reached 10,000, so they needed to start vetting people soon. And to do that, he had set up a testing ground with his magic.

And that was going to be the perfect ground for someone to cause trouble.

Kael wanted to head the security himself, but since he needed to maintain the testing magic, he had to leave the security to everyone else.

Of course, his people were more than eager to help. Especially Elena and Lyra. So they had been the first picks. And then he chose Leon to supervise them to make sure they didn’t cause any trouble.

Seraphina and Iris, unfortunately, had to stay behind and help with the paperwork and other management work in the meantime. The two were fine with it, but Lyra was causing him a headache.

“Ha! Take that, you two! I am going out to catch those bastards again, and I will have fun—”

Lyra teased Seraphina, and there was only so much the former Saintess could take before she used her powers to tie Lyra up and threw her towards Leon.

“This one is in your hands now. But maybe you should throw her into the dungeon as well to make sure she does not cause any trouble.”

“Mffff—”

“Hmm, maybe I should. That will likely make her less bouncy as well. What do you think, Kael?”

Leon asked him, and even Lyra’s bound body turned to look at him with a sorry expression that begged him for help.

But he did not want to interfere with her since it made him feel guilty.

Moreover, he felt sorry because he had still not given her an answer for her confession when he had clearly been determined to do that. He had even accepted her confession and invitation to date.

But there had been no time after that happened. It had been one thing after another.

Finally, the guilt felt like too much, and Kael tapped Leon on the shoulder to make him let Lyra go.

Lyra landed on her feet and looked at him with a grateful expression.

“Thanks for helping me. Now, shall we get going?”

She asked, and Kael nodded and followed her out. He looked at her hand that was swinging in front of him and wondered if he should grab it to see what her reaction would be.

Somehow, he could imagine Lyra jumping into the air when startled and looking back at him with that nervous expression of hers.

‘Ah, I really want to see that expression. Maybe I should do it—’

He reached forward, and his fingers brushed Lyra’s when she suddenly looked back at him with a startled and flustered expression. Her eyes darted around, being unable to meet his own.

“I… really should hurry. I will go ahead first. You all come back later, alright? I will check the security venue.”

Lyra was so nervous that she spouted some words before she left, and Kael could not help but let out a chuckle.

He looked at his side, only to see Leon looking at him with a blank expression.

“Kael, do you like Lyra?”

He asked, and Kael paused, wondering how to give him an answer. He did like Lyra, but was it in a romantic way? He was not sure.

But for now…

“I guess I like her enough to accept her offer to date. Why? Is something wrong?”

Leon bit his lip, and for a second, it seemed like he was going to confess. But that did not happen.

Instead, he talked about someone Kael did not expect.

“What about Seraphina? Or Iris? Or even Elena? What do you feel about them?”

That question felt difficult to answer, but he had a feeling he knew why Leon was asking him about them. As for his answer…

“I like Seraphina and Lyra. As for Elena, she is more like a little sister or a kid. But in the end, aren’t we all friends?”

He asked, dodging the question.

Kael had a feeling Leon was going to ask him what he would do if he was asked on a date by someone else. Would he decline them? Or give them a chance like Lyra?

And honestly, he was not sure.

But he also knew that no one else was going to ask him even if they did like him. After all, they would have already asked if that were to be the case.

Since only Lyra had asked and confessed, he wanted to give her a chance.

Leon seemed to know that as well, because he did not say anything back.

Kael was sure that Elena had heard what he said as well, but she remained quiet in the shadows, not responding to what Kael had said, nor did she add her own opinion to this.

The air had turned weird, but that all changed as soon as they reached the testing ground. It was finally time to show off his skills and to get more staff for his guild.