Riches and Bitches: I have a gate to an isekai and leveling-up system!

52  Some girls are worth simping for

Cleaning ourselves up took far less time than I initially expected it would. Ultimately, we simply had to wipe our sweat and with the help of a single bottle of water, rinse our genitals. With those two little bits done, we simply put our clothes back before hugging side-by-side and walking in the direction Fay led us. She could easily sense where exactly her mother was, proving to be more capable in that regard than I was. 'And honestly, it would be weird if she wasn't,' I thought when I gave this realization some thought upon noticing the low-key ease and speed at which she brought her arm up when I asked where to find her mom. 'If I could still be better at sensing aura despite dumping most of my points into endurance, it would put the very sense of my system into question.'

Sure, it allowed me to grow at a rapid pace. In terms of what kind of damage I could endure, I've already moved well past human limits. But my aura, wisdom, and knowledge lagged behind, making it unlikely I could compete with what appeared to be Fay's expertise. In the end, we found Fay's mom after only a short walk back to the battlefield, where she sat down in pace, watching over all the corpses while awaiting our return. 'Thinking about it, wouldn't she do more in that fight back in her fox's form?' I couldn't help but ask myself. I didn't mean to claim she didn't do much. Without her, I would be done by that massive fire projectile cast by one of the invaders. But when I thought about tally…

Sure, I used firearms, but I brought down three, or four attackers. And as elegant as her human form was, didn't she end up only duking it out with that lone mage?

I squinted my eyes a little. Trying to recall the details of that fight only brought physical pain exerting the weakened parts of my memories. Looking back up, I suddenly noticed the stare of Fay's mom. It wasn't directed at me, though. Sensing her mother's inquisitive look, Fay blushed and took a step to the side, hiding herself behind my shoulder. Her mom's gaze continued for a moment, followed by a satisfied and slightly amused smile. "You've got a great mate, it seems," she spoke, clearly intent on teasing her offspring. 'Ugh…'  My chest clenched a little. I wasn't all that comfortable with anything that pressured Fay… even if her own mother was at fault. And before I could notice, my body shifted right, nearly cutting off the line of sight between the two. Either overwhelmed by the embarrassment or faltering under the scrutiny of her mom's eyes, Fay buried her burning forehead into the side of my back. And sensing her body tremble…

"Well, it's good you are back," the elegant woman only laughed at my expression, seemingly satisfied with her teasing so far. She then stood up and turned her eyes from the side of my chest to my face. "You've fought well," she announced before spreading her arms open and turning around, as if to point at the entire battlefield we were now standing on. Her eyes then shifted to one of the nearby bodies. "I think it's only fair for you to get a fair share of the spoils," she spoke, her gaze intensifying, her expression turning as inquisitive as when she grilled Fay. Rather than responding right away, I took a long glance at the nearby corpses, counting those with wounds I could attribute to my shots. I raised my eyebrow a little when I saw the strangled mage, a young and timid-looking woman, likely around the middle of her twenties. My face twitched when I saw a group of three corpses brutalized to the point I couldn't even tell their exact number for sure. Despite how my perception was focused on the everpresent green of the forest, this place was actually bloody like hell. The crimson of the life juice was simply masked by the nature that readily jumped on the opportunity to suck it dry. 'Judging from the state of decay, it's only a matter of two, three days before the corpses vanish,' I thought… and noticed the lack of a certain drive. Contrary to how I felt when I saw the other battlefield… Right now, I felt no urge to bury them. 'Is it because they actually tried to harm Fay?' I thought, puzzled by the small notion of my character changing under the circumstances. 'Quite peculiar, isn't it?'

What's more, as I looked at those mangled corpses, the frozen looks of fear, focus, and disbelief on their still faces… I felt no remorse or guilt whatsoever. Regardless, as I kept looking at this scene of carnage, my hand moved back on its own, seeking Fay's warmth. Fay shifted behind my back, slightly startled by my hand at first, only to readily reach out for my fingers and give my palm a tight, reassuring squeeze. 'How does she even know how I feel?' I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, feeding off the warmth of Fay's hand to rebuild my mental momentum. "You've really found a good mate, kiddo," Fay's mom spoke again, this time in a softer voice. The pressure on my girl seemed to weaken as well, allowing her to carefully peek out from behind my back while giving my hand another squeeze. "I did…" Fay whispered, blushing hard while she lowered her face and looked away… but this time she didn't avert her eyes under the weight of her mother's look. This time, she couldn't handle my stare. Her hand never stopped squeezing mine, though. I shook my head and forced my thoughts back on track. And the answer that came up was likely not what Fay's mother expected to hear. "To be honest, I'm not in that much of a hurry to gather the spoils," I shrugged my shoulders, averting my eyes from the corpses and looking at the elegant fox-woman instead. "I don't see a point going around while they can still be breathing. Why risk giving them a lucky shoot?" I shrugged my shoulders again. "Let's just leave them to die in a few hours tops. In the meantime, I would like you to finally take a look at the gifts that we've brought!"

Contrary to the flesh and possibly even bone, I didn't have to worry about the lively flora of the place to consume the gold or silver. I saw those two metals remain on the former battlefield, even when some of the corpses already reached an advanced state of decay. "I've thought you craved gold…?" Fay's mom raised her eyebrows, appearing to be genuinely surprised. And in all honesty, her look hurt a bit. "Only to provide Fay with all the luxury and fun my world can offer." I shook my shoulders for the third time. Moving my head, I gave Fay a loving look. And upon realizing how my statement just now sounded like… 'Some girls are really worth simping for,' I thought, painfully aware of who I turned into. Then, the battlefield drew my attention yet again. "Even if I can get those coins, it's only a stop-gap measure. Not something I can stably sustain us on," I shook my head before turning it back towards the woman and looking her straight in the eye. "My world appears to be pretty expensive. And I'm not going to hold anything back when letting Fay experience all the best parts of it."

For today: 2/6

MotivatedSloth n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om