Chapter 119
After exiting Vasiliki's room, Draco made his way back to Bahamut's house.
He wanted to finish his paperwork there before gathering the ingredients he would use for Vasiliki's requested meal.
The girls' house kitchen wasn't really used very often, so it wasn't regularly stocked.
Within an hour, Draco had completed the necessary paperwork.
With a sigh, he entered the kitchen to assess the available supplies for Vasiliki's meal.
‘Hmm, we're a bit low on a lot of things,’ Draco observed, running his fingers along the nearly bare shelves.
Since Bahamut had taken over cooking duties, he hadn't paid much attention to the kitchen.
‘Might as well do a bit of shopping now,’ Draco thought, pulling his cloak over his head, grabbing some money and bags before heading for the door.
Checking up on Vasiliki one more time in the girls' housing, Draco stepped out into the bustling street, making his way towards the market.
He didn't make it far before running into familiar faces.
It was Bahamut, Clair, Eleni, and Dimitra, all carrying what appeared to be bags filled with groceries.
Eleni was the first to spot Draco, her face immediately lighting up with a bright smile.
"Draco nii, over here!" she called out, dropping her bags to free up her arm and enthusiastically waving him over.
"Stop waving like that, he can hear you," Dimitra scolded, her brow furrowed in mild irritation.
"Why?" Eleni asked, her expression puzzled.
Dimitra glanced around at the curious onlookers, not wanting to draw even more attention to their group.
‘Don’t you feel embarrassed drawing even more attention to us like that?’ she wanted to say, but decided it was pointless.
Bahamut had already joined Eleni in waving, her own bags abandoned on the ground.
"Sigh, never mind, you both just do your thing," Dimitra replied, much to Eleni's confusion.
Sensing Draco's hesitation to approach them, Dimitra gently pulled the group to the side of the street, making it easier for him to approach.
Seeing Eleni and Bahamut call out to him so flamboyantly, Draco had wanted to turn around and return home, but he couldn't ignore them now that he had been spotted.
As Draco reluctantly approached the group, Bahamut immediately began inspecting him, her hands roaming over his body, checking for any signs of injury.
“What are doing” Draco asked, a bit startled and perplexed by her actions.
“Checking for injuries” Bahamut replied.
"I am fine, I didn't injure myself this time," Draco replied, clearly embarrassed by Bahamut's overly affectionate display in public.
“Seems like you are telling the truth” she said, relief evident in her voice.
"Draco nii, welcome back," Dimitra greeted.
“Thanks” Draco replied, before briefly turning his attention to Clair.
Draco's gaze briefly met Clair's, but she quickly looked away, avoiding his eyes. ‘Understandable,’ he thought, knowing he still had to make amends with her.
"It’s good that you came back in one piece. You actually listened this time," Bahamut said, pulling Draco into a warm hug.
"I'm so glad you're safe." she added.
"Can we talk at home? It's kind of embarrassing being like this out here," Draco asked, gesturing towards the curious onlookers.
"Oh, right," Bahamut murmured, her face flushing with embarrassment as she became more conscious of the onlookers.
"Did something change between you two?" Eleni asked, her tone slightly suspicious as her instincts alerted her to something different between Draco and Bahamut.
Caught off guard by Eleni's question, Draco quickly grabbed some of the grocery bags from the ground and turned to leave.
"Stop wasting time with silly questions and carry the groceries home" he deflected, his pace quickening as he headed back towards Bahamut's house.
Eleni watched Draco's retreat, her eyes narrowed in suspicion.
"His reaction make it seem awfully suspicious," she muttered, turning her gaze to Bahamut.
Bahamut locked eyes with Eleni, unsure of whether to reveal the change in her and Draco's relationship.
‘Hmm, should I tell them or not?’ she pondered, chewing on her lower lip as she considered her options.
It didn't take long for Bahamut to make her decision.
With a resolute expression, she turned to Eleni and revealed the truth.
"Don't pester him too much about it. It's just that I confessed my love to him yesterday night, but he was not ready to receive it, so I decided to give him time until he was ready. If there is any change you notice, it's that he has simply become aware of my feelings," Bahamut revealed before grabbing some grocery bags and walking off.
Eleni, Dimitra, and Clair stood there in stunned silence, processing the goddess's unexpected revelation.
"W-w-what did she just say?" the words struggled to escape Eleni's mouth as she stammered.
Dimitra being the first to recover from the shock, glanced at Clair, knowing that the young girl had been grappling with her own feelings for Draco for quite some time now.
"Are you okay?" Dimitra asked gently, placing a comforting hand on Clair's arm.
Clair took a deep breath, trying to compose her thoughts before responding.
"I honestly don't know how I feel right now," she admitted, her brow furrowed in confusion.
"Is that so," Dimitra said, nodding in understanding.
Earlier that day, after Draco had gone to the dungeon, Clair had followed Bahamut’s advice and gathered everyone to apologize for her behaviour the previous day.
As Bahamut had said, they were all very understanding and forgiving.
After the gathering, she had then sought advice in a heartfelt girl-talk session with Eleni and Dimitra, sharing her recent worries and dilemmas.
Although Eleni and Dimitra were just as young and inexperienced in matters of the heart, they had advised Clair to continue with a "wait and see" approach or seek guidance from their goddess, Bahamut.
But now, the very Bahamut they had suggested consulting had dropped a bombshell, further enhancing Clair's confusion.
‘I should be feeling some form of jealousy, anger, or something, but oddly enough, I don't feel a thing – or rather, I'm just confused about what to feel,’ Clair thought, her mind in a whirlwind of emotions.
"Are you going to give up on him if he accepts Bahamut-sama?" Eleni asked, her voice laced with concern.
Clair paused, considering the question.
"I don't know. Even if I knew, and I don't give up, can I even compete with a goddess?" she replied, her voice tinged with uncertainty.
"Sigh, let's just go home. My head hurts thinking about it all," Clair said, grabbing her grocery bags and heading towards Bahamut's house, leaving the two girls behind.
"What a mess. Do you think she'll be okay?" Dimitra asked Eleni, worry evident in her expression.
"Probably," Eleni replied, a thoughtful look on her face.
"Your reason being?" Dimitra pressed, curious to hear Eleni's perspective.
"If she decides to give up on Draco nii, then lucky Michalis. But If she wants to be with him so badly and can't win against Bahamut-sama, then a harem might be a viable solution," Eleni explained, with a thoughtful expression.
Dimitra's eyes widened at the mention of a harem.
"Harem, huh? I remember Grandpa John used to brag about how popular he was and how he almost succeeded in creating one until he met Grandma," she said fondly, a nostalgic smile playing on her lips.
"Yeah, and he also used to say that Draco nii was the most likely to succeed him in creating one. I didn't understand what it meant then, but after some research, I realized he was kind of right," Eleni replied, a twinkle in her eye.
"True, he is the only one of his kind right now," Dimitra acknowledged, her expression thoughtful.
"Ugh, I can sense incoming chaos. How will Vasiliki react to this news?" Dimitra suddenly exclaimed, a cold feeling creeping up her neck.
"As much as I'm interested in her reaction, I don't think we should say anything about this until Draco nii and Bahamut are officially together," Eleni replied, her voice pragmatic.
"True," Dimitra nodded in agreement, the two girls walking home in pensive silence.
The atmosphere was heavy with unspoken emotions as Clair, Eleni, and Dimitra made their way back to Bahamut's house, each lost in their own thoughts and concerns.
Clair's heart was in turmoil, unsure of how to process the revelation that the goddess she revered had feelings for the person she herself had developed some-kind of affection for.
‘What does this mean for me?’ Clair wondered, her steps slowing as she pondered the implications.
‘Can I even hope to compete with a goddess? What do I even want? And what of Draco's feelings – how will he respond to Bahamut-sama’s confession?’ the questions swirled in her mind, leaving her feeling overwhelmed and uncertain.