“Ah, so the magic of your other world is limited currently,” Bob nodded sagely, as if understanding.
Lips quirked into a smile, Alburet agreed, “Yes, basically. However, the research behind improving the spell as it were is all done except for the final approval by the overlords of that world. I’m a simple test case.”
“Will you be leaving us then?” Tiny asked in puzzlement.
“I will be here for about another three weeks before I am tasked to return and report.”
“Will you be gone long?” Tiny asked, a worried note in his voice which made Bob chuckle.
“A day, two at the most barring setbacks,” Alburet reassured the large demon as he finished off his snack and tea.
“So where is Karen?” Bob asked with a smirk.
“Taking a few days away to deal with business she has in the other world. She said she would be back in two or three days. Until then we’ll hunt with Fluff or even, dare I say it, alone.”
“So did she let you ‘spar’ with her?” Bob asked, his eyes gleaming.
Shaking his head Alburet sighed, “Bob, Bob, Bob. A gentleman never tells.”
“Which is why I was asking you,” Bob cackled.
“Touché. However, still not telling you and that is final. Feel free to ask her though, when she gets back.”
“So Karen will be back to fight with us in a few days?” Tiny cut in, a few seconds behind in the conversation which made Bob laugh at him again.
“Should be, yes.” Alburet replied, then got up and started poking around the inn to see if anything was just lying about to be found while he waited for Fluff to return.
“Sorry I’m late,” Fluff said as she appeared, a little later than she had intended.
“It’s fine,” Alburet reassured her, getting to his feet. “You good for some more goblin slaying?”
Fluff bounced on her feet a little like an eager school girl, “Yes, sir.”
Chuckling at the image of Fluff in plaid skirt and white blouse, he shook his head, “Okay then, let’s do this. Tiny, come on over so we can buff you up, then we’re going to do another round of the village.”
They started around of the village again using the same tactics they had for the first six hours. On the second house there was a brief hiccup in the attack. They had gotten inside the house with Tiny holding the melee goblins while Alburet went to grab the archer, who came down from the second floor. As Alburet hit the goblin for the second time, the maul shattered into blue motes of light leaving him weaponless.
“Tiny! Help!” Alburet called as he rolled away from the gleeful goblin, who chased him wielding a dagger.
Tiny turned and roared with rage, charging across the room to slam his shield into the dagger wielding goblin’s face. Doing so left him open to attacks from the two goblins he had been facing. Alburet came running over applying Demonic Vitality to Tiny as Fluff and Bob killed one of the two sword wielding goblins that had been attacking Tiny. Alburet decided to start casting Fire Blast instead of digging the axe out of his bag at the moment. A minute later the goblins were dead, allowing the group to pause.
Bob was laughing, “So funny, you running away from a little goblin with a dagger.”
Rolling his eyes, Alburet dug the two handed axe out of his bag, “I forgot to keep an eye on the maul’s durability. It could have happened to anyone.”
Tiny rumbled, “It is okay. I will protect you.”
Fluffball just shook her head, “It was funny. Not quite muppet-like but still amusing. It also still amazes me how alive your minions are.”
“I think Bob could do with a little less life at times,” Alburet mock groused, as the imp was still wiping tears of laughter from his eyes.
Bob tilted his head back and let out a panicked little scream and began running around the room. As the others all came to their feet looking for some reason for the panic, Bob stopped and looked back at them, “So what did you think of my Alburet impersonation?”
Fluffball snorted as she stifled her laughter, looking away from the others. Tiny blinked, looking puzzled at finding nothing to attack. Alburet glowered at the imp, his eyes alight with images of how to slowly roast the little bastard. Bob stopped laughing on seeing Alburet’s eyes, stepping back from the glowering Summoner.
“It was just a joke master, that was all, just a harmless little joke,” Bob placated as he took a few more steps away from Alburet.
Closing his eyes Alburet, held back his own laughter behind the blank faced façade he had put up. He actually thought Bob running around just like a muppet had been hilarious, Bob had the form down perfectly. Head tilted back, mouth open, weird little bouncy run with arms flailing around overhead. He had glowered just to keep up pretenses, since he was supposed to be in charge. Opening his eyes, he looked at Bob before sighing. “Yeah, it was pretty good, but no more doing that around others.”
Bob sagged in relief, “Yes master.”
Fluffball snorted again, “I thought he did the perfect muppet run myself. Henson would have been proud.”
Alburet turned to wink at her then turned back to the demons. “Alright, enough shenanigans. Let’s get moving.”
They went back to their grind, making one circuit of the village in about three hours. During that time, Alburet reached level 14. “Okay, let’s call it a day. The sun will be setting soon. Fluff, you going to take off, or would you like to grab dinner in Stormguard?”
Fluff blinked, looking at him oddly for a moment, “You mean just the two of us?”
“Like a date?” Bob piped up with a leer as he wiggled his eyebrows.
“You’re dismissed, Bob. You as well, Tiny,” Alburet said quickly, causing the demons to vanish in puffs of smoke leaving Bob’s mocking laughter behind. “We’ve been fighting all day so I thought some food sounded good was all. Honestly Fluff, while you’re cute and adorable and I think any guy in his right mind should try to get you, I am not doing that. I can’t have a relationship and I want to make sure it is known now so no hard feelings come of it later. I will treasure you as a friend though, and will be there if you need me.”
Alburet paused as he tried to get his thoughts untangled, “So, trying this again. Would you like to grab some food with me, with no motives beyond what is stated?”
Fluffball blinked at him like he had two heads as she stood there quietly for a few moments. “I… um… yes?” She seemed uncertain even as she said it, her hands trembling slightly as she swallowed nervously.
Alburet smiled gently and took out his Homestone, “Meet you at the portal guild, okay?”
Fluff fumbled her own stone out as she agreed, vanishing quickly leaving Alburet standing in the ruined inn alone. He paused, wondering just how sheltered and nervous she had to be for such a simple thing like dinner to fluster her this badly. He wondered if he could really help her with her issues as he invoked his own stone and appeared in the graveyard outside the Dead Man Inn. He glanced at it for a moment, wondering if he should tell Stacia to grab some dinner as he would still be out for at least a little bit. He tossed the idea away, figuring he could always nibble something when he made it back to the Inn when dinner was over. With his thoughts in order he set off at a fast walk for the portal guild to meet up with Fluffball.
When he reached the portal guild he found a large number of players all gathered around outside the building in small groups. As he got closer he heard most of them talking about how long it took to get a portal to the next area. He overhead one player complaining loudly about how stupid it was to have to wait. Alburet couldn’t really fault them much. People played games to have fun after all, not to wait around to get to the next area. At the same time, he liked most of the ways the devs had tried to make the world feel more real instead of totally game like. He wondered if they might just make the portals permanent with only a fee required to use them instead of the current system though, to help keep the players happy.
As he stood there pondering he spotted Fluff o
ut on the street, eyeing the large crowd with uncertainty. She smiled at him shyly and waved as he trotted over to her.
“You were in the beta, any idea of a good place for a meal?” Alburet asked as he reached her.
“There is a place I’ve been a few times, but it has a special feel to it.”
He crooked an arm out, “If you recommend it, then I am sure it’s fine. Shall we?”
She took his arm after a brief second of hesitation, “Let’s. The place is down four streets then turn left, after another street it’s on the right hand side.”
Alburet led her down the streets following her directions until they came to the place she had directed them to. He looked at the sign above the door, which declared it Heaven Maid. He wondered what the name could possibly mean even as he opened the door for Fluff before following her in. As the door closed behind him his eyes adjusted to the light inside, allowing him to see exactly where he was.
The decor was that of a small café, with tables and booths with cute decorations everywhere. His eyes traveled the room picking out the numerous stuffed animals that lined the walls on shelves. Two butlers and three maids stood before them, smiling in welcome.
“Welcome home, master and mistress,” the five people said in unison.
Alburet felt his lips quirk slightly as he held back laughter. Who in the hell would have thought to put a maid cafe into this game, he thought. Fluff took his arm again, looking a little uncertain then purred happily when Alburet didn’t object. Alburet glanced from her to the staff, noting the butlers were an Elf and a Human, while the maids were an Elf, Lunari, and Human respectively.
“So what do you think?” Fluff murmured.
Letting his smile broaden, Alburet replied to her by addressing the staff, “It is good to be home. If one of you ladies wouldn’t mind seeing to us tonight?”
Fluff purred louder as the Lunari maid led them to a booth in the back. Alburet had always had a soft spot for anime, so this whole cafe was a wonderful surprise to him. He did note the puzzlement from the server as he and Fluff took opposite sides of the table. The maid quickly replaced her expression with one of happiness as she handed them two menus, asking them to call for her when they were ready.
“So you’re okay with this?” Fluff asked again, still obviously nervous.
“I used to watch a lot of anime to unwind, Fluff. This is fine, though I’m really thrown that it exists here. How did you find this place?”
Fluff looked at her menu intently, licking her lips as she chewed her bottom lip. “A friend of mine told me about it. So when I got to the city during beta I came straight here to see it.”
“You have a soft spot for maid cafes then?”
“Well, I do digital art, I told you that before. I’ve done the animation for a few anime before under a pen name.”
“Wow you did anime work, have I seen any of your stuff?” Alburet asked eagerly, putting his menu down to look at her.
Fluff brought her menu up to block his gaze, her cheeks bright red. “I don’t know, it’s not something I talk about normally.”
Pulling back his enthusiasm a little, he recalled her anxiety and felt a little bad for putting her on the spot. “Sorry about that, Fluff. It’s just been rare for me to find someone who likes anime. I won’t ask again, but if you want to talk about it I don’t mind at all.” He paused, then changed the topic, “So you’ve been here before. What do you suggest?”
“They don’t really serve meals so much as snacks. The crepes have been really good, though.”
Alburet got a momentary flash of different animes where the two main characters eat crepes together. He couldn’t help the stupid little smile that crept over his mouth. “Crepes, you say? Does that mean I can sample yours if we both get them?”
Fluff let out a mew behind the menu as it shook slightly in her hands, “Umm… err... yes?”
Alburet immediately felt bad. He had told her not even an hour ago he wasn’t interested in any kind of relationship and now here he was asking for an anime trope that was all about cute couples. He blinked as he realized what he was doing, chewing on his lip. If he tried to back out of it now he would really be an ass. He sighed internally as he glanced at the menu to figure out his order. Fluff set her menu down, her cheeks still red as she looked around the room, Alburet set his down a moment later and caught the eyes of the maid.
“Are you ready, sir?”
“Yes we are, but ladies first,” Alburet said, nodding towards Fluff.
“Um, I’ll take the strawberry crepe and the strawberry milk please,” Fluff said.
“Chocolate crepe and coffee for me, please. Just a splash of cream in the coffee,” Alburet said. The maid collected the menus, thanking them and hurrying away.
“I haven’t been out to food with a friend in years, “Alburet mused. “It’s nice, even here in Alpha World, and at a maid cafe to boot.”
“Oh because of the…” Fluff cut off as she caught herself about to mention his disability.
“Yeah, because of that,” Alburet said calmly, “it’s not a great topic so I thank you for breaking off the sentence.”
“Sorry,” Fluff said looking away. “What about before that?”
“I used to go out once a week with a friend and his daughter. That was about it, really. I was never good at the whole dating thing, it’s hard when the first thing you have to ask a woman you’re interested in is if they’re a felon or currently undergoing criminal charges.”
Fluffball’s eyes went wide, “You had to ask that?”
“Policy for the sheriff’s office, so yeah. Considering the smallish town I lived in had a massive drug issue, it was really hard to find someone so I all but gave up on it. I was happy enough to hang with my friend and his daughter. Those were good days,” he said, the memories causing a sad smile form on his lips.
“You don’t see them anymore?” Fluff asked softly, her hand inching across the table toward his.
“Not since the incident,” Alburet replied, his face becoming a blank mask as he looked away.
Just then the maid came over with the crepes and drinks. The crepes were in stands to hold them upright with the wrapper around them. The maid quickly placed the food before each of them then added a splash of cream to his coffee at the table. “Enjoy the food,” she said, bouncing away.
“At least they got the happy atmosphere of the cafe right,” Alburet said, a smile tugging the corners of his lips up.
Fluff nodded, sipping her milk before taking the crepe out of its holder. “About trying my crepe,” she paused, holding it towards him slightly, “you can if you want.”
Alburet felt a part of him melt at the stereotypical shy anime girl offering a bite of her food. With a nod he leaned over the table and took a small bite from her crepe, the creamy richness combined with strawberry filling his mouth with flavor. He made appreciative noises as he finished the bite, “Delicious. Did you want a bite of mine?” He held out his crepe to her in return.
Her cheeks flaming, she hesitantly leaned to take a bite. As she pulled back a small blob of cream went with her, stuck to her cheek. She purred loudly as she chewed. “So good,” she said after swallowing.
Alburet reached out and wiped the cream from her cheek, which made her stiffen in surprise. “Sorry, you took a touch more than you thought.” He stopped, wondering if he should offer it to her or eat it himself. In the two seconds he paused she leaned forward and lapped dab of cream off his finger. Her tongue was rough, just like a cat, rasping over the end of his finger.
Blinking in shock, he stared at his hand where the cream had just been. His brain stuttered as it processed the unexpected sensation. He was amazed that she’d been ballsy enough to do it. His brain immediately started offering up all sorts of images that would not be fit for polite company and he felt his own cheeks burning as he sat there blinking stupidly. He finally pulled his gaze up to look at Fluff. She was turned partially away, crepe in one hand drink in the ot
her, her entire face red.
“Well. I wasn’t expecting that,” he finally managed to say. “Not that I mind but, please warn me next time.”
“Sorry,” the word was barely audible as Fluff slowly turned back to him. “I don’t know what came over me.”
Alpha World Book One: Gamer for Life Page 31