Eventful Night

After Lu Ciel visited Bogart, he went to the market and bought some spiritual vegetables and condiments. He was planning of cooking some of the spiritual fishes in the pond of the training room that was been restocked by the guild for later when nurse Sofia visits. At the market, he also went to the liquor stores to buy the Jasmine Wine. It took him three stores to finally find the wine that the nurse love.

This Jasmine Wine is a spiritual wine which has a life span of ten years. After ten years, it basically just becomes a poison. Though it is expensive the older it gets, the moment that a stock has been released in the market, the availability will ran out in a matter of days, and usually the resellers would hoard the Jasmine wine when it was still one year old.

That's why Lu Ciel had a hard time looking for this wine. He was though lucky to buy one bottle that has an age of five in a dilapidated shop. Though it should only cost him fifteen spirits stones for a five year old wine, as the old shop was a reseller, he bought it for twenty spirit stones.

Supposedly, the reseller's price should only be eighteen spirit stone but the shopkeeper did not expect that the young man would not bargain. He was already laughing in an evil manner inside when Lu Ciel was about to take out his payment. However, when he was anticipatingly about to accept the fifteen spirit stones, he was stunned to see the items that were placed in the cashier's desk were not milky white stones but instead, milky white crystals.

"Err..?" The shopkeeper looked at the young man to check whether he knew what he just gave but the expression that he saw in the young man was as if he was dealing with another merchant. With that, he was finally able to realize that this young man has other intentions. "Is there anything else I can help you with?"

"Yes." Lu Ciel simply replied, smiling. "Lets become business partner."

"Huh?" The shopkeeper was baffled to see a young man who had just ended up in his old shop to buy a spirit yet suddenly proclaiming things out of nowhere. "W-why?"

"Don't you want to?" Lu Ciel looked at the shopkeeper as if he can't understand why would this shopkeeper not want to make more money.

After a moment of silence, Lu Ciel sigh as he shook his head, taking away the spirit crystals leaving only one to pay for the wine. "This shop supposedly have a bright future. It's a shame that this has been covered in dust like a gold burried in the sand."

Before Lu Ciel walked out of the shop, he stopped as he glanced to the dumbfounded shopkeeper leaving his final piece, "I'll be back to get my change, you have three days to think about my offer, old man."

Despite the young man have left a moment ago, the shop keeper did not know what to react nor what to say still as he looked at the now single piece of spirit crystal.

×××××

After buying all the things that he needed, Lu Ciel went back to the Hunter guild. Unexpectedly, he did not saw Mi Chell in the reception's desk. He did not mind it though as he went straight to his training room since maybe Mi Chell was just in other areas of the building.

As everything was prepared for later, while waiting, Lu Ciel cultivated his Fire and water Manipulation Art through experimental cooking. After four hours, that was only the time that he was able to level up the two skills and cook the food in a correct manner for later when nurse Sofia comes.

After being satisfied with his cooking, Lu Ciel waited for another thirty minutes. Yet, the nurse has still not came. With everything prepared for the nurse, Lu Ciel did not know what to anymore. She did say that she will be late. Hence, he started his workout routine for the mean time.

Right when Lu Ciel was about to be finished with his workout for over an hour, a series of knocking was heard from the door. Drenched in sweat, Lu Ciel took a towel to dry himself as much as he can while approaching towards the door.

As he opened the door, Lu Ciel was supposed to act surprised from not expecting that someone would come to his place at this kind of hour however, when he opened the door, he got truly surprised with what he saw.

A very short pink-colored hair woman that displays the majestic porcelain nape. The woman was wearing a white crop top hoodie to the point that the underboobs would already take glimpse, a white loose pants that's only four inch below the knee and leather-laced mid-heels.

Lu Ciel was stunned for a second.

"E-excuse me." He coughed right away to excuse his behavior. "Uhmm..who are you?"

Seeing the reaction of the young man, the woman can't help but chuckle. "Might you be expecting someone other than me?"

Realizing who the woman was in front of him, Lu Ciel really did not expected to see how pretty this woman really was. "A-are you nurse Sofia?"

The woman only nodded, chuckling at the silly manner of the young man.

"Wow. I never thought you could look even much much much more pretty!" Lu Ciel praised as he sighed in amazement.

Hearing this, nurse Sofia can't help but be embarrassed. "Thank you but you're over exaggerating it."

"Not at all. Not at all." Lu Ciel simpered in strong denial. "Oh right, please come in! I hope you have not yet eaten. I've prepaired some food and the Jasmine wine that you mentioned."

"Really?" Hearing the word Jasmine wine, Sofia's eyes sparkled in delight right away as he entered the young man's training room.

Seeing the place inside the training room, nurse Sofia can't help but praise. "What a nice place!"

"Hehe." Lu Ciel chuckled seeing the adorable expression of the nurse. "Courtesy of the Hunter Guild itself."

"So where's the wine?" Nurse Sofia asked while looking at the surrounding meticulously as if she was searching for something that she truly came for.

"Haha." Lu Ciel laughed at the silly manner that the woman was showing. He found a wine lover just like him he thought as he took the bottle of the Jasmine Wine out of his inventory. "Do you love wine, nurse Sofia?"

"Love?" Nurse Sofia eyes shined as she dashed towards the bottle that Lu Ciel was holding.

"I live for it!" After exclaiming her thoughts about wine, nurse Sofia snatched the bottle right away.

"Haha!" Learning about the nurse's enthusiasm to wine, Lu Ciel can't help but feel joy as he snatched the wine bottle back and took out two wine glasses his inventory. "Calm down, nurse Sofia. You know why I invited you over, right?"

With the wine bottle taken away from her, nurse Sofia sobered up from her excited manner, nodding as her face gotten red.

"Come." Lu Ciel gestured towards the a short-legged table placed with a pot on the center and one steamed and grilled fish at each side beside the tree. He poured the Jasmine wine in the two glasses and offered one of the glass right after. "Lets eat."

"Are you a Hunter also, nurse Sofia?" Lu Ciel asked as he poured some soup for the two of them to feast on.

"Yes, and you can call me Sofia." The nurse answered Lu Ciel as she smiled sweetly accepting the small bowl of fish soup with different kinds of vegetables in it. "Hmmm. Smells sour however, I can feel that it tastes delicious. What food is this?"

"This is what you call, Sinigang." Lu Ciel smiled in reply. "Please do enjoy the taste of its sourness."

"Thank you!" Sofia nodded as she tasted the soup. Tasting the sour soup, she can't help but close her eyes and open it right away and comment in delight. "It's so sour yet you can't stop from sipping for more!"

"That' how this food is." Lu Ciel can't help but chuckle at how weirdly adorable Sofia's facial expression upon tasting the sourness of the soup.

As the two ate and drank wine, Lu Ciel learned a lot of things when it comes to demons, monsters and especially dungeoneering.

"Thank you so much for the information, Sofia." After eating, Lu Ciel can't help but admire the knowledge and experiences that this woman have. "So, you're a Level 39 Support Class, Novice Hunter huh?"

"Uhhuh!" Sofia nodded as her face red looking at Lu Ciel.

"That's amazing, you know that?" Lu Ciel praised as he look at her adorable tipsy eyes. The two were now looking at each other as if a smoldering ember was slowly burning into fire.

"You're amazing!" Sofia raised her glass of wine. "Despite not yet going to the dungeons, you were able to buy a five-year old Jasmine wine. It's hard to earn spirit stones you know? Sometimes, it's not worth it to stake your life for some adventures and treasures."

Hearing this, Lu Ciel help but chuckle in contemplation. "Well, I guess I have to be more grateful to the ones who supported me, huh?"

"Yes, you should!" Lu Ciel got surprised when Sofia's face suddenly appeared inch away from his. Eye to eye, the two look at each other for seconds. Sofia's hands combed Lu Ciel's hair. "Say, why are you wet?"

Hearing this question from out of nowhere, Lu Ciel can't help but think of the other meaning and foolishly smirked. "I'm not wet. You are wet."

"I'm not wet." Sofia pouted adorably as she denied the young man's claim.

"Oh yes, you are!" Lu Ciel retorted back and grinning in an evil manner, he carried Sofia, jumping to the pond together.

"Aaaaaaaaahh!!!" Sofia can't help but only scream as she was not able to react in that spur of the moment.