Elisa wore a white suit with a crimson tie and shoes of the same color. Her sunlight-colored hair fell over her shoulders as Rin shifted in her seat.

"Guess so..." Rin muttered, responding to Elisa's previous question.

"Have you ordered yet?"

"Uhm, no."

"Hm, well, I don't know how you're feeling, but, I'd definitely like to get a drink right about now," Elisa said before she raised a hand, gesturing at a waiter to come over to their table.

Elisa ordered some form of liquor that Rin had never heard of before while the brunette simply got some wine for herself.

"So... I think I need to make myself clear on something," Elisa said.

"What is it?"

"... You understand that I'm getting married, right? Unfortunately," Elisa continued, "my family needs the money, the resources, and the connections we'd gain from this marriage. So, I can't back out of it."

A cold wind passed over Rin's heart but she tried to keep herself together. She knew this already. There was no point in overreacting. Though, obviously, she was disappointed to hear that.

"What are you saying, then?" Rin asked quietly.

Elisa reached forward and took Rin's hands, holding them gently.

"I like you," Elisa stated. "That wasn't a lie. I wasn't just saying that to make you feel better or anything. I really do like you. But... if you and I decide to do anything, I can't let it be something too serious."

"Why?" Rin asked. "I mean if you don't care about your marriage, isn't it fine to just...?"

"Even if everyone and their mother knows I'm cheating on the guy, it would look too bad, even for me, to be in a serious relationship so blatantly when I'm married. Right now, no one really gives a shit, but, once everything's finalized, then, it'll start to affect me."

"... In that case, why can't we do something right now? Until then, I mean."

As she heard that question, Elisa smiled somewhat sadly.

"Like I told you before," she said, "I'm the type who always wants more... If you and I go that far, I won't be able to just leave you behind once I get married. So, I think it's better if we keep whatever we do strictly physical."

Those words of Elisa's sunk in and Rin nodded slowly, looking away.

"I'm sorry if I got your hopes up for something else while we were on the mountain," Elisa said. "But... This is just how things are for me. I don't want to lead you on, I don't want to make you think we can be something we can't. I just want to be as honest as possible."

Rin couldn't deny that there were definitely some mixed feelings inside of her. Sure, it wasn't like Rin was genuinely completely in love with Elisa, but to hear that the crush she'd nursed for three years could only ever manifest into something like this was slightly painful. On the other hand, expecting to suddenly be in a committed relationship also felt delusional.

In the end, Rin didn't truly know why she felt so strange about this. In theory, she probably should have been ecstatic that she'd even gotten this far.

At least, that's what she told herself.

"No, no, I get it," Rin responded. "I'm just... trying to make sure I understand, you know?"

"Yeah, of course..."

A few moments later, both of their drinks arrived.

"... How do you feel, though? I feel like I've been the only one talking so far," Elisa said with an uncharacteristically nervous laugh.

Rin paused, looking down at her wine.

[How do you feel, Rin?] She asked herself. [Is this alright with you?]

She searched for an answer within herself. This was it. The years she'd spent longing after an image of a woman she thought she'd never encounter again culminated at this moment, right now, as that same woman waited to hear if Rin was capable of setting aside whatever hopes she had of a deeper, more meaningful relationship.

When framed in that way, Rin felt like the answer was pretty obvious. After all, she'd set aside those same hopes a long time ago.

"I think it's fine," Rin muttered. "I... Yeah, I'm down."

[Some day, I'd like it if I could find someone I who really loves me... Someone I love in the same way. But, maybe that's just a childish dream I need to get rid of.]

Elisa gave a sigh of relief.

"Well, shit," Elisa said, her mood instantly brightening up a little. "Now that the serious stuff is out of the way, how about we focus on what we actually came here for?" Elisa asked.

Rin raised a brow.

"And, what's that?"

"Celebrating." She grabbed her drink, poured it into a glass cup, and lifted it up in front of Rin. Rin did the same. "Cheers," Elisa said, winking. "To us both being absolute badasses."

"Both?" Rin asked. "Didn't you carry me, literally by the way, through the whole mountain?"

"Nope," Elisa replied. "Besides, I know a badass when I see one. You're gonna be an awesome adventurer, Rin. I know it."

---

A lot of what happened after that was a blur. Small talk drowned out by the sound of giggles and the feeling of wine slipping down Rin's throat.

Slowly, but gradually, Rin's worries, Rin's concerns were all packed up and pushed into the back of her mind. She could allow herself to ignore whatever she was feeling. And, she did just that, as she wanted to enjoy this.

It seemed like Elisa felt the same way, as the two of them ended up wrapped in each other's arms just outside their room at the academy.

[Huh?] Rin thought, blinking. [When did we get here?]

She could faintly remember stumbling through the streets, laughing with Elisa as the two of them held hands, walking back to the room they shared. Now, she had hands on her lower back and lips tugging at her own.

For a second, she thought she'd somehow traveled back to that night three years ago. As she sobered up just a little, though, she realized this wasn't a memory or a dream.

She and Elisa were making out right outside of her room.

Elisa's tongue tasted like alcohol. Rin figured Elisa was probably just as drunk as she was. Clumsily, Elisa opened the door and closed it behind them, the sound of their lips smacking against each other followed them as the two slowly made it to Rin's bed.

Here, Elisa pinned Rin's arms over her head.

Rin took long, steady breaths. Bright green eyes looked back into Rin's own as Rin felt her heart beating quickly, increasing its pace with every second that passed.

"May I?" Elisa asked as she held her hands on Rin's dress, wondering if she could take it off.

"Yeah."

Rin didn't care enough to remove her heels, as drunk as she was, but her dress came off with little issue. Elisa quickly took off her bra and her panties after, and the cold air embraced Rin as she shifted on the bed, naked, trying to make herself a little more comfortable.

Elisa took off her tie, grabbing Rin's attention. The brunette watched as she slowly took off every piece of clothing she wore as well. Before long, Elisa was hovering over Rin's body, just as naked as she was.

There was a sense of desperation in the kiss that Elisa gave her after that. The way her tongue danced with Rin's own let her know that she'd probably been thinking about this for a long time.

[... Crap,] Rin thought. [I wish I hadn't drank as much as I did. Everything just feels fuzzy.]

Rin made a mental note of keeping herself in check if they did this again.

Elisa's lips didn't remain on Rin's for too long. Soon, the woman began kissing Rin's neck, sending shivers down the adventurer's spine. Her tongue went on a little journey down Rin's body, touching her chest first, then her navel, and then her thighs.

Rin's body felt so hot. She was burning up as Elisa kissed Rin's calf and then kissed the front of her right foot, holding it up by the heel she hadn't taken off.

There was nothing but lust in Elisa's eyes as she paused for a moment, smiling down at Rin.

"... You really are beautiful, you know?" Elisa said with a giggle. "What I'm seeing right now..." She muttered as her eyes scanned Rin's body. "It's like I'm looking at a painting."

[I could say the same.]

From Rin's perspective, sure, the intense make-out session probably had something to do with it, but seeing Elisa as she was right now also played a part in why she was so wet.

She looked so strong, so gorgeous that Rin felt like she'd do anything Elisa asked of her at this moment. For now, the only request the woman made came in the form of sticking her index finger in Rin's mouth, which Rin began to suck and lick just to let her know how horny she was.

And, then, Elisa's other hand dove between Rin's legs.

"Mm!"

It was like electricity briefly ran all throughout Rin's limbs as Elisa's hand found Rin's pussy. Elisa kept her finger right where it was and grinned down at the brunette.

"You liked that? I barely did anything," Elisa whispered.

[... I can't help it,] Rin thought. [I've been wanting this for so fucking long.]

Elisa's other hand moved up and down Rin's lower lips, teasing her. All the while, Elisa gauged Rin's reactions, biting her lower lip when she heard Rin let out a low moan.

"You're already this wet too?" Elisa asked, glancing down. "My hand's soaked. Do you really want me to fuck you that badly?"

[Yes. Please.]

She couldn't say any of this, of course, as right now, all she could manage were little whines and high-pitched noises. Some sweat rolled down Rin's forehead as she felt her body burning up even more intensely.

Elisa leaned over and began licking the edge of Rin's ear as she finally slipped one finger in.

"Don't worry," Elisa told her, "we have all night. So, I'm just gonna take this as slow as I can. I want to make the most of it."

As she bit Rin's ear, she slipped a second finger in. Gradually, that hand moved faster and faster, and Rin closed her eyes simply so she could try to focus only on how her body felt right now.

"Ahh~" Rin hissed as Elisa's fingers pushed in and out.

It turned out that Rin had been more desperate than she thought. Whether it was because she was pent-up or because she'd been looking forward to this, this simple teasing was enough to send her over the edge.

And, Rin came before Elisa even started going fast.

"Hm?" Elisa hummed as she glanced down. "Your pussy just tightened so much... Did you seriously just cum from that?" Rin couldn't even manage a response. "I'm sorry... I guess I shouldn't be teasing you too hard. But, like I said, we have all night. How about we just consider that round one?"

Rin wasn't too sure how many "rounds" she could take. She nodded, however, and Elisa got up.

Without saying anything, she got on top of Rin, upside-down. Being the professional she was, Rin knew what she was going for and reached up to put her hands on Elisa's back.

Neither of them said a word as they began eating each other out in a 69. Rin, however, was surprised to find that Elisa was also pretty wet herself. Maybe the insecurity inside of her had tried to convince her that, even now, Elisa wasn't too into her. That voice, however, was silenced as Elisa responded to a swipe of Rin's tongue with a moan so loud, Rin worried it would wake Xhez up.

[... Wait, Xhez, right,] Rin's drunken mind thought, [I should let her out of the bag soon. I have to go take her to see her parents. I should do that one of these days.]

Setting that aside, Rin licked Elisa's pussy greedily. Her form was practically automatic. Her mouth was well-trained, after all.

"You're way too good at that," Elisa muttered gratefully, which spurred Rin to keep going.

[Don't stop.]

A little more harshly than she'd intended, Rin put a hand on the back of Elisa's head and pulled her down, to make sure the other woman kept eating her out too.

It had taken a while, but Rin slowly adjusted her feelings. Sure, she wanted more, but, now that they were in the heat of this moment, Rin allowed herself to accept the carnal nature of the relationship Elisa was going for.

In other words, Rin figured that if they were just going to be fuck buddies, she may as well go all out.

She locked her legs around Elisa's head, keeping her in place. Her hands went to the woman's ass and she dug her nails in as her tongue continued to slash away at Elisa's clit.

"Mmm!" Elisa gave a moan, muffled by Rin's pussy. At this point, though, Rin was squarely in her element. Her focus couldn't be shaken.

With her hands squeezing Elisa's ass so hard that her nails raked her, Rin tried to move her tongue as fast as she could.

Elisa got just enough space to say:

"W-Wait, I'm going to... Holy shit, ah!"

Rin felt it. It showed up in the way Elisa's muscles clenched and spasmed, though Rin kept her locked up, so she couldn't move too much. The knees by the sides of Rin's head buckled, and Rin slowed down, absent-mindedly taking slower, more appreciative swipes with her tongue.

As Elisa fell to the side, Rin sat up.

"Well," Rin said, breathing heavily, "I guess we both came fast, huh?"

Elisa looked surprised. She gestured for Rin to come closer and Rin did just that. Elisa kissed her, and they tasted each other on their lips.

"That was insane."

"Thanks," Rin muttered with a short smile. "Up for another round?"

"Of course~"

And so, the night continued.

They went on for hours. Drunk on alcohol and lust, they shared a night that Rin knew she wouldn't forget anytime soon.

If this was how their new relationship would be, then maybe Rin could be okay with that.

This was pretty good in itself.

---

On Wednesday, the students of the academy filed into their classroom for their first course of the day.

Harriton, however, had an announcement to make before they could get started.

"So, I just wanna let everyone know," he said, as Rin rested her head on her palm, "due to personal reasons, Elisa will not be taking any further classes. She's dropping out."

Rin was already aware of this decision, but she still felt somewhat sad about it.

"She wanted me to tell you that she hopes everyone will keep working hard and that you all have it in you to be great adventurers. If you see her around, feel free to buy her a drink or two. That's all."

Rin looked down at her notebook then.

There was a note written by Elisa that said:

"Thursday, 8:00pm," with a little heart drawn next to it.

And, Rin smirked.

[Yeah? Maybe before we fuck, I'll get her one.]