Dylan reached the table where Connor and Rose were sitting, slamming his hands heavily onto the wooden surface and startling Rose.
"Damn it, Dylan, don't just appear out of nowhere like that!" Rose complained, clutching her chest.
"Connor! I need your help!" Dylan barked urgently.
"Oh yeah? With what?" Connor asked without looking up from the quest contracts spread across the table. (Shit, there isn't a single decent contract in this pile...)
"A fight!" Dylan declared, instantly catching Connor's attention.
Raising an eyebrow, Connor looked up, genuinely interested by Dylan's words.
"A fight? You want to learn how to fight?!" Connor asked excitedly, bolting straight upright. In his mind, this was the perfect opportunity to forge his party member into a true combat partner.
"What? No! I want to fight you until I burn off all my excess energy so I can finally sleep!" Dylan explained.
Upon hearing the explanation, Connor's excitement vanished completely. Understanding the situation instantly, he sat back down to resume reviewing the contracts.
"Pass," Connor refused flatly.
"What?! Why? I need your help!" Dylan countered immediately.
Connor simply waved his hand, rejecting the offer once more.
"You're suffering from excess energy storage, right? That's why you haven't been able to sleep for the last two days... and here I thought Rose had already corrupted you with her perversion," Connor admitted, looking relieved.
Initially, Connor had mistaken Dylan's energy storage for simple nervousness or anxiety about sleeping out in the woods. Then, the previous night, he had felt Dylan restlessly pacing around, assuming Rose had somehow corrupted him with her poor influence. Now, however, everything made sense.
"Yes! That's why I need your help!" Dylan asserted again.
"Forget it, Dylan. It's not going to work—if anything, we'll only make it worse," Connor explained logically.
"But Derek and Melissa said—"
"They said that if you fought someone significantly stronger for long enough, you'd tire yourself out and the accumulated energy would disperse, right?" Connor interrupted, receiving a nod from Dylan. "And they're not wrong, but that rule only applies to opponents who vastly outmatch your strength. You and I are nearly identical in raw physical capability because we both drank the Initiation Potion not that long ago. The only difference is that I actually know how to fight, which is why I seem much stronger."
"And that doesn't help?!" Dylan pressed.
"No... sigh... Look at it this way: if we fought, no matter how many times I landed a blow or knocked you down, our baseline strength is so close that your body can easily absorb my hits. Instead of draining energy, your system would trigger another adrenaline surge, worsening your condition," Connor explained, setting one contract aside and picking up another. "In other words, we'd just be two lunatics beating each other bloody for nothing."
Dylan grumbled in frustration and slumped into a chair at the table; he was rapidly running out of options.
"I can choke you unconscious if you want," Connor offered casually, an option Dylan rejected outright.
"I'm not getting choked out every single time this happens to me. That'd be ridiculously... masochistic," Dylan replied, shaking his head.
"In that case, go find someone and get laid. I'm sure Derek and Melissa explained that option to you as well," Connor advised, instantly piquing Rose's interest.
(Wait, what?) Rose thought, her attention fully captured. Find the original chapter at g.com.
"You too? Why does everyone keep saying that?! How is that supposed to help me?!" Dylan snapped, visibly irritated.
"Hard as it might be for you to believe, it actually works—and it's by far the most efficient method right now," Connor explained without looking up from his papers.
Judging by Connor's bored expression and the absence of his usual energetic tone, Dylan knew he was telling the absolute truth.
"Oh, so sex is pretty common for that kind of stuff?..." Rose inquired cautiously, deeply intrigued by the revelation.
"Don't get any wild ideas, pervert. It's only common among high-tier adventurers who regularly put their lives on the line against high-level threats—not second-rate rookies like us," Connor clarified quickly.
"Then why does Dylan already need to do it?!" Rose argued, pouting.
"Because he got blindsided by a Hobgoblin. Did you fight a Hobgoblin too? No, right? You got tied up like a hog by three regular goblins," Connor retorted sarcastically.
"Hey! They were extremely strong, for your information!" Rose defended herself defensively.
Dylan let out a defeated sigh, dropping his face onto the table. His primary issue wasn't the act of having sex itself, but rather with whom?
Who in their right mind would just sleep with a complete stranger? What if they were carrying diseases down there?... What if this world had brand-new, even worse diseases?!
Dylan felt completely trapped, as if every available path was forcefully steering him toward that single resolution.
"I can't just walk up to some random girl and ask her, can I?! That's not normal!" Dylan complained into the wood of the table.
"What about Rose?" Connor suggested offhandedly.
"Me?!" Rose squeaked.
For Rose, time stood completely still. A tidal wave of thoughts and scenarios flooded her mind in an instant.
(Wait, wait... what is this feeling? I've always loved BL novels and manga, but actually being part of one?! That never even crossed my mind!) Rose stared down at her hands, feeling as though she had suddenly stumbled upon a power she had never imagined or asked for—a genuine golden opportunity.
Slowly, she turned her head to look at Dylan: wavy brown hair, straight, defined brows, sharp light-brown eyes, a refined nose, and a strong, square jawline.
He was attractive—exceptionally attractive.
Rose carefully licked her lips, visualizing the scenario in her head: just her and Dylan, alone together in a private room.
"W-Well... if you really need help that badly..." Rose began tentatively.
"Don't even think about it, you male-harasser," Dylan cut her off mid-sentence. After what had transpired back at the river, he wasn't getting anywhere near Rose in private. What if she wanted to swap roles?! After pausing to deliberate for a brief second, he made a slight face of doubt and muttered, "Maybe Melissa has a sleeping potion or something... She's an alchemist, after all."
Rose watched in jaw-dropped silence as Dylan walked away, her golden opportunity evaporating right before her eyes.
Over at the reception counter, Melissa was adjusting her hair in a small mirror when she caught Dylan's reflection approaching from behind. Knowing full well that Dylan hadn't found a way to discharge his excess energy, Melissa let a subtle, mischievous smile curl her lips, subtly adjusting her collar to highlight her bust. The source of this chapter is novelping(.)com.
"Hey Melissa, where's Derek?" Dylan asked politely, noting his absence since he had been standing there just minutes ago.
"The Master summoned him," Melissa answered, flashing Dylan a gentle smile. But Dylan was far too sharp now to fall for her sweet demeanor so easily. "Were you looking for him for something?"
"No, actually, I was looking for you," Dylan clarified.
(YES!) Melissa cheered internally with excitement.
"I was wondering if you happen to have a sleeping potion or something similar?" Dylan asked nervously. He knew next to nothing about alchemy or potions and wanted to avoid making a fool of himself by asking for something that might not even exist.
"A sleeping potion?" The question caught Melissa off guard; she had assumed Dylan was coming over to request her personal assistance with his dilemma.
"Yeah. Do you have any? Or do they even exist?" Dylan pressed.
"No... I mean, they do exist, but the guild doesn't keep those types of potions in stock," Melissa clarified. She wasn't lying; the guild's supply was strictly regulated. "You see, we only carry healing potions and general or class-specific combat draughts. We don't stock other utility potions because they aren't considered vital for an adventurer's survival."
Dylan exhaled another defeated sigh, wondering where on earth he could possibly source one.
"Dylan, I don't know everything about high-level alchemy since I'm just a standard Guild Alchemist, but I know enough to tell you that those kinds of potions won't work on your condition anyway," Melissa explained gently. "At most, a sleeping draught might numb your senses, but it won't purge the stored energy inside your core. Therefore, your body simply won't fall asleep."
"Shit..." Dylan grumbled, now completely out of alternative options.
Clearing her throat softly, Melissa leaned over the wooden counter, placing her small, delicate hand gently over Dylan's.
"If you want, we can fix this problem very quickly..." Melissa offered softly.
In the few days they had interacted, Melissa had already gathered that Dylan wasn't like the typical transmigrators who would throw themselves at anyone for a moment of pleasure.
Nor was she the type to offer such things lightly under normal circumstances, but she simply couldn't deny that Dylan was precisely her physical ideal.
"You already groped my entire body a few days ago. What more do you want from me, woman?" Dylan asked, slipping his hand out from under hers, though a faint blush crept onto his cheeks.
He certainly couldn't deny that Melissa was remarkably attractive and beautiful.
"Nothing more than what you're willing to give," Melissa assured him with a warm, coy smile.
"You're relentless..." Dylan whispered under his breath. "I'll... I'll go look for other ways," he mumbled, thoroughly flustered.
Melissa watched him turn and retreat, leaning over the counter to admire Dylan's rear as he walked away.
"Just a little longer... I promise I'll take real good care of you, handsome," Melissa whispered softly to herself.