My thoughts were exactly the same. Having all this attention would be nothing but trouble for Benimaru. Shuna was watching him, too. I had a feeling Benimaru cared a lot for her sister, so I’m sure he was sensing danger from her and her overbearing ways right now.
“But I think it’s nice,” Geld said. “As manly a man as Sir Benimaru is, it’s only natural the women around town would love him. Lady Alvis is leader of the Three Lycanthropeers, and I suppose Momiji is the daughter of Hakuro—both worthy partners. I have a lot to learn from him.”
He certainly seemed enthusiastic about the idea of Benimaru finding a wife, harem or not. Geld himself cared more about his work than chasing women, so I wasn’t sure whether he really meant the part about having a “lot to learn.”
Besides, Geld was already pretty popular. As quiet, serious-minded, and responsible as he was, he had a fan base among not just high orcs, but other races as well. If he got off his ass and did something about it, he’d have a partner in no time.
“Oh, no, you are doing well enough for yourself, Sir Geld! Like I said before, Toka and the others never give me a second glance… For some reason, only the men show me any kindness in my unit,” Gabil insisted.
Geld nodded sagely. “You just need more chances to encounter women. I understand that a little.” He mostly worked on construction sites manned by burly male workers, so I bet he did.
Someone like me with no gender—or maybe an amphibian where gender was just a messy topic to begin with—was one thing, but building a work environment where women could participate equally was probably important, huh? It’d help encourage the men more, maybe. I’d have to think about that.
“Well, I should say, there are a few female dwarf apothecaries in my workplace. We do exchange some pleasantries, but…”
“Oh? No problem, then, right?”
No, that is a problem. Those are two totally different monster races. You aren’t okay with anything that breathes, are you, Gabil?
“No, a big problem. They told me that going out with a lizard was ‘physically impossible’! I’m just so unpopular with them…”
“Oh…”
......
Well. Don’t know what to say about that. Sounds like the species difference wasn’t the only wall to overcome there. Gabil may want to explore other avenues.
“And yet, they keep inviting Nanso and Hokuso out to eat—or for dates in the forests. It happens all the time! I find it so frustrating…”
Oh, so the species thing didn’t even function as an excuse, then?
“I, um, I’m not sure what to say…”
Geld was out of words, unsure what else he could do to comfort Gabil.
“Yes… That’s why I’ve been thinking lately that I should take more of a human form. My own dad transformed into a tall, dark, handsome person, so I wonder if I have a chance at that, too!”
Doubt it. Besides, it’s not about looks. I looked like a pretty nice guy myself, but I went almost forty years without a girlfriend!
The real key is—
“Don’t be ridiculous. You need to get up and do something.”
Right! That’s correct, Soei! Sitting around all day and whining like Gabil won’t win anyone over. Stop pretending someone’s going to pop out of nowhere and confess her love to you—and start going more on the offensive! Too bad I didn’t realize that until after I became a slime, but…
“W-well, yes, of course, but…”
“Soei’s right! I heard those dwarves talking once, and they were saying all these nice things about one of your men, Gabil. All like ‘Oooh, isn’t Gazatt so cool?’ and ‘Oh, you think so, too?’ and ‘He’s the classic strong, silent type, huh?’ and ‘He’s cute, kind of like my pet lizard.’ They were crazy for him! So I really don’t think it’s just about looks, Gabil!”
Wow, Gobta. Way to throw him under the bus.
Gazatt was one of Gabil’s underlings, part of Team Hiryu—quiet and handy with a spear, but not exactly the sharpest nail in the box, so he was mainly tasked with guard duty for our researchers and pharmacists down in the Sealed Cave. He was a former lizardman, of course, and even now as a dragonewt, his looks, much like Gabil’s, were more reptilian. As cruelly as Gobta put it, it definitely proved that looks aren’t everything.
“Besides, women can be easier to attract than one would expect,” Soei added.
“They can?!”
“Very much so,” he said, half-chidingly. “A lady knight from before, for example. I am unsure how she got the idea, but she seemed to have quite an interest in me.”
“R-really?! What did you do?”
“Oh-ho?”
“How very interesting!”
“Tell us more!”
This was enough to even arouse my interest. Which “lady knight” was this? Wait, wasn’t he up to something with Litus, one of the Crusader paladins? What was up with that? I meant to ask, but it kind of slipped my mind. I spotted her looking at Soei and blushing, so I feared the worst, but…
“You want to know, too, Sir Rimuru?”
“Of course I do. And that report you made that one time…”
“Ah yes, that. You see, I took some Sticky Steel Thread and—”
He was stopped mid-sentence by a feeling of impending doom from behind us, followed by an almost deafening clearing of the throat.
“Ah-hemmm!!”
Our little whispered chat was over. We immediately shot straight back up, faces serious. Sensing the danger, I slipped back into slime mode and attempted to escape the front line but instead found myself lifted up by a thin, pale arm.
“Enough joking, Sir Rimuru. Don’t we have my brother to talk about right now?”
Ah yes. That we do. We got a bit derailed, didn’t we? And we sure couldn’t afford to piss Shuna off anymore. Right. We needed to get serious about this.
Anyway…
Well, not that thinking about this issue would get us any closer
