The Extra's Harem In Dead End Game
Chapter 98 - 98: A Stormy Escape

Anyway, I agreed. She is the named heroine who is helping me the most right now. There is absolutely nothing wrong with bringing things closer together.

And then I thought about it again. The fact that she, who couldn't even swim, brought me to the lakeside means that she trusted me that much. It might not be an exaggeration to interpret this as a trustworthy presence even in potentially dangerous places.

"Then let's ride."

"Yeah, yeah."

We took a ferry and went into the lake. At first, Hiresia seemed very nervous, but as time passed, her expression relaxed a bit.

*Whack. Whack.*

I asked, rowing hard, "Where should I go?"

"Go straight to the center."

"Aha."

I nodded as if I understood.

*Whack. Whack.*

The course was set right in the center of the lake.

"But you chose this place?"

"Yes. I think if you go there, you'll see a view that I really like."

A slightly difficult task that appeared in a surprise quest. Now I can understand. It might be easy for some, but for her, going deep into the lake would require a lot of courage.

'Oh, so that's what it was.'

Now I know why this quest appeared in the first place. Because I've never been this close to the main character at this point in my career. To be honest, even now, it's more like a relationship between friends of different races rather than a relationship between a man and a woman.

Rather, I felt relieved because it was less burdensome.

"Okay, we've arrived."

I stopped the ferry.

The wind was calm. If the boat were rocking back and forth, it would be difficult to draw, but fortunately, that didn't seem to be the case.

"Oh, indeed! This body's prediction was not wrong!"

Hiresia let out a satisfied sigh, her eyes shining. Flowers in the fields spread out across the lakeside. Beautiful, colorful wildflowers were showing off their harmonious beauty.

The mist that hung lightly over it added to the charm.

"Good."

It was such a beautiful view that I wanted to take a picture. If this were captured in a painting, it would definitely be art.

"Haha, really? Then let's do that."

Hiresia spread out the canvas and picked up the charcoal.

*Swish swish.*

Hiresia was sketching with charcoal. *Oh....*

I opened my eyes wide at the skill that was much more proficient than I had expected. In fact, it was the first time I had seen her draw. She must have been handling art tools since she came into the human world, but her hand movements were not ordinary.

Wouldn't this be considered a pretty top-tier skill? I wanted to say something, but I held back because it was obvious that it would be a distraction from concentrating on drawing. I watched her draw quietly in silence.

After finishing the sketch, she took out her brush in earnest.

"Can you get me some water?"

"Yes, yes."

I filled the water jug that Hiresia had handed me with lake water. I handed it back to her and asked,

"Are you going to finish everything here?"

"No, we can go back and finish coloring it."

"Okay."

No matter how calm it was, it wouldn't have been easy to paint on a small boat.

Hiresia squeezed paint onto the palette and started moving the brush. There were times when she hesitated and worried a bit in the middle, but overall, she was able to fill the canvas with a variety of colors without any problems.

A beautiful landscape was gradually taking shape. Since I had absolutely no talent for art, I felt a strange sensation just watching someone draw a decent picture. As I was looking at the picture, at some point my gaze turned to Hiresia.

I've heard it somewhere. It is said that whether a man or a woman, the sight of someone seriously absorbed in something is attractive. That seemed absolutely right. The sight of Hiresia painting, alternately gazing at the landscape and the canvas with serious eyes… … felt more attractive than ever.

*Gulp.*

I swallowed dry saliva without realizing it and couldn't take my eyes off her.

Silver hair that sparkled mysteriously in the light.

Beautiful silver eyes that seemed to suck you in.

White, smooth, pointed ears.

Those special characteristics that set her apart from humans were immediately apparent.

'Yeah, she definitely… … .'

… … She is an attractive heroine. She is considered unconquerable and not a single user has ever won her heart, but there is a reason why she always ranks high in heroine popularity polls chosen by users. A character with enough elements to gain high popularity, from appearance to ability and personality.

Being a special and noble race would also have been a plus.

But.

One thing that most users don't know, only a few hardcore users like me know. About halfway through the game, there comes a point where Hiresia's personality completely changes to a terrifying degree. I don't know the exact cause.

Probably no one knows. Because no user has succeeded in becoming close enough to Hiresia to know that. I could only guess that it was something so shocking that it shook her life up.

Anyway, knowing what she was like after her mid-life, I felt a bit bitter.

Her current personality.

'… … Much better.'

As I thought about that, I clicked my tongue bitterly inside.

My eyes suddenly grew wide.

Because I found something in the sky over there.

It was a dark cloud. It was clear that it was soaked with rain.

"Senior!"

"What?"

"It's a dark cloud."

I pointed to the sky over there with my finger.

"Uh?"

She also looked puzzled at the sight of the dark clouds. If the canvas gets wet from the rain, all the hard work put into the painting will become useless.

"We have to go out right now. Is that okay?"

"Yeah, yeah. Since it's already 70% complete, I can go back and do the rest… … ."

"Then let's go."

I started rowing with all my might.

A faster speed than before.

The boat naturally rocked more.

Hiresia, balancing with a tense expression. She was scared because she couldn't swim.

But I didn't have the luxury of caring about her right now.

I looked straight ahead and rowed hard toward the dock.

Suddenly.

*Crack.*

Unexpectedly, she reached out and grabbed the back of my shirt.

I could feel her hand trembling.

'Ugh'

Why does my face heat up in such a situation? Hearts are truly strange things.

Just a moment ago, there was no sense of male-female relations between us. To me, she was just a friendly otherworldly creature, nothing more, nothing less.

I bit my lip and forcibly calmed myself down.

Now was not the time to be distracted.

*Swish. Swish. Swish.*

The rowboat cut through the water, moving swiftly forward. Fortunately, we reached the dock before the storm hit.

"Get off, senior!"

I said, picking up the basket of art supplies. I also had a lunchbox in my backpack, but that was manageable.

"Th-thank you."

Hiresia quickly disembarked with her canvas.

I looked up at the sky to assess the situation.

It seemed the cloud would reach the academy before us.

Then.

"Let's hurry over there, senior!"

A small wooden building by the lake. Usually, it's the lakekeeper's place, but it should be empty on a holiday.

Whatever the case, it would provide shelter from the rain.

"Okay!"

We rushed to the wooden building.

Just as we slammed the door shut behind us,

*Boom! Crash! Whoosh!*

The sky darkened, and the downpour began.