After several Chapters—actually, more like a volume or two—Dearth, the self-proclaimed death goddess, finally reappeared on screen. And without warning, she stole my first kiss. Just like that. The last time I heard of her, Levi had brought to my attention that she’d betrayed me—pointing out my location to that sea monster. And now here she was, perched on me like some cat, acting as if I were a lost pet finally recovered. The nerve. "So, what brings you here?" I asked, trying to peel her off me. "How rude!" she snapped. "Your mistress comes all this way to give you some attention, and this is the attitude I get?" She went on and on about how she’d been worried sick, rambling about how lonely I must have been without her. Wait—does Dearth... actually think I’m a pet? Like, a familiar? Or some sentient animal? She always talked to me like I was some creature that just happened to develop a brain overnight—and that’s very insulting! After I managed to dodge a few more of her sudden kiss attacks, she finally dropped the reason for her visit. "Ugh, you’re such a killjoy," she sighed, then muttered to her deadpan eyes, "Pluto sent me, okay?" Ah. Pluto. That bastard. This can’t be good. "And why did Papa Pluto send you?" I asked, already bracing myself for something awful. "Don’t call him ’Papa.’ He’ll hear you and increase your tasks." Wait—did Dearth just admit that Pluto is watching me?! I quickly began scanning the room, turning my head in every direction like a madman, trying to spot anything remotely stalker-ish. "Pluto says you’re now banned from spending nights in Coastelle," Dearth announced, gently cupping my face. "Wait, you guys know about Coastelle?" I slapped her hand away. "Darling, please just assume your every move is monitored by us," she said, flopping lazily into my soft, soft bed. "It’s not very nice to stalk people, you know?" I scolded her. "So death gods lie, cheat, scam, and stalk? You guys are awful." "Actually, no. It’s just us," Dearth replied with a shrug. "The other death gods are just introverted weirdos and ancient NEETs." After casually dragging the reputations of her fellow gods through the mud, she finally explained what Pluto wanted. Apparently, he found my habit of sleeping in Coastelle too boring. So from now on, I was banned from staying there overnight. Unless, of course, I wanted to see just how far his control could reach. Threat delivered, Pluto. Loud and clear. Now I’m being watched like a play. He also said I shouldn’t spend too much time in this dwarves’ village, but head to a nearby human town, "where the real fun begins." In all of Death’s messages, the only important thing I got was this: "In the nearest human kingdom from here," Dearth explained, "you’ll find a merchant—Tega Dante. You’re supposed to assassinate the guy on Pluto’s orders." "Ehhh?" I whined. "I don’t want to do dirty work like that!" "Tell that to the Pact." Tsk. She had to hit me where it hurt. The moment I laid on the bed too, Dearth snuggled up to my back. Could it be that... Dearth was lonely? It wouldn’t hurt to say something! She’s dishonest as always. "Okay," I faced her, patting her head, "I’ve heard Pluto’s orders. We’ll soon be leaving the dwarves’ village besides." She looked away. "Wh-where do you get off rubbing my head like that...?" Then she began to rub mine too. And it turned into a head-patting contest. "I missed you..." she whispered. "Heh... I can see that," I smiled at her. "I’ll tell you something: you are annoying as hell, but you can come around once in a while..." "Yeah, I’m not so sure now," I replied as she began to lean too close for comfort. "What’s with that look in your eyes!!" I facepalmed her. "Dearth, I never knew you were a kisser!" "Shut up! I’ve only kissed you!" she snapped. Should I be sad about that? Isn’t she some old Pluto servant? Shouldn’t she be married and settled down by now? Trying to fight her lips off, the door went open. I could swear I locked it before getting in. It was Levi and the gang! Of course, Bina was sprawled on her bed in the lower room again. Levi whined about me lying to them, saying I just wanted to have fun with another woman. "And why is Alicia, of all people, cozying up to someone that’s not me?!" Levi snapped her neck toward Alicia and Dearth. The two of them were hitting it off as usual. "Long time no see, Alicia," Dearth said cheerfully, wrapping Alicia in a warm hug. "Likewise, Miss Dearth," Alicia replied with a smile. "It’s been a while indeed." Why was Alicia suddenly acting like the rich man’s daughter now? Dearth explained that the old beads she gave Alicia were nearly at their limit, so she yanked them from Alicia’s hand without warning. The surge of magic that erupted from Alicia almost blew the roof off. And just like that, Dearth tossed the overly saturated beads out the window. Ma’am... that’s dangerous stuff. There are kids in the village! She then gave Alicia a new set of beads and said they had much more magic capacity than the former ones. Well, she wasn’t wrong. They made Alicia seem a lot more human now, rather than a high-level Principality pretending to be one. Dearth insisted on staying over until the next day, which I found a bit strange. I seriously doubted death reapers even needed sleep. Still, I let her be. She just missed us, after all. But Dearth was awfully clingy—wrapping herself around me like I was about to vanish from the face of the planet when she finally let go. Levi pouted about it, but Alicia didn’t seem to mind. I guess she and Dearth are closer than I originally thought. As punishment for my so-called "cheating," Levi and Alicia both decided to share the bed too. So much for punishment. I ended up with pretty ladies wrapped around me all night. Heh... not so bad, actually. Since arriving in Pison, things haven’t been half as bad as I expected. That was my final thought before I drifted off to sleep. The next morning, so early that the sky was still dark, Dearth had already gotten up. "You’re leaving already?" I asked her. "There’s this festival thing Levi talked the villagers into... Wanna stay over again?" She walked towards the door but turned back to face me. There was a subtle sadness flickering in her eyes. "Not really... I have work to do." Awkward. I didn’t know what else to say, so I just offered to walk her out for a bit. She remained quiet as we strolled through the village. The dwarves were already beginning to stir, preparing for the day ahead. Eventually, we reached the outskirts of the village. Dearth turned to look at me. "So... till next time?" I waved lightly. She looked away for a brief moment, then turned back to face me. "Hey, can you... kiss me again?"