Chapter 28: Chapter Twenty-Seven – Kissing the Barista

“Now that you’ve mastered the [Carry Burden] and [Cleansing Breeze] spells, what would you like to learn next?” Eurycelia asked while gazing at the bookshelves.

“I’d like to continue studying alchemy actually, if that’s alright.” I replied, sinking into my chair. “I’ll never be able to transmute coffee beans at this rate.”

“Coffee beans?” Eurycelia looked at me inquisitively before her eyes widened. It was almost as if I could see the light bulb go off in her head. “That is what you and Laurmonja were talking about! You kept talking about coffee and I just assumed it was something from your world. You’re trying to use alchemy to create it here?”

“Yeah. Mommy Laura owned a cafe in my world and I’ve worked there for as long as I can remember. Brewing coffee is really the only skill I ever excelled at.”

Eurycelia squealed. “If one of the primordial gods liked it enough to make it, coffee must be truly exceptional! I would love to try it! All you need is to learn transmute right?”

“Yeah, but I don’t even have the alchemist class yet. So no idea how long that is going to take.”

“You already have two classes though right?”

“Yeah.”

“Then of course it’ll take a bit longer to gain the class! You have to garner enough experience to overwrite one of your original classes. If you continue to practice alchemy skills you’ll probably get a notification to sacrifice a class for the alchemist class. Though it’ll hurt your level and your stats might take a hit. Still you’re low enough level Lady Bernice that it shouldn’t matter.”

“This whole system is confusing,” I complained while rubbing my temples.

“Did your world have something easier?”

“Yeah… you just did stuff. There weren’t any classes or skills or tiers, you just learned and you got better.”

“Hmm…” Eurycelia walked over to my chair and placed a book down on the table beside me. “Are you sure your world didn’t have a system? Perhaps humans where you come from simply cannot see it? Maybe everyone has classes and levels they’d never know about unless they came here like you.”

“I feel like Barista should’ve been my class if that was the case. Instead when I woke up all I had was ‘commoner’.”

“Baristas don’t exist in this world. So the class doesn’t exist. Maybe when you create coffee for us the class will be added to our system?”

“Then I’d have to sacrifice my Fire Mage class for Barista?” I giggled. “I wouldn’t really be able to protect myself as an Alchemist Barista.”

“You won’t lose your skill with [Fire Magic], or any other kind of magic you might learn if you change classes,” Eurycelia retorted. “You will simply lose your class bonus to those skills, so they’ll be a bit less powerful than they could be.”

“Besides,” Eurycelia continued, leaning forward to rub her cheek against my ear. “You have me to protect you. I’ll be at your side for the rest of my life. Perhaps even the rest of eternity if you ascend to godhood and provide me your blessing. You’ll never be in danger as long as I draw breath.”

“Umm,” I said as my cheeked warmed. “This is starting to sound a bit like a love confession.”

“Just a bit?”

What is she driving at?

“I love you Lady Bernice.” Eurycelia gently kissed my ear and then my cheek, before hesitating not far from my lips. “I thought… maybe I should wait until we’ve known one another longer than this before saying anything. I don’t want to rush your feelings and drive you away. But I’m afraid if I wait much longer the others are going to steal you away and I’ll be relegated to a maid you pay little attention to.”

“The others?”

How many people does she believe are vying for my affection?

“I’d have to be blind to not know that Otrea fancies you. She even argued on your behalf when I awoke, as I was certain I’d made a mistake by trusting you just because you were cute.”

“Otrea has made not-so-subtle hints of the possibility she might kill me more than once. I mean… she’s been really kind to me recently. But I don’t know that she likes me enough to push you away. After all, she was the one who pushed to you make your oath with me. If anything she’d just drag me away one night a month to practice her spider bondage and then leave us alone.”

You are reading story Reborn as a Basic Barista at novel35.com

“I have suspicions she wanted my oath more to corrupt a member of the council to her political positions, rather than to give you a lover. It is not like Otrea has not been trying to overturn her exile. And if not her then, your undead is certainly suspect. She’s already wormed her way into your bed just so I don’t get any private cuddle time with you.”

As soon as Eurycelia mentioned Kyra, my face heated until I was certain I’d turned a vibrant shade of red. Memories of her rather aggressive kissing session with me the previous day was enough to cause my heart to race.

“You’ve already gotten intimate with her?!” Eurycelia pouted, desperately trying to read my facial expressions. “See! I just knew it, I’ve already failed to be the first one into your heart. If I wait much longer you won’t have any room for me at all!”

“It’s not like that Euri!” I said attempting to soothe things over. “You said I could have as many wives as I wanted right? Well I’ll always want you.”

Now it was Eurycelia’s turn to become red and flustered. She simply stared at me, her mind trying desperately to process something and seemingly failing every time. Then after a moment of silence between us, she sprung forward and wrapped her arms around me.

“Lady Bernice! I did not know you already felt so strongly for me! It seems so quick to get married when we’ve only just confessed our feelings for one another. But yes! If you want me, I’d love to be your first wife.”

Did I… ask her to marry me?

Replaying my words in my head I realized the fatal flaw in what I’d said. I’d intended to tell her that no matter how many lovers I got in the future, there would always be room in my heart for her. Yet it did sound as though I was saying I wanted her as my wife, which when mixed with her budding infatuation was destined to be misunderstood.

“Umm… Euri,” I felt a cold pain in my gut, but I had to correct her before everything spiraled out of control. “I wasn’t asking you to marry me. I was just… trying to say that, you’ll always have a place in my heart. And sometime in the future when I’m ready for marriage, if we still have positive feelings for one another… then I’m sure I’ll ask you.”

Eurycelia’s expression collapsed like a popped balloon. “Ah…” I watched her struggle to keep a neutral expression. Relying on her training as a diplomat to attempt to contain her emotions. Unfortunately for her, her control faltered and tears began to streak down her cheeks, as a muffled sob escaped her throat.

Wrapping my arms around her, I held her tight as Eurycelia finally broke down and sobbed into my shoulder. “Come on, I’m not saying I don’t want to marry you. But it’s like you said, this would be super quick wouldn’t it? Can’t we just start as girlfriends? I do like you Euri.”

“Then… “ Eurycelia sniffled. “You’ll be my girlfriend?”

“Yeah…” It wasn’t happening at all the way I thought it would, but that didn’t matter. Eurycelia had been making my heart race for awhile, dating was a logical next step.

I never thought my first official girlfriend would come with so much crying.

“You feeling okay now?” I asked rubbing the tears away from Eurycelia’s eyes with my thumbs.

“I will be,” Eurycelia replied before collapsing forward, her lips colliding with mine. Wrapping her arm around my neck, Eurycelia held the kiss. Pressing herself against me.

The kiss lingered on for what felt like an eternity before Eurycelia stepped away, straightening her clothes. “I’ll go find you an alchemy instructor Lady Bernice. I have someone in mind, I just need to convince him. Meanwhile you said you had plans with the scaredy cat personality this afternoon.”

“Yeah,” I smiled. “I’m going to try and pull Adelita out of her shell, just a tiny bit at least.”

“Good luck.”

“You too, also… Euri?”

“Yea?”

“You can just call me Bernie, like Mommy Laura does. I’ve never really cared for the formal title and all that.”

Eurycelia beamed, “Okay. I love you Bernie.”

“I care for you too, Euri.” 

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