After more than half an hour of tossing about, the sky had begun to darken when Leno appeared in the temple, holding Robin in his arms.
Only two attendants remained in the hall. Seeing him carrying a woman, they immediately bowed.
"Lord, you've returned?"
Setting Robin down, Leno spoke casually.
"Mm. Help her bathe—she's exhausted."
"Yes, my lord~"
"I can wash myself, I don't need—"
"Be good." Ignoring her protest, Leno handed Robin over to the attendants. They supported her carefully as she walked, still on tiptoe, toward the side chamber.
"Pfft~" Watching the way she walked, Leno couldn't help but laugh.
"What are you laughing at? This is all your fault, you monster!" Hearing him behind her, Robin turned back with a glare.
"I wasn't laughing! Go on and take your bath," Leno said quickly, straightening up with mock seriousness.
Robin gritted her teeth. Her arms were sore, that place still ached terribly, and the shameless man had the nerve to look so pleased with himself.
"Hmph~" She turned her head, ignoring this bastard. The guy was an animal. Tormenting her for so long wasn't enough; he even made her use her hands...
The memory made her face flush scarlet. Why did I agree to such ridiculous things? He must be feeling awfully proud of himself right now.
And indeed, she was right. Leno was walking around the hall with his hands behind his back, whistling with the smug air of a man on top of the world.
By the time dusk fell, the rest of the group finally returned from exploring Skypiea, still reluctant to end the day.
As they entered the temple, they eagerly shared their discoveries.
"Leno, the shells here are amazing! They all have different uses."
"Yeah! I saw them too. I even found some rare herbs in the forest."
"It's so beautiful here~"
Seeing their excitement, Leno sighed.
"You all act like we're short on time. We'll have plenty of chances to learn about this place."
"Brother! I ate so many tasty things today—and there were so many fun ones too! I love it here!"
Little Aileen came running into his arms, eyes sparkling.
Leno chuckled and ruffled her hair. "Good. If Aileen likes it, then we'll stay here from now on."
"Mm-hmm!"
Just as he was about to say more, Nami rushed in carrying a huge cloth bag, panting.
"Phew! Hurry up, you big idiot! There's still tons of gold out there—we have to get it before someone else does!"
Everyone glanced from her to the heavy sack on her back and realized at once—she must've found quite a haul.
Leno helped steady her breath, then sighed.
"Nami, relax. To the people of Skypiea, gold's practically worthless. No one's going to take it."
"You've worked hard enough today. Rest for now. You can collect it tomorrow—or whenever."
Once Leno explained, Nami finally sat down with relief, wiping sweat from her forehead.
"Ugh, you could've said so earlier! I nearly worked myself to death! No wonder that maid who helped me kept giving me strange looks."
"Ahahahaha!"
Everyone burst out laughing. Aileen, clinging to Leno's neck, giggled.
"Sis Nami's a big dummy~ hehe!"
"Oh, you little brat, making fun of me?" Nami jumped up, grabbed Aileen's cheeks, and stretched them playfully.
"Still laughing now, huh? How dare you~?"
"Bwuh—stop! Stop~!" Aileen surrendered helplessly.
Leno finally stepped in, chuckling. "Alright, that's enough. Everyone's tired. Go wash up, and we'll start dinner after."
When the others had left, Nojiko and Kuina approached, looking puzzled.
"Where's Robin? We haven't seen her."
Leno froze for a split second. "Uh… well, she twisted her ankle this afternoon. She's resting."
"Huh? Is it bad?"
"Not serious, not serious. She should... perhaps... be fine after resting~"
The two exchanged glances. "We'll go check on her. If it's serious, I can heal her," Kuina said.
"Wait—uh, that's… not necessary…" Leno's words trailed off when he saw their curious stares.
"Ahem… On second thought, go ahead."
They tilted their heads. "You're acting weird."
Later, when everyone gathered for dinner, they ate heartily after the long day. Aileen, as usual, stayed curled up in Leno's lap, waiting for him to feed her.
After a while, she looked around curiously.
"Sis Nojiko, Sis Kuina—why aren't you eating?"
"Hm?"
Everyone noticed then: the two had been sitting silently, heads lowered, chopsticks untouched.
"What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?" Leno asked, worried. They'd seemed fine earlier.
At his words, both women suddenly raised their heads. Their eyes were red, filled with hurt and grievance.
Leno froze. They had never looked at him like that before. What on earth happened?
He quickly set Aileen aside and stepped closer. "Hey, what's wrong?"
But the moment he reached out, both Nojiko and Kuina brushed his hands away and stood up, running straight out of the hall.
"Uh…" Leno blinked, stunned.
Then Belle-Mère's voice thundered across the table.
"You idiot! What are you standing there for? Go after them!"
"Ah—right!" Leno scrambled after them.
"Hopeless blockhead," Belle-Mère muttered, glaring at the doorway.
"Mom, what happened to Brother and the others?" Aileen asked timidly.
"Grown-up business. Eat your food."
"Oh…" The little girl pouted and obeyed.
Nami, still staring toward the door, received the same scolding.
"And you too, Nami! Stay out of it. You're still too young."
"What? I'm not that young!" she protested.