After coming out of meditation, Du Pont watched Boulderstone return empty-handed, cursing his bad luck, and couldn't help feeling curious.
"What happened to you? Did you run into an old hag who had her way with you?"
"Fuck off. If something like that really dared to seduce me, you think I wouldn't smash her?" Boulderstone said with an annoyed expression. "I was going to see if there was any suitable prey around. My luck was pretty good today—I actually found the trail of a brown bear. But just as I was about to catch up to it, I ran into my former woman. She saw that I was out hunting and chased after me, cursing me all the way down the mountain. Don't even get me started on how irritating it was."
"Hunting is a way of life too. Why was she cursing you for it?"
This guy really thought too highly of himself. Could he even beat a brown bear now?
"Exactly! Those farmers and hunters go up the mountain to catch game, and nobody cares. But when I do it, she won't allow it. She said I was slaughtering innocents and ruining the ecosystem, that it could easily upset the balance of nature. Maybe a natural disaster would descend tomorrow to punish the world, and I'd be the chief culprit—as if Orcus of the Abyss would have to give up his seat to me."
"Ah... I see." Du Pont blinked. "Was that your ex-wife?"
"Yeah, more or less." Boulderstone looked impatient. "Damn bad luck. I should've prayed to my ancestors before going out."
"Have you ever considered that she might have been acting cute with you?"
"Acting cute?" Boulderstone looked unconvinced. "What bullshit. Never mind that she spends all day turning into animals, so who knows how much womanliness she has left. What kind of acting cute is that? Isn't she just being disgusting?"
"Maybe she's just not good at expressing herself. You said it yourself—she spends all day with animals." Du Pont pointed at the wolf that had long since gone cold. "Let's suppose this: if a creature you didn't care about died, would you be sad?"
"Of course not." Boulderstone answered without hesitation. "People die every day in this world. I didn't kill them, so what the fuck does it have to do with me?"
"Exactly. Those farmers hunt to make a living, so even druids can't really say much about it. Humans are part of nature too." As they spoke, the two walked toward the pavilion. "But you're different. She knows you, and the two of you had a relationship. Naturally, her expectations of you differ from those she has for strangers. In her eyes, your behavior should better fit her standards and values. Since it doesn't, she's especially harsh on you."
Boulderstone was startled by that, his expression full of disbelief. "You mean she demands so much of me because we're close?"
"That's right." Du Pont nodded. "It's only natural. Parents always demand more from their own children, while they usually offer other people's children nothing but insincere praise. What do they care whether someone else's child is actually good or bad? Saying flattering things is what makes people like them."
Boulderstone fell silent for a long while. Just as Du Pont thought his counseling had worked, the Barbarian finally spoke. "You mean... this woman is sick in the head?"
Du Pont nearly spat blood. "How is that being sick? On the contrary, I think she still has feelings for you. If she truly hated you, why would she show up in front of you at all? She's a druid. Her command of nature and ability to sense the environment must surpass yours by who knows how much. You killing one animal isn't a huge problem for the whole environment. If she truly despised you from the bottom of her heart, she could simply stay away. Would you deliberately show up in front of someone you hated just to curse them out?"
Boulderstone blinked. "If I could beat him, why wouldn't I?"
"Your reasoning isn't exactly wrong, but women don't think the same way men do. If she were sick of you, she wouldn't be bored enough to come find you just to do something so childish. Finding a man who praised her would be much more typical. If you don't believe me, let's consider another possibility. If she really disliked you and only came to provoke you, she could have found a man no worse than you, or even stronger, brought him before you, mocked you, and then beaten you up. Wouldn't that work too?"
Boulderstone sank into a long silence. He scratched at the bun tied up with little flower braids, looking like he was deep in thought. "What you said seems to make a little sense, but she has friends, and it's not like I don't have friends. If she wanted to beat me up, I could get my friends to beat her up in return."
Du Pont was truly speechless. This guy definitely understood; he was just instinctively making excuses for himself. "That's not the point! Even if she didn't fight you, she could bring a man over to mock you. Would you really call people to beat her up over that? The real reason is that she has different feelings toward you, so she expects more from you. And even if she still has feelings for you, Faerûn is huge and Haluar isn't small. Why does she insist on staying in this backwater mountain ravine, where she has to see you all the time and quarrel with you?"
Boulderstone scratched his head and ears. After holding it in for a while, he said, "What you said does seem to make some sense, but when we used to adventure together, she had plenty of demands for Lavoisier and Judy too. Your claim that she only favors me doesn't hold up at all."
Du Pont smiled and threw out a question that ended the debate. "Does she still go looking for Lavoisier and Judy now?"
Boulderstone said nothing, but his expression became quite a sight.
Although he didn't see Lavoisier very often anymore, he spent every day chatting and bragging with Judy. He had never heard Judy mention anything like this.
After a long while, Boulderstone cautiously asked, "So you mean that woman definitely still has feelings for me?"
"I can't say it's a hundred percent certain, but there's definitely a strong possibility." Du Pont nodded. "If you haven't lost your feelings for her either, you could try talking to her. Maybe the two of you can get back together."
"I don't have any fucking feelings for her." Boulderstone reflexively retorted, then fell silent again. After a long time, he looked at Du Pont suspiciously. "How does a little brat like you know all this? Are you messing with me?"
"Other than a few rare races with poor sensitivity or those born utterly heartless, feelings are the same for adventurers and ordinary people alike." Du Pont propped up his chin with his right hand and gave a wicked smile. "By worldly standards, although you and I are handsome in different ways, whether in age or looks, I'm more likely than you to win women's favor. My innate charisma is above the ordinary, and I'm an intelligent mage. Quite a few girls at the academy like me. Isn't it perfectly normal for me to have gained these insights?"
"Hmph. These muscles are what make a real man. You're just a pretty boy at best, little brat." Boulderstone retorted again, but Du Pont ignored him. He merely sat to the side with a reserved smile and a teasing look in his eyes.
"Fuck, this is so annoying." After pacing for a long time, Boulderstone first cursed, then looked at Du Pont. "What if your guess is wrong?"
"Then you get cursed at again. Didn't you just get cursed at? What's the big deal?" Du Pont looked incredulous. "Your only risk is enduring a few harmless insults, while success could mean reconciling with a woman who loves you. Compared to the reward, isn't that risk completely negligible?"
Boulderstone stood there dumbly. After quite a while, he scratched his forehead. "What you said really does seem to make some sense."
"Exactly. It's not like you'll lose anything." Du Pont stood as he spoke. "Of course, if you feel embarrassed, I can leave right now. Maybe that would give you more courage?"
"Get lost. Even a dragon couldn't intimidate me. What's one woman?"
"Women can sometimes be scarier than dragons. After all, when facing the latter, all you need to do is draw your weapon." Du Pont smiled. "All right, let's go. She might not have gone far yet. If you miss this chance, she might leave tomorrow. Then you'll probably regret it every day, because you let your pride cost you this opportunity."
"Never realized you had so much bullshit to say." Boulderstone muttered, then got up and headed inside.
That surprised Du Pont. He hadn't expected this guy to be so stubborn. "Hey, why are you going back? Aren't you afraid you'll regret it later?"
"Regret my ass. I'm going to change clothes, and while I'm at it, find my Ring of Charisma."
Du Pont: "..."
These damned rich people. Now he was jealous of the rich.
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