Zena's Return

"Zena-chi! You're back! Are you alright? Does it hurt anywhere?"
As I return to the barracks, Lilio runs up to me worriedly and starts checking my body for injuries.
Her hands are going everywhere and it tickles a little.
"Zena-san, I'm glad you're safe."
"Zena, are you hungry? They're a bit cold, but there's still some fried sweet potatoes leftover."
Iona-san and Lou also greet me with worried faces upon my return from the labyrinth.
The sweet potatoes sound good, but I already had seconds on the stew earlier, so I hold myself back.
"Huh? Did the boy buy you those clothes?"
"Eh? These clothes?"
Lilio stares at the blue dress that I am wearing with her eyes wide open.
I can understand how she feels. With our wages, we couldn't afford something like this even if we saved up for years.
"This dress is just something I borrowed from Ohna-sama. The clothes I was wearing became unusable..."
As I think about that event, I feel like I want to dive under the bed sheets and hide in embarrassment.
After hugging Satou-san in such a disgraceful condition, he probably thinks I'm shameless. What if he hates me now?
...And, he probably saw everything. I wonder if he thinks I'm too small?
It should have been too dark to see clearly, so I'm probably okay on that front.
I place my hands on my slim chest and feel a bit depressed.
"Zena-chi, leave the rest to us. We'll settle this for you."
Lilio gently places her hand on my shoulder as she says something weird.
--What?
Since I have no idea what she means, I look to Iona-san for help.
"Lilio-san, hold on."
Iona-san understands my intention, and puts a stop to Lilio's reckless--
"We can't let him die that easily. We need to give him enough pain to make him regret the crime of dirtying Zena-san."
--or not. Iona-san is being even more dangerous.
I look to Lou with my last hope. She seems to be looking around the shelves for something.
For some reason, she has grabbed the climbing rope used for our mountain-region patrols.
"Um, Lou?"
"Yeah? If we're torturing the black-haired kid, we need some rope right?"
Lou replies as if what she's saying is completely normal.
"Um... you guys? Did you get the wrong idea somewhere?"
"Don't worry Zena-chi, we understand. Leave the rest to us."
"Criminals must be dealt a suitable punishment."
"Let's do this!"
They've completely misunderstood.
I'm glad that they're worrying about me, but they are jumping to conclusions way too fast.
"Jeez! The labyrinth monsters were the one who destroyed my clothes! Satou-san is the one who saved me from being eaten by them!"
"Eh? So the boy didn't give in to his lust and force--"
"No!"
Jeez, Lilio. Satou-san is a gentleman, so he would never do something like that before marriage.
I see Iona-san snickering to herself from the corner of my eye.
--You knew all along and were just teasing me, weren't you?
"What? Then I guess Zena is still pure."
"Hold on, Lou. Maybe she wasn't forced, but they consented to--"
"I'm still pure!"
I lightly smack Lilio. Lilio you idiot! What have you made me say!

--But thanks for worrying about me. I love you all.