Returner Fantasy-Chapter 179: Laid-Back Camp - Part 2

"That would be a total of 9.99 dollars," said the cashier at the counter before taking the payment from Nubia.

Nubia, on the other hand, was barely holding back her embarrassment. Her blushing face told the cashier in front of her—and her reddening ears told Jeff behind her—just how flustered she was.

"What did you buy, Nubia-senpai?" Veena asked, peeking from behind Jeff out of curiosity as to why Nubia hadn’t put her items in their shopping cart.

If Veena saw what she bought, Nubia was certain she would be completely mortified. That was why she hurriedly grabbed the two boxes of condoms even before the cashier could put them in a bag, then ran away from the counter.

"Pfft—"

"Don’t laugh, stupid Jeff," Nubia grumbled, feeling even more flustered as she turned around and hid her hands behind her back.

---

After buying their food and other necessities, the three of them continued traveling north from the Capital City.

Two and a half hours later, they finally arrived at their destination—a mountain peak campsite with a clear view of a dam to the north and the Capital City to the south. Not to mention, it was a perfect spot for watching the sunrise and sunset, and even for stargazing.

"We don’t have any stuff, though," Nubia said, referring not only to a telescope for stargazing but also to other things they could use to pass the time, since there were still two hours before evening—when they would surely get intimate.

"We could do it inside the camping van if you want to start now, Nubia-senpai," Jeff teased, clearly understanding what Nubia was most concerned about, earning himself a few light punches from her that barely hurt at all.

"Pervert!"

Regardless, they didn’t really need any activities. They were camping to laze around and relax—especially with the unsettling topics Jeff and Nubia needed to discuss.

Jeff quickly set up the canopy tent that extended from both the side and back doors of the van, allowing him to place an elevated bonfire grill under the cover so they wouldn’t freeze in the cold afternoon breeze.

He then laid out three large camping chairs for them. Still, Veena chose to sit on Nubia’s lap, and Nubia hugged her in return—not only to pamper Veena’s clinginess but also to share body heat and keep each other warm.

Being together for a week had certainly made them close, Jeff thought as he glanced at Nubia and Veena while preparing their afternoon snacks and evening meal.

"So, how was your week together?" Jeff asked, hinting at two entirely different topics for Veena and Nubia.

Veena quickly responded first.

"Nubia-senpai was so mean, Jeff-senpai. First, she took my smartphone so I couldn’t call you, Jess-senpai, or my friends. She wouldn’t pay attention to me when she was working, and she wouldn’t sleep at night with me unless I studied my lessons in advance..."

Although Veena kept complaining, her cheerful demeanor remained, proving she didn’t truly feel bad about Nubia’s strict tutoring.

"If you dislike it that much, then I’ll just add more to our lectures," Nubia teased, tickling Veena’s sides while tightening her embrace so she couldn’t escape.

"Pfft—stop it—hahaha!"

"What about you, Nubia-senpai?"

Taking the opportunity while Veena was laughing and distracted, Jeff asked about Dexter and the FGH organization.

Their confrontation had ended with Dexter and his men promising to keep silent about Jeff’s group abducting and imprisoning them in exchange for their lives and freedom, including Natan’s group. Still, Nubia had asked her father to assign some men to monitor the FGH organization.

Although things had been in their favor when Jeff left for Jess’s photoshoot, a week could change a lot.

"It’s fine. Some of them are missing, but none are causing trouble," Nubia said briefly, continuing to tickle Veena so she wouldn’t grow worried.

"Missing?" Jeff murmured in surprise.

Nubia spoke silently in response, letting Jeff read her lips.

So that bastard Dexter was missing.

Jeff felt slightly uneasy.

The Returner Fantasy System would warn him with a quest if Dexter tried to make a move—especially against Veena—but Jeff didn’t want to rely on it every time.

Still, it wouldn’t hurt to check Dexter’s location by accessing his Archive in the holographic screen of the Returner Fantasy System flashing at the corner of his vision.

To Jeff’s surprise, however, Dexter’s location didn’t appear.

Was it because I failed one of the quests before?

He set the thought aside since no one could explain it to him anyway.

I’ll just ask Kris and Marc later—maybe Natan too.

Jeff ended the topic there and moved on to the second matter he wanted to discuss.

"What about that creepy producer?"

"Creepy producer?" Veena asked now that Nubia had stopped tickling her sides.

Even if she heard everything, she would be more curious than worried. So Nubia replied casually.

"Just leave it to Lena. She’ll uncover everything that creepy producer is hiding for sure."

"Both of you are so mean—don’t leave me out."

No matter how much Veena nagged, Nubia refused to explain and simply teased her about adding more to her lectures.

One way or another, it was the same for Jeff. No matter how much he already knew, he couldn’t tell Nubia.

The reward for Quest 30—Murderer’s Archive—didn’t only include details of Gary’s plan to kill Cindy. It also listed the female models he had taken advantage of, his secret business partnership with the PoruMerc Men’s Division, and the confidential information about PoruMerc that he had leaked to its competitors.

In short, he was one of the traitors who would eventually cause the bankruptcy of Nubia’s family business.

Unable to come up with a convincing way to prove everything, Jeff had to trust Lena and Luke to interrogate Gary.

Maybe I should’ve let Jess beat that bastard back at the hotel, he thought, remembering how Jess had complained about not getting the chance to beat up Cindy’s ex-boyfriend—the one who stole all her undergarments, only to end up dead as well.

The conversation about unsettling matters ended there, and their laid-back camping resumed, with Jeff tending to Nubia and Veena’s needs.

---

When night fell, Nubia realized something obvious—they weren’t the only group camping overnight with intimacy on their schedule.

"You stupid Jeff..." Nubia grumbled, her face blushing so red that even in the dim light, Jeff and Veena could see it.

The three of them climbed to the viewpoint to see the Capital City illuminated at night and the moonlight reflecting off the dam’s waters.

But to Nubia’s surprise, she began hearing faint sounds of intimacy in the dark—from the forest road leading up and from behind the trees near the viewpoint.

They quickly climbed down at her lead. Yet even back at their campsite, despite each camper being a fair distance apart, she could clearly hear similar sounds coming from various tents.

Doing it outdoors—even inside the camping van—was something she could tolerate. But knowing other campers outside might hear them as well was beyond her limit.

"I should’ve realized this was your plan from the start..."

"Only half of it, actually," Jeff said, embracing Nubia to calm her down.

With how weak Nubia was to romance and intimacy, even Jeff felt bad for not considering that the other campers might have had the same idea.

Still, he couldn’t back down completely. He needed to satisfy Nubia’s and Veena’s pent-up desires to complete Quest 31 of the Returner Fantasy System.

That didn’t mean they couldn’t change locations, though.

"Then how about we rent a room at the campsite administration building, Nubia-senpai?"

Nubia lifted her face, looking at Jeff in relief. But before she could agree, Veena wrapped her arms around her from behind and made a request.

"Can’t we do it in the camping van, Nubia-senpai?"