Chapter 69

Chapter 69

Seated on the couch, Ivan briefly gazed at the bed.

The bed stirred, and its edge smoothly descended like a ripple.

Blond hair fanning out like a wheat field, and amidst them, pointed ears protruding. It was Elpheira.

“Oh? Are you awake? Did you sleep well?” (Elpheira)

Ivan swiftly surveyed Elpheira’s form. She was elegantly clad in silk pajamas. He lowered his dagger with a sigh of relief.

“Why am I here?” (Ivan)

“Don’t you recall?” (Elpheira)

“Hmm.” (Ivan)

“Don’t just respond with ‘Hmm.’ Do you truly not remember last night?” (Elpheira)

Elpheira chuckled, gracefully exiting the bed.

She playfully flicked the fallen clothes.

“What did I do?” (Ivan)

“Nothing.” (Elpheira)

Ivan is a trained intelligence agent. It doesn’t mean he trusts his self-control but rather that he can gather enough information just by observing the other party’s appearance and demeanor.

If he had done ‘something’ while sleeping, Elpheira wouldn’t be in such a neat state.

Sensing his gaze, Elpheira pouted and teased, “You didn’t do nothing, but it’s not like nothing happened at all.” (Elpheira)

“...What?” (Ivan)

“The Saintess came and went.” (Elpheira)

She muttered while applauding lightly.

The door soon opened, and the maid approached, starting to arrange snacks on the table.

Casually brushing the maid aside, she picked up a teacup filled with black tea.

“Please have something. You must be quite hungry.” (Elpheira)

“Where’s my nutrition bar?” (Ivan)

“Huh? What’s that?” (Elpheira)

“The one that was in my vest. I had it in the slit.” (Ivan)

“Oh... Are you talking about the dog treat? I gave it to our Blanc to eat, but she didn’t want it, so I thought it was spoiled and threw it away... Wait, you mean that was for humans?” (Elpheira)

“Blanc...?” (Ivan)

“My dog. She’s cute. Do you want to see?” (Elpheira (

Ivan glanced at the colorful finger snacks on the table, swallowing a sigh.

Such foods, composed only of sweets and carbohydrates, were meager, providing excess calories and insufficient nutrition.

About to comment on throwing a nutrition bar to a dog, he lifted the teacup, organizing his thoughts.

There’s something more important than that. Nutrition bars could be found in the director’s office anytime, but what mattered now was the current situation.

He is a rational and broad-minded person.

“So, the Saintess came and went.” (Ivan)

“Oh, yes. She went to check on. Oh right! Why did you insist you were fine back then!” (Elpheira)

Elpheira forcefully placed the teacup down, expressing her frustration.

Understanding the emotional rollercoaster of an adolescent girl (not really) was a challenging and futile pursuit, so Ivan simply listened in silence.

“It’s a curse! The Saintess spent the entire night yesterday attempting to dismantle it. Honestly, what is all of this?” (Elpheira)

“Unfortunate.” (Ivan)

Ivan nonchalantly shrugged as if it were inconsequential.

“Did the Saintess mention anything?”

“Well... She just came, cried for a while, prayed all night, and departed, instructing me to visit the sacristy three days a week.” (Elpheira)

“Within the expected range.” (Ivan)

Ivan took a sip of tea and stood up.

Dealing with someone entrenched in the concept of happiness, the repercussions of his final words were foreseeable. The absence of happiness leads to unhappiness.

“Oh... um, then... to the extent of ‘that trap’....”

Was it a curse that imposed overwhelming ‘unhappiness,’ like that indescribable ‘happiness’ when he saw Ivan leaving the room?

Thinking of Ivan escaping from that room, Elpheira swallowed hard.

“I already thought it would be like this. This university has a Saintess, and she’s the most proficient in curse removal on this continent.”

“You... anticipated... everything?”

“Yeah.”

“Really... you must be insane! Then why didn’t you say anything! If you had waited until the Saintess woke up instead of going straight to her, what if... what would we have done!”

‘A comb.’

She pondered how that could be possible. The conclusion was simple. The man’s immediate desire at that time was only that, nothing more.

It meant he didn’t particularly love combs to the point of fetishizing them (to some extent, it was true); rather, it signified that he didn’t have anything better to desire at the moment.

‘No desires.’

Elpheira’s eyes gleamed sharply.

Being next to the most beautiful woman in Kalion, from a human perspective, thinking of a modest comb while a mythical beauty of an elf stood perfectly intact, confirmed the fact that it wasn’t a trivial comb.

Elpheira nodded in agreement with this valid conclusion.

‘It’s broken.’

Even if the inference was wrong, the fact that the conclusion was correct was being proven here.

Does the Saintess know? What about my father? If those who were once companions with that man didn’t notice, and if only I knew that fact...

‘I have to do it.’

Elves, fundamentally, adhere to desires. Not in the sense of indulging in base pleasures, but as a natural consequence of the logical idea that if something is precious, an elf should rightfully own it.

One couldn’t entrust precious items to a hasty and reckless being, risking damage.

Therefore, Elpheira, as an excellent elf, drew a conclusion.

‘None but me.’

Teaching happiness to a man who knows not happiness could be quite an intriguing endeavor.

Just as dogs have varying lifespans depending on the breed, it seemed that man, despite being human, had a remarkably short lifespan.

First, restore his lifespan to make him a bit younger, periodically improve his constitution, feed him something better than that dog treat, and so on. If she did all that, he would naturally feel ‘happy.’

She gently embraced and caressed the small poodle that was wriggling at her feet, smiling.

***

“What did you encounter at the ruins?” (Elizaveta)

“I encountered someone who claims to be a deity. It was impossible to determine the identity on the spot, but I will consult the Saintess and include a report as an attachment.” (Ivan)

“No, no, no. I understand... A trap? Magic? A seal from two thousand years ago?” (Elizaveta)

“Yes.”

Elizaveta clenched her forehead and murmured.

“Why on earth is something like that in the university’s basement... Why wasn’t it even mentioned in the royal archives? If such a thing was sleeping beneath the capital, I should have... this kingdom should have known...”

Ivan didn’t feel the need to explain ‘common knowledge’ to people of this medieval world.

The sealing of ancient evil beneath the capital’s underground was within the realm of common knowledge.

“Yeah, so, how did you... destroy it?” (Elizaveta)

“It could only play tricks with human desires, at most.” (Ivan)

“Oh, that’s a bit... like something out of an epic. To hear such a story in the era after the Demon Lord’s demise, are you okay? Were you hurt?” (Elizaveta)

“Yes, Your Highness.” (Ivan)

Ivan spoke while kneeling on one knee.

“It had no physical ability to exert force.”

“Right, then how did you destroy it?”

“I smashed its head.”

“...???”

***

Isabelle and Ecdysis sat together on a bench, seemingly spaced out.

“Why on earth...?”

“Why did uncle...?”

Coming out of the elf’s house, and that too from ‘that brat’s’ house?

From morning, with disheveled hair and shabby attire. Clearly returning from a night out, judging by the appearance.

Both of them, being long-time friends, simultaneously arrived at the same conclusion.

“An affair...?”

The proposition that an affair could happen between them held no meaning for these two.

What mattered more was that Ivan appeared at ‘that brat’s’ house.

As longtime friends, they silently agreed on the same conclusion and planned their next move without conversation.

This time, it’s an ‘alliance’.

Oh, of course.

Forming a party of warriors to confront the wicked elf witch!

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