episode_0073

The eventful meal ended, and inside the room where even all the plates had disappeared, silence flowed over the table.

Although I was full enough, I didn’t feel the fullness because of the chilly atmosphere.

Rather, I felt a sense of emptiness, as if my stomach was empty due to tension.

It was Lawyer, of all people, who broke the silence.

He took a sip of his tea while holding a teacup and began to speak.

“In the case of a war with the Orcs, it would be impossible to even dream of using mage forces.”

The Orcs’ skin is very thick. So, ordinary magic cannot even penetrate their skin.

Because of this, magic was generally ineffective against the Orcs, and the Elves could not easily deal with them.

It meant that they were bound to be at a disadvantage from the start.

Therefore, it was natural that the forces requested from the humans were warrior forces rather than mage forces.

To put it nicely, they were sturdy and strong warrior forces, but to put it badly, it meant they were meat shields.

The Elves seemed to know this as well, as they couldn’t easily bring up the subject.

Naturally, Lawyer was the one leading the conversation.

“Giving up warrior forces is not something we can easily do. Without them, Amane becomes dangerous. All we can offer you is 100 warrior troops.”

100 people, a number that may seem large at first glance, but it was not a force that could change the course of the war.

Generally, thousands of soldiers were deployed in wars. The Orcs attacking the Elves’ forest alone numbered over thousands.

“100 people is not enough. We can’t handle them!”

“That’s right. Lawyer, was it? We ask that you provide a few more troops.”

At Natasha and Oberon’s request, Lawyer seemed to be contemplating for a moment.

“The most I can give you in addition is 500 warrior troops.”

500 people, this was not a huge number either, but considering that it was originally 100, it was the same as multiplying it several times.

In addition, a total of 600 troops would be enough to overcome the crisis.

“Thank you. To send such troops…”

“May the blessing of the Tree of Life be with you.”

“Don’t mention it, but I will be collecting a price.”

“A price?”

Natasha’s face hardened at the word ‘price’. Oberon frowned, as if he didn’t quite understand.

“What are you talking about? Wasn’t this compensation for the teachings from hundreds of years ago?”

“Oh, dear, you don’t know the world very well. Quite a long time has passed since then. Unfortunately, humans are not a species that lives remembering such favors in detail.”

“Then what…”

“Even if it looks like this, you can think of those 500 people as being worth a hundred each. They are not ordinary warriors, but imperial guards. I am giving you half of my 1,000 guards.”

“……”

Natasha was starting to worry. Generally, the Emperor’s forces are treated quite grandly.

However, the fact that he gave half of such forces made it unimaginable how great the price would be.

“What do you want?”

When Natasha asked directly, Lawyer burst into laughter.

“You’re quite impatient. Since you asked, I’ll answer. First of all, the Elf Princess must remain here.”

“Wait a minute, what are you talking about?”

Oberon asked as if he didn’t understand.

“It’s as it sounds. Isn’t it possible that my soldiers might be driven to their deaths? Until my soldiers return, the Elf Princess must remain in Amane. What should I call it? A prisoner? A hostage?”

Natasha frowned at the unexpected words. Oberon also seemed to take it as quite insulting, and his expression hardened.

“That remark is insulting.”

Natasha stopped Oberon, who was about to argue.

“Let’s hear the rest of it. I don’t think you’ll be satisfied with just me staying behind, will you?”

“Well, that’s right. I will provide you with a place to stay and food while you are here. Instead, I would like you to live as the Emperor’s maid.”

Oberon raised his voice at the word ‘maid’.

“How dare you use the word maid for a princess.”

“Oberon!!”

Natasha was troubled to see Oberon shouting when they had come to receive troops.

In fact, it didn’t seem like such a bad treatment. It meant that if she suffered a little, the future of the Elves could change.

However, Oberon couldn’t bear it and shouted, and it was clear that it had offended Lawyer.

“I’ll have to change the conditions. I will reduce the support troops by half.”

“No!”

***

Reducing it by half was practically the same as not providing any troops.

The troops were already insufficient. Oberon also acknowledged that he had overreacted and bowed his head to Lawyer.

It was a rare sight to see an Elf who was hundreds of years old bowing to a human in his 30s.

However, Lawyer’s expression did not soften.

“I think I was mistaken. I thought Elves were people who kept their manners, but I guess not.”

Natasha had nothing to say.

Looking at it closely, it was a natural request.

No matter how much she was a princess, she couldn’t bring 600 soldiers on the premise that she would work as a maid.

“……I’m sorry. I’ll apologize on his behalf, so will you forgive his rudeness?”

Natasha eventually bowed her head. She had long forgotten her status as the princess of the Elves.

Now, she was just there to receive troops.

At Natasha’s earnest request, Lawyer nodded his head, saying he understood.

Natasha thought that Lawyer’s anger had subsided. However, she had to doubt her ears at the next words she heard.

“I’ll set other conditions. The maid’s work and the princess? You can beg for the troops yourself.”

“Beg?”

She thought she must have misheard. But Lawyer’s expression was still firm.

“Wouldn’t it also be your fault for not properly educating your subordinates? Then you, as the superior, must take responsibility.”

“……I understand.”

There was nothing she could say. Natasha immediately bowed her head and apologized.

But Lawyer scoffed.

“Unfortunately, you don’t seem to know anything about human culture.”

“……Yes?”

“In human society, when you apologize, you basically bend over and prostrate yourself. In other words, you bow.”

The most effective way to apologize was to sit directly on the ground and prostrate yourself.

Of course, Natasha hesitated for a moment when she heard those words.

“Above all, all of those actions are done naked. It’s to show that you are truly sorry. Can you do it?”

“……What are you talking about.”

“If you do, I will give you 600 soldiers again because I have confirmed your sincerity.”

Natasha began to worry a lot.

If she could overcome a moment’s shame, there would be hope for the Elves.

For the sake of hope, she was confident that she could overcome such shame.

“……I will.”

“You’ve thought it through well. Do it up there.”

For some reason, there was a mat that didn’t seem to fit in the dining room.

Natasha immediately stepped onto the mat.

She took off all the clothes and underwear she was wearing. Of course, she twisted and covered her body as much as possible so that her genitals would not be visible.

Oberon couldn’t understand the situation at all and avoided looking.

“……”

As an Elf who had lived in the forest for a long time, her figure was quite excellent.

Her breasts, as large as her head, were resilient, and a slender waist that didn’t match those breasts was visible. Her arms and legs were slender and beautifully plump.

Her beauty was also excellent. Overall, she seemed to boast a very outstanding figure even among the Elf race.

In addition, the line that followed her buttock groove was enough to steal the viewer’s gaze. Above all, her skin looked very soft.

Natasha covered her breasts with one arm and her genitals with the other out of embarrassment.

“Now, show me your apology. Originally, apologies are basically required to last for more than 1 minute.”

Natasha immediately bent over. She buried her face in the mat on the floor and showed her apology as it was.

Natasha was just sweating profusely in a situation that she couldn’t get used to. Of course, the more she did, the more lustrous her flesh, wet with sweat, looked.

Natasha only wanted to finish the apology as soon as possible and put her clothes back on.

But Lawyer, who had approached her from behind, smiled.

As Lawyer raised his hand, Oberon approached.

“……This is different from what you said!”

Unlike his cry, Oberon couldn’t stop Lawyer.

That was because the guards who appeared at that moment grabbed Oberon’s arms.