Ch.116Punishment (1)

As everyone knows, I have an appointment with Cecilly. It’s both to introduce me to Helium and to punish the dark elf who stole my manuscript.

Cecilly said she would send Gartz Balack to fetch me a week after her performance ended, but there was a slight complication. None other than Marie Housen Reckyless.

Since our first night together, she demanded intimacy every day. The first day she was sick and stayed in bed all day, but after that, she clung to me constantly.

When I was writing, she would lie on the bed staring at me. During meals, she would subtly rub against me. When I exercised, she would watch intently from the window, and so on.

She never took her eyes off me for a moment, and regardless of day or night, she demanded intimacy. Being at an age where passion runs high, I could easily accommodate her.

But nothing in this world lasts forever. We weren’t officially married, and Marie continuing to stay at our mansion was clearly improper.

“Can’t I stay a little longer?”

“No. The academy will be opening soon, so you need to prepare.”

“Just one more day…”

“No.”

“Hmph.”

At first, Marie tried asking her mother—my future mother-in-law—but it was futile. As my mother-in-law pointed out, she had already stayed at our mansion for several days.

Marie was greatly disappointed, but since her desire didn’t override her sense of propriety, she had no choice but to comply quietly. I was disappointed too, but we weren’t parting forever, so we promised to meet again at the academy.

Just as Marie was about to leave, she glanced at me once more and made another request to her mother.

“Then could you give me a little time?”

“How much?”

“About two hours… I need to wash up?”

“I anticipated that and scheduled the carriage for later.”

“Thank you, Mother!”

My mother-in-law is quite formidable. As soon as Marie got permission, she quickly grabbed my hand and led me to the bedroom.

And well… I don’t need to spell it out. Anyway, Marie returned to her mansion the day before I was to depart for Helium.

“See you at the academy. If you cheat on me before then, you’re dead, okay?”

“Why would I cheat?”

“Because there’s Cecilly.”

“…”

“I’m kidding. Give me a kiss.”

Honestly, my heart skipped a beat, so I quickly appeased her with a kiss. Marie lightly pressed her lips against mine, then smiled brightly and waved. At the same time, the carriage she boarded began to move forward slowly.

I also stepped back slowly, waving at the moving carriage. There were exactly five days left until the academy opened, so we would see each other again soon.

I wonder if Marie can hold out until then. I’m seriously worried she might pounce on me like a beast in heat as soon as we get to the academy.

I’m not exaggerating—during her stay at the mansion, she wouldn’t leave me alone for a moment, pouncing on me whenever her energy was recharged. She was truly like a lioness.

“You must feel quite sad. Your girlfriend leaving.”

While I was lost in thought, my mother, who had come to see Marie off with me, spoke kindly. Father hadn’t come to say goodbye—he was probably sparring with one of the three: Dave, Nicole, or Adelia.

I stared at my mother’s face as she smiled affectionately. Over the past few days, she seemed to have rejuvenated, her skin glowing with a beauty rivaling that of someone in their twenties.

In contrast, Father, despite his iron constitution, showed signs of fatigue. It seems that while Marie and I were spending passionate nights together, my parents were doing the same.

Of course, my parents have always displayed such affection that it’s almost sickeningly sweet, so this was nothing out of the ordinary for me.

“I am sad, but we’ll meet again soon, so I’ll have to endure until then.”

“Still, each day will feel like a year to that girl. Don’t you know how lonely this mother felt whenever your father was away on knight business?”

“How did you endure it?”

“By pretending to visit him… hoho. I’ll stop there. It was quite a thrilling experience that I still remember.”

“…”

I gave a wry smile at my mother’s story. They’re passionate enough now, but it seems in the past, their love was practically incendiary.

I’m certain there’s no couple more perfectly matched than my parents in this world. The fact that they have three children is proof of that.

“It’s really amazing that you haven’t had a fourth child.”

“We might soon. The medicine I gave you was the last of it.”

“…”

If they had another child now, it would be almost like a grandchild. It’s fortunate that my brother and sister are in knightly service; otherwise, they would already be married with children at their age.

I shook my head as my mother began happily contemplating what to name the baby and how cute it would be. If she hadn’t been taking contraceptives consistently, I suspect she would have had at least five children.

“Oh, by the way. You said you’re going to Helium tomorrow?”

“Yes. They said they’d send someone. Since we’ll be using teleportation, I should be back within two days at the latest.”

“Helium… This mother has only heard about it, so I don’t really know what kind of place it is.”

Since Helium has maintained a semi-forced closed stance until now, most people don’t know what it’s like.

Fortunately, they have extensive granaries and various resources that allow for self-sufficiency, but beyond that, very little is known.

There are all sorts of strange rumors—that the sky is red and ominous, that demons attack, that they buy and sell human body parts, and so on. But nothing has been properly verified.

However, since I know that demons are no different from ordinary people, I wasn’t particularly worried. Besides, Cecilly and Gartz Balack would protect me, so there shouldn’t be any problems.

“All places where people live must be similar, right? There can’t be anything that strange. Rumors aren’t very reliable.”

“That’s true. Anyway, are you preparing?”

“As far as preparation goes, I just need to pack some clothes.”

My mother entered the mansion as we continued our conversation. I was planning to go in soon to write, so I went with her.

It felt somewhat empty without Marie by my side, but we would meet at the academy, so I could endure until then. Just as I was heading to my room…

“Wah!”

“Ahhh!”

As soon as I turned the corner, someone suddenly jumped out, startling me. Since I had been walking without thinking, I was so surprised that my heart nearly stopped.

I clutched my pounding chest and identified the person who had emerged from the corner. It was Adelia Cross, whom I thought would be sparring with my father.

Seeing my reaction, she seemed pleased and flashed a bright smile, opening her mouth with her characteristically husky voice. Still a charming voice.

“Our cute little one. Did I surprise you? Even your surprised face is cute.”

“…Sister Adelia.”

“Hahaha.”

Despite my lowered voice, Adelia just laughed shamelessly. I glared at her before sighing and asking quietly.

“What brings you here? Weren’t you sparring with Father?”

“I already finished and just came from washing up. And I need to prepare since I’ll be returning to the academy soon.”

Now that she mentioned it, Adelia’s brown hair was damp with moisture. Her face looked fresh, suggesting she had just finished bathing.

She was wearing a shirt that accentuated her figure, and it seemed she had dressed hastily as her body was almost completely revealed. Thanks to this, I realized that her chest was nearly as large as Marie’s, something I hadn’t noticed at the exhibition.

Despite being abandoned by her family and treated harshly, she must have eaten and slept well, so her good development was natural…

‘…This isn’t the time for such thoughts.’

I quickly shook my head. Marie had just left after one last round, and already I was having such thoughts.

It seemed that I was just as inflamed as Marie.

“When are you returning to the academy?”

“Within three days at the latest. Since Nicole and I are assistants, we need to prepare our personal equipment. By the way, where did your girlfriend go?”

“She just returned to her mansion.”

“Really? You must feel disappointed.”

Whether she was sincere or just making conversation, Adelia maintained her grinning expression. I stared at her for a moment before suddenly remembering the handkerchief and asked her.

“By the way, Sister Adelia. When will you return my handkerchief?”

“Uh, what? H-handkerchief?”

“Yes.”

At the mention of the handkerchief, her smiling expression instantly vanished, and she became visibly flustered. Seeing this, I could roughly guess what had happened.

Either Adelia had lost the handkerchief, or she had used it to wipe her sweat. According to Nicole, Adelia was the type to use other people’s belongings carelessly without much thought.

And my guess was correct. Adelia hesitated, mumbling and checking my reaction before finally speaking in a barely audible voice.

“Well… can I give it back later? I accidentally used it to wipe my sweat earlier…”

“It’s fine. You can keep using that handkerchief, just don’t lose it.”

“Really? I can really keep using it?”

When I spoke as if I didn’t mind, Adelia became unusually excited and brought her face close to mine. Having her handsome yet pretty face so close was quite uncomfortable.

I looked at her sky-blue eyes, which were filled with expectation, and slowly nodded. Since I have plenty of handkerchiefs, giving one to Adelia as a gift wouldn’t be a big deal.

“Yes. I have many handkerchiefs.”

“Thank you! I’ll treasure it forever!”

“Treasuring it forever is a bit…”

“You adorable, cute thing! If you didn’t have a girlfriend, I would have dated you first!”

Is she that happy? Adelia suddenly hugged me tightly and shook her body to express her joy. Having just bathed, the scent of soap stimulated my senses.

Not only that, but the soft sensation transmitted through her shirt stimulated my desire. However, I remained calm and slowly pushed Adelia away.

Since it’s Adelia, I can let it slide. After learning about her tragic past, I feel bad about treating her harshly.

Although Adelia appears to be a bold and straightforward woman on the surface, she has deep emotional wounds. So I had to be careful with every word and action.

The incident where she threw a ball at me to get Nicole’s attention, and her occasional pranks or physical contact, all seemed like manifestations of emotional deprivation, which made me feel sorry for her rather than annoyed.

“Sister Adelia? Could you step back a bit? It’s not right to do this to a man who has a girlfriend.”

“I’ll be your concubine, so can’t you keep hugging me? If not a concubine, I’ll be your guard knight.”

“You don’t mean that.”

Thankfully Marie wasn’t here; if she had seen this, she would have mistaken it for an affair. When I dismissed her words as absurd, Adelia loosened her arms around me.

As she stepped back, her expression was nothing but bright. Indeed, such a bright smile suits Adelia.

“Anyway, you can return the handkerchief later. I’ll be going now.”

“Alright. Oh, and…”

“Yes?”

As I was about to walk away, Adelia briefly stopped me. I looked at her with an expression that asked what she wanted to say.

But Adelia, like before, only hesitated without properly speaking. I waited patiently for her to say something.

“…Never mind. Who am I to…”

“Pardon?”

“Sorry. I forgot what I was going to say.”

That doesn’t seem true at all. When Adelia spoke with a forced smile, I became curious.

What did she want to say that made her hesitate so much? Seeing her forced smile, it seemed like something sad, which made me concerned.

“Then I’ll be going now. You’ll still come to the training ground every weekend, right?”

“Yes.”

“If you need help with anything at the academy, ask me. Nicole might be difficult, but I’ll help you. Got it?”

“I’m not sure if I’ll need help at the academy, but I understand.”

“Good. Well… goodbye! I’ll be going now!”

Adelia backed away hesitantly before running off as if escaping. Her brown hair fluttered violently, creating a gust of wind.

Slightly bewildered, I reached out toward her rapidly disappearing figure. But before I could extend my hand, Adelia had already vanished.

“…What was that?”

Despite this small incident, my daily routine remained unchanged. Although I was a bit concerned about Adelia, it was something that could be resolved gradually.

And so, an uneventful day passed…

“I meet you again. I am Gartz Balack, Princess Cecilly’s guard knight.”

“Hello, Mr. Gartz. Nice to see you again.”

With Gartz’s formal visit to our mansion, all preparations for going to Helium were complete.

This alone would have been fine, but…

“But this is…”

“This is a magic safe that I made myself. With this, you can safely store your valuables. For instance, items like the manuscript of the Biography of Xenon.”

“…You knew about that too, Mr. Gartz?”

“There were circumstances.”

Gartz brought what appeared to be an expensive silver safe as a gift. It was somewhat absurd to hear him say this with such a stoic expression.

“If you place your palm here, the magic will automatically scan it. Your hand is essentially the password and key.”

“…You made this in Helium? Not dwarves?”

“The safe was crafted by a blacksmith, and I added the magic. It wasn’t particularly difficult.”

“…”

As expected of one of the Fourteen Races.