Ch.118The Black Mage and the Black Knight (6)

“…going.”

“Yes.”

The melody that had run away returned quickly.

[Play Time: 9,776 hours]

Since she had run away for 9,776 hours, she had actually composed herself and returned in less than an hour.

However, that didn’t mean I thought she was okay, which was evident just by looking at her face.

Her eyes were red-rimmed, her gaze toward me was unfriendly, and she glared at me whenever I tried to look back at her.

Amid all this, I could still sense the indignation she couldn’t hide from her eyes, so I had to walk with the mindset of a guilty person.

We were heading toward the Shadow Cradle.

“…Um, well.”

“Just say it.”

“I’m sorry. It’s just…”

“It’s fine. If I had known Llewellyn was such an insensitive person, I would have changed my approach long ago.”

There was a sting in her words. Even so, I couldn’t show any displeasure or say anything about it.

Because I was indeed in the wrong.

I’m someone who knows shame, like when I dive in and die, causing the snowball to roll terribly and the game to crash.

I couldn’t snap at Melody when I was at fault. I quietly closed my mouth and followed her.

Melody was walking five steps ahead of me. Seeing how the distance wouldn’t close even if I quickened my pace, I wondered if she was using some kind of magical or swordsmanship technique.

But I couldn’t ask.

What could I say when I was in the wrong? I quietly followed behind Melody.

To think that even Melody would like me.

I knew about Isla and my sister, but I had no idea Melody felt that way too.

I thought at most, Ortemilia or Lorian might show deep affection toward me because of the father factor inside me.

I wondered what about me made her develop such feelings, but I couldn’t ask.

That would be similar to asking earlier, “Haha, do you like me? Lol.”

If I did that, Melody might draw her sword and stab me, and I would have nothing to say in my defense.

So, as I was walking, desperately hoping for Valterok to break this uncomfortable silence…

“Llewellyn.”

“Y-Yes?”

“Answer comfortably.”

“Yes…”

How can I answer comfortably in this situation?

However, Melody didn’t dwell on that point, perhaps because she didn’t really want me to be completely at ease.

“How do you think of me, Llewellyn?”

Ah, an incredibly difficult question.

I broke into a sweat.

“W-Well… I think you’re cute and lovely, very helpful, and an excellent person…”

Perhaps pleased by my desperate appearance, Melody chuckled and narrowed the distance. It was now just three steps.

“Are you flattering me because I’m in a bad mood?”

“I’m being sincere.”

“You can be cute too. I need to reassess you.”

The distance reduced to one step, and suddenly Melody was beside me.

Naturally, I felt relieved, but I couldn’t let my guard down.

A woman’s heart is such that in situations like this, she might suddenly act comfortable and then enter “phase 2” by asking, “Do you really think I’m not angry anymore?”

I remained vigilant and alert. My heart was pounding with my extremely heightened concentration.

“Um, if I may.”

“Yes.”

“May I ask the small fanboy question of why you came to like me?”

“What kind of speech is that? It’s funny.”

Melody smiled slightly, but her eyes were still red. It naturally softened my heart.

“Anyway. Do you really want to know why I like you? Do you really want to hear something so embarrassing?”

“Well, actually… I never expected it, so I’d like to hear.”

“You showed potential.”

That was an unexpected response for me, who thought at most she might say I was handsome.

As I stared blankly, Melody walked beside me with soft footsteps and spoke.

“I’d say you seemed exceptional at first glance. I don’t pay attention to people without talent or ability, so I put you on my list of candidates.”

“Candidates.”

“Mmm. I’m not an immortal or long-lived species like my sister or Eshaterena. So I need to find a good man at the right time, don’t I?”

“But you don’t have experience…”

“Who says that?! I have, um, plenty of experience.”

Her voice grew progressively quieter. Perhaps knowing her own words were false, Melody slumped.

“I know, I know. The great Melody, a complete virgin with no experience with men. It’s a bit disappointing, right?”

“Someone who likes you would like that about you.”

“What about you?”

A glance directed at me. Her slightly upturned eyes revealed deep affection.

“Does Llewellyn like virgins?”

“They’re hard to come by.”

“…What are you saying.”

Melody chuckled and tapped my arm. I awkwardly scratched my head.

“I’m glad to hear that.”

Melody said that and then stared blankly into space.

“Do you remember when you told me about the Duel School? About my mother and such?”

“Yes, how could I forget?”

“Then this should be easy to understand.”

Melody’s toe kicked a small stone, sending it rolling across the ground. She stared at the stone pensively as she spoke.

“The elders of the school didn’t want me to have contact with men. They didn’t want any flaws in their ‘finished product.'”

“So…”

“So I had almost no experience with men. Until I started my adventurer life, the only men I had seen were a few elders.”

And then there was me. A man who had approached Melody, who had habitually avoided men even after being liberated from her sister.

“This might sound strange, but I know almost nothing about romance.”

“I can imagine.”

“Because of that, I like men who pull me in, but…”

Her face gradually reddened as she spoke. Feeling my gaze on her, Melody fidgeted with her fingers.

“When you pushed me like that… it stuck in my mind and wouldn’t leave, so…”

Ah.

I suddenly recalled the past. When I saw Melody putting on airs, my mother’s gene awakened and I acted out.

“When I think about it, my heart pounds, and I want to experience it again… and once I became conscious of it, I kept thinking about it…”

“So that’s why you came to like me.”

“Ugh.”

Melody covered her reddened face with her hair. Looking at her, I felt a sense of pity, like seeing a bird whose wings had been clipped.

A girl who, lacking the experiences she should have had, came to love me like a baby bird following its mother.

The thought made me uncomfortable.

It felt like I had taken something that wasn’t rightfully earned love and affection, but rather something obtained through a half-baked means.

Melody, not noticing my uncomfortable expression, walked with her face covered, and I, seeing a tree in her path, put my arm around her shoulder and pulled her close.

“Oh!”

“Be careful. You need to keep your eyes open when walking.”

“No, I can avoid obstacles even with my eyes closed…”

Her words trailed off. She must have enjoyed being embraced.

“See? How can I not like you when you’re like this?”

Melody grumbled with a reddened face.

That face, that attitude was certainly lovable.

But I didn’t know what to do with her affection.

First of all, I had Isla, and although Isla said she was fine with concubines…

I couldn’t ask Melody, “Isla’s okay with concubines, would you like to be one?”

Especially since Melody herself was approaching this with a girlish sensibility.

There’s no such thing as a girl who wants to be a concubine.

It’s usually when one leaves girlhood, becomes an adult, realizes reality, and looks for a way to survive that one decides to become a concubine.

Lorian isn’t a girl but a crazy woman of three clans, a “bloodline lover,” so she might volunteer to be a concubine saying, “A concubine? I can’t resist.”

But Melody isn’t like that.

I walked with her, feeling uncomfortable.

Wondering what the right answer might be.

My sister was usually a great help in situations like this, but even she wouldn’t be much help now.

Ah, come to think of it, I need to figure out what to do about my sister too.

Suppressing a sigh that was about to escape, we soon reached the nearly completed fortress after walking for a while.

It was almost completed in just a day.

Melody widened her eyes in surprise at the sight.

“Wow, already?”

“They’re Black Knights. They work fast.”

Surprisingly, Black Knights receive bonuses for activities other than combat.

While most professions don’t get bonuses for non-combat actions, with perhaps only hunters and bards being good at miscellaneous tasks…

Black Knights, lacking magical power and often operating alone, are designed to be skilled at all sorts of tasks.

So apart from using magic, they were the closest thing to an all-around profession.

They’re essentially like paladins from Grim Darker.

Considering their action bonuses, fortress construction was a simple task for them.

We passed through the busy Black Knights and approached the fortress.

Passing through the semi-automatic gate of the palisade, which opened with anti-magic force, we were suddenly in the Shadow Cradle.

The arcane anti-magic of the Anti-Magic School was so strong that even I, who possessed no magic, could feel it.

Melody already looked unwell.

“Are you alright?”

“I’m… fine. I just need to hide my magic power inside…”

That’s possible?

Being in a profession that doesn’t use magic, I didn’t know. But then again, Melody is nearly omnipotent, so maybe she can.

“That’s right. Skilled spell casters can hide their magic power inside, allowing them to use basic enhancement spells even if they can’t cast other magic.”

A giant figure greeted us.

Although the interior of the Shadow Cradle was bright and the floor was generally white and clean…

The giant’s presence alone seemed to make the interior of the Shadow Cradle appear gloomy.

And he was indeed such a being.

“Valterok.”

“Did you rest well last night?”

“Thanks to you. Having the Black Knight Order nearby certainly puts my mind at ease.”

“Hmm, I didn’t expect anyone to welcome us.”

Valterok smiled awkwardly. Listening to his deep voice, I thought:

It’s not strange that such a Valterok is called a slaughterer.

While I might be comfortable around him, from the perspective of black mages, he must be like a walking grim reaper.

Thinking about it that way, it made sense.

But I didn’t ask tactlessly. If I did and he responded with, “That’s incredibly rude. I should smash your head,” I wouldn’t have many ways to counter.

I would probably react that way. While the title “Slaughterer” is undoubtedly cool…

Usually, when someone says, “You’re the Slaughterer, right?” they’re either mocking or condemning you.

So I let Valterok continue speaking, and after staring at me for a moment (I couldn’t see his eyes because of his helmet, but it felt that way), he led Melody and me to the upper level.

“You’ve come at a good time.”

The upper level had something like an observation window. There were probably devices to move this cradle as well.

From that observation window, everything around was visible, from the mountain where the Pantheon was located to Marsi and Servan in the distance.

“The black mages have noticed us. As expected.”

The Shadow Cradle is a massive entity equipped with anti-magic power.

Naturally, when it moves, all the surrounding magic is pushed away and fluctuates.

It’s like creating a magic storm.

So the scene visible from the upper observation window was somewhat predictable.

“It’s time to march.”

Servan, visible to the northwest from the observation window, was densely filled with what looked like black, writhing tentacles.