Ch.124Consultation (2)

Though she had said she would take a nap, Cyris slept deeply without moving for about an hour. I was so concerned she might be dead that I placed my finger under her nose, but she didn’t even react.

Fortunately, I was able to relax after confirming her steady breathing, but considering an elf’s physical abilities, I could roughly guess how exhausted she must have been.

Unlike humans who develop physical problems if they don’t sleep for more than two days, elves are known to easily go a week without sleep. I don’t need to look far—there’s Cindy as an example.

Even Cindy, who’s close to an ordinary person, can go several nights without sleep and still function in daily life, though she might be a bit sluggish. Dark circles are unavoidable, but considering the importance of sleep, she handles it quite well.

‘But for Cyris to not even sense my presence…’

A guard knight should have senses keen enough to detect the slightest movement. Especially if they’re an elf—a dark elf accustomed to darkness, no less.

Yet Cyris was sound asleep despite my approach to check her breathing. With slight exaggeration, she wouldn’t have noticed even if I had carried her away.

Seeing her resting instead of guarding Arwen, she must be on vacation or off-duty, which makes me feel bad for summoning her.

‘I have plenty of time, so I’ll wait until she wakes up.’

Due to exam period, I’ve postponed my dates with Marie and Cecilly, so I have time to spare. The exams will all be finished by Friday this week, so I’ll probably meet up with acquaintances then.

And with Marie, I’ll likely spend a fiery Friday. I imagined Marie, who had recently awakened to sexuality.

Though it seemed to have decreased slightly recently, her libido remained steady, as if she kept adding firewood to the flame. Moreover, she channeled all her stress in that direction, always taking me to an inn when something irritated her.

She’s probably building up stress from the exams and planning to release it all. I imagined Marie’s beauty, which seemed to have matured from consuming my lust, then quickly shook off the thought and looked at Cyris.

Cyris was sleeping soundly with the blanket pulled up to her neck. Since no one was likely to come anyway, and I’d feel bad waking her forcibly, I thought it would be good to write.

So I sat at the desk chair and picked up the magic pen. The remover I had received from Marie’s father, Dmitri, was placed next to the manuscript paper.

Scratch- scratch- swish-

My lodging was filled with the sound of writing with the magic pen and erasing with the remover. I focused as much as possible on writing the Biography of Xenon.

Not only was the environment conducive, but the existence of the remover doubled my writing efficiency. Sometimes I would discover typos later and have to make major revisions, but now that’s no longer necessary.

However, I still have the habit of completely rewriting when I’m not satisfied with my writing. Even now, the trash can contains torn manuscript papers, which I plan to burn later.

‘I’m debating whether to make the demon blocking Xenon’s group… Satan (wrath) or Lilith (lust).’

There’s a demon executive who blocks Xenon’s group as they hurry back when Alfheim is invaded.

Xenon had awakened after Kayre’s death and Merry’s confession, becoming much stronger than before and growing into a skilled fighter that even demons couldn’t underestimate.

Moreover, the group includes the elf mage Merry, the first-generation demon Jin, and Lilly, who is designated as the next saint, making the party itself quite powerful.

‘I’ll pass on the beast-folk since I don’t know their fighting style. That leaves only Lilith.’

The Seven Deadly Sins are individually powerful, having received strength from the great demon, Diabolos. Except for “Sloth,” which has high strategic value, the rest of the sins can each face an army.

And Lilith, the demon who governs lust, possesses a fatal beauty that can captivate both men and women, and being born a demon, she also uses magic.

However, during their first encounter, since her goal was to buy time, she dealt with them casually and left. But even that brief battle toyed with Xenon’s group, deeply impressing upon them the strength of the Seven Deadly Sins.

‘For Lilith’s fighting style…’

I should reference Cecilly. I know she’s very powerful as the next Demon King.

Though she was probably joking, she once said that if she ran her finger along a mountainside, it would split open. She also mentioned learning swordsmanship, so she never loses in close combat.

‘But I’ve never seen it myself. I should ask her later.’

I plan to ask her on the weekend after the exams. I can ask while chatting with her then.

I briefly closed my notebook where I had organized the plot and placed the magic pen on the manuscript paper. Though it hadn’t been long since volume 11 was released, I had already written about half of the next volume.

With more time available, the existence of the remover, and consultation from acquaintances, I could progress quickly like a ship with a sail in favorable winds. I might even be able to publish two volumes consecutively this month.

“… …”

“…Huh?”

How focused had I been on writing? As I stretched to loosen my stiffened body, I suddenly felt a gaze from behind and turned my head.

When I turned around, Cyris, who had woken up without my noticing, was staring at me blankly with the blanket half-covering her. I stared back at her just as blankly.

Perhaps because she had just woken up, her usually sharp eyes had softened slightly, and her partially exposed shoulders and chest exuded a seductive atmosphere. The blanket, neither fully covering nor removed, created a sense of intimacy.

“…When did you wake up?”

“Exactly five minutes ago.”

I checked the clock after hearing her answer. The current time was about 5 o’clock. Since Cyris had been summoned around 1 o’clock, it meant she had slept deeply for about 4 hours.

I ran my fingers through my hair and looked at Cyris. She was still drowsy, cutely yawning. When she was serving as Arwen’s guard, she was like a sharp sword, but now she appeared quite relaxed.

Well, most guard knights are like that. They have to be on edge to protect their master anywhere, anytime, so they need to relax during breaks to be comfortable later.

So it’s not strange for Cyris to show such a relaxed appearance. Especially since she secretly guards the Elf Queen, Arwen, her job difficulty must be extreme.

“You can sleep more if you’re tired.”

“No. I’m fully awake now.”

Judging by her bright golden eyes and increasingly alert gaze, she wasn’t lying. Thinking I could now ask for her advice, I got up from my seat and approached her before speaking.

Cyris waited quietly without taking any action as I approached. Well, if I tried anything strange, she would probably grab my wrist immediately.

When I reached her, I pulled up the fallen blanket to cover her slightly exposed tan skin. Thanks to that, nothing below her face was visible…

Flutter-

As soon as I pulled the blanket up to her neck, Cyris swung her arm, rendering my effort useless. The blanket fell even lower than before, revealing her underwear.

With my face burning momentarily, I asked Cyris in a voice mixed with embarrassment and bewilderment.

“No. Why are you taking it off?”

“It’s hot.”

“You can’t bear even this?”

“No.”

“… …”

Her stiff tone left me speechless. She was a messenger, not a complete slave, so I couldn’t tell her what to do.

In the end, I found myself facing Cyris, who had completely thrown off the blanket and was in her underwear. While she, as a dark elf, might be liberal about modesty, it posed several problems for me as a man.

Is it this difficult just to ask for advice? Still, I couldn’t understand why she would throw off the blanket just because it was uncomfortable when I had only covered her.

“Do dark elves generally feel the heat more, or is it just you, Cyris? Your usual attire is quite revealing too.”

“The attire is deeply related to the dark elves’ unique fighting style. We dark elves are more sensitive to the mana floating in the air than regular elves, and furthermore, we have the ability to blend with our surroundings. The more exposed parts, the higher the blending rate. The occasional rippling effect where a hidden dark elf was positioned is all due to clothing.”

“What about feeling hot?”

“Dark elves circulate mana at all times to be able to hide in darkness anywhere, anytime. This is why our body temperature is high.”

“Doesn’t that consume a lot of mana? Even for a dark elf, the consumption must be significant.”

“You don’t need to worry about that. Dark elves have a kind of legacy that allows us to absorb mana from the air through our skin. It’s an ability only we can perform.”

“Oh…”

Yes, this is exactly the kind of consultation I needed.

I excitedly took notes, my eyes sparkling at unexpectedly receiving such important information. Although the start was unusual, the emergence of such good information was fascinating.

Thanks to this, I could focus solely on her advice without my eyes wandering to Cyris’s alluring figure. Cyris herself didn’t seem to mind either, so there was no major issue.

“What kind of structure do dark elf villages have? Like how Alfheim has the Queen, the Council of Elders, and the Warchief, I’m curious about the structure of dark elves.”

“First, each dark elf belongs to a tribe. There are a total of three tribes, known as Ratna, Kumir, and Dron. Each is governed by its own elders.”

“Which tribe are you from, Cyris?”

“I am from Ratna. It’s known for producing warriors, while Kumir produces mages, and Dron produces technicians.”

“It sounds more like a city than just a village?”

“That’s correct. We just live in the forest, but in terms of living standards, it’s no different from any city. We simply live in a sparsely populated forest.”

How fascinating. The more I heard about dark elves, the more mysterious they seemed.

I diligently took notes according to what Cyris told me while mentally planning the future story. Since I wanted to be thorough with my research, I was determined to make the most of today.

“What is your rank, Cyris? Like how elves have the Warchief and humans have the Knight Commander, I’m not familiar with the dark elf ranking system.”

“Well, we don’t really have ranks except for the elders. When a major incident occurs, we call upon warriors with high reputations and assign them positions.”

“What kind of positions?”

“Scout leader, or assault leader, things like that. Since we adhere to a fighting style that doesn’t suit direct confrontation, we don’t officially have an army.”

It’s amazing how different their methods are despite coming from the same roots. Unlike elves who insist on direct confrontation, dark elves specialize in covert operations like assassination or infiltration.

This ideological difference probably led to their conflict in the distant past. Dark elves, unlike other elves, have particularly distinctive personalities that made them suitable for rejection.

“How do dark elves view the elves of Alfheim? Not your personal opinion, but the general view of all dark elves. Even though Arwen implemented integration policies, the old grudges probably haven’t been resolved.”

“Hmm… The generation that experienced the racial war views them favorably, but the later generations do not. The new generation protests why they should enter Alfheim, which rejected even help due to their petty pride, while the old generation thinks they must have softened after experiencing the bitterness of the racial war.”

“Wow…”

I couldn’t help but be genuinely impressed. To think they would be exactly opposite in this regard.

Then a thought suddenly occurred to me: how old is Cyris, who seems to be of the new generation?

She appears to be in her early to mid-twenties, but she views elves favorably. Even though she’s acting as a messenger, she doesn’t complain about it being a punishment.

I paused pressing my pen on the notebook and looked at Cyris. She was still in her underwear, blinking her golden eyes.

“Um… if I may ask one thing?”

“What is it?”

“I’m curious about your age…”

“Hmm… do you see this?”

After hearing my question, Cyris tapped her partially cut ear with her finger. When I shifted my gaze there, I could see gold earrings hanging.

While her left ear had nothing, her right ear had about three earrings. As I wondered about this, Cyris spoke.

“We have a custom of adding one earring each time we pass 100 years. I am exactly 341 years old, so you can see three earrings.”

“…That’s indeed an unfathomable age for a human.”

“I suppose it would seem so to humans who struggle to reach even 100 years.”

Cyris answered while maintaining her characteristic expressionless face. Whether it was Cecilly or Arwen, whenever I heard they had lived for over 100 years, I felt an inexplicable sense of dissonance.

I continued to ask various questions, gradually acquiring the information I needed. Cyris faithfully answered each question without complaint.

After about an hour of questioning, I felt satisfied and closed my notebook. It was almost time to eat, and I could always call her again later.

“Thank you. This has been a great help.”

“Not at all. By the way, are you planning to write about us in your book?”

Cyris looked at the notebook with curious eyes. I tossed the notebook onto the desk and spoke.

“Yes. But don’t worry, I won’t include any negative stories.”

“Then may I ask one thing?”

“Go ahead.”

“I’m curious if all the characters in your book are modeled after real people.”

Hearing Cyris’s question, I turned my head to the manuscript paper on the desk. Although the story is based on reality, most of the characters came from my imagination.

However, some characters that will appear in the future are planned to be based on real people. Lilith will be based on Cecilly, and the elven hero on the ill-fated Warchief Icare.

Anyway, since it’s true that they’re based on real people, I gave an affirmative answer.

“I think some people will be. Like how I just asked Cyris questions, I lack knowledge about different races. So I have no choice but to seek advice.”

“I see.”

“But why do you ask? Would you like me to include you too?”

When I was working as a web novelist in my previous life, my friends would occasionally joke:

Put me in your novel too. Though it was a joke, I secretly included them. After all, they never read my novels anyway.

Honestly, there’s nothing as unique as real-life friends. If you slightly modify a friend’s personality and put them in a book, you get a surprisingly unique character.

So I asked Cyris jokingly, expecting her to treat it as a joke.

“Really?”

“What?”

But Cyris rarely brightened her eyes and said:

“If you would do that, I would be honored.”

She perked up her short ears like a rabbit, expressing her expectation.

I later learned that dark elves tend not to take jokes as jokes.

“… …”

I gave her an awkward smile as she showed her expectation.