Ch.360360. Insemination (2)

●

Elnore and I are spending our honeymoon in a place that most people don’t know about, though there are a few who are aware of its location.

The Chancellor of Elphante Academy, Atalante, is one of those people.

The person who’s looking at me with pity right now.

“…Are you alive, Darwood?”

“Barely.”

I answer with a voice that reminds one of a cracked old tree.

“Well, now that everything has settled down, I thought I’d come by to offer some advice…”

The Chancellor looked me up and down again and sighed.

“…Are you really alive, sir?”

“…”

I suppose my condition must be pretty bad to be asked this question twice in a row.

It’s especially meaningful coming from the Chancellor, who always looks like she’s dying from overwork whenever I see her.

My back hurts.

The room is spinning.

My skin feels dry and somehow I feel nauseous too…

[…I have to say, it’s impressive you’ve made it this far just from extracting a demon.]

“…”

I silently but vehemently agree with Calivan’s muttering.

While I’ve been on the brink of death from all sorts of injuries before, I’ve never had my condition completely destroyed purely from lack of stamina.

“Your breakfast, sir.”

Meanwhile, Bella—Elnore’s personal maid who flew here to attend to us—placed food beside me.

I feebly reach for the plate in front of me in a desperate attempt to survive.

But I pause when I see the composition of the plated food.

“Um, Miss Bella.”

“Yes?”

“…What is all this?”

It’s certainly an appetizing spread.

Eel, oysters, garlic, and various other things.

The composition makes its “purpose” all too clear.

“…What is this—”

“The cleaning maid was shocked yesterday. She asked how so many soaked bed sheets could come from one room.”

“…”

“Please continue at that pace in the future.”

I close my mouth at her words, which carry so many implications.

I pick up the fork and knife with a gloomy expression.

Anyway, I know too well that these are essential for my survival, so I can’t refuse them.

“…Hang in there.”

Atalante sighed deeply, as if she had nothing else to say to me as I gloomily chewed my food.

“…So what brings you all the way out here?”

Come to think of it, she just mentioned having something to discuss, so I’d like to hear about that.

“Honestly, it’s not good news.”

“…Pardon?”

I adjust my posture slightly.

Of course, since the system window already displayed messages about endings and whatnot, I don’t think anything truly catastrophic will happen, but still, unforeseen dangers can always arise—

“No, it’s not that serious.”

“…What is it then?”

“It’s just that the Tristan Grand Duchess isn’t the only one planning to squeeze you dry.”

“…”

“Even after you somehow endure this, countless hardships and trials await you.”

“…”

“You must survive, Darwood.”

No.

No matter how I look at it, this sounds pretty serious!

●

The villa where Elnore and I are staying is located in one of the Tristan Dukedom’s territories with quite an impressive climate.

Beyond the terrace, you can see a sandy beach and the ocean, and when twilight seeps into the landscape, the world turns red like a dazzling painting.

The weather is cool and warm, reminiscent of the Mediterranean. It’s the kind of place where you could easily drift off to sleep just by lying down and relaxing a bit.

“…Um, Elnore.”

I really wish she’d let me enjoy that atmosphere.

As if planning to do this every day, she naturally puts handcuffs and shackles on me as evening approaches, which is incredibly creepy.

Meanwhile, she’s lying on the bed, calmly reading something.

“Hmm.”

Elnore answers calmly, turning the pages of her book while wearing a monocle.

I glare at the cover of the book she’s reading with trembling eyes.

[The Principles of Child-Rearing].

“…”

I also quickly scan the titles of the books Elnore has stacked on the bedside table.

[101 Essential Information for Childbirth]

[Recommended Foods for Women of Childbearing Age]

[Expectant Mothers, You Must Know These Things!]

“…We’ve only been married for a day.”

“Hmm.”

“Is there really a need to rush having children…?”

At my words, Elnore closed her book with a snap and looked at me.

She tilted her head with a questioning look, genuinely seeming not to understand what I was saying.

“Isn’t a day quite a long wait?”

“…”

“If anything, I’m rather disappointed we couldn’t conceive yesterday.”

“…Why are you in such a hurry…?”

“I have plans for the future. To meet those plans, this pace is regrettably slow.”

“…”

I wonder how many children she’s thinking of having if she’s disappointed about not conceiving on our first night.

Come to think of it.

What will my future really be like?

“Besides, I’m not the only one aiming to bear your child.”

Elnore said as she got up from her seat.

“To possess you in a state that won’t cause complaints from you, the first conception can’t come soon enough. How many women do you think you’ll have to deal with?”

“…”

Setting aside the devastating content of that sentence.

It’s rather unexpected for Elnore to say something like this.

“…I thought you’d be furious and prevent others from even touching me.”

At my words, Elnore walked toward me with a bitter smile.

“I’d like to do that, but wouldn’t that make you uncomfortable?”

“…”

I return her bitter smile.

I can’t argue with that.

Though I feel sorry for her, as I’ve repeatedly stated, my goal is to make “everyone” around me happy.

If I’ve gone this far, shouldn’t I take full responsibility?

“Well, I’ve decided I like that manly aspect of you.”

Elnore said with a shrug, then pulled me onto the bed and tossed me down.

Then she placed her head on my stomach as I lay there.

“…Elnore?”

“A pillow isn’t supposed to move.”

Saying that, Elnore pressed her head more deeply against my body, as if nuzzling.

The cool sea breeze blew in from the window, making her silver hair flow like a cascading waterfall.

Silence.

Not awkward, but warm and cozy.

Like a purring cat, her quiet breathing in and out made me think she was quite cute without realizing it.

Elnore remained like that, silently closing her eyes.

As if she wanted to stay close like this and continue feeling my warmth.

“…This is peaceful.”

“Hmm.”

Come to think of it.

Lying here like this feels like a reward for all the hardships I’ve been through.

How much trouble have I gone through all this time…

“Still, it would be better not to feel too secure.”

“What?”

“Sharing a life together is likely to be much more challenging than you imagine.”

As soon as she finished that sentence, my eyes widened.

Demonic energy began leaking from around Elnore’s body.

“This is a gift to add some tension to your relaxed consciousness.”

“…”

What are you talking about?

Before I could properly ask that question, the gray demonic energy that had been billowing out began to take human form.

[…]

What emerged was the Grey Demon, arms crossed and chin resting on hand with a disgruntled expression.

I hadn’t seen it since it was subdued by Elnore before, but judging by its face, it’s clearly not satisfied with its situation.

“Actually, this one is quite difficult to handle. Despite being trapped inside me, it constantly tries to harm me whenever it gets the chance.”

At Elnore’s words, the Grey Demon listlessly picked at its ear.

Its expression seemed to say, “Isn’t that obvious? You brought this on yourself.”

Elnore shrugged and continued speaking calmly.

“Sometimes you need to let out some frustrations to maintain a harmonious relationship.”

[…?]

At those words, the Grey Demon’s face lit up with interest.

Its gaze turned to me, then after thinking for a moment, turned back to Elnore.

Its face seemed to ask, “Am I thinking what I think I’m thinking?”

“Hmm.”

Elnore nodded as if to confirm, “Yes, that’s right.”

[Oh.]

A crooked smile appeared on the Grey Demon’s face.

At the same time, a chill ran down my spine.

I have a bad feeling about this…

“You.”

Elnore opened her mouth with a grin.

“Are you interested in doing it with three people?”

“…”

Really.

Please.

●