The Northern Duke’s Daughter Will Never Fall – Chapter 118

Chapter 118: Let Us Return, My Dear. To Where You Belong.

Inside the grand cavern on the first floor of the self-propagating tower, where Astrid had recently struggled to break things apart.

Four of the twelve sigils—representing the Zodiac—were now glowing with light.

And watching that sight with a satisfied smile was a man.

His gaze made it unclear whether his eyes were open or closed, but judging by the smile at the corners of his lips, he was undoubtedly grinning.

“Four… Four of them.”

There were a total of twelve blessings known as the Blessings of the Stars.

Divine Power – Strength on par with giants.

Divine Arms – An optimal body for martial arts.

Divine Magic – Magical power akin to that of a demon god.

Divine Defense – A body as unyielding as rock armor, impervious to injury.

Divine Speed – Movement so fast it could hardly be followed by the eye.

Divine Fortune – Luck so good it seemed like divine favor.

Divine Faith – Potent holy power granted to the devout.

Divine Knowledge – A mind like an enormous library filled with all manner of knowledge.

Divine Sight – The ability to see farther and more precisely than anyone else.

Divine Will – An indomitable will that never yields to hardship.

Divine Charm – Natural charisma that made it easy to bond with others. And finally, one that remained unknown.

Divine Power and Divine Arms belonged to Astrid.

Divine Sight, Divine Knowledge, Divine Will, and Divine Fortune were here.

Some of the blessings were still wandering, unable to find their vessel, and Astein had sealed them. Some, he had taken by killing their bearers.

He had prioritized acquiring blessings that didn’t offer direct strength, likely because his own martial prowess hadn’t fully matured yet. With the help of tricks, spells, and the power of Veracien, he had obtained them.

“Seven of them, is it…”

The last one—no one knew what it was.

Not even Astein.

The twelfth blessing, which had never revealed itself, was unknown to anyone.

Because it had never appeared before, its emergence would have an overwhelming impact.

He wanted to find it, but even if he couldn’t, it didn’t matter.

If he obtained the other eleven, that last one would become irrelevant—he would be an unparalleled force.

One might even call him a god of this world.

And so, he would crush the Eastern Magic Tower that had excommunicated him, and the Empire of Einthafen as a whole, placing the entire continent beneath his feet.

“Soon, I’ll have two more.”

Veracien had headed for the Miterien ducal estate, and would return shortly.

She would bring back Astrid von Miterien, barely alive, just clinging to life.

Once that happened, he would extract the Divine Arms and Divine Power from her and make them his own, using them as a foundation to obtain the rest of the blessings.

“And thus, I shall become a god of this world.”

“What utter crap. That’s the kind of delusion you’d expect from a teenage boy.”

A sudden voice froze Astein’s face in place.

No one could freely enter this self-propagating tower.

By default, the owner had to grant permission, and while it was technically possible to enter through the air vent at the top of the tower—Parienna guarded that place—

“Thinking about this, were you?”

A green-haired elf grinned playfully and threw something at Astein’s feet.

It was unmistakably Parienna, the succubus. Her wings were shattered, and an arrow was embedded in the middle of her forehead.

“…Well, I did think it might be you when I heard that voice.”

“She was getting annoying, so I gave her forehead some ventilation. Not like dying here means anything—she’ll just return as a spirit body. So I… whatever.”

Eranya nonchalantly picked her ear with her pinky.

Every time her hand moved, her long, pointed ears wobbled amusingly, but Astein was in no mood to laugh.

“Why are you here? Judging by your tone, you don’t seem interested in joining my plans.”

Even as he said that, Astein was feeling the talisman in his pocket.

Casting magic required an incantation, but casting a spell required a talisman instead.

Loud chants and scattered talismans with hand seals—both were powerful, but used different mediums.

Equally annoying to use, though.

“Alright, that’s enough. Hands off the talisman, or whatever.”

An arrow embedded itself in the ground right at Astein’s feet.

It hit with such force that the arrow shaft trembled for a while even after impact.

Astein looked down at it briefly, then turned his gaze back to Eranya.

“…You always seemed like a ditz, so I never really took you seriously. But an elf is still an elf, huh. How did you find this place?”

“You’ve been practically screaming that you’re the mastermind. You think I could ignore it after seeing that idiot Akemilla lending you her carriage?”

“I see.”

He thought he had been hiding his identity well.

Apparently not.

“How did you realize it?”

“Oh, come on. Isn’t it obvious?”

Eranya had first found Astein suspicious during the first outdoor training session.

The one where the giant magical beast appeared.

When they had to face goblins for the first time, Astein had said something odd.

He’d claimed he needed an incantation to cast magic.

Even when casting Magic Missile, he said he needed a chant.

Technically, it was Astrid who had said it, but Astein had nodded in agreement without protest.

“A mage capable of entering here who can’t cast Magic Missile silently? That’s just ridiculous.”

“Hah.”

It was too small of an issue to say I had let my guard down.

Could it be that from that tiny matter alone, Eranya had thought Astein was strange since then?

“You’re saying you suspected me over something so trivial?”

“Yes. No matter how I looked at it, it was odd. Besides, during magic science classes, you always skipped the practicals, didn’t you?”

Eranya opened her hand.

As she unfurled her clenched fist and then tightened it again, an arrow appeared in the space between.

“Quietly release the blessings. One blessing per person. More precisely, one blessing per soul. Astie’s the unusual one.”

“I’m afraid I can’t do that.”

“I figured you’d say that. In that case—”

—Fwish!

With the sound of an arrow slicing through the air, a talisman flew right in front of Astein’s chest.

The arrow that had been aimed squarely at Astein’s heart pierced through the talisman and stopped, unable to go any further.

“You plan to resort to force? There’s nowhere to take cover here, and elven stealth must be hard to pull off too.”

Astein grinned coolly, while Eranya remained expressionless even as she looked at him.

Their standoff didn’t last long.

As Eranya opened her hand and clenched it once more, arrows appeared between her fingers. She nocked three arrows to her bowstring at once and smirked slyly.

“You still see me as an elf, huh?”

“If not an elf, then what are you?”

—Fwhooosh!

With the sound of arrows slicing through the air, Eranya kicked off the ground.

“The World Tree is just a big tree.”

Astein unsheathed a branch of petrified wood and struck down the flying arrows.

At that moment, Eranya had already rushed in close and drawn a dagger from her waist.

“Would any elf in the world make a vow like this?”

***

The small one-room flat had grown stuffy with heat before they knew it.

The sun had long since set. The window of the semi-basement room was firmly shut, blocking out the darkness outside.

Only the orange glow of a streetlamp gently illuminated the interior, preventing complete darkness from settling—

And cast light over the two figures inside.

“…Astie. I think I’ve held back for long enough.”

Astrid’s reflection was clearly visible in Leopold’s blue eyes.

His gaze, looking down from above, sparkled with an intense yearning unlike ever before. That gaze felt almost burdensome, yet Astrid couldn’t look away from him.

In Leopold’s eyes, reflected was Astrid herself.

At some point, her face had flushed red and seemed as though it were burning.

Her training top had already been taken off and lay tossed beneath the bed. Her white skin was fully exposed, clad only in sportswear.

“I’ve waited—so much, for so long. I held back, again and again.”

“Your Highness…”

If she truly wanted to, Astrid could easily shove off Leopold, who was pinning her arms.

She had Divine Power within her. If she truly willed it, she could overpower him effortlessly.

But she couldn’t.

Astrid knew better than anyone what that blazing desire in his eyes was yearning for.

That’s why—she couldn’t push him away.

She couldn’t reject him.

All she could do was shut her eyes tightly.

Astrid stared up at Leopold like that, then finally closed her eyes.

Her tightly sealed, ashen lips felt like a silent vow. Leopold, gazing down at her pale face, let out ragged breaths.

He removed his hands from Astrid’s arms and, nearly straddling her, began taking off his own training clothes.

Since Leopold didn’t know how to use a zipper, he peeled it off from the bottom up. Underneath, the same brand of sportswear Astrid wore came into view.

He had waited a long time.

Held himself back—for Astrid’s sake.

But no longer. He couldn’t restrain himself anymore.

Driven by desire, Leopold placed his hand atop Astrid’s breast.

And the moment he felt her body twitch sharply, he smiled with satisfaction.

56

Having a man’s hand touch her breast—feeling that touch vividly, as it pressed upon the soft mound of flesh—was a completely new sensation for her.

It was overwhelming… and yet, somehow, she also felt it was okay. In fact, maybe—

Now that she’d come to understand that turning back was meaningless—

Maybe—

Yes.

Just this once, boldly, decisively—

Like a man.

He wanted her this much.

Wouldn’t it be wrong to keep rejecting him, to keep pushing him away?

【…Please help me.】

【Help me… just a little…】

【It’s just… I feel wretched. I’ve never once in my life felt like I was lacking in ability. But today, I felt that for the first time. Maybe it’s because I got emotional.】

“…Ah, no. No, I can’t.”

Astrid abruptly pushed away Leopold’s hand from her breast and sat up.

Leopold was knocked backward by the sudden movement, now sitting with a look of shock, confusion, anger, and frustration all tangled on his face as he looked up at her.

“No, I can’t. This isn’t right.”

“…Give me a reason I can understand, Astie.”

A reason he could accept.

If Leopold couldn’t understand, she had to make him.

There was a woman who had lived her entire life looking only at Leopold.

She simply hadn’t said it properly—but her feelings were real.

“…Please have your first time with the real Astrid.”

There was silence for a while.

Leopold seemed lost in thought.

Then… at last, he stepped down from the bed, picked up his clothes that had been tossed aside, and said:

“…Then I’ll take that to mean you’ll be next, Astrid.”

She couldn’t give any reply.