Chapter 62 : This Is Invalid

A fleeting moment, like eternity, passed, and Elfin’s lips parted from mine.

With slightly unfocused eyes still damp with traces of tears, Elfin stared at me, then, realizing the situation a beat too late, pushed me away with a flushed face.

“W-W-What?! Y-You, why did you… Why did you…?”

“You mean kiss you?”

“Ack! Aaaah! Aaaaahhh!”

Elfin jumped like a fish out of water, pointing a trembling finger at me.

“You… You’re insane?! I-I only said thank you! That doesn’t mean I gave you permission for this!”

“If you hated it that much, you should’ve rejected me from the start. But you wrapped your arms around my neck like you wanted it.”

“W-When did I?! Are you dreaming or something?! Me, wrapping my arms around your neck because I liked it? T-There’s no way I’d do that!”

“Then why didn’t you stop the kiss?”

“T-That’s…”

Elfin tried to come up with an excuse but ended up speechless.

Even she must have realized there was no way to explain it away.

She shifted her eyes around, avoiding my gaze, before yelling in frustration.

“T-That wasn’t my intention! I only said thank you, and then you suddenly kissed me, you bastard! I had promised myself my first kiss would go to Bryden, and I never planned on giving it to anyone else! Give me back my first kiss!”

To an outsider, she might’ve seemed like an ungrateful girl throwing a fit after being comforted, but knowing Elfin as well as I did, I could tell this was just one of her cute tantrums.

Elfin was the type to lash out when embarrassed.

If she had truly hated my kiss, she would’ve bitten my lips the moment they touched, or at the very least, attacked me afterward.

But instead, she was just shouting, having this conversation with me.

That alone showed she wasn’t really mad—at least, not as much as she claimed.

Besides, if it had been anyone else, maybe her reaction would’ve been different.

But it was me—Alvis—the very person she loathed the most at the Academy, who had stolen her first kiss, and yet, she wasn’t trying to kill me.

That already said everything.

“Why did you steal my first kiss?! I never intended to give it to you! Give it back, you bastard!”

Elfin tried to put on an angry scowl, but it only looked forced.

Seeing her pout in frustration, I chuckled and stepped closer.

“Alright, alright. I’ll give it back.”

Then, I wrapped one arm around her slender waist and placed my other hand on the back of her head, pulling her toward me.

As our lips met again, Elfin’s eyes widened in shock.

She pounded her fists against my chest.

“Mmff! Mmmph! Mph!”

But I didn’t let go.

I kept the kiss going—just lips, no tongue—for a long, lingering moment.

Only after I had my fill did I finally release her.

Elfin wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, glaring at me with eyes burning with fury.

“You… You bastard… I told you to give back my first kiss, and you… did it again?!”

“I returned it exactly the way I took it.”

“That’s just nonsense! That doesn’t even make sense!”

“Says the girl who demanded her first kiss back.”

I smirked playfully, and Elfin shot to her feet, pointing a furious finger at me.

“A-And don’t ever do something like this again! This doesn’t count as my first kiss!”

“Then what was it?”

“It was… uh… an accident! Yeah, an accident! You took advantage of my weakened state and pulled some underhanded trick! Of course, I’m truly grateful for everything you’ve done, but that doesn’t mean you can do this again! So don’t ever do it again!”

Leaving only those words behind, Elfin quickly fled the scene.

But then, she suddenly stopped in her tracks, turned back toward me, and shouted even louder.

“This doesn’t count!!!”

…How cute.

As she made her way back to the campsite, Elfin clutched her burning cheeks, shaking her head in an attempt to erase the lingering sensation of Alvis’s kiss.

‘No way. This can’t be happening! How could my first kiss be with… w-with that guy…?’

She had loathed Alvis from the bottom of her heart for so long, and now, after all this time, she had kissed him?

No, that was impossible.

Such a thing couldn’t have happened, not even by accident.

That kiss had been nothing more than an unfortunate disaster—an unexpected catastrophe.

Naturally, that meant it didn’t count as her first kiss.

Who was Alvis, after all? A vulgar, utterly classless fallen noble with no sense of dignity, a frivolous troublemaker, and a perverted scoundrel to top it all off.

And yet, when he got serious, he was unexpectedly strong.

He had risked his life to protect the elves guarding the Sacred Tree, helped those who had lost their homeland find a new place to live, and, surprisingly, had a kind heart.

He was also more thoughtful than she had expected and knew how to comfort someone in pain…

“…Gasp!”

Without realizing it, Elfin had begun listing Alvis’s good qualities.

Horrified, she grabbed her head and started smacking herself.

“You idiot! What the hell are you thinking?! It’s Alvis! Alvis! My heart belongs to Bryden, so why am I thinking about that weirdo?! F-Focus! Remember why I like Bryden…!”

First of all, Bryden was handsome.

But then again… if she were being honest, Alvis wasn’t exactly lacking in the looks department either.

Okay, then something else…

Bryden had a strong, unyielding will.

But when she thought about it… so did Alvis.

No, no, that’s not it!

B-Bryden was incredibly powerful and never backed down from any enemy… but Alvis was also ridiculously strong and never backed down either.

This can’t be happening…!

Bryden… Bryden would never pull my panties down in front of other people!

……

It was certainly a key difference, but not exactly a convincing reason for why she liked Bryden.

After racking her brain and finding nothing but that single distinction, Elfin internally screamed.

Because if this was all she could come up with… then she really had no choice but to admit that she had started liking Alvis.

But her last shred of pride refused to acknowledge that truth.

Desperately, she tried to erase Alvis from her thoughts.

When she finally arrived at the campsite where Ravi and Lenis were, only the lingering scent of cooked food remained, tickling her nose.

Now that she had snapped out of her self-destructive training frenzy—thanks to Alvis—she was suddenly aware of just how hungry she was.

Growl—

As Elfin gently held their stomach due to hunger, Ravi perked up their rabbit ears, having heard the sound, and approached Elfin.

“Elfin, did you not eat? Alvis took one earlier.”

“Ah…”

My meal.

Elfin suddenly recalled that, in their effort to get away from Alvis, they had completely missed the chance to eat the meal he had brought for them.

“Oh? I-It’s fine. I’m not that hungry…”

Growl—

Elfin regretted it internally but still told an obvious lie.

Ravi tilted their head, then moved closer to Elfin, perking up their ears while sniffing the air.

Then, as if noticing something, Ravi narrowed their eyes slightly and smirked mischievously.

“Elfin? Why are you sweating so much? It smells different from training sweat.”

“Wh-Why are you sniffing a girl’s body!?”

“I’m a girl too, you know?”

“A-Anyway! It’s rude! Don’t sniff me!”

“Hmm… Elfin, are you hiding something from me?”

Ravi’s curiosity was piqued as they sniffed even closer, prompting Elfin to hurriedly step back.

Since Ravi belonged to the Bunny Tribe, known for their exceptional sense of smell, if left unchecked, they might even sniff out the fact that Elfin had kissed Alvis.

Just thinking about it was embarrassing enough to make them want to disappear.

If someone else found out? Elfin felt they’d rather die from the sheer humiliation.

Just as Elfin was about to create more distance, even if it meant looking more suspicious—

“Hey, Elfin. I brought this for you, so why are you just leaving it behind?”

From deeper in the forest, Alvis appeared, carrying a large leaf-wrapped piece of meat.

“Alvis!”

For some reason, Ravi perked up excitedly and immediately turned toward Alvis.

The warm meat had slightly steamed the wrap leaves, releasing a delicious aroma that momentarily distracted Ravi’s sharp senses.

Thinking the timing couldn’t have been better, Elfin hurriedly ran over to Alvis and grabbed the food.

“T-Thanks! Wow, I must be so out of it. How could I just leave this behind? H-Haha…”

“Why are you acting so weird?”

Elfin, flustered by how quickly Alvis saw through them, shook their head furiously and scurried to the corner of the campsite to devour the meat.

Ravi continued to stare at Elfin intently.

Then, shifting their gaze to Alvis, they spoke.

“Alvis, come to think of it, our food supply is running pretty low. Want to go hunt for something?”

Seeing Ravi wink playfully, Alvis smirked and replied.

“Yeah? If we’re running low, guess we have no choice. Let’s go.”

“……♡”

The two exchanged smiles before silently vanishing into the forest.

While Elfin busily stuffed their face with their long-overdue dinner, Lenis paused what they were doing and stared into the forest where the two had disappeared.

“Munch, munch… Lenis, where are you going?”

“…Just checking something. Take care of the camp, Elfin.”