Didn’t she just do it herself?
Maybe by some chance, she did so while unaware of it? Despite that, however, she seemed quite embarrassed.
Still, this was all quite embarrassing for Zagan. Maintaining such a posture for a long period of time was difficult even when using the power of sorcery.
“You liked it, right? Then you may have it.” After he said that, Nephy finally seemed to have noticed that he was reciprocating what she had done.
Not only her ears, but even her cheeks turned red as she timidly opened her mouth.
With her pink lips open, he caught a glimpse of her glistening white teeth, and the tongue that stretched out from there looked strangely coquettish. While she let out a voice like she was gasping, the tomato tumbled into the depths beyond her lips.
After pulling out the fork, some of the droplets spilled out, then traveled along her jaw.
As if she was unable to bear the shame, Nephy covered her face.
Somehow, it felt like he was teasing her, but instead of feeling remorse, Zagan wanted to see her make that kind of face even more.
“How is it?” As he tried asking her that, Nephy looked through the gaps of her fingers with an overly serious expression and nodded.
“It’s... delicious.”
“...Sure is, huh?”
Zagan couldn’t shake the feeling that he had wronged her somehow. And that little exchange was spectated by all the people inside the shop. Upon finally realizing that, the two of them ended up leaving the shop behind in a fluster.
After all that, the clumsy pair settled down with the mutual perception that they were master and servant for the time being.
Chapter III
It’s Terrifying When a Normally Quiet Child Gets Angry
It happened one week ago — on the morning of the day that Zagan and Nephy met.
Lately, there had been serial kidnappings of young women in the trading town of Kianoides. The criminals were a handful of sorcerers, and it seemed the girls were being used as sacrifices for some repulsive sorcery.
Chastille’s group was the subjugation squad for those criminals. After defeating the prominent sorcerers involved with the scandal, they then rescued the captured girls. It was truly the triumphant return of the heroes — and something strange happened immediately following that.
The rescued girls were left to reinforcements from the church, and in the early morning, while the subjugation squad was returning to Kianoides ahead of them, Chastille was not wearing her equipment as she had just finished bathing.
And at that time, the man who had been protecting her back suddenly drew his sword and attacked her allies. Thanks to the help of her other comrades, she somehow managed to run away from that place, but she didn’t possess any decent weapons, and was immediately cornered.
However, that man was someone else entirely, a sorcerer who had peeled off his own skin. On a later day, the husk of that man would be discovered washed ashore by the river.
Chastille was about to experience that very same pain... No, she knew she would to go through a worse fate than him, but at that time, ‘someone’ ended up saving her.
It couldn’t have been... just a dream.
It was a man with far crueler eyes than the one who attacked her. In truth, he killed an opponent who was begging for his life without any hesitation at all, even if he was scum.
But still, she thought something odd to herself. Somehow, he looked kind of lonely too.
After a little investigation, she immediately found out that he was a sorcerer named Zagan. And since then, for whatever reason, Chastille had been thinking of nothing but him.
Yes, on that morning, when she was attacked in the Forest of the Lost, Zagan had saved Chastille.
Swiping back her red hair, she fell flat against her work desk.
“Haaa...” And then, she let out such a sigh.
“Worrying about something, Archangel Chastille?” Hearing a voice call out to her from behind made Chastille jump.
“M-My apologies, Your Eminence Clavwell!” An old man wearing the ceremonial dress of a priest of the highest standing was standing before her. A Cardinal — in fact, one among the top of the church, and Chastille’s direct superior.
The old man then made a mild smile, and shook his head.
“Please do not be so formal. If the hero who subjugated the criminals behind the serial kidnapping were to humble themselves so, then I would have the hostility of the populace pointed toward me. Not to mention that you’re also the Maiden of the Sacred Sword, right?” Maiden of the Sacred Sword — that was the title bestowed upon Chastille.
Cleaving through the magic circles of sorcerers, nullifying the effects of sorcery, and if all twelve of them were gathered, it was said that even an Archdemon could be struck down by them. The Sacred Swords were the ultimate weapons of the church.
Unlike when she was saved by Zagan, Chastille was wearing her Anointed Armor, and next to her stood a greatsword whose length just about spanned her own height. They were both anti-sorcerer equipment, and also served as formal dress for such places of etiquette.
Chastille then shook her head to the sides.
“...I’ve even lost four of the Angelic Knights that were entrusted to me by Your Eminence. This is a failure brought about by my inexperience. Why in the world would I be rewarded for that?” Meyers, Emilio, Jamil, and Doran were all proud and gallant Angelic Knights.
That morning, if it weren’t for the surprise attack, they would have likely easily attained victory even against that sorcerer.
Their deaths were a tragic event caused by Chastille’s carelessness.
The old Cardinal then shook his head in an affectionate manner.
“It is no fault of yours. The ones who should be abhorred are those damned sorcerers who manipulate such repulsive sorcery. You have splendidly avenged your fallen comrades and returned to us. It is fine for you to take pride in that.”
“...Understood.” With a complicated expression on her face, Chastille nodded back to him.
It wasn’t her who avenged her fallen comrades. It was a passing sorcerer. If not for him, even Chastille would not have been present.
And yet, the one being acknowledged highly here was Chastille.
Chastille was a devout believer in the church, but she also understood that the church was not as wholesome and sacred an existence as they claimed. She had responsibilities as an Archangel, a title she gained due to her aptitude with a Sacred Sword, but she had no intention of casting aside her own will.
She at least knew to differentiate between the words she should and should not speak.
The Cardinal then stared fixedly at Chastille.
“Chastille, it seems you have been investigating the sorcerer Zagan, correct?”
“I have,” Chastille answered him clearly with an accompanying nod.
“The sorcerer who attacked us named himself as Zagan.” That was, in fact, the name he gave them. But Zagan is actually the name of the sorcerer who saved me.
In other words, he was assuming that name and performing crimes.
One reason Chastille was investigating Zagan was because she wanted to prove his innocence. And facing the Cardinal, she spread out the documents she had been investigating.
“However, from what I’ve gathered, the sorcerer known as Zagan seems to be a completely different person.” The Cardinal then nodded as if he already knew that.
“It is likely that was the sorcerer known as the ‘Face Peeler.’ Just as the name implies, he peels fresh skin from people and uses it to fuel repulsive sorcery. An order had been sent out to subjugate him. It seems he was also supporting the serial kidnappings as well.” From those words, Chastille understood that the Cardinal had also been investigating the matter.
“Hear me Chastille. This case... has not been closed. It seems that aside from the sorcerers that we brought to light, there is still a true culprit behind it all.”
“...Tch,
have more victims appeared?” The Cardinal then shook his head as if comforting her.
“Do not be rash, Chastille. By the efforts of your squad, the scheme of those damned sorcerers has certainly been obstructed... However, from our investigation of their hideout, we have come to the conclusion that there is still a true culprit that has been overlooked.” There were still survivors other than the ‘Face Peeler’ who attacked Chastille.
Do I... still have the chance to avenge my comrades? After she gulped down her saliva out of tension, the Cardinal spoke his name in a solemn voice.
“The sorcerer Zagan — a sorcerer who has been building power at a terrifying rate in recent years.”
“Wha—” Unintentionally, Chastille raised her voice.
“That man should be unrelated to the culprit.”
“The name of an unrelated sorcerer has jumped out twice during the same incidents. It cannot be mere coincidence.” And by that declaration, the Cardinal passed on the following in a heavy tone.
“Sorcerers are evil. They must be destroyed. Even if he is unrelated to the incident, there is no changing the fact that he is an evil man who must be brought to justice. Thus, our Kianoides branch will carry out the subjugation of the sorcerer Zagan.”
“Tch...” This was a precept of absolute compliance touted by the church.
It may have even been appropriate to call it a curse, in fact.
Until the sorcerers are annihilated, the church will continue hunting them.
Even if Zagan was falsely accused of a crime, once the church decided to hunt him, there was no revoking the decision. Even if a wielder of a Sacred Sword like Chastille were defeated, even if thousands upon tens of thousands of corpses were piled up, the church would not stop until the sorcerer was killed.
Considering that fact, there was no meaning at all for Chastille to claim his innocence.
On the contrary, it was entirely possible she would be deemed a traitor and put to trial as a heretic.
I don’t have any intention of holding my own life dear, but nothing will change if I act without caution.
If she wanted to repay the favor to the one who saved her life, she couldn’t simply rant or rave here and be caught.
She had to take steps to protect him, and to let him escape.
After closing her eyes for a brief period, Chastille opened her mouth.
“Then Your Eminence, by all means, please bestow the duty of subjugating that Zagan to Archangel Chastille. Please grant me the opportunity to wipe away the disgrace of my earlier failure.” In response to those words, the Cardinal let out a voice of admiration with an ‘Oooh...’
“Well spoken. As one would expect of our Archangel, the Maiden of the Sacred Sword.”
Chastille knew her decision could bring her to ruin. But even so, she had her own convictions.
Even if she were to go against the church as a result, she had things she wouldn’t yield over.
Even if nobody were to thank her, even if the people of the world were to spit down at her, if she had to throw away her convictions just to guard her life, then she would rather have chosen death.
Precisely because she was that kind of woman, she was granted a Sacred Sword at the ripe young age of seventeen. And moreover...
That man... had very lonely eyes.
It was like even though deep in his heart he sought warmth, he couldn’t accept that and pushed everything away. They were the eyes of a stray dog.
At that time, the one who truly needed to be saved was not Chastille, but that man. It was to the point where she thought such things...
That was why Chastille made this mission her own.
◇
“Are you perhaps awake, Master?” Zagan was one who fundamentally slept while seated.
The throne of the castle was at the center of the barrier, so it was also the point where all of its functionality was concentrated. If he sat there, no matter what attack he received, he would not lose his life in a single strike. And above all, if a suspicious presence approached him, he would be able to sense it immediately.
In other words, within the firm protection of his castle was an even more perfectly protected space atop the throne.
Rather than sleep across it, he could react better if he was seated. That was why, before he even knew it, it had become a habit to sleep there.
And it was now the morning.
“Good morning, Master.” Nephy, dressed in the outfit of a maid, greeted him so.
It wasn’t like she woke him up.
“Y-Yeah.” As Zagan replied, Nephy bobbed her head and bowed down at the waist.
“Preparations for breakfast have been completed. Will you be eating?”
“Eh, breakfast? Did you make it Nephy?”
“Yes.” Certainly, just the previous morning, she said that she would make a meal, but to think that she would be prepared to do so immediately the next day...
And there, a sudden question came to mind.
“Could it be that you were waiting for me to wake up this whole time?”
“Yes.”
“...You can just wake me up at times like this.”
“But you looked sound asleep...” Having that said to him, Zagan found something odd.
Now that I think of it, having someone right in front of me and not waking up... is rather strange, isn’t it?
He knew that simply skipping sleep for a day wasn’t enough to make him fall into such a deep slumber.
While cocking his head in puzzlement, he remembered that Nephy was standing stock-still where she was the whole time.
“If you were just standing there, didn’t you get tired?”
“I was fine. I believe it is thanks to the mana in my boots.” Now that he recalled, the clerk at the clothing shop said that they had the power to abate fatigue. It certainly did seem to have that effect.
“While you were waiting, were you just standing still the whole time?”
“No, I was gazing at your face, Master.”
“I-I see...” Having that said right in front of him, Zagan covered his face.
Although, since she went out of her way to make a meal, he couldn’t just keep her waiting forever.
“Breakfast, right?”
“Yes.” As Zagan stood up, Nephy stepped to the side and bowed.
She already had the manners of a professional maid.
As he headed toward the castle’s dining room, Zagan let out a slight ‘Ah’.
“Huh...? Is something the matter?”
“Ah, um, Nephy.”
“Yes.” In response to the girl who was tilting her head to the side while blankly staring at him, Zagan scratched the back of his neck, and called out to her in a flustered voice.
“...Morning, Nephy.” It was the words he couldn’t return to her the previous day.
Nephy blinked twice as if it was unexpected, and then spoke in a somehow delighted voice.
“Yes. Good morning, Master.” Somehow, the inside of Zagan’s chest was warm, and felt strangely good.
◇
The door on the right side of the entrance hall led into a dining room.
The spacious room on the other side had a single long table in it that could seat around twenty people, and an extravagant chandelier was dangling overhead.
This should also have been a place like a graveyard filled with skeletons and cobwebs, but right now it was incredibly tidy. Even the table cloth did not have a single crease on it, as if it were brand new.
It seemed that Nephy was the type of girl who, when given a job, would move about and carry it out meticulously.
Lined up on the now immaculate table was a salad sprinkled with oil and soft looking bread. Just when Zagan thought that one of the bowls was empty, Nephy poured some warmed-up soup into it. It seemed she took the fact that Zagan might not wake up right away into consideration.
It was a moderate amount of food, but even Zagan understood that it was a menu with a good balance of nut
rition.
And then, he tilted his head to the side.
“Hm? Did we buy anything like bread yesterday?”
“No. I baked it just a moment ago.”
“You can make bread? On your own?” Zagan made a face like he couldn’t believe it, and Nephy tilted her head to the side like a small bird.
“Is that strange?”
“I don’t know. This is the first time I’ve ever met someone who could cook so well. At the very least, there was never anybody around me who could make such a good-looking meal.”
“Is that so?” Though she muttered that in a monotonous voice, Zagan didn’t overlook the fact that her long ears were quivering.
Is that maybe a sign... that she’s delighted? It was certain that when she was embarrassed, the tips of her ears would turn red.
It was said the eyes said much more about a person than their mouth, but in Nephy’s case, it may have been easier to observe her ears instead.
While finding such a discovery pleasant, Zagan noticed that Nephy was still standing.
Atop the table, only Zagan’s portion of food had been prepared.
“Nephy, did you already eat?”
“No.”
“Then eat with me here.” Rather, it made Zagan feel ill at ease if he was just eating on his own.
Nephy than stirred slightly as if she was troubled.
“What’s wrong?”
“That’s... I only made enough... for Master’s portion.”
“Did you not intend to eat?”
“No, making my own portion simply slipped my mind.” It really did sound like something this girl would do.
And leaving a praiseworthy girl on her own and eating completely by himself wasn’t something Zagan could stomach.
“Then, it’s fine to split it in half, right?” Zagan tore the bread apart in two.
The freshly baked bread was still a little warm, and it easily split to the sides as if stretching out. As the fragrant aroma brushed against Zagan’s nose, he reflexively let out a sigh with a ‘Hooo.’
However, Nephy still did not take a seat.
“How about sitting down?”
“...Um, the only chair I managed to prepare... is the one you’re using, Master.” To begin with, this room was dirty to the point where it couldn’t be considered a good environment for a meal. If Nephy had cleaned up on top of making the food, then there was no possible way for her to prepare all the chairs.
An Archdemon's Dilemma: How to Love Your Elf Bride - Volume 01 Page 8