She doesn’t hate me now, right?
He’d be completely lying if he said her behavior didn’t hurt, but he just had to deal with it. And, after checking that nobody else was in the throne room, Zagan pinned down his chest and squirmed about.
◇
“So, you ended up running away from Master Zagan?”
After getting into a fight with their father, there was a limited number of places a child would run away to. And so, Foll ended up going to Nephy, just as one would expect. They were currently in the food cellar behind the kitchen. Since Selphy had come over to do her job, they ended up with enough hands to go around, and preparation for dinner was already complete. Even if they stayed and talked in the cellar for some time, it didn’t seem like anybody would come and interrupt them.
“You don’t need to make that kind of face. It’s not like Master Zagan is belittling or bullying you, Foll,” Nephy, who was squatting down in front of Foll to line up with her sight, gently brushed her head as she said that.
Is it that obvious? Foll thought as she touched her own face. The moment Foll came running into the kitchen, Nephy rushed over to her right away. She had intended to stay rather resolute, but it seemed like that hadn’t worked. After pondering over the matter for a bit, she immediately found her answer.
I said I would sense what you want, right? Don’t worry about every pointless thing... That was what Zagan had said when he made Foll his daughter. Both he and Nephy cherished Foll to the point where they could tell what she was thinking just by looking at her face. She understood that fact well.
“But Zagan taught you, Gremory, and Kimry... It’s unfair that I’m the only one he won’t teach,” Foll said as she tightly gripped at the hems of her skirt. She knew she was in no way inferior to the rest of them, so the situation felt especially odd.
“Your hair has grown as a bit, hasn’t it?” Nephy said as she started undoing Foll’s braids.
“It has?” Foll replied. Thinking back on it, Foll had been residing in the castle for three months already. Her hair definitely must have grown longer, but she’d never even noticed... When Nephy drew a magic circle in the air with her finger, a comb manifested in her hand. It was rudimentary summoning sorcery.
“The reason Master Zagan is teaching me sorcery is because if he doesn’t, I won’t even be able to do simple things like this. Since he told you to steal it, doesn’t that mean he acknowledges your abilities already?”
“That... may be the case, but...” Foll started replying to Nephy’s words, but eventually trailed off.
“It’s alright. Just as your hair has grown longer, you will also grow stronger, Foll. Someday, you will surely grow far stronger than me, or Miss Gremory, or Sir Kimaris... or maybe even Master Zagan...” Nephy said as she moved behind Foll and began combing her hair. Foll’s untied hair went past her waist and right down to her thighs. The way her hair danced around her buttocks felt ticklish. When she came to this castle, her hair had only gone halfway down her back.
“Master Zagan says good things come to those who wait. There’s no need to be impatient. We all love you so much already, Foll, so you can count on us for now,” Nephy claimed as she stopped combing Foll’s hair and suddenly hugged her from behind. Wrapped up by her tender warmth, Foll felt a sense of relief that took the strength out of her knees.
Is this what... a mommy is like? Foll’s father was the great Wise Dragon Orobas. However, she knew absolutely nothing about her mother. Seeing as how she wasn’t there when Foll was first aware of her surroundings, it was possible that she had long since passed away.
Nephy had an air about her that made Foll instinctively feel she was a mother. Zagan had a different way of dealing with her than Orobas did, but she at least knew that he loved her... She knew that much... but Foll began trembling in Nephy’s arms.
“I also... love Nephy and Zagan. I really love you two just as much as I loved father.”
“Yes. I know,” Nephy replied. However, Foll felt like she didn’t really get it.
Because I love them so much... I want to protect them... She didn’t like being only on the receiving end. Foll wanted them to depend on her. She wanted to be useful to them, and have them tell her ‘You did well.’ Those feelings had always been inside Foll, but she understood what Zagan and Nephy were saying. That was why she tried to remain patient. However, she was no longer able to endure it because of the incident several days ago. Zagan’s castle was attacked by a chimera Bifrons sent. It had the fragments of the Demon Lord embedded in it, and was a repulsive and dreadful enemy. There was no way Foll stood a chance against it, but Kimaris had managed to slaughter it. Not only that, but there wasn’t the slightest bit of damage to his surroundings, and he did it on his own. Even though Foll could only tremble in place, he could defeat that monstrosity with ease. She had assumed they were equals, so his sudden growth was troubling. However, that wasn’t the main issue.
When Zagan came back, in an unusual turn, he was quite injured. However, rather than worry about his own body, he praised Kimaris by slapping his bulky chest and saying ‘You did well’ with a smile on his face. Foll was jealous, and she also came to realize how truly powerless she was. It had been the same when Archdemon Orias attacked. She was completely useless. All of their enemies were defeated by Zagan’s powerful fist.
I want to be of use to Zagan. And then... I want him to praise me... And yet, she was far too little right now. She wanted to return all his favors by protecting him, so why was she so weak?
Plus, I even ended up troubling Zagan again... She wasn’t even being selfish, so why didn’t it work out? If the only real issue was her age...
“...I want to hurry up and get bigger,” Foll muttered those words to put her feelings in order, not because she was looking for help. However...
“Keeheehee, I heard everything!”
The problem child of a granny, Enchantress Gremory, kicked down the door and charged into the food cellar with vigor. She had twisted goat horns coming out of her head and was currently in the form of an old woman, wearing her usual pitch black robe. Though, in an unusual turn, blood was dripping down from her nose.
“Gremory... nosebleed...”
“Urgh... Too much love power has built up, huh? Allow me to say this. Lady Nephy... nice love power!” Gremory screamed those words and rubbed away at her face with her sleeve as she showed them a fully content expression. Then, she looked down at Foll and said, “Lady Foll. I have a way to grant that wish.”
Foll could somehow imagine that this was an evil whisper that would bring along a terrible situation, but she was not in the right frame of mind to argue. So, in her stead, Nephy faced Gremory with a cold smile on her face.
“Miss Gremory, you wouldn’t dream of doing anything that would cause Master Zagan trouble, right?”
Although her face had become relatively more expressive as of late, this girl still didn’t emote much. So, when she said something with a smile like that, she had an intimidating air to her that even surpassed Zagan’s.
“Eeek? I-I promise I won’t, okay? I’ve been on my best behavior lately! There’s no way I could do anything to trouble my liege!”
Seeing Gremory shrink back, looking on the verge of tears, Foll figured out the truth.
Zagan is the strongest, but Nephy is the scariest... In that moment, she decided never to do anything that might anger Nephy. However, her mind was also focusing on something else.
Can I... really get bigger?
Gremory’s devilish whisper had a certain charm to it that made the thought remain at the forefront of Foll’s mind.
◇
Zagan had slipped out of his throne room in the middle of the night.
Alright, time to buy clothes for my date!
During dinner, Foll seemed unable to regain her composure and look Zagan in the eyes, but she showed no signs of taking offense to what had happened earlier in the evening either. Zagan wanted to believe that she would get ov
er it after sleeping on it. He was worried, but his date with Nephy was only a week away, so he had no time to spare.
The sorcerers he passed all looked at him and said things along the line of, ‘Huh, Archdemon Zagan? Where are you going at this hour?’ but the most Zagan ever did was nod at them. They may have been confused by his behavior, but it was fine as long as he wasn’t discovered by someone noisy like Selphy or Gremory.
After he finished making sure that nobody was following him, Zagan cracked open his castle’s gates and slipped through the opening. However, at that moment, something surprising happened.
“Oh no!”
He heard an adorable scream resound from behind him. And, as he turned around, he caught sight of the woman he loved most.
“N-Nephy?”
“Master Zagan...?” Nephy replied, her ears quivering in surprise as she looked up at Zagan. She was currently holding a lantern in her hand, and seemed to be on her way back from the garden.
All my plans will be ruined if Nephy finds out what I’m doing! He had to think quick, or he was doomed.
“Uhhh, what are you doing out at this hour?”
“Well, there was just a little something I was worried about, so...”
“Something you were worried about?”
“Um, it is not something that you need hear of yet, Master Zagan. I’m most likely just being a little paranoid... In any case, what are you doing at this hour?”
“Uh, I’m, um...” Zagan’s gaze wandered about as he tried searching for an excuse, and he ended up looking up at the night sky. There was a thin moon hanging overhead, and the stars were twinkling beautifully.
Now that I think of it, the moon was just like this on the day we met... The moon was so thin that it felt like it would up and vanish, and Nephy stretched her hands out toward it, which made him follow suit. And that was why Zagan stretched his hands toward the moon once more.
“I ended up coming out here on a whim because of the night sky,” Zagan proclaimed in a grand manner. His excuse was entirely vague, but strangely enough, it sounded a lot like him.
“It really is a beautiful night,” Nephy said as she let her gaze follow Zagan’s hands, then let out a deep sigh.
“Yeah. It reminds me of the night I first met you, Nephy,” Zagan replied as Nephy nestled in close to his side and stretched out her hands to the moon as well. As always, her hands weren’t grasping anything, but it sure felt like they were. Zagan was completely taken aback by the situation.
Huh? Isn’t this like... a really good atmosphere!? It was a shame that he couldn’t go buy clothes for their date, but this was more than enough to make up for that loss. Even at the best of times, the two of them were strangely conscious of each other, so moments like this where both of them were at ease were rather rare. Zagan looked down at Nephy’s face.
“...Ah.”
And at the exact same time, Nephy looked up at Zagan, meeting his eyes.
“A-Ahahahah!”
“Fufufu...”
Both of them let out dry laughs, then averted their gazes. This sort of exchange had repeated itself often lately... No, not just lately. It had been happening for nearly half a month.
This is bad! Pull it together, Zagan! Zagan mustered his courage and cast his gaze at Nephy’s face again. Her embarrassment still seemed to be winning out, since she simply looked away and began twiddling her fingers despite noticing his eyes on her. Her cheeks were faintly flushed and her breath was white as she rubbed her hands together. Looking closely, Zagan noticed that she was wearing her usual maid outfit and didn’t have a coat. And so, he spread open his mantle and pulled Nephy into it.
“Wha...” Nephy let out a shaky groan as Zagan wrapped her up in his mantle. And honestly, she wasn’t the only one being ruled by her nerves.
H-Huh? Wait, isn’t this the same as a tight embrace? He only meant to share his mantle with her, but he ended up holding her close as a result. Zagan never intended to act so bold, but it was too late to back out now.
Well, I mean, this much is just natural for a couple, right? Right!?
Surprisingly, Nephy didn’t try to shake him off. On the contrary, she was lightly squeezing back on Zagan’s robe.
“...It’s warm.”
“S-Sure is!”
Zagan didn’t even know what he was agreeing with, but that was the best he could manage in the tense situation.
Would it be better if I find her a coat or something for our date? Zagan pondered as he felt Nephy’s body warm up. The muffler he received from Nephy the other day was rather comfortable, and with that, it was possible to warm the two both of them at once. However, he didn’t like the thought of getting it dirty, which was why he kept it safely tucked away.
After mulling over such thoughts for a while, Zagan looked over to the lantern Nephy was holding. And having noticed his gaze, Nephy held up the lantern with a curious look in her eyes.
“Is there something wrong with this?”
“No, it’s just been a long time since I’ve seen one being used.”
The last time he’d seen one was at Bifrons’ evening ball. Back then, the swaying lights of the lanterns atop the ship created a suspect atmosphere. Sorcerers could see in the night without relying on any source of light. They normally used some light when reading, but even then, cheap candles were more than good enough. Before Nephy came to the castle, he would just create light using sorcery. Lanterns took a hand to use, so they were far too unwieldy for Zagan’s tastes.
“My apologies. It seems I’m still inadequate...” Nephy ran her hand down one of her ears in shame as she said that. Nephy was a quick study, but she still only began learning sorcery a few months ago. Due to that, Zagan had forbidden her from using any long-lasting sorcery, which included any creation of light.
“There’s no need to be ashamed. Candlelight has a certain charm to it, so isn’t it fine?” Zagan claimed as he took the lantern from Nephy’s hand. And as he held it up, the lantern illuminated Nephy’s blushing face.
“...Yes. Thank you... very much...” Nephy responded as her ears quivered like she was unable to endure the swell of emotions within her. Then, Nephy leaned in against him, which drew Zagan’s attention to the pendant in his pocket.
Isn’t this the perfect moment to hand it over to her...? No, wait, if I give it to her now, the main purpose of our date will be lost... I know it’s fine as long as she genuinely enjoys the date, but it feels like all my hard work will be for nothing...
After hesitating for a little while, Zagan decided to leave the pendant for later. Instead, he illuminated more of the garden with the lantern.
“Well, since we’re both out here, why not take a little walk?”
“Yes, Master Zagan,” Nephy stared back at him in surprise for a moment before saying that and returning a slight smile.
She won’t get bored of just walking around, right? Baseless anxiety began building up within Zagan as he and Nephy walked through the garden hand in hand. The starry sky was beautiful, but it still wasn’t enough to illuminate their steps. Zagan could see without a problem, but Nephy had to remain cautious lest she trip. And, as that thought crossed his mind, Zagan was reminded of what happened a little while ago and came to a sudden realization.
“Um, Nephy...”
“Yes? What is it?”
“Foll’s upset, isn’t she?”
It seemed he had hit the bulls-eye. Nephy’s pointy ears straightened out with a snap, and her gaze began wandering around looking for an excuse. However, before long, she figured it would be useless to try to dodge the issue and opened her mouth to speak.
“I’m surprised... you could tell,” Nephy softly muttered.
“Well, I just hurt Foll’s feelings earlier, and the last time she fled the castle was on a night like this, wasn’t it?”
It was something that happened back when Foll had first taken up residence at his castle. Because Angelic Knights were the ones who had killed her father and
she had one right before her eyes, Foll fled the castle in order to obtain more power to fulfill her goals.
At the time, we got through things because it was all a misunderstanding, but Raphael still ended up severely wounded... That incident was the reason his butler had lost a hand.
“That child understands what you’re thinking, Master Zagan. It’s not like she fled or anything, but...” Nephy trailed off as she tilted her head to the side.
“But something happened,” Zagan chimed in, finishing her sentence.
“...Yes. I’m not trying to place all the blame on her, but Miss Gremory seemed ready for some mischief.”
That damn Gremory again? Zagan honestly felt that that granny was far too carefree.
“Well, Gremory can be a handful, but when it comes to distinguishing between doing right and wrong... she may not be the best judge... Still, she’s not so foolish as to spoil my good mood. It should be fine to leave her be.”
Besides, the image of a small child running off and clinging to a granny wasn’t all that unnatural a scene.
“It would be good if things ended peacefully...” Nephy replied with an anxious look on her face, which made Zagan laugh in agreement.
“Actually, Foll was badgering me to teach her Heaven’s Phosphor.”
“Yes. She told me already.”
“But, well, I gave Gremory a Heaven’s Phosphor that only she can actually use, so she won’t be of any help to Foll. I know that may anger her, but I promise I’ve at least tried to think of other things I can do for her. Besides, if I can’t at least put up with my daughter’s temper tantrum, then I have no right to call myself a father.”
“I understand how you feel, Master Zagan. Accumulating power draws people closer to danger, so honestly, even I hate the idea of our daughter learning such things... However, I understand Foll’s feelings as well,” Nephy replied, then silently nodded before casting her gaze over to the lantern Zagan was holding and saying, “I want to become someone who can be of use to you, Master Zagan. And yet, I require the help of a tool for something as simple as walking down a dark path. As I am now, I don’t even hold a candle to Miss Gremory or Foll.”
An Archdemon's Dilemma: How to Love Your Elf Bride: Volume 6 Page 3