71. The Drunken Man’s Intent Is Not in the Wine
Unlike before, when I was merely a “bounty hunter, accepting the contract to ‘kill me and Lin Ke,'” the death script that emerged as I was about to discover methods to deal with the two elven saints felt like a mere coincidence, but it was indeed a genuine danger.
After all, this time the source of the death script was the pure white nun Urasiru and the sword saint Ludwig—two elven saints whose dangers we had already experienced firsthand. They were also… princesses of the elves, intricately connected to the white-haired elf and the script.
Such clear content evidently indicated that they had arrived in the Meri United Kingdom and had begun searching for my whereabouts. With this, I truly had no intention of continuing to explore the “clues” that Rose had mentioned; instead, I instructed Lin Ke to securely lock the doors one by one and return first. After all, compared to the aimless “clues,” if I wanted to prevent this death script, I had to take some ordinary precautions.
However, the emergence of the death script might have gone unnoticed by Kefir, who was unaware of the “script,” but… the unusual reaction I had could not escape Nilu’s notice.
The next day.
In the morning, when I woke up, I realized: recently, I had not called for any “maid service,” yet a strangely dressed, all-too-familiar “maid” had appeared in my room.
“What’s wrong, Mr. Oqilid?”
The moment I woke up, she noticed my reaction and smiled as she looked over, “You can’t possibly have such poor eyesight that you wouldn’t recognize me, right?”
“Nilou?”
I cautiously called her name.
How could I possibly forget what Nilou looks like? It’s just that the version of her appearing in my room today was clearly dressed in a way completely different from before!
Her long, jet-black hair had been cut a bit shorter, styled into two long braids that hung in front of her. The maid outfit, which was a very popular style in the Great Ying Empire and instantly recognizable as “maid,” had been replaced with something that, while still in black and white and also belonging to the “maid” category, had a slightly more… petite…
Ah, ah, ah! The style of a concubine! There, I said it! It’s only natural for a man to voice his thoughts; why should I be afraid of that!
Finally, over the elegant yet practical black-and-white midgetta dress, Nilou’s fairy Magnus had transformed into a cloak of a different style, draped over her shoulders.
At this moment, Nilou had shed her previous alluring and mature queenly aura, yet she hadn’t reverted to the timid and shy appearance of her earlier days as a little maid. One could say she balanced both? That’s why I responded so cautiously at first.
Then, seeing that Nilou understood my hesitance, she smiled slightly, lifted her skirt, and twirled in front of me. She then leaned down, coming close to my lips, and gently pecked me while I was still a bit dazed.
If it had ended there, it would have been fine! Such a thing could easily be brushed off as a “morning greeting.” However, the next moment, instead of leaving as one would expect, Nilou became addicted to it! As she kept pecking, her lips didn’t part from mine! It was only when her tongue slipped in that I suddenly snapped back to reality.
“Wait, wait, Nilou, don’t just make excuses to play tricks!”
Though I said that, I was actually a bit concerned about hygiene; after all, I hadn’t washed up in the morning. What if Nilou found it dirty afterward…
Only now could I speak properly with Nilou, who had left me.
“This is the servant attire from the United Kingdom of Meri. I thought it necessary to ‘change my mood’ a bit, so I wore it. What do you think?”
Before I could respond, Nilou continued on her own, “Ah, it seems you’ve already answered me~ You really do prefer ‘this side,’ huh? In that case, my long hair wasn’t trimmed in vain.”
Don’t use the time spent kissing as a standard for my evaluation of your new outfit! Though I admit it’s… quite charming, but Nilou…
【Nilou came to inquire about Oujilide.】
Mixing personal matters into official business isn’t the behavior of a good maid, you know—
The script unfolded, and I quickly understood why Nilou had appeared before me in this outfit today: she wanted an excuse to be alone with me. As for why she chose to change her clothes…
Hadn’t Nilou’s goal just been achieved?
“Nilou…”
“Yes, yes~”
She finally reined in her teasing expression. “What happened yesterday? It looks like you encountered a new ‘death,’ right?”
“…”
I remained silent, which was the best response. After all, unlike Kephir, although we were just a thin veil away from breaking through, Nilou should know about my side of the “script.” So… as long as we considered the “script,” the clever Nilou could guess very accurately.
Nilou’s expression suddenly tensed up.
“Just as I thought. Although I knew from the start that wherever I went with you, it would be impossible to escape the pursuit of your ‘death,’ it really couldn’t have come at a worse time…”
“Please don’t worry. At least now, on this land of the kingdom, we have developed quite a few allies who can help. I absolutely won’t let things turn out like before…”
Nilou didn’t finish her sentence because…
I reached out, pressing two fingers against her lips.
I did this simply because it was convenient and direct, but… seeing the instant flush of crimson on Nilou’s face, I couldn’t help but start to doubt the earlier jibe from Rose, calling me a “scoundrel.” Could it be true?
Even after I released my hand, Nilou still hadn’t calmed down. If this stalemate continued, the atmosphere would surely become quite “dangerous,” so I hurriedly began to explain.
“You’re wrong, Nilou. I’m not afraid.”
If my first reaction to the death script of two elven saints was fear, then my actions yesterday wouldn’t have been to return and “organize” things, but rather to frantically search for ways to deal with those two elusive elves, still without any leads on the “clues” or “main storyline.”
It was precisely because I wasn’t afraid that I didn’t plan to immediately pin all my hopes and energy on this “bloodline.” After all, engaging in such cowardly behavior, only caring for my own safety, wasn’t my style. Dragging Kephir and Nilou into this kingdom just to have them as my muscle and bodyguards would make me feel unworthy of them.
At least for now, what I was thinking was…
“Nilou, I’m only thinking about how to resolve the ‘death’ concerning those two elven saints.”
“Eh?”
“While I certainly need to search for the bloodline, if I invest all my energy into it, I’ll only leave myself open to the other side. So, I don’t plan to bet all my expectations on the ‘bloodline.’ I want to prove that we can find a way to prevent the death script from occurring, even on our own.”
In the past, I might have only been able to talk big, but the recent appearance of a certain girl had given me an opportunity—Necromancer Ilushir.
“Nilou, I have an idea, but I’m not sure if it will work, so… since you’re here, can I tell you first and you can think it over?”
After a brief moment of surprise…
Nilou knelt before me on one knee. Sigh, I clearly said not to treat me like some ‘king’…
Being a master is one thing, but being a ‘king’ is just too embarrassing.
But as long as the big shot is happy.
“Of course, I’m willing, my king.”
——
After the new clothes were revealed.
Illustration: Nilou (New Clothes)