19. nekopara
The morning meeting with the second princess of the white-haired elves, Edraiel, ended rather abruptly under a slightly tense atmosphere. Even setting aside the dangerous script surrounding the elven saintess, I still felt that this princess’s attitude towards Izalis was quite unfriendly, even on our first encounter.
It wouldn’t be accurate to call it hatred, and jealousy seems insufficient as well. It appeared that the princess’s aversion was not towards the position of “elven saintess,” but rather… Izalis herself? I had no time to ponder this, as Izalis, in that moment, chose not to engage in any verbal sparring or public confrontation with the princess. Instead, she wisely opted to retreat, which allowed me to temporarily set aside my suspicions and follow along.
Thus, even during the evening’s rest period, Izalis did not utter a single complaint about the princess’s poor attitude, prompting me to inwardly exclaim: this elf is just too perfect! Taking advantage of the moment when Izalis had already lain down to rest, I quietly slipped away.
I certainly didn’t want to play the “knight” while Izalis was asleep; that would be far too “dangerous!”
At this moment, having confirmed the safety of the elven saintess from the script, I cautiously left and returned to my own room. To facilitate any emergency situations, my current lodging was conveniently close to the elven saintess. However… as soon as I opened the door, I was pulled inside by two “gatekeepers.”
“!”
【Ogilid is in danger!】
That’s what the script told me, but this time the script was wildly incorrect. Danger? No, no, I was in no danger at all. After all, how could I dare to call being dragged into a room by my wife “dangerous”? At most, it was just that Kefir and Nilu’s impatient actions made me feel a bit out of place.
After all, the moment I returned, they treated me like a house cat that had come back smelling of other cats, pulling me in and sniffing me all over. Their possessive feelings were so blatant that they didn’t even bother to hide it. Moreover, if I had to say, there was a slight difference in the breeds of the “black and white cats” beside me.
The “black cat” was clearly very concerned inside, yet pretended to be calm in action.
“Mr. Ogilid, you really returned quite late,” Nilu said, her words accompanied by her pacing around me, reminiscent of a black cat rubbing against its owner’s legs to express its feelings.
“Because… I need to confirm the safety of the Saintess before I can come back, haha…”
But before I could finish my answer, another “white cat” pounced decisively.
“Confirming safety? I think you’re just using your body to check out her scent, aren’t you?”
With a mix of laughter and anger, Kephiel’s words hinted at something deeper; she was probably the white cat who was straightforwardly expressing her current jealousy with a single “paw.”
It’s unfair, dear wife! I haven’t even touched that Saintess once all day. As for the scent, how could I control where it drifts?
“I just checked on her rest, and I came over as soon as it was safe. Really, it has nothing to do with the scent…”
Kephiel puffed her cheeks and exchanged a glance with Nilu.
Then, Kephiel swatted my hands away, and Nilu promptly yanked my coat off, pulling it down, and then…
“Alright, come in~”
The tension dissipated.
What could I say? As long as my wife was happy. Besides, it was better to quickly dispel any jealousy, after all… compared to the suddenly ambiguous atmosphere that arose with the three of us in the same room, we had more important matters to confirm. There would be plenty of time for intimate things later, but… the opportunities and new content that emerged in the script would vanish if we didn’t seize them.
I let out a sigh, distancing myself from the two women, while Nilu waved her hand to extinguish the magic stone that served as our light, plunging the room into darkness. At this point, I couldn’t care less if those white-haired elves misunderstood: whether the three of us were engaging in some high-level play at night.
“Kephiel, about those two elves from this morning…”
The purpose of our arrival in “this era,” the “main storyline” of the script, could finally continue: we had encountered one of the elf sisters, but the unexpected scene from earlier needed to be discussed and digested at this moment.
“I saw them,” Kephiel nodded. “In this era, that elf swordmaster is indeed a genuine elf swordmaster, and the princess from this morning should be the ‘Ludwig’ who was my enemy before. It seems she hasn’t ‘devoured’ the elf swordmaster yet. But…”
I understood why Kephiel fell silent; it was also the source of my confusion.
After all, this princess from this era seemed perfectly normal—no, it would be an understatement to say she was “excellent.” Where was the slightest trace of the lazy, capricious demeanor she would later exhibit? As for the real elf swordmaster, I initially thought she and the princess were enemies, which is why she would be “devoured,” but the actual situation was: these two white-haired elves were both mentors and friends, and their relationship appeared to be quite good!
What on earth happened with the white-haired elves that led to the situation in our era?
I slowly spoke, voicing my only speculation about this situation, this “main storyline”: “Perhaps the circumstances of this era are like this, and the princess gradually became worse over time.”
“And now, in the ‘prophecy’ I see, this princess has no issues at all; she is absolutely perfect. So… something must have happened later that became the catalyst, marking the beginning of her gradual transformation into the person she would become.”
So, as long as I follow this line of thought, regarding the “death script” that this princess has for me in the future, my answer emerges alongside the script itself.
【Euglid stopped Adrel’s actions.】
The script indicates that as long as we can prevent a certain “initial event” that causes this princess to go astray, we should be able to dismantle the death script that awaits me at its roots. Moreover, this can be done without harming them; avoiding conflict might be the most peaceful approach!
As for this “idea” and how to implement it, I do have some clues.
“Kefir, Nilu, as long as we stop this princess from doing ‘something’ afterward, we should be able to change her troublesome thoughts about me in the future.”
“Mm.”
“This is indeed a feasible plan, ‘King.'”
Kefir and Nilu did not voice any objections to my proposal. However…
“Alright, then, I have a few things I need to ask of you…”
Just as I was about to “arrange” things, I suddenly realized: if we solve tonight’s dilemma so quickly, what about the long, endless night ahead…
Would these two big shots let me off the hook?
“Don’t rush, Euglid. Why don’t you first explain why that elf is constantly giving you those flirtatious looks?”
Kefir shot a glance, see! This kind of question has indeed come up!
By the way, dear, why not ask the person involved? How would I know how to answer that!
And it wasn’t just Kefir; Nilu was also chiming in with her sarcasm.
“King, do you know? The more beautiful a woman is, the more dangerous she becomes. I thought you had learned enough lessons from Queen Louise.”
“I… I certainly know! And that saint can’t compare to you guys, uh… ah, um… she’s, she’s hideous in my eyes!”
“Shh!”
Kefir lunged over and covered my mouth, “What are you thinking! How dare you say such things out loud! Come up with a better excuse.”
Yes… yes, I’ll do as you command.
However, esteemed lords, please don’t take my sincere heart at the beginning as merely a “pretext for disguise.” How am I supposed to explain myself next?