311 – Between Love and Love – 0

The Academy Team Tournament had ended, more or less successfully.

There was a slight error during the main event, but they readily admitted the mistake and decided to settle it with a joint victory.

Now, only the most important part remained. What to give as ranking rewards. Giving out a lump sum of money was too unromantic, so they wanted to prepare customized gifts for each student.

For Gordius, the representative of Team Gordius…maybe giving him a design blueprint for a female android would be suitable. Something that eerily resembles Woo Chaerin.

His aesthetic sense was questionable, so providing the blueprint like this would be helpful for future encounters, rather than leaving him to make it on his own.

He plans to gift his party members with things they’ve always wanted. Back when he unleashed the nightmare in the academy, the lower-ranked students had already compiled wish lists, after all.

But what to get for the other victor, Snow White?

He figures he can’t decide on his own, so he’s invited a Snow White expert. Selvier, who seemed like a sworn enemy, but then cooperated fully in the tournament and got along fine.

He sent a message ten minutes ago, so she should be showing up any time now…

After waiting another ten minutes, Selvier still hadn’t arrived. Way later than expected. Did something happen on the way, or is she busy?

*Squeak.*

Just as he’s about to go look for her, he opens his office door to find Selvier standing right there. She immediately launches into a WWE match.

“Ugh. Wah. Aah…”

Accompanied by the most awkward grunts.

She stumbles, loses her footing, and falls towards him. The whole thing looks like slow motion. If it were someone who wasn’t skilled in such theatrics, they’d think Selvier had genuinely just tripped.

But to his eyes, the technique and intent are crystal clear. It’s deliberate, an act.

This is a ‘love comedy constitution’ based, curiosity-type attack. A combo with ‘full of openings’ and ‘irresistible’ thrown in, highlighting her clumsy character while naturally initiating physical contact with the protagonist.

Depending on the situation, she might amp up the appeal. Like getting tangled up and creating an accidental kiss.

Did she really wait ten minutes in front of the office just to pull off this cutesy maneuver? Her movements are clumsy and lack refinement. The performance lacks panache.

It’s fine to try and seduce, but picking a fight in his area of expertise only fuels his competitive spirit.

The strong overcomes the weak. A forceful, direct attack can be countered with gentleness.

A heroine’s ‘accidental fall’ can easily be turned into a counterattack by ‘displaying swift reflexes and catching her’.

He dodges Selvier’s foot with a step, simultaneously wrapping his arm around her waist and spinning her. This ends in a pose worthy of a mixed-gender performance finale.

Then, in the cheesiest voice he can muster, he asks,

“Are you hurt, my lady?”

“Ughh…!!”

“Don’t give advice, Selvier. Setting up a scenario and luring someone in creates a sense of unease. The risk is also high. Players sometimes have a habit of wanting to stray beyond the GM’s reach, you see.”

The very act of waiting for ten minutes in front of the office door just to stage a love-comedy situation with the door slamming open reveals Selvier’s immaturity.

What if I hadn’t come out? It’s fine to set up a scene, but if you don’t think about the luring tactic meticulously too, it won’t work.

If it were me, I would have used props, tools.

Something moderately heavy… like arriving at the door while holding a stack of papers, and then saying something like ‘Professor, I don’t have a free hand, could you open the door?’ Then, when the door opens, I’d just fall forward.

Scattering the papers, blocking their vision and making it hard to react, and then, in that opening, I’d quickly wedge myself in and hug them.

Selvier, who was trying to create a heart-fluttering situation on purpose, got caught and counterattacked, her face flushed red as she shouted.

“If, if you knew it was seduction, couldn’t you just… play along instead of lecturing me?!”

“No way. I have my pride as the most beautiful person on the continent. If I were to just let such a clumsy seduction slide, Daisy would scold me.”

“Who’s that person again… Nevermind. Why did you call me here?”

“Ah.”

I simply picked Selvier up and sat her on the sofa. Then, I sat down across from her and got to the point. I didn’t know what to give Snow White as the prize.

Selvier, fanning her flushed face, blurted out,

“She probably just wanted to be number one. She’d be satisfied just to be at the top of the rankings, even without a prize.”

“Hmm… That’s a pity. Even if she is satisfied, *I* wouldn’t be.”

“Then, how about giving her glasses? Snow White’s fairy tale is applied by limiting her sight, so, like, glasses that can open and close the lenses freely…”

“Oh.”

It was a pretty good idea. Based on monitoring Snow White’s battles, she applied her fairy tale by covering her sight with her fingers. So, giving her something like a single automatic eye-glass that can seamlessly cover and uncover her vision would definitely be convenient.

“But that’s… uncool. I kinda dislike it.”

“Huh?”

“No, I mean, the pose you’re making right now, with your fingers covering it like that, is really cool. Like you’re casting a spell or something. Taking that away would be a huge aesthetic loss, wouldn’t it?”

“……Or, I could just get a small statue of myself made? Narcissists would like that, wouldn’t they.”

I snapped my fingers. That’s it.

I could build a Hall of Fame at the Academy and put a statue of me as the first winner or something. I’d have to think about the outfit and pose… but I’ve got the gist, so that’s good enough.

With a clear mind, I asked Selbier,

“Oh, Selbier. Do you happen to have some time tomorrow? For like, two days.”

“……Is, is that a date invitation?”

“It’s not. It’s work.”

“Work, then.”

Do you remember the times, long ago, when we played tag with the elves? The incident Bennet and the crazy crow caused in the elf forest, and the aftermath?

The crazy crow, to lower the danger level for the elf hunting party, released romantic feelings into their memories. Because of the elven nature, their spirits connected through a network via the World Tree, it spread rapidly –

An entire elf group developed strange feelings for Bennet and me.

I promised I’d return their sacred relic and secure their emotional bond’s vulnerabilities. I returned the relic. Now it’s time to keep the latter promise.

Give and take. I have to compensate the elves.

“……..”

Selbier’s mood soured instantly. The memory of the elf rangers in lingerie expressing their liking for me must have come back.

And now he was squirming, glancing at me. Selbier’s fingers were fiddling with the hem of his shirt, tugging it then letting go. It looked like he was hesitating.

I quietly stopped him.

“Don’t take it off.”

“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”

“The most effective weapon against lingerie is lingerie… If you think that, you’re unbelievably naive. Whoever you’re learning from is soft. If you want, I can give you a pinpoint lecture—”

“I, I don’t want to learn how to seduce someone I like from you?!”

Then do it well.

“Anyway, I’m going. I’ll make time, even if I don’t have it… Are the other two going with us?”

“No, just you and me.”

“⋯⋯Why? No, I don’t expect anything. I won’t expect anything. It must be that the two of them are busy, or that you’re working on something very important and complex, something that will determine your fate, Oppa.”

“I’m not really working on anything that important these days… The reason I’m picking you up is simply because I need you for this job.”

Selvier raised an eyebrow, his face a question mark. He couldn’t understand why, when there was a grand mage who had reached transcendence and a battle weapon with mature metamorphosis, I’d choose an infant who had just awakened.

I could also sense a faint inferiority complex regarding his abilities. Metamorphosis was a remarkable achievement even in the Empire, but since his rivals were so outstanding, he couldn’t be entirely pleased.

If it was something like a fight, I would’ve called Yuna and Yuri too.

I know better than anyone that Selvier is trying his best, but that doesn’t mean I shouldn’t choose a better option.

But this time it’s different.

I cleared my throat and asked seriously.

“Just hypothetically speaking, if… just hypothetically, if I said I was going to abandon my humanity for my own happiness, how would you react?”

“⋯⋯Huh?”

“Let me give you a more specific example. To cut out ‘that thing’ in my head, I need a rabbit’s liver. So I decide to kill Snow White and extract and consume her soul.”

“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”

He has a look that says he has no idea why I’m asking this. After a warning that he would be genuinely angry if this were a joke or a prank, Selvier answered.

“I would stop you.”

“Even when you love me?”

“Because I love you. Whether you were swallowed by it, hurt your head, or were swayed by someone’s coaxing… the moment you choose that option, you’ll definitely regret it in the future. How can I just stand by and watch that?”

“Right, that’s the answer I wanted. That’s… what sets you apart from Yuna and Yuri.”

What would Yuna have done? She’d be the first to kill a rabbit and bring me its liver. She’d have done it even if I didn’t want her to. Maybe she’d have brought me not just a rabbit, but a turtle and a horse all at once.

Yuri would calmly say, ‘Understood,’ and then move according to my intentions. If it’s my decision and not someone else’s pressure, she’d go along even if I said I wanted to annihilate the entire imperial population.

But Selvier’s scale is different. If I went astray, she’d be the one to resist the most fiercely. That’s why I chose her.

“Of course, it’s not like I’m suddenly going full dark side or anything, but I got a side request from an elf. But that request is quite… tricky.”

“The difficulty?”

“The tightrope walk. It’s a complex and subtle issue, one that doesn’t really have a right or wrong answer. It’s a kind of relationship counseling, really.”

Improving the security vulnerabilities in emotional bonds. It’s an extension of that work.

I received a letter from an elf ranger. The letterhead contained the inner turmoil of an elf belonging to a collective.

Since my meeting, the relationship between elves and the Empire has definitely improved. The crime of damaging the Second Prince Irid’s body was resolved through a peaceful agreement with the person involved. And the exchange between elves and humans began.

Wild elves started to frequently visit Elpiris, the city near the elf forest.

And during the exchange, an elf ranger fell in love with a human male, A.

If they were of different races, there would be no problem. They could just love each other, have children, and live happily ever after. But emotional bonds became an issue.

If they proceed with emotional bonding while harboring romantic feelings, that love spreads through the world tree network like a virus. Just like the crazy raven meddled.

In this case, all of the elf’s brothers and sisters would develop romantic feelings for human A. It’s easy to imagine what kind of chaos would ensue.

But if they don’t proceed with the emotional bond, that elf will gradually be ostracized from the wild elf community. It’s only natural. Because wild elves form tight unity through intimately reading and sharing with each other.

In this case, they would lose their entire elf family by choosing human A.

The elf who sent the letter seemed to be deeply troubled between love and family, between the individual and the collective.

“⋯⋯This is definitely a complicated issue.”

“The elf in the letter entrusted the judgment to me. So, the end of this story will be decided by my decision. And that’s why… I’m agonizing over it.”

Yuna and Yuri will follow my decision, no matter what. But I needed someone who could challenge my decision and review it.

And Selvier, who’s conveniently nursing a broken heart.

Also.

“Maybe this… maybe this will give us a hint about our relationship. It’s been dragging on, hasn’t it?”

“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”

“Honestly, I haven’t decided yet. But I promise you—at the end of this story, I’ll give you an answer to your confession.”

I can’t keep dragging this out. The very fact that I’ve been avoiding it until now is a testament to my inadequacy. But my mind is tangled in so many knots, and because of that, I can’t easily make a decision.

First off, Yuna and Yuri said they were ‘okay’ with it.

Yuna’s side was closer to desperation… that she could endure anything, as long as she was by my side, whether I made a bunch of girlfriends or cheated on her.

Yuri’s was closer to confidence that she could ultimately control me, no matter where I wandered. I always think it, but she’s ridiculously strong. Mentally and physically.

Betrayal or tolerance, pity or love. There are too many things weighed on the scale, making it hard to measure. But I need to end this someday. Chekhov’s gun has to be fired.

Now it’s my turn, and Selvier’s, to decide. This luxurious dilemma about the excessive love showered on me, and the answer to it.

Selvier nodded, her eyes rolling with a mixture of anxiety and anticipation.

“⋯⋯Okay. We’ll see about that.”

“We’ll be leaving at dawn tomorrow, so pack light. We’ll be teleporting.”

“Be prepared! I absolutely will not back down!”

With that bold declaration, she dashed out. Her swaying red hair gradually receded, then vanished from sight.

I quietly packed my things. A short business trip.