Bonds That Outlast a Lifetime
Ruya twisted her body with a shy yet strangely delighted expression, a coy smile playing on her lips. After a moment, she cleared her throat.
“He’s probably being considerate of Madam. He knows it would be inappropriate to show excessive affection toward a concubine.”
“Exactly. So during normal times, keep your distance as a concubine. Save the affection for when the two of you are alone. Keep it a secret from Madam.”
“Even as a concubine, the fact that you’re a woman who loves him doesn’t change. Unrequited love is a sad thing. When the day comes that his lifespan ends and you must part, you’ll regret it if you don’t build enough memories of mutual love to last you through the long years ahead.”
Ruya’s face grew serious as she absorbed my words, falling into deep thought. She was an elf; even without my rejuvenation ability, she had centuries of life left. With my anti-aging powers added on top, she was practically immortal. The difference in lifespan between her and Gwangnam was an insurmountable wall.
For someone like Ruya, who would be bound to the family for that endless stretch of time, supporting the household as a concubine and raising the next generation of heirs, what she needed most were strong bonds and cherished memories of love with him.
Madam seemed to believe that Ruya and Charlotte’s love for Gwangnam alone would be enough for them to endure. But in my eyes, love that receives no reciprocation cannot last.
“So maintain the proper boundaries of a concubine while still sharing love with him. This is something you truly need, Ruya.”
Ruya looked much more refreshed as she thanked me.
“It’s nothing. I simply want you to be happy, Ruya.”
“Of course. Master is a compassionate person.”
“I only appear before those who already know of my existence. You’re worrying unnecessarily.”
Makina’s blank expression and Ruya’s exasperated face flickered back and forth for a moment before they fell silent, apparently conversing internally.
Hmm. Now that I thought about it, since Ruya and Makina shared the same body, whenever Ruya served him, Makina would feel the same sensations. I suddenly grew curious about how that made her feel.
“Makina, what do you think when Ruya is serving him?”
Makina answered firmly, her face once again devoid of expression.
“But surely you must feel something?”
“Hey, serving him is a concubine’s duty, you know?”
“But you share the same body as me, so that makes you a concubine too, doesn’t it? While we’re on the subject, you should serve him as well.”
“Elisha, just order Makina to serve him.”
“Um…”
I was taken aback by the sudden shift in conversation toward Makina’s service.
“With Ruya already here, is it really necessary for Makina to serve as well?”
“That won’t do. Makina is my lifelong companion. She must accept the position of concubine.”
“Even though that Master, Elisha, is a doll, she is also a concubine, isn’t she?”
“Elisha?”
Under Ruya’s silent, intimidating glare, I turned to Makina.
“Umm… then, Makina. Please become Brother’s concubine.”
“Good! Then when it’s my turn, let’s have your service debut.”
Service debut. The phrasing sounded oddly comical. I continued my exploration while listening to the almost comedic back-and-forth between Ruya and Makina.
We were making little progress, only killing the occasional plant monster we encountered, when Gwangnam’s voice suddenly crackled from the walkie-talkie hanging on Ruya’s belt.
— Crackle. Ruya, Elisha. We’ve found survivors.
“What? Really? Where?”
— You see that apartment with the red roof nearby?
“Where… Oh, there it is. Found it.”
— Just come here. Let’s gather everyone first.
“Got it. We’ll be right there.”
Ruya clipped the walkie-talkie back onto her belt, told us to hurry, and broke into a run. We ignored the plant monsters we encountered as much as possible and sprinted forward, reaching the red-roofed apartment in just a few minutes.
“Ruya! Elisha! Over here!”
Following the sound, we saw Gwangnam waving from what appeared to be the apartment management office. Inside, Charlotte was sitting on a chair while Gwangnam lounged casually on a table.
“Are you hurt anywhere?”
“I’m fine. Where are the survivors?”
“Still, they’re not as hostile as the people at the harbor. The only problem is we can’t communicate.”
“Oh right. I should have brought a few people who can use translation magic.”
The women from Horana’s group were slower than us hunters, so exploring together would have slowed us down. That was why we had split into two fast-moving teams of four. Now that we had found survivors, the language barrier had become an issue.
“Exactly. We need to bring someone who can translate.”
The way they looked at me made Gwangnam’s thoughts immediately clear.
“I’ll go. If I fly there and bring them back, it won’t take long.”
“Heh~ As expected, our Elisha always knows exactly what I’m thinking. I’m counting on you.”
“Yes.”
“There might be people with guns, so fly a bit higher.”
“Understood.”
After listening to my family’s concerns, I first removed my upper armor to expose my back, then spread my wings. Black membranes unfurled along the wing bones. It had been a while since I last flew; the flap of my wings stirred up a strong gust.
“Hmm, with the wings spread like that, you really do look like a dragonkin.”
“I suppose it is a bit similar, isn’t it? I’ll be back soon.”
I released vital energy through my wings and shot into the sky, adjusting my balance as I flew toward the distant mart building. The air brushing against my cheeks was impossibly clear and clean. It felt ironic that humanity had to fall for the world to have air this pure.
I approached the mart without incident and spotted several women busily tending a field in the nearby park. I landed near them and looked up to find Horana staring at me with an incredibly intense gaze.
“Whoa! Dragon wings! I guessed from the color of the horns and tail, but you really are a black dragon!”
“Pardon? Ah, yes.”
She seemed to have deduced I was a black dragon after seeing my black horns and wings, along with my dark purple tail that could easily be mistaken for black. Since I was currently role-playing as a dragonkin, I played along with Horana’s excitement.
“Sister Elisha, can you breathe fire too?”
“What is a breath?”
“A dragon’s breath! The thing where you go whoosh and shoot fire from your mouth!”
“Ah, I see. Yes, I can do that.”
“Kyaa! Please show me!”
“Um, Horana? I’m a bit busy right now, so I’ll show you later when we have time. For now, could you come with me?”
“Huh? Kyaa!”
I scooped up the bewildered Horana in my arms and took to the sky again. Though slower than when I flew alone, the speed was still considerable, and she let out a scream.
“Kyaaaak! I’m scared!”
“Don’t worry. I won’t drop you.”
I returned to the management office with Horana clinging tightly to my neck out of fear. The moment her feet touched the ground, her legs gave out and she collapsed onto the floor.
“You’re back? That was fast.”
“J-just give me a moment. I’m still shaking…”
“Here, drink some water.”
“Thank you.”
I watched Horana drink from the water bottle Ruya handed her and folded my wings away. As I was putting my armor back on, I felt eyes staring at me intently.
I scanned the direction of the gaze and detected several men watching me from the apartment windows. Since the armor was designed to be worn directly against the skin, my bare chest had been exposed, naturally drawing their attention.
After Horana had a short rest and regained her composure, the conversation with the apartment survivors began. Gwangnam would speak, Horana would translate, the survivors would reply in this world’s language, and Horana would translate again. Through this process, the firmly shut front gate finally opened.
The disheveled survivors hesitated at the sight of our fully armed group but eventually let us inside the apartment. We sat down with their leader in one of the units on the second floor.
The leader of the apartment survivors was an elderly man with a thick beard, dressed in ragged clothes that made him look like a homeless person. He slipped on the translation ring Charlotte handed him and spoke in a gravelly voice.
“It’s been a long time since we’ve met people who aren’t hostile. My name is Deckard.”
“Nice to meet you. I’m Kim Gwangnam, helping the survivors in the central area.”
We each introduced ourselves. The real negotiations began after that.
They seemed to believe us somewhat after seeing our otherworldly equipment, but they had a hard time accepting that the situation in the central area was as good as we claimed. In the end, Deckard said he would only believe it after seeing it with his own eyes. We decided to return to the central area with three able-bodied men from the apartment group.
In exchange, he demanded hostages to remain behind.
“They are valuable members. The best way to guarantee their safety is for your side to leave someone behind as well.”
“Hmm… I understand. We’ll leave one person here.”
Gwangnam thought for a moment, then looked at me.
“Elisha, stay behind.”
“Yes, Brother.”
“Our Elisha will remain here.”
“Understood. Safe travels.”
Once it was decided that I would stay, Deckard told one of the men standing behind him to go with the others. Before my family and the three men left the apartment, Gwangnam came close and hugged me, whispering in my ear.
“If you sense any danger, fly away immediately. Though I doubt anyone here could actually threaten you, Elisha.”
“Don’t worry. If it comes to that, I can just knock them all out.”
“Haha! You really are reliable. See you later.”
“Yes, see you soon.”
Ruya and Charlotte gave me silent nods before leaving with Gwangnam. After everyone had gone, Deckard stroked his beard and spoke.
“Well then, young lady. Please disarm yourself and put on these handcuffs.”
“Pardon?”
Huh? Disarm and wear handcuffs? I was slightly flustered when he took a pair of metal handcuffs from the man beside him.
Seeing my reaction, he chuckled warmly.
“Hehehe, no need to worry. It’s just a basic safety measure. We can’t exactly leave an armed outsider free to roam, can we?”
“Hmm, that’s true. Alright.”
His reasoning made sense, so I obediently began removing my armor. I detached the arm and leg pieces and stored them in my spatial pouch, then took off the chest plate. The moment my bare chest was revealed, Deckard and the other men’s gazes naturally drifted toward my breasts. It was a perfectly normal male reaction, so I paid it no mind and continued, removing the lower armor as well.
After I had stripped off every piece of armor under their intense stares, I was about to take out some clothes from my pouch when Deckard, who had been watching me closely, asked,
“Is that pouch some kind of magic bag? How did such large pieces of armor fit inside…?”
“It’s enchanted, so calling it a magic pouch would be accurate.”
“Hooo… how fascinating.”
The man standing beside Deckard, who was nodding thoughtfully, said something. Since I wasn’t wearing the translation ring, I could only blink in confusion until Deckard translated for me.
“He’s curious whether those horns and tail are real.”
“They are part of my body.”
“She says they are indeed part of her body. Hmm? You want to touch them? That’s rather rude.”
“It’s fine. Touching them a little is no problem.”
I had already been touched plenty by Horana and the other women. This world had apparently only known humans, so interest in my horns and tail was particularly high. As soon as permission was granted, the men inside the house and even the children peering in from the entrance rushed over in a crowd to touch my tail and horns.