Preparation
I explained the situation to Elly while dragging Rydia and Karen along at a brisk trot, only to be met with suspicion about my mental state in return. That's a bit harsh.
“Elly. This is really important. Can't you make it work just this once? Please?”
“Nope. No can do. Besides, there's no reason for you to get involved in something like this, Yona. Leave it to the higher-ups.”
“But those higher-ups aren't on our side, you know?”
“Then there's nothing we can do about it. Just pretend you don't know anything and live quietly. That's one of your specialties, isn't it? Adapting to the situation, skimming off the benefits, and staying out of trouble. Just do that this time too.”
“I mean, you're not wrong, but….”
That's how I've handled things until now, but this time I can't.
The first subjugation of the Floor 1 Guardian has to be claimed by me. If that's impossible, then the protagonist should get it. Or Elly or Rydia would be fine too. Honestly, as long as it's someone with a solid personality—even a complete stranger—anyone would do. It'd make my stomach twist with jealousy and envy to the point of going crazy, but I could endure it.
As long as it doesn't fall into the hands of Those Who Swallow the Twilight.
I let out a deep sigh and casually closed the distance between us. I erased it completely. In other words, I pressed myself flush against Elly's body. Since I was hugging her from the front, it wasn't quite on Rydia's level, but my face was still buried in her impressively large breasts. The sensation enveloping my face was less soft and more firm and elastic. But in Pan Grave, burying my nose in Elly's chest wasn't exactly groundbreaking. At most, it was just a rather intimate bit of skinship.
The important part was that my stomach was pressed against Elly's crotch, and my own crotch was rubbing against the top of her thigh.
“……!”
Elly went rigid as if stunned. I took a deep breath right there in her arms. A strange body scent—a mix of that uniquely feminine skin smell and the fur scent of a wolf beastman. It wasn't bad at all. Both were pleasant aromas, so together they created a fragrance that was twice as good—no, even better than that.
Elly's face flushed bright red as she realized what my breathing—or more precisely, that I was sniffing her scent—meant. Her ears stood straight up. Her tail went stiff. The vertical pupils typical of a predator darted around without focus, and the way her nose twitched suggested her divinely granted keen sense of smell was working overtime too.
Elly had frozen like a wooden log in front of a snake. On the other hand, I held her body tightly like a snake coiling around its prey and whispered softly into her ear, as if tickling it.
“Elly. Can't you really make it work? You know this is the first time I've ever asked you for something like this. That's how important it is.”
“Th-that's true, but….”
She didn't say anything, but her throat bobbed as she swallowed hard. She subtly rubbed her whole body against me as she continued.
“If you help me out… if you do this for me… I'll do anything you want for you, Elly.”
“Any…thing?”
“Yes. Anything. That restraint play you've been secretly obsessed with lately is fine. The reverse riding play you've looked up out of curiosity a few times would work too. You don't have to pick just one. We can do them all.”
“All….”
“Shall we get a little more creative? First, we'll take a bath together. You'll wash me with your foam-covered breasts, Elly. …Thoroughly, as if marking your territory.”
“Thoroughly….”
“Since you washed me, it'll be my turn next, right? No need for a brush, so I'll use my hands. Other parts are fine too. For example… rubbing it against your stomach? No, that might be a bit awkward. There's a much better part, isn't there?”
As I said that and started grinding my hips against her firm thigh, Elly's breathing grew heavier. From the mouth that had only been swallowing saliva came a faint, restrained growl.
I figured that was enough and pulled away without hesitation.
“How about it? If you help me, we could do it right now.”
“…….”
Elly pressed her lips tightly together. I felt some commotion behind me and glanced back to see Rydia clutching her forehead and sighing, while Karen had her face covered with her palms but was peeking through the gaps between her fingers, taking in everything and gasping.
I quietly smiled and flashed them a V-sign with my fingers. The two of them looked completely out of it. Rydia wore a hollow expression like she'd been hit with a sudden wave of reality, while Karen—for some reason—clutched the goddess statue I'd given her and started praying.
Damn, isn't that going a bit too far?
I grumbled to myself and waited a moment. After thinking it over, Elly finally looked straight at me and spoke.
“No.”
“…Huh?”
“I'll give you a hundred steps and say it's fine if I help Rydia and Miss Karen. But you coming along is out of the question, Yona.”
“But this is something I absolutely have to do myself. I can accept help, but I can't just leave it to someone else.”
“I'm not negotiating. You said you'd do anything, right? This is my condition.”
“Tsk….”
Even this doesn't work? That's troublesome.
Of course, in the worst case, I could prevent the catastrophe of the World Tree's authority falling into the hands of Those Who Swallow the Twilight. I could prevent it, but… I want to get in on the action too.
In that case, should I call Eve? She's far from the strongest in the setting, but given her years of experience, she's supposed to be stronger than most adventurers. Since it's related to the World Tree's authority, she might gladly help.
…But if Eve gets involved, won't my contribution be too low even if we defeat the Floor 1 Guardian? That would mean losing not only the first subjugation bonus but the chance to obtain the authority on Floor 1 entirely.
I mulled it over alone, repeating the same worries over and over. Before I knew it, Rydia had recovered from the shock. In that brief moment, her face had turned pale as she opened her mouth.
“Just a moment, Senior Elly. Come over here and talk with me for a bit.”
“What is it? Don't tell me you're actually agreeing with Yona's ridiculous idea too, Rydia?”
“Never mind that. Just come here.”
The two of them disappeared toward the warehouse on the first floor, with Rydia practically dragging Elly along. Rydia always wants to keep me away from danger, but today it seems she's on my side. Is it because of that saintly act I pulled at the temple? Even if someone isn't a priest, everyone in Pan Grave respects the Goddess of Love. That's partly because they grew up hearing about her achievements from a young age, partly because of the temple's strong influence, and partly because of the nature of her divinity that makes her easy to love.
I've been trying my best to deny it until now, but maybe it's time to start making use of it little by little. I don't know if I'm really a saint or not, but the probability that the Goddess of Love is the one who brought me to Pan Grave and gave me the gacha ability is pretty high. So she probably won't mind if I impersonate one a little. She's not that petty of a goddess.
…Right?
I tilted my head, pondering the connection between the indescribable statue of an outer god that I'd carved and the beautifully crafted 3-star statue now in Karen's hands. After a moment, Karen, who had been acting awkward ever since I made my “request” to Elly, cautiously spoke up.
“Sir Yona.”
“Yeah?”
“You once told me about your relationship with Miss Elly… but from what I just saw, it seems far more intimate than that. Am I seeing this correctly?”
“Well. Yeah, I guess? I told it in a way that made it sound like Elly picked up a homeless kid like me, fed me, gave me a place to sleep, and later when I grew up I'd do all sorts of things for her—like some kind of kept boy. But actually, it's the opposite.”
“The opposite?”
“I'm the one clinging to Elly, asking for food, playtime, a home, and if I can touch her breasts? I'm a reverse kept boy, biding my time until I become an adult.”
“Hup…!”
Karen clapped a hand over her mouth in shock. Come to think of it, Karen was also a virgin certified by the Unicorn Dagger.
“Hmm. I can kind of see it now, Inquisitor Karen. You spent your childhood in training and your adulthood on missions, so you have no immunity to the opposite sex, right?”
“H-how did you know that?!”
“Well. At my level, it's pretty obvious.”
“As expected, even you possess the Goddess's sight…”
“Eh.”
I'd only shrugged half-jokingly, but Karen seriously thought I'd received a blessing from the Goddess. I was wondering where to even begin correcting her when she glanced toward the warehouse where Elly and Rydia had gone and asked,
“By the way, Sir Yona. I have one question. It might be a bit rude, but is that alright?”
“How rude could it possibly be? Oh, just so you know, I'm still growing, so I'll get even bigger, okay?”
“I'm not asking about your height.”
“Huh? You weren't going to ask about the length down there?”
“?”
“?”
We both tilted our heads, but Karen soon understood what I meant and shook her head frantically with a horrified expression.
“How blasphemous! I wasn't going to ask anything that rude!”
“I was just saying that if it's not at that level, feel free to ask comfortably.”
“Eh? Ah… yes….”
It doesn't seem like it, but if she says so, I'll take it as correct. Karen's face showed every bit of that thought process before she cleared her throat.
“Ahem. Previously, you said you love everything in the world. Even if it's an enemy.”
“Yep. Why do you ask?”
“However, the way you acted today seemed like you were treating Miss Elly as someone special. That's what I was curious about. Can universal love and romantic love coexist? It's a topic that's always debated within the temple, so I'd like to hear your esteemed opinion.”
“Ah, I see?”
I get what she's saying. Loving everyone in the world sounds incredibly grand and noble at first… but from another perspective, it means there's no one truly special. On the other hand, romantic love means holding certain people as more important than anyone else in the world. So, can universal love and romantic love coexist? And if so, which one takes precedence? Something like that. Since the temple studies love seriously, there are probably different schools of thought on it. To me, it seems like a pointless conflict.
“Don't overthink it. You don't have to choose just one, right? Basically, you can like everyone in the world, but still treat a few of them as special.”
“But that would mean…”
“Throw away the fixed ideas like ‘universal love has to be this way' or ‘romantic love has to be that way.' After all, the heart has no fixed form.”
“……!”
Karen's eyes widened as if she'd realized something. What is she, an enlightenment machine? Why does she keep gaining insights from everything I say? I couldn't help but chuckle in disbelief at how firmly she believed my words. Then, a crazy idea suddenly occurred to me. I should test this right away.
“Inquisitor Karen. Can I ask you one potentially rude question too?”
“Of course. Feel free to ask anything.”
“Then I won't hold back…”
I chose my words carefully and smiled brightly.
“Inquisitor Karen, is faith more important to you, or money?”
“Obviously faith, of course.”
“Then how much would you be willing to donate to me?”
“My entire fortune.”
The answer came without a moment's hesitation. So I smiled widely and held out both hands.
“Your entire fortune. Want to entrust it to me? I'll put it to good use.”
“If you need it, Sir Yona.”
Karen nodded calmly and pulled out her wallet. The moment she placed the entire wallet in my hands—
Creak—
“Haa. Yona. I just heard the whole story from Rydia. I really shouldn't do this, but just this once…”
Elly, who had been scratching the back of her head while announcing her decision to join, suddenly froze. Her trembling eyes fixed on the heavy wallet in my hand.
“Don't tell me you did to Rydia what you…!”
“No! This time I didn't steal it—I asked for it and she gave it to me!”
“Then like when you took ten silver from me…!”
“There was no compensation at all?! I just asked for it and she handed it over!”
“You think that makes any sense?”
“Well. Even I have to admit that someone handing over their entire fortune just because I asked is ridiculous. …But ta-da! I managed to pull off that impossible feat!”
“…….”
Elly glared at me with suspicious eyes. Clearly, there's a lack of trust here.