Marriage to an elf mother-in-law?
Cloud let out another dumbfounded sound before he could stop himself. “Some people can’t get pregnant no matter how many times they try, but you get knocked up on the first go? Elves really do have the strongest fertility, huh.”
‘Sylvia has trouble getting pregnant at all…’ he thought, sticking his tongue out in disbelief. But his worry didn’t last long. Cloud made up his mind. Since things had come to this, there was no point fighting it. For the time being, he would keep Elena’s pregnancy a secret from everyone else and use his new position as a 100-Man Commander to climb the ranks as fast as humanly possible. That way, even if Sylvia found out later, she wouldn’t be able to get too angry, right? It was the only plan he had.
Nobles kept both a legal wife and mistresses using money and power, so he would just have to do the same. Since Sylvia had grown up in that very culture, she might actually understand the concept of taking concubines on top of a primary wife. The problem was that right now he had neither money nor power, so convincing her was impossible. Therefore, he needed to shoot up the ranks—ideally higher than Sylvia herself. In a marriage, the one who held the dominant position usually won, and that dominance was decided by income and social status.
In short, if he wanted Sylvia to listen to him, he had to become someone she would look up to and respect.
‘Ahem, Sylvia. I was thinking of bringing home my tenth wife tomorrow.’
‘Husband, this girl will always support your decisions. Whether it’s two or three or however many you desire, please bring them all home as you wish.’
All for the sake of that ideal future.
That was why Cloud was so restless he could barely sit still. Just staying cooped up in the inn made his body itch with impatience. He wanted to return to the unit, find work, and seize every chance to rise in rank.
“Cloud? Here.”
While he was still debating whether to head back to the unit, Elena held out a dazzling sword. It was Gesaengquiya.
“The witch’s tattoo has to be removed.”
“Gesaengquiya…”
Cloud didn’t immediately take the sword. He simply stared at it for a long time.
“Why are you hesitating?”
“Ah, no. It’s not that I’m hesitating…”
To become a man Sylvia could respect, the witch’s power was absolutely necessary. The moment he lost it, he would turn into a 100-Man Commander who was weaker than a fresh recruit—he could already feel it in his bones. He had never properly trained in martial arts; the only thing he possessed was the knowledge in his head. For smooth promotion, the witch’s power was far too valuable a card to throw away.
“Cloud?” Elena urged him again.
Unable to withstand the pressure, Cloud finally let out a regret-filled sigh.
“Let’s do it later. Next time.”
“No. Do it now.”
She was firm.
“Why does it have to be right now? I just got discharged today. Can’t I rest a little first?”
When Cloud answered with a slightly irritated tone, Elena’s face crumpled and she spoke in a tearful voice.
“If the witch controls you, what’s going to happen to me and our child?”
Elena’s unexpected words pierced Cloud’s chest with a sharp ache.
“From now on, me and our child only have you to rely on. I don’t want to lose you.”
“Elena…”
Ah, so this was what it felt like to have people he needed to protect. The words “wife” and “child” still sounded incredibly foreign and awkward, yet they quietly filled him with a sense of responsibility. He was a father now. A husband. It was sudden, but he had no choice but to accept that reality.
So at this moment, more than Sylvia, his heart leaned toward the child growing in Elena’s belly—the one who carried his blood—and toward Elena herself, who was carrying his baby.
“Alright. I’ll do it.”
With a hardened resolve, Cloud finally took hold of Gesaengquiya.
“UAAAAAAGH!”
Flames erupted across his body as unbearable pain tore through him. Cloud desperately gripped Elena’s hand, pictured the baby in her womb, clenched his teeth, and endured. Even if his teeth shattered, he swore he would never let go of the sword. A fierce determination burned in his eyes.
“AAAAAAGH!”
As he held on, the black tattoo on his back began to smoke and slowly fade away. In its place, a new golden tattoo was etched into his skin. By the time the excruciating pain finally subsided, Cloud could hold Gesaengquiya without any discomfort. The witch’s power had completely vanished.
The two of them looked at each other and burst into joyous laughter.
“Elena!”
“Cloud!”
They threw their arms around each other. Overwhelmed with the relief of having survived, Cloud’s emotions surged and he captured Elena’s lips in a passionate kiss. After a deep, lingering kiss, they pulled back and stared at one another again.
“It’s over now, right? The witch’s power is gone?”
“Yes! You did so well, Cloud!”
“B-but why does my back feel so itchy? Is this some kind of aftereffect from removing the tattoo?”
Cloud absentmindedly scratched his back. Then he felt a faint sensation on his skin. Tilting his head, he ran his fingers over it and realized something was drawn there. He walked over to the mirror and examined his back closely. A unique golden tattoo had been engraved on him.
“What the hell is this?!”
While Cloud shouted in shock, Elena averted her gaze and gave a distinctly wicked smile.
“Hehehe. Got you, Cloud.”
Cloud turned to her with a dumbfounded look.
“What is this? Didn’t you remove the witch’s tattoo?”
“The witch’s power is gone.”
“Then what the hell is this tattoo? Why is it there?”
“That is proof that you are the King of the High Elves. Gesaengquiya has only ever been wielded by the High Elf King. Now that you’ve become its new master, you will reign as the High Elf King. Every High Elf is bound to obey the one who bears that tattoo.”
“Holy shit.”
Elena smirked, one corner of her mouth curling up slyly. Everything had gone exactly according to her plan.
“You can never escape me now, Cloud.”
“Never escape you? And why are you smiling like such a creep…?”
Elena declared confidently, “Gesaengquiya only chooses its master once and never changes for a hundred years. Whether you like it or not, you’ll have to live with the High Elf King tattoo forever. That means you and I—the future queen—are bound by an inseparable fate. We’re the official couple recognized by all High Elves. Hehehe.”
“You… you pulled off something this insane like it was nothing. You really went and caused a massive disaster…”
Cloud was utterly floored. A normal human suddenly becoming the High Elf King? A king?
“A king, huh…”
On one side of his heart, fear welled up at the thought of earning the resentment of the High Elves. He was racking his brain for any way to reverse this when a sudden, ominous premonition hit him—like the situation had twisted into something far more serious.
“Wait a second.”
He stared blankly at Elena, who was sitting on the bed humming happily.
“Elena?”
“Yeah?”
“So from what you just told me… I’ve been forcibly made the High Elf King, right?”
“That’s right. You are my king and my husband.”
“Then… that means you’re not the queen yet. You’re still a princess, correct?”
“Yes. Still a princess.”
“Okay, think about this carefully. Doesn’t our family tree look a little… messed up?”
“Why? Which part?”
While she tilted her head in confusion, Cloud continued with a grave expression.
“The current High Elf Queen is your mother. And you’re still a princess.”
“That’s correct.”
“In that case, me becoming the High Elf King right now means I’m marrying not you, but your mother, the current…”
“Holy shit.”
Elena’s eyes widened as she unconsciously copied Cloud’s favorite exclamation. Then she hugged her knees and burst into loud sobs.
“Huuuuhuuu! No! Nooo!”
At this rate, Cloud was about to end up married to her mother, the current High Elf Queen. But it was already too late to erase the Gesaengquiya tattoo. The water had been spilled. Blaming her own foolishness, Elena cried her heart out like a child all night long.
It was a sweltering afternoon, the midday heat blazing down. On a wild hill outside the castle, trainees undergoing 20-Man Commander training had split into pairs for individual combat drills.
In the middle of it all, Cloud was crouched inside a pit alongside his partner, Tess. Their plan was to lie in ambush and launch a surprise attack on any pair that passed by.
“It’s quiet all around. No strange presences.”
Tess poked his head out to check the surroundings, then ducked back down. Cloud watched him with a puzzled look, holding his breath.
‘This guy always smells strangely nice. What the hell is up with that…’
Before long, they heard rustling footsteps nearby. Peeking out, they saw another pair of 20-Man Commander trainees cautiously approaching.
“Let’s wait until they reach the marked spot up ahead. You take the guy on the right. I’ll handle the one on the left.”
At Cloud’s instructions, Tess suddenly shook his head.
“No.”
“No? What do you mean no?”
Cloud looked at him in bewilderment.
“Why not? Do you have a better idea?”
“No, I don’t.”
“Then what do you want to do?”
“I want to do something else.”
Tess suddenly dropped the wooden training sword he was holding. Cloud stared at him in disbelief.
“What are you doing? Pick that up right now!”
“No. I don’t need training. Right now, I just want to enjoy this moment with you, Cloud.”
Tess was throwing a bizarre tantrum. Cloud’s voice grew irritated.
“What the hell are you talking about?”
“This kind of thing.”
Tess began removing his armor and unbuttoned his top. There was nothing underneath, so his pale skin was completely exposed.
‘What is this guy doing?’
The moment Cloud looked, his eyes widened and his pupils dilated. On Tess’s chest were two plump, perky breasts. They were unmistakably a woman’s breasts, right down to the size of the nipples.
“W-what is this? Why do you have these? Weren’t you a guy—mmph!”
Tess pressed her breasts against Cloud’s mouth. She rubbed her ample chest against his face as if begging him to lick them, smothering him so he couldn’t breathe.
“Cloud… I love you…”
With his face buried in breasts the size of watermelons, Cloud flailed desperately to escape the temptation.
“No! No way! My life is not a gay storyyyyyy!”
He shouted loudly and opened his eyes—to find himself in a dark room. He was sitting on the bed, and Elena was sleeping soundly beside him.
“It was a dream…”
He let out a long sigh and scratched his head. Why had Tess appeared in his dream? And why had he—she—been a woman? The whole thing left him feeling strangely unsettled.
“Are people really turning gay like this?”
He gave a bitter smile. Thinking back on the usual Tess, he recalled his appearance. That delicate, unmanly figure. The beautiful collarbones. The hips that looked like they had a woman’s curve. And that pleasant scent…
Cloud’s eyes suddenly snapped wide open.
“Fuck, what the hell am I thinking right now?!”
Shaking off the ridiculous thoughts, he got out of bed. His throat felt dry. He grabbed the kettle on the table in the middle of the room and gulped down water. When he checked the wall clock, it was five-thirty in the morning.
A thrill suddenly ran through Cloud. Today was the day he would proudly stand before the soldiers of his new company as their 100-Man Commander for the very first time. The feeling of becoming a captain for the first time in his life filled him with pride. A smile naturally formed on his lips.
“You’d better be ready.”