Chapter 55
Chapter 55
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 55
Chapter Title: 6th Floor (7)
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When I was a kid, there were a few things that got even my passive self fired up and charging ahead.
For example, the cool, delicious ice treats they handed out after volunteer work at the orphanage, or a request from my little sister.
Or maybe the praise stamps the teachers would give us.
Flower-shaped, butterfly-shaped, star-shaped, handprint-shaped—every time one of those various stamps got pressed onto the back of my hand, a strange sense of pride would fill my heart.
It's no exaggeration to say that those experiences shaped the pure, upright moral compass I have today.
So, praise stamp time was originally just about pressing a little stamp onto the back of the hand and calling it a day... but right now, I don't have anything like a stamp.
'So what the hell am I supposed to use to give her a praise stamp?'
"...Ugh..."
As I was pondering that, a groan came from beside me.
I turned my head and saw Ellie still clinging tightly to my arm. She was stomping her feet, staring intently at the inn.
Her face was tense with nerves. She must be really anxious about seeing her adoptive mom after so long.
"Hey, those two..."
"Whoa, that girl's even younger and redder than you, and she's already doing that... Damn, I'm jealous."
"Arm-in-arm at an inn in broad daylight... Sigh. Life."
But from the comments the passersby were muttering, it didn't seem like that was the only reason.
Every time Ellie's ears perked up and caught their words, her ears flushed red all the way down to the nape of her neck.
Well, from an outsider's perspective, we probably just looked like a couple heading into an inn to hook up in the middle of the day.
No more misunderstandings like that.
"Shall we go in?"
"Y-yeah, yeah...! Let's go in!"
Ellie swallowed hard and started walking.
She was walking a bit fast, like she wanted to take the lead.
Just as we were about to push the door open.
Clunk— clunk—
The door wouldn't budge.
"Huh? Why won't it open?"
Diana usually didn't lock the inn's door. Even when her curse went berserk, she'd only locked her own room.
The inn's door might not always be wide open, but she never bolted it with a bar.
It was Diana's way of making sure anyone shivering from the cold could come in anytime for a warm bowl of soup.
Yet right now, that door was shut tight like a fortress wall.
As I was taking that in, the door opened from inside.
"Hm? You..."
The first thing that caught my eye was the pure white armor.
It was someone wearing armor similar to the armored knight I'd met in the goblin den, and the husky voice felt oddly familiar.
The person who'd shown up after Edelbert and Diana's fight was over.
'The Royal Knights' Captain?'
Why was he here?
"Ellie Ordia? You've grown a lot since I last saw you. I heard you were recommended for the royal mages."
"Uh, wh-who are you...?"
"Hoho. You were too young to remember. Don't worry about it. Just think of me as some old lady passing by."
Ellie stared at the Royal Knights' Captain with a blank look too.
Last time, he'd seemed connected to Diana somehow, but he even knew about Ellie from when she was little.
"And the man next to you..."
As the captain's gaze shifted to me, an immense pressure hit me right away.
"Guh...!"
It felt similar to wearing the gravity-control artifact, but different.
Where the artifact burdened the body directly, this felt like my soul was being crushed.
I stood straight despite the sudden situation, trying not to show any panic.
Surprisingly, I didn't sense any real malice in the captain's actions.
'High-ranking folks don't just flip out for no reason—this has to be some kind of test.'
Sure enough, as if confirming my thought, the pressure vanished.
"Ho. You withstood it. Most people can't last a second before collapsing."
No wonder my heart was pounding and sweat was pouring—this was like that conqueror's haki from some manga, overwhelming people with sheer presence.
Annoyed for no good reason, I shot back with a casual face.
"This much? Piece of cake."
"Hoho! Pretty bold for a young man! Good—people need that kind of spirit!"
Did that land? The captain chuckled and looked back and forth between me and Ellie.
Then, in a somehow pleased tone, he asked,
"Are you, by any chance, Ellie's boyfriend?"
The reaction was explosive.
"N-no, th-that's not—! Not yet, anyway?!"
"What the hell was that just now...!"
Ellie flushed red and flapped her long ears at the sudden boyfriend declaration, while Diana came rushing over from a table inside the shop.
"B-Balkan...? Ellie?"
"We're back. Diana."
"Hey, Mom. L-long time no see..."
The moment Ellie saw Diana, she tensed up reflexively. So.
Squeeze—
She hugged my arm even tighter. I could feel her soft breasts squishing against my firm arm.
"...Huh?"
Diana's mouth fell open blankly at the sight of our linked arms.
She looked so shocked that even her usually softly closed eyes were half-open.
Cracks started forming on Diana's ever-calm, relaxed face.
"Hoho? Now this is an interesting situation."
The captain watched us like some old grandma glued to a soap opera.
After the captain was shooed out by Diana like an unwelcome guest, an awkward air hung over the table.
Once I'd given Diana a rough explanation of the situation, a heavy silence settled in.
"......"
"......"
Diana alternated glances between Ellie and me with her eyes closed again.
Ellie just fiddled endlessly with the water glass Diana had given her, stealing looks at me.
Caught in the gaze of two women, I just sat there feeling stupidly embarrassed.
"......"
"......"
Even as mother and daughter, conversation didn't seem like it would start easily between them.
Diana was hesitating on how to approach Ellie, and Ellie was wrestling with her own inferiority complex.
"Diana, could I get some soup? The labyrinth trip was so long, I kept craving your soup the whole time."
So I butted in.
Her cooking really had been on my mind, and I wanted to spark some topic anyway.
"Uh, y-yeah. Of course. ...Ellie, want a bowl too?"
"...Y-yeah, sure. I'll have some too..."
They exchanged one dramatic sentence.
It was just a tiny step, but human relationships are built from those little steps.
Diana brought the soup. Warm steam rose from the bowls.
The nutty roux scent tickled my nose. Perfectly balanced—not too thin, not too thick.
I slurped it up through the small slit at my helmet's mouth using an iron straw.
It looked ridiculous, but no choice. Going to my room to take it off in this situation would be weird.
'Wearing this helmet all the time makes everyday life such a pain.'
It was a constant thought, but now it hit even harder.
Suddenly, I recalled Zirnier, who ate and drank everything with her mask on.
'Come to think of it, she told me to drop by her workshop.'
Next chance I get, I should ask about masks too.
"...Ellie. How's the soup taste?"
"It-it's good... Kinda reminds me of the old days too..."
"...Hehe. Glad to hear it. ...Really glad."
With food in their mouths, conversation started inching along between them.
From soup talk to catching up on recent events.
Diana approached Ellie very cautiously, and Ellie, sensing her intent, hesitated but started responding awkwardly.
Their relationship wasn't some blood feud to begin with.
It was just a parent unsure how to handle a teen daughter she'd been apart from for years,
and a child craving love and attention despite feeling inferior to that parent—with a lack of communication between them.
All they needed was a slight trigger for connection.
'I just wanted to provide that trigger.'
Conversation is the most basic way people connect.
It clears misunderstandings, heals wounds, and more.
If both sides want to talk, any relationship can be rebuilt.
Soon, they were chatting on their own without me intervening, so I quietly slipped away from the table.
Letting the mother and daughter have some time alone would be good.
I hoped they'd return to how things used to be.
...Five minutes after I went upstairs to my room, Ellie came knocking.
"Won't you... give me my praise stamps...?"
"...Thanks for the meal, Mom."
Diana smiled warmly at Ellie, who bowed her head politely.
Not a drop of blood between them.
Even though she was the child of a dead party member, Diana had raised Ellie like her own flesh and blood.
When her foster daughter started changing after entering the academy, Diana chalked it up to new environments and society.
By the time she realized something was wrong, their relationship had already gone off the rails.
'I can only thank Balkan so much...'
Yet the three years of no communication had been bridged in one go by Balkan's involvement.
It'd take time to fully go back to the old days, sure.
Just days ago, she couldn't have imagined talking like this again, so this distance felt plenty satisfying.
"Ah, I should head out now. Free time's almost up."
"Oh... Alright. Need anything? If I can get it for you, just say the word..."
"N-no, I'm fine! I can't keep freeloading forever."
Ellie waved it off like it was really no big deal, looking at Diana with an awkward but genuine smile.
"...It was nice seeing you after so long... Mom."
"Same here. ...Come visit often from now on."
Diana carefully approached Ellie and pulled her precious daughter into a tight hug.
"I've missed you, Ellie."
"...Me too."
Ellie's hug felt awkward and unfamiliar, but not unwelcome. She tentatively wrapped her arms around Diana's waist.
After a brief embrace, they parted.
"...Oh, right. Wait a sec—gonna go see Uncle Balkan."
Ellie said that and hurried upstairs.
'...Uncle?'
Diana wondered alone. Balkan wasn't old enough for that.
'Does Ellie know what Balkan looks like under the helmet?'
Diana had never seen Balkan's bare face under the helmet either, but from his obsessive covering, she guessed there was a reason.
Rumors lately claimed he had horrific scars or was some unimaginable ugly dude.
But Diana wasn't the type to buy baseless gossip easily.
Even if the rumors were true, it wouldn't change how she treated him.
He always said he'd done so much for her, but by now, she'd received far more from him.
'...Kinda curious, though...'
That was separate—curiosity was curiosity. As a former explorer, Diana had a strong itch for satisfying her wonder.
Diana quietly headed to the second floor. Balkan's room was right there in the hallway.
Every time she passed it, she felt an inexplicable urge she couldn't explain.
During her curse rampage, she'd ended up masturbating in his room for days without realizing. Embarrassing memory.
"Y-you want that done... there? Ellie, are you serious?"
"S-sorry! I knew it was too much... I'm so sorry... D-don't hate me...!"
"...No, you don't need to apologize that much..."
A normal person couldn't hear this clearly, but Diana's sharp senses made it possible.
'...?'
Diana tilted her head quietly at the voices and presence from Balkan's room.
Her mind naturally pictured the scene inside.
Balkan sitting on the bed, sighing and rubbing his forehead, with Ellie standing beside him, bowing her head in shame and embarrassment.
"...Sigh. Just this once, Ellie. No more after this. And don't ask other guys for it either—you'll get thrown in jail by the guards."
"B-but if it's not you, Uncle Balkan, then I..."
"No more backtalk. Got it?"
"...Yes..."
The confusing conversation ended, and Ellie headed to Balkan's bed.
She lay flat across his lap, stomach down.
Her soft breasts pressed against his thigh, hips raised high in an embarrassing pose.
Diana's face flushed hot as she sensed the fuzzy presences mapping the whole scene.
'Wh-what the hell is this...!'
—Nen 혹시, 엘리의 남자 친구인가?
The sentimental captain's words from earlier popped into her head. She'd been forcing herself not to dwell on it.
At the same time, their arm-in-arm closeness and Ellie's glances at Balkan during their talk resurfaced.
Another thing she'd been ignoring on purpose.
"...Relax, Ellie. Tense up and it'll hurt more."
"...I-it's... not that easy to control... J-just... do it quick..."
Gulp. She heard Balkan swallow.
"...Alright, here goes."
Smack!
"...Hngh!"
Balkan spanked Ellie's butt. Or rather, patted it firmly—that was more accurate. Proof: Ellie let out a sweet moan.
"S-sorry. Did it hurt?"
"N-no... It actually felt good... N-no, I mean, it was fine... So, harder... Give me more praise stamps..."
"......"
Hearing that, Balkan raised his hand again.
Crack!
"Heeek...!"
Ellie's soft, ample elf butt jiggled like pudding smacked with a spoon.
Diana couldn't see the color, but it must've turned red. Like a handprint stamp.
"...Ah, aah..."
Diana covered her mouth, muffling her dazed, stupid moan.
She couldn't rationally comprehend what was happening in that room.
But the most incomprehensible part was something else.
"Huut...♡"
Thump♡ Thump♡
Why was her own body getting aroused in this situation?
A pink uterus pattern began glowing on Diana's lower abdomen amid the hazy darkness. She felt her panties growing damp.
Diana sank to the hallway floor, pressing her ear to Balkan's door.
As she listened to her daughter's moans and the slapping sounds from inside, Diana tentatively moved her fingers.