Chapter 21
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 21
Chapter Title: Who is the Principal Wife?
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Indeed...
There was a sort of limiter on my Mythic Blacksmith ability.
Ambiguous conditions that kept me from just whipping up any old weapon that popped into my head.
There were several of them, but if I had to pick the toughest one by far...
The performance of the created item is proportional to 'Affinity' and 'Recreation Fidelity'.
What it took to forge a weapon wasn't rare metals, sacred flames, or even a craftsman's intuition.
Just two things.
Affinity.
And Recreation Fidelity.
Recreation Fidelity wasn't an issue at all.
It was simply a matter of how accurately I understood the myth, what the people of that era believed, and how completely I could recreate the context that turned that weapon into a 'myth.'
Honestly, this was my specialty.
I didn't earn a PhD in history in my previous life for nothing.
From East Asian myths to Western Europe, Norse, even the Mediterranean world.
Comparative literature?
Variations in oral myths?
Era-specific symbolic interpretations?
I could do it with my eyes closed.
This was routine for me, like eating breakfast.
The problem was the word right next to it.
'Affinity'.
In other words, how deep a bond I shared with the person I was handing the weapon to.
Put simply, how close we were.
'Wait, in this case, "close" might not even cut it?'
For a mythic weapon to respond, it wouldn't be some casual acquaintance. It had to be someone whose life was deeply intertwined with mine.
Aurelion had summed it up quite plainly.
"If a war breaks out among the gods, you'll need at least two digits' worth of powerhouses on Elysia's level."
"T-Two... two digits?!"
"Which means..."
Lady Elysia's voice jumped an octave, and Miya glanced my way before cautiously continuing.
"Jinwoo will have to get as close to at least nine more women on Lady Elysia's level, right?"
"That's one way to put it."
Aurelion nodded.
Without the slightest hesitation.
The ancient dragon casually dropped that conclusion, while the cat beside him wagged her tail meaningfully and crossed her arms.
Leaving the two of them behind, the mood among the remaining three—including me—was, well...
To put it bluntly, utter devastation.
"Nine more relationships like mine and Jinwoo's?!"
Lady Elysia's voice grew louder by the second.
"Does that even make sense?! That's absurd!"
"L-Lady! Please calm down—"
"How can I calm down?!"
She looked just like a black dragon given human form, howling in rage.
And then.
"No! I said nooo!!"
Bam! Bam! Bam!
The sole duke's daughter of Valenhardt Duchy.
The very picture of grace, propriety, and emotional restraint as a virtue.
Now she was thrashing about like a child about to lose her favorite toy.
Every time her fists slammed the round table, the sturdy stone surface groaned ominously.
And upon closer inspection, black dragon horns symbolizing Fafnir had even sprouted from her head.
'Must be the emotional swings from Fafnir... Yeah, let's go with that. Please.'
Anyway, Lady Elysia was screaming "Absolutely not!" and expressing her refusal with her whole body—
And amid all that, there was one more person utterly shocked, for entirely different reasons.
"...By the way, Elysia."
It was Duke Joseph von Valenhardt, the family head.
He still looked like he hadn't fully caught up.
But as if he had to clarify one thing above all, he spoke carefully.
"Your relationship with Jinwoo?"
His gaze flicked between me and the suddenly frozen Lady Elysia.
"No matter how close you've become, isn't it just the bond between a butler who serves and his master?"
"W-Well..."
"Duke, that's..."
In that instant, the round table fell deathly silent.
Come to think of it, we hadn't told him yet.
No, would I ever live to properly explain that night to this benefactor of mine?
Duke Joseph didn't know yet.
That his daughter—the precious Elysia, raised like fine gold and jade—had, on the evening before her decisive battle with the ancient dragon...
Clung to my back in her undergarments at the inn.
That we'd spent a scorching hot night together.
"...It can't be, right?"
"......"
"One of you, say something! Miya, you at least!"
"Eh?! W-Well, the mood was kinda weird then, so I tactfully slept in the next room with good soundproofing..."
"We all went together, and you were the only one who picked a room with good soundproofing?"
After that, the discussion on the upcoming war among the gods wrapped up in a flash, like a fuse burning to its end.
And as everyone rose from their seats at the meeting's close, I saw it.
The king of Valenhardt Duchy, who always wore a benevolent smile no matter what.
Duke Joseph was glaring at me for the first time in his life, like a judge on the verge of pronouncing a death sentence.
After everything that happened in the dragon's lair, Elysia finally returned to her own room.
The massive teddy bear she'd slept with since childhood.
The custom-made canopy bed that lulled her to sleep the moment she lay down.
The air, the scent, the warmth of this room—it all put her at ease.
"...Sweet dreams."
The plush bed and familiar nightgown slowly unwound the tension from her body.
As she stretched, feeling like peaceful daily life had returned...
"So, what do you plan to do from here?"
"......"
That single line shattered it all.
The greatsword propped in one corner of the room.
Holy Sword Balmung.
A low, gravelly voice echoed from deep within its blade.
"If things stay like this, Elysia, every she-beast in the realm will swarm around that male you've mated with, sniffing out meat like flies to dung. You plan to just watch?"
"N-No way!"
A beastly sneer laced the voice, baring fangs.
Elysia bolted upright in bed.
"Of course not! But what can I even do...?"
Ever since that day.
The moment she'd fully unleashed Holy Sword Balmung in her duel with Aurelion and earned its recognition.
A voice reached her ears alone.
The voice of Fafnir dwelling within Balmung.
When her emotions surged, black dragon energy seeped into her very core. Through Balmung as the medium, their souls were now linked as partners.
Thus, Elysia's man was Fafnir's man too.
They were one now.
The greedy black dragon harbored thoughts about Kim Jinwoo as deep as her own.
"Pointless worrying."
Fafnir snorted.
"The answer's already set."
"...What do you mean?"
"Just like that white dragon we crushed said. Like it or not, females will flock to Kim Jinwoo's side from now on."
It was as good as fate.
If they didn't, our side wouldn't survive.
That's why Fafnir was telling her to change her perspective.
"So abandon any thoughts of blocking it by force."
After a brief pause, it added lowly.
"If it's inevitable, better to secure your position now, while he's surrounded only by our kind."
"Secure my position?"
"'Status.'"
A short, clear word.
"Simply put, become the 'principal wife.'"
It meant claiming the most prominent, most exclusively monopolizable spot beside a male who would gather multiple females.
"The man who'll forge me and more weapons like me. Before the others rub up against his legs, dye him in our color first, Elysia."
"E-Even if you say that..."
"What, playing coy now?"
Fafnir scoffed, shrugging its nonexistent shoulders.
"After you've already bitten, sucked, and done it all."
"T-That was...!"
Elysia's face flushed crimson in an instant.
"There was an atmosphere then... and anyway, it felt good... More than anything, I couldn't hear your voice back then!"
"What's the big deal about hearing my voice?"
A perfectly human, nonchalant gripe.
"If it's embarrassing, just hand him over to me when you do it. That male revived my soul that should've faded long ago, so personally, I'd like to 'repay' him."
"N-No! Absolutely not!!"
And so the back-and-forth continued for a while: 'Lend me your body for a bit' versus 'No way in hell.'
Honestly, though, Fafnir wasn't entirely wrong.
Elysia already knew.
What Jinwoo's ability truly meant.
And what kind of existences it would draw to him in the future.
If women who shared bonds as deep as hers stood by his side someday, she might need a line between principal wife and the rest to prepare for it.
No, she definitely would.
"...Fine."
Elysia drew a small breath.
"It's a problem I'll have to face someday anyway!"
Acting now wasn't a bad choice.
Today was free, perfect for a peaceful outing after so long.
A picnic would be natural enough.
With her mind made up, Elysia changed clothes and headed to find Jinwoo, who was always waiting in the hallway.
And—
"So, still no thoughts of changing masters, Jinwoo?"
"...Grand Duchess Luise. This is troubling."
"Hehe."
She saw it.
An unusually bright smile.
"That troubled face of yours is adorable. You always bolt whenever you see me, but today you look positively delicious."
"Ahem..."
In the middle of the hallway.
Two people holding hands, chatting away.
The Black Rose, who rarely smiled even before royalty—Grand Duchess Luise—beaming today of all days.
The moment Elysia saw her with Jinwoo, her feet ground to a halt.