Chapter 382: Bread and Dagger (80)
Chapter 382: Bread and Dagger (80)
It had been a while since I last saw Senior Delphine, and she was as captivating as ever.
With golden hair reminiscent of the midsummer sun and blood-red eyes that sparkled like rubies, she was a woman of flawless, porcelain skin and sharp, elegant features.
It would have been strange if she weren't beautiful.
Even a man of the cloth with the most steadfast spirit would find it impossible not to harbor carnal desires for her.
However, Senior Delphine’s complexion looked somewhat weary today.
This was a time when she should have been at the frontlines. There were likely several reasons why she couldn't leave her current position.
For instance, the betrayal of Marquis Yurdina.
It was hard to believe that the old man, long suffering from illness, was actually a vanguard for the Dark Cult.
But the witness was too credible, and the report I later received from Senior Neris said the same. Every piece of evidence pointed toward the suspicious activities of Marquis Yurdina.
Marquis Yurdina had never been a particularly capable knight.
He possessed the will and the character, but he lacked overflowing talent. In the North, where martial prowess was worshipped, this was a fatal flaw.
Unlike Senior Delphine, he had no fewer than six siblings.
Among them were those who proved the excellence of the Yurdina bloodline. Despite this, the reason Marquis Yurdina was able to seize full control of the family was that his skills had improved explosively at a certain point.
Until now, everyone assumed it was a late-blooming talent.
But hearing the Princess's testimony, the timing was so exquisite it made one mutter, "Of all times." For his efforts to bear fruit just before the successor of the Yurdina family was to be decided...
Senior Delphine must have known this as well.
Seria, tormented by the fact that she might have to execute her own father, ultimately couldn't reach a conclusion. Since Senior Delphine had returned in the meantime, the right to make that decision naturally fell to her.
It was a cruel torture.
The climate of the coniferous forest was harsh. To have to make such a painful decision immediately after returning from hacking through that vast sea of trees...
Purely as a human being, I couldn't help but feel pity for her.
Moreover, wasn't Senior Delphine the woman I had spent a night with?
Without a word, I sat down across from Senior Delphine as she filled her glass.
I didn't need permission.
Senior Delphine gave a bitter smile and glanced at me.
Even in her weariness, the slight arc of her eyes was enchanting. The term 'enchantress' truly suited her.
"……What brings you here, Husband?"
The sudden title made my breath hitch for a moment.
I had intended to have a serious conversation, but my mind went blank instantly.
Swallowing a dry laugh, I asked her back.
"Husband?"
"Yes, Husband… It’s not like it’s a lie, is it?"
Senior Delphine’s slender index finger reached out. Her lips, curved in a meaningful smile, seemed to tap lightly against my heart.
"You preyed on my body like that, you beast."
"I clearly remember trying to stop at the end…."
"That makes it even worse. You enjoyed yourself to your heart's content, and then you decided not to see it through to the end?"
I had nothing to say.
The relationship between a man and a woman was always like this. A man’s virginity and a woman’s chastity did not hold the same value.
To a woman who had lost her purity, I could only ever be a sinner.
Smacking my lips, I raised both hands in surrender.
"Fine. I'll be the Husband, then."
"Acting like you're doing me a favor… Huhu, well, whatever."
Her laughter was listless.
She was hiding it behind mischievous jokes, but there was no way Senior Delphine was fine on the inside.
Normally, she would never show her inner thoughts to me like this.
However, Senior Delphine had changed after that night.
Perhaps the change that had been brewing before then had simply exploded at that point. Regardless, it was clear that her attitude toward me had become subtle.
Was a physical relationship truly this significant?
Senior Delphine looked pitiful as she slumped and tilted her glass. She let out a hollow breath, resting her hand on her forehead.
"……It’s funny, isn't it?"
"I don't find it funny at all."
"I find my current state hilarious. I feel like everything I’ve known as common sense my whole life is collapsing. And also, I’ve become unable to figure out what I’m supposed to do……."
With that, Senior Delphine tried to refill her glass again. That is, if I hadn't snatched her hand just before she could.
Her blood-red eyes stared straight at me.
I decided to make my intention understood more intuitively. I poured the wine into Senior Delphine’s glass and then brought that glass in front of me.
Then, I downed the wine in one go.
The scent of the wine was as fragrant as ever. My body was startled by the sudden intake of alcohol, but it was already a body broken beyond repair anyway.
I countered Senior Delphine’s puzzled gaze with an old memory.
"Do you remember? The day we first met."
"Of course I remember. It was the first time I showed my naked body to a man… though I didn't expect that man would end up taking my virginity as well."
Senior Delphine slyly brought up the first night again.
I wasn't sure if she wanted to trigger my guilt or if she simply wanted to transition naturally into that topic.
Of course, I had no intention of following her lead.
A firmer voice flowed from my lips.
"Back then, you offered me a glass, Senior Delphine. You said that in the North, if you pour and drink from the same cup, you become comrades."
Senior Delphine fell silent.
A gaze filled with complex emotions was directed at me.
Was she finding this unexpected?
I didn't know why this memory came back to me so vividly either. However, one thing was certain: I knew exactly what I had to say.
"We are comrades now, Senior Delphine."
"……Do you realize how terrifying those words are?"
The sentence she finally squeezed out was somewhat heated by the scent of alcohol.
Senior Delphine spoke with a voice clearer than before.
"In the North, there is no such thing as a soldier who abandons his comrade and flees. Whether in life or death, we share one fate… There is no betrayal, and there is no escape."
Her significantly lowered tone felt almost like a threat.
You can no longer back out.
Do you have the confidence for that?
That was why I had to give a bitter smile instead.
Because she looked like a frightened puppy.
Because she was lonely and isolated, she craved a true comrade. And because of that, her standards for a 'comrade' could only become higher and more demanding.
I want it, but I cannot have it.
That resignation was subtly embedded in Senior Delphine’s voice.
A mockery toward the world, suggesting that I was no different.
But conversely, those words pointed toward Senior Delphine’s true feelings.
Despairing and mocking.
The more she did so, the more she yearned for a genuine connection. It was only because she was afraid of being ignored and betrayed that she didn't give her heart away easily.
Her inner thoughts must be the exact opposite.
She was wanting a certainty that transcended denial.
I was someone who wasn't well-versed in a woman's heart. Yet, for some reason, Senior Delphine’s true feelings were plain to see right now.
"Are you really okay with that? I'm the daughter of a traitor, and the North is on the verge of annihilation because of that sin… and yet I can't let go. Even though it's a fight we're bound to lose……!"
"So that's how you've been living until now."
Senior Delphine, who had been speaking passionately, shut her mouth instantly.
Her lips flickered as if she wanted to say something, but that was all.
I added more certainty to my deduction.
"Is that how you've achieved your victories? By discarding, betraying, and deceiving… Is that why you're applying the same standard to me? Because you can't trust me."
"……Is that wrong?"
Senior Delphine’s voice began to tremble slightly. The eyelashes peeking through her closed eyelids did the same.
She was drunk.
She wasn't the type of woman to pour out her heart just because of that, but it was clearly one of the factors.
Senior Delphine was vomiting out long-held fears.
It was an excuse she was throwing at herself.
"I've lived my whole life never being allowed to lose! I was the sole successor and the Sun of the North… If I collapse, it doesn't end with just me. Every single person in the North watches my every move……!"
"And because you want to believe."
I threw in that addition after taking a sip of wine.
Senior Delphine’s breath hitched for a moment at the point I made, which followed my previous statement.
I didn't miss that opening.
"But I am different."
My hand carefully reached for Senior Delphine’s.
She hesitated at first, but in the end, she couldn't reject my hand.
Her trembling blood-red pupils were fixed on me.
Now, all that was needed was sincerity.
"There's no such thing as a husband who abandons his wife."
To my shy confession, Senior Delphine gave no immediate response.
She sat dazed for a moment.
Then she chuckled.
And only after tears welled up did she wear a strange smile.
It was a smile I had never seen before.
As if she had returned to her childhood, Senior Delphine smiled brightly.
"So, my Husband, do you have a plan?"
"I have the elves."
It was nonsense.
While true, it was a story I had heard from Old Man Pope and Isha. Even the details were classified.
There was no way Senior Delphine would believe me.
Yes, that would have been the case until recently.
However, Senior Delphine burst into a fit of giggles.
"Fine, do whatever you want."
Then, Senior Delphine’s index finger reached out to stroke my Adam's apple.
An alluring smile rose into my field of vision.
"Whether we win or lose, I don't know… but please, don't die. You're not planning on making me a widow, are you?"
As she spoke, she subtly began to dishevel her clothes.
The night was hot.
And a few days later, having finished my preparations, I stood atop a flesh monster.
"Please investigate Seria."
I recalled the last request I had left for Senior Delphine.
The blood-stained letter.
That specifically weighed on my mind.
The final battle was now beginning.
My body kicked off the ground and shot forward.