Chapter 314
Chapter 314
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 314
Chapter Title: Between Love and Love -3
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It's no big deal cracking open that human scum's skull. But the cleanup afterward needs some serious thought.
"Should we chase him out of the city? Put the fear of god in him so he never shows his face again?"
"How on earth did I fall for a guy like this... If only he'd been decent, all of this could've been nothing but happy dilemmas."
A grumble escapes me unbidden.
For the record, I'd already wrapped up the recording and video with magic, so we had plenty of evidence. There were more than enough ways to convince everyone he'd plotted and exploited her love.
As long as the elf's reaction wasn't "Our Romeo wouldn't do that" or "Even so, I still love Romeo."
Emotional issues are a real pain like that.
From a third party's perspective, the pros and cons are crystal clear. But once emotions hit the scale, even obvious answers turn into wrong ones.
What if the client elf pulls something like, "Even if it puts our entire wild elf group at risk, even if his love isn't real, I love him anyway, so we'll make it work somehow"?
Do I respect those feelings, or do I cut it off clean because it'll only hurt her?
I glanced at Selbia, her eyes shifting as she pondered alongside me. Residual anger still simmered; she was huffing away. A pure soul, reacting so fiercely even to someone else's love.
Looking at her made it clear. The answer was set.
Cut it off. Relationships twisted from the start are unstable.
The tale of a black-hearted schemer realizing true love and reaching a happy ending... That's only possible if someone's pulling the strings like a puppet master. The odds are impossible.
And if that slim shot at happiness fails, it just leaves wounds for everyone. Better to sever these setups quickly... or so I thought.
"We'll cut the guy loose. Next up: how to do it. Better to kick him out and explain everything, or just say he vanished without a trace?"
I asked, but I already knew what Selbia would say before she answered.
"Obviously, we tell her!"
"Just to confirm, why?"
"It's the pain she needs to go through. This might happen again, and to make the right choice next time, she has to experience it now."
"Agreed."
Classic trial-by-fire philosophy.
The saying "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger" holds true. If she falls for another bad guy later, better to have this under her belt.
With our stance set, Selbia cast her eyes down gloomily.
"...Tomorrow, they had a date lined up, right? The elf and that guy."
"Yeah. Our client elf was probably looking forward to it."
"But we're the ones delivering the breakup notice. N-not that it's bad! Just... sad. Still, it has to be done."
"........."
Yeah. It was necessary.
As quickly as possible.
The wild elf looked like the sky had fallen.
"...H-he did? Romeo?"
"Yes. Separate from the mental binding fix... continuing the relationship isn't a good choice."
"Lies, Romeo was so passionate with me..."
"........."
I quietly offered the recording. She played it back over and over before finally accepting reality. Betrayal and hurt twisted her face as tears fell in drops.
"...Quest complete."
She announced the hollow end to the letter sent to the academy.
Selbia and I entered the elf forest with our heartbroken client. Familiar paths from before passed by, and soon the elf village I'd scouted via crow data came into view.
Whispers rustled through the leaves.
"Humans! One came with Julietta, who's bawling her eyes out!"
"It's the crow human! Don't make eye contact... or you might get pregnant!"
Chaotic, but no arrows flew, no one blocked our path. They knew I was here for the mental binding maintenance.
Makes sense. With their minds linked daily, info like this spreads to everyone without fail.
I reached the village center's world tree sapling.
Always looked... kinda creepy. Patches of blue here and there, spiderwebs dangling, color like it'd poison you on sight.
I placed my hand on it. The sapling squirmed, sending intangible roots into me. Closing my eyes, I focused and extended my mana to connect internally.
"If something comes up, cover me, Selbia."
"Got it, bro."
Splash.
A sensation of sinking underwater hit, my mana senses visually reconstructing the world tree and village structure. A complex net of interconnections.
Digging deeper. The succubus queen linked dreams to nest hers; what bound these?
"........."
"...Bro?"
I found the answer soon enough.
First time witnessing how the elves' mental binding truly formed. The mad crow just exploited it; I'd never seen it myself.
That's why the unease hit now, peering directly. After double-checking repeatedly, I shared my discovery with Selbia.
"Uhua manifests by dyeing the soul with emotions, right? In other words... the soul is a conduit for emotions. Or an emotion vessel."
"Why bring up uhua all of a sudden...?"
"Wild elves weren't sharing emotions and memories. They linked souls directly. Emotions just naturally bled over as a byproduct."
"Huh? So, what does that... mean?"
Nothing good. But add a dash of suspicion, and the story changes.
Conspiracy territory from here. A what-if. Let's assume.
Say I'm an evil bastard who, via this world tree—the control tower for all mental bindings—infects the elf community with divisive tactics.
One elf's heart shatters in agony; the pain spreads to all. Ironically, shared pain multiplies.
The wild elf group writhes. One awakens uhua by dyeing her soul with emotion. Feedback loops her experience to the others.
Individuals awakening or not doesn't matter. I'll series-link them. Treat the group as one massive soul. Periodic mental bindings graft souls together, making it possible for wild elves.
"...Like mages prepping together for a grand spell, wild elves could chant in unison for a 'group uhua'."
"Yeah."
Such a group would have soul output on another level. More soul mass means far stronger than solo uhua users.
But stories don't flow that smoothly. If linking souls let you borrow uhua, I'd have used Yuri's against the succubus queen.
Reason? Side effects, obviously.
"Rough math says firing a 'group uhua' shreds souls. Think thirty people lined up, hearts sewn together. Make those hearts race... get it?"
A deep unease settled from this trait.
Summary: Hypersensitive to external mental attacks or spells, so a simple romance lets you seize group control easily. Consumable bio-unit with potential for extreme power depending on use...
Less creature, more war weapon, no?
Weird. Wild elves are too ambiguous. Not quite a hive, not individuals. Distinct looks and personalities, yet mental binding forces hive-like traits.
Why? Doesn't fit natural evolution. Huge security flaw.
But if designed that way on purpose... it fits. Built with flaws. Feels artificial.
"........."
"Of course, now that I've figured this out, true or not, wild elf security holes end today."
I'll insert ON/OFF firewalls between linked souls.
Feel emotions, but they won't dye souls. Others' joy or grief reduced to reading a comic's level.
For deeper needs, add voluntary triggers to open firewalls. Choice-based firewalls prevent uncontrollable sway.
"Plus, wild elf society needs overhaul. Emotionless judges for pragmatic rulings, licenses for tough-minded ones to open walls."
Build walls.
Partitions between souls, algorithms generating firewalls in the sapling core. Brain-intensive, but who am I? The mad wizard.
Half a day later, world tree patch complete.
Sunset blanketed the return path. Scattered clouds kept it from blinding, letting me savor the sun's full glow.
I walked the trail shoulder-to-shoulder with Selbia.
She seemed tense. Stumbling steps, darting eyes. She felt it too. My answer pending.
I'd agonized plenty. Emotions always complicate things.
Third-party view: gains and losses obvious. But emotions on the scale flip wrongs to rights.
So I...
"...Plan to turn you down."
"........."
I told her what I'd been thinking, hoping it'd ease her hurt a bit.
One reason to reject Selbia's confession.
Twisted-from-start relationships are unstable.
"I haven't gotten memories from the 'Promise' yet. They're tied tight to that 'thing' in my head, so our past shared moments stay locked away indefinitely."
"I-I know! I heard! But—"
"No memories to respond to your feelings. How do we build on the past when it's opaque?"
Houses on sand crumble. She chases the 'bro' who saved her childhood, but I can't be him.
She pours love my way, but the emotions I should've felt lie beyond memory's veil. To me, she's not a childhood friend—she's a student. We're facing different directions.
"And... I'll get memories back someday, but no timeline. Could take 10 years or 100 to beat 'that thing' fully. No one knows."
"I don't care—"
"Exactly why I don't want to see you hurt more. I can't be your bro."
Cruel, right?
Pretending without memories, anxiously awaiting the unknown returnee, living that way forever.
Selbia halted abruptly. I took a couple more steps before stopping, not turning back.
"I told you. I'd burn for you alone. Memories or not, doesn't matter. I'd claim you somehow!"
"That's why I'm cutting it off."
Respect her feelings, or sever because it'll harm her?
I chose the latter.
Empaths are emotion-sensitive. Selbia rages at others' sad love stories—a good kid.
How much pain must she be in? Fighting to help by my side, repaying past salvation. Yet each confirmation I remember nothing stings her heart.
Breakups are momentary pain. Lingering hope-torture shadows a lifetime. My response to her love... wouldn't be genuine. That's why.
I rejected her.
"...Honestly, you just seem like a cute little sister."
"...Hey!!"
A punch to my back. No force behind it.
I stood still until her sniffles faded. Then, casually, in my usual tone:
"Grab dessert on the way? Saw a bakery with killer smells tailing that Romeo guy."
"........."
"Or fancy restaurant to blow off steam..."
"I'm not giving up."
I turned at her reply. That instant, unimaginable agony shot through my shin. Selbia had kneed it.
"Guh..."
Clutching it, crouching, a roar erupted above me.
"Say what you want, I'm not giving up. No past memories? Can't be bro? Fine, Professor! Professor! Happy?!"
"........."
"—But love? That's non-negotiable."
A living sun strode past. Strangely, wet footprints trailed like rain on the ground.
Felt like a furball tumbling in my head. Good call? Bad? No clue. But wishing her unhurt? Rock solid.
What do I have that makes her try so hard?
I quietly followed Selbia.
The mad wizard's mental world.
The 'Promise,' rocking in an armchair before the black dome, gazed at the thunder-raging sky with pity.
Memory unknown—like an unflipped card. Unviewable now, so the mad wizard bet on rejection.
"Should've gone the other way..."
If it were an ace, would the story change?
But bonds don't vanish from a brief misalignment. Emotions will realign in time. The 'Promise' awaited the future.