56. The End of the Trial (2)
After dinner, I returned to my room and sank into thought for a moment.
The day the trial would end was drawing near.
The final evaluation would likely pit the Polar Night I had perfected against Graiel.
But now, rather than fear, I felt a surge of motivation. The synchronization rate with Yulian, as announced by the system, had risen even higher.
60%.
The higher that number climbed, the fainter my pre-possession self became, and the stronger my resolve as Yulian grew.
That's not a bad thing.
I had no idea what would happen once all this was over. Iseland might perish, or I myself might cease to exist.
On the flip side, if I survived, it would mean continuing to live as Yulian—the legitimate heir to the margrave.
That comes with its own mountain of responsibilities.
Under that name, there were things I had to protect. My mind flashed to the people of Essemont gathered during the Reinhyme fever ritual.
The White Night Knights. Essemont's elite soldiers.
And even the common folk of Essemont. Just as Atlin the Sword Empress and the current margrave Wilhelm had shouldered their lives, I would have to do the same going forward.
Atlin bore the weight of those lives...
Atlin, who had shed tears of despair over her fading life, even staining her sword with them. Over the past few days, I had repeatedly contemplated her Pre-Dawn Eclipse and Polar Night.
Sharing the Reinhardt blood, I empathized with that weight more deeply than anyone as her descendant. Yet at the same time, it still didn't feel entirely real.
In truth, I haven't lived among those people for very long.
And without Rosario's mental stabilization now, I could confront my emotions more honestly.
The only ones I'm truly close to... are the heroines.
What I wanted most right now was simply to protect them.
Is it because I carry dragon blood?
Dragons generally only mated with their fated partners, but occasionally, ones overwhelmed by lust were born.
Known as lust dragons. Yet among demonkin, they weren't shunned or discriminated against.
After all, modern dragons and demonkin worshiped the Goddess of Darkness, so it wasn't a flaw.
And lust dragons uniquely built their own harems. Much like me now.
I didn't want to give up any of the heroines I'd been with.
My fiancée Lilia. Cecilia, bound to me by dragon blood. But my feelings for the others remained unchanged.
What a peculiar thought. I don't want to share any woman I've slept with.
For a virgin guy from before possession, it was awfully arrogant. But I couldn't call it purely selfish.
Agnes, my mother, always seemed to affirm through Rosario that these bonds were right.
And during this trial, I'd confirmed it wasn't just for conquering the nest.
The revival of the holy sword Sielertia.
The sacred sword blessed by Jedin, passed down from the ancient empire. A special blade that could wield the power of its six subordinate gods.
It felt prepared just for me, ordained as Jedin's holy priest. No—knowing the prophetic saintess Agnes, she had surely arranged it.
For the broken Sielertia to revive, I had a strong premonition that the power of the top heroines, representatives of each order, would be needed.
In every way, I can't afford to let even one go.
Of course, as a man, some tugged at my heart more tenderly. But my resolve to protect them all never wavered.
Maybe it's because I've been cut off from reality for so long. They all feel a bit nostalgic.
It had been quite some time since entering this sub-space. If I'd starved here for ages, I might chalk it up to pent-up lust.
But after relieving myself thoroughly over the past few days, it didn't seem like mere horniness.
Erti visited me every night.
My thoughts drifted to her. The holy sword Sielertia—or rather, the broken holy sword who now called herself Erti.
Since our first time together, she had come to me every night, sharing intense lovemaking.
Starved for so long, it must have been hard for her to hold back.
With three meals a day packed with aphrodisiac foods, I could barely contain my own urges by nightfall.
Erti, embarrassed, always transformed my room into a dreamscape. But with her there, satisfying my desires was no issue.
Though the partner being a sword feels a bit odd...
But when Erti kept quiet, she was a silver-haired beauty who made my heart race, with a perfectly fertile figure. I couldn't resist her temptation.
A bit more time passed. And just like the past few days...
Erti opened the door to my room and entered.
***
Something's off. What's going on?
She was different from her usual self. Erti normally came much later, after I'd fallen asleep—or so it seemed over the past few days.
Right after entering, she'd cast magic to create the dream space.
Of course, I'd pretended to sleep those times. But she'd never visited while I was wide awake like now.
"Erti, what's the matter?"
"I... well..."
She'd flung the door open boldly enough. But once inside, she couldn't string words together.
Come to think of it, she looked different from usual. Dressed like a country girl, plain and makeup-free.
But now, her atmosphere had shifted dramatically. Light makeup made her face even paler, her lips a vivid red.
And a faint fragrance wafted from her. With only the two of us in the house, it was obvious she was conscious of me.
I sat the speechless Erti in the chair by the bed. We faced each other across a small round table between us.
"Can't sleep, I take it."
"Y... yeah."
I had a pretty good guess why she'd come. Over the past few days, Erti had asked every night about my dreams.
A romantic soul of a holy sword—she must have been frustrated and anxious that her first partner didn't remember their passion.
She must have made a big resolution.
Coming to me at this hour, even doing her makeup, meant she intended to seduce me while fully sober.
But this holy sword was hopelessly inept at romance.
Chloe, equally clueless, had at least used an aphrodisiac. Erti's arsenal was just this clumsy makeup. Still, its innocent charm nearly made me stir.
Admirable, but... if this goes on...
Erti couldn't even meet my eyes.
We'd spent plenty of time together, but this was the first in a private space while fully awake.
This is getting painful. I need to take the lead.
I came up with a good way to loosen up the Erti who seemed liable to stay silent all night.
"When you can't sleep, a light drink can help. What do you say?"
"A... a drink? But you're in the middle of the trial... What if it interferes?"
"Can't you use Medica powers too, Erti? Just cast a detox spell on me, and it'll be fine."
She seemed intrigued by that.
"You're not wrong. Alright. Then something low-proof..."
Erti summoned a red-tinged liquor. In real magic, it'd be a creation spell fit for an archmage.
But in this sub-space, she must have used Roia's power, like summoning ingredients before.
Yet I was more shocked by the liquor itself than the magic.
That's... the red berry wine from Neuber territory.
The first mission with Chloe and the reserve squad. The rural lord had served that exact red berry wine.
Renowned for its excellent stamina-boosting effects. Of all things, it was that drink.
"It was a gift from a bard in the same troupe as your father Riel, to Riel and Agnes. And the night Riel and Agnes drank it alone together... you were conceived."
Red berries were Neuber's specialty. The lord had traveled with Riel in his troupe days. No doubt about it.
I didn't know that wine led to Mom getting pregnant.
Learning my parents' secret felt oddly surreal. But Erti's urging gaze snapped me back. I pushed stray thoughts aside and offered my glass.
"Shall we toast lightly, then?"
"Yes. Let's. This should help you sleep."
Our glasses clinked. And so, the two of us shared the drink.
***
Everything's spinning.
The red berry wine tasted great for an aphrodisiac booze. But as I knew from before, it packed a punch.
Erti claimed it was low-proof, but with her ulterior motives, she'd never stick to that.
She'd outsmarted herself, though. Her tongue was already slurring.
"...So... that pink-haired girl. Lucia, right? The way she looks at you... you two must've fucked like animals already. Right? Or not?"
Erti had somehow shifted from chair to bed, sitting beside me.
And in her usual habit, she unleashed Essemont-style dirty talk even raunchier than normal. No—her eyes said it was dead serious.
"Who knows. Maybe."
"No way! A woman's intuition is scary accurate! And Lucia was ice-cold to all the other cadets. Know what the combat order guys call her? 'Stuck-up Pink.' Know it or not?"
"Is that so?"
Surprisingly, Erti knew combat order gossip well. This sub-space stemmed from Roia Hall, after all.
Sealed here, watching cadets was likely her only joy.
No wonder she knew things I didn't.
"Anyway, tons of combat order guys pine for her. If they knew you'd already claimed Lucia... they'd be green with envy. But so what? You're a playboy. And buddies with that libertine Fabian, of all people. You joined his wild parties, right?"
She even knew about Fabian. He was a combat order cadet too.
"No, that's a misunderstanding. Fabian talks up those orgies but never actually invites me. Curious, though."
I took another sip of the red berry wine. The buzz hit hard.
My usual body could handle stronger stuff thanks to poison immunity. But now, in this ordinary form, I felt the intoxication fully, like Erti.
Suddenly, she pressed closer, her ample breasts squishing against my arm as she spoke.
"Curious, huh? Of course. You're a man... and handsome like Riel. Any girl would spread her legs if you asked. Throwing nightly orgies without Fabian would be easy."
"Well... I don't do that much. Turns out I'm more of a one-woman guy."
"Pfft. Funniest thing I've heard. You fuck a sword every night."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
I knew full well, but played dumb at her slip. Sure enough, Erti flushed and changed tack.
"I mean... that's why a pervert like you dreamed of banging me."
"I'm not so desperate I'd fuck a sword. Bad misunderstanding."
Provoked, Erti bristled.
"Wh... what's wrong with fucking a sword? Normal ones don't have holes, sure—might slice your dick off. But I'm different. I'm a holy sword. And beautiful... I could make a human guy cum in three seconds flat!"
"Really? No idea, but if you say so, must be true. I'll believe you. Though three seconds is pushing it."
A subtle jab, of course. She couldn't take it. Fury welled in her blue eyes, tears brimming.
"Th... that's an insult to a holy sword! Apologize!"
"No need for apologies. Just prove it yourself, Erti."
"Prove what? What are you..."
I whispered in her flustered ear.
"If you can really make me cum."
"Such perverted talk... Mmph?!"
I silenced Erti's retort with my lips.