Chapter 39
Chapter 39
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 39
Chapter Title: Elga von Liones # (Interlude)
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After going through all sorts of ordeals, I decided to head back to the grand temple's accommodations with Elga.
"Mirna Draco, that bitch. Just you wait. Someday, I'll strip her naked in front of everyone and whip her like a pig...!"
Ever since the duel got called off, Elga had been in this state the whole time. Her unresolved rage was bubbling over, on the verge of exploding at any moment.
"Next time, I'll kill her for real...!"
If this were the old me, I probably would've been terrified of Elga screaming bloody murder like this. Even now, she was still a bit scary.
But if I had to put it into words, I was feeling more curiosity and novelty than fear.
Watching her slender calves and ankles, clad in glass slippers, click-clacking forward.
It made it real to me that just moments ago, I'd been touching that body.
I'd hugged a girl for the first time in my life—
And not just any girl, but one of the prettiest I'd ever met, with an amazing chest to boot. I wanted to brag about it somewhere, but there was nowhere to do that.
If word got out about me and Elga, things would get complicated in all sorts of ways, naturally.
"Hey, Theo. Everything that happened today has to stay secret, got it? It's like nothing happened between you and me."
Elga was trying to seal my lips once more.
From my perspective, if Elga went around announcing, "I slept with Theo," I'd be in deep trouble, so my stomach would be churning. But since she was keeping it quiet, I was actually relieved.
Relieved, but...
For some reason, an unpleasant, nagging sensation crept up on me.
What was it like...?
It felt like having a girlfriend who never posted a single photo of us on her status or profile pic, so no one knew she was taken, even though she was seeing someone.
If I asked, "Hey, how long are you gonna keep our relationship a secret?" she'd probably say, "You know how it is. If my parents found out I had a boyfriend, they'd kill me!"
Meanwhile, her phone might keep buzzing with messages.
Ding, ding—
Guys who didn't know better—seniors, club brothers—would keep hitting on her, thinking she was single.
If I said something about it, she'd turn it around: "What, you don't trust me?"
Then I'd eventually explode from all the buildup, we'd break up, and soon after, she'd post a profile pic with one of those message-sending "oppas."
No...!
The thought made my vision spin.
Why did I know this so well? Because my first relationship at twenty—Theo's, or rather, Lee Seong-eum's—was exactly like that.
We never even held hands or went on a proper date, so I wasn't sure if you could call it a relationship...
But seeing Elga try to keep our encounter a secret brought it all back, and it pissed me off for some reason.
"Got it? Keep what happened between us a secret. Why aren't you answering?"
So I snapped curtly at Elga's prodding.
"Are you ashamed of me? Because I'm a slave-born orphan with no family name, Gospel? If I were the only son of royalty or a great noble, would you still keep it secret?"
"Hey, what the hell? That's not what I meant. You're smart—don't act like you don't get why I'm saying this."
Elga stared at me like I was some weirdo.
I knew what she meant, but some deeply buried trauma bubbled up, and I couldn't keep my cool.
Of all times, why now?
I'd sealed it away so deep it only surfaced once in a blue moon, but every time it did, I'd kick off the covers in regret.
Sigh.
No, can't get emotional like this.
Elga's right. I need to keep this between us airtight too, at least for now.
「Calm Situation Judgment!
Gain experience from talent 《Calm Thinking》.
All job experience +5」
"I misspoke. Sorry."
"Fine, as long as you get it. If it were anyone else, I'd have ripped their head off."
"So, does that mean Lady Elga treats me somewhat specially?"
At my question, Elga, who was walking ahead, flinched. Then she kept her head rigidly forward and quickened her pace.
"...If I didn't treat you special, would I have... done... that... with you? Idiot."
I see. Yeah, that makes sense.
It's different from back then, when I couldn't even hold her hand.
I wanted to say more, but Elga picked up speed even more, like she didn't want to talk anymore.
I was panting just trying to keep up, breaking a sweat.
"Can't you slow down a bit?"
......
Click, click, click.
Power-walking in glass slippers, Elga drew stares from all over.
As I'd said a million times, a blonde in a red dress striding like a model down the street was bound to turn heads.
—Hey, check her out. Who is that?
—Dunno. Noble's daughter? She's gorgeous.
—Yeah.
Stuff like that.
She was used to the attention normally, but thinking that the woman everyone was ogling had just been pressed against me gave me this weird sense of superiority.
Purely on looks, she'd grab any guy's attention—and I'd dumped a sticky creampie inside her.
Recalling that sensation while eyeing her ass, my lower half stiffened up again, much to my dismay.
I wanted to do it again.
But how...?
With my laughable lack of dating experience, I'd somehow bulldozed through the massive hurdle of "first time."
But now, a new goal loomed: the distant sign reading "Second Time" at the next checkpoint.
Yeah.
The first time was both the goal and a milestone to pass.
So how do you even get a second round?
Having just crossed the first finish line, how do I reach the next one?
I had no clue.
By then, the grand temple was coming into view.
If we just went inside like this, would all today's events get buried in our memories and end?
That's when Elga, walking ahead, spoke up.
"So, you still haven't answered. What're you gonna do?"
"Answer?"
"Keep it a secret."
"Of course... we'll keep it secret. Got it."
"Saying it isn't enough—how do I know you'll stick to it? Seal it."
"Seal it?"
Like signing a contract?
I was all for that.
Deals and relationships are way more binding when you put them in writing than just words.
Conveniently, I always carried parchment and a pen for situations like this.
As I rummaged in my pocket, impressed by my own foresight—
"Come here."
Elga grabbed my wrist and pulled me into a narrow alley near the temple.
Trash-strewn, barely wide enough for two people shoulder-to-shoulder, between cramped houses. Before I could ask what was up, Elga pressed her lips to mine.
She grabbed my cheeks tight so I couldn't pull away.
"Smack, haah—. Smack. Smack. The seal—make it stick. Got it...?"
This was the seal? Yeah, nothing more binding than this.
But the problem was, kisses are insanely effective at getting guys hard.
Throb, throb. Pulsing.
Especially since I'd just been inside Elga—her wetness and softness still vivid in my mind.
"Smack, smooch. Smooch. Seal.... This enough...?"
When she pulled back slightly, lips glistening, looking down at me, I couldn't hold back—I reached out and groped her breast.
Squeeze.
Even through the dress fabric, the sheer volume filled my hand unmistakably.
Knead, squish.
"...Ngh...."
A small moan escaped Elga's lips.
She seemed pretty horny.
Especially after the duel fizzled out with her all riled up—maybe she was anticipating round two with me?
No way I could hold back seeing that.
How good would it feel to lift one of her legs in this tight alley, spread her open, and shove my dick in?
Fresh cum would gush out of her clean-wiped pussy again.
But...
As tempting as it was, no—we couldn't.
This was right by the temple. Any noise, and someone would peek in. That'd be game over.
—Shift's ending soon. Pub after?
—Sounds good.
I could hear people passing by if I listened.
So I pulled my mouth and hands away from Elga. Lust wasn't gonna override my brain that bad—I wasn't that stupid. It was how you survived.
"Seal's stamped. Solid."
"Y-Yeah."
Elga awkwardly replied, then smoothed out her dress over her chest. We slipped out of the alley and headed to the temple.
"Now act like nothing happened. Got it?"
"Yeah, sure."
I was gonna leave it at that, but couldn't resist asking Elga one more thing.
"So, do you like me, Lady Elga?"
"No."
Her answer was sharp as a knife, no hesitation.
For real?
Bluff?
I looked at her face to gauge it. Surprisingly, she looked perfectly calm and composed.
But only for a moment.
Elga flashed her sharp fangs in a mischievous grin.
"So make me like you. Theo Gospel. If you wanna live, that is."
With that, Elga hurried off to her quarters. I watched her back recede into the distance, endlessly.
Make her like me if I want to live, huh.
Not like Elga at all—actually pretty smooth.