Three-Way Face-Off (2)
He'd taken Leticia Santander on as a new disciple. Like Alonne Valencia, she'd vehemently refused to call him "Master," but she insisted on continuing her lessons and agreed to "Teacher" as a compromise. The academy instructors were elves too, after all. To high elves, there was no difference between elves and humans when it came to titles, so they'd settled on "Teacher."
Yushin couldn't help thinking that Leticia's haughty high-elf pride—right up to the end—meant she'd be an exhausting disciple in a whole different way from Alonne.
"Hello, Teacher."
"Hey."
Leticia greeted him. Yushin nodded in response.
"Hmph."
"You've been showing up at the academy a lot lately. Has that incurable disease of yours finally cleared up?"
"It's not incurable."
"Well, they do say you can't fix stupid."
"W-Who're you calling stupid?!"
Alonne and Leticia kept sniping at each other. Caught in the middle, Yushin made a pained face and started walking away. He had zero interest in dealing with them. If he got dragged into entertaining those two high elves, half the day would vanish in a puff of smoke.
He'd planned to head to the library and crack open a history book on the Liberia Elf Kingdom, then send the two students back to class and enjoy some quiet reading time.
"A history of the Liberia Elf Kingdom? You could just learn it from me. I aced history, you know."
"Ugh, history..."
"Some high elf only scores around twenty, right? Isn't that basically treason? Why don't you just go live in a human country?"
"I'm not a traitor! I just don't care about history!"
"To think you'd admit to having no interest in history in an elf kingdom that reveres it. Impressive."
Why not just learn from your sister? Yushin wanted to tell the fuming Alonne amid Leticia's teasing. Ardena Valencia was 320 years old—a living, breathing history tome of a high elf. She'd rattle off everything he needed to know without missing a beat.
"I've already got a master!"
Alonne sidled up close and hooked her arm through Yushin's. Leticia flushed beet red at the bold skinship—Alonne pressing right up against a human without hesitation, and a male one at that, no less. It must've been too stimulating for a proper Santander lady. She fidgeted, face burning, furious at Alonne's possessive grab for Yushin but lacking the guts for such brazen contact herself.
"Why're you clinging like that? I'm not exactly a free man... well, I do have an owner."
"Sis owns you, so in a way, that makes me your owner too, right? Think of it as joint custody—makes it easier."
"If you sisters ever split, you'd probably divide me up in the settlement and teach me half-time."
Alonne burst out laughing at Yushin's quip.
* * *
Alonne stuck to Yushin like glue these days. It made sense—she was the human who'd given hope to her otherwise hopeless life.
At first, she'd dismissed him as just another lowly human. But now? Things were different. She caught herself thinking she wanted to evolve their master-disciple bond into something far more intimate. She was that invested in him.
"Master!"
Alonne latched onto Yushin. It had ramped up since Leticia arrived. She seemed terrified of losing her master to that Santander girl.
I can't go without a master. I can't go without him. I like Master. I want him by my side forever.
Unsure how to voice those feelings directly, Alonne settled for pressing her body against his as an indirect hint.
Master's my master. No matter how much Leticia clings, he's the Valencia family's slave. I'll never let him go. I'll follow him anywhere.
He was the one who'd validated her worth. The one who'd shown her the path to Mana Blade, a dream that had seemed utterly impossible. Not just any human. Not just any slave.
To Alonne, Yushin was a swordsman she revered, a benefactor who'd taught her so much, and—secretly—the object of her budding affections. "Affections" might be rushing it for an inexperienced high elf like her... but someday, she'd realize it was love.
"Master, when will I be able to wield Mana Blade as freely as Sis?"
"Soon. At this growth rate, you'll hit the Triple Ember realm before long. It's so damn unfair. High elves... how do you level up this fast?"
Alonne burst into giggles. Hearing from her master that she had potential—that she was growing fast—filled her with joy.
Her benefactor, the one who'd recognized and proven her value. Aside from family, Yushin Gilliard was the first. No wonder she trailed after him everywhere—from Valencia Castle to the academy—like a chick following its mother hen, soaking up every moment together.
"You're an Another One, right?"
"Yeah."
"From another world? What's it like?"
"Just places where people live. Nothing all that different. If I had to pick something, my world didn't have elves?"
Sunlight poured down on the rooftop. Alonne had ditched classical literature class again, and the two were lounging lazily. Yushin had thought her skipping had tapered off, but nope—she flat-out refused to sit through classical lit. Typical Alonne: if something sucked, she bailed.
Of course, Yushin didn't protest. He'd done the same as a student.
"No elves? Then no beauties like me, huh."
What confidence. Yushin shot her a look. Alonne was a beauty, closer to a cute girl than a full bombshell. Golden hair that shimmered like sunlight on waves, skin white as ivory. Her occasional eye-smiles were dizzyingly charming.
Still, she came off as a little sister because she looked so youthful—baby-faced and petite compared to her peers.
"Hmm, a beauty..."
"W-Why?! I'm totally a beauty!"
"I'd call it overconfidence, but yeah, you're a beautiful girl. Objectively speaking. Suitors would line up for you."
"D-Don't just compliment me outta nowhere...!"
Alonne whipped her head away, cheeks flaming. She'd braced for teasing, not sincere praise about her looks. She floundered, heart pounding wildly. This was new—her chest thumping like crazy over a casual compliment. Was she dying of a heart condition or something?
Head turned, she took deep breaths to calm her hammering heart.
"Valua Kingdom's got its share of beauties too."
"Even the human lands? Not as gorgeous as us elves, the race of beauty—or high elves like me, even more so."
"My fiancée. Or is she? It was one-sided from their family..."
Yushin muttered absently, no deeper meaning intended.
But to Alonne, it hit like a thunderbolt. Face twisting in shock, she yelled at him.
"Wait, fiancée?! You've got a girl waiting?!"
"Why so surprised? I'm twenty-four. Dunno your elf standards, but for humans, it's normal."
"By that logic, Sis is past marrying age..."
"Don't compare me to your sister. Different species."
Alonne was freaking out. Her master had a woman—a future wife—back home? It felt like the sky falling.
A fiancée in his homeland meant he might pine for her and return. Sure, he'd said last time he had no plans to go back, but hearts change—who knew?
"No, it's not like she chose me—it was their side's call. Plus..."
Yushin continued, but Alonne wasn't hearing it. She'd already spiraled into full panic mode.
* * *
Alonne learned from her sister Ardena about the Valua Kingdom delegation during dinner. Their goal: ransom Yushin Gilliard, prisoner of the Liberia Elf Kingdom, for 10 billion Aether—double the 5 billion he'd originally fetched.
Alonne objected fiercely.
"No way! We can't let Master go! You're his owner, Sis—can't you stop him?!"
"It's Yushin Gilliard's choice."
"But Master's your..."
Slave. Alonne trailed off, unable to say it.
Stop him. Keep him from going back to the humans. She wanted to scream it. If they didn't block it now, he'd leave for good.
Master said he has a fiancée...
If they didn't act, he really might go. Alonne bit her lip.
I don't want to lose him. Not to Leticia, not to anyone. Stay by my side.
Anxiety surged. Fear twisted inside her. Finally, Alonne steeled herself with a resolute expression. She couldn't let him leave like this. By any means necessary, she'd stop him.
* * *
As he'd told Ardena, Yushin had no intention of returning to Valua Kingdom. Why the hell would he? Going back to the military meant facing a court-martial for the defeat. The kingdom's old generals were classic boomers. No one in their right mind would return to that cesspool of injustice and bullshit.
His subordinates had been smart—they'd chosen to stay in elf territory knowing that. Yushin went along with it. Smart.
"Can I come in?"
Lying on his bed lost in thought, Yushin heard a knock and the voice of a high-elf girl beyond the door. Alonne. Valencia's second daughter. What brought her here so late? Kids needed their sleep to grow—even if Alonne was a twenty-one-year-old adult.
"Come in."
The door creaked open, and Alonne entered.
"I... wanna... talk... about something..."
"What about?"
"Did you... hear about the delegation from Valua Kingdom?"
"Yeah. Your sister told me."
"...I see."
Alonne forced the words out. She had something specific to say—her lips kept twitching like she was rehearsing. What was this little high elf building up to? Probably begging him to stay with the Valencias. He'd already decided not to go, but Yushin figured he'd tease her a bit first.
"If I go back, my fiancée'll be waiting. Plus all the beauties pining for me. I'm pretty popular back home, y'know."
Anyone thinking twice would've seen through the bullshit. He was a virgin. No girlfriend history. His vibe screamed "women repellent." Slim chance he'd been some heartthrob.
But Alonne—desperate to keep him from leaving, resolve hardened—was too frantic for logic.
"I-I know! You're dying to reunite with your fiancée!"
Not even close. Yushin denied it inwardly.
"So I'll...!"
Face red as a tomato, like she'd burst any second, Alonne paused. Then, steeling herself fully, she shouted.
"I'll make you forget that fiancée!"
What?
Yushin froze at her cry. The high-elf girl grabbed her ribbon ties. With a soft rustle, she undid them, baring her pristine white skin.