If All This Were a Dream (1)
A flash of emerald lightning raced across the earth. The scattered thunderbolt should have been absorbed into the ground, but instead, it lingered, hissing and crackling as it spat sparks.
When the bolt struck from a clear blue sky, the beastmen who had rushed outside to investigate the commotion clicked their tongues, staring at the ground that still crackled with energy without fading.
By their common sense, only one person was capable of such a feat — the Spear King. And what reason could the Spear King have for suddenly launching such an attack on the territory of Nine Lives? The alliance with the kingdom that their Head had arranged must have fallen through.
"Oh dear..."
Rainia, who had come out to the garden to observe the spectacle, let out a hollow laugh as she stared at the lightning bolt etched into the ground. The other beastmen didn't seem to notice, but Transcendents like Rainia, Evan, and Ryung could decipher the message contained within the bolt.
[While it is the Swordmaster's own freedom to enter into a betrothal with whomever he pleases, the fact that he has formed a relationship specifically with the Nine-Tailed Fox cannot rule out the interference of external forces...]
It was a royally archaic tone, filled with diplomatic rhetoric. But to the Transcendents who could read the emotions embedded within, the surface-level words held little meaning.
They could discern the raw emotion the Spear King had packed into the message, which amounted to just that. The Spear King did not look favorably upon the engagement between Evan and Rainia.
Well, even Evan could understand why. If he, a vassal of the kingdom, married the Head of Nine Lives, he would naturally be more inclined to prioritize Nine Lives over the kingdom. From the Spear King's perspective, it must have felt like suddenly losing a Transcendent asset. For the Spear King, who had poured countless resources into Evan, it must have been an extremely displeasing turn of events.
"It can't be helped. Looks like we can't get engaged like this."
"...Well, it is what it is. And it's fine. Seeing the Spear King react to you like this means we can use it to our advantage instead."
"Huh? How?"
"I'll just write one more letter."
Rainia quickly wrote a single letter and handed it to Evan. Just as before, Evan used Carnelly to send it to the Spear King. This time, however, neither a lightning bolt struck nor did any reply come through Carnelly.
Curious, Evan asked what she had done.
"What did you send?"
"I sent word that we would break off the engagement. Conditionally."
"Conditionally?"
"Well, you'll know when the reply comes. I think he'll accept it..."
Rainia trailed off. Three days passed without a reply or a lightning bolt. Then, just as she had predicted, a visitor arrived from the kingdom.
A massive carriage, carried by a wyvern squadron, slowly landed in the garden of Nine Lives. The maid who stepped out of the carriage immediately laid down a red carpet, hinting that the person inside was no ordinary figure.
Evan recognized the blond man who descended from the carriage and let out a sound of surprise.
"Oh..."
"An acquaintance?"
"Yes. He's the Second Prince. His name is... Aren?"
"It's Alin, Swordmaster."
The Second Prince, who had approached soundlessly, corrected Evan with a light smile. Then, turning to Rainia, he gave a slight bow — a noble's greeting.
"It is an honor to meet you, Head of Nine Lives. I am Alin Astra, the Second Prince. I have been sent by His Majesty, the Spear King."
"Hm. I am Rainia."
"May I proceed directly to the point? His Majesty has accepted your proposal. This carriage contains gifts to celebrate the formation of our alliance."
"An alliance, you say... Splendid."
Rainia looked at Alin with a satisfied smile. With this, she no longer had to worry about the World Tree Alliance for the time being. If they attacked Nine Lives, the kingdom would dispatch its army to aid its ally. And if the kingdom decided not to care? That was fine too. That would legally allow her to summon Evan. He was a subject of the kingdom, and if he was going to help the kingdom's ally, there would be no justification for anyone to stop him.
"Please, come inside. I shall prepare a gift for the alliance as well."
"Understood, Head. Ah, Swordmaster, please join us."
"Is that alright? This is a conversation between royalty and the Head."
"With you, Swordmaster, it is more than fine. You are not one to cause trouble for the kingdom."
Evan nodded in understanding and followed the two into the room. Once inside, he immediately understood why Alin had said it didn't matter.
"Regarding the installation of a railway between Nine Lives and the kingdom..."
"Concerning the water source nearby..."
"How do you plan to handle monster subjugation?"
Listening to the heavily political and diplomatic discussion, Evan soon lost track of what he was hearing. It went in one ear and out the other. By the time Rainia called out to him, he hadn't even realized the conversation was over.
"Evan? Evan!"
"Huh?! Oh, yes! Is it over?"
"Yes, it's over. And one more thing."
Rainia looked at the dazed Evan with a bitter expression.
"It's time to go back, Evan."
"...Yes?"
And so, Evan returned to the kingdom.
"So I'm saying! Isn't he just too much!?"
"Mhm-mhm~, you're right. He really is."
Inside the mansion without Evan, Anya was badmouthing him with Seolhyang. It wasn't the kind of gossip that couldn't be said in front of others. They were just venting their usual complaints — things that wouldn't be a big deal even if he heard them himself. After all, even the most perfect superhuman is bound to have someone who complains about them. Seolhyang also voiced a few of her own grievances.
"He goes on about taking responsibility for me for the rest of my life, and then he just leaves me here for days on end... I feel completely deceived."
"P-Pledging his lifelong responsibility...? The, the Swordmaster did?"
"Yes. Ah, did Evan not tell you? Hehe, well, he is still young. He might have been too shy to say something like that in front of others."
Seolhyang, who had smoothly transitioned from badmouthing Evan to subtly bragging about her own relationship with him, let out a small laugh as she felt Anya trembling. She could clearly tell what Anya was thinking, even without her eyes. She was probably agonizing over whether to treat Seolhyang as a fellow maid or as the lady of the house. She should know it was a completely unnecessary worry... Seolhyang herself had no intention of vying for the position of lady of the house.
'Coming this far is already more than enough greed.'
She was satisfied just to be taken in by him — she who had killed people, who was filthy through and through. It made her happy that someone as dirty as herself could dirty him. But that was it. To monopolize this joy would be excessive greed, an act deserving of divine punishment. It was best not to even dream of having him all to herself.
"Anya is cute too, so I'm sure Evan likes you well enough."
"Y-yes, ma'am!? C-cute, you say... Someone like me..."
"You just don't know how to dress yourself up. I'd like to dress you up myself, but... I only know how to dress myself."
"Th-then, if it's not too much trouble... How can you do it when you can't see...?"
"I could see when I was young. I learned then. I still remember what my face looks like, so I still use what I learned back then."
Seeing Seolhyang's soft smile, Anya realized she had put her foot in her mouth. Unable to handle the situation, Anya ultimately chose to leave the room. Watching Anya disappear into the distance, Seolhyang slowly made her way to Evan's room. She closed the door behind her.
'I wonder when he'll be back.'
Thinking this, Seolhyang threw herself onto the bed. The faint scent of Evan that still lingered in the sheets entered her nostrils. It used to be filled with his scent, but now it was gradually fading. Instead, Seolhyang's own fragrance was filling the bed. Personally, it was a situation she didn't particularly like, but looking at the bigger picture, it was quite pleasing. The thought of Evan returning and falling asleep surrounded by her scent — what a thrilling prospect that was! Lately, she had been considering ways to leave more of her scent behind.
'Ahh... Evan...'
Savoring his name, Seolhyang carefully lifted her clothes and began to caress her own body. After pleasuring herself for a moment, she was soon overcome by fatigue and closed her eyes. And so, she fell asleep.
When she opened her eyes, Seolhyang realized she could see.
"W-What is this?"
"Ah! A female guest! It's been a while! Welcome!"
Poing, poing. A succubus dressed in a bunny girl outfit came running up to her. Seolhyang's eyes flew wide open as she stared at the succubus.
"Welcome to Monghwanhyang, where all desires writhe!"
One thing was for certain. This was a dream, but not a dream. Because she had never in her life seen or even imagined such scraps of cloth.