Volume 3 Chapter 30 Ninini
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
”You smell like you’ve been playing with lots of girls.”
After finishing their lovemaking with Aliona and enjoying a relaxing bath together, Kian was halfway through a delicious dinner she’d prepared in their underground workshop.
Aliona, who had been diligently mending the tear in his shirt at the research desk, suddenly let out that remark.
’Glasses’ were off for the bath, so now Kian was back to his usual serious self.
Sitting on a sofa positioned perpendicular to the desk, reaching for a glass of monastery wine, Kian stiffened involuntarily.
The candle on the research desk flickered, casting Aliona’s face, bent over his shirt, in a dance of light and shadow.
Her expression was impassive──no, rather, completely focused on her sewing.
Was she angry?
Jealous?
Kian couldn’t tell what she was thinking.
”Natra’s scent? Or Rufna’s? Maybe even Serena’s?”
”──. The scent of Roses perfume. High-grade, carefully distilled essential oils. She’s a witch of the same type as me.”
”Ms. Aliona”
”I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you, Kian.”
Aliona let out a long sigh and tossed the shirt aside, her back creaking as she leaned back against the sofa.
Her golden hair was wrapped in a cloth, a bathrobe she wore in her private moments.
And, naturally, she was bare underneath.
Christy and the others were rather free-spirited, often sitting on chairs with their legs crossed or chugging grape wine in a public setting.
But Aliona was always poised and elegant, even in her most relaxed moments.
Kian had noticed that even after making love and emerging from the bath, she sat with impeccable posture on the edge of the chair.
That impeccability made her seem distant and intimidating at times.
But when she smiled, she was still the goddess he adored.
Aliona approached Kian, knelt down, and kissed him on the lips.
Then, she opened a closet built into the right wall of the workshop and retrieved a set of lingerie and a habit.
New additions to the workshop’s decor since Kian had started visiting the monastery for intimate rendezvous.
”Despite my seemingly unwarranted jealousy, I’m not truly angry. Boys around Kian’s age are all about having fun after all. It can’t be helped. Still, I can’t say I admire those who easily dabble with witches.”
As she spoke, she swiftly changed her attire with practiced ease.
Watching her thrust her rear toward me while putting on her undergarments, it was clear she had a shape that would ensure a smooth delivery.
Though she was slender, she had just the right amount of alluring curves both above and below.
Her figure differed somewhat from that of Christy, who had a more modest behind.
”Just as Kian wields swords and bows as weapons, magicians arm themselves with words and contracts. Especially the Head Magicians, who often use their looks and intelligence as tools to manipulate others. Many believe that once they’ve acquired a bit of knowledge, they can reshape this world to their whims. In reality, the things we witches can do are quite limited.”
”Are you saying things like Ms. Natasha?”
”Exactly. If one attempts to wield power beyond their grasp without managing the risks, failure is inevitably forthcoming. Originally, ‘magician’ referred to those who could prudently gauge how far they could stretch their contracts with beings greater than themselves. Ironically, the more knowledge one gains, the more they tend to overlook the most crucial fundamentals.”
”Christy was the witch who lent me her bed when I spent the night at the fortress. She’s quite genuine for a witch, lacking the usual deceit… a good person who can’t play the manipulation game. I believe the rose scent on her shirt is from the perfume she wears.”
”Even a good girl like her might show a different side upon learning of Kian’s reputation with women, so tread carefully. If you’re bathed with another girl, you should go for a run outside to work up a sweat, lest you be caught out when she startles you with a sultry nibble on your neck or ear.”
”Who would have thought I’d one day learn the art of infidelity from Ms. Aliona?”
”Well, just listen…”
Having finished changing back into her originally dull monk’s robe, Aliona slammed the closet shut.
”I truly worry about you, Kian. You often hear people say they like the color of heroism, but there are mountains of people whose lives have been shattered because of women. Even if you strive to become great, it’s just too sad if you’re cursed to death by an ex-lover’s witch while you’re sleeping, right?”
’Well, the old hag does have a point. If you’re awake, you can at least try to eat magic, but once you’re asleep, your meager magic resistance won’t be enough to stop a curse from killing you.’
The ‘glasses’ atop the backpack interjected in a sleepy voice.
As Kian munched on the chicken meat, Aliona made her way over to the sofa across from him and sat down.
The cloth wrapped around her head unwound, and her exquisite golden hair, like drops of honey, cascaded onto the shoulders of her azure nun’s habit.
”Witches are far more terrifying than you imagine, Kian. They might return your love if you seek it, but if they realize your love isn’t true, they may come to collect their due. No one would want to become a knight enslaved to a witch for life in exchange for a single night of passion, right?”
”Would you also come to collect a debt from me, Ms. Aliona?”
”I’m… just an old lady past her prime, bound by a contract and confined to a place like this. Kian, you visit me regularly and show me proper love, but I haven’t been able to do anything for you, and the chances of me being able to help in the future are incredibly slim. It’s absurd to think I’d demand any price.”
”I’ve received many precious things from Ms. Aliona. Now it’s my turn to repay the favor. ────I apologize for the affairs, especially… the one with Esther before.”
”I was also out of my mind back then. Later on, I was ashamed, thinking, ‘What is this old lady doing?’… Hey, let’s stop this conversation, shall we? I started it, but it’s just…”
”Thank you.”
”When you go to Châtillon, be careful of illnesses. Especially, you should never enter a brōtḥel. Since it’s a port town, there are many people bringing in foreign diseases, and prostitutes are the first to suffer.”
”Only venereal diseases, right? I don’t trust it either, but what should I do?”
”It’s not just venereal diseases. The sanitation’s a mess too. I’ve heard that the Guild dealing in leather goods is nothing like the Izerland fortress──they just dump their wastewater into the river. If you’re going to be working in the sewers, the conditions are bound to be nastier by comparison. Be extra careful, especially since there are loads of ghouls down there.”
”I’ll keep that in mind.”
”You’re heading back to ‘The Boar’s Trot Inn’ tonight, right? Could you deliver this for me while you’re at it?”
”More like it’s almost morning now. ────Is this about the bottle next to my shirt on the research table? I don’t mean to pry, but what’s inside it?”
”It’s an insecticide that doubles as an air freshener. Essie mentioned she wanted a bottle when we last spoke. She’s having trouble with fleas and such multiplying on the straw mats this season.”
”It’s summer, after all. I remember Ms. Melissa and Ms. Moimoi used to pack the straw mats into chests nice and tight.”
”Ah, so they were trying to suffocate the fleas? It was a real backbreaker when I first came to this monastery, all of us doing that. Women’s strength is no joke when it comes to manual labor.”
”If Essie’s asking for insecticide, it seems like the previous methods weren’t very effective.”
Aliona poured her share of wine into a glass, then crossed her legs.
She propped her elbow on her knee, the glass in hand.
”Next month is the Summer Market. As long as the mats are clean, plenty of customers will come. Apparently, starting this year, the market will be held beyond the East End stalls as well, so I expect a lot of people will be coming in from the mountain villages. It’s a prime opportunity to make money. Can you let them know we have about two bottles’ worth of stock? If they need more, it’ll take time to restock, so they should give us a heads-up.”
”Understood.”
”Still, I ended up pulling another all-nighter, huh?”
The elf sister let out a melancholic sigh as she delicately licked the wine from her lips.
”I suppose so.”
”Lack of sleep is the enemy of your skin, you know.”
”Yet you still look so glossy.”
”Oh, really? Is it thanks to all the milk Kian’s been giving me?”
”Or is it just because you just got out of the bath?”
”Hmm, maybe.”
Aliona said that with a mischievous giggle.
Sometimes his lady’s sense of humor was beyond him.
”Thank you for mending my shirt.”
”If you’re not short on coin, buy a new one. And make sure to wear your armor properly.”
”I fear I’ll always owe you a debt, Ms. Aliona.”
As Kian said that, Aliona winked.
”Remember to keep your head up, you know. You don’t want your fun to go south. Hehehehe!”
(Her energy is high, but I still don’t get her jokes.)
’That’s an old hag joke, not an old geezer one. It’s only natural a young pup wouldn’t understand.’
(I’m old enough to be an old geezer myself, though.)
Kian made a strange face and responded with, “You got it?”
* * *
Leaving the monastery, he turned back towards the town of East End.
Pulling the reins of his horse, he retraced his path along the dirt road until he reached a paved stone path.
This was the East Street district of East End.
Walking down East Street towards the central thoroughfare, he passed the ‘Pumpkin Pie Inn’ where Serena resided.
If Rufna’s offer had been accepted by Serena, they might be training together somewhere right now.
Using the ‘glasses’ could tell him Serena’s location, but he didn’t want to transform into his other self just for that.
’What about the horse? It’s a rental from the Adventurer’s Guild, right?’
(Rufna will be going to deliver Guy’s request first thing in the morning, so I could ask her to take the horse with her. I’ll just tie it up at the ‘Boar’s Trot Inn’ and she’ll take it without question. Just in case, I’ll leave a note.)
He navigated the maze-like streets of East Street.
He soon emerged onto a wide avenue.
This was the road he always took when leaving from the East Gate.
The taverns and blacksmith shops dotted along the street were shrouded in darkness, their windows covered with parchment as dim as the night itself.
The stars still twinkled in the sky, suggesting the townsfolk were fast asleep.
But in another hour, the first fires would be lit, and smoke from burning kindling would begin to rise from various hearths.
By now, Esther and Robert were likely up, washing their faces in the backyard.
It was the perfect time to pass along the large bottle of olive oil, the soap, and the insect repellent from Aliona.
(Once the fires are lit, the day’s work begins.)
’The innkeeper can keep the olive oil as a gift, but I bet that girl will misunderstand the soap. It is summer, after all.’
”What do you mean?”
Kian muttered the question aloud, but before he could dwell on it, he suddenly noticed a shadowy figure standing motionless in the middle of the road ahead.
It was about two hundred meters away.
Even though he had let his guard down, he couldn’t help but feel a jolt of shock—how had he failed to detect such an obviously suspicious figure until now?
(I’m getting careless…)
’Who could that be…?’
The voice came from his chest pocket—his glasses had whispered the question.
Narrowing his eyes, Kian focused his vampire-enhanced vision to uncover the identity of the shadowy figure.
The figure had flaxen hair, long enough to reach her waist.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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