〈 Episode 69 〉The East Targets the West 15

* * *

I felt like it was more than a relationship, it was a redemption. Of course, the very act of having such a relationship between two people can, in a way, be a change of state and a relationship of redemption. Or it can go to the point where one party feels coerced, but it is a second relationship...and in any case, in that relationship of redemption, it is the one that binds the other party even more.

"Ejaculation.

To cum inside. Elisa can get away with it because she's a witch, but isn't Serghen a little different?

"Are you surprised?"

Sergen asked, and my eyes fluttered, unsure of what to do.

"Maybe that face is why I tease you so often."

She chuckled softly.

"What the hell were you thinking..."

"Do you think I was unprepared for this, even if it was my first time?"

Sergen glanced at the fried fish he'd been eating.

"They say it's not just women who eat it, but men as well, and that it's a surefire contraceptive if done before intercourse, and if it fails, well...as long as it's not indigestible and you don't throw up from alcohol or digestive problems or anything like that."

"Ah."

She must have spiked the fried fish with something.

"Is that...birth control?"

"Yes."

A contraceptive that even prostitutes would pay good money for on dangerous nights. I heard it was sold by witches, and that it would temporarily make you as sterile as a witch's body...

"Is that why it was so similar to Elisa?

I don't know, but maybe I wasn't mistaken about her hot aura. Perhaps it was the magic of being a witch temporarily that made her so hot.

"You were teasing me.

Maybe she wanted to see me panic at my last appearance.

"I'm a little upset."

"Don't be so angry. You were trying to tease me too, weren't you?"

She smirked, turning and wrapping her arms around me from behind.

"And besides, if we were just together, wouldn't you have had some insecurities about it, even if you had ejaculated outside?"

She told me that ejaculating outside, even if it wasn't with a pig's intestines, was a very likely way to get pregnant. It might be a better calculation to be teased like this than to be with her without thinking. Rationally, I said.

"Maybe I would have been okay with it if you had told me from the beginning."

"I tried to tell you. Until you pinned me down and took me to your heart's content on top."

I sighed and spat it out, part of me wondering if it was my fault, but then she laughed and I felt like it was okay again.

"Even if you did get pregnant, I'd be happy."

"You don't want her to get pregnant, do you?"

It would cause a lot of problems.

"Yes...I am."

She seemed to have a different idea.

"Just in case.

I wondered if she was dreaming of a normal life.

"That would be a bit of a fantasy.

Maybe she thinks she can't have children with the man of her dreams because of her position...because she can't meet and marry the man of her dreams. I'm sure there are many people who have their own problems due to their position, but I can't fathom all of her problems, so I just shake my head.

"Just, you know, a little angry.

A little pissed off at her teasing, that's all I need.

"Angry?"

"You don't look angry, I was so anxious."

"I don't know about that, so I don't know, maybe guys get upset about that."

"With me not being forcibly contracepted, Sergen's..."

She smirked.

"What are you trying to say?"

"Oh, in..."

"Don't you think you should phrase it properly?"

I felt my face flush red.

"Inside...wouldn't you be angry if I ejaculated?"

"Angry...come to think of it, yes, but I'm not in a position to do such a dangerous thing."

She laughs, furry, and rests her chin on my shoulder.

"I could stay like this forever."

"We should get out of here. If we stay any longer, all of Sirtus will know what we really did."

"Of course. So what's next for you at my manor, chamberlain?"

"Are you really going to make me a chamberlain?"

"Are you going to say no? After all, we've had a hot night together."

"...You're imposing a sense of duty on me."

"No obligation. But it is my belief that your character would not allow you to refuse a favor from someone with whom you have come to such a relationship."

I wondered how much he had seen of me that he was so confident. I briefly wonder if I'm that trustworthy, but then I realize that if she's seen me vulnerable to Elisha without restraint, she might be able to draw that conclusion.

"What do you think, would you ever want to do it again?"

She pulls on her bra and panties, lifting one leg up slightly to emphasize her shapely thighs.

"...Yes."

"You may."

She spreads her arms as if waiting, poised for a hug.

"I told you, if you stay, eventually the others will find out."

"Too bad."

She pulled on her own shirt and pants, then looked back at me shyly.

"A kiss would be nice, wouldn't it?"

She pushed me against the wall as she buttoned her shirt.

"...Just for a second."

With that, she pushes me against the wall and kisses me. Her tongue, more insistent, more sultry.

"That was interesting."

"What?"

"I was just thinking that your mana is probably quite cold."

She seemed to have sensed my blue mana, just as I had sensed Sergen's red mana.

"...I see, I'm not so sure."

"Regardless, the feeling wasn't bad. It's like a nice breeze that cools you down when you're all hot and out of control."

Laughing, she ruffled my hair.

"Did you know that those with Sirtus' mana have a very hard time finding a mate?"

Sergen asks as we walk outside, down the street.

"I didn't know that."

"Sirtus' mana carries a very hot current. It has caused many misunderstandings... An elderly ancestor once told me that he spent the night with a young lady and she jumped out of bed."

"What?"

"She said it was like she was on fire, and that the people of Sirtus can have sex with anyone who has mana, at least if they have mana."

It is said that knights with mana in their bodies are few and far between. I wonder if someone as powerful as Zhao Feng has mana? I wonder, but he's already a middle-aged knight with a family.

"Can you sympathize? After all, if you have the mana of Sirtus, you have to choose. If you don't find someone you like, do you marry him, even if he's a gnome, as long as he's eligible, or do you spend the rest of your life procreating no offspring and working for Sirtus?"

"That must be quite a decision."

"Yes. And if you were to meet someone you liked, and who was eligible, would you be able to overcome his fiery temper?"

"...That makes a little bit of sense...and as far as excuses go, it's the one that makes the most sense."

"That's nice of you to say. But you're still upset about your prank earlier."

"Yes, I am."

She was still angry about what she'd done, hiding the fact that she wasn't pregnant. Serghen's hand twitches slightly, as if she wants to hold my hand, but there are too many eyes on her, and I, still an escort, walk beside her, hands in my pockets.

"You're staying at my manor until Elisha returns, aren't you?"

"For now, I like my commute, so don't give me any cruel words about staying at work too long."

"Even though I'm sure there will be after-sales service?"

I almost lost my nerve at her fierce courtship.

"There's no denying it, but...I also need to have a long talk with Elisa."

"She might be a little disappointed, and I think even I'd be a little upset if I thought she was just there for a one-night stand without waiting."

"This isn't a normal relationship, is it?"

She looks up at me, hungry, after ordering some street strawberry juice.

"Oh, I..."

I feel a slight rumbling in my stomach and a rush of thirst.

"Did I try too hard...

A moment of embarrassment.

"Raspberry juice, please."

"Sure."

She smiles and offers me the juice from the vendor.

"So, how do you and Deckard want to go about this all-out war?"

"I guess it depends on how the other guy comes out."

She and I drink different juices, but we end up drinking the same juice: strawberry. Raspberries are different from strawberries, I thought, but they don't taste like anything else.

"So you think that Million is our biggest obstacle after all?"

"Yes."

I didn't deny it.

"And what about Noel?"

I hesitated, then opened my mouth.

"I think he's being used."

"I suppose I need to ask you some questions about that."

She and I were heading toward Count Sirtus.

"We'll talk about that on the job, but for now, I'm afraid we're going to have to do the pledge and vow ceremony."

I let out a long sigh.

"Uh-huh. I'll try to talk you out of it, but I'm sure you'll say it's a choice you'll regret later."

"Well, at least I can say I have no regrets, since you're the kind of person I'd bring to the dice if I had no use for you."

Her laughter distracted me from her passionate courtship.

* * *