Chapter 43 – The Only One (3)
‘It’s real. It’s a real elf.’
There was no way this could be a trick. The atmosphere, the pressure, the mystique.
These were truths that Ethan could never have created, even if he had tried. Confident in this, Erns found himself trembling unconsciously.
“Is it really just a single token that you need to give me? That’s all?”
“Yes. If you give me that, it will suffice. As you know, this is not something I can handle; it must go to someone worthy.”
Ethan and Irilia had meticulously prepared their story together, but in reality, Erns didn’t even ask how this elf had come to be in their possession.
Erns, eager to claim her immediately, held up the token he had pulled from his cloak at Ethan’s smirking words.
The token, attached by a string, resembled a necklace. The leader who received the most of those tokens would undergo a new transformation. That was the organization’s rule.
“Take it. I acknowledge it. Truly, it is a one-of-a-kind treasure in this world.”
Throwing the token to Ethan as if it were nothing, Erns touched Irilia’s hair with trembling hands. Though she frowned in annoyance, she could not resist for the moment as she had something to gain.
‘Arrogant, yet aware of his own situation; he seems to possess every good weapon. To obtain an elf, especially such a special and young one—this would be a treasure passed down through generations until her lifespan runs out in a few hundred years.’
In this way, Irilia’s presence further ignited Erns’s desires, just as intended.
Neither Ethan nor Irilia felt the need to reveal her true identity since Erns didn’t ask. Enchanted and lost in thought, Erns viewed Irilia merely as an ordinary elf with a “special color.” On any other day, he wouldn’t have thought this way so easily, but he was currently entranced by the overwhelming treasure before him to think deeply.
“Very well. That now belongs to the leader. How you use it is up to your discretion.”
Receiving the token, Ethan’s lips curved upward as he observed Erns. Though Erns spoke freely about how to handle it, one could hardly say that would be the case in reality.
Having already fallen into Irilia’s grasp, Erns was nothing more than just another victim in this scenario.
“I’m looking forward to today’s banquet. The events ahead are even more exciting.”
With no hesitation, Ethan exited the room, leaving Erns to chuckle in front of Irilia.
In his mind, he was filled with thoughts of how he would turn her into a submissive possession of his family and how much profit she would bring him in the future.
“Father…”
“Ah.”
At that moment, a voice came from behind him, snapping Erns back to his senses. Sweating, he turned to see the daughter he cherished so dearly, now momentarily forgotten in his greed.
*
‘The reaction was just as expected.’
After a tedious wait sitting quietly, I couldn’t help but smile slightly at the sight of Erns when he finally arrived, displaying a response I had anticipated.
While the reaction of a person consumed by greed who could not overcome it was entertaining, it lacked freshness.
“L-Lila. This is…”
However, this time, the reaction was somewhat refreshing. His daughter, Lila, followed him into the room. Having seen her from afar before, her now widened eyes were glued to me, shock evident, until her father’s condition snapped her back to reality, forcing her to call out to him.
“What are you going to do with that girl?”
“Uh…uh!?”
When Lila straightforwardly asked, Erns began to panic even more. It seemed he wasn’t harboring such honorable thoughts after all.
“Let’s talk about this later. Now, go outside! Bring someone to take this girl! We need to prepare for the banquet.”
Flustered, he glanced at me before ultimately sending his daughter out of the room. Though Lila tried to resist, when he summoned his subordinates waiting outside to take her away, she had no choice but to leave.
“…What is your name?”
Finally, I was left alone with him in the room.
The moment Lila disappeared, his unrestrained greed surged visibly in his eyes. It was so blatant that hiding it was impossible.
For a moment, I considered breaking his neck and making my escape right then and there, but it hadn’t even been hours since Ethan had passed me to him.
I deemed that I should take my time to avoid any unnecessary doubts.
“Irilia.”
“I see, Irilia. What has that Ethan taught you? Have you learned about your position? About how to obey your master?”
Just as anticipated, Erns didn’t want my possession to stop at merely owning me; he sought my obedience.
He intended to use me for his own advancement and wealth.
‘Should I indulge him?’
It was a far simpler and more primal desire than I had expected. Though I considered the worst-case scenario of potential conflict, the atmosphere suggested that it wouldn’t lead that far, making me hesitate for a moment.
A disturbance wouldn’t be good. If it could be resolved quietly, that would be best. Above all, his daughter Lila, whom I had just seen.
Having looked into her eyes, I was confident I could eventually hold sway over them without the anticipated confrontation.
“Jensen! We will postpone the banquet by a day. Inform the guests to stay in the annex. And summon Rozalin.”
“We can delay since there’s some leeway, but you want Rozalin? Why on earth would you…”
“I’m not calling for her on my account. I want to teach you something during the remaining two days.”
Emerging from the room, Erns began giving various orders to the butler.
When he was taken aback by the name Rozalin, he grabbed me, cloaked in a hood, and insisted that it was for my sake, not his.
From what I had gathered, Rozalin was clearly someone working in the tavern.
Before leaving the room, he had seriously asked me if I knew how to do anything, and when I honestly replied that I hadn’t really done much beyond fighting, he sighed deeply, indicating he likely intended to teach me some dance or something similar.
Good-looking wrapped rice cakes are also tasty. My packaging efforts were not yet complete.
“And seal this place off. No one is to enter except me.”
Furthering his intentions, Erns turned the entire annex into a cage solely for me. By now, his subordinates should have sensed something odd, but their attention remained on him due to the gleam in his eyes.
‘I’m fine just staying put.’
I showed no reaction and obediently complied. I wasn’t doing it thoughtlessly.
“Father will probably never show it to me. I must see it for myself.”
“But miss, the master has given strict orders to guard this place…”
I heard a whisper carried by the wind spirits. This familiar voice belonged to Lila, who was outside the annex, secretly conversing with a maid.
Clearly, the daughter of the organization had become enraptured by seeing me, just like her father, and appeared intent on disobeying his orders to meet me.
‘What a doting father. He can’t help it if his daughter takes the initiative.’
I slyly moved towards the window, smirking as I watched Lila below. Thanks to her interest, I had already developed a plan for how to escape this place without incident.
“I think he’s richer than Ethan, but he’s still not the kind of uncle I would like.”
Reclining on the bed while waiting for Lila to find her way in, I smiled at the spirits flitting around me.
Though Erns had the weakness of his daughter, he was incredibly large and had amassed too much power, so even if I revealed my identity, it seemed unlikely he would act as I desired.
Determining that no weapon could match Ethan’s influence, I lightly wiggled my ankle, which was tied with a slender chain. This kind of light restraint was typical for someone in obedient training.
After all, this organization would ultimately become Ethan’s, and naturally, I would be able to use that power as much as I wanted. That was my plan in doing this.
“Did she come?”
Then, before dawn the next day, while I was sleeping comfortably, the spirits woke me.
Lila had capitalized on an opportunity, bypassing the guards and stealthily entered the annex.
