### Chapter 332: Bread and Dagger (30)
The coniferous forest in the northern region boasts a vast expanse. Until now, the ground had barely shown signs of moss. The fact that so many trees could grow here was astonishing.
The forest was a treasure trove of life. Plants played a crucial role in absorbing nutrients from the ground. Only with plants supporting the base of the food chain could the ecosystem thrive. Thus, the coniferous forest held significant meaning in the northern region.
It was probably the place with the most life in the north, and it housed even greater dangers.
I intended to explore the mysteries of nature. That is, if Senior Elsi hadn’t suddenly barged in on me.
Senior Elsi’s clumsy seduction continued.
“Master, um, isn’t it a little… warm? Want to take off some clothes?”
“No, I’m fine.”
“Don’t say that!”
After much effort, Senior Elsi managed to get me to sit on the bed. Her determination to seize this opportunity to advance our relationship was admirable. Now she was even trying to feel around and strip off my clothes.
Of course, Senior Elsi’s strength was no match for me. Furthermore, her touch was too clumsy; it was clear that she had little understanding of a man’s clothing.
In hindsight, Senior Elsi was a virgin herself.
Having spent only one night together, I had inadvertently become someone who took pride in my sexual experience. If Reto saw me, he would surely scoff at me.
But what could I do?
Senior Elsi was nothing but a blank canvas, and I had just experienced a richly dense night. My mindset was bound to be different.
Moreover, Senior Elsi now looked excessively impatient.
I silently took her hand as she fumbled with my clothes.
Startled, Senior Elsi trembled for a moment before cautiously stealing glances at me.
She looked just like a puppy caught in the act.
I needed to reassure her with warm words.
“Senior Elsi, what’s wrong?”
“W-why…?”
Recently, she had been speaking informally to me. There was only one reason for her to revert to formal speech: she was psychologically intimidated.
She was trying to make a sexual advance, something she’d never done before.
I didn’t know what was in her heart, but if she wasn’t anxious and trembling, she would be lying. After all, everyone’s first experience was a mix of yearning and fear.
It wasn’t necessary to limit this to just women.
I recalled Reto once advising that many men also experience anxiety during their first time.
So, I had decided to ease that tension by sharing some detailed experiences.
It was a ridiculous thought.
When faced with a drunk Delphine, my reason and self-control became trivial. That was deeply troubling.
I particularly felt sorry for both the Lady Virgin Saint and Senior Elsi.
Both women had a lot of connections with me. I had often found myself imagining a future involving both of them without thinking.
At the very least, life wouldn’t be boring if I lived with either the Lady Virgin Saint or Senior Elsi.
Additionally, I had once pictured living with other women.
For example, with Emma.
If I wanted to lead a quiet life, that might be the perfect choice.
Of course, it was nothing more than a vain fantasy. Marriage was a union of lives, requiring various conditions beyond the desires of the parties involved.
However, Senior Elsi was an exception.
Senior Elsi had conveyed her feelings to me, and I was seriously contemplating our relationship.
Thus, the fault lay with me.
Even though we weren’t officially involved, I had an obligation to answer her feelings sincerely.
I spoke to Senior Elsi in a low voice to soothe her.
“It feels strange today. You keep asking me to take off my clothes… you used to be more composed.”
This was a somewhat false comment.
Senior Elsi hardly felt like an elder. While she seemed to have regained some composure lately, the walls built up over time were still tall and steep.
It wouldn’t be easy for that evaluation to flip in a short period.
The reason I crafted evaluations like that was purely because Senior Elsi preferred that.
She had an oddly stubborn insistence on being seen as older.
I had only recently come to realize this fact.
As if to confirm my suspicion, Senior Elsi soon cleared her throat, trying hard to regain her composure.
“Um, was that so?”
Yes, it certainly was.
I forced back the words rising in my throat and said to Senior Elsi.
“You seem a bit off today. Plus, I’ll be wandering through the enemy’s territory starting tomorrow, so if one of our top powers is feeling unstable, it could spell trouble.”
It was a rare compliment directed towards Senior Elsi.
Someone like her was susceptible to such praises. Even from the beginning, she loved being petted by me.
She couldn’t help but feel elated by my high evaluation.
Normally, there wouldn’t be a need for me to soothe Senior Elsi, but obtaining the information I aimed for was paramount right now.
I observed the corners of Senior Elsi’s mouth twitching and decided to go for the final blow.
“Besides, if you’re anxious, it doesn’t sit well with me either.”
That was true.
It was simply a matter of my deeply embarrassing feelings that I hadn’t revealed until now.
Only recently, I had realized when Senior Elsi was being bullied.
Our relationship with her would no longer be as it once was.
Yes, the feelings were genuine.
Once I said it aloud, I felt quite embarrassed. In the end, I coughed lightly and turned my gaze away.
I could feel my ears heating up.
However, it seemed worth it, as Senior Elsi couldn’t contain her sly smile.
With her chest puffed out, she confidently declared, “R-right?! You must be concerned about me, Master. Of course!”
Now was the time.
I instinctively dug into the main point.
“Well then, please tell me.”
I saw Senior Elsi’s body tremble slightly.
However, I didn’t give Senior Elsi time to contemplate.
“Why do you look so anxious? You said you couldn’t sleep last night.”
“Th-that’s….”
Senior Elsi scratched her cheek and averted her gaze. Her slightly flushed face suggested it was an embarrassing confession for her.
I urged Senior Elsi once more.
“Senior Elsi, I had to suppress my embarrassment to speak. So, you must tell me the truth.”
“Ah, um, well, you see….”
Senior Elsi hesitated until the end, but there was no way she could withstand my insistence.
In the end, she declared her surrender.
“Ah, geez! There are strange rumors going around!”
I pondered while crossing my arms silently.
“Strange rumors” are circulating, huh.
At least it meant she wasn’t a witness to what transpired with me.
Nevertheless, my concerns remained, and I asked Senior Elsi again.
“What strange rumors?”
“Well, um… that Delphine girl has set her sights on you….”
It was undoubtedly true.
She wouldn’t have spent a night with me otherwise.
That alluring smile still lingered in my mind. In fact, it was thanks to Senior Elsi that I managed to stay calm before her advances.
Compared to Delphine Senior, Senior Elsi’s seduction was nothing but child’s play.
As I fell silent, Senior Elsi continued, her tone somewhat excited.
“That girl, doesn’t she have an ounce of conscience?! She made a move on you during the Hunting Festival and now she’s saying she likes you? Ha, ha… it’s ridiculous!”
With her fists clenched, it seemed Senior Elsi was quite angry.
And it was understandable.
She had already been monitoring the women around me. Now, with news that Delphine had her sights set on me, her anger was justified.
She even started pestering me about it.
“Master… you aren’t planning on falling for that girl, right? I doubt she’s had only a handful of men in her life?! I heard the rumors this morning that her moans echoed in the hallway the night before…!”
Half of that was a truth, and half was a lie.
The truth was that Delphine had indeed moaned the night before.
Since I was the one rolling around in bed with her at that time.
The lie was that Delphine’s relationship history was chaotic.
Confirming her virginity last night meant it was undeniably a false rumor. It was pitiful that I couldn’t clear that misunderstanding.
What if I revealed the truth of last night’s events here?
I hesitated and asked Senior Elsi.
It was a playful question disguised as inquiry.
“Are you jealous? Afraid that I might fall for Delphine’s seduction?”
Surprised by my humor-laden question, Senior Elsi waved her hands in a panic.
It was a desperate denial.
She hesitantly managed to respond.
“Ah, no! How could I suspect you, Master? It’s just….”
Just that single word was a signal.
A gloomy shadow began to loom in Senior Elsi’s eyes. The sound escaping through her clenched teeth was chilling.
“Just… if you really do lay a hand on him… you’d better be prepared.”
Who would be prepared for what?
I barely held back the flood of questions surging in me. Instead, only awkward laughter slipped from my lips.
“Ah, hahaha… I see, yes.”
Hearing my laughter, Senior Elsi beamed a trusting smile.
It was a smile filled with the assurance that such a thing wouldn’t happen.
That adorable face pierced into my heart like an arrow tip.
As a final parting message, Senior Elsi left me with a meaningful warning.
“And also… be careful around that ‘breast woman’ too.”
Her tone had reverted to the informal speech she had been using.
The derogatory term “breast woman” carried a palpable chill. It was highly disrespectful, yet I couldn’t help but think of someone as soon as I heard it.
The Lady Virgin Saint.
At the sudden mention of her name, my head tilted in confusion.
“Why the Lady Virgin Saint?”
“Because we made a bet.”
It was a confession tinged with some displeasure.
Before I could even ask about the details of the bet, Senior Elsi waved her hand and exited the tent. At least she had showed a smiling face at the end, which was nice.
That smiling face suited her far better.
So I would make her smile in the future as well.
I could not let my relationship with Delphine be exposed. While perhaps less than Ceria, Senior Elsi also fell into the dangerous category.
I still remembered Senior Elsi arriving with a kitchen knife at Percus Manor.
That left me with just one remaining question.
Who was the woman that witnessed my night with Delphine?
With Senior Elsi eliminated from the candidates, only two remained.
The Lady Virgin Saint or the Imperial Princess.
Emma was excluded since she had only been surprised by the lavish bedroom.
However, it was awkward for me to be overtly proactive. The more I did that, the more the witness might try to conceal the truth.
If someone intended to reveal that fact, they would have sought me out long ago.
It seemed I would need the assistance of an expert after all.
I pulled out a small note from my pocket.
It was a response I had received to a letter I sent to the Academy not long ago. The written lines were extremely brief.
“I will visit soon.”
Yuridina’s information network could not be trusted, and I had to suspect everyone to root out the traitor.
I had no other choice.
I had to call upon my person.
And while asking for assistance, it wouldn’t hurt to attach a small favor.
I checked my gear to prepare for the next day.
I planned to dive straight into the coniferous forest starting tomorrow.
So it would be best to go to bed early today. I worried about Emma and the Princess, but they would likely want to take time for personal maintenance on their first night.
Yes, I no longer had plans to meet anyone.
If the Lady Virgin Saint hadn’t come to me that night.
“Ian….”
Trembling, the woman buried her face in my chest.
“I’m, I’m sick of it?!”
It was something I had heard before.
With that thought, I managed to guess the identity of the scent tickling my nose.
It was the smell of alcohol.
It appeared the Lady Virgin Saint had been through some tough times emotionally as well.
“Why, why did you leave me… sob, why did you do that?!”
I patted the Lady Virgin Saint’s back in silence.
While I pondered.
Why was she behaving like this again?
Of course, it was a question that would disappear shortly after.
The pleasant sensation of the Lady Virgin Saint’s ‘sacred power pouch’ pressing against my upper body was quite enjoyable.
It seemed I had one more woman to soothe.
