Chapter 736

Episode 736

You Have to Trust Me. (3)

Ereneth was brimming with curiosity toward this human she had never seen before. Ghislain noticed this while fighting her.

Unlike the future Ereneth, who had endured countless battles and boasted tremendous strength (?), the current Ereneth clearly lacked experience.

So Ghislain decided to take advantage of that side of her. If it worked, he might be able to stay in this forest a little longer.

Watching Ereneth’s behavior from his hiding spot, Ghislain inwardly let out a cheer. Ereneth had really taken his side.

‘Nice! A chance has come up! Now, let’s figure out a plan!’

With Ghislain’s cue, Dark and Astion quickly joined him, and an emergency meeting commenced. They had to persuade Ereneth as soon as the elves withdrew.

Astion was the first to speak, sounding urgent.

― How about just asking her out? If you start dating, of course she’ll take your side, right? Please!

True to his obsession with romance, Astion’s plan was to charge ahead with a confession. It was the kind of idea only a guy who had never been in a relationship could come up with.

Of course, for someone like Ghislain or Dark who actually knew Ereneth, that was far from a good idea.

Dark flailed beside him and tried to stop him.

― Do you even know who that elf is? Don’t be fooled by her pretty face. Even if you somehow manage to seduce her, that’s not the end. If you piss her off during some stupid love quarrel, you’re dead. Just dead.

The future Ereneth was a powerhouse even Ghislain couldn’t confidently defeat with his true power. Even in the Ritanian army full of elites, she stood out as something special.

And yet, she kept getting stronger as time went on. Even she said her full strength hadn’t returned yet.

To Dark, Ereneth was a monster among monsters. And Astion, date someone like her?

He could guarantee it: if Astion so much as rubbed her the wrong way, he’d be squashed like a bug.

But Astion, whose mind had already short-circuited, wasn’t listening.

― I’d rather die!

― …She’s probably way older than you, you know? She’s an elf.

― Younger guys are all the rage these days!

― …

― You’re all going to leave anyway! Can’t you at least do this one thing for me before that?

Surprisingly, Astion was serious. If Ghislain got into a relationship now, Astion could continue dating her easily after Ghislain left.

It was a desperate scheme from someone who had no confidence in charming a woman on his own.

Clicking his tongue, Dark offered a new suggestion.

― Master, this guy’s brain is filled with romance. He’s useless. Just listen to me.

‘Got a better idea?’

― Let’s just keep it simple. That monster elf is weaker than you right now, right? Just subdue her and take her hostage. Then announce to all the elves that you’ll kill her if they don’t hand over the Sacred Stone.

‘……’

― Master, you always go all out anyway!

There’s a common misconception about Ghislain. He doesn’t act recklessly without thinking.

He simply ignores convention to maximize efficiency and achieve good results. If the outcome is bad or the side effects are too severe, there’s no point in ignoring common sense.

Dark, unable to distinguish that difference, just insisted on brute-forcing the situation.

‘…You guys are absolutely no help right now.’

At this rate, it was no different from three idiots trying to come up with a plan. The elves were already leaving, so they had to come up with a way to persuade Ereneth, fast.

Astion tried to merge Dark’s suggestion into a new idea.

― Then how about we subdue her first, take her hostage, and *then* ask her out? We’re combining both our plans into one.

― Wow, you’re the worst. You piece of trash!

It had been Dark who first suggested subduing her and using her as a hostage with threats of death. But hearing it come out of someone else’s mouth really made it sound vile.

Dark immediately tried to distance himself from Astion, subtly drawing a line between them.

Astion shouted, practically foaming at the mouth.

― I just added to *your* plan! At least I didn’t say to kill her!

― Ugh, you’re such a mess. What’s gotten into you?

― Shut up! It’s all your fault! You’re the ones who made me like this! You hijacked my body and did whatever you wanted!

Neither of them could say anything to that. Honestly, even if Astion did go crazy sometimes, they had to admit he had a point.

Sure, thanks to Ghislain, Astion had grown stronger without much effort, and that could be seen as a form of repayment—but the growing infamy that came with it was a serious issue.

Still, this wasn’t the time to be consoling Astion. Ghislain pressed his fingers hard to his temples and growled.

‘Stop babbling and help me write a proper script!’

― W-What if we start with compliments to put her in a good mood? I read in *Introduction to Romance for Lonely Mages* that compliments work wonders on women.

― Yeah! There’s a saying that even dragons will dance if you flatter them! Compliment her to lower her guard, then subdue her!

Useless, as expected. In the end, Ghislain threw out the word “Seer,” and based on that, the three of them hastily hammered out a scenario.

Once they had a rough outline, Ghislain introduced himself to Ereneth as a “Seer.”

Naturally, Ereneth didn’t believe him. It was far too random and out of the blue.

Seeing the suspicious look in her eyes, Ghislain wiggled his fingers.

“I get that it’s hard to believe. But the fact that I know your name—that’s the proof.”

“It’s definitely strange that you know my name… Come to think of it, how do you know it? And how does that prove anything?”

“Because your name appeared in the revelation I received!”

“R-Really?”

“Of course! The revelation told me to find you, Ereneth, and work together to resolve the issue in the northern forest.”

At those words, Ereneth was visibly startled. There truly *was* a problem in the northern forest.

The fact that an intruder not only knew her name but also something only elves should be aware of—it started to throw her off.

‘Could he really have received a revelation?’

Elves might be ignorant of the outside world, but they weren’t fools. Still, faced with such an irrational situation, Ereneth couldn’t help but start falling for Ghislain’s lie.

Encouraged by that, she pressed further.

“Then why didn’t you come openly into the forest? Why sneak in? You could’ve just said my name and offered to help with the northern forest’s issue.”

“Hmm, that part’s a bit long to explain, but I’ll keep it short. The city’s Foreign Affairs Officer was violently against letting my party into the forest.”

“Lord Sylarn? Why? He would’ve agreed if you just explained the truth.”

That hadn’t been possible. Ghislain had only discovered the northern forest’s problem after sneaking in.

He couldn’t just drop Ereneth’s name prematurely either.

Maintaining his composure, Ghislain added a hint of truth to his lie.

“The revelation said we’d need the Sacred Stone the elves hold. The Pope believed me and gave me full support—even made me an official envoy. But Lord Sylarn refused outright without even hearing me out.”

“Sacred Stone? You mean the Blessing Stone?”

“B-Blessing Stone?”

“Yeah, we call it the Blessing Stone. It’s a relic the Goddess left to protect each race.”

“…Aha.”

That was similar, but not quite what the Pope had called it.

Well, that’s how myths usually were. Different regions tell them differently, interpret them differently.

In truth, Ghislain had no interest in myths. All he wanted was to get the Sacred Stone and see how it affected Deneb.

“Anyway, that’s why I had to sneak in. I had to find you somehow and save the elves.”

“And you need the Blessing Stone too? Why’s that?”

“Mm, the revelation said it was needed to solve the northern forest’s problem. That’s all I know. That’s how revelations are, right? But I’m sure it’s the key to solving everything.”

They hadn’t had time to prepare a detailed scenario for that.

Still, calling himself a Seer wasn’t a complete lie. Ghislain knew the future.

And for the sake of humanity, Deneb had to awaken. Saving humanity was no different from saving the elves too.

That’s why Ghislain could speak with such conviction.

It was an entirely natural flow, or so he believed. Feeling a bit proud, he asked Astion and Dark in his mind.

‘So? How was my acting?’

― I wanna talk to a girl too.

‘…….’

― Master. That girl’s just going to get more annoying in the future anyway. Why not just beat her up now and put her in her place? Screw the Sacred Stone, let’s just smack her around and run for it.

‘…….’

They were both utterly driven by their own desires. Ghislain no longer saw any point in talking to them.

After pondering Ghislain’s words for a moment, Ereneth finally nodded.

“Hmm… Is that so? Yeah, I suppose that makes sense.”

From her expression, it seemed like she had accepted Ghislain’s explanation to some degree.

Watching her, Ghislain wore a subtle smile.

Having sorted her thoughts, Ereneth asked him again.

“Alright, then what now?”

“First, you and I will go check out the northern forest together.”

“And after that?”

“Once we’ve confirmed what the problem is, we’ll look for a solution. You know how revelations are always vague, right? What matters is that you were mentioned in it—that we’re supposed to do this together.”

“Got it. So first, we go inspect the northern forest, right?”

“Exactly. You and I will solve this together.”

At that, Ereneth gave a faint smile.

Truth be told, life in the forest had been dull for her. This kind of adventure was exactly what she’d been hoping for.

Of course, she hadn’t completely let down her guard around humans. She’d been thoroughly trained, after all.

Ereneth suddenly grabbed Ghislain by the collar and yanked him close to her face.

She had heard more than once that humans were easily bewitched by elven beauty.

With a seductive smile, Ereneth whispered low.

“If you’re lying to me, I won’t let it slide. But… if this all turns out well, we might end up getting quite close. In more ways than one.”

Her low, sultry voice tickled Ghislain’s ear. He wore a faintly startled expression.

The Ereneth he knew was not the type of elf to show even a hint of flirtation.

Yet here she was, behaving with a boldness uncharacteristic of an elf—seductive and unabashed.

It must’ve been her youth. Or maybe, it was something only this version of her could do.

Ereneth smiled triumphantly at Ghislain’s dazed look.

‘Humans, so predictable…’

Surely, the human before her had lost all sense in the face of her beauty.

She knew just how beautiful she was. Even elves, who didn’t place much value on appearance, often commented on it—an undeniable truth.

Of course, their words always carried a note of caution. Warnings not to let themselves be swayed by superficial beauty like humans often were.

But such warnings didn’t matter to Ereneth.

‘Why wouldn’t I use every tool available to me?’

She was the kind of elf who had no qualms about weaponizing her looks.

The problem was that Ghislain wasn’t just any human.

‘What is this? Did she eat some weird forest fruit or something? Who the hell taught her this?’

He just looked baffled.

Ghislain wasn’t someone who got distracted by appearances. He had seen far too much in life for that.

Even Ereneth’s beauty stirred nothing in him. In fact, gender itself held no meaning for him.

Enemy or ally.

That was all that mattered to Ghislain.

Unaware of this, Ereneth leaned in a little closer and made a coy expression.

“Got it?”

It was like the sweet scent of fruit wafted around her. Ghislain suppressed a laugh and nodded.

“Got it.”

― Yes, ma’am!

He ignored Astion's enthusiastic reply from his consciousness.

Finally, Ereneth let him go and turned around. She was a bit embarrassed, but she was certain the human man had now fallen for her.

Everything she had heard about humans had helped. She had even practiced this kind of thing alone, hoping to use it once she got out into the world.

Leading the way, Ereneth wore a cold smile.

‘A revelation? Like I’d believe something like that. But this is fun, so I’ll play along for a bit. Soon enough, you’ll spill everything—how you know my name, and how you know about the northern forest’s issue.’

She had no intention of using force just yet. Her goal was to make this human fall for her and get him to talk willingly.

This was one of the many things she’d wanted to try after hearing about the outside world.

For now, she was simply enjoying a small adventure.

Ereneth steadied her breath to maintain her composure. The guilt of breaking the rules gave her a strange thrill that was hard to describe.

Following behind her, Ghislain curved his lips into a grin—recalling the peculiar smile Ereneth had shown when she first accepted his words.

‘Ereneth… you were cunning even back then, huh?’

He had already seen through her little performance.

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