Eldonia.
A week later.
I was sitting on the sofa in the same room where I had spoken with Mistiora, leaning back and staring blankly and wearily at the stone ceiling.
How much can change in a week? Not much, really, because it was impossible to accomplish anything significant in that time, especially after such an event as a large-scale military campaign against the capital of what seemed to be a fairly large, albeit weak, kingdom.
Or so I thought...
- "M-my lord..." I heard a trembling male voice in front of me. "I-I did everything you told me to, b-but they won't listen to me. They keep bringing me their money and practically demanding that I start building temples and statues in your honor. I... I just don't know what else to do to..."
- "Ha..." I took a really long breath, and the voice immediately fell silent, clearly trembling with fear.
Who was that? The King of Eldonia, of course. And now I didn't even need to look to see that he was almost crying because he couldn't carry out my order. And the order was...
- "Tsk," I clicked my tongue, causing the king to let out a frightened squeal, then quickly cover his mouth with his hand, accompanied by a loud slap, apparently on his own lips.
In one damn week, every damn resident of this damn city started praying to me, even if they didn't know my name or face, but only saw a tiny silhouette when I cast the spell. Of course, I had a rough idea of how things would turn out, but this fast? Heh. Now it's just a headache.
Initially, I wanted them to devote all their energy to developing their country, as the king had announced, but almost two-thirds of the city, and then the entire country, where details of my stunt had spread, began to practically demand the construction of temples, statues, and other religious crap.
And that was in one damn week!
I closed my eyes, then opened them and looked at the king of Eldonia, who was practically lying on the floor.
...well, at least it's some kind of movement, not complete boredom where I would just sleep and that would be it. Heh.
- "Okay, then let's do this," I began, at which he flinched and cautiously raised his gaze. "Only one temple. One, and not a brick more. All the rest of the time and money will go toward developing the country. When Eldonia becomes at least equal to Eostia, then they can do whatever they want. I hope you read that book I gave you?"
- "Y-yes!" the king exclaimed immediately.
- "Good. Then you know what to do, right?"
- "Y-yes!" he repeated.
- "Wonderful. You are dismissed," I said, and he flew out of the room, bowing to the floor first.
Well, the king of Eldonia is still a scatterbrained idiot, but if he follows the book containing the basics of statecraft, something sensible will come of it.
- "Sir," said Mistiora, who had been silent until now and was standing behind me. "I thought the gods liked to be worshipped and have temples built in their honor."
- "Consider me an exception," I shrugged and, creating a cup of coffee, took a sip.
"But let's change the subject. You've been wanting to tell me something for several days now, haven't you? What's on your mind?"
After a short silence, Mistiora sat down opposite me and took a deep breath, apparently to prepare herself for the conversation.
- "I've been thinking about this for a while, but..." she began uncertainly. "What... does Olga think of me?"
- "Hm? Olga?" I raised an eyebrow and scratched my chin. "It's all quite complicated. After all, I came here for two reasons, one of which was your curse and history, and the other was Olga's attitude towards you. And I would say that she has an extremely negative attitude towards you. By the way, why is that? Because she took your place, I suppose?"
- "I... understand her..." Mistiora lowered her head. "And you're right. The queen of the dark elves is different from the queen of humans. Her duties are only partly related to ruling. The queen's main purpose is to give birth to a pure-blooded dark elf who will carry the spirit of the progenitor of our race, the giant."
- "A giant?"
- "Yes. According to legend, the dark elves emerged from the brain of a giant, one of those who once inhabited this world. The monsters also descended from them, while humans, high elves, half-humans, and so on were created by the goddess Larentia, at least according to popular belief. But I digress. I apologize, sir."
- "It's all right, continue," I waved her off.
- "Only a pure-blooded dark elf whose body meets requirements that even I do not know can become queen. And I was perfect for this role, and to a lesser extent... Olga," Mistiora continued with bitterness in her voice. "I wasn't against this role and was preparing for it... unlike her. Even then, our relationship was less than ideal, and now... And now even more so."
- "In short, you, like her, think you let her down and set her up, huh?" I smirked, and Mistiora nodded and lowered her head even further. "Well, I can't say everything is fine, but it's not a lost cause. After all, it's not entirely your fault. Heh."
- "Don't get me wrong, sir, but you're wrong. It's my fault. If I had then..."
- "Yes, yes, you already told me," I interrupted her. "But right now you're facing a slightly different question, aren't you?"
I lay down on the sofa, put my hands under my head, and closed my eyes.
- "I told you then that I respect other people's choices, and that's why I won't pressure or coerce you. However, now that I'm still here, you have the opportunity to at least try to fix things. The question is whether you'll take it or not."
- "I... understand that," she said slowly, and then a relatively comfortable silence hung between us, at least for me. But after about a minute, Mistiora spoke again. "Sir, may I ask a question?"
- "Sure. There's nothing else to do right now."
- "Why are you so... kind to me?" she asked suddenly, causing me to open my eyes wide in surprise and look at her.
- "What, sorry?"
- "Why are you so kind to me?" Mistiora repeated her question. "You lifted the curse from me, and... And..."
- "And?"
- "It's hard to describe what I want to say," she stammered. "You're attentive to me, tactful, polite... willing to listen to me... even to learn and accept my opinion, as if... As if I'm..."
- "A person?" I rolled my eyes, received a short nod, and then smiled. "If you take only THAT as kindness, then I'm sorry to disappoint you, but that's not what it is. It's not 'kindness', it's 'respect'."
As soon as the last word was spoken, Mistiora looked up sharply and stared at me as if I were the driver of a world-famous truck-kun.
- "I respect you," I continued. "For me to respect someone, that person must be able to make their own choices, which they will not regret later. You chose to be led and accept punishment, and you only regretted that you had no way to fix the consequences. Not to make a different choice, not to replay the scenario, but to correct it by accepting all your mistakes. Am I right?"
- "That's... I suppose that's true..."
- "But now that I'm here, you have that opportunity, and you have to make a choice again. Yes, I lifted the curse, but nothing prevents me from putting it back if you want me to, of course," I said and returned to a lying position with my eyes closed. "It's entirely up to you, and I, again, will accept whatever choice you make, whether it's a life as a concubine or something more."
And I wasn't lying to her. Initially, I was intrigued by her story and her connection to Olga, but then I got to know her better, observing her for a fairly short period of time, which was more than enough.
Of course, her "adventures" could have caused outrage or condemnation in civilized society, but there was no such thing here, as this was the world of hentai.
Nevertheless, even considering her submissive nature, she continued on her chosen path, accepting the consequences of her decisions. Even if it made her more boring than I had previously thought. Heh.
I'll refrain from mentioning that she could have wondered where such a series of coincidences came from, but then again, that's just the kind of person she is.
I relaxed and got ready for sleep, because there was nothing else to do for now.
I wonder when Olga will finally contact me, huh? I hope it happens in a week at the latest, or I don't know where to go for adventure. After all, it's too early to visit the Shields. Yeah, right.
-0-
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