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===The spiral staircase connecting the second and third floors of the pleasure boat had only twenty-four steps.
The sound of the river water in the night wind was somewhat noisy, yet the sound of twenty-four footsteps was so clear.
So clear that Ariel quickly counted all the steps.
It was as fast as Allen's 'loan period,' he spoke of.
In the blink of an eye, only a short eight hours remained of the twenty-four.
Clack.
Ariel stepped onto the third-floor deck. The enthusiastic expression she had worn when deciding to go downstairs vanished into the air with the breeze.
She leaned tiredly against the railing, gazing at the river in the night.
The position of the Second Princess's Guardian Knight had originally been chosen with Allen as the template.
This was also why she had rejected Luke at lightning speed.
They were both heirs from one of the Four Great Noble families, yet Allen, at seven years old, was already an Advanced Water God Style swordsman, capable of sparring with a Saint-level practitioner.
What level were you, Luke?
Boasting about being an Intermediate Swordsman was truly too much for Ariel to bear.
Allen...
His killing was so swift, yet his eyes possessed a clarity uncharacteristic of a noble.
What a pity.
A spur-of-the-moment decision, yet Isolte had noticed.
It seemed that after tonight, the difficulty of recruiting Isolte had increased again. Although Ariel had reacted quickly, even attempting to win over Isolte by baring her heart at the end of their conversation, it seemed to have little effect so far.
Isolte Kureel was truly a 'loyal dog.'
Thinking of this, Ariel no longer clung to the idea of achieving any results tonight. A clear weariness showed on her face, and she sighed.
Then, she walked back to her bedroom.
Opening the door, the maid was still obediently squatting nearby.
Ariel smiled.
She stepped to the table by the window.
And pulled a chair to sit at the table.
Her pale, smooth golden hair hung down past her chin, hovering over the notebook.
Swaying gently.
Through the gaps between the candlelight and her hair.
Were the unconscious pen strokes from when Ariel had been lost in thought, and also the source of her actions after she realized what she had written.
On the notebook:
—A whole page densely filled:
"Obtain him."
On the second floor, silence in the quiet cabin was so profound that you could hear a pin drop.
Thump. Her hooded jacket fell to the floor.
The match in Allen's hand also burned to its end; the charred stick broke and fell to the ground as well.
The candle wasn't lit. The night wind beat against the window, seeping in faint wisps of air.
Allen was silent for a moment, then scratched his head.
Sylphy huddled, her head drawn in like a quail's.
When it came to saying "I want," she mumbled, unable to form words.
"I..."
'I want Allen to like it.'
So simple.
Very 'Sylphiette.'
Allen placed his hand on her shoulder, shaking his head helplessly.
The touch of her body was quite cold.
"Were you outside the door for a long time just now? I wasn't using Sense Flow, and I was thinking, so I didn't notice. I'm sorry."
"Don't catch a cold."
He embraced her, curling Sylphy into a cat-like ball, then sat beside her.
Sylphy blinked her eyes.
The two looked at each other, bathed in the moonlight streaming in through the window.
They both smiled.
Allen leaned against the headboard, saying with a smile.
"So, you thought I'd like Sylphy dressed like that, which is why you wore it that way these two times?"
"..." Sylphy remained silent.
"I like Sylphiette the person."
Sylphy's body stiffened, her eyes blinking, but she didn't look up.
New sounds entered her ears.
"It has nothing to do with what she's wearing."
Sylphy was silent for a moment, then her body suddenly relaxed. Her voice also softened, a faint whisper.
"Mm."
Allen grinned. He looked at Sylphy's face, which rested on his lap, its baby fat long gone. Her delicate, upturned nose, and her trembling eyelashes.
He felt a little dazed.
In the blink of an eye, he had known Sylphy for two years.
Compared to the deliberately infantilized portrayal in the anime, the 'graphics' of the true Jobless world had many differences from the anime. For example, the architectural style of the world was more realistic, stripped of the anime's inherent 'Western fantasy Japanese anime' audience stereotype. The fine artwork from the paper original transformed into a slightly rugged sword-and-magic continent's architectural style.
The scenery was the same, rougher, losing much of its exquisite aesthetic, yet appearing more raw, like a shift from the 2D feel of the Jobless anime to a Witcher-esque art style.
People were the same.
Ariel with her clear, emerald eyes and exquisitely proportioned facial features. Roxy, deep blue like the ocean, with a delicate jawline. Eris with her intensely aggressive and commanding deep-set eyes and brows. Isolte with her vibrant, grand eyes, nose, and lips, and her prominent nose bridge.
Humans in this world, to the naked eye, matured very early.
So much so that the anime's simple, childlike lines seemed so distorted.
Reality was closer to the expressive illustrations in the original novel's supplemental volumes.
The two looked at each other, and looked.
With just a glance, they could feel each other's hearts.
Outside the window, the river.
Moonlight licked the ripples.
Splash, splash.
The Artir River murmured its joy to the moon in the night wind.
===
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