21 – Shady Dark Elf

He is invited by Iris, whom he did not want to face yet, and sits across from her in a restaurant that is the future and the same as the past.

In the dining room, only the sound of attendants serving dinner lingers, and even that sound is now fading away.

In the quiet restaurant, the smell that stimulates the nose vibrates, and various kinds of food delight the eyes. I have such a dinner in front of me, but the current situation is so uncomfortable that my appetite does not come up.

The cause of that discomfort breaks the sense of silence.

“You must have had a hard time coming secretly, but I’ll take some food.”

Seeing her sarcasm, which has never been used in a sarcastic way in her life, is both new and uncomfortable.

“Then I will eat well.”

Rachel took off her mask and robe and started eating, even though Iris was present, as if she had sold the rule of not showing her voice and appearance to strangers. Seeing that, Iris’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“Hmm. Were you hanging out with the Dark Elves?”

“Are there any problems?”

“There are many ways to point out problems, but since you know, I won’t tell you.”

She’s right. Unlike the elves, who are treated as blessed beings, the dark elves are perceived as cursed beings, so they can be seen as a problem.

“I am well aware of the world’s perception of Dark Elves. However, they are better than you think.”

“Hmm. You seem to know more about the Dark Elves than I thought. From the information I received, I know that there is no contact with the Dark Elves. Did you meet when you went south?”

I doubt my ears and look at her.

“What are you looking at with that expression? Wouldn’t it be strange if you knew the information about your fiancé?”

It’s not that she’s wrong. It is worth knowing at least some information about your fiancé. However, she who was indifferent to me is not the kind of person to do that.

“You seem more interested in me than I thought.”

“I’ve said it before, but I care about you and don’t want to miss you. So I did a little research.”

Yes, she said that last time too. If I had heard it in my previous life, I would have liked it. However, I don’t like that word now. I have very little hope, but I don’t want to hear that because I know the pain when that hope collapses. want to refuse I want to distance myself now.

“I also told you last time.”

“I remember that much, so there is no need to say it. Rather, eat before the food gets cold.”

She cuts me off and starts eating. There is something I want to say to her, but I swallow and eat.

The venison steak, which I often ate here, is sliced and put on. It’s not the taste I remembered. In fact, I don’t even know what it tastes like because of the discomfort. I just hope this time is over, and I put it in my mouth.

When I spend such an uncomfortable and quiet meal time, Rachel, who was next to me, pulls on my sleeve. Looking to the side, she offers me a large bone-in steak.

Strangely, for her, who is not used to knife sharpening, she cuts the steak into bite-size pieces. She happily eats the meat I cut.

Just then, a cold voice is heard from the other side.

“It’s nice to see them slicing… They look like they’re getting along well.”

She glares at us with a frown on her face. It was an expression that anyone who saw it could feel that he was in a bad mood.

“Yes! I have a very good relationship with my brother. Yes?”

Rachel answers brightly without notice and demands an answer from me. The look on her face made her look more crumpled. Seeing that, I want to keep a little distance from the approaching woman, so I throw away my notice.

“right. We’ve been together for almost three months.”

“Yes.”

I look at Rachel who responds to my words once, and check Iris’ expression once more. The frown disappeared and returned to an expressionless face. However, seeing that figure is different from usual, and the conversation goes cold.

“I see, yes… I know that we are good friends.”

She chews her innocent lips once and continues talking.

“More than that, I wonder how the two of you got along.”

“I will tell you that.”

Watch Rachel come out.

“Hmm. It was a fateful encounter from the beginning.”

Her expression almost crumpled because she was spouting nonsense.

“When I ran into the brother in the waiting room for the martial arts competition, I felt that this person was the person of my destiny.

It’s the first time I’ve heard bullshit. I want to scream what nonsense right now, but Iris’ expression is getting worse, so I hold back.

“So I spoke first. The brother reacted harshly when a stranger started talking to him, but later he came to visit us first.”

It is true that he was harsh at first, and it is true that I visited him first, but I feel like my insides are turned upside down.

“I was very happy about that, but it was so cute seeing them come first.”

I want to shut that mouth that makes terrible noises right now.

“At the same time, we talked a little, and we exchanged good wishes while watching each other’s qualifiers.”

A slight vibration came from the dining table.

“And when I had no place to go in a foreign country, the brother invited me to his house.

“Right.”

Iris’ voice feels the cold chill and a stinging gaze.

“We made a promise to meet each other in the finals the next day, and we ended up fighting in the finals.”

“I know that.”

“As you can see, I had the advantage until the last minute. I honestly played with it.”

He was so honest that his face was frowning.

“Even though it was clear that there was such an overwhelming difference in skill, the brother did not give up. It made me feel a bit sadistic. ‘How can I destroy that person?’ That kind of thinking grew quickly.”

I usually forget it because of my curious childlike behavior, but I get dizzy every time I check that shady mind.

“While thinking so, the brother threw down his sword. To be honest, I was very disappointed and wanted to end it as it was, but the brother gave up his defense and grabbed me by the neck.”

When I think of that, I feel the wounds I suffered from her ache.

“I was very impressed with the beast-like expression he made as he slammed me to the ground.”

“Right…”

“We met again after the game, made an important confession to the brother, and became very close while traveling together for about three months.”

I don’t know what terrible things she is talking about. Obviously, there is no lie, but hearing the strange twist of facts makes me feel uncomfortable. When I think so, the table shakes greatly.

“… What’s the important confession?”

“It’s a secret between the two of us.”

Rachel’s bright voice contrasted with Iris’s voice, cold like a northern blizzard.

“…Yes, I fully understand how you two are.”

Blushing slightly, she glares at me and Rachel.

“Even if you guys are like that, I have no intention of giving up on him.”

After a misunderstanding, she gets up from her seat after speaking.

“I’m tired, so I’ll go first. Get some rest and talk again tomorrow.”

She leaves with a somewhat weak gait. Seeing her not always confident and dignified makes me feel strange.

“Brother, did I do well?”

I put aside the odd feeling in Rachel’s voice.

“yes. Since when did you notice?”

“From the first time the brother and sister met, I could feel that he was uncomfortable.”

I felt it while going around together, but she is very quick to notice in strange places.

“Well done. By the way, are you a sister?”

“Oh is that it? She may not be as good as the brother, but she is a sister because she has been greatly blessed by Lord Kaian.”

The word “great blessing” is particularly jarring, but since there is no way to know, it’s comfortable not to care.

“Something feels strange about making my sister angry.”

“never mind. The feeling of the words was strange, but they weren’t lying either.”

At my words, she smiles and opens her mouth.

“I don’t mean that. It’s because I feel strange when I make fun of someone who has a greater blessing than me.”

“Is it strange?”

Seeing her talking with a strange expression makes me feel bad.

“Is the size of our blessing a little hierarchical? order? I mean, that’s it. But, because I think I’m playing with someone taller than me. Even though I feel like I’m doing something wrong, it’s a strange feeling because the thrill and uplift come to me.”

Hearing the shady feeling again makes me want to wash my ears and throw her away somewhere.

“Ah, but the fight with the brother was worse than now.”

His face frowns at the fact he doesn’t want to know. I didn’t want to hear, so I reached out to cover her mouth, but she got away.

“When I found out that a person as blessed as the high priest was weak, I wanted to play with him. So I did what I thought. Keew, I really can’t forget the feeling at that time.”

“I didn’t want to know that feeling, and I didn’t want to hear it. Don’t come near me for a while.”

He runs out of the restaurant, leaving her horribly shady and giving her goosebumps. I hear her voice from behind, but I ignore it and slightly revise my evaluation of her in my heart.

It’s terribly shady, so you have to be careful.