"Stand up."
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Elena slowly rose to her feet, pressing her hands against her reddened backside, her delicate lips so tense from biting that she was on the verge of drawing blood.
"It hurts so much!"
Even though a strange warmth had flared within her during the punishment, almost forcing her to squeal with unexpected sensation, the pain remained sharp and vivid. And she knew exactly who was responsible—Kurose Akira.
Damn him!
Elena shot him a glare full of lingering resentment before turning her gaze to the Elf Queen, waiting for her judgment.
"You may step aside for now. I have business to discuss with President Kurose," the Elf Queen said, waving her hand to dismiss Elena.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Elena bowed slightly, clutching her backside as she left the study. As she closed the door behind her, she muttered, "That hurt like hell! You horrible man! Just you wait—I'll get you back, hmph!"
Kurose Akira, however, remained completely unbothered. At worst, he'd just teach this elf princess another lesson at another time.
"All right~ now it's just the two of us," the Elf Queen said, raising her hand and lightly tapping the desk with her fingertips. Her voice softened as she added, "Next time, don't do strange things in my private chambers. If the elven elders find out, even I might not be able to protect you."
"The elven elders have that much power?" Akira asked, surprised. Even the Elf Queen had to defer to them?
"They are the cornerstone of the Elven Kingdom," she explained. "Many of them are only a few years younger than me, and they're among the greatest protectors of our people. I won't ever coerce them under the title of Queen unless absolutely necessary."
"Especially since the fault lies with you first," she added.
"Uh…" Akira found himself momentarily speechless. Did he… really err?
Cough cough~
Still, compared to this, it seemed the Elf Queen was not blaming him—or Elena—for the incident. At least, not in the same way the elven council would have… throwing a couple of reckless lovers into a pig cage and boiling them alive.
"All right~"
With a slight flick of her fingers, the crystalline ruler returned to her hand.
"Let's return to the main topic: your reward."
Akira fell silent instantly. The previous 'reward' alone had already satisfied him. Cough cough~
Clearing his throat, he asked carefully, "Your Majesty… the reward you intend for me… it's not this ruler, is it?"
"In a way, yes—and no."
The Elf Queen shook her head slightly, her voice gentle. "I hope you can help me remove this item's limitations."
"?"
Akira blinked, startled. "Your Majesty, you're sure this counts as a reward?"
"You may use it on any elf at your discretion."
"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your generosity!"
The sudden change in his tone made the Elf Queen smile knowingly. She continued, "Aside from that, the exact location of the Lich Lord has been confirmed. Tomorrow morning, I will personally lead the army. I hope, President Kurose, that you will be present."
"I'll be there," Akira promised, tapping his chest confidently.
"Good~"
The Queen tossed the elf ruler back to him, then stood and continued, "Although the elven people prohibit intermarriage, I've already assured you that you are… special. Elena's incident is forgiven—I will not pursue it.
"However!"
Her tone hardened sharply. "If you intend to marry Elena, I advise you to abandon that thought. She is unlike other elves."
"Because she will inherit your throne?" Akira asked cautiously.
"Yes… and no."
Her ambiguous answer left him puzzled.
"You may love any elf of your choosing, as long as they consent—but Elena is the exception."
"…I see."
Akira hesitated for a moment, then ventured, "So… would it be possible to… court you instead?"
The Elf Queen froze for a moment, then coldly glared at him. "What do you think?"
He quickly redirected the conversation. "Let's focus on the Lich Lord. Earlier, Elena mentioned that the Divine Realm has shattered… what exactly happened? Can you tell me?"
"Literal truth," she said slowly. "The Divine Realm became a void when the World Core broke. Even gods cannot survive there. And this happened thousands of years ago."
"The Divine Realm has shattered?"
Akira's expression twisted in disbelief. If true… the path to godhood was severed.
"Now, gods must rely solely on their divine power to maintain their own domains and protect their followers," the Elf Queen explained. "But some realms are so vast that even gods cannot sustain them for long. They teeter on the brink of collapse."
"So… the gods trick demigods into entering their domains, using the demigods' lives as the core for these realms. That's the Divine Realm today?"
"Tricking demigods?"
Akira immediately thought of Queen Medusa. She had been deceived into entering the Divine Realm—could it be connected?
"However~"
The Elf Queen's voice carried a hint of doubt. "Rumor has it some gods are seeking ways to fix the World Core, and one among them seems to have a solution."
"Oh?"
Akira raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "What kind of solution?"
"I do not know," she replied, shaking her head. "These messages come from the World Tree. Perhaps it knows."
"The World Tree?"
Akira's suspicion grew. Could the World Tree be a hidden god on this magical continent? It certainly knew far too much.
"We know very little about the Divine Realm. Even the details of the World Core's destruction remain a mystery," she continued, her gaze troubled. "All we can do is prepare for the repercussions that will ripple from the Divine Realm's collapse."
"Repercussions reaching here?"
"Yes~" she nodded gently. "The Divine Realm connects countless worlds. Its shattering will naturally cause tremors across others. It won't destroy worlds directly, but caution is advised."
"Your reasoning is sound," Akira said, nodding thoughtfully. He sensed something off but couldn't pinpoint it.
"All right~ let's return our focus to the Lich Lord," the Queen suggested, noticing his attention. "You are still far from godhood.
"Once the Lich Lord is dealt with, the millennia-long crisis of the elven people will be resolved."
She stepped closer, gently touching his cheek with her left hand, a warm smile on her face.
"Then, you will be an eternal friend of the elves~"
"Just a friend?"
"Greedy!"
She poked his chest with a fingertip, continuing, "Even so, you must not act recklessly toward the elves. If I learn you use your position to harm them, I will not forgive you!"
"I will remember your words, Your Majesty!"
Akira nodded earnestly, without hesitation.
"Good~"
The Elf Queen smiled, satisfied. "I need to rest. Let's meet again tomorrow, shall we?"
"Understood…"
Akira gripped the elf ruler and left the study.
Once he was gone, the Elf Queen's serene expression turned somber. Quietly, she murmured, "I hope the goddess' prophecy is correct…"
Outside the study, Elena waited. She leaned against the corridor wall, arms folded across her chest. As Kurose Akira emerged, she shot him a cold glance.
"Come on. I'll take you to Loserine and the others."
"Not sore anymore?" he asked with a smile, standing beside her.
Elena rolled her eyes, muttering through gritted teeth, "You bastard… just wait. You'll fall to me sooner or later!"
"Fine, I'll wait," he said with a faint smile, saying no more.
Soon, Elena led him to Loserine's side.
He noticed Canrutia standing with her hands on her hips, smugly enjoying Pettico's shoulder rubs and leg massages. It was clear that Pettico had discovered Canrutia's true identity as a vampire progenitor. But that was her old identity—things had changed now.
"All right!"
Akira tapped Canrutia lightly on the head.
"Ouch! What are you doing, human?!" she snapped angrily.
"We should head back," Akira said, lifting Canrutia off the ground.
Then he turned to Red Lotus and the others. "Have you reported back to Xu Feiyan?"
"Yes," Red Lotus nodded, grinning. "Thanks again for your help this time."
"No need. I'll take my leave."
"Until next time!"
Akira waved, leading Loserine and the others out of the Elven Kingdom.
Back at the guild, it was exactly 9 a.m. Lucia and the others had been waiting for him. The moment they saw Akira, Canrutia, and Loserine return through the portal, they were surprised.
"Mr. Kurose, what were you all doing?"
"It's a long story…"
Akira briefly summarized what he had witnessed. Of course, he skillfully omitted details about the elf ruler and the previous… incident.
"As long as you're safe. Next time, if something dangerous happens, come straight to the Church of Light," Lucia advised.
"Lucia is right," the White Elf Queen added. "Since this involves the Elven Kingdom, why not include me? I'm still part of this kingdom, after all."
"Understood, I'll keep that in mind next time," Akira said, smiling faintly.
"Tomorrow, the Elven Kingdom will send troops to the Lich Lord's lair. We will accompany them."
"Good~"
The White Elf Queen nodded, gently. "I hope this time we can finally conclude this millennia-long war perfectly."
"Mm~" Akira stretched. "I'm a bit tired. I'll log off for now. Nothing urgent today—rest up, everyone, and prepare for tomorrow."
"Yes, Master!"
Akira logged out, leaving the women looking toward Lucia for guidance. What should they do while he was gone?
Lucia didn't speak. She casually lifted her fingers and pulled out her swimsuit from the magic space.
"Yay!"
"Pool party!"
Everyone immediately understood and retrieved their own swimsuits.
"Queen, join us!" Fli and Flora held out their swimsuits excitedly, inviting the White Elf Queen.
"I…"
The White Elf Queen hesitated, having no swimsuit prepared.
At that moment, Lucia pulled out several extra swimsuits from her magic space. "Here, pick one you haven't worn yet."
"Thank you~"
Elsewhere, after logging out, Akira decided to take a short nap. Two hours of sleep would be enough to refresh him.
As soon as he lay down, he fell asleep immediately. The high-quality rest left him dreaming-free—but he wasn't awakened by a phone alarm. It was a knock at the door.
"Coming."
Stretching, he got up to open it.
Standing there was Xu Feiyan. Akira wasn't surprised—he knew only she had unrestricted access to the villa.
"You're back?" he asked, ruffling his messy hair.
"Just waking up?" Xu Feiyan raised an eyebrow.
It was six in the evening; his biological clock was more chaotic than she expected.
"Something like that."
Akira studied her carefully. "Are you here on inspection?"
"Something like that~" Xu Feiyan shrugged, pulling a device from her pocket resembling a wireless Bluetooth earpiece—but far more advanced, almost futuristic.
"This is the new console," she said, pointing to a small, inconspicuous button. "One press, and the game launches."
"???"
Akira's eyes widened as he examined the compact device.
"So small? Where's the console?"
"This is the console."
She produced another device, like a phone.
Akira glanced between Xu Feiyan's new gadget and his own ten-plus-kilogram old console, deep in thought…
…
Want to unlock up to 60+ early-access chapters with NFSW Content and exclusive novels ?! Join my Patreon today and dive deeper into the adventure!
patreon.com/denji21