Volume 6, Chapter 72 – The Fire Cat Falling in Love

Time passed quickly, and soon it was afternoon.

The disappearance of the Wandering Knight didn’t cause a commotion; instead, the recovery of the hostages brought a pleasant surprise. According to the hostages, the Wandering Knight simply tapped their companions’ foreheads with a glowing finger, and those who were dull as wood gradually regained their senses. These hostages didn’t remember how they came here, or even that they had fallen into the hands of the Darkborn. Therefore, both Ying and Nola believed that the Wandering Knight had erased their memories, allowing them to return to themselves.

In terms of results, this was naturally a good thing. However, the problem was that there was no magic in the world that could selectively erase memories. Even the magic [Black Eye], which randomly erased one’s own memory, was classified as a forbidden spell. The Wandering Knight, with only sixth-rank strength, couldn’t possibly have the ability to cast forbidden spells. Coupled with the hostages’ description that the Wandering Knight turned into ashes and disappeared at the end, the Wandering Knight suddenly became mysterious.

Of course, these matters were neither trivial nor huge. Although the Wandering Knight broke the agreement, he didn’t cause trouble before leaving. Plus, Nola’s initial purpose for recruiting the Wandering Knight was to have him assist her against Chazo. Now that Chazo was defeated, the Wandering Knight’s importance decreased accordingly, and his departure wouldn’t change anything.

If anything, what changed was only the beastmen’s attitude toward the Wandering Knight. From now on, there would be no such person as the Wandering Knight in Cold Night. Beastmen valued oaths; those who broke oaths wouldn’t receive respect from beastmen.

Compared to the annoying matters brought by the Wandering Knight, Nola cared more about herself now. Fia would leave Cold Night before long, leaving her with very little time remaining.

“Haah.”

Exhaling a long breath, Nola slowly walked out of Tsukuyomi’s mansion under the midday sun. She was waiting for Fia to come out of the house so they could go to the Weeping Mountains together to question Helian clearly. However, when Fia was leaving, she was entangled by Tsukuyomi and other Charm Cats. Not liking to see that scene, Nola stepped out of the house first—the Charm Cats weren’t joking. Fia’s energy tasted shockingly good, so much so that Charm Cats had been making eyes at her for the past two days. Tsukuyomi even joked that since Fia’s energy was high enough to satisfy the Charm Cat race alone, and she was an elf possessing Mana Surge, the Charm Cat race wouldn’t need to depend on other races in the future; they could just serve Fia as their King.

Although these were just Tsukuyomi’s joking words and everyone knew it wasn’t realistic, it still made Nola quite displeased. There was the unhappiness that Tsukuyomi clearly served her as the clan leader yet still fawned over Fia, and also the indignation at Tsukuyomi leaning her scented body on Fia, selling her charm to please Fia. She understood she was being jealous as a woman, but she could do nothing about it. It was like watching Fia and Claire being intimate while she was excluded, stomping her feet in anger.

“Tch, having Claire yet still hooking up with Charm Cats. Just get suffocated by the Charm Cats.”

Pouting angrily, Nola kicked a stone by her feet as soon as she walked out the door, causing the guards in the courtyard to have strange expressions. However, Nola didn’t care and walked straight out the gate.

Because it was noon with the sun shining brightly, beastmen often took naps at this time. Therefore, there were only scattered pedestrians on the square in front of the mansion gate. The dazzling light reflected by the slate pavement made it hard to open one’s eyes. Most beastmen living nearby were napping in the shadows around the square. Besides, some beastman children with fluffy ears could be seen squatting together, teasing ants on the ground. Even the air brushing past the ears was full of laziness and tranquility; time flowed exceptionally slowly.

“Hmm?”

Nola’s gaze quickly locked onto a few particularly obtrusive figures by the roadside. Living conditions in Cold Night were poor, and few people wore colorful clothes. Most people’s attire was yellow or linen-colored cloth clothes. The girls Nola noticed were wearing colorful formal dresses and short skirts, obviously foreign nobles at a glance. She knew these girls; they were Fia’s younger sister, older sister, and the person claiming to be a slave.

Perhaps due to being tired from playing, Liti and Milu leaned against each other on the roadside bench, sleeping soundly with their mouths slightly open. Anastasia sat beside the two like a big sister, reading a book in her hand. Nola couldn’t read elven script, but she could tell from the pattern on the cover that it was a romantic literature depicting a forbidden love between siblings. She had heard Ying read this story before.

Usually so serious, I didn’t expect she would read this kind of book. And it’s a sibling theme. Placed in the Holy Kingdom of Milcandis, this would be considered a forbidden book of heathens.

Probably everyone has a side they don’t easily show to outsiders. Just like myself, on the outside I’m the Holy Son manipulating flames, but in reality, I fear fire more than anyone.

Sighing inwardly, Nola came to Anastasia on the bench and asked with a smile.

“May I sit here?”

“Eh? It’s No—It’s Miss Holy Son? This is your territory; of course you can sit here.”

Anastasia hid the book behind her back slightly flustered, her cheeks also flushing red. She should have noticed an outsider approaching, but because she was too engrossed in reading, she completely forgot to pay attention to the surroundings and was caught red-handed by Nola.

Fortunately, Nola wasn’t clear about Anastasia’s public persona and didn’t press Anastasia on why she read this kind of book. She sat beside Anastasia with a troubled mind, turning her head to look at Liti and Milu snuggling together on the other side. As if looking for a topic, she asked intentionally or unintentionally.

“These two girls’ relationship is really good; it reminds me of Ying and me when we were little. Did you go into the forest to hunt monsters again?”

“Yes. With the help of Your Highness and Miss Claire, Her Highness Liti is about to break through to the fourth rank. Euphimilu has also reached the third rank and learned [Flight]. Just staying for at most another week, Her Highness Liti can break through to the fourth rank.”

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Speaking of this, Anastasia revealed a kindly smile of an elder.

“It must be hearing that we are going to cross the Netherworld that Her Highness Liti is full of motivation, putting forth an effort she never had before.”

“Is that so.” Nola wasn’t interested in Liti’s affairs. Her interest in Fia’s partners only stopped at the level of acquaintance. She asked with a lack of interest, “Does she have a feud with the undead? Ordinary people’s first reaction upon hearing they’re going to the Netherworld would definitely be terrified.”

“We elves indeed have a natural feud with the undead, but Princess Liti was threatened by Her Highness—no, encouraged. Princess Liti is working hard because she was encouraged by Her Highness. Previously Her Highness said if Princess Liti didn’t raise her strength to a level where she could protect herself, she wouldn’t take Princess  Liti out with her. Princess Liti doesn’t want to stay in the royal city to learn etiquette, so she keeps clinging to Her Highness.”

“Then she can follow Fia just by reaching the fourth rank?”

“Probably so,” Anastasia maintained a dignified sitting posture with her hands folded on her thighs, revealing a mature and gentle smile. “Actually, compared to the result, Her Highness pays more attention to the process of effort. As long as there was effort, Her Highness won’t be harsh. Even if Princess Liti doesn’t reach the fourth rank, she will still take princess Liti out. Her Highness is a person who values character more than strength.”

“At her level, it would be strange if she valued strength, right.”

Nola lowered her head and pouted.

Although she said so, she was still touched in her heart. Thinking back, although her power wasn’t as good as Fia’s, Fia never bullied her, nor did she do anything to deny her efforts. Instead, it was she who hurt Fia, slandering Fia for denying her efforts.

Really shameless.

Hah, how great it would be if I weren’t the clan leader of the Fire Cat Tribe.

Nola felt regretful for a moment. If she didn’t have the responsibility of the acting clan leader of the Fire Cat Tribe, she could stay openly by Fia’s side like Liti. She was a seventh-rank expert; she definitely wouldn’t be a burden to Fia.

Pity this could only be a thought. Responsibility wasn’t something one could abandon just by wanting to. Abandoning it casually was called irresponsibility.

Feeling a bit more pent-up frustration in her chest, Nola leaned back against the chair, sighing long toward the sky.

“Can I call you Anna? You can also call me Nola.”

“Of course. I am just Her Highness’s personal maid, not a noble with status.”

“But I heard Fia say you are her sister,” Nola suddenly sat upright, thinking of the key question. “Then shouldn’t you be the Eldest Princess? Why are you always dressed as a maid and guard?”

“There are various reasons for this… Her Highness and I share the same mother but different fathers. If Her Highness hadn’t brought me back, I would have died as a slave in the Land of Exile long ago. You must never mention my identity in Silvar. This is a topic that will anger the nobles. You just need to treat me as Her Highness’s servant. Her Highness is very gentle, so she always treats me as her sister, hoping I won’t regard myself as a slave. But I just need to be able to watch Her Highness from afar.”

“Isn’t this too humble?”

Nola had a face of disagreement.

“With that guy Fia’s strength, can’t she knock down everyone in your Elf Kingdom with one punch? I saw with my own eyes she killed an eighth-rank undead instantly. With this strength, even if she points at you saying you are a Goddess, those nobles have to honestly call you Goddess. She says you are her sister, then you are her sister. Holding your chest high and living up to her expectations is what you should do. Why are you dragging her down?”

Biting her lip lightly, Anastasia lowered her azure eyes, answering nothing.

This troubled expression made Nola stunned, then she pouted. She wasn’t a fool who understood nothing. She knew everyone had their own difficulties. Principles were easy to talk about, but there were always unexpected concerns when actually executing them.

“Never mind.” She put her hands behind her head, tactfully changing the subject. “What was Anna reading just now?”

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“Just some leisure book…”

Anastasia, who was hesitant just now, immediately turned pink on her cheeks. She quietly sat up straight, her hands reaching over as if to cover the book, like a young girl in the confusing stage of youth.

This action made Nola notice the silver cat ring on Anastasia’s hand. Her eyebrows raised imperceptibly.

“I heard Ying talk about it before. That is a love story portraying a brother and sister. The sister is from a prestigious family, the brother is an illegitimate child looked down upon by others. Two people with widely different statuses fall in love, finally discovering they are related by blood. But because both brother and sister are elves, after the brother works hard to complete various tests of the family, this loving couple finally stays together forever. Hiss … Listening carefully, isn’t this you and Fia, Anna? Although the gender is different, the position is exactly the same. Anna reads this kind of book with great relish…”

“No no no, no such thing! I just happened to get this book, and then happened to have time. Besides, I am just a mere servant…”

“Mere servant? Fia is so charming, not only bringing you back from the Land of Exile but also helping you restore the status of a free person, calling you, a slave, Sister. Saying she is the benefactor who changed your life is not an exaggeration. If I met such a person, I would definitely have given my heart away long ago. Do you really not have other feelings for Fia? Admiration and attachment should be there, right?”

Nola’s purple cat eyes stared at Anastasia’s eyes, a trace of suspicion clearly at the bottom of her eyes. If it were before, she absolutely wouldn’t ask this question because she couldn’t detect the possible trickiness inside at all. But now she was also one of the people in the play. A woman’s intuition made her feel that standing in Anastasia’s position, it was impossible not to have ambiguous feelings beyond a servant toward Fia. How hard-hearted must one be to ignore Fia’s charm?

Not only that, she took Anastasia’s wrist, displaying the cat ring on Anastasia’s finger under the sunlight.

“You’re even wearing the ring. Don’t think I don’t know, this was given to you by Fia. She has one on her hand too; you two are a pair.”

“This is… This is something Her Highness insisted I wear…”

Anastasia’s cheeks were already as red as a ripe apple, but Nola remained relentless.

“But you also have the right to take it off. If you didn’t like it, you would have taken it off long ago. It’s precisely because you value it that you keep wearing it. Don’t say it’s precious; this thing is only worth three silver coins.”

“Ugh…”

What Nola said matched exactly with what Anastasia knew. Anastasia was speechless, her whole body stiff, not knowing what to say.

She tried hard to refute.

“You… You know so much…”

Of course, I bought it!

Nola gritted her teeth in her heart. If she had known she would fall into Fia’s hands, she should have worn it on her hand in front of Fia back then, so she wouldn’t have let Anastasia off cheaply.

Anastasia was a good person, true, but now they were rivals, rivals!

Wait, can’t I use this opportunity to ask Anastasia some important things?

For example, whether Anastasia and Fia have actually slept together, and Fia’s attitude toward other women and such.

Although elves could be born from trees, and could reproduce normally even if they were same-sex and close relatives, Nola was a beastman. She found it hard to view things with elves ethics. Even knowing elves allowed close-relative marriage, she found it hard to accept Fia making a move on such a small child like Liti, who was also her sister. If Fia really did such a thing, she would look at Fia like a beast in the future. Of course, the point of liking Fia wouldn’t change. After all, this was an elf matter; following the local customs was common sense.

She coughed pretentiously. After confirming the two little ones beside Anastasia hadn’t woken up, she asked with an extremely formal expression, as if about to announce an important matter.

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“Um, Anastasia, have you done… done it with Fia? I mean crossing the boundary of master and servant.”

“Done?” A big question mark appeared on Anastasia’s head. However, she wasn’t a child who knew nothing. She soon understood Nola’s meaning. Her cheeks turned red instantly; even the pointed ears poking out from her blonde hair turned pink. “Wh-What are you saying? How could I possibly do… do that kind of unclean thing with Her Highness! Her Highness is devoted to Miss Claire. You are slandering Her Highness!”

“Tsk.”

She actually hasn’t done it.

Nola clicked her tongue hard. Leaving such a beautiful and gentle big sister aside without touching, was Fia made of stone? Even this could be endured?

Nola felt injustice for Anastasia, and at the same time felt regret for herself. Although Anastasia was her rival, if Fia and Anastasia maintained a secret lover relationship, it meant she also had a chance. Although this thought was humble and despicable, it was indeed a plan. Only pity Anastasia’s answer cut off this possibility.

She changed her line of thought, sighing with feigned concern.

“Clearly you have feelings for Fia, yet you say things like watching Fia from afar is enough. Is it because Claire is blocking between you and Fia?”

After her voice fell, Nola pricked up her ears. This concerned Claire’s attitude toward others. One must know, Fia was the future Elf Queen. It was almost impossible to have only one wife. Claire’s attitude was crucial.

But this question only troubled Anastasia. She scratched her cheek gently with her index finger, her gentle face full of distress.

“You must have misunderstood. I do have good feelings for Her Highness, but not the kind you imagine. As for Miss Claire, although Miss Claire never admitted it personally, I can tell. Because of the curse, Miss Claire always wants someone to accompany her. Miss Claire feels she doesn’t have the ability to bear the heavy responsibility of the Empress alone…”

Speaking of this, Anastasia smiled bitterly.

“That’s why Princess Liti always talks about becoming the second princess consort. If not for Her Highness insisting on her own principles, maybe Princess Liti or Her Highness Tilulu would already be the second princess consort. However, if even a perfect woman like Miss Claire can’t bear the heavy responsibility of the Empress, who else can bear the responsibility of the Empress? Don’t you agree? Miss Claire worries too much.”

“Y-Yes, hahaha…”

The fire of hope Nola just raised was extinguished by Anastasia in the blink of an eye. She could only smile on her face while crying in her heart. She continued to ask about what happened to Tilulu, and then the bitterness in her heart became deeper. Facing the temptation of Tilulu, a royal family member, Fia could actually refuse without hesitation and seriously. This was simply not a normal person’s reaction! Shouldn’t she agree immediately and embrace the beauty? Wouldn’t she have both a gentle and considerate sister as a wife and a petite and cute queen as a wife this way?

Nola admitted to herself, if she were in Fia’s position, she definitely couldn’t refuse this temptation.

It seems compared to Claire’s side, Fia’s side is harder to solve. How to make Fia realize my feelings and accept them is a problem.

I always feel that once I say it out loud, I will get the answer I least want to hear.

Nola couldn’t help lowering her head, her gaze quietly looking at Anastasia beside her. As a result, she found Anastasia also lowered her head, with bits of smiles in her azure eyes, as if recalling something.

Probably looking at the cat ring.

Thinking this way, Anastasia and I can be considered fellow sufferers…

It’s no wonder Anastasia said watching Fia from afar is enough. Because she understands, once the feelings are spoken, it’s very likely she won’t even be able to stay by Fia’s side and watch over Fia. Once this feeling is made clear, the relationship can never go back to the past. Being ambiguous can maintain the aesthetic feeling instead, letting people enjoy the present.

Truly painful.

The hot air made Nola sweat slightly. She felt as if a huge stone was pressing on her chest, making her breathless. She experienced the pain of unrequited love again—sour, wanting to say but daring not to say feelings. The only difference was the person who let her experience this feeling last time was Claire, and this time it was Fia.

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What should I do about this kind of thing?

I can’t just go beg Claire first, asking Claire to help me sound out Fia… I would die of shame. I would definitely be laughed at by Claire.

Nola didn’t want to see Claire covering her mouth laughing at her expression at all, even if Claire had no malice.

Let alone if Claire misunderstood it as me taking revenge on her, or shifting affection, appearing frivolous—that would be even worse.

Aaaah!

Nola began to go crazy in her heart, so much so that her toes curled together, her ears and tail trembling constantly. If not for Anastasia sitting beside her, she would definitely not be able to stop herself from making strange noises.

Sensing Nola’s strange behavior, Anastasia looked puzzled.

“Are you feeling unwell?”

“N-No.”

“If you are uncomfortable, you can ask Her Highness to treat you. Her Highness’s healing magic is more effective than the Church’s healing magic.”

Fia treating me would certainly be good —Nola imagined Fia taking care of her. Just Fia’s gentle greeting and the physical contact during treatment made her heart pound, making her wish to contract a plague immediately— but in practice, the one who would really treat me is probably Claire, the pharmacist. Of course, this isn’t saying Claire is bad, but I don’t want to create some unnecessary misunderstandings. For example, Fia thinks I’m still longing for Claire. No, saying I don’t like Claire is definitely a lie, but Claire doesn’t like me…

Truly conflicted.

Nola realized once again that she was a collection of contradictions.

I should simply bring Anastasia and Fia together. Once Anastasia succeeds, I’ll act immediately! Although it’s a bit despicable, and falls behind Anastasia, who let me realize it late? I accept it!

Just as the thought full of motivation surfaced in Nola’s mind, Fia, having gotten rid of the Charm Cats’ entanglement, came out of Tsukuyomi’s mansion. Perhaps having experienced quite a chaotic turmoil, Nola saw many red marks on Fia’s face and neck. Those were hickeys left by Charm Cats after using lipstick paper.

This philandering ¹ philanderer. a man who likes many women and has short sexual relationships with them bastard!

Making me and Anastasia extremely conflicted, while she herself is living it up outside. She really should be hung up… If it hurts, better let her down.

Muttering in her heart, Nola tried her best to put on an expressionless look, completely failing to notice her tail standing straight up behind her.

“Sorry, sorry, kept you waiting.” Face full of embarrassment, Fia constantly wiped the kiss marks on her neck with a wet wipe. These Charm Cat big sisters treated her like a relative’s child, kissing here and there. If she couldn’t stand it in the end and pushed them away with [Airflow Manipulation], she really didn’t know how long it would have dragged on. “Anastasia is also here?”

“Princess Liti said she wanted to rest for a while, so your subordinate came back first.”

“I see. Ah, no need to stand up; Anastasia, just continue to rest.” Saying this, Fia turned to Nola whose tail was standing straight up, her ruby-like eyes full of inquiry. “Almost time to go, or shall we sit for a while first?”