The Nymph Wants to be Plundered - Chapter 77

「Evelyn, if you’re feeling a bit lonely…」

“What?”

「In principle, anyone within Jupiter Castle can participate in the Aika Festival. Ah, of course I’m different, but nymphs can too. Nike, not you, probably lurked around the Aika Festival whenever she had the chance until a few years ago. Then she suddenly stopped completely… Well, she must have her reasons. What about you?」

“N-no way. Absolutely not!”

After desperately denying it, she couldn’t even go down the stairs for a while after parting with Ruba. The last words she heard still echoed vividly in her mind.

-You know, during the Aika Festival. There are even bold elves who demand to carry the king’s seed. Of course, it can’t be forced, and Jupiter is in its prime so it’s not particularly necessary… But there’s always the possibility, right? So kings with guardian backgrounds sometimes have a hard time. Even though they have lovers and don’t want to be unfaithful, elves who’ve come from afar might protest from before the festival, asking to be embraced. Since it’s a festival created by a great guardian, it’s awkward to keep refusing.

As she repeated those words to herself, a sense of relief greater than the warm breeze she had enjoyed today washed over her.

Lord Cassis was a knight, not a guardian, right? So he wasn’t obligated to attend, and he didn’t seem like he would volunteer either.

But what if Cassis wanted to?

‘…I’d have no choice, would I?’

Evelyn closed the book full of embarrassing content that still lay open, and carefully placed it back on the bookshelf. Now that she knew what the Aika Festival truly was, she decided she would hide herself thoroughly inside the Hall from beginning to end and not go out. She would also avoid the delphinium garden until the flowers withered. And the watchtower that is filled with memories of him.

‘At this rate, I’ll have fewer and fewer places to go. This is driving me crazy. Sigh, what should I do?’

Why didn’t the village elder tell her about the true nature of elves? Even though she had books about it. Although the elder did her best, Evelyn couldn’t help feeling slightly resentful now that things had come to this. Despite the urgent circumstances of her life, if only she had been told something, anything, to prepare her heart…

Then she wouldn’t have made the mistake of hastily placing Cassis as the only man in her life.

Unable to even freely rinse away the bitter taste in her mouth, she sadly murmured. The spirits wouldn’t have come up to the second floor yet, would they? She hoped they wouldn’t know of this secret whisper.

“…How does one erase love?”

If she could meet again the old woman who had given her that love potion, she would like to ask. If there’s a potion that creates and summons non-existent love, then surely there must be an opposite potion that makes it disappear. Evelyn didn’t know what was needed to erase this foolish feeling that kept pricking her heart.

If she couldn’t find the old woman, she wanted to approach him directly and ask. Lord Cassis, will you be attending the Aika Festival? Or… will you be fulfilling your kingly duties by watching over them from afar? I… I…

How foolish!

Evelyn bit her lower lip hard, harshly reproaching herself for having such ridiculous thoughts.

‘What am I saying? I’m nothing to him. What would the elves living here say about me? It’s crystal clear. A powerless nymph clinging to the king of elves, trying to act like a legitimate partner? I… I’m just a nymph who can’t even become a concubine. I shouldn’t misunderstand just because he treats me kindly.’

Suddenly, the terrible loneliness Ruba had mentioned washed over her. Nike had told her to seduce Cassis and make him her lover, but that wasn’t likely to happen smoothly. Even if she tried and succeeded, what would it mean? The love she truly desired could never even begin with him.

A feeling of despair and distance, like wandering through a wilderness full of thorny bushes, swept over her. What should I do, how should I do it, I, I…

Evelyn, sitting alone, stopped sobbing and finally came up with an impossible thought.

“…I want to go to the sacred ground.”

Because my tree is there.

Her tree, which she had glimpsed when she entered with him. Cassis had honestly admitted that he couldn’t restore it perfectly, but it must have improved compared to before. Was he planning to show it to her after the leaves and flowers had bloomed magnificently? His great consideration was evident from his everyday behavior, but she felt she couldn’t wait any longer and needed to see it right now.