The Nymph Wants to be Plundered - Chapter 82

Of course, she hadn’t dared to harbor feelings for Cassis from the beginning.

All this change was brought about by Polyxene. Polyxene, whom she had met while training as a guard, would sing about wanting to become His Majesty the King’s lover whenever she had the chance, and Lya envied her confidence.

-Ah, when I return to the castle, I want to select the whitest and smoothest pebble to give as a gift to His Majesty the King. How about this one? It has a slight sky-blue tint that I think would suit him.

-A, a pebble? Isn’t that too humble an item?

-Lya. There’s a legend that this stream was created by the roots of the sacred ash tree. I even read about it in a book. I think it’s perfectly suitable to be kept in His Majesty the King’s desk drawer.

-That… I know that, but…

-If you just hold your breath and don’t even try, nothing will be achieved. I’ll do anything to pursue my love. Is there someone you like? Tell me, okay?

-……

While training as a guard with the beautiful and splendid Polyxene, Lya gradually changed. It seemed right, and she wanted to be that way. More precisely, she wanted to resemble Polyxene in every aspect. Please, let it be so.

The reason Lya had never summoned the courage called confession toward someone she was attracted to was due to herself.

Unlike what was generally known about elves, her appearance wasn’t particularly outstanding, and she didn’t even dare approach the AikaFestival for fear of rejection. Her guard training grades were also poor, barely at a level where she wouldn’t be expelled. To be frank, her archery was terrible, often missing the mark.

Given these circumstances, she was in no position to even think of the word “love” toward the king, who was as lofty and magnificent as the sky. However, as Polyxene, with whom she trained, kept bringing up stories about him… her heart began to change.

I want to stand before him someday too.

-Lya, look at this. They say we’ve received quince jam and fresh asparagus from the supply center in His Majesty the King’s name.

-Y-yes.

-Hehe. I’m going to ask them to roast all my share of asparagus this afternoon and eat it, and I’ll finish the quince jam in a few days too.

-Isn’t that wasteful…?

-Why should I consider it wasteful? It came for me, and I can feel his warmth every time I eat it. And when I win His Majesty’s love, I’ll have these memories to talk about.

-You… truly love His Majesty the King sincerely.

-It will soon be mutual, just wait and see. When that time comes, everyone will envy me.

At some point, Lya began to mistake Polyxene’s words and thoughts as her own. She even repeated what she had heard the previous day like a parrot.

Far from being displeased with her, Polyxene was busy describing in detail Cassis’s majestic appearance and anecdotes she had witnessed. Lya’s love grew rapidly from then on, like pouring water on freshly sprouted vegetation.

I want to become pretty like Polyxene. I want to secretly shout that I love His Majesty the King, even if it’s in a forest where no one can hear. But, but… not the beautiful Polyxene, but for a mere nymph to dare covet the place beside His Majesty and disrupt our order—that’s unforgivable!

Polyxene had said it.

Nymphs collapsed all at once because they received punishment from the World Tree for their frequent, petty greed. Barely saving Nike alone, yet another nymph was born and entered the castle—the World Tree would soon be angered. An elf who understood the greater good should not take the nymph’s wrongdoing lightly but should step forward for punishment, like stepping on and killing an ant.

Those words guided her hands and feet to twitch like an irresistible spell. By that time, having progressed considerably in guard training, even the sluggish Lya had learned to use her head somewhat.

To avoid the sensitive ears of other elves, she took up a bow with its jingling decorations removed, shared this matter with no one except Polyxene, used newly and carefully trimmed arrows, and successfully found an opportunity by following the second nymph, unnecessary to Jupiter.

But she failed!

Not only did she fail to confirm the nymph’s death, but she was also discovered by Sir Iel, famous as the millennial knight. To make matters worse, Polyxene, whom she believed would help her, turned away…

‘Ah, not yet. I must go to the Aika Festival. I want to share love with His Majesty the King, even for a day. I… I, please, please….’

Even though considerable time had passed since then, there were no signs of anyone coming to arrest her. Could she assume they hadn’t been able to identify her as the perpetrator? Lya, who had completely forgotten about the World Tree’s existence, heaved a deep sigh.

“Sigh…”

What should she do, and how? Having relied on Polyxene’s words and intentions all this time, she felt like she had lost her way. Polyxene… had said something.

Ah, that’s it!