Episode 15 – Good Night
 âWhat better way to train your own mana weaving then to try to survive and eventually break out of prison which has an anti-mana-weaving artifact?â
Eeeh?! Kielâs face paled, and he blurted out. âWho would do that?! Isnât that too extreme?!â
His words brought her out of her strange mood, and she looked at him strangely. She pressed her lips into a thin line to keep her mouth shut.
Oh for the love of fateâŚshe couldnât be talking about her own experiencesâŚcould she?
Kiel closed his eyes and rubbed his temples. What kind ofâŚI donât evenâŚwhat?
Elaru finally noticed that her speech didnât have the desired effect, and she coughed to attract Kielâs attention before waving it off and changing the subject. âMy point is, I am a genius, according to papa.â
Kielâs eyes flashed with cold light. âDo not change the subject!â He lowered his voice to be barely audible. âI thought you said you arenât a wanted criminal!â
She looked at him with a straight face. âI am not.â He expected her to continue, but she didnât. When she noticed the chilling aura that started spreading from him, she decided to elaborate.
âDonât be silly.â She rolled her eyes with mirth. âI wasnât arrested and thrown into prison.â
Kiel let out a breath he didnât know he was holding. His lie sense wasnât tingling. Thank the gods! He noticed his lips were dry and took a sip of his honeymead.
âPapa smuggled me in.â
The honeymead that just entered Kielâs mouth came out in a beautiful spray of shining liquid creating a colorful rainbow in the soft light of the tavern.
It spilled all over his meat and even dripped down the sides of the table to the floor. He quickly covered his mouth with his hand, doing his best to look like a dignified noble. But suppressing a coughing fit while choking wasnât easy. His lungs burned, his throat itched, his eyes teared from his attempts to keep a straight face and not choke on his own spit.
Yep. Her father is definitely the one to blame for her poor upbringing.
Kiel didnât know what was worse, the pain he was feeling, his dignity going down the drain, or that his spit didnât manage to reach Elaru and pull her down with him.
Elaru seemed oblivious to the murderous gaze aimed at her. She looked at him worriedly and flicked her fingers creating a sound barrier around them. âHey, hey. There is no dignity in death, mate. If you worry about your image, youâll choke.â
Kiel couldnât hold it in any longer and coughed it all out. He still did his utmost to cover it up. Luckily, they had chosen a secluded spot of the tavern, where they wouldnât attract much attention. Since both of them were extremely good looking, Kiel was worried they would stand out like diamonds among regular stones and not have any peace and quiet.
Since no one could hear him coughing, no one noticed anything strange.
He wanted to aim his coughing at Elaru this time, but the vixen must have had an impeccable sixth sense because she quickly moved behind him (out of reach) and patted him on the back like she was patting a baby about to burp.
âThereâŚthere.â
âDonâtâŚtouchâŚmeâ He growled in-between coughs.
She let him be after that. Giving him a few minutes of silence to get over the experience.
It would have been better if the expression on her face didnât clearly state: âLet’s have a moment of silence to mourn Kielâs tragic fate.â
Kiel moved his hands to rub his temples and when his eyes refused to stop glaring holes into Elaru he covered them with his hand. He stood there frozen for a while.
After another few minutes had gone by, when Elaruâs senses detected the danger had passed, she spoke up. âAre you alright, mate? That was a nasty coughing fit! Should I cast some healing magic on you? What brought that on?â
âWhat do you think was the cause of that?! Breaking into prison is just as illegal as breaking out of it!â Kiel hissed from between his clenched teeth.
âNot if you donât get caught doing it.â She smirked.
âThatâs not how the law works!!â He barely managed to restrain himself from slamming his fist against the table.
She chewed on a piece of her meat and smiled. âYour meat will get cold. You can use magic to heat it up, but you shouldnât be spoiled and do everything with magic.â
I donât need you to tell me that!!
âOh wait, I guess it already got cold. That honeymead you spewed over it cooled it down.â
Kiel felt like banging his head against a wall, repeatedly. The last amount of restraint he had evaporated, he didnât even care about being in public anymore. He couldnât even remember what he was supposed to be acting like in this moment.
In a swift motion, he picked up Elaruâs jug of honeymead and spilled it over her plate of meat.
Elaru gaped at him in shock. A mix of âI did not see that one comingâ and âWho are you and what did you do to Kiel?â was splattered all over her face.
Kiel couldnât remember the last time he felt such a strong sense of self-satisfaction than seeing Elaruâs stupefied expression. He finally managed to get back at her. He finally managed to usurp that calm that ruled over her. As her eyes grew wider and wider, the previous anger and humiliation evaporated into thin air without a trace.
After recovering from her stupor, Elaru exclaimed in a tear-jerking voice. âWhy did you kill my meat?! And why did you use my honeymead to kill it?â
Kiel snorted, stifling a laugh. âWhy would I waste my own honeymead? You killed my meat, I killed yours. Now we are even.â
Elaru pouted, feeling wronged. âSo petty! You were the one that spewed your honeymead all over your meat!â
Kielâs eyebrow twitched. âYou made me spew it out.â
âI canât be blamed for that. If you accidentally ran into my fist, would you blame that on me too?â
Kiel raised his eyebrow. âThe only way I could accidentally run into your fist would be if I was already moving and you formed the fist and put it in front of my face. Which is no different than straight out punching me. Youâd definitely be the one to blame.â
She refused to give up. âWhat if it was an accidental injury? Youâd make me suffer too?â
âI am not heartless. Iâd probably pardon you on account of being a female.â
As soon as he said that, he felt a sharp pain on his shin. Son of a…!!! The little fox kicked him!
Almost out of reflex he kicked her right back. But she was ready for it and quickly dodged while whining. âYou said youâd pardon it.â
âI said I would pardon it if it was accidental.â
âHow do you know it wasnât? You didnât even give me a benefit of the doubt!â
âI am not bloody stupid!â
Elaru pouted and gave him a sad look, like a child who got her sweets stolen. Her ears drooped down pitifully as she looked back at her plate. âSuch a waste of fine meat. Something had to die for this.â
Kiel rolled his eyes at her antics. She didnât feel bad when his meat got ruined, and only when her own suffered did she start making a drama out of it. âDrowning in honeymead is not a bad way to go.â
âSpoken like a true alcoholic.â She continued pouting and looking at him judgingly.
âExcept honeymead isnât an alcoholic beverage.â Kielâs mouth twitched. Elaru raised her finger to her lips and shushed him. âShhh! Letâs have a moment a silence for our fallen comrade.â
How childish! What brought this on? Where did the cunning demon disappear to? Kiel couldnât help finding it amusing. âItâs a piece of meat. It would have ended up mixing with the honeymead in your stomach anyway. It makes absolutely no difference.â
Her eyes were as round as saucers, looking at him as if his words contained profound enlightenment. She looked down at her plate and then stabbed a piece of meat with a fork, bringing it into her mouth.
It was Kielâs turn to be dumbfounded. Did she still intend to eat it??
Kiel didnât need to be telepathic to tell she was thinking âRight. Whether it enters mixed or mixes in the stomach, it is all the same.â
As the meat entered her mouth, her expression steeled. She finished chewing on it and swallowed. Just as Kiel thought she would continue eating she put down her utensils and sighed: âNot the same. Definitely not the same.â
Both of them looked down at their ruined dinner. The entire table was dripping with honeymead. The meat was floating around their plates like a ship.
They turned their heads and looked around them. Thank the gods for the sound isolation! No one seemed to notice anything wrong. Yet.
They turned their heads back straight and looked at each other. Then they looked back at the table, and then back at each other.
Elaru was the first one to burst out laughing.
It wasnât clear how much time passed before Kiel noticed he was laughing too.
They giggled, chuckled, and outright laughed until their stomachs started hurting, and tears started stinging their cheeks.
Kiel sat on the chair next to the desk and stared at Elaru. She was lying down on the bed preparing for sleep. She had taken off an outer layer of her clothes when they came back from the dinner.
All she had on was a tight sleeveless shirt and short petite trunks.
Most of her body was bare; her long legs and slim arms, her delicate neck. The shirt was low cut so even parts of her chest were visible.
Her skin was flawless, without any blemishes or scars.
Kiel felt like he was seeing something he shouldnât be seeing.
He had been aware of her well-developed body from the start. He didnât need a reminder. He preferred her with her clothes on.
He could tell her to cover herself with the blanket, but he could already see her teasing him about it.
Kiel wasnât shy. Most of the time he wouldnât care if women around him were walking around naked. But those were just random women he didnât have any relation to. Why would he care what they did?
However, Elaru was different. She was an irreplaceable part of himself; he was stuck with her forever. And everything she did would have an effect on him, large or small.
The last thing he needed was to bring romance or sexuality into their relationship. The nature of their relationship was that of mutual benefit, and it should stay that way. No more, no less. Mixing romance with business was never a good thing.
Besides, he wouldnât be glued to her forever. There would come a time when they would part their ways. Any potential romance between them was doomed to fail from the start.
They didnât live in the same world. He was an argel, she was an elibu. He was a noble, she was a commoner. He wanted to raise in status, show everyone his worth. She didnât care about social norms and preferred hiding in the shadows. Even their personalities were completely opposite. They had no place in each otherâs lives.
The highest relationship they could ever hope to have was friendship. A friendship without sexual attraction, like that between two guys. Unfortunately, it was easier to pretend she was a guy when her two mounds werenât poking him in the eye.
Elaru paid him no attention. She had no problem acting like she was a guy camping with male friends. She didnât flaunt her assets around, but she didnât take measures to hide them either. It was as if she wasnât aware she even had assets.
Did her father raise her as a boy?
Is that why Elaru considered herself to be âone of the guysâ? Calling him âmateâ all the time?
That would certainly explain a lot.
Elaru misunderstood his serious gaze
âYou donât need to keep watch. Iâll put up another protective barrier around us to protect us while we sleep.â
Kiel closed his eyes and sighed. Did she really expect him to sleep next to her?
He removed his own clothes too. Leaving only his boxers and undershirt on but they didnât do much to cover up his abs and well-sculpted body. He noticed Elaru staring at him with interest.
He felt the chills traveling down his spine. Donât give me that look! Didnât you say you werenât romantically interested in me?
âYouâre pretty toned. Your mana resistance shouldnât be too high. Thatâll be quite helpful. How long have you been practicing martial arts?â
Kiel didnât know whether to laugh or cry. He rubbed his temples, feeling a headache coming. âSince I was little.â
She was used to being around men because of her father and Wade? Was that it?
She wasnât looking at him as a man. She acted just like two buddies would in the dressing room, asking casual questions.
She was interested in him, but not in a romantic sense.
He felt relieved. It made the situation that much simpler.
Realizing that Elaru had âfriend zonedâ him from the start, he was no longer worried about misunderstandings and romance. He laid down next to her on the bed and turned away to his side. He was not a sex crazed teenager, he never was. Now that he understood her behavior he could easily adjust his own.
He was just about to let it go when he remembered what usually happens in these scenarios.
Knowing his luck, theyâd wake up in a compromising position. That wonât do. He better be safe than sorry.
Elaru got up from the bed and found her way towards the table with their equipment.
Kielâs eyes briefly paused on her before he looked around the room, his eyes searching for something. He frowned, there was nothing suitable in the room.
His gaze snapped to the table, attracted towards the glow coming from the metal egg. Elaru had just finished aligning the rings and the protection barrier activated, this time covering an even larger area.
Kielâs eyes brightened when his gaze fell on his sword that was among their equipment on the table. He got up and picked up the sheathed sword, bringing it back to the bed. The wooden headboard of the bed had decorative holes in the shape of a heart. He brought up his sword and lodged the handle into the hole right in the middle of the headboard. The sword remained lodged, creating a clear divide between the two sides of the bed.
As Elaru get back on her side of the bed, her eyes didnât leave the sword hovering there like a poor excuse for a fence.
âYou donât intend to murder me tonight, do you?â She chuckled and asked half-jokingly.
âI just might.â Kiel smirked. This would do. With the sword in the way, there was no way theyâd wake up in an awkward position now. He was very satisfied with himself.
Elaru realized it was a joke because she grinned in response. âWouldnât recommend it. I am pretty nasty while half asleep.â
âEven nastier than you are when you are awake?â Kiel exclaimed in mock shock.
Elaru snickered and rolled her eyes at him. âMany times nastier. So nasty you could die from the nastiness.â
Kiel shook his head, his face sprouting a small smirk, and pulled on the rope that shifted the array formation on the ceiling out of place. As soon as the formation got misaligned, the glowing crystals dimmed and lost their light, blanketing the two in the veil of darkness.
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