Chapter 100: Vow

System Message [ ‘Skill: Fatal Charm’ is activated! ] [ The favorability level of target ‘Riru Garda’ has soared from ‘Interest Level 3’ to ‘Trust Level 1’! ] [ Rewards Available! ] System Message Verifying that the crisis has been averted. ] [ Title ‘Playboy’ has been deactivated! ] Yeah, okay. Great. Cool. I get all that, but… I really couldn’t sympathize with the last part about how the crisis was averted. Reflexively, I checked Eleanor’s figure, who was gazing at me while standing in the center of the stage. No way in hell that she didn’t hear what I had just told Riru. The fact that she alternated her gaze between me and Riru with a look of disbelief was more than enough proof of that. System Notification [ Using ‘Scan’. ] [ Gathering information on the target. ] [ A 24-hour cooldown applies before reuse is available on the same target. ] [ Eleanor Elinalise La Tristan ] Characteristic: Grey Devil’s Vessel (2 Fragments), Lady Tristan Status: Intensely contemplating the meaning of Dowd Campbell’s ‘I like you’. The only fortunate thing was that, upon hearing those words, she didn’t immediately throw herself at me, trying to end my godforsaken life. It bought me some time. Enough to make up some bullshit to go through this situation. “…Y-You, what on earth are you sa—” Riru, who was being held in my arms, stuttered with a face flushed to the tip of her ears. Her expression clearly showed that she could not believe what she had just heard. I was in complete agreement. If I were sane, I would never have been able to say such things. Especially not in front of Eleanor. [He’s racking his brain~ Dowd Campbell’s racking his brain~] “…” I wonder how you’ll survive this time. Wow, I’m so excited already.] Has the world ever witnessed a person who was as fucking unhelpful as him? How could you say such things when someone’s life was in danger? [Why don’t you just be honest with her? Wouldn’t it be better to go like ‘My situation is like blah blah blah, so can you cooperate?’ or whatever?] No. How many times do I have to tell you that I’d die if I were to do that? As soon as I informed the Vessels about the existence of Devils, the already twisted scenario would likely descend into chaos. Soon, I would be entangled with Faenol as well, and when that happened, the events would become even more catastrophic since it would involve the Heretic inquisition. I was already getting fucked left and right because of my relationships with the Devils, but it could go beyond even that and unfold a shitfest that was beyond salvation. I wouldn’t be able to progress at all. Of course, that didn’t mean I could just sit still here and die. I combed through my memories. The game settings, Eleanor’s current condition, the Grey Devil’s disposition, everything. As if my Swordsman’s Focus skill was activated, my thought process accelerated, making it feel like my entire surroundings were slowing down. [Damn, it seems like this is a checkmate. Is there any way out for you?] In such a situation, Caliban spoke with a voice mixed with amusement. [Last time, it ended by slamming your lips over hers. What will you use this time to calm her?] “…” [Even if you do that again, the issue this time is way too big to contain, so I don’t think she would listen to you, right?] I agreed. However, still, just brazenly doing something like you said is way too— “…” Wait… Brazenly doing something? ‘Perhaps, couldn’t that be…’ ‘Possible?’ Even I, who was the progenitor of this idea, got dizzy when I thought of it, but… There was no doubt that it would work. […Your face doesn’t look all that bright, though?] Just because it would work, didn’t mean that it was a good thing for me. Honestly, I didn’t want to go that far…! However, the scene unfolding right before my eyes spared me from such meaningless concerns. After all, Eleanor, who was in the center of the arena, ‘launched’ herself straight in my direction. At this point, her physical abilities had transcended being merely excellent and reached the level of a walking man-made disaster. “…What does that mean, Dowd?” Her red eyes were blazing. “You said you liked her, what does that me?” “…It means exactly what you’re thinking.” While sweat coalesced in the palms of my hands, I answered. “…I like Riru.” Upon hearing those words… As Riru’s jaw dropped once again, at the same time, sparks flew out from Eleanor’s eyes. However, before she could say anything, I continued with another statement. “Isn’t she the perfect person to take as a concubine?” “…” “…” Both Eleanor's and Riru’s expressions simultaneously turned blank. A hellish silence lasted for a few minutes. Eleanor alternated her gaze between me and Riru with an expression that seemed utterly lost, as if she didn’t know what to say. “…A concubine?” Seeing as how she hesitated to speak the word out, which was unexpected of her, it was clear she was quite flustered. She probably never could have imagined someone would utter such a word right in front of her face. And while facing the flustered Eleanor, I brought forth a game setting that I knew before. “According to the Empire’s laws, all nobles above the rank of a count are legally encouraged to practice bigamy.” Due to this influence, in the game, there were times when Iliya brought several men around with her. Just their existence themselves were enough for high-ranking nobles to be walking and talking lumps of influence. By using the institutional strategy known as marriage, numerous connections could be formed into a hub; Since the Empire could utilize such a hub, they also encouraged this to some extent. However, it was clear that such encouragement was for a specific purpose. Unlike ‘legal wives’, ‘concubines’ had a very clear distinction in their ‘purpose’. Essentially, there was an absolute gap between the wife who was truly loved and other women, bound only in marriage out of necessity. “…After I marry you, I plan on taking Riru as a concubine.” Usually, when someone said something like this, the majority of the Empire’s noblewomen would understand and yield. After all, according to the Empire’s laws, the ‘difference in treatment’ was that significant between legal wives and concubines. “…Do you think that’s an acceptable excuse right now?” Of course, even so… If the person in question was a Devil who was fundamentally embedded with obsessive attributes, they were highly likely to listen with only half an ear. This was also the reason why I hadn’t used this method on Yuria despite having it in mind. “Of course.” However… The turning point was here. In the end, a Devil’s obsession came from the desire to ‘monopolize’ that person. Even the Grey Devil, who was almost unfailingly favorable to me, could not yield in this regard. So, just like how I accepted the ring that Eleanor handed to me… I needed to give her ‘proof’ that could definitively quell that desire. Proof that Eleanor was the most precious person to me, that no other person could possess. “…” Fuck. Seriously. I didn’t want to do this. I closed my eyes internally. And with a feeling that was akin to pulling a trigger, I spoke. “Riru takes very good care of children, after all.” Eleanor, who was about to lose her temper, froze in her tracks. Then, her face immediately distorted. She seemed to be half in doubt about what she had just heard. “…Child?” “Yes.” Even while my five viscera and six entrails felt like they were getting twisted, my face still maintained a smile as I continued. “Our child.” Eleanor’s face flushed so rapidly, it looked like it was about to explode. She even took a step backward, as if she had been hit by something. “C-Ch-Chi-Child…?” “Yes.” “D-D-Dowd, w-what are y-you saying right now, so-” “My plan…” From inside the amulet, I could hear Caliban roaring with laughter while rolling around. He was struggling to breathe; It honestly sounded like the last gasp of a near-dead person whose breath had been cut off. But even so, I continued to maintain my smile as I spoke. “Is to have a child with you soon, Eleanor.” “…” “As the leader of her clan, Riru has a lot of experience in taking care of children very well. She would be a great help during the—” “S-Stop. Stop!” Eleanor urgently cut me off. She was covering her face, flushed to the tip of her ears, with both her hands. She was extremely out of breath as well. “H-How could you say s-such things in front of o-other people, have y-you g-gone insane?!” “…” ‘I know, right?’ I found myself miserable, deplorable, and distressed for saying such things completely sober without even the activation of the Playboy Title. But the effect was clear. After all, Eleanor, who had been filled with rage, could not even think properly due to the topic I had just brought up. However…. Even though Eleanor had calmed down, there was plenty of room for a problem to occur from the ‘other side’. “…” I snuck a glance at Riru. Surely enough, her expression had turned icy. Near her body, a faint blue aura could even be observed with the naked eye. Yeah. I know. I get it. A man just confessed that he liked her, then proceeded to casually bark absolute dogshit about taking her in as a concubine; If it was me, I would have been so enraged, something inside me would have snapped. As such, I needed to take further action. “…” I took a deep breath and tapped the amulet with my finger several times. This was possible to do since they were people who could read the sentences in my mind without me needing to say them aloud. Valkasus. Please. I beg you. I’m sorry for waking you up after such a long time and immediately assigning you a task like this, but…! […You lead quite a colorful life, don’t you?] A voice full of pity flowed out from Soul Linker. At the same time, Riru’s eyes widened. Even if it was Eleanor, who could detect all kinds of auras and energies because of her insane General stats, there was no way she could sense a very tiny note written using ‘Forbidden Sorcery’. And thanks to that, Riru, who was about to vent her anger, suddenly wore a bewildered expression. It was probably because she felt ‘letters’ being carved on top of her skin. While using a pressure that was at the level of rubbing someone with a finger, I was drawing a text on top of that person’s skin. And with that… I carved ‘words’ that would be able to calm this person down. After all, I only had a few Tattoos, so my Forbidden Sorcery abilities were only at this level. [Cooperate. Death if we don’t. Save me.] A shoddily written sentence. It meant that if she didn’t cooperate with me, we would both die right here and now. Fortunately, it seemed as if she understood, since Riru’s eyes widened even further. “A-A concubine for r-raising t-the c-children…” Eleanor muttered with a tone of disbelief. With her face reddened as if it were about to burst, she alternated her gaze between me and Riru. “L-Let’s have t-this conversation a-again later—!” With those words, Eleanor left the room. She left a crater with a single stomp and, at the same time, she vanished at a speed that left an afterimage. It felt like something out of a manhwa. “…” Yeah, okay. I survived this time as well. But at what price…? [What do you think? Soon enough, you’re going to get sucked dry until you become a dad. Congratulations, sheeeesh. I’m jealous. So impressive. How amazing.] “…” Shut the fuck up. [But how do you plan to deal with that Yuria lady?] Wot? [If she hears that you’re taking someone as a concubine, she won’t sit still, right? Her level of obsession is many times more severe, even when compared to Lady Tris—] ‘…Caliban.’ I replied with a transcendent smile, as if I were above such unimportant things. ‘Let’s cross that bridge when we get to it.’ […] ‘There’s no point in worrying about it now, so isn’t it better to see how the situation turns out before figuring it out?’ [Didn’t you just do that same thing and all that’s left for you now is to get sucked dry?] “…” [You know~ I don’t even know what to say. I’m looking forward to what kind of things you’d do to dig up more of your graves—] I released the amulet from my hand and let it clatter onto the floor. Sorry, Valkasus. Only Valkasus.