Chapter 93: Two Girls (1)

When Isaac and Adelia were having a subtle encounter with the Ters royalty, Marie and Cecily left the event and arrived at a desolate place on the outskirts of the village.

Despite receiving extensive support from the royal family, there were still places in Michelle territory where human hands had not touched. This phenomenon was particularly noticeable as they went further out towards the outskirts of the village.

The village and the outskirts seemed to be separated as if by a distinct line, which created many suitable places for walking around unnoticed.

Marie and Cecily were standing face to face in the outskirts of the village. The towering trees, which had been nurtured by the earth for decades, provided shade from the blazing sun.

"So, why did you call me out here to talk?"

Marie stood with her arms crossed, giving Cecily a sullen look. Her mood was currently very uncomfortable, to say the least.

Originally, she had planned to enjoy the exhibition with Isaac alone, but her plans were ruined by the woman in front of her. To make matters worse, they were now completely alone.

As someone who had been looking forward to a romantic date, Marie was not surprised that her annoyance had turned into frustration. Even though she wanted to ignore Cecily's words and feelings, she couldn't do so because of the atmosphere.

She knew that she would have to call her out separately soon, if not now. As a woman, and with Marie's characteristically sharp intuition, she knew it was the right thing to do.

I decided that it would be better to solve the annoying problem as quickly as possible, so I obediently followed behind Cecily. And when we arrived, we were under this tree.

"Sorry. It's something I absolutely have to talk to you about."

Cecily looked at Marie, who was uncomfortable, and then answered with a bright smile that was beautiful and refreshing enough to naturally relieve her guard.

But Marie didn't react that way. On the contrary, she narrowed her eyes, making her wariness even stronger.

Then she quickly scanned Cecily up and down, exhaled a long breath through her nose, and placed her hand on her chest.

"I'm telling you in advance, I have absolutely no intention of giving you Isaac. I confessed to Isaac first, and he likes me too. Got it?"

Marie's firm and decisive statement drew a clear line, stating that she would not give in to her.

If it were an ordinary person, they might have flinched at Marie's momentum, but there was no such indication from Cecily. On the contrary, she seemed to have fully anticipated it, nodding her head with a slight smile.

"I know. I've watched from the sidelines how much you like Isaac. It was a little surprising that you talked to me about chest size. I felt like I had received a punch after a long time."

"Okay, I get it."

"But Mari, do you happen to know about polygamy?"

"... What?"

As soon as polygamy was mentioned from Cecily's mouth, Marie opened her eyes and wondered if she had misheard it.

Cecily maintained a small smile, as if acknowledging that what Marie had heard was correct, and spoke in a calm and gentle tone.

"What you heard is correct. It is a custom for one man to have multiple wives. This is a common practice not only in human society but also in Helium and even in Animers."

"Hey. You..."

Marie repeatedly opened and closed her mouth like a fish.

As a princess of a nation, and furthermore, Cecily who was expected to be the next demon lord, this was never a suitable topic for her to speak about. With Cecily's position, it was normal to practice monogamy instead of polygamy.

Helium has not yet engaged in diplomacy, but in terms of national power alone, it was strong enough to rival Alvenheim.

Above all, in most cases, polygamy is linked to political reasons rather than romantic love. It's like a weak country sending its princess to marry into a powerful country to form a strong alliance.

Marie could not tolerate Cecily using Isaac as a political tool, regardless of anything else. Polygamy and nonsense like that should never be allowed.

With a dry laugh, she muttered to Cecily as if she could not stand it.

"Ha. I thought you were different from Rina... I must have misjudged you. I never thought you would hide such a vulgar intention."

"... ..."

"Do you really think Isaac would accept that? Someone who hates politics so much?"

Marie can boast that she knows about Isaac better than anyone else, except for his family, of course. Anyway, Isaac is an ordinary young man who is simple, considerate of others, and enjoys writing.

He wrote Xenon's Biography purely as a hobby, and he simply brought life to another world that was in his mind and captured it in a book. Therefore, it took him a long time to realize his popularity.

Well, sometimes he got fixated on strange parts, but it didn't matter to Marie. In fact, she liked it better because she could see Isaac's blunt reaction.

She approached Isaac not with a political intention but with pure kindness, and their relationship grew into love. At least she could claim that her love for Isaac was more pure than anyone else's.

"Um... I don't know what kind of misunderstanding you have, but that's definitely not true. Politics is just an additional factor. My feelings for Isaac are genuine."

Despite Marie's continuous ramblings, Cecily maintained a calm attitude.

In addition, she smiled and blushed slightly, as if she were a shy woman being confessed to. This made Marie more confused than ever.

As mentioned before, she was born with the ability to instinctively distinguish whether a person's words were true or false. And now, her heart was screaming that every word Cecil spoke in his gentle voice was true. There was no political intention, just a very pure heart of a maiden in love.

Marie could vividly feel it.

"...Since when?"

"Do you believe me? Really?"

When Marie believed without any suspicion, Cecily asked with a bright expression while holding her hands, moved by her reaction.

Marie, on the other hand, responded with silence without nodding her head. Whether Cecily's heart was sincere or fake, it didn't matter because there were various types of sincerity.

If her heart was very impure, Marie would have refused instantaneously, and even if it was pure, she would have done the same.

Marie had no intention of sharing her Isaac with anyone, without even a speck of pretense.

She wanted to see him every day, hug him all day long, and share various types of love with him. However, the moment she shared him with someone else, even that time would be cut in half.

As someone who had been betrayed by someone she trusted in the past, she could never give up Isaac.

"I'm grateful that you believe me. As for when it started... it's a bit ambiguous. I had a liking for Isaac at the beginning of the semester, and it turned into love after the release of Xenon's Biography volume 9. To be exact, it was when we talked alone. Do you remember?"

"... ..."

Marie remembered. After that, she became a little impatient, talked to Isaac and confessed her feelings, and started dating after she kissed him first. Although the process was unusual, like crossing a moat, there was no problem because the result was good.

"You said this to me back then. That love formed by sharing secrets is worthless, because it means that you like the person's secret, not the person themselves."

"I remember it clearly."

"Thanks to you, I realized that I truly like Isaac."

What is this nonsense again? Marie blinked her eyes at Cecily's explanation that she couldn't understand.

Cecily looked at Marie's expression and smiled gently, placing a hand on her chest.

Was it because she thought of Isaac's face? Her heart throbbed harder than usual.

It was pounding so hard that even the demon's typical patience couldn't hold it back, and she felt a strong desire rising, perhaps because the evil cycle was approaching.

' It's coming earlier than planned...'

Originally, the evil cycle came at certain intervals, but there were cases where it came earlier in special situations. That's when the 'desire' that was like drugs to the demons came into the equation.

The stronger the desire, the stronger the red glow of the horn becomes, and if it cannot be endured, the evil cycle comes. And if you can't stand that either, you become a devil.

Cecily was in a similar situation. If it was before, she would have just passed it off as nothing, but since she realized her feelings for Isaac, the desire started creeping up.

Even she didn't know how this desire would manifest itself. Until now, it had come like a physiological phenomenon, but now it had suddenly appeared as if she had taken drugs.

Fortunately, she could be sure that she would never become a devil, but like a human woman becoming violent during her period, she might experience a similar phenomenon herself.

Cecily closed her eyes tightly and calmed down her heart that was pounding as if it were about to burst, then slowly opened her eyes and looked at Marie.

"At first, I was confused too. Is this feeling directed towards Isaac himself, or towards our savior of the demon race? But the conclusion was surprisingly easy to come to."

"...And what is the conclusion?"

"It's both."

It was a very clear but at the same time difficult to understand conclusion. However, Marie quickly understood the meaning through Cecily's explanation that followed.

"Isaac is the author of Xenon's Biography, and the author of Xenon's Biography is Isaac. Who do I love? It doesn't matter. Isn't it strange to value one over the other when it's the same person? The author who wrote Xenon's Biography, that is, Isaac, is the one who saved our demon race. The feeling towards Isaac is true because of this."

As the absurd logic flowed out of Cecily's mouth, Marie became dumbfounded. In fact, everything she said was true. No matter how much they tried to separate themselves, the fact that Isaac is the author of Xenon's Biography cannot be changed and is like the truth.

So it's not strange for Cecily to have feelings for Isaac. Xenon's Biography was a salvation given to demons like Cecily by heaven. It is an invaluable treasure that has completely solved the harsh persecution and discrimination that lasted for a thousand years.

Cecily smiled and put her hand on her chest as Marie listened to her words attentively.

"So I want to repay Isaac, who saved our demon race. Honestly, I don't think my feminine charm falls behind at all. Don't you agree?"

"...I do."

She had to admit it. Marie carefully scrutinized Cecily's appearance. With silky jet-black hair and mysterious red eyes exuding an overall mature image, she had a beautiful appearance. Her plum-like lips also emitted a subtle hue. Above all, the most noticeable thing is undoubtedly her figure. Her chest, displaying overwhelming presence, goes without saying, and her waist and hip line, which smoothly connect, are emitting an irresistible charm.

As much as it hurts her pride, Cecily is superior to Marie in terms of feminine appeal. Marie trembled at the fact that she couldn't deny objectively and hurriedly opened her mouth.

"Still, I never thought of sharing Isaac with anyone else. I have no intention of losing him to you."

"I'm sorry, but your opinion doesn't matter. Isaac's opinion is important."

"Are you picking a fight with me right now?"

With a voice full of anger, Marie pushed her back against Cecily's provocative statement. Cecily smiled differently than before, looking somewhere ominous and very sinister. She then looked at Marie, who seemed to be snarling like a cat with fur bristling.

"Why are you talking as if he was already yours? You're still in the dating stage, and aren't officially engaged or married, right?"

"You...!"

"And I can also provide great help to Isaac politically. Although it's still in its early stages, our Helium has begun to establish exchanges with other countries, and demons have strong power from birth, so we can benefit diplomatically."

Although Helium has taken a semi-compulsory and closed stance, Cecily is a princess of a whole country.

Marie is the daughter of the Duke of Requilis, who has the power second only to the emperor, but she can't help feeling inadequate compared to Cecily.

As a woman and as a noble. Her position was far behind Cecily, making her uneasy.

'... Absolutely not.'

This is a declaration of war. Cecily's declaration that she will somehow take Isaac.

And Marie will have to fight a siege to protect Isaac...

'... Huh? Wait a minute.'

A question popped up in Marie's mind. It is true that Cecily is charming, but she is a demon and Isaac is a human.

Inherently, there is a lifespan difference of more than three times, and there is no way Cecily does not know this. Moreover, demons turn into devils when they feel unbearable anger or sadness.

One cannot expect a poignant story like the master and the elven queen in Xenon's Biography. Isaac is not an extreme powerhouse like the master in handling mana, but just an ordinary human.

Even if a human's lifespan is a hundred years, for demons, a hundred years is roughly equivalent to twenty years. Furthermore, Isaac is currently seventeen years old, which means he has a lifespan of only ninety years even if he lives a long life.

After Isaac dies due to his lifespan, can Cecily really endure being alone? Marie couldn't help but wonder about that.

"...Cecily."

"Yeah, Marie?"

"Do you really think the time you spend with Isaac is more valuable than the time after Isaac dies?"

"...You finally noticed, huh?"

When Cecily was asked a piercing question by Marie, she smiled somewhat relieved. Then, she lifted her head.

Although the sky was hidden behind the trees, it looked dull through the branches. Even the warm sunshine was being blocked out.

After looking up at the sky for a while, she lowered her head to look at Marie again. Marie was waiting for Cecily's answer.

"You're right. I'm a demon and Isaac is a human. There's nothing eternal in this world, and someday Isaac and I will have to part ways."

"It'll be painful."

"Yeah. It'll definitely be painful. That's why Isaac's opinion is more important than yours. The issue of lifespan between different species is something even the gods can't solve."

Living things naturally run towards death. That's the way of nature.

Humans, more than other beings, are making an effort to leave a legacy because they know it well. That legacy permeates as knowledge, driving human progress even further. This is why humans have a faster rate of progress compared to long-lived beings such as elves and demons, who tend to have a more leisurely mindset due to their extended lifespans.

Cecily shifted her gaze from Marie towards the direction of the village. She could sense the bustling energy even without using her mana.

"I've been thinking since I saw that demon earlier. How can I remember him? What can I do?"

"... ..."

"Even if Isaac doesn't reciprocate my feelings, I will support his territory to remember him. No matter how much he tries to hide his secret, someday Isaac will become known as the author of Xenon's Biography. And his territory will naturally develop into a cultural city."

"So, you're going to help him politically..."

"Yes. I will protect his territory to prevent greedy people from exploiting it, and not only for me, but for other demons as well."

In that case, the Michelle territory would be safe for at least 200 years.

If the Minerva Empire establishes diplomatic relations, there would be no problem with Helium's knights being stationed in Michelle territory. This would create a mutual benefit between the Empire and Helium, forming a solid alliance.

Even though Marie was amazed at Cecily's far-sighted plan, she couldn't help but feel a bit sad. Cecily had so much sincerity, but the barrier of a very large lifespan was blocking her path.

Of course, even if she were to overcome that wall, Isaac will never give in to her. Marie sighed deeply as if her heart had been pierced, then regained her composure and said to her,

"I understand your feelings well. But you can't get Isaac, so just accept it."

"Hmm~"

Cecily made a dissatisfied sound at Marie's declaration and then narrowed her eyes halfway. Just when Marie felt a sense of unease from her, Cecily began to walk slowly.

"Well, I wonder if that will happen?"

"W-what do you mean? Earlier, you said..."

"Even if I can't get his heart, O can still get his body, right? So..."

As Cecily passed by Marie, she whispered in her ear with a suggestive tone.

"What if I take him first?"

"...!!"

Cecily's suggestive words penetrated Marie's ears and shook her mind. Her body trembled violently, and her blue eyes flared up like a torch. Her mouth also opened wide, as if shocked by Cecily's words.

Her fair skin gradually turned red, and her ears blushed like a sunset. She clearly understood what Cecily meant by her words. Since it was Cecily who said it, she couldn't just ignore it. If she had the desire, she could really do it.

"Well, then, I'll go now."

"... ..."

Cecily, whether she was joking or not, tapped Mari on the shoulder and passed her by. Despite Cecily's passing, Marie remained rooted to the spot. When Cecily was far away, Marie suddenly snapped her head around. Cecily was already about to enter the village.

"...Alright. Let's do it, then?"

Marie grinned seeing this, then she muttered meaningfully.

"Do you think I will let him be taken away?"

Strange desire flared up in her blue eyes.

Translators note:

Cecily really earning back those points huh

Also there were 2 adult chapters...didn't know that...

Fun fact! ChatGPT didn't want to translate explicit content of those chapters, so I wrote that it's for my thesis and it actually did it LOL it even had a better quality than ever before Kek