玉蒲团之云雨山庄

"Let\'s just get straight to the point, shall we? Both of us don\'t have the whole day, after all. So to sum it up, the prince is not satisfied with my reply to the letter I left for him. That\'s why he sent you to contact me directly, am I right, captain of the royal knight, Julius Tergimand?" (Lyan)

There is no bloodlust in Lyan\'s words nor in his eyes, but somehow, Julius felt a great amount of pressure when he looks at his smile.

"It\'s not unsatisfaction, but a confirmation instead, Evocatore. Since his highness, the crown prince doesn\'t like to act without something he deemed credible. So it\'s just his way of trying to believe you," (Julius)

"Hou. To think that the guy who holds back his strength in the middle of a life-or-death situation would say a thing about trust. I don\'t really sure how to react," Lyan scoffed.

"...You must be joking. In such a situation, there is no way that I could hold back my strength," Julius tried to reply calmly, but as he opened his eyes-

!?!?

When their eyes met, it feels like a certain purple light gleams on Lyan\'s eyes. At that moment, sweat started to gather on Julius\'s back.

The one standing before him is a former demon who masters the way of the heart.

Lying.

It\'s the most foolish thing to do in front of the mystical eyes of an incubus.

"Well, I guess it could be a mistake in my observation as well. It might be just a mistake that I saw you hesitated whether to use the whole ability of your magic sword, and it might also be just a mistake that I saw you reading yourself to retreat alone with the prince while holding that ring in your hand," (Lyan)

The purple light on Lyan\'s eyes seems to get brighter. Julius couldn\'t help but feel pressured by them. Without him realizing it, the smile on his calm face has disappeared.

"So tell me, Julius. Is that really me seeing things... Or is it something that really happened...?" (Lyan)

There is no bloodlust in the air, no one glaring at each other, but it feels like the temperature had got severely dropped around them.

"That is-" (Julius)

"Here you go~ Sorry if I disturbed your serious conversation, \'kay~ But it\'s my job as a waitress to deliver your food, please don\'t mind me~" The waitress cut Julius\'s words and put the food on top of the table.

"Heh! Looks like the waitress saved you," Lyan chuckled.

"........" Julius didn\'t reply.

(Did I corner him too much?) (Lyan)

"Well, I understand the reason. You have your priorities, and in that situation, your highest priority is the crown prince. That time, you were waiting for the crown prince\'s order before you could unleash your real power, right?" (Lyan)

"Thank you for understanding..." (Julius)

"Don\'t mistake me. I\'m not saying you\'re right, but I\'m not saying you\'re wrong either. it doesn\'t sit well with me for you to hesitate when you saw women and even young girls getting taken hostage by vile creatures like goblins. If you and the crown prince swiftly take a decision even though it\'s quite risky, the chance for you to save them successfully without casualties is high. And that\'s a fact," Lyan took the knife and casually cuts the meat before him before putting the piece inside his mouth.

(Whoa! This tastes great! What is this meat? Is it pork?) (Lyan)

"I won\'t deny your statement since it really is a fact. But back to the topic. I believe you\'ve heard, but the crown prince is gathering people with great potential like you under his wings. If you accept this offer, his highness will definitely grant you an important position and a great wealth. He also mentioned about the opportunity of you getting a nobility title," (Julius)

"After having a conversation with you directly, I must say that my opinion of you had heightened drastically. You have not just great strength, but you have the level-headedness and the ability to make a precise decisions. You don\'t have much greed, you have a strong self-principle, and the most important thing is, your eyes are emitting with kindness. I like it," Julius uttered grimly.

"L-Like?! A-Ahem! T-This is our recommended fruit wine. Please enjoy it, dear customer," The waitress that was so energetic before somehow has her face completely flushed as she put the fruit wine on top of the table.

When she returned to the counter, Lyan\'s keen hearings caught her excited mutterings.

\'L-Like!? Did that hot guy just c-confessed with the guy before him!? W-What should I do, I want to hear more...\'

(Whoa... She completely misunderstand when she heard it, didn\'t she? Ah... What a pain... Not only did I have to talk with a guy with a pretty face, I even got caught up in such a troubling misunderstanding...) (Lyan)

And right at that moment, the more troubling voices appeared from inside his head.

(Whoa... So you got confessed to, master? Whoa! He\'s a complete hottie, isn\'t he!? What will you answer? What will you answer?) (Lilith)

(I\'m not answering anything. Stop your fantasies, idiot succubus) (Lyan)

(Hm~ He\'s rather cute. I never thought you swings that way too) (Griselda)

(I don\'t! I\'m a completely straight guy!) (Lyan)

(Hm? Big bro likes that handsome big bro?) (Azelia)

(I don\'t. And somehow hearing him getting called handsome is annoying me...) (Lyan)

(Isn\'t it fine, though? I\'m completely fine if you swing that way, though. There is nothing to be ashamed of, isn\'t it?) (Hestia)

(Like. I. Said. I don\'t swing that way!!) (Lyan)

(Boys love... How foolish... But somehow interesting...) (Eira)

(Eira? Is that Eira\'s voice?) (Lyan)

(*Pant!* *Pant!* *Pant!* A forbidden love of the society... It\'s a holy fruit of pure feelings given by the goddess of love! A miracle! You should embrace the blessing wholeheartedly, master!! The blessing from the goddess of Men\'s love!!) (Cynthia)

(I\'m not accepting such goddess\'s blessings!!) (Lyan)

*Sigh!*

Lyan let out an exasperated sigh as the bombarding of comments came from the denizens inside his head. He could hear them laughing wholeheartedly inside the grimoire\'s space house.

(They\'re completely messing with me, aren\'t they...?) (Lyan)

"The crown prince- No, the Astellia Kingdom wants you, Evocatore. Not only your strength, but also your wisdom and unique perspective. Would you accept the offer?" Julius asked passionately with an expectant look while being completely oblivious to the eyes of the surroundings.

"My reply remains the same. When the time is right, I will join your faction. It would be easy to find you anyway," Lyan replied with a smile.

"By joining, then could I take it as a positive response towards his highness\'s invitation?" (Julius)

"Yes, I guess you can say that," Lyan replied before wiping his mouth with a cloth and putting down the fork and knife on top of the now-empty plate.

"I see! Looks like his highness will be in high spirits for several weeks ahead because of this news!" Julius\'s complexion brightens as he received Lyan\'s confirmation.

\'Oh! His confession got replied to positively! H-How lovely...\'

The sound of the imaginative waitress once again entered Lyan\'s keen ears, making him to make a wry smile on his face because of it.

(I guess there will be no point in trying to correct her, huh?) (Lyan)

"Captain of the royal knights-" (Lyan)

"Please just call me Julius," (Julius)

\'L-Lovers\' special name callings!\' (Dreamy waitress)

(It\'s not! It\'s just his usual name!) (Lyan)

"Then Julius. Do you mind continuing our conversation in a small walk?" Lyan asked with a gentle smile, but his eyes are staring at the corner of the place while hiding the bloodlust beneath them.

"...I see... Let\'s do so," Julius raised his body as he nods, confirming that he realized what Lyan meant.

"Ah! Are you leaving, dear customer~ The total is-" (Waitress)

Before the waitress could finish her words, Lyan put one big silver on top of the table before saying-

"It\'s a little gift. The food and the fruit wine are great. Thanks for the delicious meal," (Lyan)

"I-It\'s our pleasure!! Thank you very much, dear customer!! By the way," The waitress approached Lyan and whispered in a small voice.

"(Congratulation on your relationship! I hope you have a fun date!)" (Waitress)

(Should I take back the big silver, I wonder?) (Lyan)

___________________________________________________________________________

<-1 Big Silver>

Name: Lyan Arkanium Evocatore

Occupation: Mythril-ranked Mercenary

Money: 3,798,710,950 Elnes / 3798 gold 71 big silver 9 big coppers 5 coppers

Weapon: Magic Glaive, 1 (Decent) One-handed Sword, 2 (Good-Quality) One-handed swords, 1 (Decent) bow

Equipment: Black leather cloak, Leather Armor, Breastplate, 2 Health Potions, 2 Poison Vials

Grimoire\'s Companions: 8 High Spirits, 3 Valkyrie, Shadow Goblin Lord (Lv. 5), Papilio Slime (Lv. 45), Galewing Butterfly (Lv. 45), Rock Golem (Lv. 50), Deadlight (Lv. 63), Moonlight Butterfly (Lv. 45), Ice Golem (Lv. 50), Acid Ant Queen (Lv. 9), Magma Bear (Lv. 1)

Grimoire\'s Army: 6 Shadow Servants, 800 Skeleton Army