Chapter 44
After my repeated pleas, Senior Delphine finally pulled her clothes back into place. Even her blood-red eyes, fixed on me from across the table, held a hint of strange irritation.
I may have earned a little of her dislike. Secretly, I was a little disappointed, too. As Senior Delphine had said, her naked form was beautiful like a work of art.
But it couldn't be helped. If she had stayed like that, I wouldn't have been able to endure it.
The sweet fragrance lingering in the room, the romantic atmosphere created by the soft lighting, and a half-naked woman of extraordinary beauty besides.
If there were a Venus flytrap that hunted men, it would have looked exactly like this room. Only after Senior Delphine had adjusted her clothes could I finally breathe a sigh of relief.
Even so, Senior Delphine was still beautiful, and her long, milk-white legs extending from beneath her gown inevitably caught my eyes.
Still, it was fortunate that her intimate contours were no longer exposed. When she had approached me moments ago, the floral scent wafting from her skin had left me dazed for an instant, but at least I had managed to regain control of myself now.
A conversation was only possible when both sides were rational. A man bewitched by a woman could not possibly make a reasonable judgment. Perhaps Senior Delphine's aim had been seduction after all.
I was about to think that, but I soon found the thought so absurd that I gave a small, incredulous laugh.
Delphine Yurdina, using seduction against the second son of a mere country viscount?
It was absurd. Anything I could do, she could do as well, and anything I could obtain, she could obtain too. Whether it was skill, wealth, or status, Senior Delphine was superior to me in every respect.
She had no need to seduce me. So, if I thought about it rationally, the way Senior Delphine was acting now was simply how she normally acted.
While I was secretly sighing, Senior Delphine opened her mouth. Her voice was alluring.
“When you wield a handaxe, you're as savage as a beast, but now you act like a naïve prude who values chastity. I'm a little disappointed, Handaxe Young Master.”
I had to stifle a laugh at Senior Delphine's grumbling expression.
This young lady was saying things that could get her into serious trouble in front of a man she barely knew. If things went badly, it could grow into a scandal serious enough to ruin her marriage prospects.
No one was more particular about chastity than nobles. No matter how filthy and disgraceful their actions might be behind closed doors, nobles had to appear spotless and without a single blemish on the outside.
But a man and woman were meeting alone in the dead of night, and the woman was half-naked?
The moment this rumor spread, it would undoubtedly damage her image. Still, the value of the ‘Delphine Yurdina’ name was so exceptional that it would probably amount to little more than a scratch.
So I cautiously offered Senior Delphine some advice. It was presumptuous of me.
“Senior Delphine, even so, if you're a noble, shouldn't you value your body more…….”
“There’s no need.”
But before I could finish speaking, Senior Delphine declared it in such a decisive tone. It was so short and matter-of-fact that I was even more flustered.
“……What?”
“I said there’s no need, Handaxe Young Master. Have you ever thought about why women wrap themselves up so tightly in front of men?”
Senior Delphine's languid question made my lips press tightly together. A discussion of social institutions in general was not my area of expertise. Leto might have known the answer.
But I could at least give a common-sense answer. Thinking of the sermon I had heard from the Saintess not long ago, I opened my mouth.
“To preserve their chastity, presumably? Unlike reason, the flesh was fashioned by the hand of the evil god Omeros, and thus gives birth to sin…….”
“Which is exactly why there’s no need.”
Her voice was decisive once again.
I stared at Senior Delphine without saying anything. With a leisurely motion, she poured wine into an empty glass.
With a soft trickling sound, the wine's fragrant aroma spread through the room. She gave the glass a light push, and it slid smoothly across the table until it reached me. Her control of her strength was almost artistic.
I could tell it was high-quality wine just from the fragrance brushing against the tip of my nose. Of course it wasn't cheap; it was the wine drunk by the heir to House Yurdina.
How many gold coins was this one glass worth? I briefly tried to estimate it, then decided it was pointless and gave up.
After all, she and I lived in entirely different worlds. No matter how hard I struggled with the calculation, it would be nothing more than a trivial concern in front of her. There was only one thing I could do.
Drink the wine. I downed the wine in my glass in one go.
Its sweet taste, bitter flavor, and the deep, lingering aroma peculiar to wine as it slid down my throat.
It was good. Even I, who knew little about wine, could tell that it was clearly different from ordinary mass-produced wine. When I drained the first glass in a single gulp, a subtle satisfaction appeared in Senior Delphine's eyes.
She seemed to enjoy drinking with gusto. That made sense, since she was from the North as well. They were people who had survived in that brutally cold environment. Whether noble or commoner, they were bound to grow somewhat rough around the edges.
Though from her appearance alone, she looked like someone who would meticulously observe every detail of proper dining etiquette. The contrast between her aristocratic appearance and her tastes left me somewhat confused.
“Beautiful things inspire the desire to possess them. Everyone is like that. A woman's body is the same—the more beautiful it is, the more it stimulates men's lust. Thoughts of wanting to make it theirs……”
As she spoke, Senior Delphine picked up the wine bottle again. Wine filled her empty glass, and her eyes turned toward me.
It was a look asking whether I wanted another glass.
I held out my glass without a word, and the bottle tilted. With another soft trickle, the sweet aroma spread through the room once more.
Senior Delphine retrieved the bottle with a languid gesture. Then she continued in a gentle voice.
“That’s why most women wrap themselves up, going on about ‘chastity’ and whatnot. Only then can they quell men's desires. Or perhaps they can use it as a weapon at the most critical moment…… Either way, it’s merely the thinking of the weak.”
“……What do you mean?”
“If no one can possess me, why should I be afraid?”
It was an arrogant thing to say. Yet Senior Delphine remained utterly calm as she said it. Her voice held not the slightest doubt, as though she were stating an obvious fact.
And she had every right to say it. Even if some man went mad and tried to attack her, few people would be capable of overpowering her by force.
I was no exception. If I briefly lost my mind and tried to attack her, I would be subdued within seconds. That was why Senior Delphine had no hesitation about showing me her naked body.
Because she was strong. That brazen confidence seemed to be the foundation of the person known as Delphine Yurdina.
A woman who feared no one and belonged to no one.
I silently drank another glass of wine. As though I finally understood her a little, a voice tinged with a sigh escaped my lips.
“……So that’s why you said there was ‘no need.’”
“Yes, I hate anything unnecessary. Beautiful things become more valuable the more you show them off, don't they?”
As she said that, she gave me a teasing smile. She seemed to have noticed that my gaze had unconsciously drifted toward her pale skin. I cleared my throat and looked away.
Drinking was making me lose control of myself again. As though to reassure me, she said,
“If you want to look, feel free. It’s a rare opportunity, after all. Even I don’t show off my body to just anyone.”
I looked at Senior Delphine in puzzlement. So there were criteria even for the people she allowed to see her half-naked?
A quiet chuckle escaped Senior Delphine's lips. She soon dispelled my curiosity.
“Only a person of value has the right to see beautiful things.”
“‘A valuable person’?”
“Heh-heh, yes. Put another way…… ‘a useful person.’”
It was a blunt statement, one that some people might find offensive.
Yet I did not find it particularly unpleasant. Perhaps I had expected as much from Delphine Yurdina. Still, a conversation I had once had with Seria suddenly came to mind.
Wasn't it something like, ‘If you can't prove your usefulness, you might end up like that, too’—the words Senior Delphine had supposedly said to a young Seria?
I sipped my wine without saying anything. Regardless, Senior Delphine continued her story.
“There is only one way I see the world: whether someone is useful or not…… Every other perspective is pointless. In that sense, you're quite a useful person.”
“Because I defeated Senior Elsie?”
“I’ve heard various other things as well.”
It was around then that Senior Delphine crossed her legs. A smooth, shapely thigh was revealed. My eyes nearly strayed there, but I endured it with superhuman patience.
I couldn't keep letting myself be swayed. I squeezed my eyes shut and drank the wine.
Senior Delphine merely chuckled as though she found me cute. Then she continued in her leisurely voice.
“I heard you’ve been spending time with Seria lately.”
“She’s an unexpectedly good junior. Though she is a little lacking in social skills……”
“I’m grateful for that. She’s gifted with the sword, but she didn’t seem to have any knack for human relationships…… Even if she is only my half-sister, she’s still a member of House Yurdina, so I was worried she might go her entire life without making a single friend.”
A faint smile formed at the corners of Senior Delphine's lips as she said that. Perhaps she felt affection for Seria in her own way. After all, they had grown up together since childhood, so it was possible.
Senior Delphine wore a somewhat bitter smile as she fell silent for a while.
Tap, tap. Her index finger drummed against the table. Her crimson eyes, lost in thought, turned toward the window. The moonlight filtering through it seemed like a spotlight meant to make her stand out. It was a scene like a painting.
Only after some time had passed did her eyes turn back toward me.
“I’ve heard plenty of interesting stories, too. Like the rumor that a man who had been merely in the lower-middle ranks among the Academy’s third-years has been showing unbelievable prowess lately.”
“I was lucky.”
Senior Delphine merely scoffed at my self-deprecating words, as though my obvious humility amused her.
“You don’t need to be modest. Results are what matter. If luck favors you once, it’s a coincidence, but if it repeats several times, it’s skill. And I like skilled people.”
With a soft clack, Senior Delphine set the wineglass in her hand down on the table. A reddish flush had spread across her cheeks. The alcohol was beginning to take effect.
A steam-like heat rose through my esophagus and stabbed at my head. I was beginning to feel the alcohol as well. With a suggestive smile, Senior Delphine said to me,
“You know what I’m trying to say, don’t you?”
Instead of answering, I swallowed a groan. It wasn't because I couldn't read the intent behind her question, but because it was so unexpected.
Could she really be going there?