TIRS 69

CHAPTER 69……………..

 Entangled Simply by Passion

Amid an unexpected, intense kiss, I thought to myself:

This is all because of the alcohol.

It had to be.

If it weren’t… my feelings would…

I pressed my eyelids tightly shut.

I was afraid that the unresolved emotions might suddenly burst like a dam breaking.

My hands gripping Anselot’s clothing tightened.

As a gesture to forget my fear, I buried myself deeper into his embrace.

[Main Quest: Love and Duel (3/3)] Complete!

[SYSTEM] Quest Successful!

[SYSTEM] Gained 31,300 experience points.

[SYSTEM] Level Up! (Lv. 41)

[SYSTEM] Acquired 30 skill points.

[SYSTEM] Quest completion rewards have arrived in your mailbox.

Messages buzzed loudly in my ears, but neither Anselot nor I stopped.

In truth, the quest was no longer an excuse.

In the chilly night air, we were simply entangled, burning.

[SYSTEM] Scenario <Chapter 3. Love and Duel> completed!

[SYSTEM] Scenario completed; strategy mode has been disabled.

Ilay turned his head for a moment and looked somewhere.

Ruivel had completed the scenario.

And the opponent was…

‘Anselot.’

His expressionless face seemed almost cold.

“Oh, Master of All Things… Is there some problem… ugh…”

The priest who tried to speak to Ilay had his head slammed to the floor.

The invisible force pressing down was so strong that blood trickled from the priest’s mouth as he coughed painfully.

“Ma-Master… ugh…”

“That’s strange.”

Ilay muttered softly.

Ruivel was stepping boldly into the final chapter. Helheim’s awaited death was not far. So why did I feel… this way?

“Why does it feel so strange?”

He asked himself, unable to understand.

Ruivel Azester.

A woman who defied the system’s order and the order he had set.

She always exuded the aura of the Great Dragon Helheim.

The red jewel around her neck was Helheim’s half-heart.

She was a player wielding Helheim’s power.

Perhaps this time, he thought, he could finally kill Helheim and erase it.

That was why he allowed her to remain, even knowing she was a bug.

Well, once Helheim was defeated, he could eliminate her too. It didn’t matter.

Ruivel Azester was a fascinating human.

Sometimes, her acts of looking out for him seemed amusing. Despite being weaker, she probably knew her place.

Yet he couldn’t tell if his interest in her was truly his own, or that of ‘Ilay.’

The God of Light, Lus.

The system that established the order of this world, and at the same time, its master.

His hair, black as night, absorbed Nox’s darkness; his sun-like, shining eyes were golden.

In the Dream Forest, he killed Ilay and stole his name.

To meet Ruivel Azester.

But he hadn’t expected that the cursed Dream Mage would counterattack.

He had momentarily forgotten the configuration values of Ilay he had set.

Ilay, Sage of Light, a sage who understood divine providence. The spell he cast, exchanging his death, sealed Lus into Ilay’s body.

For a while, Lus had been assimilated into Ilay’s memories and emotions, believing he truly was Ilay.

Then, just moments ago, upon arriving at the temple, he sensed a strange discomfort and recovered his memories.

During that brief period of assimilation, Ilay’s torn consciousness seeped into Lus’s heart. Annoying, really.

So he created a whirlwind to scatter everyone, then reached the statue.

Intent on expelling Ilay’s consciousness that had seeped into him via the sacred relic.

But the relic was destroyed, making even that impossible.

‘Well, not much longer anyway.’

Soon, he would kill Helheim and absorb its power, becoming the true master of this world.

There was no need to forcefully expel Ilay’s consciousness.

And when that day came, Ruivel Azester—the insignificant bug—would die too.

Yet… why did he feel a little regretful?

The scattered party members were safely reunited.

Maria, who had wasted time in the labyrinth trying to find me after I had already escaped in record time, was furious.

“This is impossible! I thought I could find true love with Ruivel at the end of the labyrinth! How could Prince Anselot be with Ruivel in the maze…!”

Klaus, waiting outside and having endured countless confessions and bouquets from passing women, greeted me with a pale face.

“Your Highness! I’ve been waiting!”

I would never have guessed that Klaus could greet me with such a bright expression.

[SYSTEM] ’s affection increased by +300! (Affection: 999)

[SYSTEM] Affection is already at maximum, increase not applied!

Even at the moment he saw my face, his affection had spiked.

For poor Klaus, who didn’t understand the beauty of love, the relentless confessions from Ruenhart women who valued love above all else had been tormenting.

And then, Piya and Ilay…

“Ilay? Why is Piya…”

“I picked her up on the way.”

Ilay brought the soundly sleeping Piya floating in the air with magic.

Piya, who didn’t wake even when boarding the carriage, only woke upon arriving at the palace.

“I’m sorry, Lulu. I went to look for Ilay and accidentally fell asleep.”

“But didn’t Ilay take care of you when I asked him to?”

“Piya was too sleepy. Probably because she’s in a human body now.”

Piya puffed her cheeks and glanced at her plump limbs, making excuses.

“Really! Just wait. Once Piya returns to her original form…”

But even the next day, Piya had not reverted.

She was slightly sulky, but soon got excited upon seeing my completed scenario status that she hadn’t noticed before.

“Lulu! When did you finish your quest?”

Piya asked, flustered.

“You prepared so many great choices for my quest, but now the strategy mode is over! Too bad I couldn’t use them while you were doing the quest.”

I paused.

The word “choices” reminded me of the sentences I didn’t want to remember.

‘Could it be… those cringe-worthy choices…?’

Had Piya been there, I might have said those cheesy lines to Anselot. Shivers ran down my spine.

‘Good thing… Piya wasn’t there yesterday…’

I thought quietly, hiding my expression.

“Did you meet your destined partner in the labyrinth?”

Piya, unaware of my inner thoughts, asked with sparkling eyes.

I averted my gaze slightly and muttered:

“Destiny, my foot.”

“…!”

Piya’s eyes widened even more at that.

“I knew it! Something must have happened yesterday!”

She squealed, clutching her cheeks.

Even with her face flushed and bouncing in excitement, I couldn’t smile.

“But where’s Anselot? He hasn’t been seen since yesterday.”

Piya frowned, searching for Anselot.

“Pfft! He’s not helping with the quest, probably went off alone!”

“….”

Piya’s misinterpretation and tongue-clicking didn’t deter my thoughts. The subtle tension from last night with Anselot kept replaying in my mind, leaving me speechless.

After we had kissed, a long time passed before we separated our lips.

Neither Anselot nor I spoke first, just staring at each other.

Under the pale moonlight.

His reddish eyes and glistening lips drew my gaze.

He silently stared at my face for a long time.

Then, we both spoke simultaneously:

“Ruivel…”

“Anselot…”

And closed our mouths at the same time.

“…….”

“…….”

The quiet was awkward.

Yet, in a way, I didn’t dislike it.

Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump.

After a while, Anselot stared blankly at the still-visible quest completion message and muttered softly:

“The quest… is complete.”

“Yes, thanks to you again.”

I nodded briefly.

“…….”

“…….”

Silence returned.

And within it, I slowly realized:

I kissed Anselot.

And the feeling of that first, accidental kiss… wasn’t bad. It leaned toward good.

At the same time, I wondered:

Did Anselot… feel the same?

Anselot rose first and extended his hand.

He stayed silently by my side until I went outside to reunite with the others.

Amid Maria’s wailing, Klaus’s groaning, and the appearances of Ilay and Piya, Anselot quietly disappeared.

And never returned.

“I don’t think he came back last night either. I wonder if he slept well.”

Even though I knew he wasn’t so young or weak that I needed to worry, I couldn’t help it.

At that moment:

“Anyway, Lulu! By completing the scenario, you now have one more ally slot!”

Piya chattered as she asked me.

“How about getting an ally before leaving Ruenhart? The higher the affection, the better the ally effect. So…”

I didn’t even need to hear the rest.

‘She means we should register Maria as an ally.’

It made sense, given the original story and affection points.

But what came out of Piya’s mouth was something entirely different:

“How about bringing the one who got your first kiss?”

I spat out what I was drinking.

Cold water dripped from Piya’s face.

And then she burst into tears.