Lord of Disease (JP-GL) 441

441: EX11. A Request for the Production of Special Equipment

To do ‘it,’ just because you wanted to.

I had no regrets. That was the best I could have done at that time.

I hadn’t made a mistake. That was the limit of what was allowed for me at that time.

But there were times when I wanted to do it over. If I could. If I were allowed.

“…You know, Master, it’s quite a lot of work to make magic cloth.”

Liz sighed, as she looked at the ‘specifications’ I had summarized on a single sheet of paper. The frills on her maid uniform’s apron and the white brim on her head swayed with her movement.

“Somehow.” I clasped my hands and begged.

“And besides, your orders are so detailed.”

“Please.” I bowed my head, lower than my clasped hands.

“I mean, we’ve done this before…”

“Please turn a blind eye to that.” I knelt on both knees and lowered my posture.

Liz’s expression was becoming more and more exasperated.

“…What is it that makes you go to such lengths, Master?”

I lowered my clasped hands to my chest, looked up, and looked directly at Liz’s face, which was a little higher than mine.

“To be honest, I don’t really know. But I just want to see a different, cute side of you, Liz.”

“…”

She was flustered, and her long ears drooped a little, but her scarf, on the contrary, twitched busily. As I continued to stare into her deep golden eyes, her cheeks turned red, and her ears perked up.

“A-alright. I’ll do it, so please stand up.”

As I was prompted to stand, Liz’s face was a little lower than mine.

“But I need a supply of energy.”

“A mana supply? …I can’t do that for you, can I, Liz?”

“I didn’t say a mana supply. …A supply of energy.”

Liz, who had tugged on the sleeve of my dark green robe and was looking up at me. And she glanced at the canopied bed, and her cheeks turned a deeper shade of red.

“…Please understand.”

Her ears drooped, and her face was lowered. I placed my index finger on her chin and lifted it.

“Mas—mmph?!”

And with all the affection I could muster, I kissed her. Liz wriggled, but I held her head and her cheek and didn’t let her go.

“—Hah—too sudden—mmph.”

I released her for a moment and, after confirming that Liz had taken a breath, I kissed her again, without listening to any more complaints.

“But—mmm.”

After I had repeated that a few times, Liz’s body suddenly convulsed, and the strength left her. I wrapped my arms around her back and, slipping my hands under her knees, I lifted her in a princess carry.

Liz, who had been panting, with her arms wrapped around my neck to support her body, her eyes narrowed.

“…What are you doing, without even listening?”

“Because you told me to understand… ‘I want you to understand, without me having to say it,’ right?”

As I looked into her eyes, the body of Liz in my arms grew hot. A pleasant heat, as if Liz’s feelings had taken a physical form. My pale, translucent, Greater Wraith’s body, the blood that flowed in it, and the body heat it emitted, were all a temporary thing. But the heat in my chest, and my feelings, were not a temporary thing.

“Th-that’s true. But your understanding… is a little too good…?”

I smiled.

“I’ve decided to understand with all my might.”

“…T-too much.”

“Because, you know?” I smiled.

“How much energy do you need? I’m a terrible gas guzzler. What about you, Liz?”

“…Aren’t you a good gas guzzler, Master? You said you were happy just to have a maid, didn’t you?” She chuckled.

“That’s right. I’m happy if you’re here, Liz. …But it’s not enough. If you’re not by my side, it’s not enough.”

“…Honestly.”

I carried her to the bed and, as I sat down, I gently lowered her beside me. Liz smiled.

“Then I’ll keep you full, forever.”

We exchanged a look and closed the canopy. In the closed, black world, the gap between the curtains glowed with a faint white light.

We both took off our shoes and got onto the bed, and we held hands, as if by instinct. We intertwined our fingers and, alternately squeezing and relaxing, we savored the feel of each other’s hands. Our gazes were also on our hands, and we continued to savor the supple, strong, and yet soft brown hands, with both our sense of touch and our sight.

For some reason, we fell silent. I looked up, and my eyes met Liz’s, who, unlike me, seemed to have been looking at my face. Even in the near-total darkness, I could see her blush. Her deep golden eyes, like a jar full of honey, were narrowed gently.

They said that a dark elf’s eyes saw mana. The beastmen, on the other hand, had a more physical night vision, and the difference was whether you could see in complete darkness or not—but the trivial knowledge that came to mind was fleeting, and I was captivated by her eyes, which seemed to float in the darkness, reflecting the faint light.

It was a sight I had loved since I had been a human, but a sight I could not have seen as a human. When I had been a human, I had been afraid of the dark. This place had been full of frightening things. This world had had more enemies.

But now, it was different.

Liz, still holding my hands, leaned against me, as if to be spoiled, and lightly kissed my ear. The small sound of a kiss, when it was on your ear—or rather, on your ear itself—was strangely loud. A series of kisses, like a small bird pecking at its food, rained down on my ear, and the sound filled my head. I instinctively wriggled to escape, but since my hands were held, I failed.

“L-Liz… Why, just my ear?”

Again, chu, a sweet sound, and Liz finished her kiss. —Even though it was over, the sound that had been incessant until just now had stopped, and because of that silence, the sound that had seeped into my ear grew stronger.

Liz, who had pulled away, smiled.

“I like your short ears, Master. …Since you were a human.”

“…I’m glad I destroyed humanity. The fewer rivals, the better.”

“Your jokes are a little black, Master.” Liz, with a slightly exasperated expression. Since I had taken on a black name, it was only natural.

“No matter who else is here, you are the best to me.”

“Really? Even if they’re more beautiful than me?”

“Of course.” Liz smiled and nodded.

“Even if they’re more sensible than me?”

“…………” Liz fell silent, her expression a mask.

“Wait, why did you go silent there?”

“I’m joking. …There’s no one but you, is there?”

Liz squeezed the hand she was still holding a little.

“You’re the one who wanted me as your vice-commander, and you’re the one who led the Sixth Army with me, and you’re the one who hugged me, and you’re the one who slept with me—and you’re the one who told me you loved me, and you’re the one who told me you loved me, and you’re the one who told me I was precious. It’s all you, Master.”

She, who was smiling as she said that, was so beautiful, so cute, so endearing—and I had instinctively brought my face closer. Liz brought her face just as close, and at the midpoint, our lips met.

I closed my eyes and, in the complete darkness, I continued to feel her, and myself, who was touching her. I wanted to stay like that forever, but the heat within me was gradually rising, and when I opened my eyes, Liz had just opened hers.

I let my pounding heart take over and invited her.

“…Want to refuel?”

“…Gladly.”

We chuckled and, still holding hands, still looking at each other, we fell onto the bed, side by side. Then Liz, as if she had just remembered, opened her mouth.

“Ah, Master.”

“What?”

Liz smiled, a mischievous, innocent, and yet somehow bewitching smile.

“It seems I’m a gas guzzler, too.”

I decided to refuel with all my might.