Chapter 33: Rely on Me a Little More

Under the twilight moon, the crimson of the horizon merged with the azure blue.
The afterglow was like fire, the sky like ice.
Warm colors painted the pine forest, and the lake reflected a scene identical to the sky, as picturesque as a painting.

Ripples dotted the calm surface of the lake, blurring the enchanting scroll.
Two figures “played” in the water.

“If you’re going to wash, then hurry up… keep your hands to yourself!”

“Then don’t dodge.”

“If you don’t grope me, I definitely won’t dodge!”

Similar conversations had already happened no less than three times.
Elvira took advantage of my weakness to bully me relentlessly.
She insisted on helping me take a bath, and I had no way to refuse.
But I only let her wash my hair.
I had already washed my body myself.

However, I still underestimated the wicked dragon’s cunning.

Just washing my hair, did she take ten minutes or half an hour?
During that time, she always found opportunities to pretend to accidentally touch me.
My waist, thighs, armpits, and lower abdomen were not spared.

Why does washing hair involve the lower abdomen?

She said it was a fish that touched me.
I think she’s that big, slippery black loach!
It’s reasonable for a dragon to fly in the sky, but why can she swim so fast in the water?
Is she an all-terrain vehicle of the sea, land, and air?

Suddenly, a warm, jade-like touch slid down my back, starting from my neck and going all the way down to the end of my spine, with a tendency to go even further down.

Smack—

I slapped away that unruly paw with a backhand, my almond-shaped eyes wide as I turned to glare at Elvira.

“Hey! That’s going too far!”

I said, puffed up with anger.
I thought Elvira would just brush it off again, but what I got in return was a completely inexplicable sentence.

“Your hair is so beautiful.”

“Don’t think you can get away with it by complimenting me!”

“I’m serious,” Elvira said, taking a lock of my hair in her hand.
“Pure white and flawless, without a speck of dust, like snow.”

“Hmm? Why so sudden… I actually think my hair is a bit long and inconvenient. It blocks my vision, and sometimes I even lie on it when I sleep.”

A slight pulling sensation came from the back of my head.
Elvira lifted my wet hair and sniffed it, her eyes squinting in intoxication.

“There’s a floral scent. I don’t know what flower it is, but it smells very good. I like it a lot.”

The next moment, Elvira, without any explanation, buried her head in my snow-white hair, greedily breathing in my scent.
Her body also got closer and closer, stopping only when our two bodies were pressed together.

The dense pressure on my back was both familiar and strange.
I knew what it was, so I scurried away in a slight panic.
My two long, pale legs thrashed back and forth under the water, but no matter what I did, I couldn’t move an inch.

The reason… that long dragon tail, shining with the color of obsidian, had already wrapped around me, right around my waist…
Warm breaths brushed against the back of my neck.
Elvira got closer and closer, and in the end, she actually rested her head on my shoulder, rubbing her smooth chin against it and letting out a comfortable hum from her nose.

“Verona, can you promise me one thing?”

“W-w-w-what is it!” I started to stammer nervously, my arms crossed over my chest, not daring to move.

A request made by Elvira with this kind of offensive is definitely not going to be simple.
I’m very afraid that she will make an emotional request, because in the current situation, I don’t know how to refuse her…

“F-first, let me be clear. I will absolutely not agree to anything too embarrassing.
I hope you have some sense of propriety…”

“I won’t do that…” Elvira whispered, her crimson cherry lips almost touching my earlobe.
The fragrance of her body constantly emphasized her presence.

“What I want to talk about is still about life.”

This topic was unexpected.
I never thought Elvira would bring this up again.

“The road is long and winding, but there is always a return.
Verona, I don’t know what you’ve been through before, but I still hope you can rely on me a little more.
At least until I fall, don’t disregard your own life again.

The consequences of this time can already explain a lot.
You can’t always exchange your… suicide, for power.
Your body can’t take it anymore.
One more time, and I’m afraid you…
I don’t want to see that happen.
So, promise me, okay?”

Elvira pressed closer, as if she wouldn’t let go until I agreed.
She was really worried about me.
Perhaps my current state makes her very uneasy…

If it’s just relying on her a little, I think it’s within my acceptable range.
So…

“Alright… I promise you.
But, you, you let go of me first.”

The dragon tail loosened, and the intoxicating presence behind me moved away, but the distance between us was still ambiguous.

Actually, I don’t think this matter is that serious.
Like I said, can we really encounter threats like the church every day?

A witch can’t be unlucky all the time, right?

With my back to Elvira, I very stiffly changed the subject.

“You see, I’ve already promised you.
Now let’s talk about our plans for the future.”

“Really?” Elvira asked with a hint of doubt.

“Really, really. I’m not lying to you.”

“………Alright then. If you lie to me, I’ll be very angry.
As for our future plans… I saw a village on the coast when I was in the air.
Let’s go there and see.
Perhaps we can find a fishing boat that can go out to the open sea.
I’m confident I can buy it.”

“Alright, then when do we set off?”

“Don’t be in such a hurry. Let’s finish our bath first.”

??????

The morning star finally sank below the horizon, and night fell, the stars and moon dim.

After Elvira and I finished washing and had dinner, we prepared to set off under the cover of night.
To get away from the church as soon as possible, we decided to leave this continent first.
Even if there were no boats in the fishing village that could go out to the open sea, we still had to leave.

But before we set off, Elvira gave me another set of clothes.
Still a dress, still black.
Doesn’t she have clothes of any other color?

And she never gave me back my original black and red dress…
Could this dragon have some special collection?
Given the contrast she’s shown these past few days, it’s very possible!

But although I thought so in my heart, I couldn’t say it.
Who knows how she would react?

And our destination, according to Elvira, the fishing village is not far from us.
It might be a bit of a distance to walk, but we can fly.

Although my body can’t withstand a long flight, about ten minutes is definitely not a problem.

The black dragon was hidden in the night.
I lay on her back, trying to minimize the wind resistance I was subjected to.
Elvira was flying much slower than usual.
I didn’t need to think to know that she was being considerate of my feelings.

“Verona, are you okay?”

“I’m… fine, I can hold on. Are we there yet?”

“We’re almost there. But… that village seems a bit abnormal.”

“Abnormal?”

“Mm, it seems a bit too quiet. I haven’t seen a single person.”

“Maybe the people in the small village don’t have a nightlife, so they go to bed early?”

“I hope so…”

I lifted my head slightly and opened one eye to look at the coast.
The ocean under the night was like surging black ink, crashing against the pale white beach over and over again.
Looking along the black and white dividing line, I could vaguely see the outlines of buildings not far away.

They seemed to be all wooden houses, and I didn’t see any signs of human activity.
To prevent the appearance of the black dragon from causing a panic, Elvira brought me to a landing spot a little far from the small fishing village, inland.

She then transformed into her human form, hiding her tail behind her, and we walked towards the fishing village together.