Chapter 32: At Least Pretend, Won’t You?

The cool lake water trickled down, washing over my skin and carrying away the dirt.
I sat on the shore with my legs submerged in the water, scooping up water with one hand to rinse my body.

I stretched out my arm, fingers spread.
Scattered droplets clung to my porcelain-like skin.
It looked so delicate, as if water would gush out if pinched.
Perhaps in some people’s eyes, this body of mine is like a sweet and delicious fruit, making them drool.

That’s right, I’m talking about Elvira.

Help me take a bath?
Don’t think I don’t know what she’s thinking.
The beads of her abacus are about to hit my face.
So, I simply told her to go wherever it’s cool and stay there.
I can manage a bath on my own if I just grit my teeth.
It’ll just be a bit slower and more time-consuming.

Thinking of this, I turned to look around.
I scanned the area and didn’t see Elvira or anyone else, which put me a little at ease.

Speaking of Elvira…

The dragon’s way of thinking is completely different from mine.
Even in my relatively open-minded past life, the dragon’s perspective would be considered quite avant-garde.

I know Elvira has feelings for me, but I think it’s not love.
Or perhaps Elvira has mistaken it for the feeling of liking someone.
Personally, I think her feelings for me are more like the suspension bridge effect.

Think about it, a person accompanies you out of a deadly situation and through heavy encirclement, fights alongside you again, and even consoles you about things you’ve been dwelling on.
And there have even been two inexplicable little incidents.

I wouldn’t believe it if I said I didn’t feel anything at all.

But in terms of the process, it’s too fast.

We’ve only known each other for about half a month, right?
It’s impossible to establish a relationship.
Besides, I’m a girl now, and Elvira is also a girl.
If we were together… would this world’s society accept such a relationship?

Let me be clear, I will absolutely not like men!
Absolutely, absolutely impossible.
The thought of it makes me physically uncomfortable.
If one day a man approaches me with such thoughts, I will make sure he never returns, and I’ll chop off his bird too!

I’ve gotten a bit off-topic.
Let’s go back to me and Elvira.
I have no intention of being a green tea b*tch.
Elvira just doesn’t have a correct understanding of her feelings right now.
She needs time, and I also need time.
The church’s pursuit can be said to be temporarily over, but it’s only temporary.

We are not completely safe yet.

Even if we get to the other continent, I still need to familiarize myself with this world.
At that time, if Elvira really can’t let go of me, and my life happens to be stable, then maybe… I will accept her?

Will I? Or won’t I? I don’t know…

This kind of thing is too far away.
I have no experience in love, so I dare not make a rash conclusion.

Aiya, aiya! What am I thinking about?
Shouldn’t I be considering how to get out of here right now?

The battle at the port, and the coma after the self-destruct, I had considered it, but I just thought it was just a nap.
I didn’t expect the price to be so high this time.
My already weak body is now extremely feeble.
That’s why I can’t let Elvira fly me back.

And she refuses to fly away by herself…

So why did I become like this?

Playing with my hair, I tried to recall the course of the battle.
Scenes from my memory flashed through my mind one by one.

At first, I was arguing with that greasy scumbag.
But under the protection of Nadiesse and Elvira, he couldn’t even touch me.
So the reason is definitely not related to him.

That eye, “The Ancient Gaze.”
I was grazed on the thigh by its beam, but that was just a flesh wound.
It’s not it either.

Later… the giant… the golden-haired girl… Elvira and I launched a thrilling combination attack…

That’s right! It’s this one!

The combination attack!

Thinking about it now, has Elvira’s dragon flame always been that powerful?
That’s a terrifying temperature that can even melt rock.
If she had always had a dragon flame of such terrifying power, we wouldn’t have had to run away in Norn City at all!

She could have just turned back and burned the entire city and its people to ashes with two breaths.

…And the reason for Elvira’s outburst… I probably figured it out.
It’s… my blood.
Is it my blood again?

Am I some kind of walking, self-propelled energy supplement pack?

My blood is needed for healing, and my blood is also needed for unleashing big moves.

The reason for my extreme weakness this time must be due to the excessive blood loss from that one time, leading to severe anemia now.

Sigh~ in the end, it still comes back to Elvira.

Since thinking about it is useless, I simply stopped using my brain.
I untied the shawl on my shoulders, exposing the skin of my shoulders and back to the air.
I cupped a small amount of water and rinsed my shoulders.
A cool sensation climbed up my shoulders and slowly slid down my back.
My body couldn’t help but shiver, and goosebumps popped up all over.

“Phew~ although it’s acceptable, it’s still a bit cold.”

I moved my feet, which were submerged in the lake water.
A few fish actually pecked at my toes.
The ticklish feeling was quite interesting.
No matter how I moved, these few fish wouldn’t leave.

After a while, when I had played enough, I remembered that there were still many parts of my body that hadn’t been cleaned.
Seeing the sky turning yellow on the horizon, I knew I couldn’t dawdle any longer.

I untied the belt at my waist, and my clothes gradually slid down.
A feeling of embarrassment and shyness quickly rose from the bottom of my heart.
I shooed away the fish in the water and held onto the rocks on the shore as my body sank into the water.
The lake water enveloped me, and a cool sensation spread throughout my body.

The water level here was not high, just past my collarbone.
I washed the clothes Elvira gave me in the water and put them back on the shore.

Then I casually washed myself.
It wasn’t that I didn’t want to wash thoroughly, but some parts were just too sensitive.
After several attempts, I gave up the idea of a thorough cleaning.

Suddenly, in the corner of my eye, I saw a few fish darting past under the water.
This instantly tensed my nerves.
I immediately tensed my body, covered my sensitive parts, and hurriedly moved towards the shore.

But… after waiting for a while, nothing happened.

It seems it was just a few fish.

“Sigh~ scaring myse—ahhhhhhhhh!!!”

A black shadow broke through the water without any warning.
My newly relaxed nerves were suddenly stimulated.
I screamed in surprise.
Water splashed everywhere, all over my face.
After wiping my face randomly with my hand, I hurriedly opened my eyes.
The scene I saw almost made my brain shut down.

“Verona, what are you doing?”

“I should be the one asking you that!”

That black shadow was none other than Elvira!
It’s just that her current appearance…

Gulp—

My throat moved, and I swallowed.

Something black, like a leotard, covered Elvira’s sensitive parts.
It looked like a tube top and hot pants, the kind that are super short and super form-fitting.
Elvira’s curvaceous body was perfectly outlined, and the visual impact of the black clothing against her snow-white skin was greatly enhanced.

Her hair was all wet, sticking to her forehead and cheeks, like a hibiscus emerging from the water, enchanting and alluring.

“Didn’t you tell me to go wherever it’s cool and stay there?
The coolest place I could find was in the lake.
I could also catch fish for dinner.
But you just happened to be in the way…”

“Is it my fault? This lake is so big, and you just happened to run into me?
It’s hard not to suspect you have ulterior motives.”

Elvira smiled without a word and approached step by step.

Only then did I see clearly that what was covering her body was not clothing at all, but her manifested scales.
Which means… Elvira is also completely naked right now…

“Verona is so smart. Since you’ve already guessed… then come on.”

She’s not even trying to act anymore!!