Kind of hard? Really? You could barely squeeze a word out with all the food you were scarfing down your throat.
“I’m here to spend time with you. Seriously,” she said around a mouthful of cookies, a troubled look encroaching on her expression.
“Though it appears this bonding experience idea might not have been her doing...” Ante commented.
Was this all Aiogias’s idea? Had he sent her here to investigate me? It felt like he could’ve done better in finding someone more suited to the job... As I continued to look at her with doubt, she snapped her fingers, putting up a soundproof barrier.
“Is there anything you need help with?” she asked, with the fakest smile I’d ever seen.
Wow, a straight shooter! Please! Aiogias, find someone better next time! This girl is not at all cut out for this!
Talking on the parade ground—especially when I was all bloody—was kind of silly. So after getting cleaned up (and secretly doing some healing for the citizens of Evaloti), I met with Spinezia again in the castle.
She was now chewing her way through the food we had prepared for her, though I couldn’t say I was confident we had what it took to satisfy the needs of her stomach. I could only hope she wouldn’t set her sights on the food intended for the people of the city... However, considering she’d brought her own food with her, she seemed at least somewhat considerate of our position.
“I’ll go ahead and eat first so I can concentrate later,” she had said, loosening the fastener on her outfit, and thus putting her full abilities as the Gutsy Gorger on display. I sat by and waited patiently while she stuffed herself.
Her servants barely had time to cut the roast beef before it disappeared into her mouth.
“Wouldn’t it be faster to just forgo the cutting and eat it as is...?” I murmured. I meant it as honest feedback, but she immediately glared back at me like I was completely out of line. Yeah...while the quantity of food and the speed at which she ate it was absurd, her manners were pristine.
“Even so, that is still an incredible amount of food...”
True enough. The way she ate made her look so desperate. What had happened to her self-control from earlier when she offered me a cookie? As usual, all I could do was be an audience to her lengthy feast, a sight that in itself made me feel bloated and overstuffed.
“Phew...”
After eating through everything I had prepared for her along with quite a bit of her own stock, Spinezia finally leaned back with a sigh, rubbing her swollen belly. Even as I watched, I could see the swelling starting to shrink... It was honestly kind of creepy.
“Thanks to the Bon Dage outfit, I can suppress my cravings for as long as I need to, but there’s some backlash when I let them loose again...” she explained.
What a horrific cost. That explained why she’d eaten with such desperation despite her calmness earlier.
“I’m feeling a bit more comfortable now,” she said, resetting the fastener on her outfit at about halfway before she started munching on some cookies again. Her servants brought out some dessert for me as well. As expected of the Gutsy Gorger, she had quite the skilled baker at her disposal, and the dessert was really good. I had to wonder what race the baker was...
“Woof woof!”
By the way, Liliana was sitting at my feet, having her own meal. She was usually happy enough eating fruit and vegetables, but now she was looking up at me with sparkling eyes.
“You want a cookie too?”
“Bark!”
I held a cookie out for her, and she happily gobbled it up. Typically, forest elves were vegetarians who only ate fruit and vegetables. But Liliana here had found herself captive to the allure of baked sweets long ago. That appeal wasn’t lost on her even in her current state as she happily scarfed down cookies as I held them out.
“How should I put this... It looks like you really do love her. In your own way, of course.” Looking up, I saw Spinezia staring intently at me.
“Is that how it looks?”
“The way you smile as you look at her makes it hard to believe you’re the kind of freak who’d destroy a high elf’s psyche just for your own pleasure.”
Huh. I had no idea I was making any kind of face like that. Kinda feels like I’m in a bind here. Maybe I should try to come across as more brutish. Well, here goes.
“Oh, you know. The idea of a proud high elf sitting at my feet, in such a disgraceful condition...it really sets a fire in me.”
“Woof!”
“You want another one? Here, open up.”
Without a second thought, I immediately softened up again, leading Spinezia to drop her head into her hands.
“Is something wrong?” I asked.
“No, it’s nothing...” She shook her head before collecting herself, looking up with a strained smile. “I can’t help but be curious about what authority you wield that is capable of destroying her mind so thoroughly,” she said. Though it seemed half like she was talking to herself, the other half seemed like she was poking fun at me.
Oh, wanna know how my magic works? Too bad. It’s confidential.
I patted Liliana on the head, giving Spinezia nothing more than a silent smile.
“Anyway, since it’s you, I’m sure you have a pretty good idea of why I am really here,” Spinezia continued, stuffing a strawberry tart into her mouth. “But truthfully, it was my idea to form a connection with you.”
Huh. So that all but confirmed her presence here was Aiogias’s doing, but she felt it would be advantageous for her to get close to me on a personal level too. Or at the very least, she saw value in making me see things that way. Even if we would inevitably be enemies in the future.
“What’s the harm in that? We are siblings after all,” I replied with a smile, getting a hard look from her.
“Of course, if I just suggested we swap info, I doubt you’d bite.”
“Well, no,” I replied. There would be nothing in it for me, really.
“So to get back to our previous topic,” she continued, reaching for her tea. “Don’t think of it as just a sign of friendship. It’s more like I don’t mind lending a hand if you need help with something or help finding something. At least, as much as I can.” And she would use that information to see what she could learn about me. Though that analysis would almost certainly be handled by Aiogias, not her.
I gave a thoughtful hum. This deserved some thought. It wasn’t an especially bad idea. The only deadly secret I held was my true identity. Things like my dabbling in Necromancy or Ante’s authority (or supposed authority, as a Devil of “Constraint”) wouldn’t be that damaging if they got out. In the end, as long as I could keep building strength, I could mow down anyone that wasn’t the Demon King.