"This… could this be the Elf Queen's tear?"
Kurose Akira gently cradled the Elf Tear in his palm, his thoughts sinking inward. It was only a conjecture for now—what the truth actually was, he still couldn't be certain.
"No matter what, once the Elf Queen awakens from her slumber the day after tomorrow, everything will come to light."
Murmuring to himself, Kurose Akira slowly logged out of the game world.
Back in reality, he went through his usual routine—washing up, tidying himself—then prepared to go to bed. Just as sleep was about to claim him, a faint glow flickered from his phone, signaling a new WeChat message.
It was from Liu Xue.
Clumsy Bunny: " Akira, my sister said you don't need to come to the shop tomorrow or the day after. We'll be temporarily closing for two days."
"Closing?"Seeing the message, Kurose Akira couldn't help but feel puzzled. The shop had been running perfectly fine—why would it suddenly shut down?
Clumsy Bunny: "Don't worry, it's just some routine procedures. Nothing serious."
"Oh, I see."Hearing Liu Xue's explanation, the tension in Kurose Akira's chest eased slightly.
He remembered that Liu Ling's noodle shop was currently being evaluated for the street's Five-Star Shop ranking. It was probably because of that.
Even if it was just a mostly meaningless title, displaying it in the shop could still attract customers.
Speaking of which… tomorrow was Friday already?
Kurose Akira suddenly became aware of how quickly time was passing. Friday…
Looks like I can pull another all-nighter.
But Ivsha would be returning to the church, and the elf sisters would be going home to spend time with their mother. That would leave only Alice and Loserine. Three people…
Perfect for a round of Dou Dizhu.
Sleep. Sleep!
The next day, Kurose Akira yawned as he walked into school. The moment he entered the classroom, the writing on the blackboard caught his eye:
30 days until the college entrance exam.
"Time really flies…"He sighed softly as he sat down and immersed himself in his review materials.
No matter how smoothly the guild was running, he couldn't afford to neglect his studies.
Just as Kurose Akira was fully focused, Liu Xue quietly appeared behind him.
"Studying?"
He nodded. "Yeah."
"Did you hear? Something big happened in the game recently," Liu Xue said.
"What is it?" Kurose Akira looked up at her curiously.
"A lot of high-level guilds received special commissions. Apparently, some members of the Demon Race escaped from the Abyss."
"Demon Race?"
Kurose Akira frowned slightly. Strictly speaking, Ivsha and Idis could also be considered part of the Demon Race.
"Yeah. I heard there aren't many of them, but every single one is incredibly powerful. Only guilds ranked D and above are qualified to take those special commissions," Liu Xue continued.
"D-rank and above…"Kurose Akira stroked his chin thoughtfully, a clear spark of interest forming in his eyes.
Of course, he knew he hadn't reached that level yet, so this matter didn't concern him for now. Still, he wasn't far from D-rank. Perhaps it wouldn't be long before he became eligible for such special missions himself.
After school, Kurose Akira bought some food at random and hurried home. He logged into the game without delay and discovered that in-game time was only 7:30 in the morning.
Alice was busy cleaning in the guild hall, while Loserine was focused on sword training in the practice room. The sharp sound of a blade cutting through the air echoed faintly.
Perfect timing, Kurose Akira thought. I can do knight training now.
He remembered that Loserine's character quest required him to complete knight training with her three times. The first session hadn't satisfied her and had only lasted half an hour, so it didn't count. That meant two more sessions were still needed.
He walked into the practice room and asked, "Loserine, knight training?"
Loserine nodded in response and raised her sword, pointing it directly at him.
"?"
"It's starting."
"Wait—!"
"Too slow!"
"Grip your sword properly!"
"Your footwork is a mess!"
"Faster! Faster! Again—faster!"
"..."
(The following was an hour and a half of sword training.)
"Hiss—damn, that hurts!"
Kurose Akira leaned back against a wooden bench in the guild hall, sucking in a sharp breath. His body was covered in bruises—the unmistakable result of Loserine's merciless training. Every swing of her sword had overwhelmed him, yet he'd stubbornly endured, refusing to fall.
Compared to the first session, his swordsmanship had improved noticeably.
Smack!
Loserine efficiently applied bruise-healing ointment to his back and said calmly, "Your growth is fast. After just a few sessions, you can already barely block one of my strikes. Your talent isn't bad. If you devoted yourself entirely to swordsmanship, surpassing Roxia wouldn't be difficult."
Hearing such high praise, Kurose Akira smiled faintly and closed his eyes, quietly savoring the sensation as Loserine applied the medicine.
Because Loserine was undead, her body was wrapped in soul energy. The sensation was unusual—cool and slightly gelatinous, like a slime. As the damp ointment was massaged into his back, it rubbed against his skin with faint, squelching sounds.
Her hands were firm, the pressure bringing waves of pain—but Kurose Akira clenched his teeth and endured.
To become stronger.
[Knight's Daily Training (Remaining: 1)]
Kurose Akira took a deep breath. Only one knight training session remained—meaning he'd have to endure Loserine's ruthless beating one more time.
Just then, Ivsha walked into the guild, tilting her head curiously.
"Mr. Akira~ what are you doing?"
Kurose Akira replied helplessly, "Applying medicine. I just got beaten up by Loserine."
Ivsha's lips curved into a mysterious smile. "Oh? Then that means~ you can't move right now, can you?"
Hearing the playful tone in her voice, unease flickered across Kurose Akira's face.
The next second, Ivsha suddenly hugged him tightly, burying his head between her soft whiteness as she spoke tenderly, "Come now~ Mr. Akira, let my body help soothe your pain~ This is what a kind nun should do~"
Caught completely off guard, Kurose Akira could only let out muffled protests.
"Mmmph—can't breathe! Ivsha! Let go of me!"
Ivsha giggled mischievously. "Can't breathe? Then let me give you mouth-to-mouth resuscitation~ (ε｀)"
"?"
"!"
Loserine continued calmly applying the ointment, paying no attention to the playful antics between him and Ivsha.
Once she finished, she sat leisurely on a nearby wooden chair and began reading a newspaper, as though everything around her was utterly irrelevant.
A dozen minutes later, the elf sisters arrived as promised.
"Guildmaster~ we're here~"
Their arrival made Kurose Akira hurriedly push Ivsha away. He awkwardly straightened his clothes.
He couldn't possibly show such indecent scenes in front of these pure elves—at the very least, he'd have to wait until they were older… cough.
Clearing his throat, he asked Frilly and Flora, "Has the time for the Elf Queen's awakening been confirmed?"
"Yes!"Beia Frilly nodded firmly, trust and resolve shining in her eyes. "Tomorrow morning at five o'clock, Her Majesty will awaken from her slumber. We believe she'll give our mother a fair judgment!"
Hearing the time, Kurose Akira frowned slightly. Five o'clock—that meant he'd have to stay overnight at the guild to avoid missing such a critical moment.
"Guildmaster~ are there any missions today?"Flora's bright eyes sparkled with anticipation, as if she couldn't wait to embark on another adventure.
Kurose Akira smiled faintly. "There are a few, but the difficulty has gone up a bit."
"That's fine! Please assign them to us, Guildmaster!" Frilly replied confidently, her face glowing with fighting spirit. "We want to become stronger! So we can serve you even better!"
It seemed the elf sisters' motivation had subtly changed. At first, they fought solely to rescue their mother. Now, they also wanted to grow stronger through missions and contribute to the guild's development.
...
Night fell, and the clock pointed to ten. Ivsha and the elf sisters had already left the guild, leaving Kurose Akira alone as he quietly reviewed the day's progress.
He had successfully completed three commissions today, earning 50 silver coins and 7,000 experience points. Unfortunately, no hidden quests were triggered again—what terrible luck.
Still, those 50 silver coins pushed the guild's total assets to 30 gold coins.
Kurose Akira smiled with satisfaction as he looked at the guild's account balance.
That amount was enough to purchase an epic-quality item or piece of equipment—but for now, some of it needed to be spent elsewhere.
"Loserine's scabbard is worn… might be time to replace it. Ivsha's nun outfit could be upgraded to improve defense. Alice wants to learn dessert-making—ingredients and kitchen tools will be needed…"As Kurose Akira calculated the expenses one by one, he suddenly realized—
The guild's spending is kind of insane.
What gave him an even bigger headache was how many things needed handling. Right now, he could barely manage, but once the guild gained more members, his scalp would probably go numb.
Just imagining dozens of members' needs listed on a single sheet, all requiring his personal attention—
Aaaaah!
No. I need an accountant.
Speaking of which… the [Saintess] trait had already been granted the authorities of wealth and generosity. Maybe that could be used?
Wait—having money doesn't mean you know how to manage it!
Sigh…
"Forget it. I'll sleep first."
Letting out a soft sigh, Kurose Akira returned to his room. He yawned, then hugged the stuffed doll lying on his bed, quickly drifting off to sleep…
Huh?
Why is there a stuffed doll on my bed?
"Master~"
"!"
...
The next day, at five in the morning, dawn had just begun to break.
After a quick wash, Kurose Akira immediately headed to the Elf Kingdom.
"Guildmaster! You're here!"As soon as he arrived, Beia Frilly and Beia Flora greeted him outside the wooden house. The door behind them was tightly shut.
"Where's your mother?"Kurose Akira looked around but didn't see Beia Lela, so he asked.
"They're inside helping Mom put on the restraints," Frilly explained.
No sooner had she finished speaking than the wooden door opened. Beia Lela stepped out with two other elves. Silver chains bound her neck and wrists.
"Good morning~ Guildmaster~"Beia Lela smiled as she greeted Kurose Akira.
Kurose Akira instinctively shifted his gaze away. Beia Lela, bound in chains, somehow looked… cough.
Beside him, Ivsha studied Beia Lela with a serious expression before breaking into a mysterious smile—she seemed oddly appreciative of Beia Lela's current appearance.
"Let's go, Princess Lela," the two elves said.
"Mm."Beia Lela nodded, then turned to smile at Kurose Akira."I'll go ahead now. During the trial later~ I'll be counting on you~ Guildmaster~"