Chapter 140: 139 – Love Affairs – II

Sylphy watched Rudy and Eris interact with a faint smile on her face.

It was good that they were getting along. And it was also good to see that Eris was as cute as ever when she was getting teased.

"Well, aren't you in a good mood?" Rostelina laughed and then reached over to ruffle Sylphy's hair. "Did my cute granddaughter finally get over her jealousy?"

Sylphy pouted and pulled away from Rostelina's hand. "I wasn't jealous!"

"Of course you weren't, Sweety."

Sylphy puffed her cheeks and then looked away, staring at the ocean. Specifically, she stared at the green-haired young man surfing along the waves.

'Roland...'

It wasn't his real name. Her child from another timeline didn't give exact details in case it caused something weird with the way that time was all scrambled up these days. But the fact remained that he was her child. The son between Sylphy and Rudy from another timeline.

He wasn't 'her' son. And from the conversations Sylphy had with Roland, it seemed that the 'her' in that timeline was very different.

Well, Rudy had been too. Apparently, he had been pretty much a mini-Paul... Still smart, but infamously lewd.

But that wasn't too important. Instead...

'Was I really that helpless?'

The Sylphy in that timeline had been just a housewife. While it was good that she was able to live peacefully, Rudy apparently went off on his own a lot. The only one who could stand beside him had been Eris, and even then those occassions were fewer as time went on.

Sylphy couldn't see how that happened. Sure, she had been fairly meek when she was younger. But if that Sylphy loved Rudy as much as she did, then she would have worked hard to become stronger, wouldn't she? Or maybe it was enough for her to just be with Rudy and not by his side.

Whatever the case was in that timeline, it wouldn't be the same here.

Sylphy was strong.

She didn't like to brag about it, but she knew she was strong. The countless scars on her body were proof of that.

Not only that, but she had earned her right to stand at Rudy's side. And he had promised to never leave her.

Admittedly, Sylphy had still been a bit worried about that. Especially with how her body had been breaking down and reaching the end of her life, but as always, Rudy solved everything.

So she didn't worry.

If there existed a timeline were Rudy loved Sylphy and they lived happily to have at least Roland as a child despite her being just a glorified house wife, then Sylphy could rest assured. After all, she was a lot more useful than that version of herself.

...Though Sylphy had to admit that she lost out in terms of patience.

Honestly, for that version of her to accept Eris and Roxy despite Rudy marrying her first... What a saint.

Sylphy sighed and then turned her attention back to the surroundings.

The kids were having fun playing in the sand together. Rudy and Eris were preparing food, now joined by Eos, Ena, and that Therese who was apparently Miss Zenith's sister.

And out in the water, Paul, Pierre, and Roland were still competing in riding the biggest waves while also killing whatever stray monsters popped up.

Sylphy leaned back in the comfy chair that Rudy made for her and then glanced over at Rostelina.

After that off-hand comment, Rostelina had leaned back in her own comfy chair and closed her eyes, basking in the sunlight. Both her hands were quietly resting on her stomach, hugging the baby bump there.

Seeing that, Sylphy rubbed her own belly, frowning.

...A baby would be nice. But with the way things were now...

As much as she'd love to raise a happy family with Rudy, there was a lot to do.

Although she was a bit worried on that end.

Sylphy had already been 'late' for a long time after spending so many years in the distorted dungeons. Would she even still be able to have a child after so long? Rudy said it wouldn't be a problem, but-

A soft 'puff.' The sound of sand shifting as someone plopped down right next to Sylphy. Shortly after, Rudy smiled and waved. "Enjoying yourself, Sylphy?"

She blinked, surprised, and instinctively opened her mouth to talk. "Rudy?" She sat up and said, "What are you doing here?"

Rudy adjusted his currently light brown hair and said, "Well, you seemed a bit lonely. Besides, I wanna spoil you a bit too." After saying that, he scooped Sylphy up and placed her in his lap.

"W-Wait!" Sylphy squirmed, feeling her cheeks heat up. "B-But... U-Um..." She glanced over at Rostelina.

The older elf woman cracked open an eye and then laughed. Idly waving her hand, she said, "You lovebirds enjoy yourself. This old woman will just take a nice nap. Ah, but don't get too frisky. The kids are nearby, you know?"

Sylphy felt her entire face heat up and then said, "I-I wouldn't do that!"

E-Even if... No! T-That wasn't good.

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Calm down, Sylphy. Even if that seems exciting, it's no good.

Rudy chuckled again and said, "Don't worry, Rostelina." He hugged Sylphy closer and leaned on her shoulder. "I just wanted to cuddle a bit with my cute wifey."

"W-Wifey?" Sylphy stammered.

Rudy leaned over and looked at her. "What? No good?"

"N-No. It is. J-Just..." Sylphy poked her fingers together. "...Is it fine to call me Wifey when you're married to Eri?"

Rudy ruffled Sylphy's hair and said, "You worry too much. Even if it's a problem, I'm apparently the reincarnation of Saint Milis and also the Demon Lord of Salvation who's known all throughout the Magic Continent. My word is gospel, and if I say you're my wife, you're my wife."

"...Hmph." Sylphy pretended to be mad and then leaned back against Rudy. "That's why you make me worried, you know? What if your word takes in a few more wives too?"

"Don't worry. There's only two more women I'd even consider, and one of those is only because I'll need to do a preemptive strike before she pulls me into her own battlefield."

"...Two?" Sylphy frowned. "I thought we were only talking about Miss Roxy. Who's the other one?"

"Well. You never said that demons were off the table, right?"

xxx

"Achoo!" Rika sneezed and then quickly looked around the room.

At the moment, she was seated at her office in Arcadia, going over the daily affairs since Rudy was out. A tall stack of papers sat on her desk, detailing the various events going on.

Adventurers reporting the results from various expeditions into Distortions. Sorting out the logistics for people who want to return now that Rudy opened a pathway back to the Milis continent, as well as sorting out the logistics for the inevitable return to other continents.

Not to mention carefully sorting out battle plans in case the humans decided that Rudy was the advent of Demon God Laplace due to a misunderstanding... or because he had developed a means of teleportation that wasn't reliant on magic formations.

After flipping through the papers again, Rika took off her glasses and rubbed her eyes. "Hah... I know that being a Demon Empress is a lot of work, but why is it that there's so much here?"

Considering how ridiculous Rudy was, not to mention how intelligent he was, there should have been less.

No. Maybe that was the reason why there was more.

It would be simple to just let everything move by itself. To let the kingdom and people live their lives without thinking about the future.

That was how Rika used to run her kingdom in the past, after all. As Demon Empress Kishirika, she had done whatever she wanted and mostly left the maintenance of the kingdom to her people and close advisors.

The fact that her territory was still standing in this timeline and her own when she was reborn was a testament to the skills of the people she left it to.

But at the same time, she hadn't been that brilliant. While her mother was legendary, the only talent Rika had were her Demon Eyes and the ability to grant them to other people. She knew a bit of magic theory and had ample mana, but in terms of being qualified as a proper ruler, Rika wasn't. Not really.

Badi helped though. Despite his boisterous personality and constant traveling, he wasn't known as the 'Granter of Wisdom' for no reason. Without his help, it was likely that Demon Empress Kishirika would have faded away after her first death.

Rika spun around a pen in her right hand and frowned. "...It seems I'm weak to those sorts of men."

There wasn't a real need for Rika working so hard. Although Rudy was a bit self-conscious about it, Arcadia was mostly self-sufficient at this point. And to emphasize that point, most of the reports she was reading were just listing out the benefits and good news from throughout Arcadia. And even most of those people seeking to return to other continents had declared an intention to return with their families and settle down here.

So, if Rika wanted, she could loaf around. Like the younger self running lord knows where in Arcadia at the moment, Rika could just sit on the work and pretend to do a good job. It was reasonable. She was just one person, after all. And Rudy wouldn't hold it against her.

But she *wanted* to help. She wanted to be useful.

Rika clicked her tongue and put her glasses back on. "What a terribly wicked man."

Even if he wasn't Magic God Laplace, Rudy was still going around stealing hearts, it seemed.

Rika had joked about marrying him before, but...

A knock on her door.

Rika flinched but then calmed herself. "Come in."

The door opened, revealing Ruijerd. He glanced at the papers on Rika's desk and said, "Are you busy, Rika?"

She shoved them aside for the moment and said, "This is nothing important." She smiled and said, "Are you doing well, Ruijerd? This One is afraid that she has not time to prepare tea, but if you would like-"

"There's no need." Ruijerd shook his head and then walked over.

Rika waved to the seat across from her and said, "Make yourself comfortable."

Ruijerd sat down, but he frowned and said, "That will be difficult considering the seal on Demon God Laplace is on the verge of shattering."

"Eh?"

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