Please Take Responsibility
At the dining table, Angelina glanced at me and Veirya: "The Elven Queen has yet to come to. I think she"s a goner."
"Yeah. The main reason is the doctor who came last time refused to check up on her. I don"t know if humanity"s medications work for elves. With such severe injuries and no response for three days, she"d most likely have been thrown out if she was in the military." Anna was beginning to worry. She said to me, "Sir, if you genuinely care about her, I think it would be for the best to send the Queen back. Can you ask Lucia to see if she can be sent back? I think we would be put on the spot if the Elven Queen was to die here, right…?"
"I"m fully aware of what you mentioned. It doesn"t matter if the monarch is elven or human; if a monarch dies here, either side will come running here with it as an excuse. Now, however, I can"t do anything." I shook my head then let out a hopeless sigh. I elaborated, "Lucia sent the Queen here precisely because we"re on friendly terms. We"ve already done what we can. As for what happens to the Elven Queen after our efforts, there"s nothing I can do about it. We can only worry about it when the time to cross the bridge comes. Veirya, what do you think?"
I looked over to Veirya. She hesitated for a moment before looking up at us. However, she then lowered her head without a comment. Judging from her reaction, she probably didn"t think it had anything to do with her and was fine with whatever the result was. Leah, who was sitting next to Veirya, placed her spoon down and licked the fruit spread at the corner of her mouth: "Papa, I think that Elven Queen has actually already woken up. Just before, I sensed a change from her. She might already be awake. For some reason, though, she doesn"t want to admit it."
I nodded. I could understand how the Queen felt. She wasn"t willing to acknowledge her people betrayed her; she wasn"t willing to acknowledge she wouldn"t see again and would never be able to return to the elven forest. Hence, she didn"t want to wake up. Despite having regained conscious, she didn"t want to move. She wanted to be immersed in her own dark world forever. That, however, wouldn"t work.
The Elven Queen would inevitably have to accept what must be accepted. Furthermore, it was a problem for me if she refused to wake up. I had things I want to get from her, too. If she refused to wake up, we"d never be able to speak. I contemplated, "I need to come up with a way to get her to wake up. What method shall I use, though?"
Hearing that, Veirya nodded, which was very rare, then said, "It"s good. That she can come to. She"s a. Very good monarch. I. Really like her. It"s fantastic. That she survived."
I nodded. I then set down my dining utensils: "Let"s do this: you continue on going about your own business today. Leah, how do you feel? If you"re too tired, don"t work too hard today."
Leah shook her head. She steadfastly responded, "No, Papa. While Leah is a little bit tired, Leah never wants to end up in the same predicament in the future again. So, don"t worry about Leah. Mama Veirya and Sister Angelina take good care of Leah. On the other hand, Papa, are you still not going to come with Leah today?"
Leah gave me the puppy-eyes look. I lingered for a moment. Honestly, I wanted to laugh, as her way of addressing Veirya and Angelina… Veirya was her mama, yet Angelina was her sister. I wondered what Angelina was thinking. The way Leah addressed them was ludicrous.
"Mm, Papa has to watch over the elves today. Since she"s awake, Papa needs to stay home and see what else can be done."
I apologetically touched Leah"s small head again. She grumpily lowered her head and continued eating in silence. Veirya looked over to me, and then didn"t speak again. However, she left me bewildered with her gaze. Angelina giggled about something but didn"t say anything. Anna hesitated for a moment before saying, "Sir, would it not be too appropriate for you… to be alone with three female elves?"
Confused, I asked, "Aren"t you going to be with me?"
Anna helplessly smiled: "That is not it, Sir. The problem is not whether or not I will be present. You need to seek Lord Veirya"s opinion, do you not…?"
Veirya shook her head: "I. Don"t care."
Veirya"s response sounded grouchy, but since she was expressionless, she didn"t appear to be. It seemed as though she was just speaking her mind. Indeed, that may very well be true for her, since she never cared in the past. That said, what Anna said… concerned me somewhat. I warily watched Veirya. Only after confirming her reaction didn"t change did I feel that I had ensured my own safety.
After breakfast, the three left the house. I went upstairs. Neither the bodyguard nor diplomat had woken up. Actually, they just fell asleep again. I walked over to the Elven Queen and sat down. According to Leah, she had actually already regained her conscious and was merely unwilling to accept the reality of the situation.
I touched her head and, in a soft voice, said, "I"m aware that this isn"t easy for you to accept; unfortunately, time forces you to accept it. Regardless of what we"re going through right now, we"ll have to face everything this world throws at us in the future. It does hurt to no longer have eyes, but besides your eyes, this world still exists."
She didn"t reply. I felt as though I was an idiot saying a whole bunch of things to a wooden dummy.
I gently cleared my throat. I then lowered my head and gently lifted her head. I raised my voice this time: "I won"t waste my breath on pointless drivel anymore. Lucia gave me to you; if you"re unwilling to accept the reality, I"ll do as I please! You"re no longer the Elven Queen, anyway; you"re my property now. If you don"t resist, I"m going to do as I please with you!"
I grabbed the Elven Queen"s soft mounds. The bounce and softness surprised me. I never expected them to feel so good. Anna exclaimed, but I didn"t give the elf a chance to do the same. I swiftly lowered my head and kissed her lips. But nevertheless, because I had touched her already, I was bolder. I kissed her lips, but she didn"t react. I slowly removed my lips and looked at her feeling somewhat disappointed. I thought she was actually dead. To my surprise, I discovered trails of tears slowly coursing down from underneath her bandage.
The Queen gently opened her mouth. In a dry and sorrowful voice, she sobbed, "Please… take responsibility…"