Chapter 60: Shark Chili

Even after witnessing Ron's miraculous magic on the previous knight, Elena never imagined that this freakish fellow would actually make hair grow back on her smooth, delicate armpits.

Plucking out a hair or two would have been one thing, but just now, she had watched with her own eyes as Ron yanked out a huge handful.

What are you doing, harvesting scallions down there!?

The pain of having her weak spot subjected to such a heavy blow almost brought tears to her eyes.

This time it was fine—armpit hair wasn't exactly a vital area—but what if next time it was hair somewhere else?

Like nose hairs, or stiff bristles...

Vaguely, Elena didn't dare to think any further.

"Little one, you really manage to surprise me every single time!"

The baroness stood up indignantly, picking up her silk robe and draping it over her shoulders to cover her exposed expanse of white skin.

She immediately reached for the oak fruit wine placed on the tea table, poured a glass for herself, and then poured one for Ron.

Elena was just about to gulp it down in one go when she suddenly caught sight of a curly, slender black hair floating in the liquor.

The baroness twitched the corner of her mouth, then put the glass down with an expression resembling someone suffering from severe constipation.

She was starting to regret letting Ron come over.

"Miss Elena, drinking and debauchery is immoral, and I believe such behavior, which violates moral and ethical standards, should not be widely promoted."

Seeing the woman put down her cup, Ron felt a profound sense of relief, feeling as though he had done a good deed to improve society's bad habits.

After all, some righteous things simply had to start with oneself!

Well done! — Vaguely, the young man seemed to hear the elements of the Holy Light praising him in such a manner.

Feeling that utterly serene and reassuring sense of peace, Ron stood up and began to earnestly advise Elena:

"Miss Elena, I believe that although you are very wealthy now, you must first learn to have self-respect. Only by respecting yourself can you earn the respect of others."

"Don't keep throwing words like sex around; it just makes you look cheap."

"Mister Baron has only just passed away, and yet you are already so impatient to find a man. How can you look him in the eye?"

"You simply must be a good person!"

Repent... Repent... Repent...

Seeing the young man surrounded by the radiance of the Holy Light, Elena's conscience suddenly experienced a slight pang.

"I..."

For some reason, the baroness felt as though she truly were an immensely sinful woman.

Deep inside, she actually developed the illusory sensation of wanting to repent and turn over a new leaf.

***

Listening to Ron's endless nagging, Elena slumped listlessly onto the sofa, her rounded, pearly-white toes curling and uncurling unconsciously.

She desperately wanted to retort, but a wave of guilt originating from some unknown source left her completely at a loss for words.

Where on earth did Olivia find such a freakish guy?

Damn it, stop talking already!!!

Her pearly-white teeth clenched tightly together inside her mouth, and her thoughts raced in a flurry. Under the "Holy Light purification" of Ron, Elena seemed to be reminded of that fateful day once more.

The guilt welling up inside her threatened to drown her like a rising tide, and Elena lowered her head in silence.

Suddenly, the blonde-haired youth saw Elena bite her lip and ask in a voice that was little more than a murmur:

"Little one, if... I really have committed unforgivable deeds, terrible things that wronged everyone, could I still find redemption and win forgiveness?"

?

You mean plotting to seize Baron Mark's estate and willingly cooperating with the Azure Witch?

Ron was immensely surprised, but he never forgot his steadfast principles, and he nodded heavily.

"Of course you ca..."

However, before his words could completely fall, the door to the reception room was knocked on from the outside.

"Madam Elena, a guest has arrived."

A guest?

At this time of night, who could possibly come to visit?

Hearing the maid's voice, Elena, who had been sitting on the sofa with her knees pulled to her chest, narrowed her alluring peach-blossom eyes.

"Didn't I say that no one is allowed to disturb me?" she raised her tone, loudly demanding an explanation from the maid outside the door.

"B-But Madam Elena, the guest says it's a matter of the utmost importance."

"..."

The expression on Elena's face remained entirely unchanged as she rose from the sofa and hurried to the reception room door ahead of Ron.

Yet just as her slender fingers were about to touch the gilded brass handle, a shark-tooth blade abruptly thrust straight through the door panel right through the peephole.

The wooden door offered no more resistance than a sheet of paper, failing completely to block the weapon, and the shark-tooth blade reached right before Elena's eyes in a fraction of a second.

Bang—

The door shattered suddenly. Elena dodged the blade to the side as if she had anticipated it, retreating amidst the tremendous force that smashed the wooden panels to pieces.

"Surprise!!!"

Before the wood chips torn into countless fragments could even fall to the floor, Ron heard a boisterous voice ring out.

***

He looked in the direction of the voice and caught sight of a non-human entity with sharp teeth, wearing a half-mask over the upper half of its face, and a shark tail whipping about behind it.

The blonde youth froze for a fraction of a second, then blurted out:

"Shark-Face!"

In an instant, absolute silence fell over the reception room.

After a long while, Elena finally let out a sudden burst of laughter.

Hearing this nickname, the shark-girl who had just swum in through the sewers flew into a furious rage.

"Who's Shark-Face? You're Shark-Face! Your whole family is Shark-Face!"

"Take a good look, I'm a shark person!"

A fish-killer!

Hearing this designation, Ron shuddered all over, feeling a chill seep straight out from his bones.

He hadn't expected the competition in nature to be so cutthroat these days—sharks had actually evolved into fish-killers, carrying shark-tooth blades into human society to slaughter fish for a living.

This caused Ron to sigh inwardly, reflecting that this truly was a world where fish ate fish, and whether one was fish or human, life was a struggle.

With this thought, the blonde youth kindly offered a reminder:

"Uh, Miss Fish-killer, did you happen to walk into the wrong room? There aren't any fish here for you to kill."

"Bastard!"

Hearing Ron insult her in such a manner, the shark-girl was rendered limp with anger.

She brandished the shark-tooth blade in her hand, which was larger than she was, and pointed it directly at Elena.

"Very well, boy, you've successfully angered me. But hunting always has an order of precedence—once I kill her, it'll be your turn immediately!"

With that, the shark-girl cast an extremely malevolent gaze upon Elena, resembling someone eyeing a particularly appetizing piece of prey.

Yet she did not rush forward immediately; instead, looking at the baroness who was struggling to suppress her laughter, she bared a row of sharp teeth and babbled on:

"Elena Mark, Elena Mark... Why does that name sound so familiar?"

"I remember your surname used to be 'Isabella', which happens to be the exact same surname as the former president of the Stardust Society."

At this, the shark-girl tilted her head, observing with great interest as Elena's expression darkened completely.

"Oh, I remember now. You seem to be her eldest daughter, and she only ever had one child, didn't she?"

"To think that the offspring of such a once-legendary figure has even lost her own surname. No wonder the current president of the Stardust Society has fallen out with you."

"Tsk, tsk, tsk... How utterly disgraceful of you..."