Love Letter From The Future

He simply watched the sobbing Elf girl with hollow eyes.

It was only after some time had passed that the man finally broke the silence.

“From now on, with each act of defiance, an interesting mark will be etched onto your body… Of course, revealing your kin’s secrets right away must be a hard choice.”

As he spoke, the man casually glanced into the darkness of the secret chamber.

Even in this pitch-black space, he seemed to possess some degree of vision. That brief glance alone highlighted the stark disparity between the man and Aviang.

He stared at a spot along the wall before slowly rising to his feet.

“I’m not asking you to betray your kin. I merely wish to discuss matters concerning your body. I’ll step out for a while, so take your time to think it over.”

That was all he said.

Then, without even sparing her another glance, the man left the dark room.

His departing figure seemed to convey that someone like her was completely insignificant, causing Aviang to hold her breath.

It seemed he didn’t feel the need to spend much time on her. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have left her alone so easily.

To him, Aviang’s value amounted to just that.

An Elven spy who could be replaced any time.

And if she turned out to be useless?

The outcome was obvious.

Hadn’t she directly experienced the man’s cruel nature until now?

Trapped in the dark, ominous thoughts began gnawing at the girl. Aviang had never imagined that solitude and loneliness could become such terrifying adversaries.

Of course, confusion played its part as well.

The situation had been unfolding for hours now, yet Aviang had only been conscious for brief moments..

Each time she closed and opened her eyes, the world around her seemed different.

It was all so sudden and frightening.

The relentless violence has snuffed out her burning hatred, leaving nothing but anxiety in its place.

To make matters worse, there was a voice whispering in Aviang’s ear.

“…Hey you, why don’t you just confess and get it over with?”Nôv(el)B\\jnn

It was hard to tell whether the words were meant to be mockery or persuasion.

Aviang jolted in fright at the sensation of a breath brushing against her nape. Her blurry blue eyes shifted to the side.

There, leaning in from behind, was a woman whispering into her ear.

She had flawless porcelain skin, without a single blemish, as well as a hairpin that added a cute touch to her bangs.

Her appearance was both cute and lovely, but her eyes and voice were extremely cynical.

Was it ‘Neris’?

That was what the man called her earlier..

“I was off duty today, but I got called in. Do you have any idea how awful that is? So let’s wrap this up quickly, okay? Before the little bit of mercy I have left runs out.”

“…N-Nonsense!”

Aviang cried frantically.

The last bit of defiance in her heart flared fiercely. Whether human or elf, they always fight hardest when they’re on the verge of breaking.

Neris let out a peculiar ‘hmm’ before closing her mouth.

As if urging her to go on.

“I—I am a proud Elf! There’s no way I’d hand over even the slightest bit of information to you humans…!”

“…Pfft.”

But Aviang’s final desperate outburst was cut short by Neris’s laughter.

Neris staggered backward, clearly struggling to hold back her laugh. But eventually, unable to hold it in any longer, she soon burst into laughter.

“Pff, aha… Ahahahahahaha! P-Pride?!”

“…W-What?”

Faced with such cruel mockery, Aviang’s expression grew even more flustered. Regardless, Neris continued to laugh, pounding the back of the chair.

“D-Do you know how many people have said things like that? Pfft, ahahaha! You think I didn’t say the same thing? Hmm?”

At that mocking question, Aviang’s complexion grew even paler.

The scene she’d just witnessed replayed in her mind— Neris immediately following the man’s orders without a hint of objection.

Her actions showed not the slightest hint of hesitation.

Anyone could see that Neris was utterly obedient to him.

And yet, she claimed that she had once behaved like Aviang?

Neris’s strange behaviour didn’t stop there.

She pulled a dagger from within her garments and traced a dark arc through the air.

At the sharp sound of the blade slicing through, Aviang almost let out a scream.

But the result of that action was entirely unexpected.

With a soft rustle, the ropes binding Aviang slipped away.

Suddenly freed, Aviang stared at Neris in a daze.

Neris twisted the corners of her mouth into a sadistic smile.

“Well then, if you’re so confident, go ahead and run… But if you get caught, you’ll experience something beyond your imagination.”

Gently placing both hands on Aviang’s shoulders, she whispered again.

“It’ll be quite a unique sensation. Like being reborn… As each fingertip is sliced off—or perhaps you’ll feel like you’re burning. That’s what happened to me. And as it turns out, I know a thing or two about handling poison…”

With a whirl, Neris twirled the dagger she was holding, spinning it in the air, and deftly caught it again with a sharp snap.

Since her hands had just been resting on Aviang’s shoulders, the entire display happened right in front of her.

Aviang’s cheek was left with a faint scratch.

A subtle burning sensation spread around the area. It wasn’t just simple pain.

It was poison.

A chill ran down Aviang’s spine.

“You’ll experience pain far worse than that. Go ahead and try resisting all you want. Against Sir Ian, that is…”

At that moment, thunder struck in Aviang’s mind.

The mockery and threats were terrifying, but none of it compared to the shock of hearing that name.

“……S-Sir Ian?”

“Yes, Sir Ian… Oh my, you didn’t know? How pitiful.”

With a sly smile, Neris delivered the final blow.

“The one who brought you here is none other than Sir Ian Percus. Surely, you must have heard of that name?”

Heard of that name?

There was no way she hadn’t.

Even if her main objective was securing funds, Aviang was still a spy. By nature, she paid close attention to rumours and news circulating among the public.

And the name ‘Ian Percus’ was at the height of those rumours.

He became the winner of the Hunting Festival, surpassing the heir of Yurdina.

During that event, he captured a named demonic beast, and afterward, there were stories of him subduing both a demonic human and a mythical monster.

At the Homecoming Festival, he had even faced off against a Dark Priest.

And not long ago, didn’t he battle one of the Evil God’s underlings?

They were all stories that sounded almost unbelievable.

He was in an entirely different league from Aviang.

The rising star of humanity, a true hero who battled legendary monsters.

There was no way someone like her, hiding among humans like a cat, could stand a chance against him.

To a man like Ian Percus, Aviang was literally nothing more than a stray cat.

Someone he could torment as much as he pleased, and only find slightly bothersome if she escaped.

Stammering, Aviang muttered blankly.

“H-How…?”

All she had done was commit a single act of fraud.

In the long expanse of her hundred years, that had been the first time Aviang had deceived anyone. Yet out of all people, one of those involved had to be humanity’s rising star, with him also discovering her true identity?

And what were the chances she’d be dragged to some unknown place to be tortured?

The thought of that fateful misfortune made Aviang shudder. A single tear rolled down her cheek.

A giggling laugh tickled Aviang’s ear.

As if tempting her, Neris urged Aviang.

“Go on, hurry up and leave. I told you, I won’t stop you… since I still have a shred of mercy left. Ah, or maybe it’s gone already, and that’s why I’m acting like this?”

Aviang’s body trembled pitifully.

Now it was time to make a decision.

***When I re-entered the interrogation room, I was greeted by an unexpected sight

“I-If even my frail body could… hick, b-be of help to you, please… ju-just don’t make me betray my kin…!”

There the Elf girl was kneeling with her head bowed, pleading.

And standing nearby with her hands politely clasped, was Senior Neris, pretending that nothing was out of the ordinary.

I couldn’t help but ask in bewilderment.

“…..wh-what happened with her?”

“I’m not sure.”

Then Senior Neris added another comment.

“Perhaps she was moved by Sir Ian’s great reputation.”

I hummed softly and held back my thoughts.

I did find it a bit puzzling, given how abrupt her change in attitude had been.

But since it made the interrogation easier in the end, I figured it was fine.

Taking my seat, I spoke.

“First of all, I’m not interested in your body, so stand up.”

My interest in Aviang’s body was purely academic.

I wasn’t the type to be so starved for a woman that a kid offering her frail body would sway me.

If someone wanted to seduce me, they’d at least need to be at the level of Saintess.

Or maybe Ria, perhaps?

Thinking such idle thoughts, I let out a faint ‘heh’ sound and stifled a chuckle.

It was time for the real interrogation.