I Became a Gallery Manager in Another World

Chapter 103: The Cursed Child (3)

“What is this…?”

Elfrida’s surprise at the sudden appearance of a strange gallery was brief.

[Lololol this is it lololol][3]

[Wow, damn, such a turn-on fury pic just got posted!!!!][7]

[Monthly salary of 5 million Eris vs. 3 years of imprisonment, which is better?][35]

[Would deep kissing be possible if my real sister looked like this??][5]

[Truly, upon my honor and conscience, a picture of an innocent virgin][6]

...

..

For over 200 years, Elfrida had not felt any external stimuli.

Naturally, she couldn’t help but be engrossed in the gallery, which seemed to compress all the stimuli of the world.

…And when a year had passed.

“Damn! I should confiscate all the elders’ dentures!”

An elf was born who learned human relationships and home education through browsing the gallery.

“Elfrida!”

“Why!! Are you planning to use me and then leave me like last time? Ha! Sorry, but I’m not that easy!!”

Of course, Elfrida’s refusal to tell Ian the exorcism method was not solely out of jealousy.

If ranked, jealousy would be third.

First, as mentioned earlier, because knowing more here could endanger Ian’s life.

Second, because even if he knew the method of exorcism, it was practically impossible.

However…

“Honestly, I thought I showed quite a bit of affection to my senior? But all I got from senior was ignorance! And that promise to buy me a meal last time was a lie, wasn’t it? Said you’d contact me later… but you never told me how!”

The more she spoke, the more she felt overwhelmed by a surge of emotion.

“I’m sorry. I definitely went too far.”

“Ha! Now you say that? I do have a sincere heart, you know? Honestly, I don’t understand why you avoid me to such an extent. Take this opportunity to tell me! Did I do something wrong to you?”

“I’m sorry for that too. I was caught up in prejudice.”

“Prejudice? What kind of prejudice?”

“…I thought elves as pretty and smart as you would discriminate against other races.”

“Ra, ra, race! Di, di, discrimination!! No, no, no way!!”

Honestly, she had discriminated.

Before coming to the academy, she had harbored severe prejudices, to the extent of believing the only good “blackie” was a dead “blackie.”

Living within the World Tree, she had never encountered “blackies”…

But her constant engagement in fights and making discriminatory remarks about “blackies” in the gallery had ingrained those thoughts in her mind.

‘…Huh? This is actually not bad?’

However, perhaps in an effort to manage her reputation, she realized that not all “good blackies” had to be dead after reluctantly getting to know “blackies.”

“Yeah, from now on, I’ll face you properly without any prejudice, Elfrida.”

“Tha, that’s right!! In, in today’s world, race discrimination!! Tha, that’s what I hate the most, along with ra…!”

Elfrida barely managed to hold back the joke that was on the tip of her tongue.

“An, anyway… How can I believe what you say! You always avoid me, so how would you know? I even went as far as to prepare chocolate for ‘Elise’s Day’ recently, trying somehow to get closer to you, but you didn’t even accept it!…Uh!”

Thud─!

Elfrida’s eyes widened.

The moment she felt her wrist being grabbed, Ian’s face approached…

‘Eh…?’

Something soft and warm invaded her mouth.

“Chu♥…Ugh.!…Chu!..Haa…Suck!…♥”

Up to that point, her mind suddenly went blank, and she couldn’t recall what happened next.

‘…What? A dream?’

However, her racing heart and the long strand of saliva confirmed it was not a dream.

“…How can I believe you? It’s prepaid.”

“Eh?…Se, sen, senior?..Di…Did you…ki…ki…kiss…me…just now?”

As if cherishing the touch of their first kiss, Elfrida traced her lips with her fingertips.

“Yeah, we kissed. And if we can resolve this issue, I can do even more for you in the future.”

“Eh, uh? Eh? Mo, mo, more? So, then…even that kind of thing…”

“Everything you’re thinking of right now, so please… tell me.”

Ah…

She shouldn’t…

She shouldn’t tell…

Somehow, her brain just stopped functioning, and she couldn’t help but comply.

“…I’m not certain because the records are scarce… but it was called ‘The Devil of the Scales.’

So, you have to place something on the scales that the devil cannot bear.“

Elfrida, blushing, spoke cautiously.

“Tell me more specifically. What should be placed?”

“Anything. According to the oldest records after the ‘Dark Ages,’ it was banished with endless love.”

“Love?”

“…Don’t even try it. It’s nearly a legend. Despite being cursed with all sorts of curses and surviving despite being stabbed with dozens of spears all over the body, to say ‘I still love you’… ah, but not just in words, genuinely. It’s impossible for humans.”

Let alone love, surviving the curse of the devil after being stabbed with numerous spears is impossible for Elfrida too.

“It looks like it. What else… what other methods are there?”

“There’s one more, but… it’s really pointless to say.”

“Elfrida… please.”

“Sigh… when you look at me so seriously…”

Elfrida was still confused by the sensation she felt in her mouth a moment ago.

“Argh!! …Alright. But don’t blame me for telling you…”

“I won’t.”

“…Alright. The second method is the exact opposite of the first. It’s said that they drove the devil away by placing unbearable pain on the scales.”

As expected, upon hearing the word ‘pain,’ Ian frowned.

“…How much pain are we talking about?”

“Sigh… Senior. Don’t think that the pain humans can bear is unbearable for the devil. According to the records, the human possessed by the devil died immediately after the exorcism. I can only say it was torture of an indescribable level.”

What she told Ian was significantly toned down.

Even Elfrida, who was emotionless in those days, had to close the book several times because of the brutal descriptions.

“…Is that all?”

“Yes… Senior, you thought the devil was gone until you heard from me. That’s how rare devils have become. At least ‘The Devil of the Scales’ has quite a few records.”

Elfrida bit her lower lip and murmured quietly, seeing Ian’s stern face.

“…That’s why I said it. It’s pointless for you to listen, Senior.”

“No… Elfrida, you’ve been a huge help. And I’m sorry for getting you involved in this.”

“…It’s okay. But Senior, I’ll say it again, the information I gave you is absolutely confidential. Whether it’s family or friends, you absolutely must not talk about it, for your sake and theirs.”

Elfrida sternly warned him.

Unlike before, this was truly sensitive information that hadn’t even been designated as ‘sealed.’

If the church sensed that Ian had accessed this information, there was a risk of him being eliminated.

“I understand. I won’t cause any trouble for you.”

“…Excuse me. Senior. That’s not what you should be worried about. As you said, as a super-genius little high elf girl, I’ll somehow survive… but Senior, without some backing from the church, you could disappear without a trace.”

“Backed by the church…”

“Eh, what? Do you have someone backing you in the church?”

“No, I don’t have any backing.”

As Ian shook his head, Elfrida sighed.

“Sigh… Well, even if there was backing, it wouldn’t make much of a difference. The ‘Sealed Designation’ comes from the highest ranks of the church. So, please be careful.”

“I will be. Oh, and once this is over, let’s eat the meal we missed last time. I’ll pay.”

“…Of course, you should pay. It’s trashy for a senior to mooch off a junior, isn’t it?”

“Ha, right. Thank you.”

Ian, smiling faintly, patted Elfrida’s shoulder and left the classroom.

It was hard to hold him back when he was forcing a smile like that.

“…Sigh.”

[Surprising.]

“Ah, shit! You scared me! Didn’t I tell you not to talk to me outside?”

Despite being startled by the sudden appearance, Elfrida snapped, but Ifrit didn’t seem to care and continued.

[I never thought you’d be of help to someone else. I can’t believe my eyes.]

“What nonsense are you spouting? You don’t even have a body. And he’s not just anyone.”

[…What do you mean by that?]

“He’s my future husband. What do you expect when my husband has even kissed Elfrida? As his lawful wife, Elfrida must help.”

[Please don’t talk about yourself in the third person. It feels like I’m becoming an abuser without realizing it.]

“Shit, that’s messed up.”

[That’s much better. So, Elfrida.]

“Why the fuck.”

[Do you think your future husband can handle it?]

“…No, probably not.”

Whoosh─!

Flames sprouted from Elfrida’s hand.

“But exorcising him isn’t a big problem.”

She could completely burn the demon to ashes if she wanted, even if it was a demon that ruled the ‘Dark Ages,’ let alone a demon of the current era, even if Estelle was completely possessed.

“Well, it doesn’t seem like my husband would want that…”

[Then what will you do?]

“Ah, I don’t know. If it really doesn’t work out, I’ll use ‘The Original Flame’ that I used when I transformed. Just burn the demon away with that.”

[…Do you think you can just use it whenever you want? If the spark grows, it would take at least 1500 years.]

“Ha! I know that… But what about using ‘The Essence of the World Tree’?”

[The World Tree! Elfrida, you can’t mean to burn the World Tree itself? Didn’t I tell you to wait four years?]

Ifrit, knowing how much Elfrida looked forward to her time at the Holy Academy, asked in genuine surprise.

“I don’t know!! I can’t think of anything else!! Ahhh!! Honestly, I don’t care what happens to those assholes!! Ah! Why do I have to worry about this?!”

[Hahahaha!!!]

“Shit! Don’t laugh when I’m pissed off!!”

[Hahahahahahahat!!!]

Elfrida, grabbing her head and screaming, made Ifrit laugh even louder.

The child he thought would always remain a child was slowly growing up.

Ifrit genuinely enjoyed this change.

“Phew… It’s the last resort, anyway. If you think about it positively, Estelle hasn’t lost more than half of her soul yet, right? That means there’s still time until it’s completely taken. Until then, if I find a new way to exorcize them, I can continue to enjoy my academy life, right?”

[Shockingly trashy statement.]

“Ah. Why! What! So what do you want me to do? Honestly, it’s none of my business, isn’t it? It’s already a lot that I’m doing this much!… And if it really doesn’t work out, I’ll just burn the World Tree and tell my husband to take responsibility.”

[An elf planning to burn the World Tree for marriage would be you alone.]

“Hmph! I’m not an ordinary elf, am I? I’m a super-genius little high elf.”

[Let’s agree on that. But then…]

“Ah, what now? What is it this time? What are you going to say?”

[Do you realize you’re helping your rival?]

Upon hearing Ifrit’s words, Elfrida blinked twice…

“Ah! Shit? Right? If I save her, won’t she cling to my husband unnecessarily? …Should we just pretend this never happened?”

[Sigh… I thought you had grown a little, but I must have been mistaken. You haven’t changed at all.]

Ifrit shook his head at the sight of Elfrida, who still had a long way to go.