VIP Chapter 86: A Little Game
“So… is this what you wanted, Teacher Will?”
Treya twirled around in front of him.
The slightly tight-fitting top still revealed a hint of her navel, and as her cape fluttered with her turn, her waistline could be seen from beneath it.
No…
More importantly…
This was finally an outfit that was somewhat coordinated and could be described with a word like “demonic.”
Her silver hair was paired with an outfit that was almost entirely black, giving it a contrasting and strange feel.
Also…
Will himself liked it very much.
Treya’s previous fashion style seemed like an attempt to completely turn her into a pure and cute princess – the kind of mascot that people couldn’t look away from.
But her outstanding height, combined with the noble indifference of the Elf Race, gave her a somewhat icy aura.
She was far from being such a mascot.
The current Treya was closer to Will’s imagination.
Ultimately…
A princess who could head towards the throne and survive on her own.
“Not bad, I’ll take this one.”
Will snapped his fingers.
“Actually, the clothes for the Crowning Festival are decided by ourselves. There are no requirements…”
Treya turned around again. Although she said that, she seemed quite pleased with her outfit, admiring herself as she spun.
“Since Teacher Will thinks it looks good, I’ll remember it.”
Will shook his head upon hearing this.
“…The main thing is to have an outstanding performance at the Crowning Festival. This… this way you can truly learn Demonic Sword Arts.”
“Mm. But…”
Treya twisted her eyes back and forth, wanting to say something but stopping halfway.
In the end, she chose not to look at Will, but instead looked down at her clenched fists.
“I saw through Eugenie’s world that night…”
“Yesterday, I… I discarded what she taught me before…”
“But now I…”
Treya looked at her palm and, as she spoke, gently opened it.
She remembered that night, when a hand reached out to her, wanting to pull her into the dark abyss.
She had seen the darkness within Eugenie.
For some reason…
Perhaps it was inertia.
Perhaps it was that darkness pulling at her, tilting her world in that direction.
Perhaps it was…
What was it?
Treya felt that none of the above were the answers.
“…Is it… learning to be like her?”
Will looked at Treya as she spoke and crossed his arms, pondering.
“Sigh… indeed, if I don’t continue teaching you, you won’t learn. Alright…”
Will took her hand.
“Mm… Teacher Will?”
Then, he walked into her room.
Her small princess room was furnished with a wooden table, like a small desk she would use for studying and writing, but now that she had grown taller, the small desk seemed a bit low for her.
Will picked up all her dolls from the floor.
He then picked up her dolls from her bed.
Holding them in his arms.
Like a toy merchant, he pulled up a chair and sat opposite the small desk.
“Come, Princess Treya, sit opposite me.”
He smiled and laid out the dolls on the table one by one.
On the far left was a little rabbit doll. It looked very new, and Will had some impression of it. It seemed to be the expensive, limited-edition New Year’s model displayed at the capital’s toy store.
In the middle were a little lion, a little tiger, a little frog, a little dog…
Ugh…
Why were there also plush toys of a little Fire Dragon, a little Ghost, and a little Ice Demon, which were clearly Dungeon monsters?!
Fortunately, they were all covered in dust, proving that Treya didn’t have any strange fetishes and didn’t actually like them.
The most special one was probably the teddy bear doll placed on the far right.
It was brown, wearing a scarf, and compared to the other dolls, it wasn’t as plump. It showed clear signs of age and had even been stitched on the head.
Compared to the other unusually special, limited-edition dolls, it looked too ordinary.
Nowadays, toy stores might have a whole row of them, sold cheaply, and children in the slums could have one each.
But…
This was a doll placed by Treya’s bedside, and it might hold some unusual significance for her.
Will felt that this doll looked familiar. He had that impression the last time he had knocked it off the bed.
The original work must have described such a doll, perhaps in one of Treya’s memories… but his memory was indeed a bit hazy.
Even after writing the Quest System, there were still some plots and items he had seen or even organized but forgotten.
“This is the third lesson.”
“The third lesson?”
“That’s right… what I’m going to teach you is… hmm, well, let’s talk about what this lesson is supposed to teach you after we finish it.”
Will placed two dolls in front of Treya.
A little lion and a little Fire Dragon doll, both with orange to yellow hues, looking quite similar.
“Come, if you have to choose one of these and discard the other, which one would you choose?”
“Hmm… I’ll choose the little sun.”
She pointed at the little lion doll.
“You even gave them all names?!”
“Don’t they already have names?”
Treya tilted her head, looking quite puzzled.
Treya was indeed excessively serious about some strange things.
“Then… what about these two?”
“Little lamby.”
…
Time and time again.
Will picked up two dolls and had Treya choose one, then discard the other onto the floor. Speaking of discarding, he actually just placed them gently on the floor, simply not letting Treya see them.
Initially, the choices were easy. Treya could give an answer within three seconds.
But…
“Hmm… these two, Little Pudding and Little Bean… I like them both so much…”
As time went on, Treya found it harder to make a choice, transitioning from answering immediately to repeatedly contemplating the two dolls.
And Will…
He played the villain from the bottom of his soul—
“Hehehe…”
Will grabbed the yellow duckling’s webbed foot and pulled it slightly away from the table, then dangled it in the air.
“If you don’t choose soon, I’m going to drop it~”
“Poor thing, it’s going to tumble down with a splash and hit the hard ground, then cry its eyes out…”
“Ch… choose Little Pudding!”
Treya finally made her choice.
And so, the game of choosing one out of two dolls continued to the final round.
As Will had expected, the worn-out teddy bear doll had successfully defeated everyone else and reached the finals.
“Alright, between Little Pudding and Daidai, who do you want to keep in the end?”
He grabbed the duckling’s webbed foot with one hand and dangled it at the edge of the table.
“If you can’t choose, I’ll have to kill him.”
Then, he brought the worn-out teddy bear to himself and grabbed it by the throat—it looked too fragile, and Will didn’t dare to handle its limbs, which had been mended and were so slender.
He could only express a threat like “This is my hostage” in this way.
“What to do?”
His hand tightened around the bear’s neck.
But…
To Will’s surprise.
Even though it was the final round, Treya was exceptionally decisive.
It was even…
Decisive to an extent beyond composure.
Treya, who had been obediently treating this as a lesson, suddenly reached out across the table.
*Screech—*
Will felt Treya’s fingernails graze the back of his hand, causing a slight scratch.
And she gripped his wrist tightly.
“Give Daidai… back to me.”
