This is what’s happening since we entered Part Three. The town of Polka, at the northern edge of the Kingdom of Trotroth, is welcoming its short summer. Flocks of sheep have gathered on the lush green meadows, and while the herdsmen rest by the sacred spring, they marvel in astonishment at how the town has begun to change.
“Welcome… ah, Ms. Jeanne. What can I get for you today?”
“I’m going to practice sewing and try making a child’s skirt. Something reasonably priced but with neat stitching.”
“You’re so handy with your fingers, Ms. Jeanne—I thought you could even sew clothes.”
“I’ve taken on patches before a few times. But starting from scratch on an actual garment? I haven’t had that experience yet. Since Grandma Vera said she’d teach me, I figured I’d give it a try.”
“Oh, the midwife… but a skirt? Not for little Peter?”
“It’s for Elenia. Besides, if they know how to construct them, there’s far more demand from women than men for clothing around Andy.”
“So you’re going to make clothes for the adults too…? Are you planning to become a seamstress instead of a blacksmith?”
“I’m not thinking that far ahead. But I might as well do whatever I can. Thanks to Selen and Apple taking turns babysitting, I’ve got plenty of time. I’m going to hone my skills.”
“Haa… I can’t afford to lose out either, you know.”
Jeanne and Oregano chat amiably while checking stock together, but a passerby herdsman glares at them with a startled expression.
”…Wow… It’s rare to see a dwarf and an elf chatting friendly in a human town like this.”
“Oh, welcome! Would you like our water-resistant cloak for sudden downpours? The price is a bit steep, but it’s high-grade fabric woven in the Northern Forest—lightweight, soft, and incredibly waterproof. Even in torrential rain, it won’t soak through, yet it doesn’t trap sweat either. We also have matching hats made from the same material.”
“Oh, no… Hmm, I’ve heard that elven craftsmanship is becoming available these days… but can you really sell to someone like me?”
“We handle exclusive deals with major trading houses like Sylphide… This place isn’t a direct sales outlet for elves; it’s just an ordinary shop owned by the local human race, and I’m merely an employee. As long as I get paid, I won’t discriminate based on what customers pick out! ♪”
“I see… But really, you’re treating even dwarves so friendly?”
“Jeanne is practically family to me.”
“Family…?”
The herdsman made a face saying he didn’t understand what they were talking about.
Generally speaking, that’s just how it goes. When people say “elf and dwarf,” they mean the two loathing each other bitterly.
Even an elf being so pleasant toward a dwarf is rare enough. To casually call them “family” after that? It’s like pointing at an apple and calling it fish.
“The rest of the world sees it exactly like this. Especially in Trotroth, non-human races are usually viewed with prejudice.”
“Hmm… That’s too bad… There’s no better way for everyone to live together happily anyway. If individuals can deeply understand one another, the conflicts between races could simply be avoided.”
“Well, I shouldn’t say anything when I’m the one who wouldn’t have thought elves were special if not for Lyra-senpai and Andy taking me under their wing.”
“If Lord Sieg hadn’t been active in the forest, we’d be… well, never mind.”
“Andy is truly an incredible man.”
Female slaves often exchange conversations like this to confirm Andy’s greatness.
Whether he himself realizes how far they’ve come doesn’t matter; many have had their entire environment—and their lives—completely transformed by him.
Especially the fact that Elenia Province has begun opening outward would never have happened without Andy’s intervention. That event, which was like tearing a crack through an endless overcast sky, is a merit worthy of being called world-changing for the elves of the forest, regardless of how the protagonist feels about it.
For those elves, getting close to such a figure feels like stepping into mythology; no matter how proudly they recount its wonders, their sense of pride never fades, and hearing about it reignites other female slaves’ admiration for him even more.
It’s almost a self-gratifying act, yet sharing this experience strengthens their bonds.
And through this, the consciousness unique to them among themselves begins to drift further apart from the perceptions of Polka’s residents and visitors, as well as Andy’s own understanding. Yet, the title of “female slave” was never meant for anyone else to understand; no matter how wide or deep this divergence becomes, it causes no particular problem.
Thanks to this, the longer Andy is absent from Polka, the more young women grow devoted to him and lose resistance to behavior outside conventional norms… Some even say a peculiar trend has emerged: “the training of female slaves is progressing.”
The scene shifts to the Baron’s estate.
”…”
“Hey, hey… Selen? Hmm… Something seems off lately… isn’t it?”
”…Hmm.”
Apple, who was comforting Peter, could no longer bear the odd gaze from Selen as she similarly cooed at Elenia.
Recently, Selen has been staring straight at Apple with a serious expression… or rather, observing her. She’s done this more and more lately.
Apple has known Selen for quite some time now, and she understands that despite appearances, Selen is actually an incredibly straightforward person. Though she possesses skills in deception and rhetoric, Selen doesn’t use them in daily life. She tends to move on from unpleasant people immediately and says exactly what she means. With the exception of a very small circle of comrades, she utterly disregards most others—or rather, she’s made up her mind quickly that there’s no need to invest effort into dealing with someone like “this.” Having been mistreated and looked down upon simply because she was a half-elf, she’s exceptionally good at distinguishing between people and matters worth interacting with.
She completely omits any parts lacking in the kind of directness found in social pleasantries. It’s not that she doesn’t know etiquette; in fact, if you let her try, she can master any manner you name. But if it’s unnecessary, she simply ignores it entirely. That’s why it wouldn’t happen to be for nothing that Selen is staring at Apple like this. There must be some special meaning behind it.
Yet, Apple has no idea what it could be. Peter is happily sucking on Apple’s nipple as usual, but surely it can’t be because of him. It was only a few days ago that Selen started looking at Apple with such an expression.
However, Selen says nothing. Such an ambiguous attitude from Selen is rare. Apple begins to feel uneasy, wondering if she might suspect something… something serious, even though she can’t quite figure out what it is.
While Selen was breastfeeding Elenia herself, her face remained expressionless as she hummed, “Hmm…” But after a moment, she shifted her gaze and murmured, “Apple… …When you were having sex with Andy in the past… …didn’t you do it in all sorts of weird places?”
“Eh? Uh, uh-huh… I think so…” Confused by the sudden topic, Apple answers vaguely.
“Other than the hunter’s cabin, like the backside of the hot springs or thick patches of forest in the woods… When I think about it, why did we do things in such places without getting caught? We could have ended up with passersby seeing Andy’s cock being sucked.”
“Eh, but by that time Selen had already recovered, so you secretly used magic to hide us…”
”…”
“Selen?”
Again, Selen directs her gaze toward Apple. Then, after a while…
”…Apple… …Did your memories come back? Why are you pretending not to know?”
”!!” Apple stiffens, causing Peter clutched in her arms to get pressed firmly against her breast and let out a weird, muffled sound. She hastily realizes her mistake and relaxes her grip, but luckily, Peter doesn’t seem ready to cry… or rather, with the sudden revelation that “Indulge your face entirely in huge breasts! There are ways of enjoying this too!” she appears as if struck by inspiration, promptly presses her face against it with all her might again, and lets out a strange muffled sound.
“W-what are you doing, Peter-kun?”
“Apple… …Don’t try to pass it off. When did your memories come back?”
”…” Apple lets out a small sigh.
”…It wasn’t long ago. While we were adventuring in the Kingdom of Karlwin with Andy… hmm, actually, for quite some time prior to that, I started feeling something strange. It’s like when I feel like I can remember something but can’t find the starting point, so it just vanishes.”
”…That was in Karlwin?”
”…Yeah.” Apple nods affirmatively.
“There were times when everyone seemed about to give up, and I had to mimic Andy… When I tried to emulate her to encourage everyone… And as I struggled desperately to remember what exactly Andy said at that moment… suddenly, an image of little Andy from her childhood appeared in my mind.”
”…Why didn’t you tell us that?”
“I didn’t know. Was it truly memory, or a product of delusion? The gist was something Selen had already told me; maybe I just manipulated the memories based on that knowledge… I thought as much.”
But then Apple continues. While Peter greedily rubs his face against her breasts, trying new ways to enjoy them, she strokes his head with a faint苦笑.
“Gradually, the before and after started becoming clear… Memories I had never heard of, connections between events… those things were resurfacing too. I was wondering why. Since I didn’t know Andy at all and was fully aware that my memories were gone, she still told me she wanted me anyway… So, as a new version of myself, I fell in love with her again to solve it. But then, why is this coming up all over again now?”
”…That must be…” Selen attempted to offer an interpretation.
It was certainly because Apple had never truly come to love Andy from the bottom of her heart.
Since Selen expressed a desire for that kind of life, Apple had no choice but to follow in her steps and become a female slave alongside her… that was the only way forward for them. Apple actually had no other options available to her.
While becoming a female slave may have been influenced by residual feelings she harbored for Andy, it ultimately came down to nothing more than her determination to proceed with this resolve.
Apple had made that decision once before, and reaffirming it now was simply restating that same resolve.
When Apple thought back on Andy’s childhood, she recalled a boy who wasn’t particularly wonderful in many ways. Yet, clinging to those memories and piecing together a future still brought forth an image of happiness for someone like her—a rootless half-elf.
Accepting that reality was what led her to the contract of servitude… and it was precisely this acceptance that drove Apple into diligent service for him.
However, when Apple accompanied him on their journey to the breaking point, striving with all her might to be useful to him, and genuinely came to recognize both his strength and his virtues… surely at that moment, the memories she had felt as alien and unconnected until then finally knit together into a coherent whole in her mind.
But Selen stops before attempting to explain this.
It would be presumptuous for someone else to pat her on the head and lecture her about “why it is that you love another person.”
”…Maybe if I tell Andy-senpai about it, he’ll cherish me even more than he does now.”
”…It feels like there are two of me, and I can’t quite accept how things turned out. The new feelings I’ve developed for Andy-senpai and my old infatuation with him… both are strong, yet they somehow don’t mesh perfectly. …I’m in love with the same person, but the reasons behind my ‘love’ are different… two independent versions of affection living under one roof… can anyone understand something like that?”
”…Sorry, I suppose it’s hard to grasp.”
She might be able to imagine it, but empathy would remain difficult. Holding two disparate yet similar emotions directed at the same individual.
Apple had quietly carried this burden within herself all along.
”…It seems Selen does understand things like that.”
“Hmm… I just felt there was something different about her atmosphere after she returned. Maybe it was because of the incredible journey we shared, or perhaps it was due to some other factor… I couldn’t determine which it was, so I’ve been confused for a long time now.”
“What would you have done if things had turned out differently than you expected?”
”…I just wanted to know her true identity. That’s about it.”
Selen lets out a bitter chuckle.
This too is probably part of the nature of this clingy half-elf.
She had never intended to do anything to her best friend. She simply wanted to come to terms with why she had changed so drastically.
Only now does she realize that her curiosity may have caused Selen unnecessary anxiety, and she gives herself a gentle tap on the head, thinking, “I really was too immature.”
”…It would be wonderful if you could tell Andy-senpai about it one day.”
”…Hmm. I’m not sure whether it’s a good thing or not.”
“It certainly is a good thing.”
The two, still cradling their babies, exchange soft smiles, as if forgiving each other’s doubts and deceptions.