You are very strong, but my painting style is better than yours!

"No room for discussion?" Iori asked calmly.

The lord's face showed a disdainful smile. He was about to speak when he suddenly felt a chill. The sarcastic words that came out of his mouth changed into something else: "No amount of money will do, but if you can persuade the elf from earlier to agree to my conditions, I will lend you the [Holy Serpent Staff] directly—after all, no one but my bloodline can use it."

"The spirit from earlier?" Iori paused, then shook her head. "What's between you and me is none of anyone else's business. Never mind, I'll be direct and use force..."

"Other spirits will do!"

The lord was somewhat resigned to his fate; he simply didn't think he would encounter a second elf in the near future—the chances were too slim.

"Anyway, I want to go on a date with an elf! Any kind will do!"

"..."

Iori glanced at the butler silently. The elegant old man, feeling somewhat embarrassed, turned his face away.

"It's rare to see someone so desperate for sex. While I can understand it to some extent, what do you take me for, a pimp? Besides, elves aren't that easy to find..."

Iori lowered her voice as she spoke, then fell silent. After thinking for a moment, she looked up and asked, "Are there any special requirements? Is it okay if it's just an elf?"

"...Do you really have a way?"

The lord raised his head in a daze. He was just venting his emotions, but hearing what Iori said gave him a glimmer of hope.

"Elves...do you know any elves?"

“There are quite a few. I’ve even been to the land of the elves,” Iori said frankly. “If you don’t believe me, you can have someone use a lie detector.”

"Oh my! How could this happen!"

The lord was overjoyed: "I had already given up hope, this is too, too... wait!"

Even if you've been to the elven realm, can you guarantee you'll bring the elves back with you?

"completely fine!"

Iori smiled slightly: "Actually, there are many kinds of elves, and not all elves are aloof. If you don't believe me, I can bring one over for you to see. If the lord is satisfied, then you can hand over the Serpent Staff to me, how about that?"

"...That doesn't sound bad for me."

The lord looked at Iori suspiciously: "Are you really not lying?"

"What's the point of lying if I can't do it?"

"That's right."

The lord paused, then a sudden inspiration struck him, and he thought he had found a loophole: "Female elf! I mean a young and beautiful female elf!"

Don't try to fool me with male elves or the elderly and disabled!

That would make us a laughingstock among the other nobles!

"I guarantee I'm an incomparably beautiful female elf, with a figure far surpassing that of the one I just saw!"

Iori gave a thumbs up: "You'll definitely be satisfied!"

"Oh! Adventurer, if you can really do that, not only will I let you admire the serpent staff, but you will also gain my friendship forever!"

"What use would I have for that thing?" Iori smiled indifferently.

"Then it's settled!"

Iori acted decisively, immediately returning to his residence. A short while later, he returned to the lord's manor, but this time he caused an even more exaggerated commotion than Princess Elgar, almost stealing everyone's attention.

When he met the lord again, even the lord, who considered himself to have seen the world, was dumbfounded and stammered, unable to utter a word, all because he was overwhelmed by the overly magnificent figure beside Iori.

In terms of appearance, the person before me may not be as outstanding as Princess Elgar, but the two have vastly different presences. The key difference lies in—

It's so disgusting!

What an alluring body! She's practically the embodiment of magic!

Her full limbs overturned the common people's impression of elves as slender, but overall she was by no means cumbersome, like a slender branch adorned with abundant fruit. Her skin, as white as milk and as delicate as silk, could leave a deep impression on people's eyes.

Her long, pale golden hair almost reached the ground, and she wore a luxurious yet light dress. She was a more deadly temptation than a succubus, yet she had an angelic, holy face.

"Ah, ah, this..."

The lord was speechless. He was reminded by Iori's two light coughs and then came to his senses. He immediately stepped forward and almost knelt down to take the female elf's hand, but he managed to control himself and did not kiss her, for fear of arousing her disgust.

"Ahem! I'm sorry... I don't know what elven etiquette is like... And who is this, this beautiful lady?"

"Well!"

The female elf was startled and looked at Iori somewhat awkwardly, her desire for help obvious.

"This is my friend. She learned that you, my lord, are a descendant of a great man and is very interested in discussing history with you... Your lord?"

"Oh! That would be my honor!"

"What about what we agreed on?"

"Take it!"

The lord came to his senses and immediately ordered someone to bring a beautifully crafted long wooden box to Iori.

"This was agreed upon! I'm a man of my word!"

"As expected of you~"

"Oh, my goddess... are you the angel sent by heaven to save me?"

The lord's eyes welled up with tears. He had initially tried to elevate his family's status, but now he was genuinely wooing her.

"My goddess, I'm just a country nobleman. Would you really like to go on a date with me?"

"I, um, of course I'm willing."

"Oh, I am flattered! I could die happy!" The lord was even more delighted, feeling that even the voice was so holy, making him feel comfortable all over, as if his whole body had been purified.

"I will prepare a welcoming banquet for you immediately. Before that, please allow me to show you around my garden. Although my territory is a remote and impoverished place, the garden is the only place where the scenery is meticulously maintained, comparable to that of the great nobles in the capital. It will certainly not disappoint you!"

"Um... okay, alright."

The female elf was a little uneasy, but she quickly calmed down and muttered to herself as if to encourage herself: "There are many scenes in the game where you disguise yourself as a monster and sneak into the Demon King's castle. This is all the same thing... It's no big deal. Just treat it as completing a story quest."

"Game? What game?"

"Oh, it's nothing... then I'll trouble you. Please take me to the garden."

"Before that, may I have the honor of knowing your name, Your Majesty?"

“My name is Dao, cough! My name is Celestine Lucules.”

"What a lovely name!"

Bonus Chapter: Let's happily persecute the forensic expert! (Bonus Chapter)

"Wait a minute! Let's pause for a bit!"

In that familiar, cheap rental room, the uncle and nephew were still drinking coffee made by hand from coffee beans sold on sale at the supermarket, chatting and watching the images replayed on the screen through memory magic. It was a strange third party who interrupted this harmonious atmosphere.

"This...this is Uncle, right? He used that transformation magic, right...Uncle, do you know someone this beautiful?!"

A girl with a rather full bust and wearing half-rimmed glasses pointed at the light screen in astonishment, drawing the attention of the uncle and nephew.

Her attire and makeup were befitting of a female college student, making her far more fashionable than the two men living in a cramped, low-rent apartment. Her slightly sharp eyes occasionally revealed a fierce glint, but her glasses effectively concealed it. Apart from that, she was a beautiful and intelligent young woman.

Her name is "Fujimiya Sumina". She is the childhood friend of her nephew Keifumi. They recently reunited and she also met her uncle Yosuke. By chance, she entered the lives of these two bachelors as a rare beautiful girl.

From a normal person's perspective, this young girl should never have been alone in a shabby room with two unemployed people, especially the older one, who, having been ravaged by years of illness, did not look like a decent person at all... It's easy to associate him with certain criminal activities.

In reality, she wasn't coerced at all; on the contrary, she came here voluntarily. Furthermore, she had a very harmonious relationship with her uncle and nephew, and was even the only person besides Jingwen who knew about "magic"!

It's important to know that Yosuke's social circle is not large. After waking up, he basically only has Jingwen as an acquaintance. Even his other relatives have been cut off from him. Yet this girl was able to learn this secret without having her memory erased. This shows that in Yosuke's heart, she is a trustworthy and good girl.

—That is indeed the case.

Even after learning the secret, she didn't have any extra thoughts, and was even more pure than Jingwen (the nephew was somewhat utilitarian at first, but of course, he was different later when he developed a deep relationship with his uncle).

She was simply intrigued by her thirst for knowledge, just like Jingwen, and was full of curiosity about her uncle's past... In her opinion, this was much more exciting than a Hollywood blockbuster!

However, because she entered the field relatively late and wasn't exactly a homebody, her understanding of other worlds and magic wasn't as good as Jingwen's, and she often had some questions.

For example, right now, she pointed at the luxurious beauty on the memory screen and asked in astonishment, "This kind of stunning beauty is actually someone my uncle knows..."

She had also witnessed Yosuke's transformation magic; to be precise, the opportunity for her to come to the truth was when she accidentally saw the moment Yosuke transformed.

"Was that the same person from last time also my uncle's friend? Sigh..."

She was probably trying to say that you can't judge a book by its cover—Jingwen adjusted his glasses.

"Fujimiya, that's not how it is. The 'Farael' who appeared last time was indeed someone Uncle knew, but this giant... blonde elf is just a real-life version of a two-dimensional character."

"Second dimension?"

Fujimiya looked at his uncle in surprise after hearing Jingwen's words: "Is this really okay?"

"It's possible, but it will take more effort than a normal transformation magic, since a lot of details need to be added."

The uncle nodded, but was somewhat surprised. He glanced at Jingwen and said, "But Jingwen, you actually recognized her? Is she a very famous character?"

"Ugh?"

Jingwen was stunned for a moment, then asked incredulously, "Don't you recognize your uncle?"

"Yes."

"But...then how did you..."

"Memory magic."

The uncle explained, "It was Iori who asked me to project the image in his mind, and then I asked the [Fairy of Appearance] to transform it into 'this is what she would look like if she were a real person'—I don't know her personally."

"……Oh I got it."

"Jingwen, you recognized it as a two-dimensional character at a glance. What work is it from? I've been curious about it for a long time."

“Yes, yes, I care about it too!” Fujimiya Sumina asked with a smile.

"..."

Sweat instantly streamed down Takaoka Keibun's forehead!

He adjusted his glasses, the reflection obscuring his trembling, dark brown pupils, while his heart pounded wildly in his chest.

He glanced at his uncle, then at Fujimiya. At that moment, his mind raced, and a thought suddenly flashed through his mind like a flash of inspiration during the Big Bang:

"Didn't Mr. Iori tell you about... this role?"

"No."

Speaking of this, Yosuke even sounded a little resentful: "I even asked him specifically, but not only did Iori not tell me, he also said that someone as dense as me doesn't need to know at all, and that I'll probably never need to use the relevant knowledge in my life, so there's no need to learn it. I might as well just spend my life with the Sega console."

—Isn't that going too far?

While it's true that spending my life with Sega is my dream, something about what he's saying just doesn't feel right. It feels like he's mocking me...

How strange, I haven't done anything to offend him, have I?

In a sense, you've really offended him—Jingwen's face darkened.

When he saw "Celestem" appear on the screen just now, he only thought Iori was knowledgeable and had no other thoughts. He even felt a bit of familiarity with her... But now a thought inexplicably arose in his mind:

Of all the classic elf characters, why did Mr. Iori choose this one? Besides its captivating appearance... could he be deliberately teasing his uncle?

Could it be that Mr. Iori, who had worked so hard but received no reward, harbored resentment towards his uncle because of what happened between his uncle and the appraiser, and is now retaliating in this way...? Hmm, he doesn't seem like someone with such a bad personality. I must be overthinking it!

Jingwen coughed twice: "Since Mr. Iori didn't say anything, then there's no need to worry... ah, no, then I have to introduce him to you."

This Miss Celestine is a character from a visual novel, a bishoujo game. Her backstory involves her being an elven saintess reincarnated from a goddess, deeply loved by the entire nation. When war came, she stepped forward to form an alliance of righteous forces… In short, she was a remarkable person, and even in the end, she was deeply loved by her followers… Hmm!

Jingwen did not lie; every word he said was absolutely true... he simply selectively ignored a portion of it.

Yosuke usually seems to be a bit slow-witted, but occasionally he shows his keen senses as a gamer. He is also excellent at sensing killing intent and intuition. Jingwen was afraid that he would discover something he shouldn't know, so every word he said could withstand scrutiny!

"I see... Hmm, when I transformed into her, I did feel like my heart was purified, and my perspective on the world changed completely. She truly lives up to her title of Saintess!"

"..."

The black lines on Jingwen's face deepened.

After hearing the explanation, Fujimiya turned his gaze to the scene in his memory, focusing on a certain spot, a hint of envy flashing in his eyes.