Chapter 254: This Feeling Called Liking
The name "Continental Magic Association" was thus decided.
Although Rhodes privately felt the name was so straightforward it bordered on crude, seeing Serie's slightly proud expression—as if she had just completed some magnificent masterpiece—he swallowed all his complaints.
As long as she was happy, it didn't matter what it was called.
Not every aspect of the Association's construction required Rhodes and Serie's personal attention.
After finalizing the main design and direction, the concrete execution was handed over to the ministers and craftsmen assigned by Emperor Fidel.
Of course, to put Fidel at ease, Rhodes gifted him a considerable number of magic tomes he had collected or written over the years. It was a fair exchange.
Having received tangible benefits, Fidel became even more dedicated. He frequently checked on the construction progress, ensuring that the assigned ministers and craftsmen dared not be even slightly negligent.
Consequently, this gave Rhodes and Serie more time alone, allowing them to truly experience daily life in the royal capital of Ersten.
They did not stay in the guest rooms of the palace provided by Fidel. Instead, they chose a quiet little house in a secluded area of the capital.
It had white walls and a blue roof, built entirely from magical stone-mud and timber in the typical Ersten architectural style. In the courtyard was a small flowerbed, blooming with colorful flowers.
This was Flamme's masterpiece.
Among the flowers, one was particularly conspicuous—clearly a very special and rare variety.
In the mornings, Rhodes usually woke up a little earlier than Serie.
Although the paper window between them had been pierced, Rhodes was in no rush to move in with Serie.
He preferred to maintain a certain distance while constantly drawing closer.
Quietly opening the door, he looked at the elf still sleeping peacefully before him. Stripped of her usual coldness and majesty, she lay defenseless—or perhaps she simply sensed a familiar presence approaching and felt no need to guard against it.
Seeing this scene, Rhodes recalled the first time he met Serie.
Back then, the capsized Great Mage had also lain quietly before him. What had he done at that time?
Rhodes couldn't quite remember.
Now, Serie's sleeping face appeared exceptionally soft. Her long golden hair spread out on the pillow like duckweed on water.
Rhodes couldn't resist. He reached out and poked Serie's small, round cheek.
The touch was delicate, making it hard to stop. He continued until her eyelashes fluttered slightly and her golden eyes slowly opened, carrying the haze of waking. Only then did he stop, feeling somewhat unsatisfied.
"What are you doing?" The misty eyes quickly cleared, tinged with a hint of confusion.
Rhodes didn't answer. instead, he leaned down and pressed a kiss onto her smooth forehead.
Although he could have gone further, he no longer cared about rushing.
Sometimes, keeping things simple was wonderful in its own right.
Faced with Rhodes leaning in, Serie subconsciously stiffened slightly. She had mentally prepared herself for this man to gnaw on her lips again, and even tilted her face up slightly to accommodate him.
But she was wrong.
The man merely left a light kiss on her forehead.
A small sense of disappointment rose in her heart, but it vanished quickly. Instead, she extended a slender finger, curiously touching the spot Rhodes had just kissed, then touching her own lips, as if comparing the sensations.
Then she pouted her small lips, expressing a bit of dissatisfaction.
"Good morning, Serie," Rhodes whispered with a smile.
"Morning," came Serie's curt reply.
Breakfast was usually prepared by Ela or Flamme.
Serie had little interest in human food. She would often just taste a little, spending more time holding a cup of fruit tea and watching Rhodes eat.
Rhodes would occasionally bring a pastry he found delicious to her lips, trying to get her to eat more.
"This is not bad. Try it?"
Serie would usually take a bite from his hand, comment "average," and then refuse to eat more.
She still preferred the grilled mushroom skewers this man made for her. That was their earliest shared memory.
But Rhodes never tired of it, as if feeding her was a source of great amusement.
Occasionally, Serie would imitate him. She would pick up something from her plate and bring it to Rhodes's mouth. Her movements were slightly stiff, but her eyes held a barely perceptible expectation.
Rhodes would eat it without hesitation and praise it to high heaven, eliciting a satisfied smile from Serie.
After breakfast, the two would make their routine inspection of the Association construction site.
On a whim, Serie would propose extremely harsh requirements, instantly causing the sweating craftsmen to panic.
Rhodes would then hurriedly drag Serie's overly imaginative ideas back to reality.
They were building a Magic Association, not the Tower of Babel. There was no need to go overboard.
While strolling through the markets of the capital, Serie impulsively bought a bag of chestnut-like fruits, roasted in a similar manner to chestnuts.
"Mmph." Serie put one in her mouth and bit down, but was forced to give up due to the hard shell. "Is this thing really food?"
Rhodes took the chestnut, which now bore a faint tooth mark, from her hand. With a slight exertion of his fingers, he cracked it open and skillfully popped the kernel into the elf's mouth.
The sweet, soft texture made Serie raise an eyebrow slightly.
"Do you like it?" Rhodes asked, watching her.
"It is very sweet, but too troublesome to eat. I am curious who the first person was to discover this thing was edible," Serie analyzed seriously.
"But the taste?" Rhodes pressed, suppressing a laugh.
Serie was silent for a moment. Her gaze drifted to the bag of chestnuts, and she gave a microscopic nod. "...Passable."
"Then I will peel them for you."
"Mn." Serie nodded, not refusing his kindness.
Since clarifying their relationship with Rhodes, they seemed to have returned to how they were when they first met, yet with a few different flavors mixed in.
Do I like Rhodes?
Serie wasn't entirely sure.
Because she had never experienced this feeling before. When she was with him, she felt very warm. Especially during intimate contact, all sorts of complex emotions would jump out at once, making her whole being feel hot.
Rhodes said this was the manifestation of love.
If this was love, Serie still didn't quite get it.
Why, in all this long time, had she never generated such intense feelings before? Why did they only appear after Rhodes had pointed everything out?
Elves are a race with very thin emotions. sometimes, unless you throw a straight ball and vent all your feelings completely, they won't understand at all.
Or perhaps, decades or centuries later, they might suddenly wake up and realize, Oh, so that is what they meant back then!
But by then, it would be too late.
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