Good stuff—more suited to him than that chunk of ice-soul ore.
Su Li stood up and noticed Elonore sneaking glances at him.
Caught red-handed, the little girl's face flushed again. She hurriedly lowered her head and pretended to examine some unidentified ore nearby.
"Didn't your master teach you to take the initiative?" Su Li suddenly asked.
With nothing better to do, Su Li decided to tease the little elf.
Elonore froze stiff.
Her lips parted, but not a single word came out. Her silver hair draped down on both sides, hiding most of her face, but her long ears had turned so red they looked ready to bleed.
"I... my master, she..."
"Alright, no need to explain." Su Li took two steps forward and sat down on a dwarven-style stone bench. "I won't comment on whether what your master said makes sense, but you need to think one thing through."
Elonore stood where she was, clutching the hem of her skirt as she raised her head to look at him.
"Do you actually like me, or did your master tell you to like me?"
The question was brutally direct.
Elonore swayed slightly. She bit her lower lip and thought for a long while, her voice so quiet that Su Li would never have heard it without the hearing of a third-rank knight.
"...Before Master said those things, I already... um, I already..."
She simply could not force out the rest.
Su Li looked at her.
Honestly, the little girl was not unpleasant. She was quiet by nature and knew her limits in everything she did. Every time she came to his home and Saina tore into her like that, she had never once lost her temper. Whenever she brought gifts, there were never any strings attached. If rejected, she would