Two stunning beauties like Durandal and Elysia walking so brazenly through Sundown Alley—a place notorious for its shady characters and chaotic crowds—was a bold move.
Yet, those still active in these back alleys were no fools; they possessed a keen instinct for danger and could tell these two were not to be trifled with.
Consequently, by the time Durandal and Elysia successfully located a hotel to stay in, not a single soul had been thick-headed enough to step out and look for trouble.
Durandal booked two rooms. Don't misunderstand; it wasn't one for her and one for Elysia. The two of them were certainly sharing a room—the second one was reserved for Eden.
This was precisely why Durandal and Elysia had slipped away early: to secure a place to stay ahead of time.
After texting their location to Eden, Durandal turned to Elysia. "Is something wrong? You've looked like you've wanted to say something for a while now. Just speak your mind—it's not like I'm going to get mad at you."
As she spoke, Durandal naturally pulled Elysia into her arms.
Elysia looked up at her. "I do have something on my mind, actually... 'Durandal,' 'Elysia'... don't you think addressing each other like that is a bit too formal? It feels a little distant, doesn't it?"
Durandal considered this and found she had a point. She asked tentatively, "Then, should I call you Ellie, like Eden does?"
"That works for me~ ♪"
Elysia nodded, then added with a mischievous glint in her eye, "In that case, I'll call you Goose! It's catchy and it fits you perfectly~ ♪"
Durandal froze. "Don't think I can't hear the similarity between 'Doo-randal' and 'Doo-goose,' hey!"
(T/N: Durandal chinese name pronunciation similarity stuff)
She shot a look at Elysia that was less than amused. She finally understood; with Elysia's personality, it was no wonder she had hesitated. She had been waiting for this exact moment to spring the trap!
Was it too late for her to take back what she'd said about not getting mad?
"Hmph! ╯^╰ You said it yourself—you wouldn't be mad no matter what I said. You can't back out now! Otherwise, you're just a heartbreaker who goes back on her word and plays with a girl's feelings!"
As if she could read minds, Elysia cut off Durandal's "escape route" with a single sentence.
"But still, calling me 'Goose' is a bit much..."
Durandal looked at Elysia with an expression of pure distress, hoping she might reconsider.
"Hmm, alright then~ I'm not a monster, after all. If you hate it that much, I'll pick something else..."
Elysia tapped her chin with her hand, looking lost in deep thought. Watching her perform with such dramatic flair, Durandal's eye twitched.
She had a sinking feeling that whatever name came next might be even harder to swallow.
Sure enough, after a brief moment of "deliberation," Elysia looked up, her face blooming into a radiant smile. "Well, I've been thinking. Since we're a couple, I'll just call you 'Darling.' Darling, how does that sound to you?"
To be fair, there was nothing inherently wrong with "Darling."
Durandal wasn't the type to shy away from public displays of affection; after all, they had already shared a kiss in front of the entire Schicksal organization. What was one "Darling" compared to that?
However, the moment the thought crossed her mind, Durandal realized she had made a grave mistake.
It was simple: when those two words—"Darling"—left Elysia's lips in that sweet, slightly sultry voice, wrapped in such a melodic lilt, Durandal felt a spark ignite within her.
In an instant, it surged into a wildfire, consuming her entire being.
Durandal instinctively tightened her grip on Elysia. As her gaze fell upon the girl's fair, delicate neck, she couldn't help but swallow hard.
She knew exactly what was happening. She had been completely charmed by just two words.
This elf-like girl possessed a unique brand of magic—the ability to stoke the fires of desire with nothing more than a whispered endearment.
And the thought of Elysia calling her "Darling" in public—allowing others to hear that voice, a sound sweet enough to melt one's very bones—made Durandal feel a sudden, intense wave of possessiveness.
"No, no... absolutely not!"
Durandal forcibly suppressed the urge to "settle things" with Elysia right then and there, prioritizing the rejection of this new proposal first.
"Aww... not this, not that. Am I supposed to just keep calling you Durandal then? Well, you're not allowed to switch to calling me Ellie either. We're not doing a one-sided thing!"
Elysia was actually throwing a bit of a tantrum now.
However, Durandal could see right through her.
Whether it was the intentional tone she used for "Darling" or this current bout of pouting, it was all a ploy to make her original "Goose" nickname seem like the more acceptable compromise.
Durandal fell into serious thought...
Truth be told, back when she was just an ordinary college student and a Honkai Impact 3rd player, she—like many other fans—had used the nickname "Goose" to refer to Durandal.
After all, the "Doo-goose" meme was so widespread that even the official developers leaned into it, even releasing a pixel-art interactive video titled: Honkai Impact 3rd: S-Rank Valkyrie Durangoose Preview!
Between her blunt, straightforward nature and her perceived denseness when dealing with Rita, she had certainly earned the title.
But Durandal wasn't about to concede!
First of all, she wasn't gullible at all—that had nothing to do with being "goosey."
Secondly, while she might have been a bit slow during the early days of her relationship with Elysia, she wasn't so dense that she'd tried to convince herself that the kiss Elysia gave her that night was "just a kiss between friends."
She had reacted instantly and followed up with a confession!
All things considered, Durandal felt she had every right to feel a little slighted by the nickname.
Her thoughts were written all over her face. That look of slighted grievance was so clear that Elysia found it both hilarious and immensely satisfying.
Elysia had almost forgotten the frustrations she felt before they had officially become a couple.
But being here in Sundown Alley—a place that shared so many similarities with that small town in Siberia—brought those old memories flooding back.
When they first met, Durandal had nearly driven her to wit's end more than a few times.
Later, as Elysia realized her feelings and tried to flirt, Durandal had remained as immovable as a sage, seemingly unaffected by her charms, which had left Elysia both fuming and helpless.
If she hadn't been such an optimist by nature, any other girl might have spent many a night crying into her pillow over Durandal's stoic attitude.
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T/N: If you want advance chapters, you can find it at [email protected]/AspenTL