"Now… What exactly happened?"
I let out a ragged breath, rubbing the dark purple bruise around my wrist. There was no point in lying to a woman who had just dismantled a Tier 4 veteran in five seconds flat.
Putting even that aside, it 'was' my fault.
"I was grateful…" I admitted, keeping my voice as level as possible. "You both did a lot to make sure I was safe down here… And I saw that Vala was being really protective of me since the beginning, and I wanted to show my appreciation."
Elise didn't even bat an eye. She just stared at me with that same, unblinking calculation.
"Look, I knew how she saw me…" I continued with a sigh. "So as a gesture of appreciation, I kissed her. And her instincts completely took over."
The cavern went completely silent for a moment before Elise finally spoke.
"So…" she stated, her voice completely devoid of any inflection. "You kissed an alpha werewolf who clearly had a thing for you, and who outclassed you by three full tiers. What made you think that was a good idea?"
Put exactly like that, it sounded incredibly stupid.
"I... don't know much about werewolves," I admitted.
"Clearly," Elise replied.
She turned her back to me before bending down to effortlessly grab Vala's limp, blood-soaked body.
She hoisted the massive werewolf over her shoulder, completely ignoring the blood soaking into her pristine silver armor, and walked over to a wide, flat stone slab near the water.
"I-is she going to be alright?" I asked, following a few steps behind her.
"Yes," Elise replied simply.
"Look, I'm sorry…" I said, watching her carefully lay the werewolf down. "I didn't mean her any harm. I didn't think it would escalate like that."
Elise completely ignored the apology as she placed Vala flat on the ground before sitting down cross-legged right beside her.
She patted the ground directly in front of her, wordlessly telling me to sit.
I followed that silent order, crossing my legs to mirror her posture.
"There are many reasons werewolves try to limit themselves to other werewolves," Elise explained, looking at me with her cold blue eyes. "Werewolves, when aroused or in love, completely lose their higher senses to their animalistic instincts. Only someone similarly powerful or just as animalistic can match them. And Vala is an Alpha. In her case, everything is dialled up to eleven."
She paused, letting me fully process every word she spoke before continuing, "Only death by being ripped apart awaits the rest."
I swallowed hard, feeling the stinging bite marks on my neck pulse in time with my heartbeat.
[Yeah, no kidding.]
"I'm sorry," I said quietly. "I didn't know."
"Now you do," Elise stated.
She reached down to the small pouch at her waist, opening the leather flap to pull out a small, cloth-wrapped bundle. She unfolded the it, revealing a soft bread bun filled with dark red jam.
She ripped the pastry cleanly in half, extending one piece toward me while keeping her gaze completely locked on my face.
"You're not angry at me?" I asked taking my half of the bun, genuinely confused by how casual this all felt after the brutal violence.
"No," she replied, bringing her half to her lips to take a small bite.
"Why?" I pressed.
"Because I physically can't…" Elise answered, chewing slowly. "...I cannot feel emotions. I do not know what it is like to be angry, happy, or sad."
I lowered the bread, staring at her perfectly blank face.
Turns out she wasn't suppressing anything behind an icy exterior.
"That... must be..." I trailed off, searching for the right word. "I don't know... tough, I guess."
"Curious would be the correct word," Elise corrected smoothly. "… Imagine it as never having drunk alcohol in your life. You are curious about it as to how it feels to be drunk, or how it tastes. But that's about it. You are not actively craving it, you're just curious."
She looked down at her pastry. "Besides, this inability of mine has served me well so far."
"And yet you're a good person," I pointed out. "Unlike the others, you wake up every day and actively choose to do good. Not because that's your instinct, but as an active conscious decision…"
Elise tilted her head slightly, waiting for me to finish.
"You had no obligation to save me from those three women back at the guild," I continued, leaning forward. "And yet you did it anyway. Yeah, there were some practical considerations involved. But I can bet my head that you would've still done it even if there wasn't a backline archer to gain."
Elise lowered her head, going into deep thought for a few moments before looking back up at me.
"Incorrect…" she stated calmly. "From experience, I have found that neither being completely good nor being completely bad is optimal."
"Huh, true…" I nodded.
I took a huge bite of the jam bun, the sweet flavor hitting my tongue before a sudden, crazy idea clicked into place in my head.
[Wait…] I looked at her blank face, doing the math on her unique condition.
"Say, Elise…" I said, swallowing the bread. "If you're curious about feeling emotions... There are two emotions I guarantee I can make you feel."
Elise once again tilted her head.
"Lust and Pleasure…" I said shamelessly with a slight grin.
Since she was completely emotionless, I knew she was the one person I didn't have to walk on eggshells or beat around the bush with.
"I sincerely doubt that…" Elise replied, taking another neat bite out of her half of the bun.
"Don't," I said.
I looked at her with confidence so absolute that it actually made her pause.
We just sat there, staring directly into each other's eyes for a few solid seconds in the damp, blood-scented air. It was a pure clash of my absolute certainty against her absolute logic.
But that heavy silence was suddenly shattered.
"Luca!" Vala shot up, her face was deathly pale, chest heaving, head snapping left and right until her eyes found me.