The Devil Does Not Need to Be Defeated

Chapter 519: A Confrontation at First Sight

“Hold it right there!”

Just as Shien and Melika were gazing at each other, seemingly oblivious to everything around them, a sharp voice suddenly rang out.

This voice instantly broke the slightly ambiguous atmosphere between Shien and Melika, bringing them back to reality.

“~~~~~”

Melika, realizing what she had just done, blushed furiously.

Seeing Melika like this, both Shien and Lucy had the same thought.

This once-in-a-lifetime opportunity was gone.

Shien and Lucy’s faces fell.

Everyone turned their heads and looked towards the source of the sound.

In a secluded corner, an elven girl was standing there.

She was a beautiful elf with a heroic appearance, seemingly around Melika’s age, holding a short staff, and sporting shoulder-length hair.

The girl looked valiant, her eyes sharp, her limbs slender, like a kind older sister who would take care of the neighborhood children, giving off a sense of security.

However, this elven girl was now staring at them with a furious expression.

No, more accurately, she was staring at Shien.

“Jenom…!?”

Melika also saw this heroic girl, surprise appearing on her flushed face.

Shien and his group also heard Melika’s words, stunned at first, then surprised.

Jenom?

Melika’s childhood friend?

“Is that her?”

Lucy seemed to realize.

This elven girl who had suddenly appeared and spoken was Melika’s childhood friend—Jenom.

“Why are you here?”

Melika was truly surprised.

Yesterday, after they reunited, they spent the whole day together happily, even sleeping together at night, as if they had returned to their inseparable childhood days.

But this morning, when Melika offered to bring Jenom over and introduce her to Shien and his group, Jenom refused without hesitation.

Now, this childhood friend had actually appeared here, naturally surprising Melika.

However…

“I’ve been following you, wanting to see what kind of people you’ve befriended outside.”

Jenom walked over, looking at Melika with a hint of anger, as if she had been deceived.

“When I asked you yesterday, you told me that you and the man from another race you invited were just ordinary adventurer teammates, right?”

Jenom looked furious.

This was only natural.

Yesterday, when she learned that Melika was returning, Jenom was overjoyed.

Her childhood friend, who had suddenly decided to travel two years ago and was no longer with her, Jenom naturally missed her very much.

Therefore, with the approaching Peace Festival, Jenom deliberately wrote a letter to remind Melika, who was away from home, to come back.

She simply missed Melika.

Under such circumstances, Jenom was ecstatic when she learned that Melika was returning for the Peace Festival.

Yesterday, Jenom had been waiting for news from Melika, wanting to welcome her back as soon as possible.

Then, Melika returned.

But after the initial joy, Jenom couldn’t be happy anymore.

Because Melika had actually invited a man from another race back to the Elven Homeland to participate in the Peace Festival.

“Why did you bring a man from another race back, Melika!?”

Jenom asked Melika in shock.

And Jenom still remembered the expression Melika showed after that.

“…Because he’s someone very important to me.”

At that time, Melika blushed, and with a soft voice, a hint of shyness and an indescribable happiness, said these words to Jenom.

Seeing her childhood friend, Melika couldn’t help but reveal her biggest secret, a secret she couldn’t share with anyone else.

Unfortunately, Melika didn’t know how much of an impact her words and expression had on Jenom.

She had never seen Melika like this before.

She had never seen Melika with such an expression.

This made Jenom realize that in two years, Melika had changed, becoming a stranger to her.

Of course, that wasn’t the most important thing.

The most important thing was that Melika, her most important childhood friend, seemed to have developed a feeling that elves shouldn’t have.

That was—”love.”

Melika had fallen in love with a man from another race.

When she realized this, the shock in Jenom’s heart was beyond words.

She had never thought that her childhood friend would one day fall in love with a man from another race.

She also hadn’t thought that after waiting for Melika with anticipation and anxiety, she was no longer the most important person in Melika’s heart.

Then, Jenom thought of those elves who had fallen in love with men from other races.

She recalled their sadness.

She recalled their pained expressions.

“…I have to stop this.”

Jenom immediately had this thought.

Therefore, Jenom spent the entire day yesterday trying to get information about Melika’s beloved from her.

And under Jenom’s questioning, Melika personally said that she and that man from another race were just ordinary adventurer teammates.

Therefore, Jenom decided to secretly observe Shien and Melika while things could still be salvaged, wanting to see how far their relationship had progressed.

And today, Jenom saw the scene of Shien and Melika gazing at each other.

She didn’t know what they had talked about that made them suddenly gaze at each other like that, a strange atmosphere between them.

But a voice in Jenom’s heart told her that she couldn’t let this continue.

Therefore, Jenom couldn’t help but step forward.

“What was that just now?”

Jenom asked Melika.

“This…”

Melika recalled what had just happened, and her face flushed red again, as if she was about to faint from embarrassment.

She didn’t even dare to look at Shien, wanting to run away.

But Melika’s reaction made Jenom even angrier.

“Really, after just a year or two outside, you’ve become so strange. If I had known, I wouldn’t have let you leave.” Jenom grabbed Melika’s hand and said in a tone that brooked no argument, “Come on, let’s go back.”

Jenom was about to take Melika away.

“W-wait! Jenom!” Melika reacted and said quickly, “I still have to entertain Mr. Shien and the others!”

“Entertain them?” Jenom said immediately, “The others from the Elven Corps can do that. You don’t have to.”

“But…” Melika said, stunned, “I invited them. They’re my friends. I should be the one to entertain them.”

“I said no, so no!” Jenom said forcefully, “Just come back with me!”

Jenom pulled Melika’s hand, trying to drag her away.

“Ah!”

Melika let out a small cry of surprise as her body tilted towards Jenom, being pulled along.

Just as Melika was about to be dragged away by Jenom, a hand reached out.

“Slap!”

With a crisp sound, Melika’s other hand was grabbed.

“Huh?”

Jenom froze.

“Mr. Shien…?”

Melika exclaimed.

Lucy, Lasha, Lilith, and Millu all turned their gazes to the side.

There, Shien had reached out and grabbed Melika’s hand, a playful smile on his face.

“Miss Jenom, is it?” Shien said casually. “Nice to meet you.”

His relaxed greeting almost made Melika and the others unable to react, and Jenom’s face darkened.

“I’m not nice!” Jenom glared at Shien and said in a low voice, “Let go!”

Jenom glanced at Shien’s hand holding Melika’s, a feeling of something being taken from her rising in her heart, fueling her anger.

Shien, however, was unfazed.

“I should be the one saying that, shouldn’t I?” Shien narrowed his eyes, the playful smile still on his face. “You suddenly came here to cause trouble, and without saying a word, you’re trying to take away our person. That’s not right, is it?”

Jenom immediately retorted without thinking,

“Who’s ‘your person’!? ” Jenom stared at Shien as if he was a criminal. “Melika isn’t yours!”

Jenom’s tone was filled with possessiveness.

It was as if she was desperately trying to protect something.

“Really?” Shien raised an eyebrow. “If she’s not ours, then is she yours?”

“Of course!” Jenom puffed out her chest and said firmly, “We’ve been childhood friends for over a hundred years, never separated!”

The implication was that with their bond and feelings, they were already inseparable.

Therefore, Melika naturally belonged to her.

Shien had something to say to this.

“So, you’re just childhood friends, right?” Shien looked at Jenom and shrugged. “Since you’re just Melika’s childhood friend, not her mother, then your actions of trying to take her away without saying a word, frankly speaking, I don’t quite agree with.”

“You…!” Jenom was furious.

At this moment, Melika finally realized what was happening.

“Why… why are you arguing?” Melika hurriedly tried to stop them. “Calm down, Mr. Shien, Jenom.”

Neither Shien nor Jenom listened to Melika.

They glared at each other, their gazes clashing like sparks, their animosity clear.

Undoubtedly, Shien and Jenom’s relationship, upon their first meeting, had dropped below zero.

Jenom saw Shien as a threat to Melika, an enemy.

Shien was also very unhappy with this elven girl’s rude interruption and her attempt to take Melika away without any regard for him or the others.

This put them at odds with each other, irreconcilably.

“Let go!”

Jenom warned.

“No.”

Shien naturally wouldn’t back down.

“Are you going to let go?”

Magic power surged around Jenom.

“No.”

Shien grinned, calm and unhurried.

“…”

Jenom fell silent.

“…”

Shien also didn’t speak.

But as if they had agreed beforehand, both of them tightened their grips on Melika’s hand.

“Ah!”

Melika cried out in surprise.

Shien and Jenom pulled on Melika’s hands simultaneously, trying to drag her to their respective sides.

“W-wait! Mr. Shien! Jenom!”

Melika, being pulled from both sides, froze in mid-air like a doll.

It didn’t hurt, just a little uncomfortable.

Shien and Jenom were still somewhat restrained, not using enough force to hurt Melika.

But within the allowed range of force, neither of them would compromise, silently pulling Melika towards themselves.

This made Melika confused and at a loss, not knowing what to do.

Lucy and the others, watching this scene, were speechless.

“?”

“Are they playing tug-of-war?”

Lilith and Millu tilted their heads simultaneously, confused.

“This guy is competing with a little girl again.”

Lucy sighed.

“This is Mr. Shien.”

Lasha said calmly.

Everyone could only watch from the side, not knowing whether to intervene or not, the atmosphere awkward.

Jenom, while pulling on Melika, suddenly noticed something.

(Melika isn’t resisting being touched by a man from another race…?)

Jenom stared at Shien’s hand holding Melika’s, then at Melika, who, although looking confused, wasn’t resisting at all, a sense of crisis rising in her heart.

With an elf’s purity and emphasis on it, they would feel uncomfortable even just being near someone of the opposite sex, let alone being touched.

But Melika not only wasn’t resisting, but also seemed used to it.

What did this mean?

Before she could figure it out, Jenom was furious.