Harem System In A fantasy World - Chapter 273: Mira Meets Esme

Chapter 273: Mira Meets Esme

Tessa, Isolde, Mira, and William ended up taking those spots in the end.

Aria wasn’t too disappointed about being the only one left out, since she hadn’t expected to get a spot after losing to William.

Tessa and Isolde had begun visiting the dungeon again today. Since the hidden world opening was still about two months away, they had plenty of time, weeks even, to gain some experience points and maybe level up a bit more.

Mira had actually tagged along with them on the way to the city, and now they were just about to separate.

She was wearing a cloak over her clothes, for obvious reasons.

“This is where we separate,” Mira said to Isolde and Tessa as she briefly took off her cloak.

Her black hair fell down her back once it was freed.

Isolde and Tessa nodded, then stepped forward and gave her a hug one at a time.

“See you soon, Mira,” Isolde said.

“Un.”

“Will you be returning today? To the academy, I mean,” Tessa asked.

Mira paused, thinking for a moment.

“Well… I just need to check his house out and see if the people he said might be there are back yet.”

Tessa let out a small laugh.

“I still can’t believe it when you said Elion owns a mansion in the city.”

Mira gave a small shrug.

“Well… he didn’t tell me about it either, until…”

She trailed off.

The three of them fell silent for a brief moment, their expressions darkening slightly as the same thought crossed their minds.

Then Tessa suddenly laughed again, shaking her head.

“No need to be all doom and gloom. If he said he’ll be back, he’ll be back.”

Isolde and Mira both smiled faintly.

“Yeah… you’re right.”

Tessa and Isolde waved Mira off before turning and heading down another road.

Mira watched them go for a moment, then let out a quiet sigh before pulling her cloak back over herself and continuing on her way.

“Let’s see what Husband El was on about…”

She muttered softly as she walked.

Meanwhile, a pair of shady figures watched Mira’s retreating form from the shadows of a dark alley.

“That’s her, right?” one of them asked quietly, his eyes narrowing as he kept his gaze fixed on her disappearing figure.

“Yes, indeed,” the other replied. “That is the young miss.”

The first man gave a small nod.

“You go and report. I’ll follow her.”

He reached into his cloak and pulled out a faintly glowing stone, its surface pulsing softly with light.

“Take this,” he said, handing it over. “I have the other one. It will lead you to me when you come back with the master.”

“Understood.”

The second man took the stone without hesitation, then turned and quickly slipped out of the alley, disappearing down the road without a trace.

The first remained behind for only a moment longer before stepping out just enough to keep Mira within sight.

Then, silently, he began to follow.

…

Mira stopped at the large gates of the dark manor leading into Elion’s mansion.

“How do I get inside…” she murmured, looking up at the tall gates from beneath her cloak before glancing around at the well-kept gardens beyond.

“This place is big,” she commented to herself.

It was easily the size of her parents’ estate, and despite knowing that those two succubi from his memories had gotten it for him, she was still impressed.

Honestly, it was still difficult to come to terms with everything she had seen in his memories, the fragments he had shown her. Most of it, she didn’t even fully understand.

But what had shocked her the most was that Elion had impregnated not one, not two, but three women.

She couldn’t have imagined someone as young as him to be so willing to have children, even though she had heard him talk about it with Aria; they had, in the end, decided to put it off until much later in their lives.

She couldn’t imagine that being her honestly. Though she hoped to be a mother one day, to bear her beloved’s children, the keyword was one day.

She let out a quiet, wry chuckle.

“As expected of my husband…”

A faint smile tugged at her lips as she shifted her weight from one leg to the other.

Just as she was about to step forward and try the gates, far in the distance, the doors of the manor swung wide, and a woman stepped out, walking down the long stone path toward the entrance.

Mira stilled in her steps.

Even from afar, the woman’s beauty was… overwhelming.

Honestly, it was outrageous.

Her figure, her presence, the way she carried herself, it all drew the eye effortlessly, making it hard to look away.

For a brief moment, Mira found herself entranced despite being a beautiful woman herself.

It wasn’t until the woman stopped on the other side of the gates that she snapped out of it, a small smile forming on her lips.

“Hello, Esme,” she greeted lightly.

Of course, she recognized this woman standing before her. The long black hair that was so similar to her own, the striking features, the blue eyes.

The dangerous, alluring curves hidden just enough by the slightly revealing dress. All of it matched perfectly with what she had seen in Elion’s memories.

Esme’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“And how is it that you know my name?”

There was caution and suspicion in her voice.

Esme had her guesses, of course, but she couldn’t be sure.

Elion had mentioned having a couple of women at the academy, but he had never specified how many, and she hadn’t met any of them yet.

So this girl in front of her…

She was uncertain.

Was she another lover? A potential lover, or just a close friend.

Mira didn’t answer immediately.

Instead, she simply smiled, her gaze slowly trailing over Esme’s figure as though she was looking for something on her person.

“It has been two months, no? Physically… you don’t seem to be pregnant at all.”

Esme’s eyes sharpened instantly, a dangerous glint flashing within them.

“How did you…”

Mira only giggled.

“Come now, dear sister…”

She tilted her head slightly, her smile widening just a bit.

“Open the gates so we can talk inside.”

Esme narrowed her eyes further, her gaze sharpening as she looked deeply into Mira, as if trying to peel back every layer and see what lay beneath.

In the end, she sighed.

With a small snap of her fingers, the gates groaned open. Mira stepped forward without hesitation, walking past her and into the estate.

Esme’s eyes lingered on her for a moment, but then her gaze shifted, looking off into the distance beyond the gates, her expression turning slightly thoughtful as if she was looking at something.

’She was followed… or is it an accomplice?’

The former seemed more likely.

She thought about eliminating this person. The thought passed through her mind briefly before she shook her head.

’Let’s see what this person plans to do…’

In the end, both Mira and whoever might be watching were far too weak to pose any real threat on their own. Even if they brought someone stronger later, Esme was more than confident she could deal with it.

So she let it be and followed after Mira.

It wasn’t long before the two of them were seated in the lounging area, the atmosphere inside the manor calm and refined.

They sat across from each other on plush couches, each holding a cup of freshly prepared tea, the faint steam curling upward between them.

Esme set her cup down first.

“So,” she began, “I would appreciate it if you told me which one of Lord Husband’s women you are.”

Mira raised a brow slightly.

’Lord Husband?’

The way she said it was… oddly fitting.

A small smile tugged at her lips.

’I’ll take it.’

She cleared her throat lightly and set her own teacup down, her expression turning a bit more serious as she began to recount everything.

It wasn’t easy explaining the sequence of events, the memories, the connections, everything she had seen and experienced…

But she did.

And by the end of it, Esme understood.

A heavy frown had settled onto her face.

No…

More than that.

Her expression had darkened to the point where it almost looked like she wanted to kill someone.

“Heeeeeh…”

A low, eerie chuckle slipped from her lips.

“Dawncrest… you say?”

The expression on her face was terrifying enough to scare even Mira.

A chill ran down her spine as her body tensed slightly, a faint tremble passing through her. Had she still been holding her teacup, she might have spilled it… or dropped it entirely.

“It seems I have a target to castrate,” Esme said in an eerily calm and low voice.

Then, just as quickly as it had appeared, the terrifying look on her face vanished.

It was replaced by a heavy, trembling sigh as she leaned back slightly, composing herself with great effort. When she looked up again, her gaze softened upon noticing Mira’s reaction.

“Oh… I didn’t mean to scare you, sister,” she said sweetly.

Mira let out a small breath, forcing a wry smile.

“It’s fine.”

Esme sighed again, this time more quietly, a trace of regret slipping into her expression.

“It seems we were too relaxed…” she murmured. “I can’t imagine what he had to go through. We were tasked with protecting him, ensuring his safety, and yet…”

Her eyes lowered slightly.

“I’m just glad he managed to escape safely… though I do hope he’s fine. He was gravely injured, no?”

Mira nodded, “Yes… But I think he’ll be fine. From what I know, he has ways to heal himself and others from grave injuries.”

Esme gave a small nod at that, “Mother will not be happy, though,” she added.

Mira blinked slightly.

’Oh… that’s right.’

There was supposed to be another succubus, Esme’s mother.

“Where is your mother?” Mira asked.

“She went to seek out her sisters,” Esme answered briskly.

’Oh right… There’s more of them,’ Mira thought.

She still had some trouble recalling everything Elion had shown her. The sheer amount of information made it difficult to piece together without having to go back through everything, like flipping pages in a book.

After answering a few more of Esme’s questions about the academy, including whether they still planned to stay there, Esme offered to take all of them under her wing.

Mira declined.

Tessa and Isolde were still not entirely sure about their place in Elion’s life, and Mira knew her presence at the academy would help keep things stable.

The most troublesome was Tessa.

Her relationship with Elion hadn’t really progressed that far, and yet… Mira could easily tell that Eion had intended to go further with her, even though he seemed to have been taking his time

And Tessa, from what Mira had seen, was the type to instinctively push such things away, to avoid romantic entanglements rather than confront them.

Mira’s presence would help.

It would give her time to come to terms with her own feelings.

As for Isolde…

Well, that matter was more or less a closed case. She had fallen completely.

Hook, line, and sinker.

Mira could see it clearly.

The way Isolde struggled internally, trying to stay composed, trying to comfort both Mira and Aria while being just as affected by Elion’s departure… perhaps even more.

She hid it well behind that gentle, ever-present smile, but Mira could see through it.

And unfortunately, there was very little she could do about it. That kind of emptiness, that kind of longing, only Elion could fill it.

Which meant that right now, he was the one Isolde needed the most.

Once everything else had been discussed and settled, Mira finally voiced the question that had been lingering in her mind.

In fact, it had been bothering her very much, for the past ten or so minutes while they were talking, “So… how is it that you don’t appear to be with child at all?”

Her gaze drifted down to Esme’s completely stomach.