Accidental Elf: My Passive Allure is Ruining My Plans

Mila expected much more from her first Thursday as a single woman.

The main guild counter was long, and alongside her, seven other receptionists were assisting adventurers. They received quest sheets, handed out pouches of coins, and reviewed documents with seasoned professionalism.

Mila, however, was doing nothing at that moment. She rested her elbows on the wooden counter, staring blankly at the main entrance while letting her mind wander.

That elf isn't coming, she told herself in frustration.

It was already four in the afternoon. In exactly one hour, her shift would end, and she would head home.

Mila slowly let her head drop with a lack of enthusiasm until her forehead touched the smooth surface of the counter.

"Give me back my high hopes, you wicked elf," she muttered against the wood.

Knowing she had to head to her office soon to tidy up her things before leaving, she sat up a bit. She turned her head to the side and gave a quick hand signal to one of the other girls.

The young woman approached immediately upon seeing the gesture, and Mila gave her a simple but necessary instruction.

"If an elf comes by and asks for me, send him to my office right away."

Avira looked at her with narrowed eyes and a curious smile on her lips.

"Who's the elf?"

Mila cut her off listlessly, in no mood to give explanations.

"An adventurer I supervise... Don't be nosy. Just do as I say."

With that, Mila pressed her forehead back onto the counter and let out a long sigh of disappointment. What a boring day.

"Hello! You're Mila, right?"

A female voice greeted her from the other side of the counter. Mila looked up with utter laziness.

"Yes, but I'm on my break," she replied to the blonde woman standing in front of her.

However, taking a closer look, Mila recognized her. Her memory was excellent; this was the same girl she had seen accompanying the elf a few days ago right here in the guild.

Mila straightened up instantly in her chair. She immediately thought: If she's here, it's highly likely that elf is with her too. She scanned the entire guild hall quickly, but only saw the usual adventurers drinking and talking at the tables. There was no sign of Alaster.

The blonde girl let out a low laugh. With a decisive movement, she pulled out a piece of parchment and placed it on the counter.

"We need to talk about my boyfriend," Jinneth said.

Mila looked at the paper and felt her stomach drop. She recognized the piece of parchment immediately because she herself had slipped it secretly into the elf's coin pouch a few days ago.

"Boyfriend?" Mila murmured in a whisper, feeling a touch of surprise.

"Yes," Jinneth replied, holding her gaze firmly.

Mila glanced quickly in all directions to make sure no one in the guild was paying attention to the counter. Fortunately, all the adventurers were busy with their own matters, and no one was looking at them.

"Let's go to my office," Mila said.

She rose from her chair with a certain deliberate slowness, taking her time and looking the girl over from the corner of her eye. The blonde in front of her was, without a doubt, a beauty. It was obvious she was an energetic and tremendously dynamic young woman, with striking copper-blonde hair and pretty, expressive gray eyes.

Mila stepped out from behind the service counter and guided the young woman through the internal corridors of the guild toward her private office as head receptionist. Both stole glances at each other as they walked in silence. Mila's high heels and Jinneth's ankle boots clicked sharply against the corridor floor, creating a tense atmosphere.

"Here we are," Mila said with a smile that attempted to be polite.

She opened the door to her office and entered, followed closely by Jinneth. The baker's large, cream-colored hat now hung behind her back, and her dark trousers fit snugly against her glutes as she walked.

Mila watched with some amusement as the young woman walked straight toward her desk, passed right by it, and sat in the main chair. Jinneth settled in with both legs together, crossed her arms right under her breasts, and fixed her gaze on the receptionist with a pout that was not threatening at all.

"What are your intentions with my Al?" Jinneth said without flinching.

Mila stood somewhat surprised at the entrance. To be honest, she expected a different reaction from a jealous girlfriend: something like anger, loud complaints, or even tears. But this calmness?

Huh? the woman thought.

Mila walked with ease and slow steps until she approached the desk. Instead of using another chair, she sat sideways on the edge of the wooden table and crossed her legs, causing her black stockings to tighten.

"I don't have intentions with your boyfriend," Mila said with utter composure. "We just met at the counter and talked a bit. Nothing really serious to worry about."

Even though her words were calm, internally Mila was thinking something entirely different: Intentions... no, just taking him somewhere completely isolated and devouring him very slowly... but not exactly with my mouth...

Mila licked her red-painted lips for a brief second.

Jinneth caught the gesture and furrowed her brow deeply. She pulled out the crumpled note abruptly and slapped it against the desk.

"Oh, sure! And I totally believed you. There's the proof!" the baker said.

"That? I didn't write that," Mila said with utter shamelessness, holding her gaze without blinking.

The blonde leaped up from the chair and pointed a finger directly at her.

"You're the only one who could have done it! Don't come at me now with that 'Oh, I don't know what you're talking about!' routine."

Jinneth mimicked her, changing her tone of voice to sound mocking. But far from getting angry at the lack of respect, Mila smiled to herself.

Looking closely at the young woman, she saw she perfectly combined a sweet face and an innocent attitude with an athletic, well-formed body. She thought there was no way a man could resist the urge to protect a girl like her.

In fact, Mila herself felt a sudden urge to hug her, exactly the same way she used to hug her little sister before she moved out of the city.

Mila cleared her throat and began to say, with the most serious face she could manage:

"Look, I have no interest in getting between the two of you, so..."

Knock, knock!

Two sharp raps on the wooden door interrupted her words. Immediately, Avira's voice was heard from the other side.

"Boss? It's His Excellency Alaster. He's here in the hallway, should I let him in?"

Mila sighed and replied immediately.

"Yes, it's fine, let him in."

Mila turned toward the chair to tell Jinneth to maintain appearances.

"Now we can resolve this like adults..."

But as she turned and looked at the desk chair, Mila's words trailed off. There was no one there. The blonde had vanished from sight in a matter of seconds.

The door opened, and Alaster entered the office.

The moment he stepped inside, the elf ran right into Mila, who was staring with a furrowed brow at the empty chair of her own desk. The beautiful woman was sitting sideways on the table, her black skirt slightly riding up due to the position, leaving her long legs in stockings completely exposed to view. Her proud chest was abundantly outlined within the formal white shirt. The receptionist uniform fit her marvelously.

Alaster felt a sudden, intense heat rush through his body.

Now that I remember... I've been dragging this urge around ever since Jin left me hanging this morning at the inn, Joseph thought, feeling his blood stir.

He let out a heavy sigh in his mind to try to banish the indecent thoughts taking shape in his head as he looked at Mila's curvy figure. Have some balls, Joseph. Just tell her straight up that you're with someone and that you want a relationship based on friendship. Friendship and quests... You got yourself into this mess, now be brave. She's just a girl, not a wyvern.

"So..." Alaster began, to break the ice.

Mila stood up on her legs and stepped down from the desk elegantly, interrupting him.

"So! I completely forgot to explain how the guild system works last time," she said, acting as if nothing had happened.

Under the desk, tucked into the narrow leg space where she had hidden in a mad rush, Jinneth wrinkled her face. What on earth is that shameless woman talking about now? she wondered with indignation.

She wasn't the only one confused in that office. Alaster blinked a few times, thrown off by the change of topic.

"Well... you're right," the elf said, his voice sounding rather hesitant.

"That's right. With all the commotion last time, I didn't have time, so it's best to seize the moment and explain it now," Mila continued flawlessly. "The first thing you should know is that adventurers are divided into ranks. These ranks go from the lowest, which is H, to the highest, which is S. As a mage, you start directly at the lowest rank allowed for magic users, which is F."

As she spoke, Mila turned around and began to walk slowly toward the chair behind the desk.

Alaster couldn't help but fix his gaze on her figure. She had a tiny waist compared to her large backside, which stood out even more due to the tight fit of the black office skirt.

Seriously... a woman like that offered to spend the whole night with me and now I go and tell her no... Wait, focus on the information, Joseph scolded himself in his mind, giving himself a mental slap to center himself.

The sensual receptionist sat in her chair, opened a side cabinet of the desk, and pulled out some old parchments that she spread across the table.

"Alaster..." she said, softening her voice. "Can I call you Al?"

Alaster answered immediately, relieved by the friendly tone.

"Sure! No problem at all. And can I call you Mily?"

"Call me whatever you like," Mila said, smiling at him radiantly.

THUD!

A sharp, dull thud caused Mila to let out a muffled gasp, cutting her own smile short. Underneath the desk, Jinneth's closed fist had slammed with rage directly against her high-heeled foot.

When Mila discreetly cast her eyes down past the edge of the table, she came face-to-face with the young woman's gray eyes, which were radiating pure fury from the darkness. Jinneth showed her a closed fist in a clear threatening sign to stop flirting.

Mila clenched her teeth, enduring the pain in her instep. Alaster, completely oblivious to what was happening below, let out a sigh and decided to voice what he had been holding back.

"So, Mily... about... us."

Mila held her breath at that very instant, and under the desk, Jinneth did the exact same thing. The situation within those four walls was completely volatile.

Jinneth could already see herself climbing out from below and lunging at both of them with whatever she could find handy on the table. In her mind, Alaster was already a traitor of Uriel's caliber, or perhaps worse, because the fact that he was now sexier with black hair definitely made everything more severe. At least, that was what she believed in her fit of jealousy.

Come on, Joseph. It's just a rejection. Girls do it all the time on Earth, it can't be that hard, the elf encouraged himself.

"You are an incredible woman..." Alaster began to say seriously.

However, Mila let out the breath she was holding and cut him off with a gesture of her hand, sparing him the bitter moment.

"There's no need to go on, Al," Mila said without showing any sign of annoyance or sadness. "I think I know perfectly well what you're going to say. I'm great, but you already have someone in your life, right?"

Alaster looked at her, completely disarmed and surprised.

"That... I... I'm sorry. You're right."

Mila shook her head, brushing it off with a light smile.

"Look, Al... let's not make it awkward for anyone. Let's just leave it at a nice friendship."

Alaster felt a deep admiration for the woman's maturity. She's undoubtedly a woman who has lived a lot, truly admirable, the elf thought, feeling a massive weight lift off his shoulders.

Mila looked down, shifting only her eyes toward the desk opening. There, she saw Jinneth's massive grin. It was a completely triumphant smile; the blonde was gloating about the victory right in her face.

Mila, being a highly competitive woman, couldn't help but get irritated by the brat's mockery. Taking advantage of the fact that Alaster was distracted, she lowered one of her legs and delivered a swift kick under the table, straight to Jinneth's ribs.

"Meow...!" A sharp squeak cut through the office air, but Jinneth managed to react in time to transform it into something resembling the meow of a startled kitten.

Alaster saw the entire desk shake slightly and saw Mila shift in her chair in two more quick spasms, accompanied by two other muffled meows coming from below.

The elf was instantly alarmed and took a step forward.

"What's wrong? What was that?"

Mila, her face slightly contorted with anger and the effort not to yell, adjusted her glasses and replied in a strained voice.

"No, it's nothing... It's just a stray. A stray cat I rescued recently and keep down here. She's a bit rough around the edges, so sometimes you have to treat her firmly so she learns not to scratch."

Jinneth, indignant at the "cat" comment, responded to the third kick by planting a sharp strike with her boot directly onto the receptionist's shin. Mila gave a small jolt in her chair from the pain, but summoned all her willpower and remained impassive, smiling forward.

"Perhaps... I should explain the quests to you," Mila said, switching the topic in a mad rush while enduring the pain in her leg. "You see, in the guild, there are six different types of quests."

Alaster straightened up, paying attention as she pointed to the parchments on the desk.

"First are gathering quests: in these, you must collect medicinal herbs, flowers, mushrooms, or any resource found in nature. Next are service quests: here you help someone with a specific day-to-day task, like loading heavy crates in warehouses or watering a crop field using water magic."

Mila moved to the next group of documents.

"The third are suppression quests: these are direct orders from the guild to kill a specific monster in a set number that is causing trouble. Fourth, escort quests: as the name implies, they serve to protect a cargo convoy, a place, or an important person who hires you for their safety."

She paused briefly and continued.

"Fifth, rank quests: in these, you perform a special task to evaluate if you are fit to rise in the guild hierarchy. For example, to rise from rank F to E, you absolutely must pass a rank quest, though this process can be skipped or is easier in the lower ranks. And finally, gift quests: these are special requests where you must eliminate specific creatures to obtain the gifts of the Pantheon they grant you and bring them directly to the guild."

Alaster listened intently and perfectly understood every category except the last one. The term sounded strange to him.

"What are those gifts of the Pantheon?" Alaster asked, intrigued.

Mila let out a long sigh.

"It's true, I forgot for a moment that you're actually a rookie at this, Al..."

Mila opened another of the desk cabinets and took out a small object that she handed to Alaster over the table. When the elf took it in his hands, he could feel nothing but a fresh, massive wave of confusion.

He held a rectangular object, identical to a trading card. It had a dark and rather refined style. In the center of the card was a picture frame showing a perfectly detailed drawing of a cluster of wild strawberries, and right below it, it had several lines of engraved information:

[-Gift-]

[Rarity]:Rare

[Type]:Fruit

[Quality]:Excellent

Mila smiled at the sight of his bewildered face and calmly instructed him.

"Channel a bit of your mana directly into that card."

Alaster wasted no time in doubts. He concentrated a tiny fraction of his energy and sent it into the object he was holding. As he did, the card vibrated violently, escaped his hand, and turned into a real cluster of fresh strawberries amid a flash of light, dropping straight onto the wooden desk.

The elf's eyes widened like saucers, completely dumbfounded by what he had just witnessed.

Gift of the Pantheon?... This is just a straight-up loot drop sealed in a card!