Chapter 27 - A New Paradise (7)
'It's here.'
He was sitting at his desk in a somewhat dazed state, continuing his work, when his habit kicked in and he checked his phone screen. The elves captured by the installed camera appeared there.
The population had indeed increased by one. The newly added elf was a young male elf who looked about Leon's age. He was engaged in a heated conversation with Serenian, who had her arms crossed.
To get a better angle, he subtly maneuvered the drone. Their gazes turned toward the drone, so it ended in failure, but...
'The mood doesn't seem bad?'
While Serenian hoped her kin would come, she responded with a cold demeanor when they actually arrived. Just like with Leon, the male elf's eyes wavered as she spoke, and he simply lowered his head and listened quietly.
"— —."
That was when Leon, who had been listening silently beside her, stepped in. He mediated between them, said something, and Serenian soon nodded. The two elves who had returned then left again.
This time, without sending the drone after them, he picked up the walkie-talkie.
"Is everything going well?"
"You must not sleep at all. You contact me like a ghost the moment I need you."
Her voice came through the walkie-talkie with a soft chuckle. In the flowerpot, she could be seen plopping down against the exposed roots of the World Tree as she walked over holding the walkie-talkie. The faint streetlight filtering through the window shone like moonlight, making her leaning against the massive tree and gazing at the sky an utterly beautiful sight.
"My heart is too complicated. I need to act like a chieftain representing the new tribe, but I can't. It's hard to shake off even the worries, let alone the resentment. Sometimes I even think of just running away."
"Running away is one option, of course, but it's hard to call it the right answer."
From what he could roughly gather of her situation, it would be weirder if she wasn't struggling. She was an elf who lived over a hundred years, but she was only a few years younger than him. The age at which he had run away was exactly her age.
"I don't know. Unless good results come from now on."
"Good results will come. They definitely will."
He only had to look after himself, but she was different. He wanted her not to run away.
[Elf Village Eden]
This was the result of pulling an all-nighter. At dawn as daybreak approached, Leon, who had gone back and forth a whopping three times that day alone, returned to the flowerpot with a considerable number of elves.
Their reactions—men, women, old, and young alike—were all the same. They marveled at the World Tree, feared Serenian, and were amazed by the miniature houses or her bow.
Whether she had truly overcome the hardships she vented to him over the walkie-talkie or was just pretending, he couldn't tell. But as a leader guiding her tribe, she directed and commanded the newly immigrated residents.
The first thing they attempted was, naturally, building houses. For this very moment, he had stockpiled large quantities of clay and wood, which were now released. The elves, unfamiliar like Leon at first, all jumped in and began constructing their homes here and there inside the flowerpot, within the barriers.
'It's really a village now.'
Only a few more houses were being added, but that alone filled the previously empty land. Now, everywhere he looked, elves were bustling about doing something.
Unlike Leon or Serenian, there was even an elf experienced in construction work; one slightly larger than the others combined clay and toothpick wood to build a more proper-looking house.
Alert: Incoming threat detected
Then how would they handle this? The world inside the flowerpot was never a perfect paradise where he just watched over and nurtured them. Threats always lurked, and only by overcoming them could they find peace and stability.
"—!"
Serenian shouted, urging the elves on. They seemed to have heard it too, panicking but grabbing their weapons and rushing toward the barrier.
Of course, he didn't move the battle bot. This was a fight they had to win—their battle.
Mana ant beasts the size of the barrier crawled out of the nest—five of them, no less. Unlike the other startled elves, Serenian, who had fought them countless times, remained unshaken and commanded them.
'They're strong.'
Observing with slight tension, he was impressed by their strength. The elves' arrows, infused with power and mana, pierced the ants in one shot. Some threw javelins made from syringe needles with full force, slicing through the air and shattering even the mana ants' tough carapaces before embedding deep.
As Serenian had said, elves were apparently born with mana from the moment of birth. In other words, every one of them—men, women, old, young—was a hunter capable of fighting monsters. Excluding very young children, even the boy Ren fought alongside the adults, shooting arrows, so their combat prowess was beyond his worry.
7th Wave Cleared
The waves, which had piled up unknowingly to the 6th, ended more anticlimactically than expected. Of course, this was just his feeling as an observer. Where in the world was there an easy battle?
Only after all enemies fell did the elves collapse against the barrier one by one, trembling from the battle's aftershocks.
"— —!"
Serenian and Leon's faces were dark, while Ren alone looked thrilled and triumphant. Not noticing Serenian glaring at him, he was probably in for a scolding later.
"The mana beasts targeting the World Tree must be shocking. After our ancestors' struggles and achievements made the entire great forest our territory long ago, we've enjoyed peace ever since. Even elders over 200 years old aren't used to something hating and trying to kill us."
"The divine spirit will send more supplies for our shortages. If we use them well, we can soothe our shocked kin, right? That'll make it easier to persuade and bring those who refused immigration later."
He and she were partners. It was a one-sided observer's view, but he preferred the fact that he was doing something with her.
"That sounds good."
Did she think the same? Seeing her smile with her lips curved up, he pulled out the items he had prepared in advance. Things the elves had found useful after he sent them once—he had bought more ahead of time. Wooden toothpicks, syringe needles, blades, various fabrics, cut coated paper, paper, and so on.
What he did was no different from just tossing these into the flowerpot. In other words, it didn't bend reality and laws like scale adjustment. It was up to the elves to use them.
"— —!"
Serenian gathered the elves in front of the World Tree. They were puzzled by her actions but soon all looked up at the sky together.
Taking it as a signal, he threw the prepared items there. They fell to the ground before his eyes. Compared to the vast flowerpot, the toothpicks and such just plopped down lightly.
But from the elves' perspective, massive logs and more were dropping from empty air. They couldn't help but be startled. Just like Serenian's first time receiving items from him, they all recoiled in shock and surprise, stepping back.
"—!"
While everyone was stunned and hesitating, Leon, with experience rivaling Serenian's, clapped to snap them out of it.
Whether at his command or not, the elves rushed to the fallen toothpicks, picked up tools, cut them, and grunted as they carried them to storage.
'Next, fabric pieces.'
He timed throwing more supplies as they cleared and organized. Even he, unable to hear their conversations, knew this act had meaning. As they sorted and moved the diverse, abundant items, wariness and fear faded from their faces, replaced by curiosity and wonder. Some even smiled. A few rubbed their faces against the soft silk.
'Good.'
Seeing Serenian carrying syringe needles with the other elves, he smiled faintly. Though exhausted from the hard labor, hope and joy were evident on their faces.
"Thanks to the divine spirit. Without that one, I—and we—couldn't be here."
In the bustle, she wiped sweat, pulled out the walkie-talkie, and spoke to him in an excited voice. It was exactly what he had longed to hear for so long.
"With so many hands, everything finished quickly. Now it's time for revenge."
But Serenian didn't stop. Looking at the other elves and steeling her resolve, that evening she selected a few. A ten-person expedition team of sturdy men and women, including herself.
At night after other tasks ended, with lights lit, they began making weapons and gear. The ant nest expedition that she and Leon alone had attempted and failed last time. This time, their determination was to succeed no matter what.