Chapter 271: I Am a Prince (5)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 271: I Am a Prince (5)
Hmm.
So.
"I feel like I just walked into a cliché about a secret birth," Calian muttered, more to himself than anyone else, before glancing at Franz.
His look practically screamed, Do you know anything about this, brother?
Franz simply shook his head. If Franz had known, Calian should have known as well. Yet, no matter how hard he searched his memories, the only relevant thought was of his time as Bern, when he had briefly visited the forest after hearing Kyrie’s words. He recalled returning without finding so much as a shadow of an elf, let alone an entire village.
"I've never heard this before. Was my mother a half-elf?"
"She was not. Queen Freya was born of two elves."
"That sounds a bit strange. If she was born to two elves, then she was an elf. Why explain it like that…?"
Tap, tap, tap.
Calian trailed off, his fingertips drumming against the table. He had noticed Narzan staring at him with a meaningful expression—staring, to be precise, at his red eyes, which were identical to Freya's.
He pictured Freya's portrait for a moment before looking back at Narzan.
Lemain might have been oblivious, but he wasn't so blind that he wouldn't notice pointed ears. Even if Freya had tried to hide them, concealing such a feature within the confines of the royal palace would have been difficult. No, it would have been impossible. Which meant…
"Don't tell me…"
"She possessed none of the physical traits of elves, and her rate of growth was the same as a human's."
Freya. Born to two elves, yet without their pointed ears. Growing at the same rate as a human. Born with red eyes that no one but Sispanian had ever possessed.
And so…
"She was exiled," Calian finished. "Because she was a mutant elf, born with the body of a human and the eyes of a dragon."
"How pathetic," Franz's voice cut in.
The tapping on the table stopped.
Calian shot Franz a look that said, I will never forget that you used to make fun of my eyes, so who are you to talk? before turning his attention back to Narzan.
"If I may offer an excuse, it was the fault of the previous Grand Elder," Narzan said. "Neither then nor now do we cast out our own for such reasons."
"And where is this previous Grand Elder now?"
"He received the harshest punishment for that incident, as well as for several other problems he caused."
Even elves had their laws.
The "harshest punishment" was, of course, execution. An executed elf could not return to the Mother Tree. Since the Mother Tree was the source of their life, Calian knew this was a far more severe sentence for them than the death penalty was for humans.
"Do you know anything else about my mother?"
"That is all I know."
Calian idly stirred the untouched mulberry jam with his knife, organizing his thoughts. After a moment, he set his utensils down and met Narzan's gaze.
"Alright. I understand."
Narzan looked surprised by his quiet acceptance. Franz, however, seemed to have expected it, calmly taking another sip of his tea.
"I thought you would be angry, or at least have some bitter words."
"Holding a grudge against someone who's already been punished is just a waste of energy," Calian replied. "Besides, I don't believe my mother was unhappy just because she was exiled from here."
Hadn't Silike said as much? That Freya had been happy after giving birth to him.
Whether it was maternal love, a desire for power like Silike's, or—as difficult as it was to imagine—an affection for Lemain, she had been happy.
"Honestly, speculating on what might have been if she'd stayed here is a pointless exercise. So, it's fine."
What happened later was not the elves' fault. And those who had wronged Freya were already dead by his hand.
"Let's return to our original topic."
Putting the matter of his mother aside, Calian took a sip of grape juice, set the glass down, and continued, "So, Secritia discovered the exiles living in Bridget Forest and demanded a healer in exchange for their silence. I have a question, though. Why didn't you pay a 'price' to Secritia?"
While Narzan considered his answer, Calian pressed on.
"Elves never accept aid without paying a price. But I don't understand why you paid nothing to Secritia for letting your people live in their forest—a forest that isn't even in Kairis. If you knew my mother came from there, you must have been aware of the place."
"They are not recognized as our kin. The reason for their exile is different from Queen Freya's."
"So, because they're criminals, you tracked them but didn't bother to manage or help them?"
"That is correct."
Tap.
Calian tapped the table once. It wasn't a sign of deep thought, but a simple expression of his displeasure.
"Treating even half-elves that way doesn't sit well with me."
"It is for the preservation of a dwindling race. Even as the Grand Elder, I cannot always do as I wish."
"If you've been ignoring them all this time, then there's no reason for you, the Grand Elder, to pay the price now."
"They threatened to execute all the elves there if things go wrong. I wish to prevent that."
"So you've ignored them all this time because they aren't 'true kin,' but you still don't want to see them executed."
Narzan nodded.
The elven way of thinking was truly difficult to comprehend. What kind of logic was that? It sounded like something Lemain would have said two years ago.
Calian turned his head and saw the corner of Franz's mouth curl into a smirk. He was almost certain his brother was thinking the exact same thing.
It reminded him of a Noble Council meeting long ago when Franz had let out a similar scoff. Calian briefly wondered if he'd ever told Franz to stop doing that before Narzan's voice cut through his thoughts.
"As the Grand Elder, I prevent them from living here. But as the elf Narzan, I cannot allow them to be executed."
Calian let out a dry laugh. "Finally, you say something I like."
"I personally went to their king and offered to pay in another way, but he refused."
Of course he did, Calian thought. It was a pretext they had barely managed to manufacture just to summon a healer. They wouldn't have accepted any other offer.
Tap, tap, tap. The sound echoed as Calian's mind raced. After a long silence, his fingers stilled. He had made his decision.
"You said this place is a land without an owner, correct?"
"That is correct."
"Alright. Let me think on it. We'll speak again tomorrow."
But instead of giving an answer, Calian left it at that. Franz, who had been sitting quietly and behaving himself, glanced at his brother before turning his head away.
*
Opening the door to her office, Arianne paused.
"...You startled me."
Someone who shouldn't have been there at this hour was waiting inside.
Setting a stack of documents on her desk, Arianne crossed to the sofa, sat down, and removed her glasses.
"What brings Your Royal Highness all the way here? I thought you were staying at the palace."
"I was bored."
"How strange. There's no way my fiancé could ever be bored."
"It's true. I finally had some free time, so I came. Not for work… just to rest."
Unable to hide her delight at seeing those familiar violet eyes after so long, Arianne smiled. "Alright. Rest well before you go."
Soon, a plate of coconut cookies, a glass of cold mint tea, and a cup of coffee topped with thick cream sat between them. Arianne stirred the cream in her coffee and asked, "The death of the Kairis marquis—that wasn't our spies, was it?" She then added with a small smile, "Or is this considered work talk?"
Chase chuckled. "I'll let it slide as non-work talk. It wasn't us."
A Secritian spy attempting to assassinate the second prince of Kairis had been captured. In the process, Marquis Evan Brissen was killed, and the third prince was severely injured. That was the official story from Kairis, and they had demanded an explanation, an apology, and a resolution from Devlan.
It had happened some time ago, but Arianne and Chase hadn't been able to meet since. They had to avoid Devlan's watchful eyes, and both had been swamped with work. This was the first chance she'd had to ask.
"It's Prince Calian we're talking about," Chase said. "He's not weak enough to be hurt by a few birds."
"They said he was badly hurt?"
"Yes. Severely injured, they claimed. But he must be fully recovered by now."
Chase had no idea that Calian was not only fully recovered but had also run away from home because he couldn't stand the "birds" and was currently inside the Mother Tree.
"You must have been very worried," Arianne said softly.
"I was, but it was the first time he ever admitted to being hurt, so it actually put me at ease. That's how it felt, Arianne."
Arianne stared at Chase for a long moment before nodding. She gestured to the mint tea in front of him. "Your younger brother is taking steps forward, so you should too. You're his older brother, after all. Stop beating around the bush and tell me honestly. Why did you come here?"
Chase smiled without answering.
His smile seemed suspicious, and Arianne was about to press him when he finally spoke.
"Your mother, Marquis Lin."
"Yes."
"She will be arrested today."
Arianne's hand, which had been reaching for her coffee, froze. A moment later, she calmly picked up the cup and asked, "Did you fail to stop it, or did you choose not to?"
"I chose not to."
"I see."
Taking a sip of coffee with an indifferent expression, Arianne set the cup down. She looked directly at Chase. "Tell me. What should the acting Marquis do starting tomorrow?"
He knew her composure came from her absolute trust that he would save her mother's life, even if she was arrested. Chase simply nodded and began to explain.
*
It was difficult to gauge the true height of the elves' Mother Tree.
The sight of them living in layers inside a hollow, transparent tree was fascinating, yet also strangely bizarre. For a human, it would be no different from living inside Serenti's body.
This particular garden was located on a middle floor of the Mother Tree, surrounded by what felt like crystal walls. All kinds of plants grew on one side, and through the wall—which could have been a window or the tree's outer bark—the sea was visible far below.
Plop!
Sitting on a bench beside the garden's fountain, Calian tossed a small clump of aura at the mermaid statue inside.
"It shouldn't matter," Franz said, standing beside the bench. "Even if she was a half-elf."
He assumed Calian's mood was because his mind was troubled.
"Ah, yes. She was basically human, so I decided not to dwell on it," Calian said. "But something else is bothering me. How did someone who was in Secritia end up all the way in Kairis, and of all the people she could have met, why did it have to be His Majesty?"
Hearing this, Franz turned to look at him.
His expression was identical to the one Calian had worn when he heard Arsen's reaction to his secret—that moment Calian had thought, The unbelievable part isn't that I traveled back in time, but that you worked for my brother?
"...Right."
Unfortunately, Franz understood all too well why Calian would question that. He felt a strange sense of brotherly solidarity and nodded.
Soon, Franz held out something he had been holding.
Calian stared at the object thrust silently before his eyes, then reached out and took it. When he saw what it was, he burst out laughing.
It was beef jerky.
"I'm not Lucy, you know."
"You bark in her stead."
It was from the dried rations they had been given in the Siegfried territory. Just as he'd expected, Franz hadn't touched it; it was exactly as the mayor had prepared it.
"Stick to your plan," Franz said. "Don't overthink it."
Calian looked up at his brother, who was still standing over him.
"The Secritia matter. Don't worry about the aftermath. Just do what you were planning."
"Do you even know what I'm planning?"
"You're going to lure the snake here," Franz stated plainly. "With the lie that you'll treat him if he comes. Since this is a land without an owner, whatever you hunt here won't be traced back to Kairis."
"...My, my brother is quick-witted."
Ignoring Calian's sarcastic praise, Franz pointed to the jerky in his hand.
"You just eat the meat you love so much, little brother. I'll take care of the rest."
Staring down at the jerky, Calian chuckled.
He really was being treated like Lucy.