Chapter 79
Chapter 79
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 79
Chapter Title: Searching for the Queen (4)
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“That’s just it—Her Majesty the Queen…”
Darion hesitated for a moment. He seemed worried that he might be speaking irreverently about the queen.
“Darion, it’s fine. Just say it. Speaking up will help her.”
“…Yes.”
“So, what is it?”
“It’s strange that Her Majesty used the word ‘Grizel.’”
“Why’s that?”
“As you know, ‘Grizel’ is a derogatory slur for dark elves.”
“…Oh-ho.”
“Her Majesty places great importance on harmony with the dark elves. She’s not the type to use an insulting term like ‘Grizel.’”
“I see.”
“Of course, it’s just my opinion…”
“No, it’s a very good point.”
“…Really?”
“Absolutely. That was a big help, Darion.”
So the queen wasn’t simply telling them to find the ‘dark elves.’ Then what did she mean by ‘Grizel’?
Even after pondering it deeply while riding in the carriage, I couldn’t come up with an answer. I read books I’d packed in my subspace ring ahead of time and occasionally asked Darion various questions. There weren’t any major breakthroughs, but it felt better than doing nothing.
Time flew by as I read. Before I knew it, the sun was high in the sky, and the carriage came to a stop. We had a simple lunch and took a short rest before setting off again.
To teach Darion how to drive the carriage, I sat with him on the driver’s seat. Do it like this, then like that. Even though I was teaching him pretty bossily, Darion followed along diligently and soon got the hang of it. He must be scared I’d send him back home. If he went back like this, his parents would chew him out. He’d stolen a horse and snuck out of the capital without guards… He’d deserve a beating even in the rain. Maybe saving the queen seemed like the better option.
“Anyway, it’s chilly.”
It was afternoon, with the sun starting to beat down. Yet the air around us felt cool for some reason. The towering, dense trees blocked out the sunlight. At least the horses wouldn’t tire out. I pulled my collar a bit tighter and scanned the surroundings.
“…”
It was quiet.
Dark elves were also known for being belligerent. Had they cleared out all the monsters in the surrounding forest? You’d expect at least one or two to show up, but the woods were eerily silent. No birds, no rabbits—nothing.
‘I was hoping to spot a suitable bird to use as a messenger, but even that’s not easy.’
-Whoo!
I whistled for Ayla. She’d been scouting far ahead and quickly bounded back to the front of the carriage.
“Ayla, from now on, stay with us.”
Something felt off. Especially since I couldn’t pinpoint why. I glanced around the spine-chillingly quiet surroundings and urged the horses on. Faster, a little faster…
We’d hurried a bit, but we didn’t reach the first dark elf village until sunset. I’d thought we’d arrive in the evening, so it was faster than expected, but…
“This is…”
Maybe it wouldn’t have mattered if we’d arrived at night. I stared blankly at the village entrance.
-Crackle, crackle…
-Hiss…
There, the wooden sign and flag marking the village were burning. No—most of it had already burned away, leaving only faint embers.
That wasn’t all.
Beyond the sign, the small village had been completely incinerated. Nothing was left untouched.
‘What the hell happened?’
The unimaginable sight left me speechless. Lloyd, El, and Darion seemed just as stunned.
“…”
No one dared to speak.
We cautiously entered the village. Gray ash floated through the air like falling snow.
“Ugh, urk!!!”
Not far in, Darion, who’d been walking beside me, suddenly collapsed and started retching. I looked where he’d glanced. There, charred black…
“…”
Charred black corpses.
Not just one or two. Scattered throughout the village were blackened bodies. Some were even embracing each other. No wonder Darion was vomiting. No sane person could look at this without flinching.
I glanced at Lloyd and El. They quietly surveyed the area without retching like Darion. Lloyd soothed his excited horse, which was reacting to the smell of smoke, while El stroked Ayla’s back.
‘El’s seen worse in the cursed lands…’
Her family, friends, and acquaintances wandering the wasteland as undead corpses, unable to even die.
I helped Darion to his feet.
“You okay?”
“Urk… ugh!”
I handed him some cold water and waited for him to calm down. No matter how you sliced it, seeing his own people subjected to such brutality had to be shocking. And Darion was a ‘noble young master’ who’d never witnessed anything gruesome…
Still, I couldn’t tell him to rest until he recovered. We didn’t know what else might be lurking nearby.
‘Whatever they were, they burned an entire village. If we run into them, who knows what’ll happen.’
Of course, given the state of the village… they’d probably left long ago. But caution never hurt.
“I’ll check the surroundings.”
I said to Lloyd. He nodded, drew his sword, and followed behind me.
In case we found something…
“Everything’s burned to nothing.”
Nothing in the village remained intact. Burned, scorched, reduced to ash and gone. Even the livestock they’d raised had burned to death. Words failed me.
“What kind of bastards would do this?”
Lloyd paused, choosing his words.
“…Well-trained soldiers.”
“Why do you say that?”
“It’s not the work of simple bandits.”
“I agree. Burning down an entire village like this…”
“They had something to hide.”
“Or they were furious.”
“…”
“Or both.”
“Probably.”
We circled the village once and returned to the entrance. Amid the skeletal remains of houses and piles of corpses, we found no clues.
I let out a deep sigh. If only we knew who did this. We couldn’t do anything for the dead like this.
“…”
No, that wasn’t true.
I turned to the group.
“Let’s bury them.”
“…”
“…”
“…”
They looked at me with shocked, sorrowful, complicated expressions.
“I know you’re all tired. But as people… we can’t just leave them like this.”
Lloyd stood silently and headed to the back of the carriage. He grabbed a shovel first and started digging in a suitable spot near the forest. El followed him. I said to Darion, who was still dazed,
“Darion, if it’s too much, you can rest.”
“…”
“I get it—the shock’s huge. Take time to compose yourself.”
“I-I’m… I’m fine.”
Darion looked at me with a face pale to the point of pity. His eyes still swam with trauma. He wiped the corners of his eyes and headed to the carriage for a shovel.
I grabbed one too. I could’ve called moles or used plants, but I didn’t want to. I just wanted to do right by them and pray for their souls as best I could.
We dug in silence for a long while. Until the moon rose high overhead and shone down on us.
After finishing the graves, we carefully wrapped the bodies in silk I’d once received as payment for mercenary work and buried them. Silence persisted even as we covered them with dirt. Not even crickets chirped.
It was dawn, with faint light cresting the ridge, when everything was done. We set down our shovels. Then I took out the moonflower seeds I had and scattered them over the nameless graves. Using [Breath of the Forest], moonflowers bloomed in an instant, covering the mounds. They sparkled under the fading moonlight.
I clasped my hands and quietly prayed.
“Nemeya, guide their final journey peacefully with your moonlight…”
With that prayer, we left the burned village behind.
* * *
Turning an entire village to ashes was madness. And that wasn’t all—burning one’s own kin alive was an atrocity beyond words.
“I didn’t want to do this. I didn’t want to…”
The dark elf kept muttering from the shadows. As if saying it would erase his sins.
But the burning village still loomed before the dark elf’s eyes, and the dying screams of his fellow dark elves echoed in his ears.
“So, so, so—I had to follow orders. I had to obey. This happened because I didn’t obey…”
The dark elf tore at his silver-glowing hair. As if he couldn’t stand the moonlight-like strands, cursing them.
“Sniff, sob…”
A tiny sob leaked from the darkness.
“Why do I have to do this…?”
Of course, the dark elf knew why.
It was all for the glory and safety of the dark elves. Or so ‘he’ said.
“…I have to go back. I can’t be late. They can’t find out I wasted time crying like this. Never. If they do…”
He might end up like the corpses in the burned village. Swallowing his tears in that fear, the dark elf rose.
Tasked with one final check for any survivors, he hurried through the dark forest to report the result ‘he’ wanted: ‘total annihilation.’
As if fleeing.