Chapter 51
Chapter 51
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 51
Chapter Title: Alvis Seeping In
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While Elder Eloise was off negotiating in the royal castle, the elves planned to cultivate the ruins of Aldebaran with plants and use it as temporary shelter.
Whether they ended up settling there permanently or scattering to various places—it was all up to the elves now.
Having lost everything with the World Tree's complete destruction, the elves were given all the spoils from defeating the Black Dog as a makeshift consolation.
In exchange, the only thing I took for myself was a small ring where gold and silver intertwined.
Having acquired this incredibly rare ring, I confirmed its performance matched what I knew and handed it over to Lenis.
"Lenis."
"What?"
"Here, take this."
I took Lenis's hand and placed the ring in her palm. Her face instantly turned redder than a tomato. Ravi and Elfin, watching from the side, were so shocked they clapped their hands over their mouths and gasped.
"W-Wh-What do you think you're doing?! Out of nowhere with no mood or anything... Ah, no, before that, we're not even close enough for this!?"
What the hell was she misunderstanding?
I flicked her forehead with my finger to push her back and correct her mistake.
"I know that without you telling me. This isn't a proposal—it's equipment for you to use. Put it on and check it out."
Only then did Lenis snap out of it. With a dazed expression, she slipped the ring onto her finger.
The moment she did, she instinctively sensed the power within it. The blush faded from her face, replaced by an awed exclamation.
"Wow..."
"You're the only one among us who can make use of it. So you take it. You'll get used to the ring's abilities over time. We never know when we'll get dragged into another fight now."
"Uh... yeah..."
"You struggled a lot in Arborness because of mana shortages, right? With the World Tree gone, mana potions will become insanely scarce worldwide, but that ring should make things bearable. It won't run dry and force you to scatter like back in Arborness. So use it well."
After handing over the gift, as we prepared to head back toward the Carrot Duchy, Lenis hesitated and called out from behind.
"Ah, Alvis...!"
"Hm?"
"Um... kkh... ahem...! Th-Th-Thank you. I won't... forget this. And... uh... for helping in Arborness too..."
Expressing gratitude to the Alvis who hadn't even been treated like a human back at the academy seemed to short-circuit her. She stammered out her thanks with great difficulty.
Instead of replying, I chuckled and waved it off dismissively.
That first night after starting our journey back to the Carrot Duchy.
We set up camp in a reasonably safe spot and were taking our rest breaks when Elfin quietly approached and cleared her throat right next to me.
"Ahem. Hm."
"......"
I ignored her on purpose, focusing on my sword practice. But then her cough came again from beside me, a bit louder this time.
"Hm! Hm! Co-Cough! Ahem!"
Watching Elfin put on this show was entertaining in its own way.
When I still didn't react, she plopped down right next to me and made a huge racket on purpose.
"Kehm! Cough cough! Ahem ahem!!"
"Switching your career path to street performer?"
I figured ignoring her more would actually make her mad, so I acknowledged her act.
After my jab, Elfin glared fiercely as if to snap back, then gave up.
She grabbed my collar and pointed toward the nearby woods.
"Hey, come talk with me over there for a sec."
"A confession?!"
Pow!
The moment I joked, she punched my gut.
"Guh... You don't have to hit me for that..."
"I-I didn't mean to hit you! You said something weird...!"
She seemed flustered by her own punch, quickly pulling her hand back and making excuses while scratching her cheek. Then she dragged me along.
"A-anyway, come talk over there. Now."
"Why not just here?"
"N-No! It's not the kind of talk to have with the others around."
"So it is a confession!"
As Elfin raised her fist again, I dropped the teasing and let her lead.
She took me to the edge of the nearby woods, glancing around nervously for a while.
She opened her mouth to speak, then closed it, sighed deeply, fidgeted with her fingers, tapped her foot idly, paced back and forth—practically giving off ADHD vibes.
"Anyone watching would think you're about to confess for real. What is it?"
She shot me a glare, then took a deep breath as if steeling herself.
"Um... Alvis!"
"Spit it out."
"I... um... really, really thank you..."
Even thanking me sincerely—the guy she'd despised so much—was clearly hard for her. She was twisting her whole body in discomfort.
Anyone would think it was a real confession.
She probably never imagined owing me anything.
Find it hilarious, I barely held back a laugh and teased her.
"Hmm, that's so vague for a thank-you. I have no idea what you're grateful for."
"Urgh...!"
Elfin bristled again but shook her head vigorously and took another deep breath.
"I mean... thanks for helping us. For saving our clan, fighting that Black Dog, showing us a path forward, even deciding where we can live. Without you... ugh... we probably wouldn't have had a clue what to do... S-So I had to say thanks!"
"So our Elfin has finally learned to express her honest gratitude. I'm so moved, the tears won't stop."
"...Are you making fun of me right now?"
"Not mocking—just impressed. But is thanks just words? Since we're here, how about a more direct expression?"
I patted one cheek invitingly.
Understanding the gesture, Elfin flushed and exploded.
"D-Don't be ridiculous! You always pull this crap whenever you get the chance! You've been like this since the academy! I thought you'd changed a lot lately... If you hadn't been such a perv, maybe even I..."
"Hmm? Maybe even you what? I'm dying to hear the rest. Were you about to say you fell head over heels for me or something?"
Pow!
A plant vine shot up from the ground and lightly smacked my gut.
It wasn't a serious attack, but it still hurt. Clutching my stomach, I ended up sprawled on the ground in an embarrassing ass-up position.
"Gah... Sneaky ambush..."
"S-Self-inflicted! Why do you keep adding useless crap when someone's being honest?! A-anyway! I called you out here just to say that! No other intentions! None at all! Got it!?"
Elfin spun on her heel and stormed back to camp.
"Hey, Elfin."
I called before she got too far, and her steps halted abruptly.
"...What."
"From now on, if something comes up, rely on me a bit. Don't bottle everything up and send weird letters like last time. If you'd contacted me the moment you sensed something off, more people might've been saved. The world has plenty of things you can't handle alone."
Elfin stood there without turning, silent for a long moment, then replied curtly.
"......I'll think about it."
"Oh, right—can you get Ravi for me? Lots of nocturnal animals around here, so we should catch a few for emergency rations. You and Lenis guard the camp."
"Got it."
Back at camp, Elfin couldn't shake Alvis's words and actions replaying in her head.
- A confession?!
- How about a more direct expression right here?
- Were you about to say you fell head over heels for me or something?
- From now on, if something comes up, rely on me a bit.
'Why do I keep getting weird thoughts?'
Elfin shook her head wildly to banish Alvis's face from her mind. But it lasted less than three seconds before it popped back up, repeating endlessly.
She had to admit Alvis was different from his academy days now.
She even acknowledged he'd been so devoted to another race that he'd saved the entire elf clan.
But his words and actions were still frivolously flirty at times.
He was the type who racked up points just by keeping quiet, yet he kept spouting nonsense and tanking his handsome face's value...
'Gasp! Wh-What am I thinking?! Brayden's the only one for me!'
Realizing she'd admitted his face was objectively handsome snapped her. She collapsed and tore at her hair.
Meanwhile, at camp, Lenis stared at the beautiful ring Alvis had given her, lost in thought.
'A ring... There were tons of other spoils from that Black Dog—why pick this one specifically...? Sure, I'm the only one who can use its power properly, but of all things, a ring... D-Does this mean... he really meant...?'
Mindlessly twirling the gold-and-silver intertwined ring, Lenis unconsciously brought it toward her left ring finger.
Just as she was about to slip it on.
"Lenis, what're you doing?"
"Eek?!"
Elfin's voice made Lenis jump, tumbling across the ground with a clatter.
She hurriedly stuffed the ring in her pocket and desperately made excuses.
"I-It-It's just that I was checking the performance of the ring Alvis gave me! Y-Yeah! Can't properly use good equipment and lose face as a Valentin or Elrute, right?! N-No other meaning!"
"R-Really? You looked spaced out..."
"Wh-What are you saying! Me, spaced out?! M-Must be a misunderstanding!"
"If you say so... Oh, Ravi. Alvis wants your help securing food. Something about catching nocturnal animals."
At those words, Ravi's rabbit ears perked straight up as she jumped to her feet.
"Really? Okay! Be right back! Elfin, Lenis—hold down the camp! Uh, and it might take a while, so don't worry about us and rest!"
"Take a while? With you there, how could it?"
"Ah... Y-You never know what might happen at night!"
"Want me to come help? I can hear pretty well too."
As Elfin offered, Ravi rushed over and pushed her back down.
"No need! Just me and Alvis are fine! Elfin, after all that big stuff, rest here!"
"Yeah... Okay. Thanks, Ravi."
"Heehee... No problem."
With that, Ravi headed to the woods' edge where Alvis waited—faster than usual, somehow.
Elfin and Lenis each dove into their own fantasies starring Alvis, lost in solitary worlds.
Thanks to that, they missed the sounds deeper in the woods: flesh slapping against flesh, the rabbit girl's frenzied moans echoing wildly.