Chapter 63
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 63
Chapter Title: New Story (3)
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A fresh world nestled within the forest.
Pristine 'values' abound wherever you look.
With the energy of life surging in all directions, this must surely be the land of wisdom and nobility.
Behold their beautiful smiles.
Behold their lives in perfect harmony with nature.
Behold their sharply pointed ears unique to them!
Beneath the crisp air, elves and humans unite in harmony, gaining the power to stand against the Demon King.
......
Such were my delusions.
"This is the Great Forest, right?"
"Assuming the Mage Tower didn't screw up."
With the rebuilt Mage Tower's help, the Academy had been granted three uses of 'large-scale spatial transfer magic.'
Thanks to that, they reached the Great Forest's entrance in an instant... but.
Alas! They couldn't proceed any further.
The Great Forest was protected by a barrier that sealed off all external entry.
Of course, since the Great Forest itself served as a repository for the World Tree, the barrier's existence wasn't strange.
The problem was that even two hours after arrival, the cadets still hadn't been granted permission to enter.
"This is what I think it is, right?"
"......Yeah, I think so too."
Normally, the barrier would partially open upon arrival, allowing entry into the Great Forest as the first order of business.
But for some reason, the elves hadn't even come out to greet them, leaving the group abandoned.
The elves couldn't possibly be unaware of the outsiders who had reached their barrier—this was clear 'disregard.'
Roel urgently said to Sera.
"Sera, I get why you're mad, but......"
It was a plea to hold back.
Sera, with her immense family pride and strong personal ego, didn't seem like the type to stay quiet after treatment like this.
"I know. I'm not planning to cause a scene, so relax."
Yet Sera seemed less bothered than expected.
Her arms crossed and eyebrows twitching showed she was annoyed, but there was no sign of her about to explode.
Roel stared blankly.
It was truly astonishing progress.
Normally, she'd have been raging with "Get out here, you pointy-eared bastards!" by now, but she felt a bit more mature since the break.
Well, that was that.
The situation wouldn't improve just because Sera was behaving.
"Ah, damn it...... How long do we have to wait?"
"I don't know, it's so annoying......"
Mage Squadron and Knight Squadron.
As always, these were '1st Grade cadets.'
They weren't used to being ignored anywhere, and most were children of noble houses to boot.
Even without Sera, few cadets could tolerate this treatment.
In the end, one cadet snapped.
"Professor! I can't take this anymore!"
A familiar face—a man who had once driven Roel to the brink of death.
"We are proper guests. Do you think it's acceptable to leave guests hanging like this?"
'Ted' declared strongly.
His booming voice drew everyone's attention in an instant.
"His arm healed nicely...... Good for him."
"You know him?"
"Uh, sort of."
Ted pressed on despite the excessive scrutiny.
"We should either break the barrier or head back."
It was a reasonable statement.
The cadets were tired of waiting, and the elves remained silent.
Even the previously quiet Mage Squadron cadets began to chime in.
"That's right! We didn't come here to be treated like this!"
"Hey, Ray! Barriers are your specialty, right?"
"I'll help too. Let's smash it."
Sera muttered as she watched the scene.
"What a mess."
With Dillon's sudden death, the Academy had no choice but to appoint a new professor.
"Uh, could you all calm down a bit......?"
The new professor 'Mikhail' lacked the time to build trust with the cadets.
This chaos unfolding now was all because of that.
As the heated emotions spread uncontrollably,
"What are you all doing?"
Someone stepped forward.
"The professors aren't just standing by either. Starting a riot won't make things better—it'll only worsen them."
Her deep brown hair swayed.
The woman bearing the 'Forest' name instantly quelled the fervent atmosphere.
"If you're hero candidates, maintain your dignity."
Helen, saying this, glanced briefly at Roel.
Roel hurriedly averted her gaze. She couldn't bring herself to look Helen straight in the eye.
"......Anyway, let's wait for now. The professors will handle the rest."
With those words, the Mage Squadron's near-riot was completely quelled.
"I should thank her......"
"What?"
"Her."
Just being here made it clear—Roel's confinement period had already ended.
Why?
The dead Dillon Forest had impure motives.
Roel's 'demon control' was showing some results.
And finally, Dillon Forest's bereaved family had forgiven Roel.
These three factors aligned to lift Roel's confinement.
The bereaved family, of course, meant Helen.
Roel had wanted to express her gratitude early on, but guilt had kept her from approaching.
"Well, there'll be a chance."
A bit more time passed.
Despite Cigarette and Mikhail's persistent attempts at contact, the elves dragged it out a full '20 minutes' more.
At least they opened the gate.
"Please, come in. To the Great Forest."
A young male elf emerged to greet the Academy group.
With radiant golden hair and snow-white skin, he was handsome enough, but Roel and the other two felt nothing special.
Each thinking:
'Sleepy.'
'He's not as good-looking as...'
'Huh? Look at his face? This bastard's begging for it......'
In any case.
The group finally entered the Great Forest.
"Haha, well, this is embarrassing. A little mix-up."
As expected, the elves were brazen.
"We're truly sorry for not properly welcoming our esteemed guests. It's late, so please rest well tonight. Your lodgings are prepared this way."
His tone suggested a mere mistake, but his eyes held subtle disdain.
As if saying, 'What are you gonna do about it?'
Cigarette clenched her fist tightly.
Even her patience was reaching its limit.
"As promised, we'll bestow 'Wisdom' upon the cadets tomorrow."
But she couldn't snap.
There was something they absolutely needed here.
Cigarette backed down.
"......There won't be a next time."
The reason the elves invited humans.
The reason the Academy accepted the invitation despite the racial discrimination.
To receive the elves' blessing called 'Wisdom' and forge stronger heroes.
"......Isn't this a bit weird?"
"What is?"
"The elves invited us. They needed human help in the end, so there's no reason to act like this."
Roel was right.
The Academy side were guests, not intruders.
No matter how superior the elves felt, if the offended Academy refused cooperation, the elves would suffer too.
They weren't supposed to be unwise enough to discriminate knowing that...
"Now that you mention it."
"Better safe than sorry."
Having been through thick and thin, the three were sensitive to even slight 'oddities.'
"You've been granted permission to tour the Great Forest. No special training today, so rest or sightsee as you like."
After unpacking at the lodgings, they received Cigarette's briefing.
The three chose sightseeing over rest.
"The lodgings weren't bad, right?"
"No bugs, pretty good."
"......I didn't like it. The bed was too hard."
Chatting lightly, the Great Forest they toured felt honestly just like any forest.
A forest with lots of people living in it. Nothing more, nothing less.
"Nothing special."
It was inevitable given the elves' nature of not greatly disrupting nature, but disappointment was unavoidable.
"Wanna head back?"
"Yeah, sounds good."
The three decided to return.
With things getting busy tomorrow, they wanted to conserve energy.
Above all...
"They're staring like we're clueless idiots wandering around......"
"Whatever, we're humans."
The surrounding gazes weren't pleasant.
Contempt poured in from all sides.
Passing elves deliberately bumped shoulders.
Being invited yet unwelcome felt more unpleasant than expected.
And then.
"Tch, why did the Elder invite filthy humans......"
They finally touched a nerve.
"It'd be better if they all just died."
Meanwhile, in the tree where the Elder resided.
"Elder!!"
A commotion was unfolding among the elves.
"Taily, I told you not to shout. You'll startle the plants."
"That's not the issue right now."
"It's always something to be mindful of."
"......Fine. I'll speak quietly."
Among the elves, her particularly small ears stood out.
'Half-elf.' An object of the same contempt from purebloods as humans.
She spoke accusingly as the Elder listened while scribbling busily.
"You said you sent an invitation to the Academy."
"Correct."
"And offered Wisdom as a condition for their acceptance."
"That's right too."
"Then it's a scam!!"
"Taily."
She shrieked.
As if the plants were truly startled, the vines climbing the wall trembled slightly.
"I told you not to shout."
"Even I, a half-elf, can't receive Wisdom. You know best that it's a power humans can't handle."
As Taily said, the elves' 'Wisdom' was a type of power humans couldn't accept.
Then why invite humans?
"I, I thought you actually listened to me......!"
The original purpose was 'reconciliation.'
To set aside long-held grudges against the colossal evil known as the Demon King.
"Was reconciling with humans all a lie?"
There had always been elves advocating harmony.
The crying Taily here and her parents too.
Inspired by their persistence, the Elder had somewhat opened his heart.
But.
"The situation isn't good."
Hopeful words can only be spoken in times of leisure.
"The Demon King's army has been acting strangely lately. Rumors say a Legion Commander has died."
This was the most dangerous time since the Demon King's descent.
The demonic forces were growing bolder in targeting the World Tree.
If war broke out, the elves would face extinction.
"If we do nothing, war will come. To avert it, we need them."
"......What do you mean?"
Tap.
The pen that had been moving busily stopped.
It was a letter to the Demon King's army—to the '2nd Legion Commander' specifically.
"We'll hand the hero candidates over to the Demon King's army. That buys us time, and we prepare the barrier."
A choice for survival.
Further, a choice to protect the World Tree.
"If you do that, the heroes......!"
"Heroes will be born in the next generation too. But the World Tree won't regrow. Taily, please understand."
He handed the letter to a bird perched by the window.
Taily drew her bow to shoot it, but was restrained by vines sprouting from all directions.
"It must be frustrating, but stay here until tomorrow."