Chapter 36
Chapter 36
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 36
Chapter Title: 12. Ties from the Past (3)
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At first, I thought it was a joke.
"It might sound ridiculous coming from me, but my kind makes for an ideal spouse for humans."
Even when she asked if elves—beautiful, kind, and eternally youthful—weren't the ideal for human men, I dismissed it as nonsense.
"Oh, and humans value not just individuals but groups as well, don't they? Just so you know, I have followers of my own. Beings much like your knight orders always stay by my side."
But when she introduced her tribe's guardians—Sentinels—like they were merchandise, I began to suspect her intentions.
"I possess everything Your Highness could need."
When she touted her value with that fresh-faced smile, I genuinely started to worry.
Elves, especially high elves, had a completely different sense of time from humans.
To them, a human lifetime was just a fleeting moment. If Sigrun intended to devote even one such moment to her 「amusement」 with me, this absurd situation could become reality at any time.
I turned my head anxiously. The Queen's expression came into view. She was seriously contemplating Sigrun's proposal.
Not swayed by Sigrun's appearance, but by what lay beneath it.
The Queen asked with a grave face.
"You met him for the first time today, yet you make such a bold proposal. Why?"
What could drive her to push this so aggressively? Sigrun smiled at the question.
The moment I saw that radiant smile, the hairs on my body stood on end.
I knew when she wore that expression.
When she found something she truly liked,
Or something she truly despised,
Sigrun smiled like that.
And I knew her favor and malice always led to the same end.
"It's well-known that my kind values ties above all else."
Sigrun said, her face still beaming.
"From the moment I first saw Your Highness, I felt our fates intertwined."
Elves were cunning folk who could wrap lies in truth at any time, but there was one thing they never lied about.
Ties. Or fate.
Elves never lied about their own fate or connections.
Especially for high elves—elder high elves—the weight of their spoken ties and fate was extraordinary.
Their fate was destiny, their ties inevitability.
I looked at the Mistletoe Tribe's elder high elf.
Her silver eyes—sparkling like stars, clear as gems, unique to high elves—stared straight at me. Any other man would lose his mind in rapture, but that dizzying gaze sent chills down my spine.
I realized she was sincere. And that my life was about to go spectacularly off the rails.
"How bold."
The Queen let out an exclamation. Her flushed cheeks suggested she took Sigrun's words as a confession of sorts.
But no. Absolutely not.
I sighed and stood up.
The Queen looked at me. Seeing her face, I asked permission.
"I'll step away for a quiet word alone with her."
The Queen's expression shifted oddly. She was clearly misunderstanding, but resolving it wasn't the priority now.
"Come."
Sigrun stood beside me with an innocent smile.
Her blatantly intentional move drew sighs from all around. The nobles were watching me.
Jealousy, envy, greed.
As they watched me walk side by side with the beautiful elf, the raw nature of men—young and old alike—shone in their eyes.
Enduring those repulsive stares, I sought out Kals.
"I need a place to talk quietly."
At my words, Kals glanced sidelong at Sigrun.
Unlike the other nobles, the Triple Chain knight kept his emotions in check.
The room he led us to was sealed on all sides. A secret chamber prepared for weary nobles from the banquet, cozy to a fault.
"Keep everyone away."
Recalling the men who'd trailed us discreetly on the way, I gave strict orders. Kals thumped his chest resolutely and stood guard by the door.
Click.
I closed the door. Turning, I saw Sigrun.
Her face was as fresh as in the banquet hall.
"Sigrun."
"So affectionate."
She replied with a feigned look of thrill.
"Tell me your real purpose."
"I'm here only to foster ties between our tribe and your kingdom. No other motives."
"Don't make me ask again."
But her infuriating act lasted only until I named her true nature.
"Elder High Elf Sigrun."
Her mask cracked wide open.
"Executor bearing your tribe's karma of slaughter, sword of the Mistletoe Tribe."
Her true face emerged.
Utterly dry, utterly lifeless. Like a wax doll.
"Is your goal harvest (授採), or execution (刑)?"
If it were mere diplomacy, a high elf would suffice—no need for an elder high elf. The presence of one bearing the tribe's killing karma meant her aim went beyond pleasantries.
"Speak your true purpose."
She twisted her lips at my words.
"Interesting."
Her once birdlike, vibrant voice had dried to the brittle husk of a midsummer dead tree.
"How do you know about me?"
I didn't answer.
I'd stepped in because she was arbitrarily meddling with my fate. But that didn't mean I'd reveal my own.
Of course, I'd considered other ways. But the moment she invoked the ties and fate elves revered as sacrosanct, all options became moot.
For now, I had to show some cards to create distance.
"If you know I'm an executor, you should realize how foolish it is to stay silent before one."
"I know it's just as foolish as flapping your mouth before one."
Her eyes narrowed at my retort.
Her gaze was no longer starlit like in the hall. Just insidious, wicked, razor-sharp. It became a blade, slashing me apart.
In that stare, I was torn to shreds countless times, saw countless deaths. Her millennium of slaughter karma eroded me.
But I didn't waver. The deaths she showed held no threat.
My own accumulated slaughter karma was no less.
"Don't toy with me, Sigrun."
Her eyes widened round.
But I knew even that was an act.
She was a being worn down over a millennium; most emotions she showed were mere ingrained habits.
Get cocky thinking you'd seized control, and your skull splits open, contents spilled before you know it.
"Don't interfere with my fate."
I warned.
It was the least forceful declaration across my centuries as a swordsman and short degenerate life.
Intentional.
Whether unleashing a fragment of my dormant soul or borrowing power from exalted martial odes,
I was insignificant to her now.
Her stature reached heights I couldn't fathom, and I felt that gap more acutely than ever.
That's why I warned her.
Her transcendent eyes saw more; she'd sensed my fate by glimpsing records etched in my soul.
She who saw the past could vaguely foresee the future.
I deliberately concealed my true self.
To pique her curiosity further.
So the scraps of truth I spat would feel like mere tips of the iceberg.
Like food too tantalizing to discard after a bite.
"Who the hell are you, really?"
She asked.
"Right now, I'm just the pitiful prince abandoned by his father."
"Then who is the real you?"
"Who knows."
Now was the time to hold my tongue.
Yes. To her, I needed to be
"Curious? Watch and see."
Food to age and savor. That way, I'd buy time.
Sigrun stared at me wordlessly. I waited calmly under that inscrutable gaze. Giving her time to visually savor before tasting.
"I knew something was off. Why send me on this trivial mission? There had to be a reason."
Her parched voice regained a hint of life.
"Now I get it."
Her blank face bloomed fresh as in the hall.
"It was you."
She grinned broadly.
Her face brimmed with anticipation, like one sniffing the aroma before a bubbling cauldron.
Sigrun had made her choice.
*
We returned to the banquet hall.
Nobles' gazes poured in.
What happened in that chamber? What kept you with the beautiful elf?
I ignored their base curiosity and jealousy, walking silently.
Lightly, lightly.
Sigrun followed, shy-faced like a new bride.
The Queen on the dais came into view. I stood before her. Sigrun pressed close beside me.
The elven scent of grass was nauseating, but I endured, speaking calmly.
"I have something to say."
"Speak."
The Queen's eyes gleamed.
Shy-faced Sigrun, resolute son as if having made a decision. Perfect for misunderstanding.
"Regarding my betrothed."
And that misunderstanding was exactly what I wanted.
"I've decided."
The Queen's gaze shifted to Sigrun at my words. She nodded.
"I will become betrothed to Sigrun."
Saying it nearly made me retch. I'd never dreamed of uttering her name in such a tender voice.
"Marriage to an elf..."
The Queen tapped her arm, deep in thought.
Probably calculating the political gains of a high elf and me.
Not an easy call. So I told the Queen,
"But it's too important for hasty judgment, so I'll take some time to observe."
Time for the Queen to think,
For Sigrun, for the food to ripen,
And for me, to grow strong enough to escape this mad elf.
Time for us all.