Episode 82
I spent about two days leisurely sightseeing in the elves' country.
As Aron had said, since appearance is a standard for elves, I received above-average treatment wherever I went.
The downside is that the food tastes bad.
Overall, the foods are very bland.
Salad, vegetable soup, boiled vegetables, roasted vegetables.
They even serve meat without seasoning.
'I feel like I came overseas for a temple stay. It's really no different from that.'
I spend each day meeting new people.
But the food is mostly vegetarian.
The occasional meat that comes out is so bland it's despairing, to the point where it doesn't even feel like eating meat.
'I need to get Eri and get out of here soon. If I stay here any longer, I'll wither away and die.'
Of course, judging by my plump lower belly that's gained weight, that probably won't happen.
After all, elephants eat only vegetables and they're fat.
Lying on the bed and rolling around, I muttered.
"When on earth will they come to get us? They wouldn't call for us a year later by elf standards, would they? That would be hopeless."
Kyla flicked my head.
"She's the Elf Queen. She'll at least consider human timeframes. Otherwise, she wouldn't even be able to have meetings with other races."
"Right? Then is she just busy?"
"In my opinion... I feel like there's something going on, but I don't know what."
Kyla smiled mysteriously while looking at the giant World Tree visible through the window.
It was a smile as if she had predicted something.
"Why? Did you actually figure something out?"
"Still just a prediction. I'll tell you when it becomes more certain. More importantly, are you still trying to summon spirits? You said you'd train until you can use them freely."
"I'm trying. But aside from these little guys, I can't summon any."
"Really? Hmm..."
As Kyla blinked, her eyes shimmered gold again.
She stared intently at my chest.
"Nothing seems to have changed."
"...What exactly are you looking at? You keep staring intently at my chest sometimes. At first I thought you were just a pervert looking at my breasts, but that doesn't seem to be it."
"Huh? That's a strange misconception. Why would I look at your ambiguous size when there are breasts as big as heads?"
"..."
I clenched my fist and looked at Kyla's chest.
"The cutting board has a lot to say. Turn around."
"What are you talking about? You're all just ambiguous. But at least my pelvis is plenty big? I can bear as many children as Aron wants."
"Big pelvis or not, it's meaningless since you're short. My absolute size is bigger."
Kyla stared intently at my pelvis, then looked at her own.
As if sensing the size difference, she bit her lip.
"Hmph. How pathetic."
Kyla clicked her tongue and abruptly stood up.
"Let's go find Aron. He said he was going sightseeing nearby but hasn't returned yet. At this point, he might have gotten lost and is waiting for us."
"Here? It's not even that big."
"I'm just bored so let's go out. Why are you so oblivious?"
I quickly followed behind Kyla who was grumbling as she went outside.
"But where could Eri have gone? She definitely told me she was coming here. Maybe she went somewhere else on the way?"
"How should I know. But I secretly checked last night... There's something. Some elves seemed to be going somewhere at night. But I don't know what it is."
"Aren't they just elves having fun among themselves? We also drink and have fun at night."
"That remains to be seen."
Kyla gave a meaningful answer and went outside.
"Huh? Aron."
"What, we came out to look for you but you're right here."
As soon as we opened the door and came out, we met Aron.
He was talking with some elf, and as soon as he saw us, he grinned.
"Why are you smiling so suspiciously as soon as we meet? Is there something? Good news?"
"You didn't just have a go with another elf, did you?"
"...No?"
Instinctively, I approached Aron and sniffed his scent.
I hugged him from the left, Kyla from the right.
We both took deep breaths from either side.
"No unusual scent, right?"
"Yeah, seems like he hasn't even been in the same space with one."
Kyla also clung tightly and sniffed, but fortunately there was no scent of another woman.
"Do you think I meet women every time I disappear? I came out for a morning walk and met this person, so we were having a brief conversation."
Only then did our gaze turn to the side at Aron's words.
"Long time no see! I went to see the Queen-nim briefly before checking the forest this morning, and she finally said to bring you. Looks like Queen-nim has been a bit busy lately. It's an unavoidable situation. Actually, from our perspective, it's quite surprising too. A human using spirits!"
He was still very talkative.
"So Queen-nim seems to have taken some time to learn about the human who handles spirits. I heard she hasn't come out of the World Tree even once after receiving the report. When you go this time, you'll probably get an answer about that too. Actually..."
I cut him off before his explanation could get longer.
If you just listened to this elf's explanations, they would never end.
"Then can we go right away?"
"Of course. I'll guide you. Guiding you like this is part of my job too. After this, I'll probably go back to the forest. Though it's a job I do for just a short ten-year period, being a gatekeeper is really boring work."
The elf took the lead and walked while telling his story.
Instead of focusing on his story, I stuck to Aron's side and stared intently at the World Tree.
'So is that also a false god? Does the High Elf know that fact? Or does she just believe it's a god?'
According to the book, the World Tree is a god born from the elves' faith.
By my standards, I don't know the difference between the 'Artificial God' and 'God' mentioned in the book.
But it's certain that there are differences and standards.
"Aron. Do you feel any unusual energy or something different from the World Tree?"
"From the World Tree?"
Aron looked for a moment then shook his head.
"Kyla. Do you see something?"
"See something? Even if you ask that..."
Kyla's eyes blinked and then shone gold again.
She stared intently at the World Tree and frowned.
"Its condition is strange? Something hazy and murky is filling the World Tree. It's like something has completely filled the inside of the World Tree."
"...Could there be something wrong with the World Tree?"
"I don't know about that. What's certain is that the World Tree's condition is abnormal."
Kyla's eyes suddenly turned toward me.
Then she muttered.
"It shines even less than this one..."
I didn't understand the meaning of those words, but I immediately realized that the World Tree's condition was poor.
"I wonder what kind of reaction we'd get if we told the Elf Queen this?"
"If we say it unnecessarily, we'll only earn suspicion. From their perspective, it would be like outsiders suddenly coming and learning national secrets."
"That's true. Then let's just go in."
Before we knew it, we had arrived in front of the World Tree.
The World Tree was truly worthy of being called the World Tree.
It was several times thicker than the tree I saw in the Forest of Temptation, and the simple World Tree there was much smaller than this one.
And I could feel mana flowing from the World Tree.
'It feels like a living being.'
Of course, I know plants are alive too, but this is very different.
It feels like the World Tree is looking at me.
That feeling of facing a human.
"Then let's go in. From here on, Queen-nim will personally come to greet you. For reference, Queen-nim has a very gentle personality, so please ask about that person named Eri you inquired about before. Queen-nim might know about her. And..."
Leaving the elf who had started explaining again, we went inside.
*
Since the World Tree was a giant tree, it was suitable for building houses inside to live in.
It wasn't particularly problematic.
There's no way one small elf building a house inside the giant World Tree would cause problems.
Rather, that was the coexistence the elves envisioned.
The High Elf tends to the World Tree.
The World Tree protects the elves.
"But that era has ended too. Right? Eri."
The queen of the elves.
The only High Elf, Ella, spoke.
At those words, Eri frowned.
"...What did you do to the World Tree? The roots are all rotten to the point where it wouldn't be strange if it collapsed anytime. No, has it already completely collapsed?"
"I'm just dismantling and rebuilding it for proper use."
"No matter how I look at it, the inside seems completely rotten and decayed?"
"That's all for the elves too. It's just the process of dismantling and rebuilding the World Tree that couldn't properly protect the elves. You wouldn't understand though."
Eri somewhat understood the feelings of the High Elf Ella before her.
Everyone calls it the World Tree, but it doesn't actually have power as grand as its name.
To be precise, it's specialized only for protection.
If it had power that could actually affect the world, the elves would have defeated the Empire.
"But if you kill the World Tree, the Blue Forest that protects us will disappear too - can you handle that? The elves' growth will also slow down."
"It's fine. That's just temporary pain, but we'll become stronger after that."
"...I don't know what you heard that made you act like this. You didn't join up with some strange guys, did you?"
"Strange guys? They seem more like dangerous guys actually."
Ella smiled and looked down at Eri.
She looked down at her, limbs tied to the bed, with a collar around her neck.
"But it's okay. Once I can properly handle the World Tree, I won't fear even dragons. Until then, just wait here for me. I'll make you come to your senses again."
"I shouldn't have come back. If I'd known you'd change like this."
"Hehe. What's done is done. Then I'll go greet the guests. Apparently your companions have come here."
"What?"
Eri tried to move.
The shackles around her neck and limbs clanked as they collided.
"You're not planning to kill them, are you?! Say you're not! If you kill them, I'll resent you forever, and keep resenting you! I'll find a way to kill you somehow!"
"There's no way I could kill them. Not with that Hero-nim here."
Leaving Eri behind, she went outside and climbed the stairs.
Passing roots that emitted a dark, rotten energy instead of a fresh green one, she arrived at the entrance of the World Tree.
Creak...
The door opened and three people entered.
Ella looked at them and thought.
'Killing them might not work... but I can do other things.'
"Welcome. I am the Elf Queen. Please feel free to call me Ella."