Chapter 82
Chapter 82
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 82
Chapter Title: Elven Kingdom (2)
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"We've finished notifying the dwarves of Titania and all the other races across the Enamel Continent of the situation."
"Their reactions have been a bit lukewarm since they haven't had any direct involvement so far, but this time it's truly ominous, so we need to heighten their vigilance further."
"Being able to cross spaces at will means the Immortal King could appear on the Enamel Continent at any moment. We must prepare accordingly."
This was the conference room in the royal palace of the Elven Kingdom, the only structure directly connected to the World Tree.
Naturally, the attendees of this exclusive meeting were all extraordinarily distinguished figures.
Not only the Queen and the High Elves, but also the key leaders who oversaw every field and guided the nation had gathered together.
"For now, we've requested information from the Church. Aside from what Lady Rapori brought back, we know absolutely nothing about this Immortal King."
They were in the midst of devising countermeasures for the recent incident.
The previous Immortal Kings had all stirred trouble on the Ion Continent, so the non-human races, including the elves, had suffered no significant damage beyond the losses of their dispatched support forces.
In both cases, they had been defeated before even crossing the sea, leaving the Enamel Continent's mainland largely unaffected.
But this Immortal King had shown extraordinary prowess from the start, putting them on high alert.
The fact that it could ignore spatial constraints and invade the holy temple meant it could leap across oceans between continents whenever it pleased.
Thanks to Rapori sending advance information to the Elven Kingdom before heading to the Enamel Continent, they had been able to begin preparations swiftly.
They had warned neighboring nations, raised alert levels several notches, and dispatched regular patrol units to detect black magic across each region.
"Sigh... Just when we should be celebrating the birth of a new High Elf with a festival, this happens."
As the critical discussions wrapped up and a brief respite allowed them to catch their breath, the attendees began voicing their frustrations one by one.
Of course, a multi-day festival had been planned in the capital following Cecily's awakening, but due to the Immortal King preparations, its duration and scale had been drastically reduced.
It would have originally been a nationwide grand event, so the gap was considerable.
"Still, Cecily appearing at this timing is a great stroke of luck. It was about time for both you and Her Majesty to consider retirement, wasn't it?"
"Indeed. I had so many worries, but this has eased one of them."
The Elf Queen seated at the head of the table nodded at Rapori's gentle words.
The High Elves elected their monarch through internal consultation, with the term lasting until voluntary retirement, so she had held the position for quite some time.
"Speaking of which, Lady Rapori, didn't you bring back another promising talent from the Ion Continent? Word is already spreading about how the World Tree bestowed a branch upon him during the eye-opening ritual."
"Haha, from our first meeting, he seemed extraordinary. I could feel the World Tree taking an interest in him. It seems my judgment was spot on."
Rapori smiled warmly as the Queen brought up Harris.
"His talent is exceptional, and his growth is astonishingly rapid. I believe he has a very high chance of qualifying as a High Elf."
Harris, the other promising prospect who had walked in on his own right after Cecily's rescue.
Rapori had brought him to the Elven Kingdom and enrolled him in the kingdom's premier educational institution, Drasha Academy.
In hopes that he would receive the best training and earn the qualifications of a High Elf.
'He seems like he'll form a good bond with Shariron. Their situations are similar, after all.'
High Elves weren't hereditary, yet she had been born with the aptitude, just like Rapori.
Truly a blessed birth.
'If they become close, it'll benefit them both.'
To that end, Rapori had pulled strings to ensure Harris trained alongside her.
She had no doubt that the kind girl would look after him well.
Rapori's face softened into a tender smile as she thought of her beloved only daughter, born late in life.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Lunchtime at Drasha Academy.
The breeze was pleasantly cool, so he leaned against a large tree, munching on a sandwich while watching the elves' street performances.
"Hmph, how about gaining some refinement? How long are you going to act like some vulgar mercenary?"
Shariron suddenly approached, picking a fight, then turned haughtily and walked away without even hearing his response.
'...Did she really come all the way here just to say that?'
Harris leisurely leaned against the tree, watching her retreating figure as he finished his sandwich.
'That girl is that nice guy's daughter, huh...'
Rapori had sky-blue hair and deep blue irises, so there were definite similarities.
'High Elves use the surname "Granwood." Elves are a matriarchal society, so "Sylvesti" must be from her mother's side.'
He suddenly recalled the gentle expression on Rapori's face the last time he'd seen him, smiling happily while thinking of his family.
Then, the image of the prickly young lady glaring at him with a slight frown slowly overlaid it.
'Hmm... She doesn't quite match up with that good-natured guy.'
He hadn't been here long, but he could tell everyone avoided her due to her arrogant, aloof demeanor and elitist noble-like attitude.
Of course, some followed her, but they didn't seem like equals or true friends.
'People are the same everywhere. Even elves aren't different. But she's especially prickly toward me.'
From his observations over the past few days, she kept a wall up and looked down on everyone else haughtily, but he hadn't seen her pick fights with anyone else.
Except for him.
'It's just childish nagging anyway. Better not get entangled; it'd be a hassle. Especially since that guy is my sponsor right now.'
Moreover, he'd asked Rapori to process the World Tree branch he'd received as a gift, so clashing with her daughter wouldn't be wise.
"Ah... Nice weather..."
Sunny skies, cool shade from the tree, refreshing breeze.
Harris basked in the languor, closing his eyes and listening to the distant elven songs.
In truth, his recent apathy toward everything was the biggest reason.
After entering the World Tree's influence and acquiring "Nature Affinity," and as he continued training it, his body grew ever more attuned to comfort.
'I can force myself to move anytime, but letting it be like this seems better for raising affinity. It feels like it helps stabilize mind and body too.'
Was this the sensation of becoming one with nature?
Harris fully embodied water and unity with the world, remaining motionless under the tree until lunch ended.
"...Feels healing."
Thoughts of Shariron Sylvesti had long faded.
There was no reason to get involved anyway, and keeping distance like this meant no issues.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ 'That's what I thought.'
Harris blankly stared at Shariron standing before him.
She glared back, her brow slightly furrowed.
They had ended up facing each other due to Drasha Academy's spirit arts class.
In an instant, the professor had deliberately grouped them together.
"Alright, all groups are set. Since we have a transfer student, let's review while recapping. You all know this well, but communion with spirits is extremely important. And as we advance to higher levels..."
Communion with spirits—manifestations of great nature—was essential for spirit mages.
And the elves had a highly effective secret technique passed down for it...
Dance and song.
'No wonder I saw so many performers on the streets since arriving in the Elven Kingdom.'
Elves, beloved by nature itself, could harmonize with spirits through their every gesture and the resonance of their voices alone.
The same went for the instruments they played.
It was a privilege and mystery unique to elves, unattainable by other races' spirit mages.
"This method also prevents excessive immersion in nature from leading to sloth. Normally, it might just make you a bit lazy, but diligence is always better, right?"
Harris immediately realized the professor's lecture wasn't about someone else.
It was practically describing him.
'But I'm not just a bit lazy.'
He was forcibly moving his body by dedicating mental effort; if he relaxed even slightly, he'd slump right there.
That plunged him into ultimate tranquility, bringing peace of mind and helping relieve stress quite effectively...
'It was bothering me a little. So that's the side effect of over-immersion.'
Being near the World Tree, source of natural power, plus Harris's skills—"Child of the World Tree," "Spirit Arts," "Nature Affinity"—all influenced affinity.
And the High Elf bracelet from Rapori too.
Thanks to that, his lightning spirit "Watt" had recently reached lower grade, and the fire spirit "Kali" and wind spirit "Pascal," contracted just days ago, were on the verge of evolution.
Insane growth for how long he'd been learning spirit arts.
"Conveniently, a festival for the new High Elf Cecily will be held soon. Stages will be set up all over the capital that day..."
The professor trailed off, scanning the attentive students with a mischievous smile.
"We've prepared a special stage just for you from Drasha Academy. It's fairly central, so Cecily herself might even watch."
The classroom buzzed with excited murmurs.
"Now, groups, collaborate to create your own performance. We'll evaluate based on how much spirit communion you draw out on the day."
With the lecture over, they gathered to discuss with their group members.
Harris's group had two other elves besides Shariron.
"Whoa! In the same group as Miss Shariron and Harris! So lucky to be with celebrities. I'm Timer Kohpin. Nice to meet you!"
"......"
A cheerful guy with an oblivious vibe and a timid girl who cautiously bowed while gauging reactions.
"Pleased to meet you. I'm quite flustered by this sudden group activity, but I'll work hard not to be a burden."
Harris greeted them as warmly as possible.
He'd heard about the infamous pitfalls of group projects, and now he was at risk of being that weak link...
With less than a week until the live performance and no preparation as a transfer student, it felt daunting.
But Shariron, stuck in the same group, seemed equally distressed.
"Why... me with some rootless mercenary... Why?"
Frowning and muttering repeatedly, she soon closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
"Sigh... No helping it now. So, you—do you know any dances or songs? Anything will do."
Her tone implied she was asking out of politeness, fully expecting nothing.
Her haughty gaze held zero expectation.
Naturally, given he'd just started spirit arts and came from mercenary work.
The other members' eyes turned to him at her words.
They didn't say it outright, but they were inwardly worried too.
"Nothing at all? We can adjust around you."
'...Being openly singled out like this just sparks my competitive spirit.'
Of course, he had no training in their dances or songs, so performing one on the spot was impossible.
He'd seen some street performances, but they weren't all the same.
'But do we really need traditional elven song and dance?'
This wasn't a fixed ritual; it was resonance leveraging racial traits.
As long as it harmonized with the spirits, the genre shouldn't matter much, right?
"Hmm... There is a song from my homeland that I used to sing often..."
He cleared his throat lightly and cautiously opened his mouth.
Back in his school days, he'd played guitar decently and was known for his singing.
'Plus, with elf Harris's vocal timbre added?'
Above all, he'd never scored below 80 on karaoke machines.