Chapter 58
Chapter 58
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 58
Chapter Title: Ally
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Eris unwittingly broke into a satisfied smile, and just watching her do it had me mirroring the expression.
It wasn't a dish that took a ton of effort, but because it had to be loaded with seasonings to suit Eris's tastes, I couldn't make it too often.
'Now that things have turned out like this, I should've made it more often.'
Well, no use crying over it—I could just start making it more from now on.
Rin and Hayun didn't seem too thrilled with either the elven restaurant food or the special dish I'd made just for Eris, so they wolfed it down half-heartedly and set their forks aside.
Once Eris finished eating, she cleared her throat awkwardly, trying to rein in the relaxed atmosphere, but the intense, authoritative air she'd had at their first meeting was long gone.
We wandered around Yggdrasil for a bit. Rin and Hayun looked fascinated, but honestly, to me it just felt like a village tucked under one massive tree.
'Guess that's what comes from living in the woods myself.'
Having spent ten years in the forest, it only made sense that this didn't faze me.
We looped around until we reached the heart of the elven queen's city.
I was here on Eris's invitation, but the other two had come bearing a letter of introduction from Professor Vertio, who was on close terms with the queen, so we had to at least pay our respects.
Her home was woven into Yggdrasil's roots, looking for all the world like a door carved right into the tree itself. Inside, a white-haired elf of stunning beauty was brewing tea.
"I was wondering when you'd arrive."
"Sorry, we got a little held up with the tour."
The elf queen handed us cups of tea. It was warm going down, but it carried a refreshing chill like sucking on a mint candy.
"Whoa?"
Hayun took a few curious sips, and pleased by her reaction, the queen poured her more.
'Seems like the older elves don't harbor much resentment toward other races.'
I'd expected the opposite—instead, it felt like the younger elves were the ones who held grudges against humans.
Most of the elves who'd eyed us suspiciously on the way here had that hot-blooded vibe, like they could barely contain themselves.
"So, you all watched Vertio's play together? The one he put on the first time he came to Yggdrasil was downright shocking."
The queen started chatting about the play with a smile, drawing us into the conversation.
Hayun focused on the props, while Rin and I talked story and casting.
Once our casual small talk wrapped up—like catching up with an old friend—I decided to ask straight-up.
"What exactly is this 'chosen one of Helios' business?"
The elf queen and Eris both turned to me at once. I sipped my tea nonchalantly and tacked on another question.
"Can you tell if someone's been chosen by other gods, too?"
If so, I shot a quick glance at Rin.
She might have something like that going on.
Whatever mysterious power lurked inside her could very well be the might of a god, or so I'd been thinking.
"No, we don't know anything about those chosen by other gods."
"Then how'd you know about Ares and Helios?"
She answered more easily than I'd expected, so I pressed on. The elf queen smiled kindly and ran a hand over Yggdrasil, which stood against one wall behind her.
"Yggdrasil has a close bond with the sun god, so he let us know. That's all—we don't know anything else."
'The tree that holds up the continent and the sun god.'
It sounded like they went together perfectly.
"Eris thinks he might abuse his power, so we should nip it in the bud early. But he's the first person Helios has chosen in centuries. We can't act rashly."
"......"
Eris turned her head away like she wasn't happy about it, but she didn't voice any complaints.
"For the record, Eris was chosen by a god, too."
The goddess of the moon, the hunt, and chastity—Artemis.
I already knew her eyes bore that mark, so I wasn't too surprised.
"Can you check if other people have gods' marks?"
"We can't. But the person themselves would know best. A mark appears on their body."
"I see......"
I didn't stare at Rin right then, but I'd have to check with her later.
The elf queen had been answering my questions with gentle patience, but now it was her turn. She leaned in and asked,
"Do you know what those beasts from the festival really were?"
"......Ancient demonic beasts."
"Ancient demonic beasts?"
"The ones that live deep in the Demon Realm Forest."
The name "Demon Realm Forest" dropped, and every pair of eyes in the room widened at me in shock.
For elves or humans alike, stepping foot in there meant you were as good as dead—a forbidden forest.
The elf queen met my gaze, clearly wondering how I knew about such a place, but I didn't look away.
"You've got a strong core. And convictions, just like Eris said."
I thought she was about to grill me, but instead she gave her assessment of me with a small laugh.
"How long do you plan to stay in Yggdrasil? We've prepared bedrooms for you, but you can't linger too long."
The other elves would get uncomfortable, obviously.
"Three days possible?"
"That's just right."
The elf queen smiled and instructed Eris to show us around. We started following her again, but—
Dong! Dong! Dong! Dong!
Bells rang out across the city.
We froze in surprise, but Eris barely held herself back from bolting out the door, forcing an awkward smile instead.
"Monsters from the forest raid us now and then. Sounds like that's happening now. We can leave it to the vigilante squad, so let's get moving."
"......"
Eris tried to guide us onward.
"Nah, let's go help. Just in case."
"Pardon? But you're our guests..."
"It's fine—we should help however we can!"
"I'm curious how elven swordsmanship stacks up, anyway."
Rin and Hayun chimed in positively, so Eris thanked us profusely and bolted toward the sound of the bells.
"Thank you."
She whispered her gratitude to me for suggesting it first. Her voice came through crystal clear even as we ran, so I brushed it off.
"You can't just sit these things out."
"......"
I knew Eris was the type who, even from the highest perch, always stood with the lowly to minimize harm.
It was only natural.
Late into the night.
Guess I'd slept so much on the carriage ride that I woke up at dawn on our first night in Yggdrasil.
"Ngh."
Curious what the night view was like, I stepped out of my room for a stroll and spotted an unexpected figure swinging a sword.
Flower girl Hayun.
Even at this early hour, she was drenched in sweat, practicing her bladework—and it was a far cry from her usual Eastern sword style.
"Elven swordsmanship?"
I'd paid close attention to their techniques while helping the vigilantes hunt monsters earlier that day, so I muttered it half to myself. Hayun noticed me right away.
I waved to signal it was me, and she slowly sheathed her sword, draped a towel over her shoulder, and walked over.
"You wake up from oversleeping on the carriage too?"
"Yeah. And the scenery here's so gorgeous, I just had to swing my sword somewhere like this."
"......It is pretty."
The sight of hundreds of trees radiating out from the colossal Yggdrasil was definitely one you wouldn't see just anywhere.
Though seeing it in the pitch-black night gave off weirdly familiar vibes like the Demon Realm Forest, stirring up old memories unbidden.
"You like Eris, huh?"
Hayun's sudden question hit me right in the vitals, leaving me flustered.
"Wh-what?"
"I mean, you're way different with her than other girls. You pay her so much attention. And you nail her tastes perfectly."
"......"
I glanced at Hayun, but her usual cool, expressionless face gave nothing away.
"Yeah. I like her."
Screw it, I admitted. Hayun gave a small smile and crossed her arms.
"Guess I've picked up some instincts in this department, huh?"
"......You saying that to brag?"
"No, not that......"
Hayun hesitated, eyes darting around, then made me an offer.
"Want me to help?"
"Huh?"
It came out of left field—I had no clue what she was getting at—but she pressed on.
"You helped me confess to Ares. This time, I'll help you. With confessing to Eris."
"You're serious?"
"What, you think I'd joke?"
Fair enough—no reason to lie.
"Plus, I'm your senpai in confessions."
"True...... I guess."
It was a failure, sure, but she'd planned to fail from the start.
"We've got two days left. I'll coach you through it."
"I was planning to confess when we part ways in two days anyway."
I mumbled it, and Hayun's eyes bugged out. She sighed a few times, thumped her chest in frustration, and scolded me.
"What kind of confession is a last-resort finisher? You think it'll magically spark feelings that weren't there? Daniel, you fool—confessions are confirmations. Blindly blurting one out just flops."
"......"
What the—
Why did she sound like such an expert?
Was this the gap between the experienced and the inexperienced?
"Confessing to someone with zero interest just makes things awkward."
"Ah......!"
It clicked.
Yeah.
It gets awkward.
Really awkward.
I'd learned that the hard way from all those guys who kept chasing after clear rejections.
"H-Hayun! So what do I do?"
I grabbed her sleeve pleadingly, and she puffed up with confidence.
"Keep doing what you're doing. Whether it's your senses or your instincts, you're hitting Eris's tastes spot-on. Keep stamping that impression, build it up step by step."
"Got it."
Suddenly brimming with hope, I felt energy surging through me—until I coldly reviewed our track records.
Daniel McKlein.
Confession record: 0-0-0
Hayun
Confession record: 1-0-1
'Can I really trust advice from that record?'
It felt dubious, but I probed anyway about her sudden expertise.
"Where'd you even learn all this? You're not into this stuff."
Hayun waved it off casually.
"While you were prepping that play, I overheard Tana and Eve gushing about romance novels nearby. They said stuff like this."
"......"
"Wh-what!"
Learned romance from books?
"Sigh, fine. I'll trust you for now."
My faith took a nosedive, but hey, she was offering to help—gratitude was in order.
I turned to head back to bed, but Hayun trailed after me, unhappy with my reaction.
"Hey, it's solid theory, okay?"
She was mid-excuse when she suddenly stopped.
Watching Daniel McKlein's retreating back, a strange pain bloomed in her chest.
Like something was caught in her throat.
Unpleasantly nagging, faintly stinging.
But not like any bodily ache.
"What is this?"
She brushed it off as her imagination, ignored the persistent throbbing, and hurried after Daniel.