Never Mind the Heir, I’ll Focus on Healing — Chapter 61
Never Mind the Heir, I’ll Focus on Healing — Chapter 61
‘Hmm.’
Rickshel pondered for a moment, glancing sideways at Freyania.
She was definitely a major figure in the Criminal Underworld, but she didn’t look capable of harming his brother.
What’s more… it didn’t seem like she would want to, either.
In that case, she was safe.
Rickshel nodded and conveyed his opinion to Petrick.
“Indeed, there won’t be anyone who can teach spirit arts as well as that half-elf. I think it’s a proposal worth considering.”
“It looks that way. However.”
Petrick looked at Lion.
“What are your thoughts?”
“Mm…”
Lion mulled it over for a moment.
He didn’t have much talent for teaching others.
When a subordinate joined his team back at his old job, he had struggled quite a bit at first, hadn’t he?
Of course, later on he gained experience, created manuals, and trained his juniors, but…
“First, since you said you’d be staying here longer, could we have a trial period until then?”
“That’s an excellent idea. It will certainly be a good experience.”
Embrog immediately gave his approval.
With that overwhelming spirit arts talent, anyone would be bound to fall in love with spirits!
“Thank you. Now that things have come to this, I think it would be good to take some time to get to know each other. If you have the chance, honored guests, perhaps you could take a look around the town as well.”
“…Then let us end today’s discussion here.”
Petrick rose slowly from his seat.
His attitude suggested there was nothing left to coordinate and no reason to stay, but it also meant he would go along with Lion’s wishes.
And so, the elite elves and the Asteri territory began a peculiar cohabitation for the next few days.
* * *
Of course, the ones most bewildered by this situation were none other than the elves chosen for the elite unit.
‘What on earth is going on?’
One elf, notable for her long straight hair, walked through the throngs of people.
She had clearly been dispatched to protect someone under the Elder Elf’s orders.
Yet somehow things had turned out this way, and she now found herself staying in a human village and sightseeing.
“Lord Embrog. Is this right?”
“Hoho… It is what the Elder Elf wishes. And it’s also true that Asteri territory is one of the few places where we can move around relatively comfortably, so taking this opportunity to engage in some exchange wouldn’t be bad, I suppose.”
Another elf shook his head, saying he couldn’t understand humans’ way of life.
From the elves’ perspective, human villages were quite different from elven ones.
Compared to elves who deliberately lived at a distance to respect each other’s lives, humans were packed tightly together.
And that wasn’t all.
“Come, come! Get ’em while they’re cheap!”
“End-of-day sale! If you don’t come now, you’ll be the only one losing out!”
“Come take a look at these fresh oranges! Picked just today!”
“Fresh-baked bread is out! The bread that even nobles line up to eat!”
To the keen-eared elves, the hustle and bustle of the market was no different from pollution.
All the hawking from every direction made their ears ring.
But—
After that brief confusion…
Surprisingly, they adapted well to the environment!
“Hey, maybe this is better than I thought?”
The elf who had directly asked Embrog if this was right changed her mind in a single day.
Especially that long-haired elf…
“Waaaaaah!”
Honestly, she was having fun!
The lively atmosphere and the people!
They didn’t even reject her as a member of another race!
“Oh, you’re one of the elf young ladies here as guests of the lord? Come here and have one of these before you go.”
On top of that, they even showed kindness without asking for anything in return.
“Such a young one can be this kind! Thank you so much!”
“Young…? Um, if I may ask, how old are you?”
“Well. I stopped counting after four hundred, so I’m not sure.”
“Go carefully, big sister!”
Receiving the merchant’s respectful farewell, she enjoyed the market.
And the thing that aroused the elves’ greatest curiosity was…
Ssssaaaaah!
The fierce sound of battered ingredients splashing into a cauldron of boiling oil.
That mouthwatering sound that could stop any species in its tracks!
It was right in front of a fried-food stall.
And behind that?
Fresh fruit was cut and prepared into easy-to-eat pieces, and in some places it was even made into juice and handed out.
And that wasn’t all.
There was flatbread baked on the spot in a clay oven, a savory meat pie filled with sauce, and even mysterious alcohol!
It was a breathtaking feast of food.
Of course, such food wasn’t entirely absent in the elven nation…
But at least it wasn’t part of the diet allotted to this ‘elite unit.’
Because of a belief that to raise spirit affinity, one must maintain as unprocessed a diet as possible.
The truth was, there was a high chance it wasn’t actually true, but since there was no reason not to follow it, they had no choice but to chew on grass every time.
Elves who couldn’t handle spirits weren’t all that different.
Their martial arts involved swift rotations to strengthen attacks, so they needed to stay light and lean.
So on top of the grass, boiled chicken breast was added.
Of course, that doesn’t mean elves don’t eat meat.
There were elves who got hooked on meat and ate nothing but meat.
Not in this elite unit, however.
Gulp.
They had to hold back.
It wasn’t that they lacked a taste for it.
They simply had a clear goal and had been restricting their diet for decades, or as long as a hundred years.
But now, right before their eyes…
This…
A feast of flavor.
A visual stimulus!
It was unfolding before them…!
“Senior?”
“No.”
When the long-haired elf tentatively brought it up, her senior stopped her at once.
“But wouldn’t this also be a form of exchange?”
“C-cough.”
Despite stopping her, the senior was wavering too.
In fact, he was swayed by an even stronger temptation and impulse.
“Oh, you don’t have to buy any—just have a taste.”
The kind vendor placed a freshly baked, thick meat pie into the elves’ hands.
The crispy, golden-brown pie was quite weighty.
“How many more chances will I get to see elves in my lifetime?”
Then, as if telling them not to worry about it, he began calling out to other passersby.
“Senior…?”
“…”
This time, the senior elf was at a loss for words as well.
Because the difference between just looking at it and holding it in your hands was on another level.
“Just! Just one bite—let’s eat just one bite!”
“Let’s do that! Just one bite!”
The two elves split the pie in half.
From inside the soft bread, a steaming sauce poured out in a rush.
The savory and sweet aroma made it feel like their salivary glands were about to burst.
And soon.
Chomp— munch munch—
“…!”
“…!!”
Both of their eyes flew open wide.
When struck by a shock so tremendous it could mark a turning point in life, humans and elves alike were rendered speechless.
After that first bite, the two, who experienced a ‘taste explosion’ for the first time, had their reason snap completely.
Like reins breaking loose, the two elves retraced their steps to the beginning of the food alley and systematically explored every shop in order.
They only came back to their senses after sampling every single one of the countless foods there.
A plain diet, vegetarian diet, unseasoned meals.
It was crystal clear that stomach troubles would follow for elves who had stubbornly adhered to what was known as the slow-aging diet, but…
“Keuugh! Let’s have one more, senior!”
“Let’s gooo!”
One thing was certain: they looked happy.
“Oh dear.”
Lion, who had been purchasing ingredients for Freyania’s basic alchemy lessons, saw that picture of debauchery and laughed awkwardly.
‘I guess my first alchemy potion should be a digestive remedy after all.’
On top of that, he’d have to prepare a meal good for hangovers.
Lion moved his feet busily.
* * *
But—
Before Lion could do anything, trouble began to break out.
[The lesser fire spirit spits fire from its mouth!]
[The lesser water spirit vomits water.]
[The lesser wind spirit spins round and round.]
The lesser spirits that had been roaming the village began to show abnormal symptoms one by one.
‘Could this be…?’
Lion walked quickly back to the mansion and sought out Freyania, who still couldn’t go outside the Asteri mansion.
“Hey.”
“Huh! You’re back already…?”
Freyania had realized that something was off; she was about to welcome him when her eyes went wide.
“Did something happen?”
Lion explained what he had just seen without holding back.
He had judged that getting information from Freyania would be safer and more reliable than explaining the situation to Embrog.
And if there was another reason…
‘If this gets all the way to that professor, the situation will definitely blow up.’
There was no need to stir up trouble for nothing.
“Do you know anything?”
“Hmm… So because the contracted elves started overeating and partying, problems arose with the spirits, too. I have an idea what it might be.”
“What is it?”
“Acute indigestion.”
“…Spirits get indigestion too?”
“Ah, of course it’s not indigestion the way we think of it!”
Freyania, perhaps thinking she was being helpful, suddenly perked up, fetched a book as big as her torso, and opened it.
Whirrrr.
The thick pages turned, and around the middle part…
“Here, look at this.”
-Spirits with a strong bond to their contractor tend to sync greatly with the contractor’s condition.
“But only the lesser spirits were acting up?”
“Because those little ones are the weakest. The intermediate spirits will probably start reacting soon enough…”
No sooner had Freyania finished speaking than a commotion began outside the door.
“Oh my, what’s with this wind?”
“Ah, it’s cold!”
Freyania shrugged.
“Since it’s simply indigestion, once their masters’ condition recovers, the spirits will get better on their own. Of course, this is a city, not nature, so it’ll take a bit longer… But wait, does that mean I’ll have to look at those smug elves’ faces even longer?”
It seemed a new worry had arisen.
While Freyania was fretting, Lion cracked the door open slightly and observed the situation outside.
And he witnessed…
[Sylph can’t contain itself and sprays wind!]
[Undine constantly generates mist.]
[Salamander’s body temperature rises intensely.]
…the spirits’ abnormal phenomena.
“Good grief.”
Lion closed the door again.
‘It looks like I’ve got to do something about that.’
If left alone, the mansion would be wrecked by all kinds of natural disasters.
Besides, if an incident like this broke out on the very first day of the temporary exchange, what elf would actively participate in exchanges after that?
The Asteri territory’s first impression was on the verge of becoming the worst possible.
‘This is a bigger deal than I thought.’
He’d figured they’d just overeaten, so he would make them a nice hangover soup or stew the next day, and while teaching Freyania, he’d whip up something like a digestive remedy.
After all, now that he’d reached the Skilled tier, simple potions were at a level where he could knock them together just by thinking about them.
“That’s why you can’t trust these lifelong desk-jockey scholars who only ever managed things. Right, Salamander?”
Salamander pressed close to Freyania’s shoulder and puffed out its chest valiantly.
Though since they were both tiny, it looked rather insignificant…
“Speaking of which, are you okay?”
“Me? Of course. For starters, I don’t eat street food like that with my mind in the clouds, and I’m always prepared.”
With that, Freyania took something out of her bag.
“What’s this?”
…It was a stone.
Well, that’s what it looked like.
“Master, this is your first time seeing it, right? This is called a spirit stone!”
“A spirit stone?”