Who Did You Hear It From?
Rune was probably relieved too. Heima had been the one to turn things around, and any hothead who started yelling mid-battle would’ve only made the mood worse.
Right after that, Perdikion cleared his throat with a loud “Hmph.”
“Anyway, I never imagined this would happen.”
Perdikion gave Rune a look that was clearly displeased.
“You made me wait and hope, then asked what I was even doing here. If you hadn’t been spouting nonsense, I could’ve just skipped it.”
He sounded like he couldn’t stand the idea of talking nonsense in front of his sworn brother.
Rune understood the situation and thought to himself,
‘It was impulsive, but with the Box’s effects in place, it was only natural. I couldn’t just brush off my story.’
The loyalty upgrade had produced some seriously unexpected results.
Rune watched Perdikion with an admiring gaze.
“? Why are you looking at me like that?”
“...It was nice of you to look out for me.”
Perdikion narrowed his eyes at Rune, but he couldn’t read Rune’s true thoughts.
‘That hot-tempered, proud guy is actually pretty capable.’
A twinge of guilt stirred inside him.
Rune had done plenty for him, and he’d keep doing it in the future.
But for a guy who got dragged into everything without knowing what was going on, he couldn’t shake the feeling of guilt.
‘Should I just tell him the truth about the Box?’
Rune looked away from the empty space and stood up.
“Should we head inside? It’s weird to stay outside so long. Let’s handle this first.”
“Got it.”
Perdikion agreed right away, and the two of them headed back toward Amanda’s house.
Inside, the air was warm and sweet, with a calming scent that cleared the mind.
Rune left the door open to let the scent escape and stepped into the room where Amanda and her mother were.
“You’re here?”
An old man who had been holding Amanda’s hand turned his head.
His breathing had calmed quite a bit, and his expression looked much more relaxed.
“You two... you look human to me.”
A mix of longing and joy crossed his face.
Perdikion opened his mouth to say something, but Amanda’s gaze stopped him.
“Say you’re human.”
Her lips moved to form those words.
While Rune was still wondering what was happening, Amanda’s mother continued speaking.
“I never thought I’d see you again... but here you are, looking just as I remember. How wonderful...”
With a long, slow exhale, the old man’s face softened into a gentle smile.
He turned his gaze back to the orange-haired elf.
His wrinkled hand reached out and softly stroked Amanda’s cheek.
“My dear Amanda... someday you’ll have to go back to the continent where you and humans live...”
“Yeah, that’s the plan.”
A long breath escaped the old man once more.
After gently patting his chest a few times, the girl who had been watching him sleep reached out and ruffled his hair.
She gave Rune and Perdikion a small nod.
Rune gathered the Box and stepped out of the room with Perdikion.
A while later, Amanda quietly stepped out the door and looked at Rune for a long moment.
“Come this way.”
She looked mature and a little sassy, but there was something strangely mature about her shadowed face.
Suddenly Rune realized that, even though she was half-elf, she was still an elf.
‘The old man called her “Mom.” That means she’s probably lived much longer than she looks.’
At least she must have aged enough to become the woman people called “Mom,” so she couldn’t be some innocent young girl.
“Sit down. I’ll bring you some tea.”
Following Amanda, Rune and Perdikion arrived at the living room with the wooden table.
They each chose a chair and sat.
The sound of bubbling water and clinking cups filled the air.
It strangely felt relaxing.
Then Rune suddenly remembered the group waiting outside.
“Bro, I’ll explain where we are first.”
Perdikion looked up and asked.
“That would be good. Are you using the Mokoji Stone?”
“Yeah.”
Rune took out the Mokoji Stone, hesitated for a moment, and chose Jed.
Jed. I found you, brother. We’re in the Half-Elf Settlement.>
What? For real?>
The interesting news must have made Jed type furiously.
Kyaa! That’s fascinating! I’ve never heard it before, but I’ve heard it’s a little-known fact that there’s a separate area where half-elves live. You went there?>
It seemed like a hidden place.
Given the pure-blood-focused culture of elves, it was actually a fairly expected story.
‘That must be something elves keep to themselves. Jed knows way more than I thought.’
Small knowledge was probably the result of endless curiosity.
Thinking it might actually be useful, Rune tapped the Mokoji Stone again.
Yeah. We just happened to get invited to a half-elf house. We’re drinking tea right now, so I’ll contact you again later.>
Yes! Christina-nim was already asking about Rune-nim’s whereabouts, so I’ll tell her right away!>
Got it.>
After sending the message, Rune put the Mokoji Stone away.
Perdikion asked,
“Did that wrap up the explanation?”
“Yeah. I’ll tell Christina too.”
Rune nodded, and Perdikion agreed.
At that moment, the small elf girl came in with a tray.
She skillfully placed a teacup in front of each of them.
“This is apple tea, and this is peppermint tea.”
Amanda placed the peppermint tea in front of Perdikion and the apple tea in front of Rune.
Before Perdikion could say anything, Rune quietly swapped the cups.
“Thanks for the drink.”
Perdikion glanced at Rune, then said in a composed voice,
“Hmph. I didn’t mind the peppermint, but since you brought it for me, I’ll drink it properly.”
“?”
Perdikion lifted the warm apple tea and tasted it with complete calm.
Rune watched him for a moment, then looked away.
‘That guy who wrinkled his nose at the peppermint scent...’
It was just a guess, but Rune decided to let the truth slide with a generous heart.
Amanda lowered her gaze and stared at the glowing blue-green tea.
“Thank you first of all. For making my mom more comfortable.”
She started to speak but didn’t seem to want the tea.
Instead, she gently wrapped her hands around the cup and enjoyed the warmth.
Rune chose a tone that felt comfortable and explained the situation.
“That’s good. We can only do this much.”
Amanda nodded with a bitter voice.
“...It has to be, I guess.”
The elf fiddled with the cup’s handle and finally sighed softly.
Then she looked up at Perdikion’s red eyes.
“I’m sorry for saying that. I just... I had unreasonable expectations.”
She looked tired, but the expression on her face was soft thanks to the clear tea aroma.
“I thought my brother might be able to save my mom. But when I actually saw it, I realized it was impossible, so I just got impatient and said something bad.”
Amanda’s eyes turned to Rune.
“Let me correct that. It’s enough. It’s been a long time since my mom smiled like that.”
Perdikion nodded as if it were obvious.
“My little brother is amazing.”
Meanwhile, Rune quietly watched Amanda and spoke up.
“Amanda. Why did you think I could save your mom?”
“Huh?”
“More precisely, I want to know when you started thinking that.”
Instead of answering directly, Amanda blinked.
Perdikion took the cup from his lips and said in a casual tone,
“It must have been when you revived the World Tree. You probably don’t think much of it, but that was an amazing sight.”
Rune took a sip of his tea and answered.
“There’s something that’s been bothering me.”
Amanda fiddled with the handle of her cup and asked awkwardly,
“Um, what is it?”
Rune set the cup down on the table.
“You said you realized I couldn’t save your mom when you ‘actually saw’ it. That means you expected me to save her before seeing it with your own eyes.”
“!”
Perdikion’s eyebrows shot up.
Rune continued,
“In other words, you already knew about me before the World Tree and elves were restored. Before I even got the Forest Insignia.”
The plan to restore the World Tree was known only to a few people after Rune obtained the Forest Insignia.
That a half-elf girl living at the northern end of the World Tree already knew about it was clearly strange.
“You probably didn’t hear any rumors or hints. How did you know and have expectations?”
“Eh, um... that’s...”
The freckled elf girl looked visibly flustered and tensed up.
Perdikion’s eyes immediately turned fierce.
“Speak.”
Under his intense pressure, Amanda flinched and rolled her eyes.
But Perdikion didn’t give her a chance to escape.
“Don’t tell me you’re lying to us?”
Amanda gasped and shook her head.
“No! I’ve never lied!”
The pressure of a Fire Lord successor was too much for a half-elf who had lived a normal life.
Finally terrified, Amanda shouted,
“I-I’ll tell you! Just... just calm down!”
“Okay, bro. I get it, but she might choke on her words like this.”
Perdikion clicked his tongue at Rune’s calm intervention.
Though he still looked displeased, the Dragon Hatchling boy gathered his strength again.
During that time, Amanda kept glancing at the inner room as if the room mattered more than her own safety.
Rune noticed and thought,
‘If she’s worried about her mom, she won’t run away. My gut says she’s not evil.’
Finally taking a breath, Amanda rubbed her arms vigorously.
“Ugh...”
Goosebumps covered her arms.
The real girl glared sharply at Perdikion.
“W-why are you starting with the threats already! You’re a strong dragon clan!”
“What?”
It was so ridiculous that Perdikion glared at Amanda.
Rune didn’t stop him.
‘Perdikion is here to protect me for now.’
He probably already knew Rune was a dragon clan thanks to Belianus’s introduction at the elf king’s funeral.
But he hadn’t said that Rune was a young hatchling.
Amanda might feel wronged by that, but Perdikion’s reaction was mild.
Before the tension grew worse, Rune asked again,
“Who told you about our plan?”
Amanda lowered her head and muttered,
“I didn’t hear the full story... I didn’t hear anything big enough to call a plan.”
At the very least, it wasn’t loose information that had slipped out from inside.
“Don’t stall. Tell us quickly.”
Under Perdikion’s sharp urging, Amanda pointed out the window with her finger.
It looked like there was no one outside, and no matter how she looked, there was only a massive ancient tree—the World Tree.
“The World Tree?”
“Yes.”
Amanda nodded at Rune and lowered her finger.