Chapter 46
Chapter 46
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Elf Theory
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“Haa… I wonder what Enoch is up to.”
[You, you seriously can’t say that anymore. I’m gonna get neurosis!]
“What, how many times did I even say it….”
[Every three minutes for days on end…!]
Undine shrieked at Leone through their link. No, seriously—what was her deal after handing over the ring and everything? It wasn’t a joke; just hearing that phrase now made her want to have a fit.
“The ring isn’t perfect either, you know.”
[No, if some demigod suddenly pops out and tries to smash his head in, shouldn’t he just politely die? Even you couldn’t block something like that!]
“It’s not about that…”
The ring she’d given Enoch was undeniably top-notch. It could block attacks that threatened his life and even send an immediate signal to Leone. That was more than enough to save him from just about anything short of the worst-case scenario.
But there was one problem…
“It blocks external attacks, but it doesn’t stop him from hurting himself.”
[What, you think he’s gonna self-harm or something?]
“…Yeah.”
[What kind of ridiculous worry is th— Wait, huh?]
Even Undine started getting a little worried about Enoch all of a sudden. This guy—wasn’t he the type to screw himself up doing something stupid alone…?
[Uh… Should we go check on him?]
“N-No, we can’t! One visit turns into two, and before you know it, you’ll just be following him around!”
For Enoch, who had to overcome the curse of heavenly retribution, that wouldn’t be a good thing at all.
[Sigh… Yeah, you’re right. He’s not an idiot; he’ll manage.]
*
“Enoch, take a look at this.”
At Leone’s gesture, Enoch stepped forward. He leaped onto the gray rocks and landed atop a dizzyingly sheer cliff. Gazing down at clouds below, Leone smiled faintly.
“What do you think when you see this?”
Enoch peeked over the edge. It was definitely breathtaking. A cliff so high that ordinary people couldn’t even dream of climbing near it.
What it made him think of…
A sense of owning the world. A feeling of being crushed by majesty. Overwhelmed by a rare vista. Sure, there were all those textbook answers, but they were far from Enoch’s thoughts.
“Just… it’s high.”
“Right?”
“Yeah. Would it hurt if you fell?”
“Hmm… It might not hurt as much as you think?”
With that, Leone stepped off the cliff into the open sky. Standing in midair, she spun around gracefully.
“Don’t forget how special you are, Enoch. Once you go out there, you’ll run into countless people and all sorts of ideas.”
Faint clouds dyed pale red by the sun stretched out like a substitute for the earth itself.
A sheer cliff dropping straight down, the distant sun, sparse upright trees, and in the midst of it all, one elf.
“Don’t lose your own thoughts. If vistas that make others gasp, heroes they praise as great, or food they rave about don’t move you, Enoch, then they’re just that—nothing more. No need to get anxious or force yourself to fit in. You’re special.”
Her gentle words carried a mature air. Even after living through eons, she still retained a childlike side, so these occasional glimpses of maturity stirred something odd in him.
“Yeah.”
Leone smiled softly at his short reply.
“Right?”
Enoch smiled too.
“Yeah, it’s pretty.”
“Huh, changed your mind?”
Leone glanced back. The landscape looked completely different now that the sun had shifted, filling her chest to the brim. It really was pretty. As she gazed in admiration, Enoch’s response came.
“Nah, never changed.”
“Liar. You said it was just high a minute ago.”
“I did.”
Bewildered by his incomprehensible words, Leone turned to face him. Soft sunlight kissed his lips, drawing a brilliant smile into her view.
“But that’s what I thought from the start.”
That rare, bright smile finally drew a laugh from the elf too.
“Yeah. If you say so.”
*
The familiar unfamiliar ceiling.
Enoch blinked and reached up toward it.
“Ah.”
His chest hurt like hell. Not because of a dream about Leone tugging at his heartstrings—just plain physical pain.
[Does it hurt…? It hurts me too…. I really feel like I’m dying, Dad….]
At the voice sounding on the verge of death, Enoch glanced down. Eri, battered and broken, was curled up beside him, groaning.
“…? What’s wrong?”
[What’s wrong? Good question. No, what the hell is wrong with you!? Who shoves something like that inside their body! I blocked it and this is what happened!]
“Oh, aha.”
No wonder his body was intact despite the explosion’s power—Eri must have blocked it hard. Honestly, Enoch had thought he’d be blown into hundreds of pieces.
[Don’t ever do anything that insane again!]
“Hmm… We’ll see.”
[Why!?]
“It might work.”
That’s life. If it works, jackpot. If not… well, just a shame.
“H-Hey, you’re awake? You absolute lunatic.”
Iris burst through the door, grumbling right away. She flopped into a nearby chair and ranted in words he couldn’t even follow.
“You know what you did? That plasma donut you made—they call something like that a tokamak, roughly. Never thought I’d live to see someone try shoving one inside their body to pull off nuclear fusion, let alone succeed. Unreal, man.”
“Why start with nonsense the second you walk in.”
“No, seriously, you don’t get it? Scale that up a bit, add some gravity, and it’s basically a star. And you crammed one in your gut.”
“Oh, a star?”
Engraving a star inside his body…
He’d already engraved one in his astral energy, so why not his body? If it worked, it’d be one hell of a result.
Oblivious to Enoch’s thoughts, Iris sighed and slumped back.
“Whatever. As long as you’re alive. Shit. One slip-up and the Sword Queen would’ve had your head.”
“Hmm. Probably?”
“…For real? I didn’t even do anything…”
“This whole territory might’ve gone up in smoke.”
Maybe it was overthinking, but Leone struck him as the type.
“That’s brutal… Oh, right. Since it’s come to this, tell me about the Sword Queen. I’m kinda curious. What’s she usually up to?”
“Leone? Anything worth being curious about?”
“Someone at her level probably never sets the sword down, right?”
“Nah? She barely uses it?”
She’d pick it up sometimes to poke at a campfire.
“Huh, unexpected. Makes sense, though—at that realm, no need for physical training. Mental imagery’s way more efficient.”
“Hmm…”
Mental training was imagining stuff in your head to cultivate, right? But Leone didn’t seem to do even that…
He held his tongue for her image’s sake.
“Does she elegantly enjoy tea times and such?”
“Oh, she likes tea.”
Not always elegantly—often lounging in bed—but he skipped that for her image.
“Figured. I don’t know much else, but hearing Sword Queen stories gets my heart racing. She’s so cool.”
“Yeah, she is. Super cool.”
This Iris girl—head a bit off, but good people. A human who could think straight.
“Anyway, what now? I dragged you into an experiment on a whim, but if you wanna leave, I won’t stop you.”
“Hmm… Well, I do need to head to the Elf Union.”
Training was the goal, but first, he had to get Yonia there. She could probably go alone, but watching her made him uneasy.
“No worries about me.”
Creak—Yonia opened the door, having overheard. Beside her stood a stranger in pristine white robes, looking a bit off in the head.
“Ah, you’re awake. The Heavenly God must have blessed you.”
“Heavenly God? Who’s that, and how’d they help me? Eri’s the one who did.”
“Uh…”
The man faltered, then chuckled awkwardly and approached the bedridden Enoch.
“That too must be the grace of the Heavenly God. Mind if I take your hand for a moment?”
Enoch shot Iris a look at the sudden request—clearly asking, ‘Who the hell is this guy?’ Iris sighed.
“He’s a priest. Just give it to him. He’s checking if the healing worked.”
“Aha.”
Enoch extended his hand, and the priest grasped it, channeling some energy as he spoke.
“I’m Enoch, priest of the Heavenly God Church. I heard your name’s Enoch too—any chance you’re a believer…? No, probably not.”
No believer would ask who their god was.
“Your parents must be devotees.”
Enoch meant ‘dedicated to the divine.’ Most with the name had religious folks for parents.
“Dunno? Maybe?”
Enoch replied vaguely, analyzing the odd energy flowing into him. Warm and cozy, if he had to categorize it. But strangely foreign.
Not fully the priest’s energy—like partial ownership lay elsewhere? Weird, but intriguing.
“Hmm, okay.”
He decided.
Better to stick around a bit longer. Plenty to learn here.
Figure out more about that plasma-fusion thing, and since he’d met a mage, dig into magic too. Hated studying, but for getting stronger…
No, he had to. Otherwise, Leone wouldn’t marry him.
“Yonia, mind if we stay longer?”
“Huh? Do what you want. I don’t care.”
“Won’t your family worry? You got kidnapped.”
“I ran away and got caught anyway—no one knows.”
“Oh…”
Was running away basic elf education? Then his half-elf claim from his own runaway days gained credibility.
“Perfect theory.”
Enoch nodded seriously.