Chapter 152
Chapter 152
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 152
Chapter Title: An Unexpected Reunion
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"Waaah!"
Do-jae held the small, gray-skinned girl and stroked her head.
Watching them, the dwarf with the bushy beard repeatedly wiped his nose, holding back the tears welling in his eyes.
"What's wrong...?"
Do-jae patted the back of the sobbing Sari and spoke in a gentle voice.
But Sari didn't calm down, continuing to weep uncontrollably.
The Gray Elves, bewildered to see their chief crying in the arms of a strange High Elf, hesitated to approach, unsure of what to do.
"Waaah! *Sniffle*!"
Sari didn't stop crying, sobbing so hard it seemed she could barely breathe.
Deciding he couldn't let this continue, Do-jae gently placed a hand on Sari's head.
"Sleep."
He then used 'Sleep', the highest-level spell he knew, to put Sari to sleep.
Seeing Sari slump over, Hamar could no longer hold back and rushed forward.
"What do you think you're doing!"
She pointed the tip of her sword at Do-jae's throat and shouted.
However, Do-jae slowly raised a hand, lowered the sword, and then took off the ring he was wearing.
"Gasp! He's human!"
"Eek! He's a human!"
The magic dispelled as the ring came off.
Do-jae's ears shortened, and his appearance returned to normal.
Seeing Do-jae transform into a human, both the Gray Elves and the Dwarves flinched in surprise.
Of course, the most surprised among them was Harkes.
"You...!"
Hamar, the only one besides Sari and Oson who knew what Do-jae looked like, finally retrieved her sword and relaxed.
She knew from the cup ramen incident that Do-jae wasn't a dangerous person.
"I just put her to sleep for a bit. Don't worry."
Do-jae took a robe out of his subspace and covered Sari with it.
Then he lifted Sari into his arms and handed her to Hamar.
Hamar held the small Sari in her arms as if she were a child.
"How...? The chief said she'd never see you again. But how are you here?"
"Circumstances. Is there a problem?"
At Do-jae's question, Hamar wore a conflicted expression.
Then, she finally managed to speak.
"...The chief missed you. I don't know the details, but I heard she experienced a similar parting long ago. Why show up now, of all times?"
Hamar's voice was sharp, almost accusatory.
Do-jae could understand her feelings, so he answered in a calm voice.
"Like I said, there were circumstances. It's not that I chose to appear before you now; our paths just happened to cross by chance..."
After that, Do-jae glanced around.
The Gray Elves were covered in wounds, both large and small.
And the Dwarves, who were relatively unscathed.
One side was too unharmed for the two races to have fought each other, and their relationship didn't seem bad.
This meant the Gray Elves had already been in continuous battles, which he figured was related to why they had left their village.
"And it looks like you all have your own circumstances..."
"...You're right."
Hamar looked down at Sari in her arms.
She was sleeping soundly, tear tracks still on her face.
"I guess I was only thinking of myself. I apologize."
"It's fine. Anyway, it's chaotic out here. Shall we go inside the temple?"
Do-jae said, looking at Heltein, who had a peculiar expression, and Harkes, who stood beside him with a dumbfounded look.
Hamar nodded and led the Gray Elves, while Oson wiped away his runny nose and spoke to the Dwarves.
"Everyone, let's head inside the temple!"
***
*Chatter-!*
Inside the temple, the Gray Elves and Dwarves enjoyed a leisurely rest, a rare moment of peace.
The Dwarves were especially generous, providing food and supplies to the starving Gray Elves, and the two races, once awkward with each other, quickly grew closer.
Do-jae also played a big part in this, generously opening his stores from subspace to provide food, medicine, and other items for the Gray Elves' recovery, instantly becoming a popular star.
"Master! My father and the villagers send their thanks!"
Oson came over to Do-jae and said.
Do-jae was disinfecting a wound on Hamar's arm.
"You don't have to call me 'Master' anymore, you know? I told you on the last day. You don't need to call me that."
"Once a master, always a master! It's already stuck to my tongue, I can't call you anything else."
"Do as you wish..."
Faced with Oson's triumphant attitude, Do-jae was at a loss for words.
What could he say when the man himself insisted on serving him as his master?
"I thought I'd never see you again, so it's really great to see you!"
"Same here. It's good to see you all again."
"Kuh... How great would it have been if old man Tahul were here too? I wonder what that fellow is up to."
"Haven't you heard any news?"
Oson shook his head.
"I haven't heard anything since that day. I only stayed in the Nightingale Forest for about a day before heading straight back to the village, and there isn't much interaction between elves and dwarves to begin with."
"I see. He's probably doing well, right? That old man is quite skilled himself."
Do-jae thought of Tahul, the skilled Gray Elf mage.
It wasn't for long, but he had done his best to teach Do-jae how to use magic.
Back then, he hadn't come to this other world of his own free will and had arrived so abruptly that he didn't have much to give, but this time, he had even prepared a gift for Tahul.
"That's right. Oson, I have a gift for you."
"Ooh! What is it!"
"It's quite a lot... one moment."
Do-jae opened his subspace.
*Thud-.*
*Thud-thud-thud-.*
A handful of various minerals poured out.
Oson's eyes widened. Hearing the sound of stones hitting the floor, the other Dwarves also showed great interest.
"This isn't all of it; there's a lot more."
"Woooah! Master...!"
"It's not an amount you can carry around, so I'll hold onto it for now and give it to you later."
"Thank you...!"
The minerals were things Do-jae had obtained from various boxes he got by clearing quests.
They were the same materials used in the giant-form Golem Armor when he fought Briareus.
Do-jae planned to give some of the ones with unknown uses to the Dwarves as a gift.
"Use them well, and don't let anyone take them."
"What do you mean by that...?"
Do-jae spotted Heltein in the distance, watching the Dwarves with a predatory smile.
His gaze suggested he was quite taken with these Dwarves.
"It's just something. Anyway, when you have time, make me two pairs of pretty earrings or necklaces."
"Of course! I can make them for you right now!"
"No, it's fine. Tell everyone to rest for now. It must have taken more than a day or two to get here from your village."
"Understood! Then I'll go check these out with my people!"
*Nod-.*
*Tighten-.*
"Kuh."
After Oson left, Do-jae tightly fastened the bandage on Hamar's arm.
Thanks to that, some dark blood seeped through the gauze and onto the bandage, but applying pressure like this would stop the bleeding faster and prevent infection.
"Here, drink this too."
Finally, he placed a low-grade potion in her hand.
It wouldn't have a huge effect, but it would boost her stamina and immunity to some extent, so it was definitely better than not drinking it.
"Thank you... Why are you doing all this for us?"
"I'm just repaying Sari for what she did for me. Give your thanks to your chief."
"......"
Hamar silently gazed at the sleeping Sari.
Then, as she tried to smooth out her tangled hair.
"Mmm..."
Sari, who had been fidgeting, soon slowly opened her eyes.
"When did I fall asleep...?"
Sari blinked her round eyes and looked around.
Hamar smiled warmly at her, and Do-jae gave a fatherly smile.
"You're awake?"
"...Do-jae!"
Sari stared blankly at Do-jae before exclaiming in a joyous voice.
The dark shadows under her eyes revealed how much she had suffered.
"I've heard the gist of it."
Do-jae glanced at Hamar.
Right after entering the temple, while treating the injured Gray Elves, he had heard from Hamar about what happened in the Nightingale Forest.
'Kuhutan', whose name Do-jae had slightly altered and borrowed, and 'Jukeui', who had helped sell ramen and enjoyed eating it.
And Sari's grandmother, 'Salireuna'.
He heard all about how their village was destroyed by monsters and how the Aktria Forest was completely burned down.
"So you've heard..."
"I'm sorry to hear that."
"It's okay. I've already grieved a lot, and we've arrived at Lady Elatra's temple. You were the one who put me to sleep, right Do-jae?"
"Yeah. You already looked exhausted, and I was afraid you'd pass out if you kept crying like that."
"Thank you."
Sari slowly got up and looked around the temple.
Now that she was awake and the simple treatments were done, it was time to go to the altar.
Because *she* had been watching everything from there.
But first, Harkes, who was sitting stock-still next to Heltein.
"Heltein. Leave Harkes alone."
"Huh? I didn't do anything."
"Then why is he sitting there without even twitching?"
"How should I know? Hey, mister? Is something wrong?"
Heltein called out to Harkes with an innocent face.
Harkes snapped to his senses and barely managed to open his mouth.
"Noth... Nothing! There's no problem!"
"See? He says he's fine."
Heltein shrugged.
Since the man himself insisted he was fine, there was nothing more Do-jae could do.
"Well then... Anyway, I was planning to just meet Elatra and leave, but running into the Dwarves and Gray Elves has delayed things. It looks like it'll take a bit more time. Are you okay with that, Harkes?"
Harkes started to shake his head, then met Heltein's eyes.
The shaking head immediately changed to a nod.
"I'm fine. There are many skilled Titan warriors in the village, so there's no major cause for concern yet... So please, take your time."
"Is that so? Understood. Heltein, what about you? I'm going to talk with Elatra now. If you have something to say too, you can come along."
"Elatra? Who's that?"
"Right... You stay here too. And stop staring at the Dwarves."
Over in a corner, a few of the Dwarves analyzing the minerals Do-jae had given them shivered.
"Ugh... Why do I feel a chill?"
"Oson, can we light a fire in here?"
The shivering Dwarves were all the ones Heltein had his eyes on.
"I'm just curious. Can't I even look?"
"You're scaring them."
"What's so scary? Anyway, fine."
Yet Heltein continued to stare at the Dwarves.
Leaving the incorrigible Heltein behind, Do-jae called Oson and Sari.
"Oson! Sari! Come here."
They also wanted to speak with Elatra.
Do-jae took a small box out of his subspace.
A box of 100 tea bags he had bought just in case a situation like this arose.
"When it comes to green tea, it's gotta be brown rice green tea."
Do-jae smiled and headed toward Elatra.