Chapter 42: The Elven Dance Festival (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 42: The Elven Dance Festival (1)
The party waited for Karami to recover before walking the short remaining distance. They took one more step, and a landscape so stunning it felt as if it had burst into existence with a dramatic whoosh appeared before them.
Roads and houses wound their way around the base of towering trees, built into the very land itself. This was an elven village.
Karami felt a surge of emotion, wondering how many people in the world had ever made it this far.
“The guardians are back?”
“Who did they bring with them? They’re not elves.”
The forest grew noisy. The gazes of the elves, who had been going about their business, turned one by one to the party.
One all-purpose slave.
Two all-purpose slaves.
Three all-purpose slaves…
Karami hurriedly shook his head, banishing the thought.
‘I’m a good slave trader, after all.’
I couldn’t just force people who were living peacefully into slavery. Of course not. That would be wrong.
“What is all this commotion?”
“Elder.”
As an elderly elf approached, leaning on a staff, the guardians showed their respects.
His features were a blend of refined elegance and handsome grace. The deep lines of age etched into his face only added to his classical air, not detracting from it in the slightest.
But this elven elder’s movements seemed somewhat pained.
“Ah, Alfia?”
“Hello, Elder…”
He was the elf who had been shot in the butt during Alfia’s archery debut. Alfia shrank back, clearly uncomfortable facing the elven elder.
“What are you doing here? I’m certain you were strictly forbidden from entering the village…”
The elder’s eyes narrowed. As a high elf who had lived for what felt like eons, his eyes could see things others could not.
“What is that on your soul?”
For instance, the shackles bound to Alfia’s soul.
“It’s the mark of a slave. I’ve become a slave, you see.”
The old Alfia would have tried to hide it, feeling tainted, but not anymore. She stepped forward with a dignified air.
“A slave?”
“Alfia was captured as a slave?”
A stir went through the crowd.
The elder was just as flustered, but not for long. He slammed his staff on the ground and roared in a weighty voice.
“Quiet! Quiet!”
The crowd barely settled down. The elder took a breath, regained his composure, and stared at her soul. He could see where the shackles extended from.
“This human is the master.”
“That’s right. I am Karami, a slave trader, Elder.”
“What business does a slave trader have here? Did you come to enslave other elves as well?”
Hiiik! The elves let out shrill screams.
Adult elves hid the young ones in their homes.
In an atmosphere so tense it felt like sharp blades were hanging in the air, Karami let out a hearty laugh.
“Anyone who didn’t know the situation would misunderstand. I merely rescued Alfia when she was being abducted by ruffians; I have no hobby of forcibly enslaving people.”
“Abducted?”
The elder tilted his head as if he’d never heard the story before.
“Oh my, you didn’t know? Then again, why would you have time to care about someone you cast out of the village? You would have lived your whole life in ignorance, even if she were being brutally treated at the hands of humans.”
As the elder remained silent, Karami continued, a sly smile playing on his lips.
“But don’t you worry. I brought her back safe and sound. I’ve heard that elves are a race that never forgets a debt of gratitude. Surely you wouldn’t harm the benefactor of your own kin, would you? Nah, no way. You wouldn’t do something that would drag the pride your ancestors have built for thousands of years through the mud, would you?”
“…What do you want?”
The flow of the conversation had shifted to him. Karami casually slipped out of the encirclement and sauntered around.
“Nothing much. For Miss Alfia to participate in The Elven Dance Festival. And a guarantee of my safety during the festival.”
“Alfia can’t even handle a bow, let alone spirits. The outcome is as clear as day…”
“If it’s so obvious, then there’s no reason to refuse, is there?”
“Why is a slave trader so obsessed with The Elven Dance Festival? What are you after?”
“What I’m after…”
Karami swept his gaze around. The elves were watching as if it were some thrilling spectacle.
They acted all high and mighty, but to Karami, they were no different from humans.
“I plan to crush the pride you’ve all built up with the slave I’ve raised.”
*
He was detained.
Not to the level of a prisoner locked in a cell, but he was watched to ensure he didn’t wander around freely.
‘Still, the accommodations aren’t half bad.’
The space was filled with the rich scent of nature.
The bed made of leaves was quite soft.
Well, he’d made plenty of enemies, but it didn’t matter. He had secured a promise of safety from the elven elder’s own lips.
Their racial passive was basically ‘Old and Stuck in Their Ways.’
And being so set in their ways, they would never dare defy their elder’s command.
Slurp.
He drank an unidentifiable, thick liquid.
It was sweet and sour, and delicious.
Rustle, rustle.
“Eek!”
“What’s wrong?”
“A bug just now.”
“I thought it was something serious.”
Alfia let out a hollow laugh.
The bug was the size of a human hand! If it were any bigger, it would’ve swallowed my head!
He screamed internally, but perhaps deciding he wasn’t worth responding to, Alfia sighed and gazed out the window, her eyes full of worry.
“What are you so worried about now?”
“I’m worried about the Dance Festival. Do you know who won the last competition?”
“Isn’t it Leon?”
Alfia’s gaze snapped back to me. She looked surprised.
“How did you know?”
“He’s wearing the laurel wreath, isn’t he? It’s awarded to the greatest elven warrior of the generation.”
“My master knows all sorts of things.”
With a bitter smile, Alfia looked out the window again and began to lament.
“Leon was always good at everything. Archery, spirits, leadership. He became a Forest Guardian and then the youngest captain. After Leon became captain of the guardians, intruders couldn’t even set foot in the forest.”
“Even so, he’s just a big fish in a small pond.”
“You’re probably the only person who would call Leon a frog in a well.”
Alfia giggled.
“Do you think I’ll lose?”
“I don’t know. But whether I win or lose, will I ever be able to live among them?”
“Even I don’t know the answer to that.”
I had no way of fathoming the wounds Alfia had accumulated over so many years. I couldn’t offer clumsy reassurances that winning would solve everything.
Still, as her master, there was something I could say to my slave.
“You don’t have to force yourself to thaw your heart just to fit in. If things get bad, we can just go to Noctar.”
She had her Master, and she got along well with the kids. Her bright, fruity personality didn’t suit these stuffy elves.
Alfia nodded as if in agreement.
“That’s true. And now…”
Alfia lowered her head slightly and looked up at me. Was this that famous flattering angle people used for pictures? Coming from an elf like Alfia, the effect was devastating.
She stared at me like that for a while.
“Is there something you want to say?”
“There is, but.”
Though Alfia said she had something to say, she kept her mouth shut.
Then, the corners of her mouth curved into a mischievous crescent moon.
“Later.”
“?”
“I’ll tell you later.”
*
After a few days of lazing around, the day finally came.
The village was decorated with flowers. The sound of elven songs drifted on the wind, spreading far throughout the forest.
The festive atmosphere announced the start of The Elven Dance Festival.
The sight of children running about and female elves cooking was a scene one might see at any festival.
But that alone wasn’t enough. Just as movies are the unwritten rule for popcorn, delicious food requires entertaining spectacle.
“Contestants for the competition, come this way!”
The elf Ise, who was overseeing the Dance Festival, called the people together. Those confident in their skills, including the Forest Guardians, gathered one by one.
Alfia also went there and waited for her turn.
“Hey, mister.”
“Hm? Is that you, Alfia? It’s been quite a while. Are you here to participate too?”
“Yeah.”
“Participation is open to all, so I won’t stop you, but please, I’m begging you, don’t go berserk like last time. I’ve grown quite fond of my current house.”
The reason Alfia was banished from the village: the Berserk Spirit Incident.
Ise’s house had been one of the many burned down back then. It was a long time ago, and she didn’t remember it well, but she felt sorry nonetheless and scratched the back of her head.
The Mischievous Flower, Alfia Liliand.
Ise added Alfia’s name to the list.
“What? Are you really entering the competition?”
Just then, a group of young elves approached Alfia.
“Irina…”
If Leon was a steadfast object of comparison, Irina and her gang were the ones who took the lead in ostracizing Alfia.
Compared to Leon, she could at least dismiss it with a ‘we’re just different people.’ But it was hard to pretend she couldn’t hear the constant stream of insults from them.
If Leon was an awkward opponent, these elves she clearly hated.
“I heard you became a slave. Are you really trying your hardest to tarnish the dignity of the elves?”
“I didn’t do anything.”
“Your very existence does.”
“What’s the point of talking? Would she even understand? She’s lived her whole life being a nuisance.”
This wasn’t backbiting, but blatant criticism right to her face.
In the past, she would have lost control of her emotions and lunged at them, and her spirits would have run wild in sympathy, but not anymore.
Alfia paid them no mind.
“The competition will begin shortly! Contestants, go retrieve your weapons!”
The elves began to gather in one place.
“You’d better hope you don’t run into me.”
Irina bumped Alfia’s shoulder as she walked past.
Judging that everyone had gathered, Ise began to explain the rules of the competition.
“The rules are simple. Tie this string to your bow. If the string comes off, you’re eliminated.”
The Elven Dance Festival was a last-man-standing competition.
All participating elves would enter the forest and fight until only one remained.
It wasn’t just about archery skill; tracking, survival skills, and how well one utilized nature were also important.
The elves received green strings and tied them to their respective bows. As she tied the string to her bow, Irina spoke up.
“Hey, you. Wanna make a bet?”
“A bet?”
“I’ll bet you’re the first one eliminated.”
“Oh, I’m in.”
“Me too, me too!”
Without even asking for Alfia’s opinion, the elves jumped in one after another. The bet was already a foregone conclusion.
Seeing the elves siding with her, Irina didn’t hide her sly smile.
“Alfia, by any chance, do you not have a bow?”
Ise asked.
Everyone else was tying strings to their bows, but Alfia just stood there blankly.
“Yeah. It broke last time.”
The elves sneered, and Leon simply watched the scene in silence. Irina clutched her stomach and cackled.
“To think she’d enter without a bow… without a bow!”
“I have a spare bow, would you like to use it?”
“Um, no. It’s fine.”
“If you don’t have a bow, you can’t participate…”
Alfia looked straight at Irina.
“I accept.”
“What?”
“I accept. The bet.”
Her attitude was confident.
Irina had expected Alfia to know her place and grovel, but instead, she was acting all high and mighty.
The corner of Irina’s eye twitched. Ha! She let out a scoff and swept her bangs back as if to suppress her anger.
“Fine? Let’s do it. What should I get if I win… Ah, right. Alfia. How about we shorten your ears a bit? Then you won’t look like an elf, and we can preserve at least a little of the elves’ honor.”
“……”
“And another thing: never set foot in this forest again. Get lost with that inferior human.”
“Fine by me.”
Alfia answered impassively.
Irina’s mouth twitched as if in a spasm.
“I have no idea where you get this confidence from. Not that I care. What do you want if you win? Should I cut my own ears?”
“I don’t need anything.”
“What?”
Alfia extended her hand.
A link opened.
The brand on her hand began to glow.
“What do you mean, you don’t need anything?”
“I’m not betting anything.”
Seven-colored light gathered.
The light condensed and condensed, forming a small orb.
The elves stared at the light as if mesmerized. The brilliant thing was a spirit everyone knew, yet a spirit no one knew.
Irina’s jaw dropped open uncouthly, and she couldn’t seem to close it.
“You, that thing…”
Alfia clenched her fist around the orb.
FWOOSH!
The light spread out long to the left and right.
The shape the light took was a bow.
A spirit bow, shining with seven colors.
“I’m not betting anything.”
Alfia gave Irina a smile.
A smile that was the spitting image of someone else’s.
“Because making a bet when you already know the outcome isn’t a bet. It’s a scam.”