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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Lord Fourth
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The elven city where the fiend was said to have appeared was located on the border with the northern Empire. After all the trouble of teleporting to Elvendel, we were heading back towards the Empire.
It felt like a waste, but with the Elven King’s ultimatum, we had no other choice. The journey itself wasn’t long. The Elven King, in a final act of conscience, had lent us a flying carriage.
It was pulled by some mythical beast—a unicorn or monoceros or something—and the ride was surprisingly smooth. Even Ophelia didn’t get motion sick.
Perhaps that was why she was bold enough to say.
“Hey, I have a question.”
“What is it?”
“What do you think about the offer that Elven King made earlier?”
“What offer?”
“The one about marrying you off to that old hag.”
Ophelia’s gaze shifted to Erwin, who was sitting across from her. Erwin was smiling, but it wasn’t a real smile. A chill ran down my spine.
“You’re not… seriously considering that marriage proposal, are you?”
Ophelia asked cautiously. Emily, who had been listening silently, covered her mouth.
For a gossip-lover like Emily, this conversation must have been like a morning soap opera.
In any case, for Ophelia to ask about the marriage so directly, she had certainly become more forward since the fireworks festival.
“Well…”
But Ophelia was most enjoyable when she was being teased. So, with a faint smile, I said.
“What would you do if I were to seriously consider the marriage?”
“…Pfft?”
It was the sound of Erwin, who had just taken a sip of water, spitting it out. I had intended to tease Ophelia, but I had caught a different fish. Erwin began to stammer.
“H-Hero. I understand your feelings, but I… with a human…”
“A human?”
Ophelia, annoyed, gritted her teeth and glared at Erwin.
“Did you just call him a mere human? You old maid?”
“Old… maid?”
Erwin’s expression hardened. I quickly pulled Ophelia towards me.
“What are you doing?”
“But she called you a mere human!”
“Do you want me to get married?”
“W-well, no, but…”
“Then you have no reason to be angry.”
“That’s that, and this is this!”
She headbutted my chin. I had no idea what she wanted.
“Hahaha.”
Alberich laughed out loud, but quickly cleared his throat and straightened up when he received glares from both Erwin and Ophelia.
“…The future looks bleak.”
Azar shook his head, looking at the chaotic scene.
The elven city where the fiend was said to have appeared was named Melt Rune. It was less a city and more of a sprawling village made up of small hamlets. This loose structure was probably why the fiend was able to run rampant.
The atmosphere in the city was not just unsettled, but hostile. The people, or rather, the elves, were all holed up in their homes, with their doors and windows bolted shut. There was no welcoming atmosphere for outsiders.
Even the village guards looked at us with wary eyes. Considering the elves’ inherent xenophobia, this might have been a generous reception for foreigners visiting at such a bad time.
“These pointy-eared bastards, what are we supposed to do in this situation?”
Ophelia grumbled. Erwin pretended not to hear. A true model of adult behavior.
“Let’s start by investigating the area. I’ve tracked fiends a few times, so it shouldn’t be too difficult.”
This was true. During my time with the Black Eagle Mercenary Group, I had tracked down and killed several fiends that had been preying on us.
Azar also seemed to have some experience, as he nodded.
“We’ll need the cooperation of the guards. Master Archer, perhaps you could speak to them.”
The saving grace was that Erwin was the chieftain of a major tribe in the Great Forest. The Elven King had probably sent her with us for this very reason. She shrugged.
“Leave it to your big sister.”
“Big sister, my ass.”
Ophelia sneered, but Erwin ignored her again.
But before Erwin could act on her words, a well-dressed elven man emerged from the city guard post, shaking his head.
“I’m sorry, but this is our jurisdiction.”
“What do you mean? We were sent by the Elven King. We’re here to help.”
“I know. But Melt Rune has its own rules.”
The man introduced himself as Badarin, the captain of the guard.
“This is the territory of our Redric Tribe. As it is our jurisdiction, we can handle it ourselves.”
“….”
“I’m sorry, but please leave. We will deal with the fiend ourselves.”
“I heard there have been many missing persons.”
When I chimed in, Badarin glared at me. As if to say, this is not a matter for a mere human to interfere in.
“Stay out of it. That is also the responsibility of our Redric Tribe. We appreciate your concern, but it’s not a matter for outsiders, especially humans, to worry about.”
“….”
Erwin bit her lower lip, flustered. Contrary to what I thought, the tribes of the Great Forest seemed to be quite independent. If Badarin was going to be this uncooperative, there was nothing Erwin could do.
She was currently accompanying us as Erwin, the Master Archer, not as the chieftain of the Binheim Tribe, so she couldn’t exercise her authority.
In the end, we left the guard post empty-handed, and as soon as we were outside, Erwin slammed her fist on the railing.
“Damn it!”
“Well, you said to leave it to you.”
At Ophelia’s remark, Erwin’s eyelid twitched. She repeatedly slammed the railing, then turned her head. Towards the guard post.
“Those Redric bastards are just too proud. They’re idiots who think their tribe’s honor will be tarnished if someone sent by the Elven King solves the problem.”
“Just like the Holy City.”
Ophelia chuckled and muttered. I lightly flicked her forehead.
“Anyway, if they’re going to be like that… what should we do?”
Emily said, and Alberich put his hand on his chin, lost in thought.
“They’ll probably try to obstruct and monitor us at every turn. I’ve seen such power struggles lead to casualties.”
“That Elven King bastard, he probably sent us here knowing this would happen.”
It seemed the troublesome problem the Elven King had mentioned wasn’t just the fiend.
In the end, we had to deal with the fiend while also keeping an eye on the Redric Tribe’s warriors. In a way, the difficulty was much higher than in the original story.
“Is there no other way?”
Azar asked, scratching the back of his neck.
“There is.”
I stood up.
“I’ve hunted fiends several times during my mercenary days. Their behavior patterns are simple. They’re smarter than monsters, but not smarter than humans.”
I gently pressed on Ophelia’s head and said.
“In other words, we just have to use our heads.”
“Why are you pressing on my head!”
“Because in this plan, Ophelia, you have a big role to play.”
I explained the gist of the plan. A fiend’s favorite prey is weak humans.
That’s why fiends usually target children or the elderly, who are less likely to resist. But fiends are usually male, and they are slaves to one of the three great human desires: lust.
There was even a time when Lyla was almost captured by a fiend during an expedition beyond the Wall and nearly lost her dignity as a member of her race.
“What does that have to do with anything?”
Ophelia asked rather bluntly.
“We’ll use a bait.”
“A bait?”
“We’ll wander around nearby. Disguised as the kind of prey a fiend can’t resist.”
I thought for a moment, then gave our operation a name.
“Operation Little Red Riding Hood.”
“Little Red… Riding Hood?”
“It’s a thing.”
I clapped my hands in response to Emily’s mutter.
“So, we’ll lure the fiend with this operation. We used this method to lure out and kill several fiends in the north.”
Everyone seemed to understand. It’s not for me to say, but I’m probably one of the humans who has killed the most demons, monsters, and fiends on this continent. So my words must have carried some weight.
“…Hmm.”
Of course, Ophelia raised an objection.
“So, if you’re right, Elliot, one of us has to be the bait.”
“That’s right. We need a frail-looking girl to play the part of the bait. But she needs to be able to take care of herself. For example, she should be skilled in swordsmanship, or be able to use defensive magic, or both.”
“Where are we going to find someone like that? Defensive magic? Swordsmanship? A woman who can do both? Are you going to pull her out of a dream or something?”
Ophelia said sarcastically, but we didn’t answer.
“….”
“….”
A moment of silence. Everyone’s gaze was on Ophelia.
“…Huh, me?”
Ophelia tilted her head.
—-
“Damn it.”
Ophelia muttered. The stones and twigs underfoot were annoying.
The rustling sound was followed by an eerie wind whistling through the trees.
“Why do I have to suffer this indignity….”
The role of the bait was unanimously given to Ophelia. It was true that there was no other way. First of all, Ophelia looks like a frail girl. But she has enough close-combat skills to deal with a fiend’s attack, and she can create a barrier and launch shockwaves with divine magic.
In other words, there was no one better suited for the role of bait than Ophelia. But understanding and accepting are two different things.
“That, that bastard Elliot, daring to push me into this kind of situation.”
Naturally, the arrow of her hatred was directed at Elliot.
It was cold. More than cold, it was scary.
Since leaving the Holy City, Ophelia had always been with Elliot, so she had never even considered the idea of walking alone in a dark forest. As she tried to support her trembling legs and move forward.
“….”
The sound of a twig snapping. Right next to her. Ophelia threw off her cloak and put her hand on her hip. At the same time.
Whoosh!
Something flew at her, and she raised her hand and cast a divine spell. A golden concentric circle spread out, and the surroundings were instantly illuminated. And, the object thrown by the attacker stopped in mid-air and fell at Ophelia’s feet.
After that, there were no more attacks.
After confirming that there was no presence, Ophelia checked the object that had fallen on the ground.
“…An arrow?”
It was an arrow. With a small piece of paper tied to the end.
“…Elliot, do fiends use bows?”
She spoke to Elliot through the long-distance communication magic Emily had cast. He answered after a moment.
[Probably… not.]
“Then what is this?”
[…It seems the fiend isn’t our only enemy. Or maybe, it wasn’t a fiend at all.]
Those words sent a shiver down Ophelia’s spine.
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Hi Lord Fourth here!
I’m still new to translating as this is my second novel to pick up, so if you find some mistakes or inconsistencies let me know about it on the dedicated channel on discord.
Its always the xenophobics