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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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After a brief self-introduction.
We were quickly guided to our accommodations.
It seemed they had to call back the residents who had just evacuated.
And they also had to deal with the chaotic scene caused by the fire, so the atmosphere was quite hectic. So they asked for our understanding and time to sort out the situation.
“Wow! I was a bit worried since it’s a house inside a tree. But the interior is spotless?”
The accommodations we were guided to were of the highest level, to the point where it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call them top-class.
From the outside, it looked like a house made by hollowing out a thick tree.
But once inside, there were wooden floors and wallpaper, a lifestyle far removed from the traditional elven style.
Whenever I had visited Elvenguard before, I always had to sleep in a hammock in a house covered with bumpy vines, which was so uncomfortable I thought I would go crazy.
So they had separate accommodations for outsiders like this, but they deliberately put me in that kind of place?
Suddenly, anger welled up inside me.
“Phew! After sleeping leaning against a hard wagon, lying on a bed feels like I’m going to live!”
Plop.
Perhaps tired of maintaining her dignity as a noble lady, Alicia immediately flopped face-first onto the bed as soon as she saw it.
She just tossed her luggage aside and lay still, simply breathing.
She must have been very tired.
I thought she was going to sleep like that.
But as if remembering something, Alicia abruptly sat up.
Then she quickly took out a pen and paper from her luggage and started scribbling something.
“Ah, right. I forgot to report to my sister.”
“You’re going to tell Yerina you came to Elvenguard?”
“If I finished the investigation in Basel and don’t return soon, she’ll get suspicious.”
“If it’s something like that, it’s better to write that you went to a different region instead of Elvenguard.”
“Why?”
“Yerina might track me down because of your report. Don’t tell me you want to see me get caught by Yerina and become the king of Palana by marrying her…”
“Ah, I got it! I won’t say I came to Elvenguard!”
Alicia, startled, shouted and tore up the paper she had written a few characters on.
It seemed the idea of me marrying Yerina was that scary to her.
I was scared too.
Even more than you are.
“But… where should I say I went?”
“Just say you went somewhere random.”
“No. My sister will definitely pry and ask for details.”
“Hmm. That’s true. You have it tough too.”
I thought she only poured out questions like that to me.
But it seemed she was doing the same to Alicia.
Suddenly, I started feeling a sense of kinship with Alicia.
“I only studied magic since I was young… The only places I know are the magic society branches, the Magic Tower, and some parts of the north…”
“Then should I help you a bit?”
“How?”
“I’ve traveled to many cities. I’ll give you an explanation that has no gaps no matter what questions Yerina asks. Is there anywhere you want to go?”
“I… wanted to visit the Clockwork City.”
“The dwarf city? Didn’t you dislike dwarves?”
“Aside from my personal feelings, I think the dwarves’ technology is impressive. I heard the Clockwork City is full of interesting magic tools made with clockwork and steam engines.”
“There are a ton.”
“You’ve been to the Clockwork City too?!”
“Of course.”
There were so many magic tools that could only be obtained there.
No matter what direction I took the rounds in, I ended up visiting it at least once.
“What’s it like there? Do clockwork dolls really walk around on the streets?”
“There used to be a lot in the past, but I heard they’ve decreased lately. Their efficiency was too low, so they lost popularity. When you first enter the Clockwork City, fog is everywhere to the point where you can barely see ahead, and the air is terribly acrid from the smog. It makes you wonder if people can really live in a place like this. But in the bustling area centered around the giant clock tower, there are all sorts of magic tool shops lined up…”
Alicia, who seemed interested, sat next to me and listened obediently, her eyes shining brightly.
I thought she was just a nerd only interested in magic until now.
But she unexpectedly had a taste for oddities.
One explanation led to one question.
Another explanation led to two questions.
The conversation about the Clockwork City kept going on and on.
Even though I had already talked about everything Yerina was likely to ask, it didn’t end.
It felt like Alicia didn’t want it to end.
“…Yoo-jin.”
“Oh. What.”
“…Need to. See something.”
“I’ll go check something out for a bit. This should be enough to bluff Yerina, right?”
“Ah…”
The lengthy explanation session ended when Undecided bumped her forehead against my back with a thud.
I was finally free.
Leaving behind Alicia, who seemed a bit disappointed, I let Undecided grab my sleeve and lead me away.
Judging by how she dragged me to the next room, it must be a conversation that had to be kept secret from Alicia.
“What’s the matter?”
“…”
Without any response.
Undecided just kept tugging on my sleeve, demanding that I lower my posture.
Sighing, I knelt down, and Undecided opened her mouth.
I could see saliva pooling inside her mouth like a thread.
“…Haa. Nom nom.”
“Are you hungry?”
“…No. Just want to bite.”
Undecided grabbed my shoulders and bit my neck hard.
It seemed she was biting with more force than usual.
The marks would probably be quite large this time.
Undecided didn’t stop there and bit the other side of my neck too.
She bit both of my arms quite evenly as well.
She must have been really bored.
Should I buy her a chew toy?
“Did you chew, bite, taste, and enjoy to your heart’s content?”
“…Right. Yoo-jin. The reason. I called you.”
As if finally remembering the forgotten reason, Undecided quickly ran to the back.
So she did have something to discuss.
I thought she just called me to take a few bites.
“…This.”
In the hands of Undecided, who had returned at some point, was the black mana stone.
The mana stone that had sealed Ifrit.
“…It’s broken.”
“What?”
What do you mean?
I received the mana stone and held it in my hand, but it really didn’t show any effect.
It wasn’t functioning as a mana stone at all.
“Oh no…”
Now that I looked closer, the red color inside the mana stone seemed to have increased a bit.
Could it be that Ifrit was trying to break through this mana stone and come out?
Perhaps Ifrit would escape from the mana stone and cause chaos again.
There wasn’t much time.
As the sun set, flower buds that had been closed throughout Elvenguard opened, emitting a soft and warm light.
As a result, places with many trees weren’t dark like night, but bright.
The scenery of Elvenguard, harmonized with nature, was quite beautiful even in broad daylight.
But the nighttime view had a different kind of beauty.
“This way, please.”
At a rather late hour.
We were invited to dinner and headed to the dining hall.
The elders were waiting inside.
It seemed to have taken quite some time for them to deal with the situation.
“A dish using lamb…”
“Meat?!”
Alicia’s face, which had been unenthusiastic at first, brightened up.
She must have thought she would have to eat something like bay leaf konnyaku or pine bark stew.
They couldn’t serve such inferior dishes, not even on par with British food, to the heroes who had saved Elvenguard.
Perhaps because she had eaten something subpar at the way station. Alicia made a very blissful expression while eating the lamb.
From my perspective, it seemed below average…
Well, anything would taste good when you’re hungry.
“I had the impression that the elders of Elvenguard were all stiff people.”
“Hahaha. Elvenguard may seem more closed off compared to other countries, but we also engage in diplomacy. It would be a failure as an elder to treat esteemed guests stiffly.”
The banquet proceeded in a quite friendly atmosphere.
At first, there was no important conversation.
Just building rapport.
Alicia seemed accustomed to such occasions, as she kept engaging in conversation.
I felt awkward and uncomfortable, so I kept falling into silence.
“Is it tasty?”
“…Not really.”
Fortunately, there was food that Undecided could eat as well.
Sheep’s blood sausage.
She seemed to find the taste unpleasant, constantly frowning and nibbling on it.
Still, it would look less awkward than not eating anything at all.
“How would you like your drink?”
“Trium, please.”
“Yes. Please wait a moment.”
Perhaps because we were in the city of elves.
The drink Yulia had taught me came to mind, and I ended up ordering it.
The drink I ordered arrived.
As the alcohol flowed and the atmosphere became more relaxed.
The elders gradually started bringing up important topics.
“Regarding your reward for saving Elvenguard. Is there anything in particular you would like to receive?”
They abruptly used the “How much have you looked into it?” tactic.
These guys also engaged in haggling.
“…”
Alicia stared at me intently.
The decision-making power was indeed with me.
Alicia had been singing about receiving money since the accommodations.
Unfortunately, I didn’t have much desire for money.
It wasn’t like I was going to start a big business.
In the end, it was money that would disappear once I returned to reality.
As long as I had enough money to travel the world without difficulty and buy mana stones and equipment without worries, that was sufficient.
Just receiving support from Cornelia was already more than enough.
“Mr. Cheon Michael Jackson. Have you thought about…”
“Cough! Hack! Ugh!”
“Are you alright?!”
I wasn’t alright.
Suddenly choking, I had to suffer for a while, coughing.
‘I should choose more normal aliases from now on.’
When the elders asked for my name.
I blurted out whatever came to mind at that moment without filtering, and such an alias came out.
It would be a big problem if I burst out laughing every time I heard my alias.
I should refrain from using such unique aliases in the future.
“You asked how I want to be rewarded, right?”
It was a bit of a dilemma.
As expected, even I was a bit materialistic, so my heart wavered a little when the opportunity arose to obtain a fortune.
I also had the urge to just stay here, establish my own kingdom, and live extravagantly.
‘There’s no way that would work.’
Of course, it was all a fantasy.
Our main heroines who had regained their memories would quickly find me and beat me to a pulp.
As long as those girls existed, there would never be a happy otherworld life for me.
My deliberation was over.
“I heard the priestess of the World Tree makes amazing prophecies. I would like to hear a prophecy.”
“Ah… Prophecies don’t come out whenever desired. It might take a long time, and even if you hear it, the content is quite vague, so it won’t be as useful as you think.”
“It’s still fine. If time is the issue, I’ll wait until the prophecy comes out.”
Alicia widened her eyes and glared at me.
Her eyes seemed to ask if I was really going to give up a fortune and receive a mere prophecy.
Of course, the value of saving Elvenguard couldn’t be settled with just one prophecy.
“And additionally, I want information.”
“What kind of information? We will tell you everything we know.”
“The reason why the Great Spirit of Fire went on a rampage and tried to burn down Elvenguard and the World Tree. That’s what I’m curious about.”
“Ah…!”
Alicia let out a sigh, seemingly greatly disappointed.
Of course, I had no intention of changing my mind.
“You want to know the reason why the Great Spirit of Fire went on a rampage…”
“Oh my…”
The elders’ mouths all closed at once, and they glanced at each other with troubled expressions.
As expected, Ifrit couldn’t have suddenly gone berserk for no reason.
There must be some reason, and the elders couldn’t possibly not know about it.
I couldn’t leave with just an appropriate reward without knowing the reason for Ifrit’s rampage.
If I left without knowing this, I felt like I would be restless and unable to sleep at night for the next year.
Because I had a personality that couldn’t stand not knowing what I was curious about.
And above all, the mana stone in which I had imprisoned Ifrit was causing trouble.
Seeing the red light continuously growing, Ifrit’s escape wasn’t far off.
What would happen if I released Ifrit back here?
The calamity of Elvenguard would resume.
To prevent such a thing from happening, I had to find and eliminate the reason for Ifrit’s extreme anger.
“That’s… It’s confidential… Is there anything else…”
“I don’t need anything else. If it’s not that information, I won’t accept anything else.”
“…”
The elders sighed and exchanged glances.
Was it such an important secret?
Still, compared to the entirety of Elvenguard burning down, it should be a small price to pay.
Just as I was getting bored, wondering what they were deliberating for so long.
Thud…!
“Priestess?!”
“Sit down. I’m fine.”
As the door opened, a girl with her face covered by a white veil appeared.
The elders were startled and stood up.
Mia gestured for the elders to calm down.
The priestess, who had approached the round table, made eye contact with me through her vaguely visible eyes beneath the veil.
I didn’t expect the priestess to personally make an appearance.
“I can tell you the reason why the Great Spirit of Fire, Ifrit, went on a rampage. However, it’s a critical secret to Elvenguard’s security, so can you promise not to disclose it to any outsiders?”
“Of course. I will keep it confidential.”
“The story is quite long.”
Mia took a deep breath and then opened her eyes again.
It seemed she was about to begin a long tale.
I sat comfortably, adjusting my posture to indicate I was ready.
“Actually, about 3 months ago. A dungeon appeared at the roots of the World Tree.”
“…?”
Huh?
There’s a dungeon at the roots of the World Tree?
Why was I hearing a story I had never heard before…?
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