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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Ruby
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Yuma selected the people to take to the Race Council.
First, Representative Empress Brigitte and himself were already decided.
‘I guess I’ll just take everyone I’ve been traveling with.’
Bell and Cloney were a foregone conclusion.
Yuma considered the experience these two would gain as most important.
Tisha, a royal of Mullen, didn’t seem like she would avoid facing many races.
Yuma asked Tisha and Hestia directly.
As expected, positive answers came from both.
Hestia’s quietly muttered response was particularly memorable.
“Finally get to see those fellow clansmen after so long.”
And they decided to take another Sword Master from the White Night clan who wasn’t Bell.
The party wasn’t just Yuma’s people.
Brigitte’s direct guard of 30 members were personnel who had to accompany Brigitte when she moved as Empress.
All were Expert-class and above.
And Michael, who commanded them, was a Sword Master.
From the perspective of Brigitte’s advisors, even this felt unsafe, but when they heard Grand Duke Yuma would accompany them, those concerns disappeared completely.
That’s how all the departure members were decided.
The next day, Yuma called his companions to the back gate of the imperial palace.
And beside them stood 9 elves in a row.
“We behold the pinnacle of the great Astes, Empress Brigitte.”
The elves, including Ishera who had already greeted them yesterday, bowed to Brigitte.
Mulius, the captain of the elven guard unit, and the guards showed respect toward Yuma.
“We behold Grand Duke Yuma.”
The elves’ eyes looking at Yuma were full of goodwill and interest.
And they also gave bright greetings to the rest of the party.
The elves’ expressions were clearly full of welcome.
Cloney also bowed her head to receive the greeting.
‘Ah, didn’t Big Sister Hestia say not to easily trust the kindness of elves…?’
Cloney recalled the Elf Mask Theory that Hestia, who rarely became serious, had spoken of with quite a serious face.
“Yes, nice to meet you.”
“Nice to meet you.”
Tisha and Hestia also appropriately received the elves’ greetings.
The guard captain Mulius’s gaze that had been directed at Tisha and Hestia turned toward Brigitte.
“You have merfolk and feline folk in your party as well? How surprising.”
Brigitte nodded.
“They are all connected to us.”
The elves’ ambiguous gazes were felt.
But Tisha and Hestia didn’t pay much mind.
They knew very well that elves weren’t as friendly to other races as their appearance suggested.
Hestia organized her thoughts internally.
‘Well, we who have gathered around Yuma are quite unusual to begin with.’
It wasn’t easy for races that originally had no interaction to get along.
Elves were just famous for having particularly bad tempers among them.
She thought it would be fine as long as no problems arose between them.
“Shall we depart?”
At Ishera’s words, all members nodded.
The party then headed toward the Third Sacred Ground of Albheim.
The elves were all riding pure white horses.
Yuma was riding Hector, the black warhorse he had formed a bond with since the war against Pineon.
The party advanced without hindrance through grass and forest.
Nine days passed like that.
After crossing plains, they reached a thickly wooded grassland.
The day was quickly growing dark.
What appeared before them was a massive circular terrain.
Numerous tents were arranged within the circular area.
Everyone in Yuma’s party looked with clear eyes at the different races within the circle.
Cat ears like those only seen on Hestia were visible.
Feline folk with cat ears of various colors could be seen.
Clop… clop…
The horses entered the circular terrain at greatly reduced speed.
Next visible were the Lycanthropes, whose overall appearance was like wolves but had a muscular abdomen reminiscent of humans and leg skeletal structure that could firmly step on the ground.
Grrrr…
The Lycanthropes watched the entry of those who were half human, half elf while baring their teeth.
Yuma looked over the other races while holding his head high atop his warhorse.
Harmony.
At least the atmosphere rising over this circular land seemed far from that hopeful word.
Darkness had completely fallen.
The eyes of the wolf pack and cat groups pierced through the night hours and shone brilliantly.
At a hair-trigger.
Far from harmony, a chilling energy flowed through the round land.
It wasn’t just the two races whose eyes shone brilliantly.
Elves.
Their eyes weren’t bright only during the day.
They could see the forest clearly even at night. Elves emitting a thick green light from their eyes.
Clap─!
Ishera, who was responsible for making this meeting happen, clapped.
“The night has grown too deep, so the honored guests from the Astes Empire who just arrived at the sacred ground should get plenty of rest and we’ll start the Race Council tomorrow as planned, right?”
In the corner of the meeting place, dwarves were looking around cautiously while shaking their heads next to a massive tree.
A large-bodied Lycanthrope sitting in a chair with legs crossed as if in his own living room opened his mouth.
“That’s right. We can’t distort a place created for harmony before it even begins.”
A fierce presence flowed from the Lycanthrope’s body.
It wasn’t killing intent.
It was the spreading of presence.
That was his objective.
Yuma activated Search Eye and stared at that Lycanthrope.
‘Oho.’
Yuma inwardly marveled.
Besides regulation-breakers who were born as demigod-class beings like the Giant King Ades, Black Dragon, and Leviathan, this was the first being he had seen who transcended level 200.
Gray fur and rippling Lycanthrope muscles.
Beast-like eyes.
Berkan’s golden pupils that could only be described as sharply refined like that stared piercingly at Yuma.
“Gray hair and heterochromatic eyes… should I say it’s an honor to meet you, God of War.”
‘This one knows me too.’
Berkan continued speaking.
“His Majesty Berkuos of our country, Baukalak, is in poor health, so I, Berkan, the legitimate heir presumptive, decided to participate in the meeting. I look forward to working with you.”
Yuma thought.
‘What’s with this bastard.’
The rough and heavy tone made Berkan’s voice sound quite threatening, but ironically, it contained a very kind explanation of why he came to participate in this meeting.
“Yes, looking forward to it.”
Yuma said that.
Then he jerked his chin toward his party.
“Please quickly designate where the Imperial party will stay.”
At those words, Ishera nodded greatly.
“Of course, Grand Duke Yuma.”
Yuma’s party entered quite decent-looking tents under Ishera’s guidance.
There were several beds inside the massive tent.
While thinking that no one would thoughtlessly make sudden moves in this situation where different races were watching and monitoring each other, Yuma got into his sleeping bag – though he had Balmung, a reliable night watchman, beside him.
And a day passed.
The sun rose.
Step
Yuma walked leisurely out of the tent while stretching.
And beside him, Hestia popped out and stretched alongside him.
“Yuma, doesn’t it feel like something’s going to explode today?”
Why is this kid saying such unlucky things first thing in the morning.
“Nothing will happen.”
Yuma said that while putting on his black coat and walking forward.
After eating bread and fruit prepared by the elven side, everyone gathered at the central round table.
Yuma sat in a chair placed at the round table.
All gazes at the round table turned toward Yuma for a moment.
Currently, there weren’t many people sitting at the round table.
Only representative figures from each race had come forward.
Representatives of humans, Yuma and Brigitte.
Representatives of elves, the diplomatic Ishera and High Elf Luinerif.
And Berkan, who could be called the crown prince of the Lycanthrope kingdom.
Representing the dwarves, Great Warrior Garalkulan.
And from among the scattered feline tribes, the chieftain of the currently largest Twilight tribe, Elfer.
And Tisha, who ended up sitting here as the representative of the merfolk, Mullen tribe.
Yuma confirmed once again that the maximum level had been updated.
Yuma faced Luinerif, the owner of that update who was staring intently at him.
“You’re quite interesting in many ways, Grand Duke.”
Luinerif smiled at Yuma.
An elf with not only green eyes but also green hair.
And unlike Ishera and the other guards, the long ears appeared like proof of being a High Elf.
Berkan knocked on the round table.
Tap tap─
“Let’s stop the idle talk and proceed with the Race Council.”
Ishera nodded with a smiling face at Berkan’s words.
“First, as the elves we sent must have explained to everyone, the World Tree read the heavenly energy. Information was given that something will invade the middle realm through the sky. And as a result of High Elf Luinerif’s contemplation beside me.”
Luinerif beside her took up Ishera’s words.
“What will pierce the sky and invade will likely be either dragons or demon folk.”
Luinerif looked over the beings at the round table.
“We gathered you all to minimize the damage that will befall the continent, regardless of what the invaders turn out to be.”
The Race Council began.
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