Chapter 187

Currently known as Duke Merkiliane, Filian’s younger brother, Gilan.

He was originally supposed to be in the ducal house.

The reason, of course, was to manage the territory.

Although several years had passed since the diplomatic incident involving Duke Komalon, and all damages from that time had been fully restored.

The issue of succession, which had been carried out in haste, still remained.

The sudden death of the duke.

Because of this, the proper succession process could not be followed.

Gilan was unable to obtain full authority.

There were still some vassals who had not yet come under his influence.

Moreover, the fact that Gilan was the second son was also a point of exploitation.

No matter how much the eldest son, Filian, acknowledged him, the weakened ducal house provided a valid political justification for intervention.

In any case, due to these circumstances, Gilan was living a rather busy life.

Originally, he should have been wrestling with paperwork at the ducal house today as well.

Yes.

Originally, that is.

“Hmm, Marquis Palatio has left for a while?”

“I heard he will be away for more than a month.”

Currently, Duke Merkiliane was at the Marquisate of Palatio.

Because an order had been given by King Stalian V.

An order that simply stated, ‘Confirm the identity of Marquis Palatio.’

Anyone would respond with ‘What on earth does that mean?’

It was an order that felt somewhat absurd.

There was no further explanation.

Since it was a royal command, he had no choice but to obey, but from Gilan’s perspective, it was utterly baffling.

Moreover, hadn’t Gilan been receiving continuous support from King Stalian V since the time of Duke Komalon?

That made it even harder to refuse, so he ended up coming to the marquisate.

And not alone.

He was accompanied by the knight in black, whom Stalian V had been keeping by his side for some time.

‘Just what in the world is this all about…?’

Gilan, or rather, Duke Merkiliane, sighed as he waited for the knight’s answer.

To his astonishment, Stalian V had also commanded him to treat this knight with respect.

‘…Who exactly is this knight?’

From start to finish, nothing made sense.

The knight in black hesitated for a moment before speaking.

“Hmm… Well, let’s wait a little longer.”

The duke questioned him.

“You intend to wait?”

“Yes, since we’re here, we might as well confirm things.”

The knight’s voice carried a certain amusement.

Gilan sighed, as if he had no other choice.

In truth, from the moment he received Stalian V’s order, he had lost any right to make his own decisions.

“Very well, let’s do that.”

By this point, his curiosity could no longer be contained.

“But, may I ask something?”

“If it’s something I can answer.”

“…The order was to confirm the identity of Marquis Palatio.”

“So?”

“Is it possible that the marquis is not actually human? For example, could he be a different species hiding his identity, or if not that, a monster—”

“Puahahahahaha!”

“…?”

The knight burst into loud laughter as if he had heard something incredibly amusing.

Duke Merkiliane frowned slightly.

“…Is something funny?”

“Ah, my apologies. I just found it quite amusing to hear that all of a sudden.”

From inside his helmet, he continued to chuckle.

“But of course, if the marquis were a different species or a monster, I wouldn’t have to be here.”

“Then, what exactly is the marquis?”

The laughter stopped abruptly.

And then—

“A god.”

“…What did you just say?”

The single word rang vividly in the air.

“A god. I am here to confirm whether Marquis Palatio is a god.”

At those words—

Duke Merkiliane’s mouth fell open.

“Marquis Palatio is—”

It was as if he had just heard something completely unbelievable.

“…Did you just say he’s a god?”

“Of course, it’s not confirmed yet. I haven’t personally verified it. But, well, almost.”

The duke’s mouth fell even further open.

***

Even without Recon’s warning.

Alon had already known to some extent.

That elves were inherently extremely hostile towards humans.

During the Psychedelia playthrough, when meeting Perion, some of the elves’ background information was briefly revealed.

Although the exact reason for their hatred of humans was unclear.

What mattered was—

That elves despised humans far more than expected.

And yet—

“…You’ve been waiting for me?”

Alon found this situation undeniably bewildering.

“Yes. I have been waiting.”

A young elf with a gentle smile.

No, more than gentle—he was outright courteous.

An elf, being this kind to a human?

…Something was seriously wrong here.

Had they mistaken him for someone else?

Even if that were the case, Alon was human.

There was no way they could have mistaken him for another elf…

As various thoughts raced through his mind, he struggled to find a convincing explanation.

At that moment—

“Please come inside first. They are waiting for you.”

“Wait, hold on—”

Alon shook his hand to stop the elf who was persistently trying to guide him inside.

“?”

The elf looked puzzled.

However, from Alon’s perspective, it was unsettling to follow this elf without any questions.

What if, after entering the elven kingdom, their misunderstanding was cleared up?

At that point, the situation would become even more difficult.

‘I guess I have no choice.’

Although he was concerned about their hostility, he had to resolve the misunderstanding from the beginning.

Sometimes, the most direct path is the shortest one.

“What is the name of the person you have been waiting for?”

…There are at least a hundred of them.

Just in case, Alon formed a seal with his hand inside his pocket.

His mana subtly spread into the surrounding space, disrupting its molecular structure just enough to remain undetected.

Noticing Alon’s intent, Evan also subtly raised his hands, ready to draw his sword at any moment.

And then—

“Of course, it’s—”

As soon as the elf spoke,

“Marquis Palatio.”

“…What?”

Alon unknowingly released the seal.

Evan did the same, even lowering his hands in disbelief.

He looked at Alon with an expression that screamed, ‘Why is the marquis’ name coming up here?’

“You were waiting for me?”

“Yes. We have been waiting for you, Marquis.”

Me? Why? For what reason?

Did they really just say my name?

Countless questions rushed through his mind,

But before he could even organize his thoughts,

The elf suddenly grabbed his hand again.

“Let’s go inside first. They are waiting for you.”

With those enigmatic words, the elf led him inside.

***

After boarding a carriage escorted by elves—

“Marquis.”

Alon whispered softly.

For once, his face showed genuine surprise.

“…Speak.”

“I’ve never really been surprised by you going places, searching for things, or handling enemies.”

“And?”

“…But this time, no matter how many times I think about it, I can’t help but be shocked.”

“I’m just as shocked.”

Evan looked at Alon with an utterly skeptical expression.

Alon felt wronged.

If nothing else, this was something even he had absolutely no clue about.

‘I never even played the DLC in the first place.’

Before he could dwell on his frustration—

“We have arrived.”

As the carriage door opened, Alon hesitantly stepped out, carefully observing his surroundings.

“…Oh.”

He couldn’t help but exclaim in awe.

A colossal tree filled his entire field of vision.

Not just any large tree—it was so massive that it could easily cover an entire domain.

As Alon stood there, dumbfounded, a voice whispered in his ear.

“Welcome back.”

The words sounded strange, but Alon didn’t respond.

Instead, he realized something even more clearly.

Whatever was happening, they had made a massive misunderstanding.

It wasn’t just that they mistook him for someone else.

They knew he was Marquis Palatio and were addressing him accordingly.

What exactly did they misunderstand? And how did they come to this conclusion?

He had never done anything that could even remotely lead to such a misconception.

“When did you visit the elf village?”

“…Does it seem like I’ve been here before?”

“Well, no, not exactly.”

Even as he followed the elves into the grand palace beneath the World Tree—

“Wow…! That’s the Primordial Elf—”

“Indeed.”

He kept hearing murmurs about him.

‘…The Primordial Elf?’

It was then that Alon—

Who had been utterly unable to understand the situation—

Finally found one small puzzle piece related to the misunderstanding.

It wasn’t enough to fully deduce what had happened, but it gave him a faint clue about the kind of misunderstanding that had triggered this.

As he stood there, lost in thought—

‘No way.’

He looked down at his hand, remembering the staff that once belonged to the Primordial Elf.

Before his thoughts could develop further—

“The Queen is waiting for you.”

He was guided to the most magnificent place.

There,

“…It’s been a long time.”

An elf was waiting for him.

Unlike any other elf he had seen before, she radiated a light of an entirely different level.

A breathtaking beauty, so overwhelming that she could only be described as the essence of elegance.

The Elf Queen.

***

Before Alon could even comprehend the misunderstanding the elves had, he was swiftly brought before the queen.

After a moment of contemplation, he slowly spoke.

“…Before we begin this conversation, I must say one thing.”

“What is it?”

The queen responded with a gentle smile.

…In truth, there was no real need for Alon to say this.

Rather, there was no point in saying anything at all.

Because he still had no idea exactly why or how the elves had come to this misunderstanding.

But if he continued the conversation like this, he had no idea when or how the worst-case scenario might unfold.

“…I regret to inform you, but I believe you are mistaken about something.”

“In what way?”

He decided to tell the truth.

“You seem to have mistaken me for the Primordial Elf, but I am no such being.”

However—

“I see.”

“…?”

The response he received was far too calm.

Alon looked puzzled and asked again.

“…Did you properly understand what I just said?”

“Yes. You said you are not the Primordial Elf, correct?”

“That’s right.”

And yet—

“Understood. We’ll consider it as ‘that kind of feeling.'”

“…’That kind of feeling’?”

“Yes, that kind of feeling.”

“…???”

As he faced their unwaveringly composed reactions, Alon clearly realized that something about this conversation was completely off.