Chapter 280 : The East (2)

Recently, on the cliffside of Rosario, where a city destroyed completely was being rebuilt.

A figure stood silently overlooking Rosario from the cave where the Pope had once stayed.

A man dressed in black sacred vestments, adorned with various chains and accessories.

He looked away from the half-destroyed Rosario and silently gazed at the cave—no, more precisely, the place where the battle had taken place.

How much time had passed like that?

A faint smirk appeared on the lips of the man whose lower face was visible beneath his hood.

“Gluttony fed by greed has been dealt with, and even the half-formed sin has been taken care of... huh.”

He muttered to himself, amused by something.

“Well, it’s not completely done yet, though.”

Saying so, he looked up at the sky.

Though the sun had not yet set, the softly glowing Milky Way—

For a while.

In silence.

“This should be worth watching. Because it will appear soon.”

He stared.

***

Just as Magrina had said, the ritual didn’t take very long.

It started in the morning and ended around early afternoon.

However, even after the ritual ended, Alon couldn’t rest.

The reason was—

“Sir Alon, I look forward to working with you. From now on, I’ll be your escort here—my name is Lutvia.”

“Right, I’ll be counting on you.”

It was because of the elves’ introduction session.

That’s right.

Alon was meeting the elves one by one and exchanging greetings.

And not even in a group—truly one by one.

He wondered if it was necessary, especially since he didn’t plan on staying in Greynifra for long.

But unfortunately, Alon had no veto power.

According to Magrina, this was a traditional custom among the elves.

When in Rome, do as the Romans do.

So Alon decided to respectfully go along with the tradition.

…At least, that was his resolve.

Until about the tenth elf had been introduced to him.

“...Are you all right?”

“I’m fine...”

Magrina looked at him with concern.

Alon reassured her and turned his gaze to the window.

Before he knew it, the moon had risen in the middle of the sky.

In other words, he had spent the entire second half of the day on introductions.

‘I didn’t think they’d really introduce every single one of them...’

Although, to be precise, they were only introducing those working within the kingdom.

Even so, the sheer number was overwhelming, and he couldn’t help but sigh.

Alon asked, just in case—

“Uh, is this not the end for today? Do we have more tomorrow?”

“Hmm—there’s a little left.”

“How much is ‘a little’...?”

“About...”

“An hour?”

Alon cautiously voiced his hopeful guess.

But—

“...Uh, about half a day?”

“Half a—day?”

“Yes.”

That hope was immediately crushed.

Alon was briefly speechless but finally managed to open his mouth.

“This is a tradition, right?”

“Yes. But if it’s really too much, should we stop?”

Magrina asked with concern.

“No, that won’t be necessary. Besides, since I’ve already started, it’s better to see it through.”

Had he known from the beginning, he might have quietly refused.

But given how far it had come, there was no need to quit now.

So the next day as well, Alon followed the tradition and went through all the introductions until late afternoon.

“Is it finally over...?”

“You did great, brother.”

Alon’s neck was starting to feel stiff.

“Can I finally rest now?”

“Yes, your part is essentially done now. But before that, may I ask one thing?”

“What is it?”

“Did you find anyone difficult to talk to among the elves?”

“Someone... difficult?”

“Yes. Like someone who was unpleasant to speak with, or behaved rudely.”

Alon thought for a moment but shook his head.

There were a few he could recall, but none worth remembering specifically.

After all, there had been far too many.

“Hmm~ No one in particular comes to mind.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah. Why do you ask?”

“Well—since you’re royalty now, if someone acts like that toward you, they need to be warned.”

Alon nodded.

He didn’t really intend to criticize the elves for being a little standoffish.

No matter how extraordinary he was, in their eyes, he was still just a human.

He understood that perfectly.

Even so, he didn’t deny her words—

Because the way the elves treated him could end up affecting Magrina.

Now that Alon was royalty, every time he was disrespected, it could damage her honor as well.

It wasn’t something he could simply ignore just because he didn’t care personally.

So he decided to leave it to Magrina.

“In any case, you’ve done a great job, brother.”

Another tiring day came to an end.

Two days later.

Dragging along a desperate Penia who was pleading, “Please, just one more day...!!!”, Alon decided to leave Greynifra.

“Well then, I’ll be waiting for you, brother. Safe travels.”

“Right. I’ll see you next time.”

Naturally, Alon becoming royalty didn’t change much.

The elves who had always been kind continued to be so.

Those who had always been indifferent still didn’t change their attitudes, but Alon didn’t mind and headed toward where Hazad was.

“Aah—if only I had one more day...”

Penia stretched her hand longingly toward Greynifra, dark circles under her eyes, looking utterly forlorn.

She looked like a tragic heroine forced to part with her beloved.

Seeing this, Alon spoke firmly.

“Next time.”

“I will...”

Penia sulked, her lips drooping.

But the moment didn’t last.

“How long will it take to get to the Lizardmen?”

“If we’re heading to where that god Hazad is, it’ll take around three weeks.”

Alon and Evan talked about the schedule ahead.

And after a few more weeks—

[Heh, I’ve been waiting for you.]

Hazad greeted them with a smile.

“You were waiting?”

[Didn’t I say it last time? Since I borrowed your name, I promised to grant you power in return.]

“Ah, right. You did.”

[You didn’t forget, did you?]

Truthfully, he had forgotten, but he didn’t show it and asked instead.

“Are the preparations complete?”

“No, unfortunately, it’s not so easy to set the stage. It’ll take a bit more time.”

‘Then what do you mean by ‘waiting’?’

“I heard it from Magrina. You’re heading to the East, right?”

“That’s right. Is it something you prepared in advance, then?”

Hazad scratched his head awkwardly and opened his mouth.

“Well… to be precise, not exactly. There’s a bit of a problem.”

“A problem?”

“Yes, it seems that traveling to the East is a bit difficult right now.”

“What’s going on?”

To Alon’s question, Hazad let out a groan and began to explain.

As Alon listened quietly—

“So in short, the path leading to the East is overrun with strange creatures, making it difficult to travel.”

He summarized Hazad’s explanation.

“Yes. Because of that, actual trade has been cut off lately as well.”

“Hmmm…”

After thinking for a while, Alon asked a question.

“Even with your power, you can’t handle it?”

“It’s not that. But as a divine sage, I can only use my power in my designated territory.”

There are restrictions?

“There are. But if I explain it all, it’ll take a while, so I’ll tell you next time. Anyway, it’s difficult for me to handle it.”

“So if I want to go to the East, I’ll have to deal with those creatures myself?”

“You could also wait a little longer. Such monsters have appeared before, and they usually disappear after about half a year.”

Which would be the better choice?

To wait half a year.

Or to cross the sea now, risking a little danger, and go to the Eastern Kingdom.

It didn’t take long to decide.

“Let’s go.”

Having thought of a way, Alon made his decision without hesitation.

***

At that time, back in Greynifra—

“Your Majesty, here is the observer list.”

“Did this come from Ramu?”

“Yes.”

“Give it here.”

Mew, who also served as Magrina’s secretary, handed her a sheet of paper.

As Magrina calmly scanned the paper with her eyes, Mew spoke up, seemingly curious.

“Um, Your Majesty… if it’s not too forward, may I ask something?”

“Yes, go ahead, Mew.”

Magrina gave her a gentle smile without taking her eyes off the document.

Mew took the chance and asked the question she had been holding back.

“It’s just… I heard that during the recent ritual, you introduced everyone working in the palace to Lord Alon.”

“Oh, you weren’t there at the time?”

Finally looking up from the paper, Magrina turned her eyes to Mew.

Mew nodded.

“Yes, I was out briefly due to work—”

“Ah, so it overlapped.”

“Yes, yes.”

Magrina stared at her for a moment.

“Well—it’s fine.”

“Sorry?”

She shook her head as if it were nothing.

“Oh, it’s nothing. So what was it you wanted to ask?”

Though puzzled by the reaction, Mew brushed it off and asked her original question.

“It’s just that I was wondering why you upheld the tradition so thoroughly. Lady Magrina, you usually don’t care much for those customs… and you’re not the type to compile a list of everyone Lord Alon met either.”

Moreover, as far as Mew knew, Ramu wasn’t an ordinary elf but a member of the Black Leaf.

In other words, not the kind of person who would compile observer lists, which only added to the mystery.

Magrina nodded.

“Yes, that’s true.”

Just as Mew said.

Magrina wasn’t one to like or even respect the elves’ traditions all that much.

She put down the paper she was reviewing and stared directly into Mew’s eyes.

“Mew, do you know something?”

“What do you mean?”

“That us elves show everything on our faces.”

“…Our faces?”

“Yes. Elves are pure. Because of that, we can’t hide our expressions easily. Unless we avoid contact entirely, if we like someone, it shows—and if we don’t, that shows too.”

“...Right?”

Mew nodded.

But at the same time, the doubt on her face only deepened.

The answer didn’t really match the question she had asked.

Leaning back slowly in her chair, Magrina—

“That’s why I like elves. They’re pure…”

And easy to read.

She murmured so softly that even Mew standing nearby couldn’t hear.

Then she looked back at the paper.

At the name tags of observers that revealed hidden markings when viewed with a specific magical pattern.

And then—

“Yes—”

Looking at Mew, who still seemed clueless and simply nodded.

Magrina smiled.

Quietly.