A Bloodsucking Demon in a Snowy Town (1)

The road from the Rudoria Kingdom to the dwarven country had been arduous, but... the road to the Fodor Empire was even more so.

In particular, the volcanic region where monsters appeared in great numbers was difficult enough that even the dwarves took a detour around it.

"Hey, Eisa-san. Look over there—that's Dragon Peak, the most treacherous mountain around here. It's a mountain said in legend to be inhabited by dragons. Well, I've never seen a dragon, nor has my grandfather or his grandfather."

One of the dwarves transporting trade goods laughed heartily and pointed toward the volcano far in the distance.

When I looked in that direction, sure enough, the volcano's imposing grandeur was enough to make me readily believe that dragons lived there.

But... dragons.

I suddenly remembered a song I had heard from the High Elf elders a very, very long time ago... probably when I wasn't even a hundred yet.

Let's see, it went something like this...

'In this world, there are five truly immortal beings.

One is a spirit, our friend who sustains the world.

One is a True Dragon, sleeping deeply and awaiting the end of time.

One is a True Giant, looking down upon this world from above the clouds.

One is the Undying Bird, reborn as a chick the instant it dies, symbolizing the circle of reincarnation.

And finally, there are the True Elves: us. In time, we shall become spirits and exist for all eternity.'

That was roughly what it said.

In other words, it was probably a poem praising ourselves by proclaiming how amazing High Elves were.

I used to think it was just a fairy tale, but after hearing about the furnace used to work mithril and the dwarves' secret treasure in the dwarven country, my way of thinking had changed a little.

There was a similar fairy tale about how the dwarves had stolen a fragment of fire from Nature itself and imprisoned it in a furnace. Even if every detail of the story wasn't true, the secret treasure at its heart really did exist.

If that was the case, perhaps the True Dragon, the True Giant, and the Undying Bird also existed in some form.

At the very least, spirits and High Elves truly existed.

In fact, these five races were even named in the myths passed down through the human world as races created by the Creator before the gods.

In short, they were treated as beings that existed only in fairy tales.

But I seem to recall that the poem passed down among High Elves continued with something like this...

'There are three who, though not truly immortal, reached out for immortality.'

I seem to recall that was how it began, but to be honest, my memory was already hazy.

I remembered that one of them was the demonfolk, but I had found the elders' stories tedious back then and had only listened to them halfheartedly.

But even if a dragon attacked us here and now, that information wouldn't have been useful, so... yeah, I suppose it didn't matter.

"A dragon, huh? I'd like to see one from a distance, but being attacked on a mountain road like this would be a problem."

When I let those words slip out, the dwarf nodded as if in complete agreement.

I find dragons incredibly romantic, but in a place like this, where one could slip and fall, I don't want to take unnecessary risks.

The journey from the dwarven country to the Fodor Empire took roughly three weeks.

Apparently, detouring around the volcanic region made the journey take a little longer than traveling to the Rudoria Kingdom.

The dwarves responsible for trade made this trip several times a year, and they climbed even sheer cliffs with ease while carrying enormous loads.

On the return journey, they crossed the mountains with liquor barrels larger than their own bodies strapped to their backs.

I considered myself fairly accustomed to traveling, but there was no way I could do the same.

However, even with such dependable dwarves, we were due to part ways once we entered the Fodor Empire's territory.

An elf and a dwarf traveling together would simply stand out far too much.

Even if I hid my face beneath a hood and pretended to be human, the situation would still look suspicious.

I knew where they would be staying, so I planned to meet up with them after sneaking into the town, but we would make contact carefully and discreetly.

That was because, since the dwarves dealt in weapons—goods directly connected to military power—they were supposed to remain neutral, siding with neither the Rudoria Kingdom nor the Fodor Empire.

This time, they were treating me almost as one of their own and giving me their support. Besides, even the dwarves would have no way to continue trading if war truly broke out between the two countries, so they wanted information.

I would gratefully accept their help, but I still had to avoid arousing suspicion toward them as much as possible.

My first objective was to investigate.

I would investigate whether the report that the Fodor Empire was preparing to invade the Rudoria Kingdom was true, and if it was... I would then investigate how they intended to do it.

And if that method seemed likely to make a surprise attack succeed—or if elves were involved—I would need to take some kind of action.

If everything turned out to be a simple misunderstanding or needless worry, and my journey proved to be completely pointless, that would honestly be the best outcome.

If there was no special method at all, and they were merely mobilizing a large number of soldiers to repair the mountain roads, then I wouldn't need to get involved; simply sending word to Airena would be enough.

In that case, I would buy souvenirs for Win, Azvaldo, and his family, then head straight back.

But as we drew closer to the Fodor Empire, I began to feel a strange unease in my chest.

This sort of premonition was only ever accurate when something bad was afoot.

...The trouble waiting for me in the Fodor Empire would probably be something I couldn't resolve easily.

That was precisely why I couldn't afford to avoid it.

"Heeey, Eisa-san! We caught a Rock Lizard, so we're eating a little early. We'll butcher and clean it, so get a fire going for us."

Just then, the dwarves called out to me while I was lost in thought.

Apparently, the group that had gone ahead with light loads to determine the route had encountered a monster and dispatched it with practiced efficiency.

I nodded and picked up my pace.

Normally, gathering fuel for a fire in these rocky mountains would be difficult, but I was a mage as well, so as long as I hadn't run out of mana, I could conjure a flame.

The dwarves responsible for the trade caravan were much more delighted by my fire magic than I had expected—almost ridiculously so.

On a journey this arduous, a hot meal instead of preserved rations was the greatest luxury of all.

No matter what kind of Skill it was, being able to help someone made me happy.

This journey would continue for a little while longer.

As for what awaited me in the Fodor Empire... well, I would think about it after I arrived.

Whatever difficulties awaited me there, I was sure I could somehow manage.