Chapter 22
Arrelia looked at Jade, her eyes filled with curiosity and interest.
It was enough to make him quite uncomfortable.
However, perhaps unaware of that, Arrelia drew closer and closer to Jade.
Kkyu!
“Oh my?”
Apparently sensing Jade’s discomfort, Whid, who had been nestled quietly in his arms, raised their scales.
They even held their tail rigidly upright and let out a booming roar.
Yet despite Whid’s threat, Arrelia looked amused rather than startled, as if she found them adorable.
To her, the threat of a still-young Gold Drake was little different from a show of affection.
Grrrr!
Whid seemed to sense that too and bared their teeth this time.
Lightning energy crackled inside their mouth.
They looked ready to breathe out their breath at any moment.
“It’s all right. Don’t get excited.”
Kkyuuu?
Unlike Clora, Arrelia was a full elf, yet Whid still regarded her warily, so Jade chuckled and stroked their head.
Then, as if by magic, the lightning raging in their mouth vanished.
Jade’s words had calmed them down at once.
“The little one is adorable.”
“Our paths just happened to cross.”
“It’s a truly rare connection. But if the circumstances left you no choice, I can certainly understand. I could entrust them to Jade without worry.”
The gaze that had been fixed on Whid shifted back to Jade.
But the look in her eyes was intensely fervent.
She had recognized at a glance that Jade was no ordinary spirit mage, and her competitive spirit had caught fire.
“You flatter me.”
“That brings me to something else. If you don’t mind, would you spar with me?”
“Spar?”
“Yes!”
Arrelia’s gaze grew even more intense.
As the War Elf tribe’s great warrior, she was burning with fighting spirit.
Jade wore an awkward expression.
“We’re leaving tomorrow. I don’t think that would be a good idea.”
“Ah……”
“But surely there will be opportunities later. We’ll be traveling together from now on.”
“True. Today isn’t our only chance. Then let’s at least make a verbal promise.”
Arrelia smiled brightly, as if she had never been disappointed.
She had decided that since he had not refused, an opportunity would come someday.
And she was used to waiting.
“There are other strong people besides me.”
“Ah, Sword Master Haines? He doesn’t seem to have fully recovered yet. Even if he does make a full recovery, it will probably be difficult for him to display the skill he had before.”
“I-Is that really true?”
Rainy and Lloyd both cried out at Arrelia’s confident assertion.
Neither of them had heard that from anyone before, so they were both startled.
“You had already guessed that too, Jade?”
“Yes. He must have overtaxed himself by forcing aura through his body while suffering severe internal injuries. It might have been different when he was young, but now it must have placed a considerable physical burden on him.”
“That’s right.”
“Ah……”
The two siblings let out a simultaneous, drawn-out sigh.
But there was nothing they could do, even if it was regrettable.
He probably knew it himself as well.
Yet because of that, they had overlooked one crucial fact.
“See you tomorrow.”
“Please return safely.”
“Hoho! Is there anything to be careful about?”
At the polite remark, Arrelia chuckled, took the two siblings with her, and left the room.
But the shock seemed to have been considerable; even as Arrelia led them away, they did not seem to notice it.
They merely followed along reflexively.
“What a mess.”
-I don’t like her!
“Don’t spirits like elves?”
Feeling as though a storm had just passed through, Jade let out a small sigh and went into the bedroom.
He intended to rest for a while.
-She’s flirting with Jade! And she’s a brainless musclehead!
“She did seem that way. For an elf, her affinity with spirits doesn’t seem particularly impressive.”
-She must have contracted with exactly one upper-grade wind spirit. All the rest are mid-grade.
Elestra added.
As a top-tier water spirit, she could tell at a glance roughly how strong Arrelia was.
“She seems to have figured it out too, more or less.”
-She must have figured out much more than Clora. The difference between their levels is enormous.
“True.”
Jade nodded in agreement.
The saying that you can see only as much as you know existed for a reason.
Just as Jade had assessed Arrelia, she must have assessed him as well.
-Elves aren’t all that impressive just because they’re elves. To go toe-to-toe with Jade, she’d need to be a high elf at the very least.
-Our Jade is that strong! Ahem!
“Once you step out into the world, the people and races you meet really do become more diverse.”
He had met a Crown Prince and Princess, a Sword Master, and even dwarves, half-elves, and War Elves.
And it had not even been half a year since he left the Great Forest.
On top of that, it would be no exaggeration to say that they were going to war starting tomorrow.
-A variety of experiences are essential for reaching a higher realm.
-And we get to see the world while we’re at it~. It hasn’t changed much from before, but the Middle World is still fun. It’s thrilling and exciting!
Kkyu! Kkyuuu!
Apparently finding Silestin amusing as she floated on her back in midair and paddled only her feet as if swimming, Whid imitated Silestin from Jade’s arms.
But it was not as easy as it looked.
As a wind spirit, Silestin found gliding through the air as easy as breathing, but Whid did not.
Unaccustomed to high-speed flight, low-speed flight, or flying while lying down, they flailed helplessly in midair.
Kkyyaaa!
Perhaps their pride was hurt, because Whid let out a strange cry.
They were frustrated by their body’s refusal to move as they wished.
Yet the sight was unbearably adorable to Jade and the two spirits.
-There, there, our Whid.
-Hehe.
At the sight of Whid straining with all their might to imitate Silestin, Silestin and Elestra smiled like mothers.
Every little thing Whid did was incredibly adorable to them.
Even Whid’s inability to use their body at one hundred percent was so endearing that smiles came naturally to both spirits.
“It’s all right. It’s only natural not to be good at something from the start. You’ll improve if you keep practicing.”
Kkyuuu!
At Jade’s encouragement, Whid clenched their forepaw.
They were encouraging themselves.
Then they continued trying.
-I’ll help you!
-Me too.
Moved by Whid’s refusal to give up, the two spirits flew over.
Jade watched them with warm eyes.
Fwaaash!
Brilliant light surged from the lord’s castle in Molten Fief, which shared a border with the Kingdom of Arhan.
Light was pouring from the teleportation gate.
A short while later, around twenty people appeared atop the teleportation gate.
Since it was a frontier fief, the teleportation gate was small, limiting the number of people who could travel at once.
“We greet Your Highness the Crown Prince and Your Highness the Princess!”
Clack clack!
When Lloyd and Rainy appeared where the light had subsided, Viscount Aus Molten, lord of Molten Viscounty, dropped to one knee with a booming greeting.
The knights and soldiers of House Molten lined up behind him also bowed their heads with disciplined precision.
“It’s been a long time, Viscount Molten.”
“It’s truly a relief to see you safe and well!”
“Rise.”
At Viscount Aus’s voice, which overflowed with loyalty, Lloyd spoke in a deliberately authoritative tone.
Unlike before, he was showing himself as the Crown Prince.
Rainy and Haines, standing behind him, wore pleased expressions.
“Understood.”
“I’d like to receive your report first.”
“I’ll escort you.”
Though Lloyd had said he wanted a report immediately upon arrival, Aus did not panic.
If anything, he looked pleased.
Since the situation was practically wartime, he welcomed Lloyd’s words instead.
Fwaaash!
After them, the War Elves appeared one after another.
They had traveled in groups sized to the gate’s maximum capacity.
Yet every one of them was completely covered from head to toe by a loose-fitting hooded garment.
“Why are they dressed like that?”
“Is there any reason they need to bundle themselves up so tightly?”
“Could they be a secret unit of the Kingdom of Arhan? But if so, wouldn’t that create a bigger problem?”
“Of course it would. If they become deeply involved in another country’s civil war, it could lead to war.”
The soldiers standing in formation began to murmur.
The knights were no different.
They did not speak, but stared at the War Elves with peculiar looks.
But because Arrelia had ordered it, no one opened their mouth or met the elves’ eyes.
“Follow me.”
Instead, Steven stepped forward and led the War Elves.
He took them to their quarters in Arrelia’s stead.
Meanwhile, upon reaching the meeting room, Lloyd naturally took the seat of honor.
Aus, Rainy, Haines, Jade, and Arrelia then sat in order on either side of him.
“I’d like to hear about the current situation.”
“To tell you the truth, it’s quite bad.”
“I expected as much. Tell me everything exactly as it is.”
“……Most of the neutral faction has joined the Duke. The House of Baron Taven, House of Viscount Vicius, and House of Viscount Andrea are on their way to join him.”
“Are there none among the counts?”
“……No.”
Viscount Aus answered in a heavy tone.
Of course, he had excuses.
Marquesses and counts often shared a border with other countries or were responsible for managing one, so they could not move their forces recklessly.
But put another way, that meant they would not get involved in the struggle between the Crown Prince and the Second Prince.
More precisely, it meant they would not throw their support behind the Crown Prince.
Knowing full well what that meant, Viscount Aus squeezed his eyes shut.
“When will the forces of the three houses arrive?”
“Pardon?”
Viscount Aus, who had lowered his head because he could not bring himself to look at Lloyd, reflexively asked in return.
Lloyd’s extremely calm voice had caught him off guard.
Yet Lloyd was not merely pretending that nothing was wrong.
He was genuinely calm.
“As you know, Viscount Aus, we’ve only just arrived, so there’s little we know. I want to receive an accurate report on the situation.”
“I-I expect the forces of the three houses to arrive here within two days. However, the problem is that the Second Prince’s forces are also steadily gathering at the House of Viscount Allang.”
“Marquess Madrain will be coming too, then.”
“……Yes. I believe he’ll probably come with the Second Prince.”
Marquess Madrain was the man who had risen to become the kingdom’s greatest swordsman after defeating Haines alone.
Because of that, Viscount Aus swallowed dryly and stole a glance at Haines, who stood silently behind Lloyd like an attendant.
“What are the estimated forces?”
“Assuming the Duke, leader of the noble faction, truly does not move, I expect there to be around ten thousand.”
“That’s nearly a tenfold difference.”
“……Yes.”
The disparity was so bleak that his voice grew heavy just hearing it.
Yet Viscount Aus had decided to follow Lloyd despite knowing there would be such a disparity.
Because he believed it was the right thing to do.
Of course, although Lloyd was lacking in every respect compared with the Second Prince, it was Lloyd who had been named Crown Prince.
Therefore, it was only right for a subject to follow Crown Prince Lloyd.
Even if that decision led to the destruction of his house.
“It seems the Second Prince wants to minimize casualties as well. He must, if he’s coming all the way here.”
“Are you all right?”
“Is there any reason I shouldn’t be?”
“Are more reinforcements coming from the Kingdom of Arhan?”
Viscount Aus asked, hoping that might be the case.
Officially, they could not take part in the civil war, but unofficially, they could do so as much as they pleased.
There was a saying, wasn’t there?
“As long as you don’t get caught.”
“There are no reinforcements. The three hundred we brought are all we have.”
“I-I see.”