Chapter 56
On the continent, the World Tree was used in two senses.
It either referred to the World Tree itself, literally, or to the nation of the elves.
To avoid confusion between the two, some people simply called their country the Elven Kingdom.
The Elven Kingdom was laid out as three rings surrounding the World Tree at its center.
Of the three rings,
ordinary elves who made their living through farming and hunting lived in the outermost, first ring,
high elves capable of using magic primarily resided in the second ring,
and in the third ring, Arba—the tree that served as a palace—and the Guardian Trees belonging to the chief and three aides were spread out in a broad circle around the World Tree.
The banquet welcoming Blanc was scheduled to be held in Arba, in the third ring.
Only Blanc and Fulcare would be attending the banquet from the Empire.
Both Laurent and Allos said they were uncomfortable with a banquet involving elves and indicated that they would rather go outside to investigate the messenger ambush.
Vieta stayed with Ugo at the Guardian Tree of an elf she had never met before.
Ugo was the reason she would miss the banquet.
“It is true that we must protect Ugo, but Ugo cannot enter Arba.”
At the entrance to the third section, Iris adjusted her monocle and said firmly.
“Ugo is still too young to withstand the World Tree’s energy.”
Since this concerned Ugo’s health above all else, Vieta readily gave up on attending the banquet.
Following Iris’s advice that even entering the third ring might be dangerous, Vieta decided to stay with Ugo in the lodging prepared in the second ring.
“…Vieta, I’m sorry.”
Once everyone else had left, Ugo bowed his head toward Vieta. He seemed to think he had gotten in her way.
Vieta pulled Ugo into her arms and stroked his slender forearm.
“Don’t worry about it.”
At most, he couldn’t have been more than fifteen.
It was remarkable enough that a child who had only recently lost his parents was doing his best to compose himself.
If anything, Vieta was the one who ought to apologize to Ugo for his having been caught up in the adults’ affairs.
“Heh-heh, little one. Bored, are you?”
Just then, an elderly elf—the owner of the Guardian Tree where they were staying—approached them, leaning on a cane.
Iris had said that she had no political ambitions and devoted herself entirely to research aimed at restoring the power the elves had lost when the World Tree burned.
“If you have nothing better to do, why don’t you come look around my lab?”
“Is that really all right?”
A glimmer returned to Ugo’s downcast eyes for the first time in a while.
Magic seemed to be a more fascinating subject to elves than gold or jewels.
“What could possibly be wrong with that? By the way, what about you, young human lady?”
“Am I allowed to look around, too?”
Knowing how closed-off the elves were, Vieta had naturally assumed that Ugo and the elderly elf would go alone.
“The little one will be anxious without you, so of course you should come along.”
There had to be a reason Iris had recommended this elf out of all the elves.
At the elderly elf’s words, Vieta followed behind her without complaint.
The elderly elf’s laboratory was quite impressive.
Judging by size alone, it looked more than three times the size of Vieta’s booger-sized office.
In addition, intricate magic formulas that made her eyes swim simply by looking at them were densely inscribed on all four wooden walls.
“It has to be this way; otherwise, if something goes wrong inside, no one outside will know. There are many dangerous things, so look with your eyes only.”
While the elderly elf showed Ugo various simple spells, Vieta slowly pushed aside the piles of parchment on the floor and looked around like someone browsing a general store.
Objects reminiscent of those she had seen in Fulcare’s office and home filled the spacious laboratory.
Even the desk occupying an entire wall was piled high with objects.
Among them, a roughly made sword caught Vieta’s eye.
Even its edge had not been properly honed, and its blade was an awkward thickness for an ordinary sword.
It looked too heavy to hold and swing with one hand, yet too light to grip with both hands and put any real force behind.
“Hm?”
I wonder if I can touch it.
While she was hesitating, the elderly elf and Ugo approached Vieta’s side.
“Are you interested in that sword?”
The elderly elf picked up the sword without hesitation and held it out to Vieta.
In response to her kindness, Vieta gripped the sword with one hand, stepped well away, and swung it experimentally.
It was not as weighty as she had expected, but it was not light, either.
“What is this sword?”
“Try breathing a little of your mana into the crystal in the guard, young lady.”
Looking closely, Vieta saw a red crystal smaller than a coin embedded where the blade and hilt joined.
When Vieta let a trickle of her mana flow into the crystal, the blade glowed red-hot with a faint vibration.
Then, before long—
Fwoosh-.
With that sound, the blade itself became engulfed in flames.
Startled by the sudden blaze, Vieta looked at the elderly elf with a flustered expression.
“It’ll go out soon, so just hold it until then. Don’t swing it.”
As the elderly elf had said, Vieta held the sword still, and before long the blade returned to its original cold color.
“W-what is this?”
“It’s a magical tool I was researching with my companions. If you channel even a tiny amount of mana into it, the magic formula in the blade activates and allows you to use magic.”
At the elderly elf’s words, the corners of Vieta’s mouth stiffened.
“Don’t look at me like that. This old woman merely wanted to make a tool that elves who had lost their magic could use to protect themselves. Besides, in the end, it was a failed experiment.”
“It failed?”
“High elves might manage it, but for ordinary elves who had only a tiny amount of mana left, the magic’s duration and power were woefully inadequate.”
The elderly elf wrapped the magic sword carefully in cloth, then put it inside a drawer.
“That concludes the tour. Now, why don’t we have something to eat?”
Seeing the elderly elf smile kindly at her, Vieta slowly nodded.
***
What a mess.
Fulcare cleared his throat with a hum, then took a drink from his glass.
He was not the only one flustered by the scene unfolding before them.
Blanc seemed to share Fulcare’s thoughts and was likewise keeping quiet.
“What kind of impudent behavior is that, Laisen?”
“Come now, Iris. It’s not as if I said anything untrue.”
Laisen spoke as he watched Iris spring up from the banquet table.
“I merely called a shabby thing shabby. How is that my fault?”
Iris’s face crumpled into a frown.
It had all started when Laisen picked a fight over how shabby the banquet hall was.
“I seem to recall that things didn’t get this bad when Siran was here.”
“Enough! Both of you, stop!”
Unable to stand their behavior any longer, Elrod shouted.
Her youthful face was flushed red as well, as though she were desperately trying to calm herself.
“But, Lady Elrod.”
“Enough.”
At Elrod’s firm voice, Iris sat down and picked up her goblet.
Then, with a gulp as if she were drinking water, she drained a glass of wine completely.
“As an old friend, I advise you not to lose the dignity an elf ought to possess, Iris.”
Iris audibly ground her teeth.
However, perhaps mindful of her liege’s dignity, she did not lash out as fiercely as she had earlier.
“I apologize for my rudeness in front of the Empire’s esteemed guests.”
A sigh tinged Elrod’s words.
“Not at all.”
Blanc calmly picked up his cutlery, sliced the meat on his plate, and pushed it into his mouth.
“I’ll be going now. Prince Roen, please rest well before you leave.”
As though determined to utterly undermine Elrod’s authority during the banquet,
Laisen rose from his seat and left the banquet hall without asking her permission.
With no one daring to speak carelessly in the wake of Laisen’s rudeness, Fulcare spoke up.
“What have you decided to do about the messenger incident?”
Expecting Laisen, who had openly rebelled against Elrod, to meekly obey was absurd.
Being drawn into Laisen’s provocations would only waste precious time, so they had to settle the present situation as much as possible and decide how to proceed.
“We’ve decided to send several high elves to trace the messengers’ route.”
Perhaps Elrod felt the same way, for she answered with as composed an expression as possible.
“Do the routes taken by messengers who communicate with the Empire change every time?”
“They do. It’s to prepare for any possible ambush.”
Though it had been no use at all this time.
Elrod murmured quietly.
“By the way, the prince doesn’t look well.”
“According to the chief aide, he can sense the World Tree’s energy.”
At Blanc’s words, both Elrod and Iris wore startled expressions.
“It’s astonishing enough that you possess a Guardian Tree, but to sense the World Tree’s energy? I can hardly believe it.”
“I’m beginning to think I’m unusual myself.”
After saying this, Blanc grinned at Fulcare.
What a coward.
Fulcare looked away from Blanc’s gaze, pretending not to care.
He was unusual, that much was true.
“It is impossible for a mere human to possess a Guardian Tree or sense the World Tree’s energy. Have you perhaps consumed a large quantity of World Tree leaves in the past, or been in prolonged contact with an object connected to the elves?”
Iris, her expression considerably calmer, asked Blanc this.
Blanc touched his chin and pondered for a moment, then shook his head.
“I have touched a World Tree leaf once, but….”
“Simply touching a World Tree leaf for a short time cannot give you a Guardian Tree.”
“What do you mean?”
At Blanc’s question, Iris’s gaze turned toward Elrod.
Apparently, it was a delicate matter that could not be discussed lightly.
“Prince, allow me to explain that matter.”
Elrod picked up a napkin and wiped her hands.
“To put it bluntly, although you were born with a human body, you possess elven energy within you—energy comparable to that of a high elf.”
The moment he heard this, Fulcare’s hand froze.