Chapter 55 – Friends, Allies, and Enemies (1)

Friends, Allies, and Enemies (1)

Elves’ mornings are no different from those of humans.

Born with life spans more than twice that of humans, their perception of time is different.
An era of peace.
Waking up to the warm sunshine and falling asleep after a chat with a friend.

It was just an ordinary day-to-day life.

Wandering through the dense forest, one would eventually come upon a treehouse. The sight of the wooden furniture alone was comforting, and its cozy appearance seemed to invite anyone to rest at ease.

In one corner of the treehouse, a girl awoke in a soft bed.

“Mmm…”

Long ears and pale green hair stretched out in all directions. Even half-awake, her eyes were fierce like a wild beast’s. Her face was disheveled, and her body was thin and gaunt.
Yet the spirit that emanated from her was that of a professional who had fought countless battles against demons.

The girl’s name was Chloe.
She was an archer and scout in the hero’s party and had been appointed as the Guardian of the World Tree for her role in slaying the Demon King.

To be precise, she had been.

Not long after the succession ceremony, an unfortunate incident occurred, and she was demoted from Guardian of the World Tree to a forest keeper in the vicinity of Myluman. But Chloe didn’t really care.
Of course. Any place where she could meet her friends was fine by her. As the Guardian, she couldn’t often meet her friends. But since being demoted to forest keeper, she could always spend time with them. Perhaps that’s why she preferred her current situation.

She had joined the hero’s party to save her kin. Humans were greedy and arrogant, and she had no desire to get close to them. But if she didn’t step up, her friends were in immediate danger of being killed by demons, so she had no choice but to accompany them.

It wasn’t exactly a fond memory, but it was a decent time.
If it weren’t for those damned men, it would have been better.

“Ugh, tea.”

“What, you’re up already?”

A friend always comes when it’s time to stretch out a stiff body.

“…Lauren, you’re late.”

It was a peaceful day.
A routine where friends came to visit every day.

During the war, many of her kin died, including many of Chloe’s friends.
The Great Forest, adjacent to the Demon Continent, suffered even more damage. There was a time when Myluman and the World Tree were devastated by two high-ranking demons.

But those times had passed.

Myluman was being rebuilt, and the demons lurking in the forest were being dealt with little by little.

“Really, sleeping in late. I wonder how you managed in the hero’s party… How am I going to apologize when I meet the hero later~”

“Hmm…”

“Well, it’s the rainy season now! He won’t be able to come right away, anyway.”

As her close friend mentioned the hero, Chloe’s face contorted in disgust.
Troka was a villain who had driven her friends to their deaths. If he were still alive, she would have gladly put an arrow through his skull. And yet, he had escaped proper punishment by taking his own life.

It made her wonder why the hero’s death hadn’t been made public.
The royal family would naturally want to conceal the fact, and the Demon King’s army should have spread the news far and wide to boost morale.
Well, it was just as well. News of the hero only served to anger her.
Her friends were unaware of Troka’s vile truth and even admired the hero.

It was probably for the best that they didn’t know.
Their smiling faces shouldn’t be ruined.

Chloe rubbed her eyes briskly.
Lauren, seizing the opportunity, snatched away Chloe’s blanket and began to open the window.

“What are you doing? If you don’t come quickly, the food will get cold.”

Having finished cleaning the room in a matter of minutes, Lauren stood at the door, calling for Chloe.

“…I’ll be right there.”

Normally, she would have shouted ‘I’ll be right there!’ with energy, but still caught in the drowsiness of sleep, she could only muster a weak voice.

Chloe sprang up as if kicking off the ground.

Thoughts related to the hero only brought a headache.
Now was the time to enjoy the paradise-like life she was given.

* * *

The Great Forest is complex and vast. Without prior knowledge of the paths, even those with an excellent sense of direction could easily get lost.

But to me, it was familiar.
It was a path I had never taken before, yet it seemed as if I had traversed it countless times. It was Troka who had visited Myluman to see Chloe. Why did it feel so familiar to me?

Following the faint traces of a path for a while, the air began to fill with humidity.

Suddenly, trees as large as buildings surrounded me, and occasionally, spiders larger than humans would pass by. A shiver always ran down my spine when I saw the creatures of The Great Forest.

People enter The Great Forest for various reasons.
Some are adventurers on a quest or tourists simply seeking adventure.
Others are involved in drug trafficking, illegal slave trade, or illicit immigration to the Country of Magic.
Though it’s just a rumor, some say that there are those who come here seeking a passage to the Demon Continent.

Well, most are just trying to get in and out of Myluman.

“Two monsters ahead. We’ll detour to the right.”

In The Great Forest, the Mind’s Eye was extremely useful. Each time I used it, it felt as though my body was being split in real-time… but it was better than being directly attacked. After all, it was the only way I could make use of my sightless eyes.

My broken body had somehow been treated by Cecilia, and it was somewhat better now. Honestly, when she grabbed my hand to treat me, I almost instinctively threw a punch. I couldn’t understand why she was helping me, but maybe what’s good is good.

Cecilia said,

“There’s no reason.”

But the world isn’t so forgiving. She had once insisted that I must atone for my sins. It would be strange to trust her outright.
I’m grateful for the help, but I still need to be prepared for a possible betrayal.

“Ha… we have to go back. There are three of them here.”

I was moving along a route that was supposed to be free of demonic beasts. Annoyingly, no matter which path I chose, there were always beasts to deal with.

A considerable amount of time has passed since the Demon King’s death, but the aftermath still lingers in The Great Forest. It was used as a forward base to hide the beasts during the invasion. Despite several large-scale extermination operations, strong demonic beasts still appear.

The relatively safe places are a few villages located by the sea and areas around Myluman.
But where we are now, it’s difficult to find a village.

“……In that case, let’s rest a bit.”

The sky was darkening, hidden by the trees.
It was dusk.
It was about time for fatigue to set in.

Yet Valkvogel had not awakened. I thought she would regain consciousness immediately after a seizure like Cecilia did. She hadn’t opened her eyes even while riding in the carriage.

At first, I thought she might be dead. She was completely unresponsive to any touch, so I wondered if she had hit her head against the wall and died.
Well, dragons don’t die that easily.
She was breathing just fine,

And Cecilia, who had been carrying Valkvogel, must have reached her limit.

I wasn’t in a normal state either. Prolonged use of the Mind’s Eye was a heavy burden on the body. I had been using the Mind’s Eye continuously since we started walking, so it wouldn’t have been surprising if I collapsed at any moment.

Considering the time, it was about time to take a break.
Fortunately, I had found a suitable place to rest while walking. A space under a giant tree. It was big enough to comfortably fit one or two people.

“Wait here. I’ll go gather some firewood.”

I retraced my steps a bit.
Walking until we found a village was the best plan, but there was also a chance that we’d just exhaust ourselves without ever reaching one, so I put that on hold. Right now, creating a resting place was the priority.

I cleared up the scattered pieces of wood around us. Most were soaked with water, so I chose those that had somewhat dry sections.

When I returned to the giant tree, Cecilia was standing up, waiting. It seemed she had moved stealthily; her pure white hair was entangled with twigs, and her shoulders were covered with leaves.

Was she planning to tail me?

I entertained the thought, but soon let out a sigh, shaking off the distractions, and decided to start a fire.

I laid down leaves on the ground and placed the branches on top. Then, I sprinkled sawdust scraped from the tree in between them.
Next, I injected a syringe filled with Aeon into my arm to replenish my magic power and extended my fingers over the kindling.

I didn’t know any fire magic. In fact, I didn’t even know how to use magic at all.
That’s why I chose the magic scroll Nico had given me, a reusable item, time and time again.

I placed the scroll over the firewood and rested my finger on it.

Soon enough, with a crackling sound, flames began to rise.

The sound of insects buzzing faintly spread around.
It wouldn’t be surprising if demonic beasts attacked at night.
Looks like sleeping tonight is out of the question.

So, for now, I’ve put away the Mind’s Eye.
I’ll use it when it’s deep into the night when I can’t see anything anyway.

Rubbing my tired eyes, I looked around. Valkvogel, unconscious, seemed to prefer warmth, lying near the fire.
Cecilia appeared to be praying to god, her hands clasped together, murmuring softly.

The journey is less eventful than expected.

I looked up at the sky. It seemed quite some time had passed while I was gathering wood, and the sky was now beautifully embroidered with stars. The night sky was as beautiful as it was in the original world. When my family was still alive, we would all go outside to observe the stars.

“…….”

Even if I were to return now.

“…sigh.”

As I lowered my head, Cecilia was looking at me.
Her gaze was fixed on the corners of my eyes.

“What, is there something on my face?”

“No…, it’s nothing….”

I wiped the corners of my eyes with my hand.
There were a few tears.

Had the night made me emotional?

“…Rather than that, isn’t it the rainy season now?”

“Technically, yes.”

The rainy season of The Great Forest.

In the extremely humid Great Forest, a lot of rain falls to maintain that moisture.
However, given our current location at the edge of The Great Forest, it was the rainy season where the rain could submerge a grown man completely, but for now, it was just a drizzle. There was no immediate need to deal with the rain.

Why did she bring that up?
She’s not the type to dislike rain. During her days in the hero’s party, she was always the one to play in puddles when it rained; it’s unlikely her preferences have changed so suddenly.
And unlike before, we had thoroughly prepared waterproof gear.

“Can outsiders enter the interior of Myrloom during the rainy season? I would think all entry would be closed during the rainy season.”

Ah.
Right.