Thank you very much for sharing your camp with . May the Origin Gods bless you.
It is a pleasure. You should warm yourself up a bit before we speak, Miss Elf.
eting a dwarf for the first ti and now a real elf? My fantasy sensors are satisfied today~
Oh, where are my manners? My na is Silva, a Saelari eir Zephira; or, in Common tongue, I am a wind elf from the forest of Saelariel. She gave a graceful bow as she smiled at us. Saori and I introduced ourselves plainly.
On the other hand, Tasianna couldnt help but start speaking in whatever language the elves and fairies speak. Binsel ir Tasianna Marina Silverpond. Seub eir Aifli, isschata eir Zephira.
Aifli? Tiluoan Tasianna, saha eir Saelari eir Zephira. Silva the elf pressed her hands together as she looked at Tasianna with an apologetic smile. Hitti binselk Silverpond, falahir votum roy Iggdrasyl? Zut [Elvenize] fie? Valfar gisch fie?
[Do you understand what theyre saying, Saori?] As it seems like Tasianna and Silva have entered their own world, I could help but ask Saori this rather redundant question. I wasnt sure if I should interrupt them.
[It is a bit rude to us, but Tasianna has not seen an elf or fairy in a while. I believe she must be making up for the lost ti. You know, it is like eting an Arican when you are visiting Japan or another country in your case, I believe. A kind of kinship.] Saoris words made sense, now that I think about it.
Wouldnt I feel nostalgic if I were to et a person from Earth on Peolynca? In fact, didnt I feel thrilled when I first t Saori and discovered she was Japanese when I first spoke with her? Tasianna might have exiled herself from her ho, but that didnt an she wouldnt feel hosick. She might not have shown it to , but I bet she has so lingering feelings for her village, despite resenting the lifestyle of a fairy.
Ahh, Lady Hestia, I apologize! How rude of to leave you out of the conversation, realizing I was also around, Tasianna apologized to , before looking over to Silva. Sister Silva, this is Lady Hestia, my current mistress. She and Miss Saori do not understand Andurenian, so could we speak in Common? Andurenian is the official na of the Elven language.
With a nod, she complied. It is a great honor to et a spawn of Kargryxmor and Belzac. I apologize for being rude. I was too surprised to et your fairy friend here.
Ahh, thats the reasonWait, what?!
Upon hearing she called us spawns of Kargryxmor and Belzac, Saori and I beca wary. I guess she knew Tasianna was a fairy from their discussion, but nobody told her our real identities! Were in our beastman forms; it should be impossible for her to know were a dragon and cadejo unless we either tell her or show her our IDs with that information revealed!
Lady Hestia, Miss Saori, please, dont be too alard. There is a reason for this! Reading our minds, Tasianna stepped in front of Silva and waved her hands. Sister Silva understands your identities due to the spirits. She spoke to them.
She spoke to them?
Yes, shes one of the more traditional mages among the elves. Shes a faemancer, a speaker to the faefolk.
A faemancer?
Apparently, faemancers are people who have the ability to commune with all the different faefolk in the world. Think of it like an ani exorcist who can speak with ghosts. Silva was able to discern our identities due to the spirits surrounding us.
Now, it might seem weird to call her a faefolk whisperer as fairies should be able to speak, yes? Well, fairies are only one type of faefolk, not unlike how wolfkin and katzune were both beastn sub-races.
The spirits can be sorted into three categories: the lesser fae, fairies, and elentals, Silva began to explain. Lesser fae include beings like spirits, small mana beings that like to wander around like children, and spriggans, woodland faefolk that dwell among plants. There are of course many more. Similar to how the many creatures of our world adapt to different climates and environnts, the faefolk might even be more nurous than beastn. As they are a gathering of concentrated mana, their forms and traits are determined by the land they are born in.
I rember hearing from Tasianna that she wasnt born like a human, but that her consciousness just appeared one day, and she was alive. Like what Silva just said, Tasianna was also born from an accumulation of mana and suddenly ca to life. The only fairies that I heard could give proper birth were the royal family of the fairies, Iggdrasyl.
You should know about fairies, as Sister Tasianna is one. To be clear, fairies are faefolk who were born with intelligence like other humanoid beings and can enjoy the perks of one. There are many mischievous ones, so eting sobody as polite as Sister Tasianna is surprising, Silva continued. The last category are elentals. They range from minor elentals to the elental kings. I heard from the elders that before the Origin Gods ca to our world, elven mages would contract with free elentals to support their spell casting. Of course, this was before the Wind Mother gave birth to us wind elves.
In exchange for supplying the elental with experience and mana to grow, an elental helps a mage by supporting their mana control. Mages in the days before the Origin Gods were able to create elental spells like fire and water, but without an elental, it was infinitely harder as they had to do most of the work alone.
Back then, elentals helped change the spells elent purely by being with the mage, aning that one step of the magic casting process was already down. Nowadays, people have the Divine System and skills. The Origin Gods system spells allow normal people to use elental spells without an elental, and having an elental skill allows people to cast elental spells with ease. However
I have a question. Doesnt that an that the usage of elentals is, uhm, uhh
How do I say this politely?!
Giggling as she understood my struggles, Silva told it was alright. Yes, the usage of elentals is outdated with the grace of the Origin Gods. It is easier for people to study and gain skills than to contract an elental; however, I did both. Nobody said doing both is not allowed, right? Silva then revealed a small wooden cage under her robes. She opened it up and knocked twice on it with her staff, gently saying, Wake up, little one.
A small light ca out of the cage, looking very similar to my [Shine] or the holy spell [Light]. It looked energetic as it greeted Silva by circling around her thrice. It then suddenly stopped, before flying over to and doing the sa thing. However, unlike Silva, it wouldnt stop circling around .
Oh my, as you are a spawn of Kargryxmor, you must be a princess from Kargryx, yes? Princess Hestia, it seems you arent an ordinary holy mage. Little Igniclus is a light elental and he shows fondness towards priests of Aurena, but none have made Igniclus this excited before. The blessing of Goddess Aurena must be very powerful with you, she said, smiling like a little girl. Despite being around Saoris size and probably a few decades older than us, it made her look cute.
I wanted to continue eating my stew while its still warm, but playing with the elental wouldnt take long. I cast [Shine] on my finger and waved at the light elental to lure him over. Like a cat chasing after a red dot, the elental couldnt help but follow my finger.
Hehe, hes pretty cute. Miss Silva, didnt you say there are different types of elentals? Which one is this? I asked, running around as I played with the little guy.
Hes a minor elental. The lowest grade. Like every wind elf, I was born with the ability to cast wind magic, so I am a wind mage. I have contracted with Igniclus, as learning holy magic is practically impossible without joining the church of Aurena. I can cast small healing and supportive spells with Ignicluss help, Silva answered. I am currently traveling to help Igniculus grow. Similar to a tars monsters, elentals can gain experience and evolve into their superior forms. He is practically a child, so he must be excited to et you and your amulet.
My amulet? Ahh, thats right.
Amulet of Aurena
A detailed amulet dedicated to the worship of Aurena, the Goddess of Light
Skill
[Holy Resistance Lv. 5]
[Health Recovery Lv. 5]
[Mana Recovery Lv. 5]
[Holy Amp [Holy Magic Efficiency]
The amulet I have gotten from the temple. I hadnt been wearing it inside Firwood, as I simply forgot to do it. My white robe was enough of an indicator that I was a holy mage, so there never was a need to equip the amulet. However, as Saori and Tasianna have been wearing their amulets, I thought it was about ti to wear it now that I was going out to do a Quest. Aurenas religion is the national religion of Artorias, so looking like a priestess might help gain the trust of people more easily.
Naturally, I am not a big fan of using my status to control a situation. I just dont like it. However, Aurena did tell to act like her priestess, so I guess I should try it out. There wasnt a need to use my princess title anyway, and if we do get into trouble, I still have that super scary docunt from the lord of Firwood.
Ahh, that reminds , what were the two of you talking about before? Saori pointed at Tasianna and Silva.
In essence, Tasianna introduced herself to Silva and told her she was a fairy who was using [Elvenize] to look like a wind elf. Silva, having understood this, apologized as she thought she was a sister. As Zephira was the mother of all wind elves, wind elves seem to treat each other like siblings if they are friendly. The Goddess of Wind was also the patron goddess of fairies, it seems the two of them were calling each other sisters as they consider their deity the sa.
Although, Tasianna was praying more to Plesia nowadays.
As a faemancer, I can detect the presence of faefolk. I felt a fairy, so I approached you, Silva admitted. Still, while serving a dragon princess must be an honor... Sister Tasianna, why are you here? Why arent you serving the royal family as a Silverpond?
That hit a soft spot. Silva couldnt have known about it, but it did cause to twitch my eye a bit. Tasianna imdiately frowned as she was questioned, staying silent.
Uhhh, d-did I say sothing wrong? Silva asked nervously.
No, no, its not your fault, Tasianna managed to eke out. Its just thatI-Im not serving the royal family because I exiled myself. This is my atonent for the incompetence Ive shown in my service for the royal family.
Tasianna began to retell her ti with her previous mistress, Princess Schuri, and also the tragedy that followed after they were captured by human fae hunters, which resulted in Schuris death. She explained why she exiled herself from her village, how she got captured by trolls and then went into my service after Saori and I rescued her. The only thing she didnt tell was her desire to get revenge on the person that hired those fairy hunters.
I see, so that is why you are so far away from our forest, Sister Tasianna. When I heard a mber of the Iggdrasyl died due to humans, it felt like a thorn was driven into my heart. It is as the elders have said, humans are a short-living race, so they always forget their mistakes. Their greed overwhelms the compassion they should be feeling as fellow humanoids. The warmth shed shown us was completely gone from her eyes as she said that.
My impression of the entirety of the human race is worsening the more I hear about the War for the Faefolk or sothing like the history of the Leosfalt Kingdom. Saori would probably tell to not take every fact at face value, considering history is written by the victors, but how should I explain the hostility these two are feelings? Tasianna is soone who experienced an extre tragedy, so her hatred was understandable, but what about Silva?
From the way she spoke, she probably wasnt old enough to have experienced the war and naturally build up hatred for humans. She ntioned her elders told her about the war and humans, so it was likely her opinion was biased.
Well, my human side is still a part of , so I cannot share their hatred for humans. Besides, even if the majority are dislikable, that doesnt an I couldnt befriend an individual. Lorena and Ellaine are examples of this.
However, Sister Tasianna, this might be a rude question I apologize in advance to you too, Princess Hestia, but how is serving a princess from a distant land atonent? Wouldnt dedicating your life to our Wind Mother or the royal family be more suitable? Silva questioned as she recalled Igniculus back to his cage.
Huh? Uh, I Tasianna paused to think over her words. Lady Hestia is my saving light. She was the one to save from my ti in distress, so isnt it proper for to serve her? I wish to beco stronger, more reliable. I couldnt protect Princess Schuri I was a failure, whose mind was so clouded by anger and fear that I neglected my mistress. I dont want that to happen again. I grew up to beco a retainer by my adopted family, so shouldnt I be serving to atone?
Your words make sense, but your wish is entirely selfish, no? You are projecting Princess Schuri onto Princess Hestia, treating her as a way to forget your past mistakes. It is emotional atonent that you seek. You wish to see if your past self couldve been as strong as your current self if you had trained more.
Miss Silva, we are already aware of it. Tasianna acknowledged this when we first t. I knew this was sothing Tasianna had to answer herself, but as a friend, I had to step in for her. Saori and I accepted her as a party mber knowing exactly why she wanted to beco my retainer. However, shes grown into our friend and a person we can rely on.
I apologize if I insulted you, Princess Hestia, but I do not intend to disparage her reasons. Maybe I do not understand the whole situation well enough, but fairies do not act like this. They are whimsical, yes, but wouldnt serving and asking the Wind Mother for forgiveness be more efficient? Wandering away from our forests and endangering herself is nothing but foolishness.
Wind Mother this, Wind Mother that, urgh, shes getting on my nerves. I wanted to rebuke her. She was acting so patronizingly, even though we were practically strangers.
Sister Silva, my place is not with the fairies nor with Goddess Zephira, my place is with Lady Hestia. I cannot go back to being like the other fairies, it is impossible. I cannot live that life anymore. Goddess Zephiras teachings do not fit anymore. Tasianna then pulled out the amulet of Plesia from underneath her clothes, displaying it clearly before Silva.
Silva frowned. You endanger your life, Sister Tasianna. You may be able to conceal your form from the humans, but their greed will find you soday. Return to Saelariel. She then looked at us and continued speaking, Miss Saori, humans are the enemy of the Belzac wolves. They will hunt you if they find out your origins, similar to what they did a few years ago or with the original Belzac.
I will manage, thank you, Saori answered with an aloof expression, the one I was used to during our days in the Belzac Forest before she softened up.
Princess Hestia, you are probably on your Adulthood Ceremonial Pilgrimage, but you shouldnt linger too much in human lands. I would ask you to visit our forest. The elves are allies with the dragons of Kargryx and dragonewts of Loatryx. If you wish to witness the world, then we can provide you with knowledge and wisdom from our wisest elders. The humans will covet a dragons scales and fangs for their weapons of slaughter.
I dunno if she was actually worried about Saori and , or if this is to indirectly bring Tasianna back to Saelariel, but it sounds so pretentious. Maybe it was kindness, but it sounded more like arrogance to . Who is she to say that I should go to her ho and learn about the world from her people?
If my fantasy knowledge could be counted on, then the elves should be the arrogant and isolationist types. Sure, I can understand her dislike for humans, but she doesnt know . I still plan to travel the world. Man, am I glad I was forced to go to Artorias now. For once, thank you Astalos and Grandpapa Kargryxmor.
I wanted to ask her if she would be able to fix my mana paths, considering she was an elf, but now I wont. I cant be indebted to soone who would probably want to drag our party to Saelariel to protect us.
You dont need to worry about us, I can protect the people around , I stated confidently. It was a bit of a bluff, considering there were people stronger than , even in my true form, but I knew having too little self-esteem would just drag down into a pit of irrelevance. There was so much potential to uncover with my unique skills that I was sure I will beco stronger if I work on them. In other words, it isnt a bluff if I can keep it up in the future.
Wait a minute, why is she here in human lands despite hating humans so much?
Excuse , Miss Silva, never mind what was said before, can you first explain why you are in Artorias? We shared our reason, so why are you here? Ellaine and all her head attendants said that Artorias had a bad relationship with the elves, and the kingdoms history confirms that, so I was more curious for her reason to be here.
Oh, have I not explained that? My apologies, I should explain, no? she nodded. I have traveled here for my duty as a faemancer. Speaking with them and bringing them peace is part of my journey. Due to the problems caused by the War for the Faefolk, beings called Onnikais were born into these lands. They are faefolk who have lost their innocent personalities while their mischievousness has been intensified through negative emotions.
According to Silva, an Onnikai is a type faefolk that started appearing during the War for the Faefolk due to the suffering the faefolk had to endure. Similar to how faefolk adapt to their environnts, these beings were born due to the negative emotions surrounding the untily and cruel deaths of faefolk. Instead of playing in moderation, onnikais do not possess limiters to control them, aning they can cause widespread mischief and terrorize people without care.
They were hurt, and they do not know how to get rid of their pain. They will cause wanton chaos until they are satisfied, but that is hard to gauge. While you can argue that the humans reaped what they sow, the problem lies with the fact that onnikais spread their negative emotions and proliferate at a worrying rate. It is my duty to bring them peace.
I understand, but why are you here exactly? I questioned further.
That is because I sensed onnikais to the north of my current standpoint. I was traveling there until I t Princess Hestia, Miss Saori, and Sister Tasianna.
North? Isnt Rashan Village to the north?
While I detest human contact, I must travel through the country to save the poor faefolk in the Wind Mothers na. The spirits and spriggans know much about the land but their information network isnt as good as those of the guilds. I brought these earrings that have been enchanted by illusion mages to hide my ears. No doubt, humans would harass if they knew I was an elf. I pity you, Sister Tasianna.
Pardon , you said you were going north? Saori suddenly asked.
Saori Sothing was telling she was up to sothing. I was planning to interrupt her, but she quickly sent a telepathic ssage to Trust in , so I kept silent for the mont.
Have you heard about a village called Rashan Village located north from here? We were actually on our way there to fulfill a hunters guild Quest, one concerning a monster problem and an increase in mana in the local soil. Could the presence of onnikais be a cause for it?
Hmm, yes. Yes, that is possible. Causing monster spawning due to the mana accumulation in the ground is a way for the onnikais to create chaos. Do you know how many monsters are spawning? If its in a large quantity, then there is the possibility for a large gathering of them.
Our handler told us monsters up to rank D have been sighted. Two D rank parties accepted the Quest and are presud deceased. The guild requested us to handle it due to our partys abilities.
Hmm, naturally, descendants of Kargryxmor and Belzac would have no problems with this Quest. Princess Hestia is a royal on her pilgrimage so she must be a B rank dragon. I can understand why the guild would rely on you, Silva nodded with a smile. Ah, I understand what you an, Miss Saori. My destination was, in fact, this village. If the onnikais are close to the human village, then our goals are aligned. Very well, I would be honored to aid the three of you. This eting must be ordained by the Origin Gods, so how could I refuse?
But, but, I dont want to hang around with you I complained to myself, knowing I couldnt just say that. I then looked at Saori while pouting.
She smiled back, wryly. [I know what you are thinking, but consider the situation with a calm mind. She is a faemancer and the possibility of these onnikais being the main culprits for the Quest is high. Our job is to protect the village and solve the problem, so it is better to ask for the support of an expert. Bear with it, please.]
[Yeah, I know, I know, already. Shes a wind mage and knows so healing spells so she probably will be useful to us as a companion. Im just worried that shell make Tasianna feel awkward.]
[You do not have to worry about , Lady Hestia,] Tasianna interjected. [I know full well that my reason to join you initially was selfish. Shes also right to say that I am not seeking to atone for my sin but to findclosure. I didnt tell Sister Silva about my desire to get revenge on the person that brought Princess Schuris death, because I believe it would beco more complicated. Please trust in , Lady Hestia. You can rely on to help you finish this Quest. It is my duty as your retainer and friend.]
I sighed in exasperation as my two companions convinced to go along with Silva. I then spoke to Silva; I had to make sure of sothing. Miss Silva, can you keep a secret?
Oh, dont worry, Princess Hestia. I understand what you are saying. Of course, I will not tell anybody about your partys true identities. We elves are allies to Kargryx, so harming one of their princesses would dishonor this long-lasting bond. Protecting Sister Tasianna is obvious enough, and I wouldnt dare bring harm to Belzacs descendants. We failed too often, we cannot do it again.
What do you an by that, Miss Silva? Saori asked, showing genuine curiosity.
Seven years ago, the detestable humans brought harm to the forest of Belzac again. Similar to how they slew Belzac himself for being a threat. He was a defender, a just protector of the forest, but he was deed a problem by the humans. It repeated once again when they hunted down the A rank child of Belzac, Silva told Saori. We had sentries in the forest but they had to retreat during the hunt. They were chased away by the fenrirs themselves. Now, I believe you are one of the only fenrir left, Miss Saori.
A sentry? I did find an elven shack close to the garm matriarchs nest. I even salvaged so books from it. Thankfully, I forget any slimy event that happened there.
I see, thank you very much for informing about that, Saori said with a faint smile. Despite not wanting to have anything to do with her garm family, I think Saori is a bit curious about the history of the Belzac wolves.
It is my pleasure, she bowed before revealing a bracelet from under her robe. Princess Hestia, I would like to ask you for the honor of joining your party. Will you accept?
Silva Fleurette Breezeflower wishes to join your party
Accept Decline
Accept.
Party Leader
Na: Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor
Level: 80
Job: Cleric
Health: 4821/4821
Mana: 17191/17191
Stamina: 2881/2881
Effects:
[Damaged Mana Path [Left Wing] (Minor)] [Humanized (Moderate)]
Na: Saori Segawa
Level: 70
Job: Fighter
Health: 3066/3066
Mana: 1349/1349
Stamina: 2281/2281
Effects:
[Humanized (Moderate)][/b]
Na: Tasianna Marina Silverpond
Level: 51
Job: Torrent Mage
Health: 1661/1661
Mana: 4503/4503
Stamina: 1209/1209
Effects:
[Elvenized (Major)]
Na: Silva Fleurette Breezeflower
Level: 54
Job: Light Elentalist
Health: 1813/1813
Mana: 3512/3512
Stamina: 851/851
O-Oh, by the Origin Gods! Silva exclaid with her eyes widened like a goldfish, as she looked at the blue screen projected from her party bracelet. Once I accepted her party invite, the party mber list probably was shown to Silva. I-I shouldnt have been so surprised. As expected of a dragon descendant of the mighty Kargryxmor. [Humanized] should halve all your stats but seeing 17891 Mana isshocking.
As I knew she would be able to see my abnormal effects with the party system, I used my IDs special feature to hide certain information from people. In this case, I hid the fact that I had [Damaged Mana Paths [Left Wings] (Minor)]. If she could repair my mana paths, then I dont want to owe her a favor. I dont want her to ask to bring Tasianna back to Saelariel. It isnt ti yet to visit the elves.
As Silva showed no suspicion, the hiding function of the ID must have worked. Ha, it was truly worth having made contact with Count Helvas. With this, I can hide most of my information from people, staying completely incognito. I should thank Count Helvas for this.
Miss Silva, I know you might have many more things to ask, but we should rest for the night. It is late. Please, if you are hungry, we have so stew. Saori, probably expecting Silva to continue the discussion we had before, perfectly distracted her with so of the nice-slling food. As if she hadnt eaten for the whole day, Silva was fully focused on the food, so we barely had a chance to speak with her.
Once the next day ca, Saori imdiately told Silva that we had to hurry. She explained that we planned to reach Rashan Village before lunch.
Hmm, yes, that would be smart. However, how will that be possibleWuahh?! Miss Saori?! Without letting her speak another word, Saori picked Silva up in a princess carry. Tasianna transford back into a fairy for and our party began the sprint towards Rashan Village. Silvas cries of surprise echoed through the woodskinda.
The mont we reached the outskirts of the village, Tasianna transford back into an elf while Saori set down Silva. Saori truly had everything planned. There was no chance for us to return to that awkward talk if there was no ti or opportunity to continue it. A masterful display, yep.
Ahhhhhhhh, HELP !
As we were laughing with the ntally fatigued Silva, who wasnt able to adapt to the high-speed run, we suddenly heard sobody shout for help. After giving Silva a bottle of dragorade to help her recover, the three of us ran towards the scream.
There we were presented with the sight of black creatures similar to loopriszars chasing after villagers and fighting against armored humans, probably soldiers or guards. At the gate of the village, a horde of zombie-like beings were being held back by guards and a few villagers. The appearance of these zombies varied from the typical human zombies to the monster zombies. Decaying skorrs, loopabits, and wolves were a few examples that joined the human and beastman zombies in the attack.
Please, help, HELP. SOBODY!
Baby, you need to move faster! Honey! Where are you?!
Dammit! Steady n, steady! We need to hold on until the damn soldiers from the barons castle arrive! Sobody get the chief out of here, now!
I wasnt sure what was happening, but we could ask questions after we dealt with the imdiate problem.
Saori, Tasianna. Protect the villagers! I shouted as magic circles began to materialize around .
Hai, Hestia Oujo-sama! (Yes, Princess Hestia!)
By your will, Lady Hestia!
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