Chapter 95 : Chapter 95

Chapter 95 : Beneath the Branch of the World Tree (8)

Raldetun fell asleep.

Whether the pain from before had vanished, he slept soundly like a child.

Chorrruk.

The only sound in the Fairy King’s cabin was the pouring of tea.

Bea seemed puzzled but stayed quiet, picking up on the mood.

But I was completely hunched over, dreading the possibility of meeting Frude’s eyes.

“Drink up. It’s a tea I’m quite fond of.”

“Thank you, I’ll enjoy it.”

I drank the tea personally poured by the Fairy King.

The ceramic teacup was a bit small for me, so I had to hold it carefully while drinking.

A fragrant floral scent wafted up, and as I sipped, a sharp taste lingered in my mouth.

But I couldn’t just savor the taste of the tea.

The Fairy King held his teacup and gazed out the window of the cabin.

A single ray of sunlight streamed in, pouring over Frude.

“Thank you for saving my child.”

“No need to thank me. That’s why I came.”

I stared at the cabin’s ceiling, avoiding the Fairy King’s gaze.

Though it didn’t seem artificially crafted, the plants hanging in the air looked all the more mystical for it.

I felt I understood why children were so captivated by mobiles.

“Of course, it seems you used a bit too much force.”

“Ugh, I’m sorry…”

“No, no. I know you didn’t mean it. That child has always been a bit wild, so this might be a chance for him to become a better fairy.”

Fortunately, it seemed Frude wasn’t going to make an issue of my overly aggressive treatment.

I met Frude’s eyes again.

Once our eyes locked, it was hard to look away.

“Are you curious? About how far I can see.”

“To be honest, yes.”

“It’s not such an astonishing skill. I can only sense how upright your heart is or how steadfast your intentions are.”

“I see.”

It didn’t seem much different from how Narima judged me by scent.

It appeared a bit more precise, but I was relieved it wasn’t something like mind-reading.

‘I thought he might have figured out I came from inside a game…’

If it were revealed that I wasn’t from this world, what would happen?

I didn’t want to imagine it.

I feared the people I’d bonded with might turn their backs on me.

I couldn’t fulfill the “Wish of Adjak” alone, after all.

“Haha…”

Lost in thought, I heard Frude let out a deflated chuckle.

Snapping back to reality, I looked at him.

More precisely, I gazed into the gray pupils of Frude, who was still staring at me.

“You have good eyes.”

“Your eyes are truly mystical, Fairy King.”

“No, I’m talking about you. I like the honesty in your gaze. I hope my son takes after you.”

Every mention of Raldetun made me feel like a guilty criminal.

But Frude didn’t seem to mind.

“You’ve come to talk about the war, haven’t you.”

The mention of war made Bea quietly lower her head.

But for me, who had vowed to stop the war, this was a clear opportunity.

Because I could hear the Fairy King’s stance more clearly from his own mouth.

“Yes, that’s right. To be precise, I want to stop the war.”

Frude nodded.

“I know and so does the Elf King, that it’s all just the schemes of ‘those guys.’”

“Are you talking about the demons? Have you found any clues?”

“Not yet. We’ll have to look into it gradually. You collecting the demonic energy from my child must be for that purpose, right?”

“Yes, exactly.”

Phew, Frude sighed once and continued.

“Sarun, chosen by the Fire Spirit. The elf who killed that child was also infected with demonic energy.”

I hadn’t expected Frude to know that fact.

So this war wasn’t caused by ignorance of the demons’ involvement?

Hiding my surprise, I asked about something I didn’t know.

“Was being chosen by the Fire Spirit also part of the demons’ plan?”

“No, that was a coincidence. Sarun, that child, was a blessing to the fairy race. He had an affinity with all elemental spirits. The Fire Spirit just happened to like him the most.”

So the Fire Spirits were victims of the demons too?

That must be why the Fire Spirit King reacted with such confusion when the demonic energy surged from Raldetun’s body.

The Fire Spirits weren’t manipulated by the demons like the elves and fairies, but they ended up siding with the war-crazed fairies.

“There’s something I don’t understand. If that’s the case, why did the war break out? You said the Elf King knew about the demons’ involvement.”

“It couldn’t be stopped.”

“What couldn’t?”

“The fairies’ anger toward the elves. An old, festering wound bursts open with the slightest impact.”

Even the Fairy King, who seemed detached from worldly affairs, had a flicker of unease in his eyes for a moment.

“And Sarun’s death had no small impact. The fairies needed a way to soothe their immense grief.”

“Do you still intend to continue the war?”

“The forest is screaming.”

That answer was enough.

“I’ll catch the demon who played dirty tricks and I’ll go to someone who can represent the elves’ intentions and ask for a formal apology to the fairies.”

I was no longer afraid to look into the Fairy King’s eyes.

Staring straight at him, I said,“Please, I ask you to quell the anger within you as well.”

The Fairy King nodded silently.

He picked up the teapot again and poured tea into the three cups on the round table with a chorrruk sound.

“I’ll order the fairies to stop their offensive. But they’re already overheated. Even if they know it’s wrong, they won’t stop easily.”

At that moment, Bea joined the conversation.

“It’s a burden the arrogant elves must bear. But I’ll persuade a worthy elf to apologize.”

Bea was an exiled elf.

Yet she came alone to the fairy territory to apologize.

I planned to help her achieve her goal.

That seemed the only way to stop the war.

‘By the way, the elves do have a problem. I’ll have to reform them somehow…’

Frude looked gently at Bea and gave a faint smile.

But there was a hint of loneliness in that smile.

His worries didn’t seem entirely eased.

“But my words alone won’t fully calm the enraged fairies. They aren’t a race that blindly follows their king.”

“It seemed like all the fairies respected you, Fairy King.”

“It’s hard to say all of them do. If the fairies don’t stop their attacks, it’ll be difficult to demand an apology from the elves.”

As Frude spoke with concern, Raldetun, who had been sitting on the bed, suddenly sprang up.

“I’ll stop them! I’ll knock some sense into the warlike fairies and keep them confined in the territory!”

It was a relief to see him looking so energetic, as if he’d never been sick.

But the fire in his eyes had a different meaning.

“Polarin, you achieve what you want! I’ll stand at the forefront of your path.”

At Raldetun’s sudden pledge of loyalty, Frude let out a deep sigh and sipped his tea.

* * *

Bea and I were granted permission to stay in the fairy territory.

We could have gone straight to the elf territory to uncover the full story, but the evidence we had wasn’t enough to make everything clear.

I could guess why the demons instigated the war between the elves and fairies.

But guesses alone couldn’t solve the issue.

At the very least, I needed to find the location of the demon responsible for this war.

And I had a specialist friend when it came to tracking demons.

“Nofen-nim, can you come to Kipaso?”

- Sure thing! It’s been a while since I’ve seen you, Polarin-nim.

“Haha, yeah. But… it’s pretty dangerous here, so you’ll need an escort.”

- An escort! Oh no, all the Tello agents are busy.

“Are Keldric or Eidon-nim busy too?”

- Those two are off checking the situation in the northern Empire.

Nofen briefly explained the current state of the northern Empire.

The north was practically a constant monster wave zone.

It was different from the front lines at Myeolji, where the Crows stopped newly spawned demonic beasts from spreading across the continent.

In contrast, the north was where demons and beasts had settled and taken root after their expeditions.

Most of the demons that remained on the continent after the Adjak expedition fled there.

Moreover, the northern beasts had built habitats and gained experience over time.

As a result, increasingly cunning and powerful monsters were constantly eyeing the continent.

Because of this, the north had served as a defensive line against these creatures.

But recently, there were signs of troop movements from the north toward the continent, specifically the capital.

Eidon and Keldric were away investigating these developments.

‘By the way, Keldric never leaves Eidon-nim’s side. Is he unwilling or unable to go solo?’

Unlike Nofen, who recognized me as a full-fledged Tello agent and told me to find my own path, Keldric seemed different.

Suddenly, I thought of someone who could help Nofen, someone skilled in combat and known to him: Derix.

“Nofen-nim, I’ll send Derix.”

- Oh! I heard Derix-nim was badly injured. Has he fully recovered?

“Yeah, he told me recently he’s all healed up and to let him know if I needed anything.”

- Awesome! Meeting Derix-nim might let me ask him some stuff about demons too.

“Alright, I’ll contact Derix as well.”

After finishing my communication with Nofen, I was about to head out to train.

Then I noticed Bea curled up in a corner of the cabin.

“Wanna go train with me?”

“…There are too many fairies outside.”

“Of course, it’s fairy territory.”

“Fairies hate elves.”

“They don’t like humans either. I get stared at every time I go out.”

I meant it as comfort, but Bea shook her head.

Being surrounded by those who disliked her couldn’t have been easy.

Especially for Bea, who’d always lived among those who despised her, the trauma must have run deep.

“Don’t you feel stiff just staying inside?”

Bea stretched, probably feeling stiff indeed.

Even in the privacy of the cabin, she remained curled up, so it made sense.

“Feeling restless? Let’s go train.”

I’d been training shamelessly in fairy territory, but Bea had stayed cooped up.

She initially refused but then stood up.

‘She’s so stubborn about not being honest.’

The racial war between elves and fairies was likely sparked by demonic interference.

But if the elves had been kinder to begin with, it wouldn’t have escalated this far.

The racial war was practically an elf reformation campaign.

“Let’s go, Elf-nim.”

Bea glared at me when I called her “Elf,” but she soon followed along.

The conflict between elves and fairies probably started small. Most elves were just prickly by nature, so they didn’t get along with the fairies living in the same area.

But over time, the elves’ disregard for fairies went beyond mere personality quirks.

The fairies, who revered the World Tree, settled in Kipaso, but the elves built their territory under the World Tree and banned fairy entry.

It was too far gone to call it just a personality issue. If it was their nature, it needed fixing.

Bea, an exiled elf, needed reformation too.

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