We took a one-day break for Teto to recuperate as she had lost plenty of water due to her nonstop crying, before continuing our meeting with Erneah-san.
"Hmm, so you have come."
At the meeting place, aside from Erneah-san and Altair-san, there was also a pale-skinned elf woman whose eyes were shut close. Though she wasn't sleeping as she was properly facing us and her long ears subtly twitching.
"Thank you for setting the meeting. This is a gift we prepared from there .
I took out the gift we had prepared for the elven queen from my magic bag.
They were seeds of a world tree I had created with , fail-safe accessories used when riding on flying mythical beasts, the scales that Dragon Grandpa shed, and many more......
These were the items I prepared after discussing with Baretta and Dragon Grandpa and concluding that we shouldn't focus on quantity. I had chosen them mainly to show the things we had in our place.
Seeing the gifts, Altair-san's eyes went wide with surprise and the face of the other elven woman also showed astonishment. Only Erneah-san was------
"Oh~, I appreciate your effort. I'll drink it tonight with my evening meal."
Instead of being impressed by these things, she seemed more delighted with the barrel of alcohol that has been aged for 50 years as she tapped it.
At her reaction, Altair-san broke out of her reverie and cleared her throat.
"We'll cherish and make good use of these gifts."
"Feel free to use them however you like. Also, if multiple world trees grow properly, you can harvest the seeds again. So do your best to take care of them."
"Their flowers are beautiful~"
Upon hearing our words, Altair-san's eyes widened in surprise for the second time today.
"Err...... World trees can increase in number......? Erneah-san, is that true?"
"Yeah, indeed. However, world trees can't pollinate on their own as that requires multiple world trees. That's why it was referred to as the sole world tree, it couldn't increase its number on its own."
When Erneah-san stated that fact, both Altair-san and the elf woman looked shocked. I guess they had forgotten about it due to the fixed notion of the 'sole' world tree over the years.
For instance, if the world tree was the kind of tree unable to bear fruits, then the mythical beast Ratatosk wouldn't have formed the habit of burying its fruits or nuts underground as winter food. Well, it was another matter that the majority of the Ratatosk completely forgot about the fruits they hide for the winter, allowing the seeds of the world tree to sprout after winter.
"In that case, we can further develop the Great Forest."
"Hmm, but is this acceptable for you? The seeds of the world tree are something we elves desperately seek. And giving them as a gift would be akin to giving up on your interest."
Facing the question Erneah-san posed with an amusing expression in an attempt to test us out, I answered.
"I don't particularly care about them. In case I died and all the world trees from the were to be cut down, as long as Elves who have been continuing to protect the Great Forest for ages grow them, this will at least mean that the world tree species will survive."
If I, the wielder of , died and all the young world trees were to be lost, the World Tree in the Elven Great Forest would return to being the only one. This went against the wish of Liliel to fill the world with mana.
In that case, I believed the correct path was to not care about self-interest and raise world trees together with the elves.
"A firm conviction indeed, as to be expected from a goddess' apostle."
The pale-skinned elven woman put her hands together in front of her chest with a reverent expression at my response.
"Fumu...... if I receive them casually, it would raise questions about my honor."
"Erneah-sama, then....."
Altair-san explained our reason for visiting Erneah-san who adopted a pondering look as she fiddled with her closed folding fan.
"Sounds good. We will cooperate with you in your wish to secure the boundaries of the . Ah, but it might be difficult for you to accept our country's defense magic all at once, so I think it would be better to adopt them little by little."
After becoming acquainted with High Elf Queen and obtaining her approval to learn of their technique related to their forest's defenses, this outing could be considered a success already.
"Thank you. To be honest, I had considered the possibility of our request being refused. But now, we can deal with intruders more efficiently."
"That's good. And there is one more gift. Rorona."
"Yes, Erneah-sama."
The elf woman who had been mostly silent up until now stood up and made a slow bow.
"I am Rorona, an elf priestess and the apostle of Heaven Goddess Leriel-sama. "
"I am Chise, Liliel's apostle. It's my pleasure to meet you."
"And Teto is the protector of Majou-sama!"
Then, when I extended my hand for a handshake, Rorona-san also reached her hand out, but she only caught air instead of grasping my hand even after multiple attempts.
"H. Huh? That's strange. I can't feel Chise-sama's magic, so I can't shake her hand."
"I see. I usually keep my mana suppressed so you wouldn't be able to sense it."
After saying that, I slightly released my mana. Rorona-san, too, seemed to have clearly grasped the outline of my mana this time as she firmly returned my handshake.
"Rorona-san is unable to see with her eyes?"
"Yes. I was born blind but I can sense magic power and spirits, so it doesn't bother me much."
Rorona-san smiled as she said that, and next, she shook hands with Teto.
"As a token of gratitude for the seeds of the world tree, I will give you a talisman that has received the blessing of Leriel."
"A talisman with Leriel's blessing? What's that?"
Rorona-san took out two wooden talismans wrapped in red cloth and placed them side by side.
Made from fragments of the World Tree and engraved with magical inscriptions, they were a type of magic tool.
"In this Eldar Forest Kingdom protected by Leriel, the use of teleportation-related magic and magic tools is prohibited. However, the ones holding these talismans blessed by Rorona, an apostle of Leriel, are exempted from these restrictions."
'Furthermore, by adding in your mana, it can only be used by you,' she further explained.
It was kind of like a guild card, Teto and I received one each as that thought crossed my mind. Then, when we channeled our mana into them, they changed color and became as hard as metal despite retaining their wooden weight.
"Congratulation. You can now freely travel between the Eldar Forest Kingdom and the . Shall we install a in this castle as well?"
I could somehow guess the thoughts of Erneah-san who grinned and laughed cheerfully.
"Once we set up a , are you planning to use it to visit the to hang out?"
"Ah, it seems like I was exposed."
Erneah-san should be able to travel between both places as she must also be holding one such Leriel-blessed talisman.
"Erneah-sama, we cannot allow you to go outside of the forest alone."
"Why, I often take walks alone at night, so why does it matter now?"
"Even so! In fact, can you not go out alone for a walk please!"
Looking at the scene of Altair-san rebuking Erneah-san who casually brushed it off, Rorona-san listened with an amused smile.
"What's the harm? It has been a while since a Reincarnator from another world came to our world, so I might be able to listen to interesting stories. Besides, Chise is also immortal, so isn't having a good relationship with her important?"
"Ohh, speaking of them, I didn't search for traces of past Reincarnators, but they really seem to exist, huh?"
At my murmuring, Rorona, Leriel's apostle, explained.
"The goddess-sama sends the reincarnated individuals to this world in a way that ensures that there are never multiple individuals at the same time."
In a world where lifespans could be extended through magic, most of the Reincarnators probably passed away without attaining immortality.
In that case, I wondered if there were people who lived for 100 or 200 years. Some might have even reached 300 years depending on their inherent talent.
Nevertheless, I guess I was the only Reincarnator alive right now.
"Don't be so down. The descendants of that guy from Chise's hometown have been continuing to carry that bloodline."
"I see."
"In the past, there used to be a foolish country with a deep-rooted human supremacism and slavery ideology in the neighborhood of the Great Forest that tried to lay its hands on us multiple times. That Reincarnator demolished that country and built the Sanfield Empire over it, becoming its King."
Apparently, when Takaya Sunfield ------ Hinohara Takaya-san, the founding Emperor of Sunfield Empire, surpassed the rank of A-rank and reached S-rank, he took down the slavery-preaching royal family and became the king of the new country. Afterward, he spent the rest of his lifetime with his wives who were former slaves, and had many children with them. (T/N - Changing Sanfield>Sunfield. Sunfield name is derived from the name 'Hi-no-hara' which can mean the field/plains of the sun.)
"By the way, while claiming something like 'Harem is a man's romance!', he had wives from all six races: human, beastkin, elf, dwarf, dragonkin, and demonic......"
"Well, no comment from me."
Though harem was unacceptable for me as a woman, I could understand it as a man's dream.
However, it was probably because it was a country where the King himself welcomed the brides from different races that the country could advance in coexistence with different races.
"In his later years, when he lost his wives one after another, and even his elven wife also passed away in the end, he ceased the rejuvenation of his body due to his mana and peacefully passed away at the age of 150."
"...... I see."
Even if people can live up to 300 years with magic power if they have no meaning or purpose in life, their spirits would weaken and they would die.
And from Erneah-san's appearance as if she was talking about her old friend, it seemed like their friendship couldn't become the reason for him to live on.
"Well, enough with glum talk, let's not dwell on the past. You can install the in a corner of this castle, so you can come here at any time and visit."
"In that case, let's set it up right away."
For now, we decided to set up the and set the user permission to Erneah-san, Altia-san, and Rorona-san. With this, even if other people were holding the blessed talisman, the 's mechanism would reject the unauthorized person.
"Good. Just contact us when you have plans to visit. And feel free to consult with me at any time if you have any problems regarding how to deal with the intruders of the .
With that, Teto and I received permission to set up the in a corner of the castle. Now, we can return to the anytime.
