Vol 5: Chapter 60
「Understood. We will permit entry.」
One of the two elves said shortly thereafter. The other elf, who had an annoyed look until a while ago, peered intensely at my ID.
……Does the name Lev Magic Empire carry such a high value? Or is it a country that they respect for having presented a magic airship?
Hmmm.
「Will you be entering right away?」
「Ah… yes. Thank you.」
I stopped thinking about it, and nodded.
Now, the first thing to do is meet Asha.
**
There was a carriage from the entrance of the forest to the Sylvis Kingdom, and I was advised to ride on it. On the contrary, if I insisted on walking there on my own, I would be mistaken for a poacher.
I rode on the horse-drawn carriage – I think it’s a horse, since the elves called it a “horse-drawn carriage”, but the animal had six legs and moss on its back – through the unchanging scenery of the deep forest for about two hours. As I was almost getting tired of it, I heard someone singing.
「…We are about to reach there.」
The coachman was an elf, and there were only two passengers other than myself. The two were humans. And although they looked like merchants, they had been told in advance that elves hate pointless chatter, so they had been keeping silent the entire time.
It felt almost like an escort carriage. In fact, several elves were watching the carriage from the woods with interest.
「Wow…」
I peeked out of the carriage from behind the coachman and looked up. There was a village on the treetops.
Wooden dwellings were built across the wide branches of large trees. And the trees were connected by rope bridges.
The rope bridge was covered with colorful cloth. The colorful aspect was mysteriously in harmony with the rest of the forest.
(It’s similar to the dark elf village…)
The dark elf village was more simple, more crude, more dangerous, but somehow the resemblance was very close.
…Well, there are some things which are different. Such as, a 3-storey building on a treetop!
The carriage stopped, and I got down in the middle of the forest.
Then, the singing voice I heard ceased. Several children who were gathered on the rope bridge scattered in every direction.
I heard the sound of wood processing from somewhere. I could still hear some singing voices, and heard some of the lyrics.
Although the village was on treetops, workshops and warehouses were on the ground, and many elves were walking on the ground. They wore uniform hemp woven clothes, which were dyed in nature colors.
「Farewell.」
「Yes, we shall meet later.」
Perhaps their destination had already been decided as the two passengers walked away quickly. The elves gazed at them with cold eyes, as if they had done something wrong.
「Well, then. I wonder how I can meet the royal family?」
The road stretches from where I stood, which seems to be a carriage stop. You can see horses(?) pulling carts down the treated road, but there weren’t that many passersby.
Time felt like it was flowing at a relaxed pace.
However, it is too unfriendly towards travelers. I don’t need a sign which says “Welcome to the Sylvis Kingdom” or something, but I want a guide at least.
「Hmm…」
As I was at a loss, I noticed a group approaching me from across the main street.
They were two types of elf soldiers. One group was dressed in leather armor and equipped with ore spears, and the other was equipped with bow and arrows.
Only the person leading the group was equipped with a scabbard sword on his waist and a leather strap inlain with a blue jewel on his forehead.
「——Are you Reiji?」
The leading elf asked me.
The spear wielding elf soldiers surrounded me, whereas the bow soldiers kept their guard from a distance. There were 15 spearmen and 7 bowmen in total.
「Yes.」
「I see. So you are the kidnapper who kidnapped Princess Anastasia!!」
「……Come again?」
Before I could even reply, the soldiers readied their spears and the bowmen nocked arrows into their bows.
「You have the audacity to brazenly walk into our kingdom?! Being a despicable human, I thought you would have vanished by now… Not that it would have mattered, as we would have chased you to the ends of the earth. You’re the man who has brought harm to the High Elf-sama we worship!」
「No, wait just a second there. Is that how I’m perceived here? Did Asha say anything?」
「Don’t address Her Highness the Princess with such over-familiarity!!」
The blue jewel elf glared at me wide-eyed. …This guy’s eyes are crazy. Did he smoke something bad before coming here?
「Well, umm… I don’t know what you have been told about me, but can I meet Her Royal Highness Anastasia for the time being?」
Even if they perceive me as a criminal, my priority right now is to meet Asha. Besides, I’m already a fugitive slave and a criminal at the Sixth Mine.
「Of course you can’t meet her!! How audacious can you be?!」
「Then, can I meet the High Elves in charge if I follow you?」
「Of course you canno–… I mean, you can meet them. The High Elf-sama instructed that they will conduct your interrogation directly. However! You should be addressing them as High Elf-“sama”!!」
「Alright. Understood. Please take me to see the High Elf-sama.」
「Kuh… you’re not even resisting. How pathetic.」
What the hell is up with this elf? He flips out at every little thing. Should I have just gone wild?
「Get your weapon out!」
「I don’t have any.」
「Nonsense!」
「You can check for yourself.」
My dagger had become loose in repeated battles, so I entrusted it to Dante-san for repairs.
I showed the inside of the tool bag to the blue jewel elf and confirmed that there was nothing weapon-like inside. Which prompted the elf to put on another mysterious look again.
What the hell is this guy’s problem?
