“Hello?”
“Hello.”
I awkwardly replied with politeness to the girl’s greeting, even though she didn’t seem like the type who cared for formalities—there was an air of experience about her that felt beyond her young appearance.
She casually nodded at my greeting and placed the pipe she’d been holding in her mouth onto the table.
After briefly scanning me, the girl spoke up again.
“Are you the person Mr. Cain has been talking about?”
“Excuse me?”
“Cain?”
The unfamiliar name surprised me when it came from her mouth, leaving me slightly baffled.
Thinking I might have the wrong place, I asked her with some uncertainty.
She tilted her head slightly, sighed as if realizing something, and said,
“Ah, you don’t know this name, do you?”
The girl brushed off the end of the pipe with her hand, looking rather annoyed.
“I mean Duke Hardenberg. He’s a regular here, you know.”
So Abel had another name, Cain. That didn’t sound too surprising for someone involved in the underground world—if he wanted to stay active, he couldn’t go around using his real name, after all.
I couldn’t help but wonder whether this detail about Abel also appeared in the original work, though I hadn’t read it myself, so I wasn’t sure.
Friends usually didn’t go into this level of detail about such things.
‘Why Cain specifically…’
Abel and Cain.
Even I, someone unfamiliar with the Bible, had heard these names before.
Cain, the first murderer.
And Abel, the first to be killed by another human.
Did Abel choose this name intentionally, as part of the original author’s intent? It was impossible to say since I hadn’t read the original myself.
“Why are you so quiet? Is something wrong?”
I shook my head at her puzzled expression. She lazily put the pipe back into her mouth, exuding boredom.
“Anyway, it’s pretty interesting. That guy, hooking up with a woman… If the busybodies heard, they’d be spreading rumors everywhere.”
“I, um… Is there any way I can get information?”
“Are you the type who doesn’t like to bother with preludes?”
I nodded slightly, and the girl sighed deeply. She then lit the pipe using a fire spell.
The smell of the burning tobacco spread out from the end of the pipe. Despite an initial cough, the scent quickly dissipated, even leaving a refreshing aftertaste.
After tapping the pipe on the ashtray, she continued speaking,
“Ah, sorry. It’s our first meeting, right?”
Though her apology was delivered while continuing to smoke, she seemed utterly nonchalant about our introduction. It struck me that her audacity might surpass even Abel’s.
I knew it wasn’t polite to think so, but she’d been the one behaving rudely, so I wasn’t too concerned.
“Call me Louis—Louis.”
“I’m Adelle. Nice to meet you.”
“Ah, sure, sure.”
She exuded an air of fatigue, her mannerisms and tone hinting at a long life.
It made sense, given the image most had of elves as a long-lived race. Still, I hadn’t expected such non-human races to exist in this world.
She seemed to notice my gaze, chuckling and asking,
“Is this your first time seeing an elf?”
“What? Oh, yes.”
“It’s understandable. We’re practically extinct.”
“Ah…”
Her calm manner of speaking made it hard to gauge the appropriate response.
Finding my expression amusing, she chuckled and reassured me,
“Don’t worry too much. It’s just the natural order of things.”
Louis absentmindedly placed the pipe back in her mouth, white smoke swirling around her.
Oddly enough, the scent wasn’t unpleasant; it was even somewhat refreshing.
“Does the tobacco smell strong? It’s just become a habit, I suppose.”
“No, it’s refreshing, in a way.”
“Refreshing?”
Louis’ expression suddenly changed. Her previously dull eyes sparkled with interest, leaving me somewhat startled.
Leaning across the table, she met my gaze and murmured,
“Hmm..”
Then she turned her head, inspecting my body more carefully than before.
“Hey…”
Without replying to my words, she crossed her arms and closed her eyes contemplatively. Opening them after a moment, she gave a slight smile.
“You’re a half-blood, aren’t you?”
“Half-blood…?”
It was a term completely new to me. But the certainty in her eyes gave me pause before denying.
What did it mean anyway? Was Adelle somehow related to another species?
“Part-elf.”
“What do you mean?”
She didn’t respond, merely staring deeply into my eyes.
At this point, it was clear she was impulsive and didn’t follow normal social rules.
Louis just continued to look straight at me, seemingly unaware—or uncaring—of my thoughts.
“Ruby-red eyes…”
Her words prompted me to unconsciously touch the pendant around my neck. If the artifact was functioning properly, my eyes should appear blue.
As if reading my thoughts, Louis smirked.
“Artifacts like that don’t fool elves.”
She added, “We see through the essence, the truth.”
Then she lazily sat back, resuming smoking without concern for etiquette.
“You have a very light elven bloodline. Probably a member from around 10 generations ago, I’d say.”
“Me?”
My hand instinctively moved to my ears, but they felt just like normal human ones. Louis shook her head upon noticing.
“Only pure-blood elves have pointed ears. Even half-elves have normal ones.”
“Ah…”
Pure-blood.
So did that mean she was a pure-blood elf? Standing before someone of a different species added a layer of unfamiliarity to the moment.
“Well, this is strange. I didn’t expect Cain’s partner to be part-elf.”
“Can you even call that ‘half-blood?'”
Considering her ancestors were so distant—perhaps it wasn’t quite appropriate to describe it as “half-blood.”
Contradicting this thought, Louis shook her head.
“Elven blood is strong.”
She pointed at my face.
“Your looks are partly explained by that.”
It was true. Whenever I looked in the mirror, I thought my beauty was somewhat inhuman. Was it due to my elven heritage?
“Anyway, let’s move on from that.”
Louis gestured again to brush the ash from her pipe.
“Normally, I’d have sent you away empty-handed. I believe Cain wanted the same.”
“Huh?”
“Normally… That means you weren’t supposed to leave empty-handed.”
She revealed with her comment that she initially intended to send me back without information.
“The emperor-related information has been dropped. Cain should be aware of this.”
She sighed deeply, continuing,
“Though, meeting a descendant of my own kind is a rare occasion.”
“Huh?”
“So, here.”
Louis extracted something from her subspace pocket and tossed it, which I reflexively caught. Opening my hand revealed a silver compass.
“It’s a compass that will guide you to your desired location.”
White smoke swirled around from the pipe in her mouth.
“You’ll figure out the rest yourself.”
“Ah, thank you.”
I bowed my head in gratitude, but she waved me off with a disapproving look.
“No need for thanks. We’ve made an exchange of what we wanted.”
She finished speaking and placed the pipe back on the table before looking at me intently.
“And one more thing.”
“?”
“Be careful with your power to regress.”
Her statement triggered an involuntary shiver through my body. Her gaze met mine, filled with seriousness.
Without asking how, it seemed meaningless since someone who’s lived so long would naturally be able to decipher such abilities.
“But… Listen carefully. This is advice given as a member of your kind.”
Her expression was tinged with regret, her eyes reflecting a deep sorrow, leaving me unable to interrupt.
“No power comes without a price.”
“I… understand.”
With that, I quietly exited the room, my hand trembling slightly.
I hadn’t expected my ability of regression to be revealed so easily, especially without ever using it.
—
The inn was filled with an awkward silence.
Lily, dressed as a maid, and Evan, in his armor, stood uncomfortably.
Evan seemed used to such situations, quietly resting. But Lily, unable to bear the silence any longer, spoke first.
“How did you meet the Duke, Sir Evan?”
Opening his eyes at her question, Evan answered calmly,
“We met in an orphanage in the back alleys.”
“An orphanage?”
“Yes. My biological parents sold me.”
Upon hearing this, Lily awkwardly averted her gaze. She had meant to lighten the mood, but it didn’t go as planned.
Noticing this, Evan smiled and continued,
“It’s not uncommon, is it? In fact, I’m quite thankful I met the Duke because of it.”
“..That’s fortunate.”
“And yourself, Lily?”
She hesitated briefly before responding.
“My story is somewhat similar. My parents abandoned me and ran away.”
She chuckled lightly, a hint of bitterness in her tone.
“Then I was picked up by Lady Adelle. She called me a gem among stones.”
“We have that in common.”
“Yes. Though, she’s changed quite a bit since then…”
Memories of the past Adelle surfaced—someone who was always violent and worn out from unseen burdens, almost on the verge of collapse.
Even now, seeing the memory-lose-affected version of her, it reminded her of those days, especially that time when Adelle left her behind in the back alleys again.
To Lily, it remained one of the most painful wounds in her mind.
This is why she feared the back alleys.
It was also the reason she trembled with unease upon returning here.
