Chapter 43

The party continued on the remaining path only after Carami had recovered. Just taking one more step revealed a scene that seemed to burst with an impressive sound.

A road and houses built along the edges of raised trees, including the ground. It was an elf village.

How many people had come this far in the world? Carami felt a bit emotional.

“Are the guards back?”

“Who did they come with? They aren’t elves.”

The forest became lively. The elves, who were minding their own business, began to focus their gazes on the party one by one.

One all-purpose slave.

Two all-purpose slaves.

Three all-purpose slaves…

Carami hurriedly shook her head to erase her thoughts.

‘I’m a kind slave merchant.’

You can’t forcibly make a well-doing person into a slave. Of course, not.

“What’s all the commotion about?”

“Elder.”

As the old elf walked with the help of a staff, the guards straightened themselves.

His appearance combined neatness and elegance. The deep lines etched into his face only added to his dignified look, not making him seem ugly.

Yet, the elder’s movements seemed somewhat uncomfortable.

“Ah, Arphia?”

“Hello, Elder…”

He was the elf who had been shot in the butt during Arphia’s debut as an archer. Arphia squirmed uncomfortably in front of the elder.

“What are you doing here? You were certainly forbidden from entering the village…”

The elder’s eyes narrowed. As a high elf who had lived through ages that felt eternal, he could see what was invisible to others.

“What is that on your soul?”

Perhaps it was the shackles that filled Arphia’s soul.

“It’s a mark of a slave. I’ve become a slave.”

Previously, Arphia would have done everything to hide the dirtiness of her condition, but not anymore. She boldly stepped forward.

“A slave?”

“Arphia was captured as a slave?”

The surroundings became tumultuous.

The elder was also flustered, but it didn’t last long. He struck his staff against the ground and shouted in a heavy voice.

“Silence! Silence!”

The area gradually settled down. The elder took a breath, regained his composure, and stared at the soul. He could see where the shackles extended from.

“This human is the master?”

“Yes, indeed. I am the slave merchant, Carami, Elder.”

“What business does a slave merchant have here? Did you come to make other elves into slaves?”

The elves shrieked in fright.

The elder elves hid the younger elves away in their homes.

In the atmosphere laden with a sharp blade, Carami burst out laughing.

“Anyone who doesn’t know would misunderstand. I simply rescued Arphia, who was being kidnapped; I have no hobby of forcibly making others into slaves.”

“Kidnapped?”

The elder tilted his head, as if it was the first time he heard such a story.

“Oh? Didn’t you know that? Well, you wouldn’t have the time to worry about her since she was chased out of the village, would you? She might have lived her life unaware even while being tossed around by humans.”

Carami continued with a grim smile while the elder kept his mouth shut.

“But you need not worry. I brought her back safely, after all. It was said that elves don’t forget their kindness, but surely you wouldn’t harm an ally of your fellow people, right? Surely not~ Would you really commit an act that would tarnish the pride of the elves built over thousands of years?”

“…What do you want?”

The flow of the conversation shifted. Carami deftly slipped out of the encirclement and began to wander around.

“It’s nothing special. I just want Arphia to participate in the Fairy Dance Festival. It’s a guarantee of my safety during the festival.”

“Arphia cannot even handle a bow, let alone anything else. The outcome is predictable…”

“If the outcome is predictable, then there’s no reason to decline, is there?”

“Why is a slave merchant so obsessed with the Fairy Dance Festival? What are you after?”

“What I’m after….”

Carami glanced around. The elves were watching with considerable interest, as if it were an exciting spectacle.

Trying to appear dignified, but in Carami’s eyes, they were no different from humans.

“I plan to crush the pride you’ve built with the slaves I’ve raised.”

***

She was captured.

It wasn’t to the extent of prisoners being locked in a cell, but it was enough that she couldn’t wander around freely.

‘But the facilities aren’t bad at all.’

A space rich with the scent of nature.

The bed made of leaves was quite comfortable.

Well, she may have made many enemies, but that didn’t matter. She received a guarantee of safety from the elder’s own lips.

The basic passive of the species is that they will definitely not go against the elder’s orders.

If they were stalwart elves, they would never defy the elder’s command.

Slurp.

She drank some thick, strange liquid.

It was sweet and delicious.

Shashashak.

“Eek.”

“What’s wrong?”

“A bug just now.”

“What kind of bug?”

Arphia chuckled.

Just a bug the size of a human hand!

If it were a little bigger, it would swallow her head!

She thought this to herself, but perhaps deciding it wasn’t worth responding to, Arphia sighed and looked out the window. Her eyes were filled with worry.

“What are you worried about now?”

“I’m worried about the dance festival. Do you know who the winner of the last tournament was?”

“Isn’t it Lion?”

Arphia’s gaze returned to me with a look of surprise.

“How did you know?”

“He’s wearing a laurel wreath. That’s an award given to the greatest elf warrior of the time.”

“Our master knows everything about everything.”

With a bitter smile, Arphia looked out the window again and started to complain.

“Lion has always been good at everything—bows, spirits, leadership. He became a guard of the forest and was the youngest captain. Ever since Lion became the captain of the guards, intruders couldn’t even set foot in the forest.”

“Even so, he is just a frog in a well.”

“Only you can call Lion a frog.”

Arphia chuckled.

“Do you think you will lose?”

“I’m not sure. But can I really live among them whether I win or lose?”

“I can’t say for sure about that.”

The long-term wounds that Arphia had accumulated over the years were not something I could fathom. I shouldn’t say that everything will turn out fine if she wins.

Still, as a master, I could say at least this much to a slave.

“There’s no need to force yourself to melt in. If worst comes to worst, we can just go to Nocktar.”

She is an elf who has been able to interact well with the kids, full of a fresh fruit-like personality that doesn’t match with the old-fashioned elves.

Arphia nodded, as if she agreed.

“That’s true. And right now…”

With her head slightly lowered and her pupils raised looking at me, Arphia was perhaps trying to present me with her best angle. When an elf like Arphia does it, it has even more destructive power.

She stared at me for a while.

“Do you have something to say?”

“I do, actually.”

Although Arphia said she had something to say, she kept her mouth shut.

Her lips curved into a playful crescent moon.

“I’ll tell you later.”

“?”

“I’ll tell you later.”

***

After a few days of lazing around, the day finally came.

A village decorated with flowers. The songs of elves spread through the forest on the wind.

The cheerful atmosphere announced that the Fairy Dance Festival had begun.

The sight of children playing and female elves cooking was reminiscent of any typical festival.

Yet, that wasn’t enough. Just like popcorn needs a movie, delicious food needs to have fun things to watch.

“Participants of the tournament, come this way!”

The elf I-s, in charge of overseeing the festival, called people together. Those who were confident in their abilities, including the forest guards, began to gather one by one.

Arphia also went there and waited for her turn.

“Hello, sir.”

“Hmm? Is that you, Arphia? It’s been quite a while. Are you planning to participate too?”

“Yes.”

“Participation is free, so I won’t stop you, but please, for the love of all that is good, don’t wreak havoc like before. You’ve become attached to your home now.”

That was the reason Arphia had been banished from the village.

The spirit rampage incident.

One of the houses that had been burned then was I-s’s house. She couldn’t remember the details well due to the time that had passed, but she felt sorry and scratched her head.

Playful flower Arphia Liliand.

I-s added Arphia’s name to the list.

“What? Are you really going to participate in the tournament?”

At that moment, a group of young elves approached Arphia.

“Irina…”

If Lion was a solid comparison point, Irina and her gang were the ones who took the lead in ostracizing Arphia.

While they could dismiss Lion with, “He’s a different person than I am,” it was hard not to hear the evil words whispered into their ears.

If Lion was a prickly opponent, Arphia clearly disliked them.

“I heard you became a slave. Are you really trying to bring down the dignity of elves?”

“I didn’t do anything.”

“Your very existence implies that.”

“Do you think I’ll understand it just because you say that? I’ve lived my whole life as a burden.”

It wasn’t backbiting; it was a blatant insult said directly to her face.

If it were in the past, she would have been unable to contain her emotions and rushed at them, with the spirits siding with her, but not anymore.

Arphia didn’t pay them any mind.

“The tournament is about to start, so participants should check their gear!”

The elves began gathering in one place.

“Be careful not to run into me.”

Irina lightly tapped Arphia on the shoulder as she passed.

I-s, having assumed everyone had gathered, began to explain the tournament rules.

“The rules are simple. Each of you will attach this string to your bows, and if the string comes loose, you’re out.”

The Fairy Dance Festival is a last man standing event.

All participating elves enter the forest and battle until only one remains.

It’s not just about archery skills; tracking skills, survival skills, and how well you utilize nature are all important.

The elves receive green strings and tie them to their respective bows. As Irina tied her string to her bow, she spoke up.

“Hey, want to make a bet with me?”

“A bet?”

“I’ll bet one point that you will be the first to be knocked out.”

“Oh, I want in too.”

“Me too!”

Without even asking Arphia’s opinion, the elves jumped in, making the bet a foregone conclusion.

Seeing the elves who sympathized with her, Irina couldn’t hide her sly smile.

“Arphia, don’t you have a bow?”

At that moment, I-s asked.

While everyone else was tying strings to their bows, Arphia was just standing there.

“Yes. It broke last time.”

The elves laughed, and Lion quietly observed the scene. Irina was laughing so hard that she was almost holding her stomach.

“You’ll participate even without a bow…!”

“Do you have a spare bow you can lend me?”

“Um, no. That’s fine.”

“If you have no bow, then participating in the tournament…”

Arphia looked directly at Irina.

“I’ll accept that.”

“What?”

“I’ll accept it. The bet.”

A confident attitude.

It was assumed she would realize her situation and sulk, but instead, she boldly stepped forward.

Irina’s eyes twitched. Hah! She let out a hollow laugh, then brushed her bangs back, trying to suppress her anger.

“Really? Let’s do it. What should I do if I win… Ah, I know! Arphia, let’s shorten our ears a bit. That way, you won’t look like an elf, and you can preserve some elf honor.”

“…..”

“The other is that you’ll never set foot in the forest again. Get lost with that inferior species.”

“Do as you will.”

Arphia answered silently.

Irina’s mouth twitched as if she were going to explode.

“I really don’t understand where you get your confidence from, but that’s none of my business. What will you do when you win? Should I cut your ears off?”

“Not necessary.”

“What?”

Arphia reached out.

A pass opened.

A shining brand.

“What does ‘not necessary’ mean?”

“It means I won’t put anything at stake.”

Colors of the seven hues gathered together.

Light condensing and condensing into a small sphere.

The elves gazed at the light as if entranced. That magnificent entity was a spirit that anyone would recognize, yet no one knew.

Irina was gaping like a bufoon, unable to shut her mouth.

“You, you….”

Arphia embraced the sphere.

Whoosh!

Light spreading wide left and right.

The shape produced by the light was a bow.

A spirit bow glowing in seven colors.

“I won’t put anything at stake.”

Arphia smiled at Irina.

A smile that resembled someone.

“Doing something knowing the outcome isn’t a bet, it’s a scam.”

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