Brigitte opened the door to the reception room.
Inside the reception room, there was one elf.
Snow-white skin.
And green eyes that seemed to reflect a serene forest.
Pointy ears, not too long but clearly distinguishable from human ears.
Sharp features, a tiny face.
By human standards, it was undeniably a face of beauty.
“Hello, Your Majesty Empress Brigitte.”
The elf spoke with a clear voice.
Elves have genders too. The being before her was undeniably a female elf.
Yuma looked at the elf with [Search Eye].
[Lv.96] Ishera
Race: Elf
Alignment: Neutral
Level: Expert Class
Given her simple leather outfit, she didn’t seem to belong to the elf warriors, yet she was over level 90.
‘As expected, aside from dragons, elves are the most superior race.’
Her alignment was also noteworthy. Neutral. This world might be different, but in [Loop Blood], most elves also had a neutral alignment. They acted solely for the well-being of their own race and the elven forest.
The elf, Ishera, slowly rose and bent at the waist.
“I stand before the pinnacle of the great Astes Empire. I am Ishera, an elf affiliated with Alvheim.”
Regardless of race, she was addressing the emperor of a nation.
As an elf, she had to adhere to formal etiquette.
Ishera wore a good-natured smile.
If it were other men, they might have been completely captivated by that smile, but Yuma had a tendency to consider himself the most esteemed.
Brigitte nodded slowly.
It was just as the elf had said. Brigitte was the empress of this land.
“Nice to meet you, Ishera.”
And thus, nothing could bend her.
“May I ask who you are?”
Ishera turned her head with her silver hair flowing. Her gaze stopped on Yuma.
“I am Duke Yuma of the Astes Empire.”
Ishera’s green eyes widened in surprise.
“Ah…!”
Ishera gasped and continued speaking.
“I am honored to meet the Dragon Slayer…!”
Ishera’s voice trembled slightly.
Dragons.
To elves, dragons were terrifying beings that ruled merely by their existence.
Long ago, when dragons freely moved between the Intermediate World and didn’t yet inhabit their realm, [Yuger], they brought the elven kingdom, [Alvheim], to the brink of destruction.
And when the black dragon, [Elcam─Acreon], of the ancient dragon level awakened from a long slumber near Count Rubelt’s territory in the Astes Empire, no one in Count Rubelt’s domain knew. However, the high-ranking officials of [Alvheim] far away were aware that a black dragon of ancient caliber had awakened.
The World Tree.
The World Tree, which tells the tale of the entire continent in the language of the forest, stood in the center of [Alvheim].
Because it was in the past.
The World Tree can read the flow of air in all lands and the sky’s weather, but that alone was enough to sense most potential dangers in this world.
Every dark cloud has a precursor.
That’s why the high-ranking officials of Alvheim were the first to notice the presence of the Black Dragon.
However, knowing it didn’t mean they could act.
The ancient dragon.
The fear of suffering the nightmare of three thousand years ago was deeply embedded in the elves’ genes; to carelessly confront the fully matured Black Dragon would be to invite disaster.
When that ancient Black Dragon rose from its temporary lair, the high-ranking officials of Alvheim shuddered at yet another catastrophe approaching the continent.
But suddenly, in an instant, the entire world turned a bright red—
The Black Dragon was obliterated without a trace.
And when they discovered that it was done by a human alone, they found it utterly unbelievable.
However, there was an elven witness to the scene.
It was one of the high-ranking officials, a high elf, Makane, a spirit mage of Alvheim, who secretly observed the moment through the wind spirit Sylph.
The reason Alvheim wanted to include the Astes Empire in this “Racial Conference” was not only due to curiosity about the newly crowned Empress Brigitte but primarily about the Dragon Slayer.
Ishera seemed to be focused solely on Yuma, not shifting her gaze even slightly.
Yuma spoke softly.
“What’s the matter?”
Only then did Ishera blink and close her mouth.
“Uh…?”
“Speak of your purpose for coming here, Elf Ishera.”
Ishera hesitated for a moment, then looked at Empress Brigitte.
“Oh, I was so mesmerized by the Dragon Slayer Yuma that I lost my composure. Now, I will explain why I have come all the way to the Astes lands and what my purpose is.”
Brigitte nodded.
“After the World Tree read the weather, it relayed the message to the high elves in our homeland. The spatial rift is slowly breaking apart. In about three or four months, the sky will tear apart. Some disaster will descend upon us… judging by the fact that enemies will invade from the sky, we suspect it will either be an incursion from the Demon Realm or from dragons.”
Indeed.
It seemed the World Tree possessed the power worthy of its name.
‘Well, it can’t just open a path from the Demon Realm to the Intermediate World all at once.’
Even now, countless magical demons beyond the Demon Realm were likely collaborating to create a path for invasion or executing a ritual.
“So, in the face of this great crisis for the continent, it has been deemed best for allied races to unite their strength. Thus, Alvheim has begun to mobilize. Please participate in the Racial Conference.”
Ishera bowed her head once again towards Brigitte and Yuma.
Brigitte lowered her head towards Yuma.
Brigitte’s delicate lips slowly parted.
“When is that race meeting supposed to open?”
“It’s in ten days. The location is the third holy site in Alvheim, at the center of the continent.”
The elves never doubted that they were the main characters of this continent, Geherhen. They were a race filled with such self-awareness. They had the innate ability to warrant recognition from other races, but…
Anyway, with that overflowing self-awareness, they spread their sanctuaries throughout the continent.
Under the pretext of protecting the continent’s ecosystem, they claimed territory.
“I set off from that third holy site. If I ride a horse, I should arrive in nine days.”
Brigitte opened her mouth again.
“Which races will be attending?”
“I’ve received positive responses from the dwarves and lycanthropes. Oh, we’ve already gathered some influential figures from the cat-folk at the forest sanctuary.”
Dwarves, lycanthropes, and cat-folk.
Brigitte’s brow furrowed at the thought of five races gathering, including the elf before her and herself.
‘A council.’
At this point, it was certainly no less than a council with this many races gathering.
Brigitte glanced at Yuma.
“Make yourself comfortable.”
Brigitte immediately responded to Yuma’s words.
“Got it. Should I set off tomorrow?”
Yuma knew Brigitte wasn’t the type to avoid these kinds of matters.
“Yes, thank you for responding to our elves’ call, Empress Brigitte.”
Ishera smiled brightly.
And then looked at Yuma.
“Please, I would be grateful if the God of War could also participate.”
“I was actually thinking of that.”
Before preparing against the demon army, there was no way he would miss the sight of five races gathering on this continent.
The elves inside the palace weren’t only Ishera. To protect Ishera, who could be compared to an ambassador in human terms, eight other elves accompanied her.
They were chatting in the guest room of the annex.
“Indeed, it seems humans are a race that we must lead.”
“With their arcane engineering and such, continuous actions that go against nature need some guidance as well.”
The elves watched the busy imperial workers through the window, deep in thought.
Creak─
The door to the guest room opened.
Among the elves, who had remained silent while judging humans, a stout elf finally spoke up.
“Welcome, wise Ishera.”
Ishera nodded.
“Yes, the distinguished MuLius. I have successfully completed my task.”
“How was Empress Brigitte?”
Ishera calmly recalled Brigitte, who had been speaking in front of her.
“She looked like the rightful Empress of the Empire.”
“And the dragon slayer, Duke Yuma?”
“He was a bit different, that’s for sure.”
“Well, it was certainly different.”
Every noble and knight encountered on the way to this guestroom couldn’t help but flinch at the sight of her.
They were just beating hearts at the sight of her exterior—their reaction was all about her face and physique.
But the Dragon Slayer, Duke Yuma, was different.
He seemed to possess an unwavering heart, showing no reaction at all.
“Actually…”
He looked down at her as if she were an elf.
“Anyway, we’ve decided to set off first thing tomorrow.”
*
The royal library.
In a corner, a blonde woman was deeply engrossed in her book. It was Ermel, the former Holy Maiden of the Empire.
Step, step!
Someone approached Ermel.
Her face brightened with joy as she stood on the brink of reaching the 3rd Circle.
“Hestia!”
“Yeah, Ermel.”
Hestia would come to Ermel whenever she had a moment, sharing conversations with her.
It might have been that she felt a bit sorry for Ermel, who had lost all her divine power after the death of her god, Incrinew, not long after the god’s demise.
Anyway, Hestia liked Ermel for who she was. She listened well and shared lovely exchanges.
Ermel felt the same way.
Hestia recounted the moment when Duke Yuma killed Leviathan.
“You… cut the sea?!”
“Yeah, I walked through the sea, wave-waved, and then wham! decapitated Leviathan! The ground was visible! And I wiped out all of Leviathan’s underlings lurking down there!”
With great enthusiasm.
“Wow…”
Ermel waved her hands in the air, believing every word Hestia shared about Yuma’s achievements.
Someone who killed a god definitely could walk through the sea.
“Is Yuma, like, going to become a god someday?”
When Hestia perked up her crimson cat ears and asked, Ermel chuckled shyly.
“There’s no record of a human obtaining divinity… but with you, Duke Yuma, it might just happen.”
“Ooooh, when that time comes, I’ll be the first disciple…!”
Ermel kept laughing as she looked at Hestia’s sparkling green eyes.
“Becoming the first disciple is possible even now, you know? After all, true faith starts with a strong belief. Hestia, you believe in Yuma.”
“Oh, right!”
Hestia leaned against Ermel’s shoulder.
“Then I’ll just be Duke Yuma’s second disciple!”
“Hehe, should I?”
Hestia placed her hand on Ermel’s right hand.
“Now, together! Duke Yuma! Huzzah!”
Both of their hands shot up simultaneously.
“Y-Yuma Huzzah!”
Ermel awkwardly echoed Hestia’s words.
It was the day when the former Holy Maiden decided to become the second disciple of the man who erased the god she once worshiped from this world.
