Light Novel Public
Chapter 373: The Feast of the Forest
A campfire under the beautiful full moon and stars.
The flames were burning red hot, and everyone had a good time while being treated to dishes made with the bounty of the mountains, forests, and rivers.
“An artifact that transcends the bounds of time ~, Such a thing is beyond belief ~”n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om
“Yet, the truth of it must be so, for the Young man of the past stands before us now, his visage unchanged ~”
“Indeed, Espie and Slayer would never utter falsehood, nor could they be deceived by an impostor.”
“Then you are truly the Young man of yore!”
“Ha! Marvelous! Verily, you are as extraordinary as we always believed!”
“Pray, do you still remember me?”
“And what of me?”
“Well then, tonight shall be a night of revelry unmatched—drink, all, to our hearts’ delight!”I explained myself once again. That I was the one who had appeared in the elven settlement some time ago.
Although it was an incredibly unrealistic story about traveling between the past and the future, everyone was convinced and believed that I was me, and welcomed me with truly happy looks on their faces.
“Amazing… are you truly the legendary Ragaan-Man, dear brother!?”
“Verily, you are the true Tapil Bael!?”
“I never knew…… Ragaan-Man was indeed a person of flesh and blood……”
“Younger than Sister Espie and Brother Slayer, and yet still our elder brother?”
And for the young elves who were born after I returned from the past, my presence was a natural surprise.
The little children’s eyes lit up, and even the elves who were about the same age as Amicus and me seemed confused.
“Well, thus it was…… when we were beset by the ogres of the Demon King Army, this Young man came to our aid. He not only delivered us from peril but also gave succor unto us when we could no longer dwell in our homeland. To this noble brother, to whom we owe an immeasurable debt of gratitude… I bid you all, raise your cups in heartfelt thanks.”
“””””CHEERS!!!”””””
Then, Mr. Chieftain gave a toast on behalf of the group, and the feast began in earnest. People chatted, sang and danced, and delicious food was served one after another. It had been a long time since I had enjoyed myself with a large group like this.
~~~~~
“Uhehe~, Big brother~, such a cutei~”
“Whoa, Espie! Are you drinking?”
“Seriously, that’s so indecent, Espie…… a bad influence on Brother’s upbringing, so stay away. Brother… how about a drink?”
“Earth Lagann, could you please give a few words to my students? You’re a hero to the kids.”
I was careful around alcohol, talked to lots of different people, laughed, listened to the children’s stories, and just kept laughing.
When I thought that the battles I had fought in the past, and Aonii’s sacrifice, had all led to this moment, I felt a renewed sense of joy.
“Sir Earth, I have brought forth more food for your pleasure… Ah, you needn’t partake with your own hands! I, I shall serve you… H, here, open wide, ah, aah~”
“No…… that …….”
“Ah, I know! The Pai pie! Sir Earth… please partake of my most delightful and exquisite Pai pie!”
Well…… there were times when my smile was a little stiff……
“Amicus~, cease this foolishness at once!”
“Ugh, Mother, let me go! I am now tending to Sir Earth….”
“No, I want you to stop too… We’re friends, so let’s keep things casual….”
“Unthinkable! Without Sir Earth, I would not even exist…… Surely, dedicating my life, my body, and my very soul entirely to him is only right! …… But… it is such a relief… to see that Sir Earth is… truly such a wonderful person……”
It’s not that I’m getting stiff… I’m pulling back.
This…… somehow, I feel like the momentum is similar to Shinobu’s……
“Geez …….”
“Uh… Sir Earth, where are you headed?”
“…… Toilet”
“In that case, please allow me to joi—”
“That won’t do! Espie, Slayer! Restrain her!”
Somehow, there was so much to see, talk and laugh about that the time flew by.
But it may be like this non-stop for more than a few hours.
The children seemed to be gradually getting sleepy, but the adults seemed to get into the swing of things once the children had gone to bed, and the elves, who are usually thought of as the sages of the forest, seemed to be having as much fun as a group of old Ghenkan fishermen at a drinking party.
“Geez… my image of elves is changing more and more.”
『Tis the same for me.』
I stepped away from the feasting circle for a bit, made sure there were no people around, and then went into the forest to talk with Tre’ainar.
And……
“So……
『Hmm?』
“…… What’s wrong, all of a sudden?”
『What do you mean?』
Since arriving at the village, a lot of information has come into my head, and there were people around so I couldn’t bring myself to ask, but I still decided to ask about something that had been bothering me.
Sure enough, Tre’ainar tried to play dumb, but……
“Well, we’ve been through quite a lot together, right? So… what’s going on? You seem like you’re thinking about a lot of things.”
『Hmph……』
“At first, I thought maybe I was too focused on Espie and Slayer…… I wondered if you were lonely—”
『Wh, who is lonely?! W, what are you even talking about? Who do you think I am?』
Tre’ainar seemed a bit off, as if he was deep in thought about something.
Even though I don’t know exactly what’s on his mind, we’ve been together long enough to tell.
I mean, if he can understand what’s going on in my head, he should be able to figure out my intentions without me needing to ask again……
『…… Hmph…… tis ten thousand years too early to worry about me…… I was merely contemplating what kind of training you should do next.』
“Geez …….”
But, my master still will not admit it.
Well, maybe he doesn’t want to talk about it because he’s still thinking things through.
“Whew……”
『…………』
A little further through the forest, there was a creek running nearby.
Although the sounds of the feast could be heard coming from the settlement, it was calm and somehow soothing.
『Well, anyway…… Norja is one thing, but as long as you are of interest to Hakuki…… and if he still sees himself as part of the remnants of the Demon King Army, still in the middle of his own war…… he will eventually appear before you.』
“Hakuki, huh……”
『He is the strongest of the Six Supremacy…… though not as strong as me or Vasalar, the Dragon King of Hades…… the power he possesses comes close. Also, who knows how much stronger he has gotten in the last decade or so……』
“Ugh… this is such a pain…… I mean, my father should have handled that. I was the one who fought Gouda, Paripi is still alive, and La’iphant, Norja, and Jamdi’el are still around…… it was quite a shock that the Seven Heroes hadn’t taken down a single one of the Six Supremacy!”
『Hmph, tis so.』
We sat down on the riverbank and chatted.
We looked back on what Espie and the others had told us during the day and discussed our future plans.
“Even so… when should I tell Espie and Slayer… about you ……?”
『You intend to tell them?』
“Well, if we’re going to be traveling together from now on, I would rather tell them than keep it secret… it will be hard to get them to believe me, but……
In fact, I’ve only told Sadiz so far.
Well, it caused a lot of confusion, but in the end, she believed me.
That’s why those two…… but……
“Just…… Slayer is fine… but what about Espie?”
『Hmm?』
“Well, you see… actually… Espie was one of the people who defeated you…”
『Well…… I suppose……』
It took seven people to defeat the Great Demon King Tre’ainar. And kill him.
Espie is one of those seven.
So, it’s kind of… complicated, and I’m caught in the middle……
『Tis likely… I doubt there is much need for worry.』
“What?”
『I do not hold a grudge anymore…… and as for Espie…… given the way she is now, I do not believe she is so weak as to worry about it.』
But, Tre’ainar gave a chuckle and said that my worries were unnecessary.
And when I thought about it, I figured that maybe he was right.
In my mind, I still see Espie as the little girl she was, but the current Espie is much more……
“Hmm?”
『Hmm……』
At that moment, I sensed a presence coming towards me.
Tre’ainar and I nodded and stopped talking.
There seemed to be only one person approaching.
Who……
“Oh, Young man. Skiving off the festivities, are we?”
“Oh…… Mr. Chieftain”
It was Mr. Chieftain.
“Why’s the chieftain here?”
“I too skiv off. The drink is ill for my health and I find it unpleasant…… Verily, I am no friend of feasts. All the merrymaking, aye. Seeing all the popular folk prattling and making much ado… I am, at my core, a solitary soul, much like a loner.”
“Ha, haha…… There’s some terminology I don’t really understand…… does that mean that my welcome was too much of a bother!?”
“I would not claim such ingratitude…… though, I must confess…… with my daughter in mind, there lingers a strange and mixed feeling within me―――”
“Hey, hey!”
Mr. Chieftain was half joking, but also half serious. No, maybe he was more than half serious?
While I was thinking about this, Mr. Chieftain sat down next to me.
Author’s Note
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