Chapter: 326
Fortunately, the dignity and honor of Duke Marcilio were preserved.
“Oh my, look at this little one! So tiny!”
“They must have just been born. Adorable.”
Here comes a real baby (around ten years old) that surpasses that little one (over a hundred years old). Just like how humans coo over a Shih Tzu puppy, these elves were showing a flurry of interest and excitement at the sight of a human child. Being from a different race doesn’t matter in the face of cuteness.
“Would you like to try this?”
Duke Marcilio held on to Marghetta’s hand like it was a lifeline while trembling. The blonde elf, observing this charming scene, presented a giant cotton candy to the little duke.
Upon seeing the fluffy pink mound, the Little Duke’s eyes widened in amazement, and he hurriedly tried to compose himself. Well, at least he was trying to look composed according to his standards—he still looked like a kid to everyone else.
“I am Liliana Salón, the little duke of the Salón family! I’m not a child!”
No one had actually called him a child, but it was amusing to see the little duke addressing a stranger with formal language. Too bad he was the only one oblivious to this.
The blonde elf, looking at him with an endearing gaze, smiled sweetly and slightly bowed.
“I’m so sorry, young Duke. I didn’t mean to offend the future ruler of this land. Please accept this as an apology.”
The elf’s formal apology quickly eased the Little Duke’s previously fuming demeanor. Besides, that delectable pink cotton candy counted as a “gift” now.
With everyone’s eyes on the Little Duke, who took a big bite of the cotton candy, the red-haired elf who had been hugging Duke Marcilio spoke up.
“Have you met any other elves besides us?”
At that question, Duke Marcilio shook his head. This was his first visit to the sanctuary, which was the only place that non-humans officially inhabited in the empire. Of course, he hadn’t had the chance to meet any other elves.
“No, I haven’t seen any.”
“Well, I guess you haven’t met Raphaela then.”
The red-haired elf stroked his chin as if deep in thought.
‘Who the heck is Raphaela?’
It’s commendable to ponder, but isn’t it more polite to at least explain who she is? Duke Marcilio blinked in confusion, not having any clue who she was.
Realizing the oversight, the elf quickly began to explain.
“She’s your grandmother. The Elder of our elves.”
“Excuse me?”
The revelation of his grandmother caught the Little Duke off guard. It was such an unexpected comment that it seemed to shock him even more.
The dazed voice that spilled from Duke Marcilio was utterly unbelievable.
—
Thanks to the red-haired elf’s remark, our next destination was automatically locked in. Although calling it a tourist spot seemed questionable since it was an area for their residence, if the inhabitants permitted, we could certainly go.
Ordinary tourists could never access that region. We had now been granted a glimpse into this unknown world, yet no one spoke or showed excitement. How could anyone dare to disrupt the solemn air when the oldest person in human society looked gloomy?
‘Grandmother…’
My head was spinning. Of course, it made sense for Duke Marcilio’s mother to have been born from an egg, but the idea of him having a grandmother shouldn’t surprise anyone.
However, it seemed that he was unaware of this grandmother’s existence, nor had he heard anything about his maternal family while his mother was alive. He had assumed something bad must have happened to her family before his mother dashed out of the sanctuary.
‘She was an Elder?’
Elder, the title referring to a leader among the elves. Unlike humans, this role isn’t necessarily hereditary, but if she is the daughter of the current Elder, she would be treated with high regard.
Yet, Duke Marcilio’s mother had abandoned that privilege by escaping from the sanctuary, keeping silent about her origins until the end. For him, it could only mean a deeply rooted conflict existed between his mother and her family.
“Excuse me, may I interrupt?”
“Oh, uh, sure. What’s up?”
I approached the red-haired elf, who was glancing worryingly at the bowing Duke Marcilio. As soon as I got closer, the elf brightened up with a smile.
“Beatrix never heard about her maternal family. Would it really be alright to show her face suddenly, though?”
Upon hearing a reasonable question, the red-haired elf’s expression turned contemplative.
“That’s why we need to meet her! The Elder has been quite depressed since Ariadne left us.”
“Yes?”
This was unexpected. I thought they had mutually cut ties.
Seeing my reaction, the red-haired elf looked back at Duke Marcilio and began quietly reciting a spell, casting a soundproofing magic.
“While it’s true that Ariadne left after arguing with the Elder, it wasn’t a serious conflict.”
After a deep sigh, the subsequent explanation was both complicated and empty.
The current Elder was over six hundred years old. She had been around three hundred years before the establishment of the Kefellofen Empire and had witnessed the atrocities of the Apels Empire firsthand, making her a living history.
There’s a reason countless different races have densely gathered in a sanctuary established in a single Duchy. Many races suffered at the hands of human supremacy during the Apels Empire; by the empire’s decline, three leaders ascended similar to Hitler.
As a result, the number of diverse races dwindled to a critical level, teetering on the brink of extinction.
“Most of the elves alive today were born around the time of the empire’s establishment. They’ve forgotten the animosity towards humans, thanks to a better treatment from the empire. However, not so for elders like the current one.”
Even if they cooperated with humans to escape hell, the anger they held against humans wasn’t easily forgotten.
Of course, the nation that oppressed the races was Apels; the Kefellofen would not be held responsible for their sins. They merely sought to avoid any further dealings with humans, content to hide in the sanctuary instead. Such elves rarely stepped foot into commercial zones.
“However, when Ariadne expressed her desire to leave the sanctuary, the Elder was furious. They threatened that if she didn’t comply, they would treat her as a stranger…”
“She actually left then.”
“Yeah…”
While it was easy to take her words at face value, it was a huge obstacle being caught up in the backlash from Apels. Even after destruction, they managed to be a pain in the ass—their persistence is truly impressive in many ways.
“It was impossible to just bring her back, since the Elder had to be responsible for the race. But he wasn’t so cold as to push other elves into the human world solely for his daughter’s sake, so he ended up suffering in silence.”
The red-haired elf sighed again, his expression darkening. They had to bear news of his daughter’s death, must’ve torn his heart apart.
In any case, now that I roughly understood the situation, I approached Duke Marcilio to express my gratitude to the red-haired elf. The elf had trusted that I would explain the situation to Duke Marcilio well, but—
“Apparently.”
There was no need for such an explanation. Just one brief remark, and the Little Duke nodded silently.
The elves from the sanctuary might not realize it, but using magic in front of Duke Marcilio would have no effect. Honestly, how could they conceive of a hybrid child left behind by a run-away friend as the ultimate master of magic?
“The Elder must have suffered greatly all this time. Hearing that his daughter has passed would be devastating.”
“Indeed.”
Duke Marcilio finally spoke after that. It must be heartbreaking; he has to inform the grandmother he is meeting for the first time about his mother’s death.
“Beatrix, this might be a bit unreasonable, but about the Elder—”
“I know without needing to be told. I must act kindly as her granddaughter.”
I attempted to communicate gently, yet the Little Duke seemed to already understand and nodded knowingly. Although it was a dreadful message to convey, at least as a granddaughter left behind by her mother, he needed to comfort the Elder. That was the Little Duke’s way of handling it.
‘This is driving me nuts.’
Seeing Duke Marcilio like that made my heart ache even more. Thankfully, the elves I’d met in the commercial area held no hostility towards humans, treating the hybrid Duke warmly, but how would the Elder, with her longstanding resentment towards humans, react?
Like some cliché from a novel, she could either treat Duke Marcilio as a mixed breed or view him as the disease that took her daughter away.
No matter which way it went, it was bound to be painful.
—
As we entered the elves’ residential area, the sheer number of elves surpassed anything seen in the commercial district. Just as naturally, human visitors trespassing into a residential area garnered plenty of stares.
“Humans? Lost tourists, are they?”
“Like they’d be lost in a place like this! Clarice brought them, didn’t she?”
“Wait, isn’t that Ariadne?”
The indifferent stares immediately shifted to curiosity and commotion. It was hardly surprising, considering an elf resembling the long-lost daughter of the Elder had just shown up.
“Everyone, step aside! We must meet the Elder first!”
Thanks to Clarice, we could move forward without being swept away by the crowd. The elves, filled with curiosity at the notion of meeting their leader, began to give us some space.
Thank goodness! If I’d been stuck with that many elves, I would have ended up meeting the Elder at dusk—
‘What the…’
I couldn’t believe my eyes at a miraculous sight before me: the crowd parted as if by magic. Were these elves parting to let us through? How very considerate!
“Ariadne has arrived?”
Realizing who approached at the end of that parted line, I quickly understood that was not the case.
The previously boisterous elves bowed their heads, welcoming a presence. She shared a similar white mane with Duke Marcilio but had long hair down to her waist. Though she had a few wrinkles, those lines only served to reveal who she was.
‘That elf is the Elder.’
I was genuinely surprised to see a being over six hundred years old only showing a few wrinkles; what a remarkable racially endowed longevity!
“Oh, that foolish child finally returns.”
The Elder’s face scrunched up as she marched over. It seemed she sensed the commotion and came looking for the source.
‘Oh crap.’
It was a most unfortunate visit, causing cold sweat to bead on my forehead. This sequence of events would not end well.
Even if she received the news of her daughter’s death calmly, how utterly devastating would it be for her to first get blindsided by the fake news of her daughter returning home only to then learn that she had passed away?
“What was the point of running away if you were just going to come back—?”
With a mix of irritation and relief bubbling beneath the surface, the Elder, coming closer to our group, suddenly flinched.
“…Who are you?”
Hearing her follow-up words made me bite my lip.
What was I to say to a mother who immediately recognized that I was not her daughter? How could I deliver such shocking news in a gentler manner?
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