Chapter 174

Chapter 174

No longer needing or having reason to stow away, the journey ended remarkably quickly. Even at the optimum cruising speed of the airship, reaching the capital within three days was not difficult.

If there was a problem, it was in the complicated docking procedures. But that was no big deal. Elpheira bore the brunt of the hassle.

If it weren’t for her usefulness, she wouldn’t have been brought along in the first place.

“I’m exhausted!!”

Elpheira grumbled as she collapsed onto the deck. They had arrived in Idrenhill, the capital of the Kalion Islands.

Even here, airships had to dock from the sea. Military ship docks were located in the maritime port.

The blue sea gently rippled with each warm gust of wind. It was too clear for the harbor of a big city. The nearly emerald-colored seawater surrounded the island.

“Wow….”

“Wipe your drool. You look like a real country bumpkin just arrived in the city. Haha.”

As Lucia and Rundis gaped at the far-off cityscape, Elpheira shrugged and laughed.

Rundis’s face twisted in discomfort at her comment.

“The smallest city in Andgrind is bigger and more beautiful than this!”

“Ah. Are you talking about that cozy cave village?”

“Ivan, today I’ll become the righteous punisher.”

“No.”

“Ivan, you’ve betrayed our people!!”

“I’m not a dwarf.”

At Ivan’s words, Rundis fled into the cabin on the verge of tears. Ivan sighed and looked at Elpheira.

“Don’t tease her.”

“It’s fun. And cute.”

She chuckled and continued.

“Lady Cohenulf has left to inspect the Black Horn. She’ll be back in two or three days. Shall we explore the city in the meantime? I’ll show you around!”

“Later.”

Ivan nodded towards the massive white castle gleaming in the noonday sun.

“We must have an audience with the Queen first. What’s the procedure?”

“Well, it’s not hard. File a request, and after a review by the royal administration, about two days?”

“…That quickly?”

That was unusual. It typically took longer to arrange an audience with a nation’s monarch. Official procedures through diplomatic missions usually took a couple of months.

Moreover, this was the land of the elves. The long-lived race had a distorted sense of time. To them, a couple of months was a blink of an eye.

Usually, when the Counter-Intelligence Command requested cooperation from Kalion, it took at least half a year just to get a response. (Conversely, if Kalion requested something, they would bombard us with protest letters if it wasn’t dealt with within a fortnight.)

“Her Majesty the Queen is quite idle.”

“Free time, huh.”

“Don’t humans have it too? The higher the position of authority, the more work there is. Because they’ve arranged it so that the work only moves forward if handled directly.”

Authority is equivalent to approval rights. Normally, a leader complicates the approval process for work to the extent that without them, all tasks would come to a standstill.

Consequently, even if it only involves simply stamping a document, without that trivial action, the affairs of state would be impossible to conduct.

This was the most common way to ensure one’s power: holding and wielding the final decision-making authority.

It would explain why Elizaveta is always buried in a mountain of paperwork whenever we meet.

So, it was inevitable that our Queen could afford to be at ease.

A nominal ruler who has transferred all authority to the Privy Council. The only reason she is respected is the symbolic significance of her lineage managing Aldrenwell, the ancient forest.

All old elves turn into trees. This is not a metaphor but a literal fact. Those who have lived long enough and are thoroughly weary of the world eventually take root in the earth and become rigid.

Therefore, unless they are warriors, all elf funerals are conducted as arboreal burials. A forest of naturally deceased elves.

A collective cemetery where lives as old as history fade through generations. The oldest grave would need to be traced back to the mythic age. And that’s a matter of just about 20 generations.

As a species, elves are young, since the lineage of the race has not yet passed twenty generations. However, in the context of history, elves were the beings closest to the gods in existence.

They built civilizations even when the gods walked the earth. They developed culture by imitating the gods’ powers and technologies.

All the technologies deemed “ancient” by elf standards have already been lost. They could no longer be implemented without the geological and atmospheric conditions of that era.

One representative example of that is the milestone.

While passionately expounding on the greatness of their race, Elfiphera chuckled and said,

“Anyway! It means it shouldn’t be too hard to meet our Queen in a couple of days. Hehe, I happen to know the High Astronomer.”

“Then let’s go with the Astronomical Faction.”

We need to meet Veolgrin.

Elpheira rolled her eyes awkwardly at Ivan’s words.

“That’s a bit of a problem…”

“What is it?”

“It seems my father isn’t around right now…?”

Elpheira soon closed her eyes tightly and said,

“He went missing about eight months ago. He cut off contact and disappeared… Uh, but there’s no need to worry too much. It’s common for elf wizards to disappear for a year or so just to lock themselves in their research labs!”

“Do you know where that research lab is?”

“I’d rather meet someone who could solve both the issue of his whereabouts and the audience with the Queen at the same time… Do you want to come along?”

“Sure.”

Hermon Warrensil is a high-ranking official of the court government, who served as the royal chief astronomer. He was a prestigious nobleman almost certain to join the Privy Council after retirement.

In one of the offices of the Perennial Palace Court Management Office in Ydranhill, Hermon was enjoying his time peacefully as usual. Being a chief astronomer, he originally had no work to do.

That was until someone suddenly barged into his office without knocking.

“Have you been well?”

Hermon couldn’t conceal his displeased expression as he looked at the abruptly arrived junior.

“It’s nice to see you. Without even a letter.”

“I don’t intend to stay long, either.”

“How rude, wonder who you resemble.”

“Your master.”

“Uh-huh.”

Hermon let out a deep sigh and shook his hand. Soon, a warm cup of tea was placed on the table. He elegantly crossed his long legs and leaned back in his luxurious chair.

“The human who came with you, a guard?”

“You can say that. Elf.”

“You’ve picked up an interesting human.”

Hermon looked at Ivan with a smirk. He quickly scanned Ivan up and down and whistled.

“Nice build. Are you from Krasilov?”

Seeing Ivan’s eyes turn fierce, Hermon lightly waved his hand.

“Relax. There are only two types of muscular folks who wander around with the world’s most melancholic faces: either from Drovian or Krasilov. Drovian’s folks are slightly more loudly crazy, while Krasilov’s are more quietly mad.”

“Wow, did you hear that, Sir Yeremov? That’s the insight of an Elf. Impressive, right?”

“It’s dizzying.”

Hermon took a sip of tea and asked.

“So what brings our dear junior here?”

“Where is my father right now?”

“Shouldn’t a daughter know that?”

“I don’t know, that’s why I’m here to see my father’s apprentice. Honestly, you’re closer to him than I am.”

“Why did you go study abroad then? You could have learned quietly here in our school.”

“Well… that, uh. Ahem. That’s none of your business. So where is my father?”

“I don’t know.”

Hermon shrugged. Elpheira’s ears twitched in response. Before she could burst into anger, Hermon hurriedly continued.

“I really don’t know. Does Lord Grykencos ever report his whereabouts when he goes out occasionally? Not to mention he often disappears without a trace every few years.”

“So you don’t know where he went either?”

“He doesn’t report that to me either. Let’s see. Eight months and…”

“Thirteen days.”

“Pardon?”

Ivan sighed and closed his eyes at the sudden remark, making Hermon tilt his head in curiosity before soon expressing admiration.

“How did you know?”

“I had brief contact with him in Krasilov at that time.”

At the time when the elves’ aerial warship (now renamed Krasilov’s aerial warship) crashed over St. Jan’s University.

That was the last time he possessed the body of an elven captain. Ivan, reminiscing, suddenly frowned.

“Elpheira. Didn’t you say you contacted Veolgrin just before the tournament?”

“Yes, through the crystal ball.”

“So he was in Kalion until then.”

It’s safe to say that he was active in Kalion until the tournament last summer. He had personally dispatched Edelplat to Krasilov.

So, if it’s something that happened after that…

‘Alexander incited a civil war by stirring up dwarf rebels and necromancers, and made contact with the 1st legion.’

At that point, Veolgrin disappeared…?

When Ivan had a direct conversation with Veolgrin, Veolgrin was tracking Alexander. And at the last confirmed point—.

‘The method of contact with the 1st legion was through ‘elves’.’

That’s what confirmed his suspicion that Alexander was hiding in Kalion. So, to simplify things rather bluntly, there are two possibilities.

Veolgrin disappeared at the time Alexander ‘definitely’ infiltrated Kalion. In other words, Veolgrin was already assassinated.

Or.

The reason Alexander could ‘definitely’ infiltrate Kalion. And the background that allowed him to conduct external operations using elves in the first place….

‘If Veolgrin had directly helped. If that bastard had joined hands with Alexander, it all fits together.’

Ivan felt his shoulders stiffening and momentarily froze.

Assuming Veolgrin joined hands with Alexander, most doubts would be resolved. The reason why a foreign royal, with no ties and only failures to his name, could infiltrate elven society, and why he could command elves as if they were his limbs.

But if that assumption is true….

‘I have to confront Veolgrin.’

How. That’s the first thing that comes to mind. How do I deal with that man?

Ivan had seen Veolgrin fight countless times. In most cases, by closely observing the combat styles, he would craft strategies to counter his opponent.

It’s instinctive work. Even Maximilian did it. Whether it was feasible or not was secondary; it was a naturally occurring thought experiment.

When facing that man, what should I do? What are his weaknesses?

Even Jill Ber, Einar, and Maximilian had at least some minimal countermeasures, but not Veolgrin.

In combat scenarios, he was a trained agent and could mimic any combat style he saw once. However, magic was a different matter altogether. Perhaps because magic didn’t exist in the 21st century, he was particularly vulnerable to it.

‘Veolgrin. What are you thinking?’

Ivan was deep in thought.

*

“What’s wrong with him all of a sudden?”

“Just leave him be. He gets like that sometimes. He won’t answer even if you ask.”

Elpheira took her eyes off Ivan, who had fallen silent as if gaining some insight. Anyway, it seemed necessary to buy some time now.

Considering he was so lost in his thoughts, it wasn’t a trivial matter.

“May I have an audience with Her Majesty, the Queen?”

“I’ll give it a try. Lately, she seems a bit lonely. Two days from now?”

“Just as expected.”

“I’m dying here. She keeps asking me when the best day for her to die would be.”

“Wow, can an astronomer tell something like that?”

“Do you think so?”

Hermon chuckled and shrugged.

“Honestly, astrologers are only important when sailing across the Kalion Sea. Do you think gazing at the stars can reveal the future?”

“Isn’t that why they’re here? Astrologers?”

“How can you say that when your father is the dean? You haven’t learned any astrology, have you, kid?”

Hermon grumbled as he sipped his tea.

“It’s not prophecy; it’s rationality. What would the stars know? Starlight is just the magic sent from a place far away thousands of years ago.”

“…Oh…”

“Some stars sent their light twenty thousand years ago, and some maybe only two hundred years. How then can you read the future of this land right now from that? Does that make any sense?”

“Then why do you look at the stars?”

“There may be no standard for the magic sent by the stars, but when that magic passes through the atmosphere of this land, a standard appears. This is interesting. Look, in the world—”

“I’m already sleepy.”

As the atmosphere seemed to be veering into an academic discussion, Elpheira stretched and yawned. Seeing her, Hermon shook his head and placed his teacup down.

“How is it that you’re not like your father at all?”

“I resemble his intelligence and looks.”

“If it were any different, we could say you were adopted. So, what else are you curious about?”

“You’re bored too, huh?”

Elpheira chuckled and observed Ivan. He was still deep in thought. It seemed she needed to buy a little more time for him to wake up.

Well, what can I do? I have to support him. Our leader is making strategic considerations.

Elpheira grumbled to herself and turned her head.

“Ah, you said it’s useless in Kalion. Why is that?”

“Within the Kalion Sea, the magic of starlight has no meaning. What does it matter if misfortune, calamity, or disaster falls while it passes through the atmosphere? The sky above this land is filled with the magic of a massive filter.”

“The milestone?”

“Right. Fortune. Prosperity. Flourishing. Happiness. No matter how colossal the magic of the sky is, it doesn’t matter. So, it’s nonsense to try to pick an auspicious day. Every day is auspicious, so what do you expect me to do?”

Hermon laughed as if joking, but Elpheira felt a slight chill inside. So, they tried to extinguish it now…?

The ancient artifact that warps the flow of the world to make the land of the elves prosperous…?

Her gaze turned to the side. Soon, she was able to meet Ivan’s eyes, who was staring straight at her. As she stared into those deep, blue eyes for a while, her ears, which had been rising in horror, gradually drooped.

So what. Our leader looks like that now. Wow, really. How can a person look like that.

“Get up. I have to go meet Edel.”

“Oh, it was nice to meet you too. Human. No need to thank me.”

“Thank you.”

“Well, you’re not entirely without manners. Our protege’s path will be pretty tough.”

Hermon grinned, staring at Elpheira’s melting face. Realizing his gaze, she blushed deeply and yelled.

“Don’t say unnecessary things! Make sure to tell my dad that his daughter is looking for him and it’s urgent!”

“Alright. Take care, and come in front of the court in two days. In the morning? Roughly.”

“Why roughly?”

“Because you’ll have to be prepared to wait a couple of hours no matter what time you arrive. Go on. The senior is busy.”

“Busy? Isn’t there nothing to do at the observatory?”

“Do you think I’ll end my career at the observatory? I’ve got lobbying to do, you know? The world of grown-ups is busy like this. That’s why college students…”

Elpheira waved her hand to the joking Hermon and stood up.