Ah, right, whatever.
I mean, it’s one thing to assume there’s some kind of “treasure” in the chest of a stranger you just meet.
But knowing that it’s true and still spouting nonsense about humans being an impolite species and whatnot—now that’s a whole new level of old fart nonsense. It’s not just that they look like an old fart or have the mindset of one; they’re practically the walking definition of it!
Could it be that those staring eyes earlier were looking at me in such a way?
Nah, surely not.
I want to believe it’s not true.
“Well then, we shall entrust you with the important duty of being a priest. Can you manage that?”
“…Yes.”
I already signed the contract, so there’s no way I could back out now. If I were to insist on withdrawal after coming this far, that would basically be declaring a war between Elves and Humans. For now, I decided to stick around just a bit longer to see if it would be bearable or not.
If I say one wrong word, it’ll escalate into an international dispute. Sure, the number and legitimacy of humans would give them the advantage, but I had no desire to find myself in the epicenter of such a complicated incident over just a single soda.
“Hmm, but it would be better if you look around and listen to the explanations rather than just reading them on paper. I will arrange for a guide. You may follow the guide and prepare for the ritual.”
Directly ordering a human who’s not even of their kind felt quite obnoxious.
If their status were that of a saint or the pope, even the president wouldn’t dare speak casually.
Well, since what happened here likely won’t be recorded on video or anything, maybe that’s why they feel so brazen.
Still, while they can’t commit serious crimes against me, a being of saintly status, they can certainly act as though they’re above me—an attitude that leaves no external proof behind.
Are they perhaps trying to deny the hierarchical relationship formed from receiving one-sided help?
“Then, off you go now. The guide should be waiting at the door. We have a few things to discuss for a moment.”
When I glanced over at Kihmuhir, he nodded slightly.
So her role in guiding ends here. Given the weight of the name Kihmuhir, I can understand why they might feel humiliated.
I have no idea who this ‘guide’ is. It means I’m now going around with someone I’ve never seen before.
“…Alright, let’s do that.”
I turned around, making sure to show how displeased I was.
As I was leaving, I pulled on the wrist of the stiffly standing Aurora.
For the record, the elders didn’t even bother saying a word to Aurora until that unbearably terrible encounter was over.
*
“Hmph.”
One of the elders watching the saint leave with her attendants made that sound.
“What do you think, Ramihi? Is that enough for them to dislike us?”
His voice was melodious, in Elvish. No need to use the human language since there’s no need for the humans to know.
“Yes, it’s embarrassingly so.”
Ramihi Kihmuhir responded, bowing deeply toward the elder who spoke, Krah Kihmuhir. They weren’t so dull that they wouldn’t notice the thorns in that statement, yet no one blamed Ramihi Kihmuhir. Instead, they seemed to pay him no mind at all.
The elder sitting in the middle was the oldest among them at 80 years old. At that age, his vitality was probably thanks to the blessing of Arlil. He gently stroked his glossy beard and spoke.
“She’s considerably bolder than I expected. The saint from fifty years ago was far more obedient. I didn’t think she’d be trembling in anger over such a slight.”
Krah squinted his eyes and quietly watched the place where the saint had just been.
“Is there discord within the Church? It’s possible that the monastery that recommended the saint differs from the one supporting her.”
“Well, I don’t think so. The Church decided to send the saint immediately when we made our request. If there were discord, a conclusion wouldn’t have come so quickly. She’s the first saint this Church has had in fifty years. If anyone dares to disagree within the Church, they’ll be labeled a heretic.”
“Maybe the saint’s position cannot be treated lightly within the Church.”
The youngest elder, who hadn’t said a word during the saint’s presence, finally spoke. He was only forty years old, too young to be considered wise enough to engage in a serious discussion with the saint based on his youthful appearance.
“That said, she did comply with the Church’s request. Perhaps she’s too young to understand the concept of power?”
“Then, should we…”
“No, that’s not going to work.”
“Is it because of the pride of the Elves?”
“No, if there’s more gain in it, pride can be set aside. Isn’t that what we’re doing now? Acting like clueless old perverts in front of a young girl.”
The youngest elder shouted in anger at Krah’s words.
“Then why? Isn’t it cross-verified that the saint can truly bring about ‘miracles’? Isn’t there now a worthy talent that fits ‘Rechmir’—”
“Hey, Rechmir!”
An elder sitting to the far right slammed his fist on the table angrily. Though the table didn’t break or dent, it made a loud noise that caused Ramihi, standing before them, to flinch and shiver.
“…There are things you can say and things you can’t. Don’t you remember what kind of disaster almost happened because of what your father did fifteen years ago?”
“My brother didn’t choose it because of our father, he chose it himself. He left the village on his own two feet.”
Krah let out a sigh and spoke.
“The reason we’ve been maintaining ‘Rechmir’ without returning to our original ways is that there’s a reason for it. Haven’t you learned from what happened five hundred years ago? That’s something every elder should know.”
The elf known as Rechmir winced at those words for a moment, but quickly corrected his expression and continued his argument.
“But then, things are different now. The difference between ‘Elf mixed blood’ and ‘pureblood humans’—”
“Interesting noise you’re making.”
The elf sitting on the far right smirked as he spoke.
“Then, let me ask: if we do something to the saint— I mean, if we do something to this ‘precious being who has finally emerged after fifty years,’ will the Church just sit idly by? Even if they do, can we return home without the Church’s power?”
“Does anyone here know the original Arlil? That was five hundred years ago! Everyone here, no, every elf alive now views this place as their homeland! If we perform this Rechmir properly—”
“Our territory will expand, and we’ll ruffle the feathers of the nearby humans.”
The elder who had been absentmindedly fiddling with his teacup spoke up quietly.
“Did you know? Just as we long for the past five hundred years, the humans here long for them just as much. The humans who once owned this land five hundred years ago still have their lineage nearby. Are we really talking about taking their land again?”
“But the land we’re on now is territory we reclaimed five hundred years ago!”
Rechmir exclaimed in frustration, but the reaction from the other elders was cold.
“Do you wish to see Arlil burned to the ground?”
Krah said. His face was expressionless, but anger could be sensed in his voice.
“You might not understand being raised only within these boundaries. But as Kihmuhir, I can say confidently: if humans set their minds to it, they could burn down these forests in a week. I’ve seen it on the battlefield. Countless bombs falling from the sky, fire soaring from the jungle… Have you ever seen demons and beasts screaming in flames, scraping their own flesh off with their claws because they can’t put out the fire with water or dirt?”
“…”
None of the elves present had witnessed such horrors. Not even Ramihi, who was studying outside.
“At that moment, I felt that demons could appear pitiful.”
Krah said, fiddling with his teacup in silence for a while before continuing.
“Let’s not get it twisted. I detest demons and beasts. I utterly loathe the demons who betrayed us. I am proud to be an elf, and no race can be as noble and beautiful as elves. Haven’t you seen the saint just now?”
While I had said it purposefully, there was sincerity in those words. It was a common assessment among elves that humans were a disorderly race, both in their appearance and their habits.
“Just because their killing techniques are superior doesn’t mean they are a civilization. Even with great skill, if used brutally, they remain barbaric. That’s how I feel about humans. They claim to help while putting debts upon us, pretending to grant permission, while taking from others.”
Krah said as he slammed down the teacup he had been fiddling with.
“Unfortunately, we can’t survive without their help. We are already indebted to that so-called ‘barbarism.’ The moment we were chased from our homeland and crossed over to invade their territory, the hierarchical relationship had already been formed.”
Krah, or rather, the elder turned to look at Rechmir. Though his eyes held no emotion, it was precisely because of that that Kihmuhir’s blue eyes sparkled with a cold light. Under that piercing gaze, Rechmir shivered.
“So what we can do is to make it so they keep their distance from us. If we have to incur debt, it’s about ensuring they understand that it’s not profitable for them to owe us anything. Were we discussing pride earlier? To protect whatever little pride we have left and simultaneously gain advantages, this is how we must act.”
He then fixed his gaze firmly on Rechmir.
“Did you understand?”
“…Uh, yes.”
Hearing Rechmir stuttering his response, Krah nodded as if satisfied and turned to Ramihi, who had been standing there all this time with a smile.
“Ah, I’m sorry for making you stand for so long. My apologies.”
Of course, Ramihi didn’t believe that. If it were true, he would have sent her out first and continued the discussion.
This was also something meant for Ramihi to hear.
“There are still a lot of things we need to guide you on. If you go help, we might finish sooner than expected. Can you do that for us?”
“Yes, I will do that.”
As Ramihi bowed her head and replied, the elder nodded in satisfaction.
“Good. Then let us conclude today’s meeting. There is a welcome ceremony in the evening, so it would be fine to discuss anything you missed with the saint then.”
With that, the elder stood up, and the other elders followed suit.
Each elder’s expression varied as they stood.
In particular, Rechmir’s expression was utterly contorted after being directly scolded.
Taking in the expressions of the elders one by one, Ramihi turned her body and left the conference room.
*
Aurora was walking with her fists clenched and a very angry expression.
To be honest, the angry face, more than being scary, was kind of cute, like a child throwing a tantrum, but I couldn’t find it funny since I was two million percent on board with why she was upset.
To be frank, it wasn’t that bad when we first entered the village. It wasn’t so terrible to hear the local elves all say it in unison, even if the driver disappeared without a word or didn’t bother making a welcoming procession.
The problem was that the very first elves I encountered in an official capacity were those old farts from the elder council.
“…Ahem.”
That said, the elf who had come to guide us seemed to pick up on the situation. She definitely registered that Aurora was pissed.
Moreover, she seemed to have caught onto the general tone of the conversations that had taken place inside.
That—or she? Anyway, this elf appeared to be about our age. The issue was that with her short hair and androgynous features, I couldn’t tell if she was a girl or a guy based on the delicate pitch of her voice.
Now that I think about it, Kihmuhir originally wore a female uniform, and I had set her up as a heroine, so it was clear. If she were just dressed in elven garb when we first met, I might not have been able to differentiate at all.
No, I don’t want to sound small-minded by bringing up something as trivial as chest size, but it’s just that there’s no distinction whatsoever.
Would they also get angry if we couldn’t tell their genders?
“Then, Priestess, shall we head this way? Um…”
Glancing cautiously at Aurora, she hesitated to speak.
“…I am the priestess coordinator. My name is Aurora Ranieri.”
“Then, Priestess Coordinator, you may come along as well. Only the saint may enter the priest, but you two will be acting together, right?”
Both Aurora and I nodded. I didn’t know what Aurora was thinking, but from my perspective, the only person I could firmly call an ally in this region was Aurora. The Knights were there, but given their size I couldn’t just follow anyone since I was seeing all their faces for the first time.
Not everyone from the Church could be considered on my side, either.
“Ah, I’m Rene Himiri. I will be in charge of guiding the saint during the Rechmir period. The saint might prefer to be guided by Kihmuhir, but… she will likely be very busy throughout Rechmir.”
Well, the friendly manner was clearly unilateral from her side, so I didn’t feel that close to her. However, I had to call her by her first name here since that was how it’s done among the elves. One of the elders had to be a Kihmuhir. Plus, Kihmuhir wouldn’t just be alone here.
The longer the family name, the less likely it is to overlap with others, as I’d seen in the Western world I previously inhabited where even going by last names means there’s rarely any confusion. It’s likely the same for elves, but the problem was that I was attending the most important festival in their culture as a representative of the Church.
Just that made my stomach turn, and then I was unexpectedly put in charge of the priest. During Rechmir, I would be among the most esteemed elves, and of course, the Kihmuhir family is one of those prominent names.
It goes without saying that going by last names only would be utterly confusing for me. I might not have many chances to converse with other elves except for Ramihi. Still, if I called Ramihi by the last name Kihmuhir and another Kihmuhir turned around, I would be in big trouble.
Besides, Ramihi told me to call her by her first name.
…
“What should I call you?”
At least, she was clearly treating me differently from that elder who was openly rude, which made me feel a bit better.
I wouldn’t have to be rude to someone treating me kindly, even if it’s only due to the hierarchical differences.
But it seems that the Kihmuhir’s status is indeed significant.
Now I understood the reason Kihmuhir brought only one passenger when getting out of the carriage.
It must be a sign that Kihmuhir recognized me.
Only those not in houses as prestigious as Kihmuhir would have to treat me kindly because not doing so would be an affront to Kihmuhir.
The real issue was the fact that the head of Kihmuhir treated me as he did.
“Please call me Rene. It might get confusing if you call me by my family name.”
“So that means elves typically call each other by their first names?”
“Yes, in the case they’re both equal.”
Which means, if they’re not equal, then it’s otherwise.
Did she mention calling her Kihmuhir earlier? Maybe it’s a significant clan indeed.
But then again, she’s still one of those perverted old men chatting about my chest with an underage girl.
“Well then, you should call me by my first name too. My name is Clara.”
“Th-That’s not appropriate…!”
Rene suddenly shouted, stopping in her tracks. When I looked back, her face was pale and trembling.
“No matter how it is, I cannot allow a priest’s name to be used lightly!”
Ah, right, I see.
I had gone beyond just being acknowledged by Kihmuhir to being the high priest in charge of the most important ritual during Rechmir.
To infuse Holy Power into Arlil.
…I regretted thinking earlier that this wouldn’t be such a hassle, because it clearly would be way more annoying than I had imagined.
“…Then please just call me ‘Saint.’”
“Understood, Saint.”
“You can call me Aurora!”
Aurora, who had been eavesdropping on the conversation, suddenly chimed in with excitement.
“Yes, Aurora, please call me Rene from now on.”
With Rene responding cheerfully, Aurora’s expression instantly glowered.
…Regardless of the situation, wouldn’t the saint and her attendant be somewhat equal?
Still, I think it’s kinda unfair how each of us has our different status and reacts accordingly.
But there’s not much I can do to change that.
With a heavy sigh, I followed behind Rene, who was leading us.
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