Chapter 36 - Ties from the Past (3)

At first, I thought it was a joke.

"It feels absurd to say this with my own mouth, but my clan makes rather ideal spouses for humans."

Even when she asked, with her own mouth, whether beautiful, virtuous elves who remained fresh for ages were not the ideal type for human men, I thought it was nothing but nonsense.

"Ah, humans are said to value not only individuals, but groups as well, yes? Just in case, I should mention that I, too, have those who follow me. Those similar to human knights are always at my side, protecting me."

But when I saw her introduce the guardians of her tribe, the Sentinels, as though they were merchandise, I began to doubt her intentions,

"I possess everything Your Highness needs."

and when she put forward her own value with that fresh face, I truly became uneasy.

The sense of time for elves, and especially High Elves, was completely different from that of humans.

To them, a human lifetime was nothing more than a brief season, so if Sigrun intended to devote one of her own seasons entirely to her 「amusement」, this absurd situation could become reality at any time.

I turned my head with an anxious look.

I saw the Queen's expression.

She was truly, seriously considering Sigrun's offer.

She seemed tempted not by Sigrun's appearance, but by the foundation behind her.

The Queen asked with a solemn face.

"You must have seen Ian for the first time today, so why make such a bold proposal?"

What reason did she have to push her proposal this aggressively?

At her question, Sigrun smiled.

The moment I saw that radiant smile, every hair on my body stood on end.

Because I knew when she wore that expression.

When she found something she truly liked,

or when she faced something she truly disliked,

Sigrun smiled like that.

And I knew this as well.

The fact that her goodwill and her malice always led to the same result.

"It is well known that my clan values ties above all else."

Sigrun spoke, still with that radiant face.

"From the moment I first saw His Highness, I felt that my destiny touched His Highness's destiny."

Elves were a cunning people who could wrap lies up as though they were truth at any time, but there was one case in which even they never lied.

Ties, or destiny.

Elves never lie about their own destiny and ties.

Among them, the weight of ties and destiny spoken of by High Elves, and Elder High Elves in particular, was exceptional.

The destiny they spoke of was fate, and the ties they spoke of were no different from inevitability.

I looked at the Elder High Elf of the Mistletoe tribe.

The silver eyes unique to High Elves, sparkling like stars and gleaming like jewels, stared straight at me.

Any ordinary man would have lost his senses in bliss under that dizzying gaze, but I got goosebumps.

I realized that Sigrun was sincere, and that my life had been utterly tangled up.

"Truly bold."

The Queen let out an exclamation.

Her face was flushed red; it seemed she had taken Sigrun's words as some sort of confession.

No, that was not it.

Absolutely not.

I sighed and rose from my seat.

The Queen looked at me.

Looking at her face, I asked for her understanding.

"I will step out for a moment and have a private conversation with her somewhere quiet."

The Queen's expression changed subtly.

She had clearly misunderstood something, but clearing up her misunderstanding was not what mattered now.

"Let us go."

Sigrun smiled brightly and stood at my side.

It was obviously a deliberate action, and sighs rose here and there.

The nobles were looking at me.

Jealousy, envy, and greed.

In the eyes of the men watching me walk in step with the beautiful elf, the nature of men, regardless of age, was laid bare.

Receiving those unsettling gazes, I searched for Karl.

"I need somewhere quiet to talk."

At my words, Karl glanced sidelong at Sigrun.

Still, perhaps because he was a Triple Chain knight, he controlled his emotions well, unlike the other nobles.

The place I arrived at under Karl's guidance was a room shut tight on all sides.

The private chamber, likely prepared for nobles tired of the banquet, was unnecessarily cozy.

"Do not let anyone come near."

Thinking of the men who had secretly followed us on the way here, I gave him a firm warning.

Karl struck his chest with a resolute face and stood with his back to the door.

CLICK.

I closed the door.

When I turned around, I saw Sigrun.

She wore the same fresh face she had shown in the banquet hall.

"Sigrun."

"How affectionate of you."

She replied with a face that pretended to be thrilled.

"Tell me your true purpose."

"I came only for friendship between my clan and the kingdom. I have no other intention."

"I will not ask again."

But that detestable act lasted only until I spoke of her true identity.

"Elder High Elf Sigrun."

At my words, the mask split wide open.

"Executor who bears the burden of your clan, sword of the Mistletoe Clan."

Her bare face was revealed.

Terribly dry, and terribly lifeless.

It was a face like a wax doll.

"Is your purpose bestowal and harvest, or the execution of a sentence?"

If the goal had simply been to strengthen friendship, there would have been no need for someone as exalted as an Elder High Elf to come forward.

A High Elf would have been enough for that kind of mission.

The fact that an Elder High Elf, and among them an executor who bore the clan's karma of killing, had come here meant her purpose was something more than simple friendship.

"Tell me your true purpose."

At my words, she twisted her lips.

"How interesting."

The voice that had been as fresh as birdsong was, before I knew it, dried out like a withered old tree on a rainless summer day.

"How did you know about me?"

I did not answer.

Sigrun had tried to manipulate my destiny as she pleased, so I had no choice but to step forward.

But that did not mean I had any intention of exposing my identity.

Of course, it was not as though I had not thought of other methods.

But the moment she spoke of ties and destiny, which elves revered as though sacred, every move became meaningless.

For now, even if I had to show some of my hand, I had to put distance between myself and her.

"If you know that I am an executor, then you should know how foolish it is to keep silent before one."

"I know at least that it is just as foolish as running your mouth before an executor."

At my words, her eyes narrowed.

Her gaze was no longer like starlight, as it had been in the banquet hall.

It was merely something sinister, wicked, and terribly sharp.

Her gaze became a blade and carved me to pieces.

Within that gaze, I was torn apart countless times, and saw countless deaths.

The karma of killing she had built up over a thousand years invaded me.

But I did not waver in the slightest.

The countless deaths she showed me posed no threat to me.

Because the weight of the karma of killing I had built up was in no way inferior to hers.

"Do not play with me, Sigrun."

Sigrun's eyes went round.

But I knew that even that was an act.

She was a being worn away and worn away over a thousand years.

Most of the emotions she showed were close to habits she had learned.

If I grew arrogant because I thought I had seized the initiative, my skull would be split open before anyone knew it, leaving the inside laid bare.

"Do not interfere with my destiny."

I warned her.

Those were the weakest words I had ever spoken, throughout my several hundred years of life as a sword and my brief life as a scoundrel.

It was intentional.

Whether I released part of my sleeping soul or borrowed the power of a high-grade Poem of Martial Deeds,

whatever I tried, the current me was no more than a trivial existence to her.

Her realm had reached heights I could not even fathom as I was now, and I felt that gap more keenly than ever before.

That was why I warned her.

Her eyes, which had already reached Transcendence, could see more than most, so the reason she had sensed destiny in me was also that she had caught a vague glimpse of the records of the past engraved on my soul.

If it was her, then just as she had glimpsed the past, she should also be able to vaguely sense the future.

I deliberately hid the existence that was me as tightly as I could.

That way, she would feel an even greater curiosity.

So that the few shards of truth she forced out of me by intimidation would seem like nothing more than the tip of the iceberg.

So that I would seem like food too precious to take a few bites of and push away.

"Who are you really?"

she asked.

"The current me is nothing but a pitiful prince abandoned even by his own father."

"Then what about the real you?"

"Who knows."

Now was the time to spare my words.

Yes.

In other words, I had to become,

"If you are curious, watch and see."

something for her to let age and then savor.

That was the only way I could buy time.

Sigrun stared quietly at me.

Receiving that unreadable gaze, I waited silently.

I gave her enough time to savor me first with her eyes, before she tasted me with her mouth.

"I thought it was strange somehow. Why send me on such a trivial mission? I simply could not understand the reason."

Life began to seep little by little back into her voice, which had been utterly parched.

"But now I know."

Her expressionless face had changed back into the fresh one I had seen in the banquet hall.

"It was because of you."

She smiled brightly.

It was a face filled with anticipation, like someone savoring the aroma before a boiling pot.

Sigrun seemed to have made her choice.

* * *

We returned to the banquet hall.

The nobles' gazes poured down on us.

What had we done in the private room?

What had I been doing with the beautiful elf that we were only now returning?

Even under the base curiosity and jealousy contained in those gazes, I merely walked on in silence.

PATTER, PATTER.

Sigrun followed behind me.

With a shy face, as though she were a new bride.

I saw the Queen seated on the dais.

I stood before her.

Sigrun pressed close beside me.

The grassy scent unique to elves was unpleasant, but I endured it and spoke calmly.

"I have something to tell you."

"Speak."

The Queen's eyes gleamed.

A shy-faced Sigrun, and a son with a solemn face as though he had made some sort of resolve.

It was a picture perfect for misunderstanding.

"It is about my consort."

And that misunderstanding was exactly what I wanted.

"I have decided."

At my words, the Queen's gaze turned to Sigrun.

She nodded.

"I will enter into a betrothal with Sigrun."

Even as I said it, I felt like retching.

Because I had truly never dreamed that a day would come when I would call Sigrun's name in such an affectionate voice.

"A marriage with an elf..."

The Queen tapped the armrest and sank into thought.

She was probably considering in her head what political benefits a marriage between a High Elf and me would bring.

It would not be something she could judge easily.

So I said to the Queen,

"But it is too important a matter to judge hastily, so I intend to take some time and watch for a while."

time for the Queen to think,

time for the food to age for Sigrun,

and time for me to grow strong enough to escape from that mad elf.

All of us needed time.