Chapter 194 - Stature (5)

In Greinif's eastern district, amid towering ancient trees at the very edge of the World Tree's domain, stood a cottage.

Part of the cottage joined directly onto an old tree, as though the two had become one. Inside, a man and a woman faced each other: Pilde, smiling leisurely, and Perion, who had accompanied her to House Pallatio.

"Hmm."

Perion glanced around the interior, recalling the lavish office where Pilde usually stayed.

"Do you always stay here when you're on leave, Lady Pilde?"

"Well, yes?"

"You've gone to the trouble of taking leave. Is there a reason you choose to stay here?"

"It may not look like much, but it's quite relaxing."

Smiling, Pilde propped her chin on her hand.

"So, why have you come to see me while I'm on extended leave, recovering from the exhaustion of that trip?"

"... You weren't particularly exhausted, were you?"

Perion recalled how she had spent the entire journey to the marquis's estate drinking, singing, and dancing, dead drunk all day long. But Pilde shamelessly shook her head.

"Of course I was. You know perfectly well how much blood I vomited, and you still say that?"

"That much is certainly true... Anyway."

Perion cleared his throat before continuing.

"I came because there are a few things I'm curious about."

"Curious?"

"Yes. You may not have heard, since you've been here on leave, but Marquis Pallatio is visiting our lands."

"Marquis Pallatio?"

The name immediately piqued Pilde's interest.

"First, allow me to explain the situation."

As though he had been waiting for the opportunity, Perion carefully recounted everything that had happened since Marquis Pallatio's arrival in Greinif.

"—And that's where things stand."

"I see."

Pilde nodded slowly, then asked, "I have a general grasp of the situation. What is it you're curious about?"

Perion considered his words for a moment before speaking.

"Didn't you tell the queen last time that Marquis Pallatio—no, the revered primordial elf—couldn't come to the World Tree because of the 'black thing'?"

"I did, didn't I?"

"But the marquis has come to the World Tree. And if the rumors are true—"

"He destroyed the Ash Scatterer underground and breathed new life into the rotting World Tree. Correct?"

"Yes. Just as... the primordial elf would."

Pilde shrugged.

"Well, doesn't that settle it? It means the marquis really was the primordial elf, just as we expected."

"If we look only at the conclusion, yes. But there are still things I don't understand."

"Such as?"

Perion's expression grew serious.

"In the end, wasn't your assumption wrong?"

"Which assumption?"

"That he couldn't visit because there was something behind him that must not be brought to the World Tree."

"Hmm. Well, yes?"

"If that assumption no longer holds—"

He paused briefly, then his questions began spilling out, as though a floodgate had opened.

"Then there's no reason for him to have stayed away all this time, or to keep denying that he's the primordial elf, is there?"

"The queen's behavior is puzzling, too. If the primordial elf wished to keep his identity secret, Her Majesty would have revealed that Marquis Pallatio was the primordial elf to only the bare minimum of people."

"But instead, the queen quietly let people around her know that the marquis was the primordial elf?"

"And despite having heard your assumption, she seemed to have no questions at all when the primordial elf came to visit."

Having said that much, Perion scratched his head.

"I know these questions aren't particularly important. Whatever reason the marquis has for denying he's the primordial elf, he's already all but proven his identity."

"Hmm."

"But I was curious, so I came to ask."

Pilion immediately understood the lingering question in Perion's mind.

"So, to put it simply, this is what you're asking: the marquis acted nothing like I said he would, yet the queen still believed blindly that he was the primordial elf. You want to know why?"

"Yes," Perion answered immediately.

Pilde smiled lightly.

"I don't know, either."

"Pardon...?"

"I said I don't know."

"Oh... You don't?"

Perion looked flustered.

"Of course not. Why did you think I would?"

"Well... You're the wisest among us, for one? I thought you might have some idea why the queen was acting that way...?"

"Some idea, you say..."

Pilde hummed thoughtfully, then added, "Well, it's not as though I have none at all. After the queen returned from meeting Marquis Pallatio, there was one possibility that occurred to me."

"... Then could you please tell me?"

"Hmm. What shall I do?"

Pilde gave Perion a playful smile.

"All right. But telling you everything would be a bit much, so I'll give you one hint."

"A hint?"

"The ring. Take a good look at the ring the queen carries."

"... The ring?"

"Yes, the ring. Perhaps then you'll have some idea."

That was the hint she offered.

"... Isn't that barely even a hint?"

"No, I'd say it's a decisive one."

With that, she held a bottle of liquor out to Perion.

"What's this for?"

"Payment for the hint. Drinking alone was getting lonely. Perhaps you could keep me company today?"

"Ah," Perion murmured, looking at the bottle.

It suddenly struck him that Pilde could drink an utterly absurd amount. In other words, by tomorrow, he would be so sodden with alcohol that he wouldn't be able to move.

'... I already feel sick.'

He was already dreading the morning.

####

A few days later, Alon prepared to return directly to his estate. He had finished everything he needed to do in Greinif, so there was no reason to stay any longer.

In truth, he would have liked to rest a little more and think things over, but...

"I will escort you."

"Th-that's all right."

"No. I truly wish to!"

... Rest was impossible.

Perhaps word had already spread everywhere since his visit to the Root, because wherever Alon went, the treatment he received was terribly overwhelming. This moment was a perfect example.

Feeling inwardly overwhelmed, Alon looked at Rim. Her eyes shone so brightly that it was as though someone had plucked the Milky Way out of the night sky and set it in them.

"... Then please escort me only as far as the edge of your territory."

"As you wish!"

Rim bowed with a radiant smile.

... He couldn't get used to it. Was this really the same chilly elf from a few days ago?

"My lord."

Evan spoke as soon as Alon boarded the carriage.

"What is it?"

"How does it feel to ride in a carriage in your lowly body?"

"... You seem rather fond of that phrase."

"It's not that I'm fond of it. Everyone keeps saying it so much that I'm sick of hearing it."

Alon let out a sigh.

'Why do they pity me?'

In fact, the elves had one other reaction to Alon: sympathy. They felt sorry that such a supremely great elf had been reincarnated as a human who could live only a hundred years or so, and was now suffering without receiving the treatment he deserved.

In short, whenever Alon traveled through the kingdom, he received not only the overwhelming respect and awe, but also looks of pity and compassion that bothered him in an entirely different way.

Thanks to(?) those racially prejudiced looks, Alon had decided to make a quick escape.

And so—

"It feels strange, hearing people whisper like that right beside me."

"Does it?"

"Yes. Even I'm starting to get confused."

"About what?"

"You're not the primordial elf, are you, my lord?"

"That's right."

Alon nodded without hesitation. Once, he might have been a little mindful of those around him, but there was no need for that now.

After all—

... An emphatic nod!

His denials fell on completely deaf ears anyway. If anything, Rim nodded back boldly and earnestly, as though promising to play along.

"Well, I don't think you are, either."

"But?"

"With everyone reacting that way all the time, though, I'm starting to get a little confused myself."

After a brief silence, Evan spoke again.

"My lord."

"What?"

"You're not, right? The primordial elf, I mean."

He cautiously asked once more.

"I'm not."

"... I see."

Despite Evan's answer, an odd hint of suspicion was beginning to creep into his eyes. Alon sighed softly.

By the time the carriage reached the border, afternoon had arrived.

"Then we shall take our leave here."

"Very well."

"I eagerly await the day we meet again!"

Leaving the deeply bowing Rim behind, Alon departed the elves' lands.

####

Alon headed straight for the Pallatio estate. He needed to stop in Teria and report to Siyan, but he had left for Greinif immediately after his birthday, leaving a few matters unfinished at home.

'Besides, I'd like to properly study the spell formula and stature a little more.'

He couldn't investigate the spell formula while traveling, since that required meeting Kailas. He did, however, use stature a few times on the journey back to his estate to examine it.

As a result, he learned four things.

First, although he didn't understand the details, the power of the primordial elf's divine stature that he had used was a power that made something grow.

Second, he still couldn't use any of the other statures, only the green one he had first used.

Third, using stature drained his stamina far faster than he had expected.

And finally, depending on the concentration and scale of faith, the amount of 'stature' could readily return to its original level—or even increase—after its power had been used.

'At first, the green stature was definitely much smaller than the others.'

Within the contemplative state that had now become fairly familiar, Alon checked the green stature, which had grown enough to rival the blue one in size, then emerged from that state.

'Should I discuss stature with Penia? Oh, that reminds me—I need to go to the magic symposium with her.'

While arranging his schedule with Penia without her knowledge, Alon arrived at the Pallatio estate before he knew it.

Shortly after his return, he heard that Duke Merkillan was waiting for him. Without even a chance to rest, Alon went to meet him—and there...

"Ha—hahahahaha! It was true!"

"?"

"I, Kurak the Engraver, pay my respects to the friend of the great one!"

... He was abruptly greeted.

And not just any greeting.

THUD!

It was an extravagant greeting from Kurak—a promotional DLC character in Psychedelia—who slammed his head straight into the floor.

Duke Merkillan looked every bit as bewildered as Alon. Paying that no mind, Kurak roared heartily,

"I greet the friend of the great one!"