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What kind of confidence does this kid have?
That was a summary of Duke Matthias’s feelings.
This matter was undoubtedly something worth protesting, but even so, Philip Count’s attitude was far too rigid.
Being powerless wasn’t a crime, yet standing up defiantly in front of a powerful family would only bring losses to Philip Count.
Duke Matthias felt both confusion and anger.
In his heart, he wanted to storm into the Philip household and cause a ruckus, but as the head of an esteemed noble family recognized for their abilities, Matthias calmed himself by breaking a few objects.
“…”
Once Matthias had cooled his temper, doubts began to arise.
How exactly had they managed to scout, track, and kill Mineher?
Mineher was a highly skilled sharpshooter—cautious at best and cowardly at worst.
She wasn’t the type to recklessly provoke knights and get surrounded.
So how did she end up returning with just one ear?
Lost in thought, Matthias decided to draft a reply first.
It was something along the lines of, “It seems there has been some misunderstanding. Please calm down.”
Of course, he could have pressed further, asking for evidence or accusing them of starting a fight, but due to the current sensitive political climate, Matthias chose to take a step back rather than escalate the situation unnecessarily.
“…”
After writing the reply, Matthias’ anger flared again, and he threw whatever object was within reach.
This was an unprecedented disgrace, and the losses were not insignificant.
Since he had extended an olive branch, he knew he’d have to give them some money, which made him seethe inside.
Shaking despite his attempts to maintain composure, Matthias stamped the family seal on the letter, exercising every ounce of self-control.
*
Clemens was living quite contentedly in Phillip’s County.
Revisiting the knowledge and expertise he’d gained from his merchant days while organizing it into books was a pleasant pastime.
With Count Philip trusting Ray and assigning Clemens some practical tasks, tangible results were being achieved.
Aside from the restricted outings, the hospitality was quite good, allowing him to enjoy each day.
Leaning on his cane, Clemens stood up and walked down the corridor.
Having recently been scolded by Ray for gaining weight, Clemens was paying more attention to his health.
However, before he could walk far, a loud thumping sound echoed from the end of the corridor.
“…?”
The sound grew closer.
Wondering what it could be, Clemens waited in place until someone appeared at the end of the corridor.
It was an elf with striking features.
But upon closer inspection, one of his ears was missing.
The elf entered the corridor, started walking toward Clemens, then suddenly changed direction, stumbled, and banged his head against the wall.
“Ouch!”
The elf stepped back, covering his head, only to bang it against the opposite wall.
“AAAH!!”
Seeing the elf fall over after hitting his forehead hard, Clemens thought to himself,
‘There goes another idiot…’
Seemingly disoriented, the elf fell onto the floor and began rolling around the corridor.
As Clemens felt a strange sense of kinship with the bumbling elf, Ray appeared.
“Hey, Clemens.”
“Hello.”
“Judging by your increasingly rosy face, I assume you’re doing well?”
“Thanks to you, I am.”
After shaking hands with Clemens, Ray frowned as he looked at the still-thumping elf.
“Clemens, do you know why the earless elf is here?”
“…No idea?”
“They’ve gone extinct in the wild.”
KABOOM! CRASH!
“AAAAH!!!”
A vase on a nearby table shattered with the elf’s scream.
Ray clicked his tongue and muttered,
“So that’s why we call them ‘earlies.’ Their ears are their true selves.”
If losing one ear caused this much trouble, cutting off both would’ve likely left the elf crawling in circles.
Leaving Mineher sprawled in the corridor, Ray headed toward his room with Clemens.
“Is it alright to leave him like that?”
“He’ll adapt soon enough.”
Though having both ears cut off might have been too extreme, losing one was manageable. With time, the elf would adjust to the skewed balance and resume normal life.
‘This is lenient treatment.’
Even though Mineher was a descendant of Resina, letting a sharpshooter capable of deceiving an Expert Knight roam freely wasn’t an option.
Cutting off one ear was the minimum necessary measure.
‘Elves’ ears aren’t permanently lost anyway.’
Though elves possess more complex ears compared to humans and are less responsive to divine power, their ears can eventually regenerate given enough time. They wouldn’t remain disabled forever.
“Well, Clemens, it’s good to see you’re doing well.”
Inside the room, Ray sat across from Clemens and glanced toward the corridor through the open door.
Mineher was still smashing things by repeatedly banging his body against the walls and floor.
Grabbing a sturdy fruit, Ray irritably tossed it at Mineher.
THUD!
“Ouch!!”
“Hey, stop falling around and crawl over here if you must.”
Mineher began crawling toward them with a pitiful expression, showing better control over direction and balance than when standing.
While crawling, Mineher momentarily thought it was easier but quickly remembered his predicament and burst into tears.
“Vile and cruel human…”
‘This guy still hasn’t grasped the situation.’
His whining reminded Ray of Alesya from long ago.
‘Alesya who used to constantly insult others as uneducated commoners.’
Back then, Alesya was young and somewhat adorable, but seeing an elf over 150 years old behaving this way was truly exasperating.
“Do all elves lack maturity?”
Ray muttered, then turned his gaze away.
Aptel was glaring at him with flashing eyes.
“What are you going to do by glaring like that?”
[…]
Aptel disappeared without a word.
“Look at that, defending his own kind.”
Despite saying nothing when humans were being slaughtered.
Clicking his tongue, Ray took a bite out of an apple.
Meanwhile, Mineher finally reached the room, crawled onto a chair, and sat down.
Despite making such a fuss earlier, seeing him quietly seated now made him somewhat tolerable.
“Hey, Mineher.”
“…Yes.”
“Want to try drawing?”
“Why…?”
“Because you seem to have the demeanor of a grandmaster.”
Confused by Ray’s random suggestion, Mineher showed an expression of disdain.
Ignoring that, Ray turned to Clemens.
“You should try drawing when you have free time. Art is great, isn’t it?”
“Haha, art? What art can this body possibly create?”
“What are you talking about? Isn’t it true that creation stems from suffering?”
“I’ve never heard that saying… but it does sound plausible.”
“Clemens, don’t you think you need a hobby to immerse yourself in, instead of lying around moaning about your stiff body later in life?”
Realizing Ray’s intention, Clemens paused for a moment, then adopted a serious expression.
Rubbing his stiffening right thigh, Clemens sighed deeply.
“Indeed, you are thoughtful.”
It was genuine admiration, not sarcasm.
Having memories from a previous life, Ray placed more emphasis on mental health than most people in this world.
This consideration struck Clemens deeply, prompting him to bow his head.
“Thank you. I will consider what you’ve said.”
“If you need any tools or books, let me know. I’ll arrange for the count to support you with those.”
“Yes, understood.”
“Good.”
Ray liked Clemens.
At least outwardly, Clemens was always grateful and worked hard to achieve results.
Although he might be hiding ulterior motives like a true merchant, as long as they weren’t revealed, it didn’t matter.
In contrast, Mineher’s eyes were openly filled with malice.
Annoyed, Ray threw the apple he was eating at Mineher.
THUD!
“AHH!”
“Try controlling that look of yours.”
“Tch…”
“Introduce yourselves. You’ll run into each other occasionally while living here.”
“Hello, my name is Clemens. Nice to meet you.”
Clemens extended his hand first, and Mineher reluctantly shook it.
Watching this exchange, Ray massaged his temples.
He hadn’t told Mineher about Resina.
There was no trust between them, and it was unclear how Mineher would react to Resina.
This way, it seemed like the count’s household was just acquiring another useless burden, and Ray felt a headache coming on thinking about how to handle this immature elf.
*
Luna couldn’t just leave the mountain destroyed by her high-level magic.
Swift restoration of the mountain would suppress rumors and reduce potential future scrutiny.
Thus, Luna periodically accompanied Ray to the Sigini Mountain Range for repeated magical labor.
Today, arriving at the entrance of the Sigini Mountain Range with Ropheiren and Ray, Luna began drawing a magic circle on the ground.
Ray trailed behind Luna, chastising her.
“Luna, you shouldn’t recklessly use such high-powered magic.”
“…”
Luna had her reasons.
At the time, Ray had been helplessly kidnapped by Mineher.
Considering the situation, Mineher, who had successfully subdued someone as strong as Ray, was clearly a dangerous enemy.
Therefore, Luna had chosen to eliminate variables by immediately unleashing her strongest available magic on Mineher’s head.
Thus, the primary cause of this mess was not Luna but Ray.
“…”
Luna’s cheeks subtly puffed up.
Seeing this, Ray chuckled and pinched her inflated cheeks.
Nowadays, Luna carried herself more like a woman, but to Ray, she still felt like an adorable girl.
After releasing the air from Luna’s cheeks, Ray pulled out a prepared box.
“I bought lots of jewelry when I visited Osiris Countdom. Thought I’d share.”
Before Luna could misunderstand, Ray clarified and opened the box to show her a hair accessory.
When Ray offered the box, Luna simply stared into his eyes.
Understanding Luna’s intent, Ray raised an eyebrow and picked out the hair accessory.
Struggling to properly attach it, Ray eventually managed to secure it on Luna’s side hair.
Despite his clumsy attempt, Luna seemed satisfied, smiling faintly.
“…Thank you.”
“Hmm… Maybe I should ask Karen to redo it for me.”
Regretfully looking back toward the manor, Ray thought it was time to head down to the village.
There was a festival today in Phillip’s County celebrating Mohamed, a loyal knight of Count Philip and a Sword Expert, who had recently reached a new level.
Of course, Mohamed had achieved the Graduate level a long time ago.
Revealing that truth would invite the wrath of the royal family, so this was a form of deception.
Even so, it was still a festival, and since Count Philip had provided supplies for it, everyone was excited.
‘Perhaps I should visit the Imperial Capital sometime…’
Sticking out his lower lip, Ray glanced at Luna.
“Let’s go, Luna.”
“Yes.”
Luna followed closely behind Ray, with Ropheiren trailing behind them.
It was rare to encounter events in the remote Phillip’s County, so they couldn’t miss the opportunity to enjoy the festival.
Festival (2)
