When I arrived, I was brimming with anticipation, but when it was time to leave, I was utterly drained, so I decided to board a nearby carriage heading toward the city.
It wasn’t about threatening the carriage driver with a knife like a highwayman; instead, I negotiated by offering to guard the carriage. Thankfully, escaping the great marsh didn’t take too long.
Since Alterra personally crafted the path for us, we didn’t stumble around as we had on the way there. When I asked her if she wasn’t tired, she said that solidifying something already fluid was an easy task, so I walked her path without guilt.
“I cannot accept this! Why is my blood rated so low? Shouldn’t Akashi’s be the most inferior, obviously?”
“Haha, of course. The dwarves made this thing, so why would they rate you guys highly? Humans were always on good terms with them, and dragons have always been rare and precious, hence their high rating. As for elves, the dwarves found them annoying because they always complained about not disturbing nature. That’s why your evaluation is lower.”
“But I…”
“Yeah, your adoptive father is a dwarf, right? What about your adoptive mother? Ah, don’t misunderstand me, I’m not starting an argument. Even if she exists, she’d probably be a dwarf too, and all your equipment is made by dwarves. But just because of that, it doesn’t mean you’re a dwarf. Besides, aren’t you still searching for your biological parents?”
“…That’s because I want to see the faces of the parents who abandoned me when I was injured! Ugh, don’t you feel anything like that?!”
“I’ve never been abandoned like you were. Sorry, even a great magician can’t empathize with experiences they haven’t lived through.”
“Y-youuu…!”
While Alterra was busy creating the path, Yuna and Akashi were arguing over the evaluations of their blood samples given by the puppet. We were surprised when the puppet initially requested our blood, but it explained that it was necessary for providing personalized healing. So, we willingly gave it a drop each, but Yuna’s score was unusually low.
According to Akashi, it was because elves and dwarves have never gotten along well… Yuna responded by putting him in a headlock while simultaneously punching his scalp with her free hand.
He deserved it. After letting him suffer the consequences of his words, I turned back to Alterra and asked if she was alright.
“I’m fine. Honestly, this level of effort doesn’t even qualify as straining. Thank you for your concern, but you need to carry yourself with more dignity. Before being a man, as a leader, you need to exude more authority. You lack that gravitas.”
Alterra observed my behavior and told me that I needed to be less frivolous. Hmm, sounds like something a grandparent would say…
Taking her advice to maintain the dignity of a leader, I nodded in agreement, which seemed to satisfy her slightly as she smiled and continued crafting the path.
“So, what about my blood? I kept hearing talk of blood and evaluations from behind, so I assume mine must have come out too.”
Even Alterra, despite pretending not to care, was clearly curious. Her tail betrayed her excitement.
“Oh, well, according to the puppet, ‘it’s of incomparable supreme quality.’ Given that even Akashi praised your blood as elixir-level, it makes sense that it would rank high.”
“Hmm, supreme quality, huh. Naturally, since it’s my blood.”
She seems pleased that her evaluation was high. She pretends otherwise, but she enjoys praise and admiration.
“Hmm… Yuna, that’s enough. Akashi didn’t mean any harm, right? …Akashi? Why aren’t you answering…? No, wait…?”
I could hear someone groaning in pain from behind, so I told Yuna to stop. It’s ominous that Akashi isn’t responding.
The puppet watched everything with apparent interest. Come to think of it, I haven’t named it yet. Calling it “puppet” indefinitely feels odd.
“Hey, listen up. About this… puppet. I want to give it a name. Any suggestions?”
Since talking endlessly about blood wouldn’t lead anywhere, I redirected everyone’s attention to naming the puppet. Yuna stopped glaring menacingly at Akashi and seemed to consider names for the puppet.
“A name? Of course, you should choose it. While I discovered it first and worms woke it, you’re its owner. Take responsibility.”
“Hmm… For such a pretty puppet… Let’s see. Gwen? Lockhart? Silverborn? Aine? Hmm, I’m not really confident about naming things…”
Akashi completely withdrew from the discussion, while Yuna listed names she didn’t find particularly appealing, showing her uncertainty.
“A name… Mari suits it.”
Alterra casually suggested a name while making the path, seemingly after much deliberation.
Mari. It sounds better than Lillac, which popped into my mind, or Yuna’s Gwen.
Akashi looked too busy clutching his head and moaning in pain to contribute meaningfully. He should’ve known better than to provoke Yuna.
“Your name will now be Mari. What do you think, Mari?”
Mari happily sang upon receiving her name. The joy in her voice was evident… though how long must we communicate through singing?
Could Akashi have called her a sound mage because she communicates through such a melodic tone?
“Wait a minute. Are you actually going to use the exact name I suggested?! Well, naturally, since I came up with it, it does fit…”
“If it fits, that’s all that matters, right? Alterra, you’re good at naming things?”
After teasing her briefly, I quickly admitted fault before turning into another Akashi and promised to buy her some delicious food when we returned to the city. Only then did Alterra calm down and continue making the path.
By the time the sun began setting, we had reached the signpost we saw at the beginning. It only took us five days to get here originally.
Actually, if I hadn’t wandered around asking endless questions, we could’ve made it in two or three days.
Alterra’s bridge was still standing strong.
“Alterra, you did well building it sturdy, as predicted. In hindsight, we ended up crossing it again.”
“What are you saying? Of course, I did a good job. Building something strong is what I excel at and deserves recognition.”
Is that so? With a smug look, she placed her hands on her hips and declared that such monumental achievements deserved acknowledgment.
“Small things can be overlooked, but significant accomplishments must be praised.”
So that’s why she got upset when I praised her earlier. Difficult. I’ll keep that in mind as I crossed the bridge.
Wondering what Alterra considers a “big deal,” I reflected that creating paths alone is already quite an accomplishment.
Walking under the dim night sky, guided by Akashi’s floating light, we noticed loud noises and flashes ahead.
“It seems bandits are attacking something.”
Alterra, sensing the situation, drew her sword from the ground, ready to charge forward.
“Then let’s go check it out.”
—
Just before being swept away by the destructive current, Elize managed to open a dimensional portal and collapsed dramatically on the other side.
Under normal circumstances, she would have thrown a tantrum about losing face, but after repeated failures, she was now shedding tears of frustration and shame.
Her first failure was unexpected, the second left her fleeing in disgrace after being stripped of everything, and the third occurred despite meticulous preparation.
If only that witch hadn’t interfered. Clutching her knees in sorrow, Elize cried.
Then she realized the pure-blooded demon who had agreed to accompany her was nowhere to be seen. Where was he?
Moments later, noticing something resembling a hedgehog nearby, her already pale skin grew even paler.
There lay something pierced by countless swords, barely alive on its knees, breathing its last breaths.
Only when it coughed up blood did Elize realize it was still alive, shocking and disheartening her.
At the survival resilience of the pure-blood and her own inability to help.
Trembling, she attempted to pull one of the swords out but stopped when a voice called her name.
“I understand your intentions, but it’s best to stop. Those swords are barely keeping his body intact. If you remove them, he’ll turn into minced meat. You wouldn’t want that, would you?”
“Ma- Master of Demons!”
Had he come to reprimand her? Or to execute her for being useless? Trembling and unable to meet his gaze, she watched as the man addressed as Demon King slowly approached.
“I’ve heard the story. Despite thorough preparation, a local witch protected them, leading to failure. And with Akashi mixed in among your opponents… it couldn’t be helped.”
“Are… Are you not blaming me?”
Why was he comforting her instead of scolding her? After consecutive failures, including bringing back a severely wounded key member, she couldn’t comprehend his leniency.
“The blame lies only with the heavens and fate. This wasn’t your fault—it was simply that our enemies were too strong. Moreover, your mission wasn’t entirely unsuccessful. We discovered a place resonating with the disturbance caused by their entry into the ruins.”
“What do you mean?”
“Another dwarf ruin. Whether it holds ancient dwarves like this one remains uncertain, but it’s worth investigating, isn’t it?”
“Th- Then what happens to me?”
Still unsure of her standing, Elize asked the Demon King one last question.
His answer remained consistent.
“Continue monitoring them—the Half-Dragon, Akashi, the insignificant hero, and the puppet capable of housing an ancient dwarf. Keep watch on what they do. Ideally, retrieve the puppet, but even I find that challenging.”
