Ch.131Half-Blood (3)

The Biography of Xenon Volume 12 resulted in the creation of numerous interspecies couples, but interestingly, it also officially announced the emergence of half-elves—hybrids between elves and humans—who had been hiding until now.

This social phenomenon naturally occurred as questions that no one had considered began to surface one by one.

While other mixed races might be common, half-elves were almost nonexistent, making their revelation shocking enough to impact the world, with particularly strong reactions coming from Alfheim.

But personally, I think: what’s the big deal about being mixed-race? I’m just letting it slide. Besides, half-elves inherit all elven characteristics except for potential—including their angelic appearance, lifespan, magic, and powerful physical abilities. In fact, half-elves have greater potential than regular elves and possess the flexibility that comes from living in human society.

I suspect the old generation, especially the Senate, is making a fuss about it. Cindy mentioned briefly that the Senate consists of racial supremacists who would vehemently reject the existence of mixed-bloods.

Moreover, since Arwen is implementing open policies, this situation would be perfect for the Senate to check her power.

If she fails to mediate the chaos within Alfheim, they’ll restrain her further, and even if she succeeds, they can still bring up the mixed-blood issue from time to time.

Politics is a game where victory belongs to those who are vile and cunning.

I feel somewhat sorry about this unexpected situation, but it’s ultimately Arwen’s personal problem, so I have no intention of interfering.

I’ll just exchange news with her, but unless she reaches out first, I won’t take any action.

“Isaac. Both Cindy and I will be away in five days, so keep that in mind.”

“What?”

In Professor Elena Heavensinger’s research room, where I came to read books and papers.

I was leisurely reading a book while enjoying tea that Cindy had personally brewed for me when I opened my eyes wide at Elena’s words. It was unprecedented for both Elena and Cindy to be absent at the same time.

Last time, Cindy returned to Alfheim to submit her thesis, but this is the first time Elena will be away. With teacup in hand, I asked her:

“So suddenly? Where to?”

“Alfheim. The Queen is giving a national address. She requested that all citizens attend if possible, so we must go.”

“A national address?”

I tilted my head at Elena’s answer. A sudden national address seemed questionable given Alfheim’s current situation.

Elena seemed to read my thoughts and pushed up her slightly slipping glasses before speaking in her characteristically businesslike tone:

“As you know, Alfheim is currently in turmoil over the mixed-blood issue. She probably wants to resolve it quickly. It might seem hasty, but saying nothing and doing nothing is also problematic.”

“Hmm… will it be okay?”

“Who knows. I haven’t seen the Queen give a speech before. This is probably her first national address, right?”

If this is her first national address, does that mean she didn’t give one when she was crowned? As I pondered this question, Cindy, sitting across from me, explained:

“The king of Alfheim isn’t elected by citizens but through votes from each family—the nobility… Anyone can attend, but kings are typically selected from prestigious families…”

Despite her characteristically drawling speech pattern, Cindy’s explanation registered clearly. I turned to Cindy, who was sipping tea across from me, with another question:

“Was the current Queen also selected from a family?”

“No… Before her coronation, the current Queen was just an ordinary member of society… She was also considered too young to become Queen… I don’t know exactly how she ascended to the throne… I heard rumors that she manipulated the noble families with her political skills…”

It makes sense that Cindy wouldn’t know, as she was probably just an ordinary student or Elena’s assistant at that time. I should ask Arwen directly if I get the chance.

“When do you plan to return? Are you just going to listen to the speech?”

“No… I’m going to visit my home after a long time… I forgot to stop by last time when I submitted my thesis…”

“I plan to exchange opinions with other scholars. I’m curious about how scholars view mixed-bloods.”

Elena answered bluntly after Cindy. Looking back and forth between the two elves, a question suddenly occurred to me:

“Come to think of it, are you two pure-blooded? I heard that half-elves only have slightly shorter ears but otherwise look no different from regular elves.”

“I’m not sure about that. I never confirmed whether my parents are pure-blooded or mixed. Perhaps there might be humans among my distant ancestors. I should ask about it now.”

“Me too…”

Elven genetics easily surpass Mendelian inheritance, to the point where even they don’t know if they’re pure-blooded or mixed. It’s truly an interesting situation.

I looked at the two elves who seemed unconcerned about the hot-button issue of mixed-bloods and quietly asked:

“What do you two think about mixed-bloods?”

“I don’t have any particular thoughts. As a scholar, I would naturally accept the existence of mixed-bloods. It’s impossible for there to be no mixed-bloods after hundreds of years of contact between elves and humans. Perhaps there might even be hybrids between demons and elves?”

A child born between demons, descendants of devils, and elves, descendants of angels…

‘Nephilim?’

The thought of a famous race from a game in my previous life briefly crossed my mind, followed by another thought:

‘But are there no hybrids between demons and humans?’

Currently, the focus is only on half-elves, but people born between humans and demons could certainly appear. However, unlike elves, demons had a very negative reputation until the Biography of Xenon, so it’s highly unlikely.

I should ask Cecilly about this after all classes end. While I was thinking about this, Cindy shared her thoughts after Elena:

“Me too… We should accept them for Alfheim’s sake… If we mishandle this issue, it could create major rifts within Alfheim… The old and new generations are already in conflict, and now with the mixed-blood issue…”

“It sounds serious.”

“Yes… I hope the Queen gives a good speech…”

Cindy spoke with a gloomy expression, seemingly worried about the emerging conflict. Not just her expression, but her elongated ears drooped downward, showing her genuine concern for Alfheim.

No matter how perfect elves may be as a race, they are still people in the end. Conflicts due to ideological differences are inevitable, and achieving true unity is extremely difficult.

Moreover, most elves have deeply rooted personal convictions that are hard to change. They can be described as stubborn or obstinate.

If Arwen can change such minds through a national address, it would demonstrate her exceptional talent and ability. In my previous life, I witnessed countless cases where a single speech changed history.

‘This would be good prey for other countries.’

While a nation destroyed by external pressure may have a chance to rebuild, there’s no solution if it collapses from within. The Alfheim in the Biography of Xenon Volume 13 that I will write will fall in this way, as history has proven.

What will Alfheim’s future be like? Will this incident lead to growth or the opposite?

Throughout history, east and west, a person’s true ability has always emerged during times of crisis.

“I hope it goes well.”

“It has to… My own child might be born mixed…”

“Are you planning to marry a human?”

“Not necessarily… But you never know… There might be handsome and kind humans like you…”

“Am I considered handsome by elven standards?”

It was just a silly joke. Cindy looked dumbfounded at my joke and blinked her eyes.

“Eh…?”

She even made a stupid yet cute sound. Judging by her pale skin—from staying in the research room without seeing sunlight—turning slightly red, she must have belatedly realized what she said.

While Cindy’s thought process was frozen, I closed the book and stood up. There was still some time before my acquaintances’ classes ended, but I planned to return to my dormitory to write.

“I was joking. Don’t think too deeply about it.”

“…Don’t tease me…”

“Where else could I find someone as easy to tease as you?”

Even as Cindy grumbled, Elena quietly dealt a blow. Naturally, Cindy muttered with her characteristic gloomy expression.

I laughed at the sight and greeted the two:

“I’ll head back to my dormitory now. I’ll take this book with me.”

“Do as you please.”

“Bye…”

After saying goodbye to the two elves, I left the research room. The current time was about 3 PM. There was about an hour and a half left before all classes ended.

Until then, I could lounge around in my dormitory or work on Volume 13. Since I’ve already organized the plot, Volume 13 is expected to be released as quickly as Volume 12.

“Um…”

“Huh?”

While walking toward my dormitory, I heard someone calling me from behind in a timid voice.

I turned my head but saw no one. As I tilted my head in confusion, thinking I might have misheard, a voice came from below.

“I’m down here.”

“Oh?”

It was a very familiar voice. I lowered my head with suspicion.

Just as I had seen at the exhibition, a tiny girl wrapped in a white robe caught my eye. Silver-gray hair flowing from under the hood drew my attention.

Eventually, the person who called me slowly raised her head to reveal her face. Starry silver-gray eyes radiated intelligence, and she had a cute, adorable beauty like a young girl.

Despite wearing a hood, she couldn’t hide her dazzling beauty, and she was looking at me with slightly nervous eyes.

“…Could it be Arwen?”

It was Arwen, the Queen of Alfheim who would be giving a national address in five days. While I was surprised by her unexpected appearance, Arwen spoke with a slightly awkward voice:

“Y-you. Might your name be…”

“Yes, I’m Isaac.”

“You’ve grown so much. It hasn’t even been half a year since then… Your voice has changed too…”

My height has certainly increased a lot. People around me always say that, so I’m not particularly impressed anymore.

Now that I see her, Arwen is quite short. When we stood side by side at the exhibition, she barely reached past my shoulder, but now she only reaches my chest.

While elves are naturally physically capable, that doesn’t necessarily translate to physical stature. Despite being so small, I know she has enough grip strength to crush stones with her bare hands.

“So why did you come here? I heard you’re giving a speech soon?”

“Who told you that?”

“From other elves. I have connections with some people.”

“I see… Actually, I came because of that.”

“Because of that?”

When I expressed my doubt, Arwen looked at me with a slightly tense expression and spoke in a careful voice:

“I was hoping you could help me write the speech…”

“…”

“You’re the only person I could think of who writes well.”

Why does this remind me of an impeached president?

*****

Honestly, it was a bit absurd, but I brought Arwen to my dormitory. As I mentioned before, while dormitories prohibit visitors, there’s no problem if you sneak them in.

Moreover, in Arwen’s case, she could hide herself with magic, so there was no worry about being caught. The prohibition of magic use within the academy only applies to spells that consume large amounts of mana, like teleportation.

“So you want help with your speech?”

“It’s shameless of me… but yes.”

Arwen, sitting on the bed, quietly answered my question. With her hood removed, her beautiful appearance was revealed, and she wore an extremely apologetic expression.

That’s understandable, as she has wronged me before. Of course, it was a problem caused by Rain’s hard trolling, but she still bears some responsibility.

Cyris is serving as an errand boy without complaint, and Arwen is delivering books from the sacred place to me, so she’s not in a position to ask for favors. But her direct approach suggests the situation is urgent.

I stared at Arwen, who seemed to be sitting on pins and needles, and then voiced something I didn’t understand:

“I heard you didn’t give a speech when you were crowned?”

“That’s correct.”

“How does Alfheim select its monarch that you’ve never given a speech? I heard from an acquaintance that families vote to elect the monarch.”

“This will be my first speech before the people. Before becoming Queen, I did express my aspirations before the Senate and influential families of Alfheim. But that wasn’t a speech, just a statement of my ambitions.”

“So you essentially ascended to the throne by yourself?”

“Not exactly. You may know that the throne’s owner has changed several times over decades. When I stepped forward, there were hardly any candidates, as if the families felt uneasy.”

“Hmm…”

It seems Alfheim’s political situation is complicated. Since there’s a Senate, they probably pressured previous monarchs to step down.

The fact that she ascended to the throne by her own power, without family backing, demonstrates Arwen’s exceptional political ability. She must have been using that ability to confront the Senate until now.

The manuscript theft issue was a result of a judgment error combined with Rain’s trolling, not a sign of Arwen’s incompetence. While individuals may be inexperienced, she is publicly evaluated as having excellent qualities as a leader.

“The content of the speech is obviously related to mixed-bloods, right?”

“As you say. I need to resolve the current situation somehow… but honestly, it’s too difficult. Speeches that move people’s hearts are historically rare…”

Indeed, as she says, the importance of speeches can be seen without looking far—just consider Lincoln and Martin Luther King Jr. Of course, that’s when speeches play a positive role; negative examples would be Hitler and Goebbels.

A speech that moves people’s hearts requires not just effort but also talent. Reading stiffly like a textbook versus speaking with a voice full of appeal—the difference is clear.

But the most important thing is the content of the speech. The fact that Lincoln’s and Martin’s speeches are still discussed after all this time, and how Hitler’s speeches are studied for how they swayed Germany, makes this abundantly clear.

I stared at the dejected Arwen for a moment before speaking:

“Wait a moment.”

Suddenly, an interesting prank came to mind, and I began writing in my notebook. Arwen initially showed confusion, but when I sat at the desk and started writing, she waited quietly.

After about five minutes, I handed Arwen a temporary speech that filled half a page. When I handed her the speech, Arwen looked at me with a puzzled expression.

“I wrote a speech out of boredom. Read it and judge for yourself.”

“If that’s the case…”

Since it was just a temporary speech, she accepted it without hesitation. Soon, her silver-gray eyes turned to the notebook page.

After about a minute, Arwen’s eyes widened, and she genuinely admired it.

“What a wonderful speech! It truly shows the writing skills of the author of the Biography of Xenon. However…”

But her admiration was brief, and she tilted her head and muttered as if something was strange:

“Why does it feel somewhat inciting…?”

“Hehehe…”

I couldn’t hide my laughter. The true identity of the speech I gave to Arwen was none other than…

“What is this? No matter how I look at it, this is strange… Even just reading it, there’s a strong accent…”

“Hahahahaha!”

It was the famous speech that helped Hitler seize power.