Ch.156156. A Procession in Succession (3)

As if the answer was already decided, I couldn’t help but inwardly sigh at the elf who was gently pressuring me.

‘As expected, you should never easily trust those with long ears.’

Unlike Friel’s exemplary behavior shown in the royal capital.

After entering the Count’s residence, she seemed to show some restraint and awareness of others.

But sure enough, as soon as we left the Count’s territory and entered the carriage path, she started subtly pressuring me with the composure of a 60-year-old monster.

It was quite irritating.

No matter how distinguished a child of the Great Forest’s nobility she might be, barging in like this was bound to offend anyone.

I raised my guard slightly, mindful of this subtle pressure and Friel Arielt’s past actions.

“If this is about the current situation in the Great Forest, wouldn’t it be better if Lady Sione joined us as well?”

I spoke to her confidently without backing down an inch.

Though I was a commoner, my treatment was higher than most ordinary people.

I also had the protection of the Count’s family as publicly declared by Ainel.

Moreover, I was a precious person who would save them along with Sione.

Friel wouldn’t be able to handle me as she did during our previous meeting in the royal capital.

In this subtle battle of wills, I could afford to be this confident.

Besides, unless she intended to needlessly trouble me by taking me alone while Sione was absent, she should be able to answer this question.

‘If she gives some vague excuse…’

Since I had no desire to get entangled with an elf alone, I planned to escape this situation by making excuses like calling for Diolia or waking Sione now.

Friel crossed her arms and slightly raised her chin at my words.

As her head tilted up, she naturally had to move to look at me, giving the impression she was looking down on me with those teal eyes.

A gesture close to the inherently arrogant nature of elves.

It created the impression of a noble deeply influenced by supremacist ideology looking down upon the world.

“That would be nice, but… there isn’t much to discuss right now. In a way, it’s something those not proficient in spirit magic don’t need to worry about. It would be better to have a brief conversation with you, who handles spirit magic, rather than with the young lady.”

Friel slowly closed her eyes.

“Besides—”

Whoosh…

A breeze carrying the fragrant scent of grass wrapped around Friel Arielt’s body before dispersing.

Perk!

Friel, who had raised her ears to listen to the sound carried by the wind, opened her eyes again.

Her pupils remained empty and emotionless as she recited what she had just heard with her elegant voice.

“The young lady’s breathing is even and regular, suggesting she’s in deep meditation. It would be a shame to disturb her, wouldn’t it? So, there’s no need to bother her—just you, Ray, need to come with me for a moment.”

Friel Arielt’s demeanor suddenly changed.

In this world where gender roles and tendencies are reversed.

The sharp and resolute temperament typical of women in this world, like that of a seasoned mercenary, gradually dominated the space.

The weak men of this world might perceive such an atmosphere as quite burdensome or threatening.

But since the actual content inside this shell called Ray was a man from another world with a temperament no different from hers.

I merely found her petty pressure annoying.

Without lowering my head or yielding to her, I maintained my composure and met her gaze.

“Hmm—”

Friel hummed and took another step closer to me.

“Also, this won’t be some half-baked advice, but a time that will definitely help your spirit magic. It will surely be a conversation that won’t be bad for you either. It would be quite a waste to let it slip away so feebly.”

Friel Arielt’s voice sank heavily.

“You, have you ever summoned spirits or made contracts with them? If not that, have you ever laid eyes on those hidden and dissolved in the world?”

Since spirits living in nature are difficult to find in the first place, and I haven’t ventured into deep nature while staying by Sione’s side, it wouldn’t be strange if I hadn’t seen them.

For some reason, though my ability was restored, spirits weren’t being summoned. And then the mention of contracts.

My interest finally began to turn toward her at that intriguing topic.

“Summoning and contracts. Unfortunately, I haven’t. For some reason—”

I tried to summon the wind.

A small vortex formed nearby, condensed for a moment, and then feebly dispersed.

“Even when I try to summon spirits using energy, they scatter like this. Regrettably, I haven’t had any connection with spirits until now.”

At those words, Friel finally seemed to have found her opening, slightly raising the corner of her mouth.

“Then I think I can definitely help you this time. Don’t you want to make a contract with a spirit?”

Indeed, a contract with a spirit was an irresistible temptation.

Having even one spirit would greatly expand the range of tactics I could choose from.

I eventually nodded at her words.

* * *

In an open space a little away from the carriage.

Our conversation began once we reached a distance where even the hearing of knights who had reached the expert level couldn’t easily reach.

As Friel had said, her subordinate who had come ahead and was waiting for us here.

Elisa began her explanation.

“The World Tree not only oversees the Great Forest and makes it a paradise on earth, but also serves as a bridge connecting the spirit realm and this world.”

“However, unfortunately, due to the schemes of shameless cultists and demons, the World Tree has recently suffered many wounds.”

“As a result, the gap between the world and the spirit realm that the World Tree was keeping open has been gradually narrowing—”

Just as Elisa was continuing her explanation, Friel suddenly jumped in and intercepted her lines.

“Since last summer, spirits crossing over to this world through the gap have drastically decreased… and one by one, they’ve started returning to the spirit realm. Now, even we elves, who are superior to any race in spirit magic, are sometimes having trouble summoning contracted spirits. Especially, the further away from the World Tree, the worse it gets.”

Elisa, who might have wanted to finish this last line herself, looked at Friel with the eyes of a puppy sad about having its treat taken away.

“…Yes, that is the current situation of the Great Forest and the elves.”

Ignoring Elisa’s lingering murmur, I fell into thought.

‘Last summer, huh.’

Last summer coincides exactly with when I got a hole punched in my arm protecting Sione, and as a reward, reawakened my spirit summoning ability.

It seems the anomalies from the World Tree started around that time.

However, while the number of spirits decreased during that period, they didn’t completely disappear. It was a bit strange that summoning wasn’t possible at all just because of that.

For now, what mattered was that I had found a clue about the reason.

I nodded in response to Friel’s words, and she smoothly continued.

“If we elves are like this, what about you, a short-lived… I mean, a human? It must be inevitable that summoning spirits is difficult and making contracts is impossible. The reason I called you here is to help you make a contract with a spirit. And to teach you how to handle them better than ordinary men.”

Looking at her smiling face, I suppressed my joy and increased the proportion of reason.

Unless they’ve made a thousand-year covenant with a life partner, elves don’t easily bestow kindness without reason.

“Lady Friel, if it’s not impertinent… may I ask why you’re being so considerate?”

“The reason… I act because there are sufficient reasons. The Grand Elder referred to you as the one who will reconnect the fading spirit realm and the mortal world. I’m just helping for that purpose.”

I’m the one who will reconnect the spirit realm and the mortal world…?

Just as my mind was starting to reel from the Grand Elder’s designation of me, which already sounded exhausting just hearing about it.

Friel extended both arms behind her and approached me with her upper body slightly bent.

As expected of a pointy-eared one. Even with such an ordinary gesture, she was subtly revealing the agility contained in her body.

Suddenly closing the distance between us, she spoke with just the corners of her mouth raised.

“Well, it would look bad if a human who’s supposed to fix our fundamental power couldn’t even summon a single spirit. For both you and us elves.”

“……”

“And personally, I think it wouldn’t hurt to earn your favor. I’m trying to make an impression in advance.”

“My favor, you say?”

“Of course.”

Her eyes, now closer to me, began to glisten.

“Even though the Grand Elder’s oracle has been given, there are still quite a few in the Great Forest who view you unfavorably. Especially our soldiers and the Ianette family, one of the three families along with the Arielt family. Not only are you a short-lived human—”

“……”

“They’re shouting about how a man like you could possibly help us on the rough battlefield. In such a situation, if you claim to handle spirit magic but can’t summon even a single spirit, how much would you be disrespected among them?”

“……”

“But you’re lucky. Because I’m here, and I’ll help you. And eventually, from the moment you enter the Great Forest—”

Friel brushed her long side hair behind her ear and casually said,

“You’ll be incredibly grateful to me.”

The arrogant elf was confident in her words.