Ch.168Outside. After the Harem’s Dissolution (4)

# Lankart Border Territory Main Castle.

While monsters frequently appeared in the border territory, the main castle with its count’s residence was relatively prosperous. It was also a place less affected by Cordana, Hero gambling, and even lottery gambling.

In this important stronghold, an elf appeared driving a cargo wagon.

It was Silvina, the scout of the border territory.

Blue hair and delicate features. From the neck up, she looked no different from any other elf, but her broad shoulders and bulging veins on her upper arms made onlookers tilt their heads in confusion. Her thick thighs were enough to make one question her race.

Her unusual physique wasn’t the only strange thing.

The fact that an elf was driving a wagon pulled by two pack horses, while holding a leather whip, was also an odd sight. It seemed like she was declaring that despite being an elf, she had no intention of forming a friendly relationship with animals.

If such an elf had appeared in another city, spectators would have gathered like a pack of dogs.

But here, many people just looked at her with disgust and whispered among themselves.

“…Huh. That one’s back? Wasn’t she in the penal unit?”

“What penal unit? She could leave anytime but stays because she wants to. These days, the commander and other officers don’t interfere and just let her be. …Anyway, looks like she’s here to sell leather again. Or maybe magic stones?”

“Wonder how many she’s killed.”

Despite their words, everyone seemed to be secretly envious. Several people were glancing at the neatly packed cargo compartment.

Silvina headed toward the merchant guild building, regardless of who was looking at her. There, she met with a buyer who had been anxiously waiting for her.

“Oh, Lady Silvina! You’ve arrived.”

A middle-aged merchant rushed out as if he had been waiting. Though he was an executive of a relatively powerful trading company in the northern Empire, he maintained a humble attitude before Silvina.

There was only one reason a money-chasing merchant would bow and scrape: dealing with Silvina was profitable.

“Did you bring all the supplies I requested last time?”

“Ah, yes! Of course. Three boxes of the fruit wine you praised last time. I also prepared plenty of spices. And preservation magic scrolls, ignition magical tools, charcoal made from hardwood…”

“Good. Everything’s there. Well done.”

Silvina showed him the goods she had brought.

They were the results of her recent slaughter—no, hunting.

The main item was marten fur.

Not only was the quantity substantial, but the quality was also superior. Thanks to Silvina’s transcendent archery skills, she could hunt without leaving almost any damage to the fur. Moreover, she had already skillfully processed everything.

“The quality is good enough to be sent directly to the workshop.”

“I also have basilisk leather. The one you ordered.”

“…I didn’t order it, I just inquired about the possibility. But you actually caught one. I don’t know what to say.”

“They’re creatures that deplete my prey, so it’s right to catch them whenever the opportunity arises.”

Martens and basilisks weren’t originally Silvina’s preferred prey. Their meat tasted terrible.

However, these days she hunted them frequently for their leather. She would discard the meat to humans.

She had learned from experience that it was much more efficient to use marten fur to obtain livestock meat.

“Um, by the way, Lady Silvina. You seem to enjoy cooking a lot?”

“Yes. Last year, I learned cooking from an imperial adventurer for a few days. I also learned how to make preserved meat. Wouldn’t it be foolish to let a skill I’ve acquired go to waste?”

“If you left the cooking to humans and spent that time hunting more…”

“The joy of cooking is also important.”

The trading company executive nodded at Silvina’s firm response, saying, “Yes, yes.” He knew it was pointless to try to persuade Silvina. Besides, the amount she was currently supplying was already of considerable value.

“Now load the supplies onto my wagon.”

“Yes! Boys!”

The executive ordered his workers to unload the fur from the wagon and neatly stack the supplies Silvina had requested in its place.

Having traded several times before, both parties remained composed.

However, there was one difference from previous transactions.

“Um, Lady Silvina. I know you prefer goods in kind.”

“What is it?”

“Here’s money. It should be about 7 million Lyra. The modest barter system can no longer handle the scale of our transactions, so please accept these gold coins as well.”

“…”

Silvina decided to accept the gold coins the merchant offered.

She had no interest in cash. The joy of hunting, processing, cooking, and eating was enough for her. She had also developed a serious interest in alcohol about a year ago.

But there was a limit to how much she could eat alone.

‘Besides…’

Someday, she would need to visit her party members. She would need money then.

Although they had parted ways cleanly, she still wanted to meet occasionally to catch up. Even after her comrades crossed over to the Papal State, meeting once a year wouldn’t be impossible. After all, she had a trained wyvern as a means of transportation.

There was already one adventurer besides the Hero who had somehow succeeded in taming a wyvern. Recently, he had even married a succubus.

Even at this moment, the world was constantly changing.

‘I should adapt to those changes.’

Silvina muttered to herself as she carelessly pocketed the gold coins.

“Um, by the way, Lady Silvina? I can provide you with a tanner. Would you be interested in collaborating…?”

…Or perhaps she had already succeeded in adapting.

Looking at the face of the trading company executive who was gradually trying to curry favor to continue their business relationship, she could sense her own transformation.

When she was first banished to the border by Erick Wellesley (who was merely a court baron at the time), she never imagined she would one day be supplying fur to merchants. Back then, she only thought about protecting the honor of her lover, Gwon Heejin.

But now, she didn’t care about Gwon Heejin at all.

She was busy enough living her own life to the fullest.

“Fine. I’ll collaborate.”

Silvina readily agreed.

***

In the end, Silvina completed a satisfying transaction.

However, she couldn’t leave immediately. She had a task requested by one of the border count’s vassals.

– There’s an elf recovering at the main cathedral. If possible, I’d like you to meet and talk with them. They refuse to answer any of our questions. …No, it’s more like they’re completely ignoring us.

A few days ago, an elf had been rescued by a reconnaissance team in a tattered state.

Based on the circumstances, it was presumed they had infiltrated the Demonic Land, but since they kept their mouth shut, the details remained unknown. The border territory personnel were just accepting it since the other party was an elf.

However, not wanting to skip the investigation entirely, they had asked Silvina, a fellow elf, for help.

‘I doubt they’ll open up to me either… but I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to meet them.’

An elf who might have infiltrated the Demonic Land.

Being an elf herself, Silvina had a rough idea of what might be going on.

The typical elven rigidity, pride, sense of being the chosen people, and self-centered worldview.

Silvina had lived as an outcast among her own kind for a long time. Thanks to that, she could objectively observe how elves operated. It wouldn’t be bad to confirm whether her suspicions were correct.

Silvina entered the church with a light heart.

And shortly after.

“You…!”

She saw an elf pointing accusingly from the hospital bed.

Transparent, flowing silver hair, skin like white jade, and ears that were unusually long and pointed even for an elf. It was the great elven warrior of the era.

A noble being chosen by the Mother World Tree (actually the elders), who was supposed to properly guide the Hero and Saintess to defeat the Demon Lord, and afterward, rightfully return to the Great Forest to lead the young elves with wisdom and virtue as the next generation of leaders.

That noble elf was lying there in a miserable state.

Even now, they were glaring at Silvina, but there was no sense of dignity.

‘I don’t need to ask how they ended up like this.’

Silvina just silently looked down at the great warrior. She figured she might as well listen to what they had to say since she was already here.

Fortunately, the great warrior began to speak without any prompting from Silvina.

“…Young elves began arguing that we needed to verify the entire process of the Demon Lord’s subjugation, and that we needed to confirm how cooperation with the current Tetrad affected the Demonic Land.”

“As the great warrior, I couldn’t ignore their demands. So, I led twenty young warriors to infiltrate the Demonic Land.”

“It went smoothly at first. But due to a momentary error, we stepped into a labyrinth teeming with demons, and ultimately suffered great sacrifices.”

Their attitude suggested they believed they had done the right thing.

But looking at the reality, it was utterly pathetic.

It meant that hardline elves, whose pride was hurt because the Hero had received help from the current Tetrad instead of elves to defeat the Demon Lord, had entered the Demonic Land only to be thoroughly defeated. And they hadn’t even made it near the Demon Lord’s castle.

What was that sacrifice for? And what was this verification about? Even Silvina couldn’t fully understand.

“Silvina. If you babble nonsense to humans, you’ll pay the price. If you ever want to return to the Great Forest, don’t say anything that would tarnish the elves’ reputation.”

The great warrior growled like a wounded beast.

Far from being displeased, Silvina only felt pity.

Not many people cared about the outdated Demon Lord subjugation anymore. Everyone was busy trying to gauge the Hero King’s mood.

Only the elves were obsessing over it for incomprehensible reasons.

But Silvina had no intention of correcting their stubbornness. She had no right to lecture them anyway, and honestly, she didn’t care.

“Alright. I’ll keep quiet. I’ll make up something suitable for the humans.”

“That’s wise…”

“I’ll be going now.”

After giving the great warrior the answer they wanted, Silvina cleanly left.

She didn’t want to waste her precious time on her kin. Right now, she was experiencing the happiest days of her long life.