Ch.218A Reunion After Five Years

Strictly speaking, Ancestor’s transformation ability wasn’t due to Mina’s craftsmanship.

Even with Mina’s exceptional skills as a dwarven magical craftsman, ancient automatons were outside her specialty.

The fact that she managed to repair it after hundreds of trials and errors already proved her genius, but the ability to transform into human form was entirely due to the magical circuit installed in Ancestor.

Three types of servant dolls were discovered along with the Prisoner’s Dollhouse.

The magical circuits in those small, delicate dolls were equipped with intelligence comparable to humans, knowledge and skills for various tasks, and a formula that allowed instant switching between two forms.

This formula gave Ancestor, who was originally in horse form, a second human form, and by constructing its specific design on its own, it achieved its current appearance.

Its original eight horsepower strength and endless endurance remained effective.

While in human form, its running speed was greatly reduced, but being able to perform most tasks physically possible for humans allowed it to function in far more diverse ways than before.

It could carry cargo, perform civil engineering work, even lift an entire covered wagon, and possessed enough combat power to knock down a bear with a single punch.

If Jessica cast enchantments on the gauntlet parts of both fists, it could fight sufficiently against monsters, meaning they no longer needed to rely solely on Seti, a speed-type attacker, for tanking.

“Well, even so, we can’t test those abilities right away.”

“That’s true.”

While Ancestor becoming a transforming robot was good news both for the party and personally, it seemed unlikely that the human form would have a chance to shine anytime soon.

Our party generally maintained a policy of not revealing that Ancestor was an automaton, and we wouldn’t encounter monsters powerful enough to require Ancestor’s participation in battle on our way to Moon Lake.

“We’ll have a chance to see transformed Ancestor in action soon enough, but now all that’s left is to wait for Iris to wake up.”

“She’s been sleeping for three days without eating anything. Will she be alright?”

“Anastasia said she’s maintaining her health with magical power, so she should be fine. If that weren’t the case, those people would be in more danger than us.”

In the direction Jessica pointed were our usual large tent and the workers lying neatly inside it.

We felt sorry leaving them on the bare ground, so we moved them into the tent, but I was starting to think we should wake them up and send them back before the dark magic became dangerous.

Just as I was thinking this, the front door opened and Anastasia peeked her head out.

“How is the toy repair coming along?”

“We just finished. Though it came with some unexpected special functions.”

“Oh? It sounds like it became quite an interesting item. But if you were making it human-like, wouldn’t someone have preferred a female form?”

“Hey now… I don’t have a habit of drooling over horses or robots.”

“Hehehe… I wonder about that. More importantly, everyone come inside. That dark elf is showing signs of waking up.”

“Really?!”

“Perfect timing. Let’s go in, explain everything, and discuss what to do next.”

We returned Ancestor to horse form and followed Anastasia to the bedroom in the villa.

Iris, who had been lying motionless like a corpse for the past few days, was now in a slightly disheveled position, showing signs of life.

Just that alone gave me the intuition that positive changes were occurring in her mind.

“What should we do? Should we shake her awake?”

“Wouldn’t it be better to let her wake up naturally?”

“Either way is fine. Seeing that her mental connection with me has been severed, she’s already almost awake…”

“Mmm…?”

“Ah, she’s awake.”

As Iris opened her eyes after hearing our voices, Phillis, who had been looking down at her, lowered herself and spoke with a trembling voice.

“Iris, are you conscious? Can you recognize who I am?”

“…Pfft. Phil, really, where did you learn to talk like that?”

Iris said this in a gentle voice while stroking Phillis’s head.

In response to her sister’s reaction, Phillis burst into tears and tightly embraced Iris.

“Iris… Big sister Iriiiiis!”

“Phil… You really came.”

“I’m sorry. For making you wait five years… I… I couldn’t find the courage no matter what… waaah~”

“Don’t cry. It was only five years, right? It was a bit frustrating, but not difficult at all.”

Phillis hugged Iris tightly, shedding tears of joy.

As Iris stroked Phillis’s head, tears welled up in her eyes too.

Though her body still had the appearance of a dark elf, there was no doubt that her mind had returned to normal.

“Let me formally introduce myself again. I am Iris Eidra, Elder successor of the Willow Sanctuary. I sincerely thank you for saving me from the dark elf’s spell.”

After the tearful reunion between sisters and self-introductions, we gathered in the living room where Iris once again expressed her most sincere gratitude.

“You don’t need to be so formal. You’re the family of a precious comrade.”

“You mean Will’s future sister-in-law, right~? Hehehe.”

“My goodness, then with Phil…?”

“Ah, we’re dating with the intention of marriage. Same with Jessica, Seti, and Mina here.”

Upon hearing that I was dating four women including her sister, Iris’s expression darkened slightly.

As expected from an elf who takes monogamy for granted, especially as an older sister, it would be difficult to have a good impression.

Phillis, sensing the atmosphere, hurriedly began to defend me.

“I understand your concern, but Will is sincere and a good man. He not only has excellent future prospects but also shows deep consideration for natives, and I fully accept his relationships with multiple women…”

“It’s alright, Phil. I understand that the man you chose couldn’t possibly be a bad person. Above all, how could I think badly of someone who helped my sister rescue me?”

“Then…”

“Of course I welcome it. I’m just worried whether I can proudly show my face as family at your wedding, given my current state.”

Iris said this while looking down at her blackened skin.

I thought it shouldn’t be a problem if her mind was back to normal despite her body having changed to a dark elf, but it seems things aren’t so simple in elven society.

“Isn’t that too harsh? It’s not like you’re strangers; you’re the Elder successor of their village.”

“It can’t be helped. You and I know that the dark elf’s influence has completely disappeared from within me, but from my kin’s perspective, they can’t help but be anxious.”

“I suppose we can’t exactly explain in detail how dark elves brainwash elves.”

As I said this while glancing at Anastasia, she nodded in agreement.

Given that the brainwashing mechanism involves the Demon King, the taboo’s influence would likely prevent our intentions from being properly conveyed.

“In the end, we’ll have to stick with our original plan of taking Iris with us and looking for a way to restore her body.”

“The problem is that as long as she looks like a dark elf, it’ll be difficult to freely enter and exit western cities. She won’t be issued a Frontier License, and it feels too cruel to keep her confined in the Dollhouse every time…”

“Since I’m not in danger from the black magic, how about I hide nearby while you all take care of business in the city?”

“That won’t work. It’s too dangerous.”

Seti immediately rejected Iris’s suggestion.

Even Seti, a cat-folk, became a target for outlaws while hiding near Oxville, so it would be even worse for a dark elf who isn’t even considered a native.

Especially now, not long after Calliope was traded for a high price in Moon Lake, outlaws might turn their attention to dark elves…

“…Wait a minute…”

“What is it?”

“No, I was just recalling the incident in Oxville and suddenly thought… This is purely theoretical, so please don’t misunderstand, especially you, Phillis.”

“Of course. Haven’t we solved difficult situations several times thanks to Will’s brilliant ideas?”

Phillis gave me a look that said to speak freely.

But still… is this really right?

No matter how plausible the idea, the moment I voice it, I might be treated like garbage…

But since I’ve already brought it up, it’s too late to gloss over it. I’ll have to trust my companions’ understanding and go for it.

“So, hypothetically speaking. Really, just hypothetically.”

“Yes?”

“If we were to make Iris our slave and own her, wouldn’t it be possible to bring her into western cities? That’s what I was thinking.”

The moment I finished speaking, I had a front-row seat to everyone’s expressions rapidly hardening.

Ah… it really was a garbage idea after all.