Chapter 186
My Light
That land had been inhabited by elves since ancient times.
The difference was that, over countless years, they had chosen integration rather than harmony.
Harmony meant living while respecting the boundaries of each other’s domains.
Integration meant living together in the same place.
The elves of the west were those who had chosen harmony.
—They taught magic to humans.
Through the release and control of emotions, they created what you know as the Red Circle.
If you travel east, you will undoubtedly find a way to control your emotions and develop your abilities even further.
The man who became the Demon King fell onto the wrong path because there was no one who could teach him how to govern his own heart.
Princeps Regent, what I have told you may sound like a warning that you could become the Demon King yourself.
Even so, do not fear your emotions too greatly.
That too would mean being consumed by them.
That was what had been written on the final page.
“What does it say?”
Erika asked.
“He tells me to go east.”
“East?”
“He says that if I want to make greater use of my abilities, I should go there.”
“The eastern lands and the Red Circle… It isn’t entirely implausible. There are certainly many Red Circle mages in that region.”
The oldest living person currently known to possess a Red Circle was Lucy Philiase.
There had occasionally been rumors that she was a mage from the east, but they were only rumors.
‘What I saw back then was unquestionably eastern architecture.’
Would she answer if he summoned her and asked?
He could not tell.
“Do you have no information about the eastern lands?”
“We only began collecting information recently. Until then, we believed no one could surpass us.”
“That was arrogant.”
“Ahem. Let’s not discuss that. If you’re finished reading, may I see the letter too?”
Erika reached out to take it.
“No.”
Ferda pulled it away from her hand.
“Say that again.”
He could feel the pressure behind her words, as though she was prepared to use force.
Judging from the atmosphere, she genuinely might.
Ferda spoke.
“Then answer one question for me.”
“I don’t like the sound of that.”
“Is it true that the Blue Dragon, Iorga, once had a fiancé?”
Erika’s expression hardened.
All traces of her earlier threat disappeared.
“…How much did you hear?”
“I heard that the fiancé was lured into a trap and killed.”
“…A trap. That certainly sounds like them.”
Erika spoke with contempt for the elves and threw herself back against the seat.
“Forget it. You don’t have to show me the letter. Just bury that matter and never bring it up again. Understood?”
“Understood.”
Was it such a sensitive subject that she was willing to abandon her attempt to read the letter?
Ferda had not expected the information to be that valuable.
Now he was beginning to covet it himself.
“Anyway, if you’re going east, there’s no need to set any other objective. You’ll only have to focus on that. This is good news.”
Yes, it was good news.
That was all he needed to know.
Thinking that, Ferda carefully folded the letter.
Erika beckoned to Lize.
“He’s finished reading, so give me mine now.”
“Y-Yes!”
Lize, who had been waiting, immediately handed her the papers.
“All right, then. Let’s see what’s written here… Huh?”
Erika’s expression gradually soured as she examined the bundle.
“These are blank pages.”
“A-Are they?”
“Could there be writing that only elves can see?”
“I’m not sure… They look blank to me as well…”
“…They do, don’t they?”
Despite her formal tone, her teeth trembled as she bit down on her lower lip.
Erika swept one hand sharply through the air.
The sky carriage immediately turned around and began heading back the way they had come.
“L-Lady Erika? Why are we turning around…?”
“I’m going to put the old man out of his misery.”
“What?”
“He’s in critical condition, isn’t he? There’s no need for him to struggle through the rest of his life. I’m going to stop his breathing for him.”
“W-What?!”
She looked completely serious.
Ferda cautiously tried to stop her.
“Let us think rationally. Even if we return, nothing good will come of it—”
“Quiet! Don’t speak as though this has nothing to do with you just because you got what you wanted! Either that, or translate these yourself right now!”
Erika flung the journal at Ferda and lashed out hysterically.
Naturally, he could not translate it, leaving him at a loss.
“H-Huh?”
Lize reacted when she saw the journal.
“The name written here… Is it pronounced Rinne?”
“How do you know that?”
Erika was so surprised that her hysteria vanished instantly.
The language of the High Elves used unique characters belonging to each individual, which meant no one other than the writer should have been able to interpret them.
“Did you inherit the ability to decipher languages because you share the Great Chieftain’s blood?”
“No. I cannot read the Great Chieftain’s writing, nor can I read the writing of any other High Elf.”
The two of them were left with a mystery that had no easy answer.
Ferda pushed the question aside.
“In any case, does that mean you can translate the entire journal?”
“Pardon?”
Ferda signaled to her with his eyes, and only then did Lize understand.
“Ah, yes! I can accomplish what the Great Chieftain was unable to finish!”
Lize spoke enthusiastically to Erika, her face full of confidence.
Erika regarded her skeptically, but eventually turned the sky carriage around again.
Ferda had obtained his answer, and Erika had secured someone who could translate the journal.
They could now return with everything each of them wanted.
Lize sighed in relief and checked the contents of her bag once more.
“Huh?”
She discovered something still remaining inside.
“There was another page.”
“Another letter?”
“Yes. It is addressed to you, Princeps Regent.”
Ferda read it.
Just as she had said, there was more written on the back.
—If you are reading this page, Lize has most likely boarded the carriage with you.
He is such an innocent and cheerful child that I am almost afraid to send him out into the world.
Because he feared being abandoned by the clan, this incident must have weighed heavily upon him.
‘That is probably true.’
Judging from Lize’s behavior, he was unlike a High Elf and more like a sheltered young lady of remarkable innocence.
Now that such a child could no longer return to his homeland, it was only natural for his father’s heart to feel heavy.
—Princeps Regent, I know this is a terribly selfish request.
But unless I ask you now, I will never have another opportunity.
Please take care of my son, the last family I have left.
After reading the final page, Ferda folded the letter.
‘…Wait.’
Wondering whether he had misread it, he unfolded the page again.
—Please take care of my son.
He had not mistaken it.
It clearly said son.
Ferda looked at Lize once more.
Long blond hair and green eyes.
Long eyelashes and graceful, modest gestures.
Lize appeared to be the very image of a woman.
Thinking that the Great Chieftain might simply have made an error because he was unfamiliar with human language, Ferda asked,
“Scribe Lize?”
“Yes?”
Lize answered calmly in a high-pitched voice.
“My apologies, but what is your sex?”
Erika frowned at Ferda’s question.
“What kind of question is that? She’s obviously a woman.”
“P-Pardon?!”
Lize stared at Erika in alarm after hearing her declare it so confidently.
“The elves may hide many things, but this isn’t something you need to conceal, is it?”
“N-No. As you said, there is no reason to hide it, but…”
Lize pointed to himself and answered,
“I’m a man.”
“…Pardon?”
“…?”
“……”
Erika turned her head toward Ferda.
Without a word, Ferda showed her what had been written in the letter.
Even to Erika’s eyes, the word son was clearly visible.
“…That can’t be.”
Erika looked back and forth between the word son and Lize, her expression as though her entire world had collapsed.
She voiced the thought Ferda could not bring himself to say.
“There’s no way someone this cute can be a man…?”
***
The garden of Valdrova Castle.
Valdrova, the woman with crimson hair and two pairs of horns, stood gazing endlessly into the sky.
‘Mr. Ferda went to the World Tree, didn’t he?’
Since he had left in a sky carriage, he would surely return in one as well.
Valdrova intended to go out and greet him when he arrived.
‘Like lovers…’
Her face grew hot.
They had already met several times and even held hands, so why did doing something like this make her heart race so much?
Her body did not feel like her own.
Her feet fidgeted as though they wanted to run away, while her hands pressed firmly against her legs to keep them still.
After a while, a small black speck appeared in Valdrova’s vision.
‘It’s Mr. Ferda!’
The moment she saw it, Valdrova moved in the direction the carriage was heading.
She planned to pretend she had merely come out for a walk, greet him by coincidence, and then walk alongside him.
The sky carriage landed in an open area within the castle.
Isabella, the administrator, and Luri were already waiting there.
Luri was fine, but Valdrova was not particularly close to Isabella, so she hid behind a pillar for the time being.
The carriage landed, and the passengers stepped out.
‘The child of Iorga and Mr. Ferda…’
She had heard that two people had gone, so only two should have returned.
Strangely, however, they were not alone.
Someone emerged behind Ferda.
Bright blond hair and pointed ears.
Skin so pale that it seemed as though light itself shone behind his head.
Even to Valdrova, the girl was breathtakingly beautiful.
She stepped down from the carriage with an awkward expression.
“Oh!”
Her foot slipped, and her body pitched forward.
Ferda, who was directly in front of her, instinctively caught her.
“Are you all right?”
“Ah, yes… I’m sorry.”
The girl smiled brightly, her face blooming with color.
Crack.
An ominous sound came from the pillar.
Cracks spread outward from where Valdrova’s fingers touched it.
The noise was rather loud, but Valdrova did not hear it.
She was too consumed by her thoughts.
‘He brought back such a beautiful girl…’
Valdrova felt her chest tighten.
‘Why is Mr. Ferda always surrounded by so many women…?’
Everyone around Ferda was a woman.
The mature and intelligent Isabella and Erika.
The small and adorable Luri.
And now, even a radiant High Elf girl.
‘Mr. Ferda isn’t the kind of person who would cheat on me.’
Valdrova knew how deeply Ferda cared for her.
But what if—
What if he did not love her as much as she believed?
Every time that phrase, what if, surfaced in her mind, it felt as though someone had slapped her across the face several times.
‘Stop thinking such awful things.’
She was afraid her bloodlust might begin to boil over.
As she anxiously watched them, her eyes suddenly met Ferda’s.
For a moment, she wondered whether he had truly seen her.
Then Ferda fixed his gaze on her and began approaching.
This was troublesome.
She did not want to face Mr. Ferda while feeling like this.
Valdrova quickly hid behind the pillar.
“Vald…”
Ferda leaned his head around the pillar where she had been hiding.
She was no longer there.
Wondering where she had gone, he lowered his gaze slightly and saw a long tail swaying along the curved surface of the pillar.
Whenever Ferda moved to catch sight of her, she scurried along the other side.
“Vald…”
“……”
“…rova…”
“……”
“Your Highness!”
“…!”
Ferda abruptly moved in the opposite direction, nearly causing them to collide.
Afraid she might accidentally pierce two more holes in his chest, Valdrova jerked her head backward.
The movement made her appear to lose her balance and fall.
Without thinking, Ferda placed a hand around her waist to support her.
In truth, he felt no weight.
She was already holding herself upright with her tail.
“I have returned.”
His voice not only calmed her boiling bloodlust but also soothed her heart.
Normally, she would have answered softly with delight.
Instead, Valdrova sharply turned her head away.
The gesture made Ferda’s chest ache.
“What is wrong?”
“…I don’t know.”
“Even if you do not know, is this not because of something I did?”
“…That’s why I said I don’t know.”
“Please tell me what I did wrong. If there has been a misunderstanding, we should resolve it. If I have wronged you, then it is only right that I apologize.”
I said I don’t know!
She wanted to shove him away and run.
But while looking at his face, she could not summon the courage.
Perhaps it would be better to say something, just as Ferda had asked.
“Mr. Ferda was… with other women, so I felt upset…”
“Is this because of Tower Master Erika?”
Erika was certainly beautiful and dignified, but Ferda could not understand why Valdrova would suddenly react so strongly to her now.
“No. I mean that small, adorable elf woman.”
“…Pardon?”
When Ferda failed to understand, Valdrova finally burst out.
“You brought back such a sparkling, adorable girl…!”
“……”
“My chest feels tight, and I hate you, Mr. Ferda, and…!”
She placed a hand against her masked face.
Ferda blinked several times before answering.
“Is that what this is about?”
He seemed unsure how to respond.
Then he said,
“First of all… Lize is a man.”
“You even call him by his name, and I really—what?”
Valdrova lowered her hand from her face.
“What did you say?”
“He is a man.”
“A-A man?”
“Yes.”
“Male, as in man and woman?”
“Yes.”
“…The same sex as you, Mr. Ferda?”
“That is correct.”
Still looking unconvinced, she cautiously poked her head out and examined Lize.
“How can someone that cute be…?”
Ferda felt as though he had heard that exact remark somewhere before.
Valdrova’s face flushed bright red once again.
“I-I made another ridiculous assumption…”
Mortified, Valdrova genuinely tried to run away.
Ferda did not release her waist.
Instead, he pulled her closer.
Though she embodied overwhelming physical strength, she did not resist him and allowed herself to be held tightly in his grasp.
“Did you believe I was cheating on you?”
“It wasn’t exactly that…”
Her lips trembled.
Looking into those blue eyes, she could not lie.
“…I think I did.”
“You are the only one for me, Your Highness Valdrova.”
“I know. I know that, but… I made another mistake—”
“No.”
Ferda stopped her from blaming herself.
“This is only natural.”
His voice was damp with emotion.
“Your Highness has always been the one to approach me first.”
It had been Valdrova who suggested choosing affectionate names for each other.
When that failed, it was Valdrova who asked him to give her a name.
It was also Valdrova who had asked him to help her endure waiting a little longer.
“I was always the one who stepped back from this relationship.”
Ferda had been the frightened one.
He feared that her purity would be stained because of him.
She was like a pristine sheet of white paper, and that made her unbearably precious to him.
Only today had he realized how mistaken he had been.
Ironically, the High Elf elder’s words had given him that realization.
Valdrova was not incapable of change.
As long as Ferda occupied such a large place in her heart, she too would inevitably change.
She could become a dragon who doubted those around her like an ugly human—doubting her friends and even the one she loved.
Like Iorga, who had killed her own fiancé.
Faced with that cruel truth, what Ferda needed to do was clear.
“That is why I have decided.”
He would cast aside his hesitation and move forward.
“Decided what?”
“The matter you mentioned before…”
“What matter?”
“Your name.”
Ferda had told her that he would think about what name to give her.
In truth, however, there had been nothing to consider.
From the moment she asked him to choose one, the answer had already existed.
There were countless elegant words that could describe her.
Yet the Valdrova known only to Ferda had always pointed toward a single word.
“Eleanor.”
She had always been his light.