Arifureta Shokugyou de Sekai Saikyou Zero - Volume 4 - Chapter Pr

Prologue

Deep within the mist-covered forest was a silent fountain. It stood out among the clearing, like a moonstone inlaid in the forest floor. By the fountain stood a lone woman. Her long silver hair glistened like silk, and her skin was unnaturally pale. She wore a pure white dress, and her generally pale appearance made it easy for her to blend in with the mist. The only parts of her that weren’t white were her lips, which were a light pink, and her eyes, which were a striking jade-green.

At a glance, she seemed more like a beautiful spirit than a living being, but she was undoubtedly of the mortal realm. And her long tapered ears made it clear which race she belonged to. She was an elf.

From the looks of it, she appeared to be in her mid-twenties. She had a dignified air to her, which helped to accent her unparalleled beauty. However—

“......” She appeared quite troubled.

Her expression was dark, and her slender fingers fiddled nervously with the pendant dangling from her neck.

“I thought I’d find you here,” a man’s voice echoed through the clearing. The woman slowly turned around, looking unsurprised.

“Virtus-dono...”

“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: You don’t need to use honorifics with me. In fact, you can just call me Badd if you’d like,” the man said lightly, shrugging his shoulders. This frivolous-looking man was none other than Badd Virtus, the vice-commander of the Liberators.

The same man who had gotten annoyed at how much fun Miledi seemed to be having on her adventures and left a letter saying he was leaving to go on some adventures of his own. Of course, Miledi’s travels hadn’t been all fun and games, but he’d gotten the mistaken impression that they were from the correspondence she sent him. In other words, he was an immature middle-aged man who’d gotten jealous of a fourteen-year-old girl. And yet, he was second-in-command of the Liberators.

The young elf chuckled at Badd, and the aloof impression she gave off while silent vanished completely. In fact, it seemed she was quite close to him. Badd’s ears reddened slightly in embarrassment.

“Are you saying I shouldn’t show respect to the famous Knight Hunter? Even though we’re at war with the church?” the elf asked mischievously.

“Err, well, it’s just... I might have defeated a lot of knights, but I haven’t taken down any real bigshots, so it’s not like I deserve all the praise I’m getting...”

“Aren’t you one of the leaders of the largest anti-church organization?”

“I-I suppose so, but still...”

The elf went on, talking about how he was on the church’s most wanted list and other such things. Had Miledi been present, she would have mercilessly teased Badd about how deeply he was blushing. Badd seemed to realize he was acting unseemly as well, and he hurriedly cleared his throat and changed the subject.

“At any rate, have you recovered from your exhaustion?”

“Yes. I’ll be fine now.”

“Then we should probably head back. Your guards have been complaining that you vanish far too often. They even had to resort to sending me to find you this time.”

“But aren’t you the one who taught me how to slip away unnoticed, Virtus-dono? You should be praising me for getting so good at it.”

“Every time you vanish, I can feel your guards’ hatred for me growing.”

The elf chuckled again. In truth, she rarely had opportunities to be alone. Unfortunately, her job, her status, and her lineage required her to be around people most hours of the day. And now that they were at war, her responsibilities were greater than ever. Were she to be captured or killed, tens of thousands of people would die. That was how important she was.

“Well, I can get why you’d want to be alone at times, Queen Lyutillis Haltina.”

Indeed, the elf was none other than the queen of the vast territory that stretched across the fog-covered Pale Forest, Lyutillis Haltina. The republic of beastmen that was safe from both humans and demons.

“Now you’re just being mean, Badd-dono.”

Badd had purposely used Lyutillis’ full title as a way of getting revenge at her for not using his first name, and for bringing up his rather embarrassing nickname. Lyutillis pursed her lips unhappily, but it was obvious from the slight blush on her cheeks and the way her ears were twitching back and forth that she was enjoying talking to Badd. In truth, she found it refreshing to converse with someone who spoke casually to her instead of treating her with reverence.

“Sorry, that’s just how I am.”

Though he was apologizing, there wasn’t an ounce of remorse in his voice. Giving up on her attempt at looking angry, Lyutillis smiled and turned on her heel. Her bare feet made no noise as she walked across the forest undergrowth. She wasn’t particularly skilled at walking silently, but the forest itself seemed to be trying to stay silent for the sake of its queen.

She really is like a fairy of the forest... Badd thought absently to himself as he followed behind her. Just walking through the woods made her seem ethereal and otherworldly.

Badd had been born in the Uldia Dukedom and had originally been part of a tribe that worshiped a great fairy they believed lived in Ur Lake. But his tribe, like many others, had been destroyed by the church, their village razed to the ground. Still, his faith in nature hadn’t waned in the slightest. Perhaps that was why he found himself so enamored with Lyutillis, who seemed to embody the kind of spirits his tribe had worshiped.

“Badd-dono. What do you think of our prospects?”

Lyutillis’ question snapped Badd out of his musings. She hadn’t turned around, but was rather looking straight ahead. No, it was more accurate to say that she was looking out toward the future, and she wanted to know what an outsider like Badd thought it had in store for them.

Badd sucked in a deep breath, then gave an answer befitting the vice-commander of the Liberators.

“If our leader can make it here in time, we’ll win.”

“So you’re saying the republic stands no chance on its own? But as long as I live, the forest’s barrier is unbreakable. Has history⁠—and the current state of this very war—not proven that it cannot be breached?”

“You mustn’t underestimate the church, Your Majesty. If they were to get truly serious...”

Lyutillis came to a stop and looked back over her shoulder at Badd. Her eyes were full of worry. Badd calmly met her gaze and finished his statement.

“No one but Miledi and her friends would be able to stand against them. You would undoubtedly be captured.”

Lyutillis despondently cast her gaze downward. A lone flower bloomed at her feet.

“In that case—”

Badd cut her off before she could say any more.

“Please don’t think of doing anything foolish. Surrendering won’t help anyone. In fact, it will only make things worse.”

“Would they refuse to spare my kinsmen even if I promised to use my powers for the church’s sake?”

“If you gave yourself over to them, they would break your spirit. They would turn you into a mindless slave who would willingly give up her life in the name of their god.”

“I am not so weak that I would lose myself.”

“True, you are strong. Stronger than most. You’d probably be able to last for a while. But you don’t understand what the church is capable of. You don’t know how sinister their methods are. Nor what darkness lies at the depths of their twisted religion.”

Lyutillis turned her gaze away from the flower. Her slender shoulders were trembling.

Badd took a step forward and said with conviction, “Please, trust me. Believe in the Liberators.”

“Badd-dono...”

“Our leader might be the most annoying snot-nosed brat in existence but... she’s also our sun. I’m sure she’ll illuminate your future, just like she has ours.”

“......”

Lyutillis looked up at Badd again and flashed him a fleeting smile. As she resumed walking, she asked, “Incidentally, what exactly makes her the ‘most annoying snot-nosed brat in existence’?”

“She’s a master at getting on people’s nerves, and she always knows what to say to piss you off.”

“My, she certainly sounds like a wonderful leader,” Lyutillis said without an ounce of sarcasm.

“Huh?” Badd said, stopping in his tracks.

“What?” Lyutillis asked, confused by his confusion. The two of them stared at each other for a few seconds. Well this conversation took a weird turn... Badd thought to himself.

“Your Majesty! The Templar Knights have joined the front lines! We need you!”

Suddenly, a young leopardman burst into the clearing, interrupting the two of them. Lyutillis and Badd exchanged glances, then ran off in the direction the messenger had come from.

It was time to fight against the church.