Skeleton Knight, in Another World (LN) - Volume 7 - Chapter 3

Chapter 3:

An Alliance with the Humans 

What a strange turn of events…to be called into a secret meeting between King Asparuh, ruler of the Nohzan Kingdom, and Margrave Brahniey, noble of the neighboring Salma Kingdom. Their respective countries had been at war for generations. 

You’d have to be either absurdly out of touch or dead inside not to want to attend such a monumental meeting. 

What’s more, our attendance hadn’t been requested. More like…insisted upon. 

We were in the midst of choosing who among the recently freed slaves would leave Saureah for the new colony when Ariane, Chiyome, and I were summoned. 

Chiyome and I first traveled to the hidden village in the mountains to discuss the situation with the Jinshin clan’s leader, Hanzo, and the village chief, Gowro. After that, we went off to visit the new colony, to get an idea of how many people they could take on. 

Traveling around the continent using Transport Gate, and having to choose who among the beast people would stay and who would go, kept us busy for a few days. 

Despite my initial misgivings about attending the meeting, Margrave Brahniey’s report blew my mind. There was a massive army of undead assaulting the capital of the Salma Kingdom right across the border. Not only that, but both King Asparuh and Margrave Brahniey were asking for our assistance. 

Ariane wasn’t too excited about this, feeling that we’d already fulfilled our obligations by saving the Nohzan Kingdom, as we’d promised Princess Riel. She thought it best to discuss the issue with her father and the high elders and get their blessing first, before we entered into any prolonged involvement with these human nations. 

Honestly, I felt like it was a little late to start worrying about such things, but considering that I was now a member of Lalatoya Village, I decided it best to side with Ariane. 

Still, after all the work we’d put into saving Princess Riel’s kingdom, it’d be a shame to see all that effort go to waste. 

According to Margrave Brahniey, once the Salma capital fell, Brahniey would be the next target, meaning that another 200 undead soldiers might soon descend upon the Nohzan Kingdom. 

The Brahniey domain would likely buy some time for the people of Nohzan, but once it fell, so too would this land that had finally freed its enslaved people and outlawed the practice entirely. 

And it wouldn’t end there, either. With the fall of Brahniey, the elven village of Drant would also be subject to the threat of a massive undead army. 

After suffering severe casualties from an undead patrol, the high elders in the Great Canada Forest agreed to dispatch Dillan—Ariane’s father and the elder of Lalatoya—along with soldiers from Maple, to offer their assistance. 

It was probably best that we explain the situation to Drant’s elder and Dillan as soon as possible. Ariane and I set off toward Ruanne to try to get ahead of the situation. 

“Are you sure you don’t mind being left here in the capital, Chiyome?” I looked apologetically at her. We were both sitting in the room we’d been provided in the castle. 

“Kyii?” Ponta glanced up at me curiously from where it dangled loosely in Ariane’s arms. 

“I’m really sorry,” Ariane said, “but things would likely get even more complicated if we brought you along to Drant. I really don’t want you to see the worst my people have to offer. Heck, I don’t even consider them elves.” She practically spat out those last words. 

Due to the rather cold reception she’d received upon arriving in Drant, Ariane wanted nothing to do with those people, even if they were also technically elves. 

“Really, it’s fine. It’d be a waste of everyone’s time to add extra hassle by having me along. Please give Dillan my regards.” Chiyome’s cat ears twitched. 

I nodded. “You’re probably right. There’s a lot to do and not a lot of time, so we should probably get going.” 

Ariane, I, and my constant helmet warmer Ponta looked over our gear. After ensuring that my two travel companions were ready, I pulled a book of loose-leaf paper out of my bag and flipped through it. 

Each page contained a different sketch of a location I’d been to. My long-distance teleportation spell, Transport Gate, could teleport me anywhere I’d been before in an instant, but the downside was that I needed to have a firm recollection of the place I wanted to go. That’s where this teleportation diary came in handy. 

I found the page I was looking for and stared at the sketch to jog my memory. 

Chiyome took a step back, and we said our goodbyes. 

“All right, see you shortly, Chiyome. Transport Gate!” 

A magical rune of light appeared under my feet and stretched out just far enough to encompass Ariane as well. For a moment, the world went entirely black, and I felt a sense of weightlessness. 

Before we knew it, the ornately decorated room in Saureah was gone, and we found ourselves in the great outdoors. 

In front of us was the very scene I’d drawn in my teleportation diary. 

Sitting atop a small hill were three massive trees twisted together like a giant corkscrew shooting up into the heavens. Their branches and leaves splayed this way and that, providing a thick layer of foliage. 

Though nowhere near as large as the Lord Crown, their sheer immensity defied belief. 

But what truly made the scene fantastical were the houses built into the trees’ giant roots. 

We were back in the Ruanne Forest, at the village of Drant. 

“Well, we’re here. First off, I should go find Father to…” 

I cut in before Ariane could continue. 

“As far as the elves here are concerned, we aren’t much different from Chiyome. They don’t see us as their kind.” 

I let out a gentle laugh, but Ariane sighed dramatically. 

“We can talk about it until we’re both blue in the face, but one way or another, we need to get going.” 

Ponta let out a cheerful mew in agreement with Ariane and began waving its tail excitedly from atop my head. 

“Kyii! Kyii!” 

We started walking toward Drant, but there was something about our perspective of the giant intertwined trees that made it hard to gauge distance. We didn’t seem to be getting any closer. Still, slowly but surely, elven houses began filling more and more of my field of view. 

A sturdy wall made of stone and wood surrounded the village. It looked like it could repel a fairly concentrated attack, even from a small horde of monsters. Fields full of crops stretched in all directions beyond the wall, reminding me less of the villages in the Great Canada Forest and more of the human towns I’d been to. 

After traveling a bit farther, we finally reached the gate marking the entrance into Drant. Two guards standing watch glared daggers at us as we approached. As soon as we drew close, they crossed their spears in front of the gate, blocking our path. 

One of the guards waved his free arm in a dismissive gesture, as if to tell us to turn back. 

“Non-elves and outsiders are forbidden from stepping foot in Drant.” 

His companion nodded. 

Ariane scowled at their rude behavior and shot them an angry glare. Anger punctuated every word she spat at them. “I am the daughter of Dillan Tahg Lalatoya, the leader of the rescue forces dispatched by the Great Canada Forest. I am here to speak with my father. Please let me through, as I don’t have time to waste.” 

However, the guards didn’t budge. 

“We cannot allow that. If you have business with someone in the village, you may tell us, and we’ll dispatch a messenger while you wait here. Now, what is your business?” 

Despite having come out here to offer military support, and despite being the daughter of an elder, the fact that Ariane was a dark elf was reason enough for them to bar her entry. No matter how stupid this decision might be, a part of me admired these men’s guts. 

Had it been me, I would’ve hurried to open that gate, as if my life depended on it. 

“Don’t you understand? Your very lives are at stake! The monsters that hurt so many of your people were just the tip of the spear. You must tell my father at once!” 

Her long, white hair rippled like a flickering flame as Ariane yelled at the guards. 

The two men exchanged glances. After a brief pause, they burst into raucous laughter. 

“Bwahahaha! Now listen here, girly. You may be the daughter of a village elder, but there are some lines you shouldn’t cross, y’know? That threat that you say is gonna wipe us all out…it’s not those undead again, is it? They simply caught us off guard!” 

The other man, still holding his sides, glared at Ariane. “Listen, the elves who patrol the outer borders of the village aren’t our most skilled warriors, mostly rookies and screw-ups. They were probably done in by some monsters while fighting off the undead. The rest of us, with actual experience, wouldn’t let that kind of thing happen. This whole thing is completely overblown.” 

Ariane looked stunned. “Are you serious? You know that these were your fellow elves, don’t you?” 

The man snorted at this. “Hah! I heard from the soldiers who first came across the scene that the creatures that killed them were nothing to write home about. Just a few dozen undead wearing armor.” 

Ariane lost interest in the men and marched forward, as if to barge past them. The guards didn’t take kindly to this. 

“Hey, lady! You can’t just enter the village without permission!” 

I couldn’t help but wonder if these two idiots were aware of the minefield they’d just stepped into. 

A moment later, I heard a loud crack, and a circle of fire burst out of the ground to surround Ariane and the two guards. The flames grew higher and higher, until the three of them were completely closed in. 

“You dare use spirit magic within the village limits?! Are you mad?” 

It was funny, in a way. From where I stood, these two guards were the crazy ones. 

“Kyiiiii…” 

Ponta mewed at the stupidity playing out in front of us, then quickly pulled its tail back to keep it from getting singed. 

One of the men clicked his tongue in annoyance, but Ariane ignored him and began chanting. 

“Winds of justice, I summon you from the skies on high!” 

Wind howled down and circled one of the guards’ hands. 

“Begone!” 

No sooner had the word left Ariane’s mouth than a ball of fire appeared in front of her. It grew larger and larger until it exploded with a massive shock wave that echoed throughout the village. 

The wind forming around the guard’s hand was blown away in an instant. The two guards were frozen in place, speechless. 

But Ariane wasn’t done with them yet. 

“Listen to my heart and hold fast my enemies, Mother Earth!” 

This chant lacked the usual singsong melody that accompanied her use of spirit magic. She was practically yelling now as soil and stone closed in on the guards. The men waved their spears in a desperate attempt to protect themselves, but the dirt wrapped around their ankles and locked them in place. 

“You were the experienced fighters, weren’t you? You’ve gotta be, what, 200 or 300 years old? Well, I was only born a hundred years ago—a mere child to you. Maybe you were just holding back?” 

Ariane’s lips twisted into a mocking grin. Tears began streaming down the guards’ faces. 

“Gaaaaugh! My feet…the bones…they’re going to break!” 

“C-curse you, woman!” 

A large group of elves came running up to the gate to see what all the ruckus was about. However, not a single person stepped forward to help the guards. 

A man who looked to be in his late twenties or early thirties pushed through the crowd. He had long blond hair with a light green tint, and was dressed in priestly robes. The man looked rather annoyed, one hand pressed to his forehead, as if to stifle a headache. 

“Cut it out, Ariane! Let them go at once!” 

The man was Dillan, Ariane’s father. 

Ariane frowned, like a child who’d just been chastised for playing a prank on some other kids. 

“What do you think you’re doing? Coming into someone else’s home and attacking them…” Dillan let out a dramatic sigh. Despite his calm voice, his anger was evident. 

I was about to explain our side of the story when another voice broke through the crowd. 

“This wasn’t all her fault! There’s more to the story.” 

An elf with short hair and a gaunt, unshaven face came running up beside Dillan. He was dressed in well-worn leather armor, with a sword hanging from his waist. He looked nothing like other elven men I’d seen. Dillan glanced between this newcomer and Ariane. 

“She was trying to get a message to you, but the guards refused to let her through. I can’t say that I agree with her decision to settle the matter by force, but these men are an embarrassment to our village.” 

The rest of the crowd nodded in agreement. Ariane blinked several times, unsure what to make of this unusual turn of events. 

It was difficult to gauge an elf’s age, but if I had to guess, the unshaven man was quite a bit younger than the two men who stood watch at the gate. Drant was a village of people who didn’t think highly of other species, but it seemed that not everyone shared this opinion. 

Dillan cleared his throat. “Assuming that what he says is true, what brings you back to Drant, Ariane?” 

Ariane gave a quick overview of what we’d learned in Nohzan about the undead who were now descending upon the Salma Kingdom. Dillan stood in silence for a moment before slowly casting his eyes over the crowd surrounding us. Though Ariane had explained the situation in hushed tones, the gathered elves all possessed superior hearing. They looked on in disbelief. 

I couldn’t blame them. After all, until I’d seen the horde of undead with my own eyes, I’d thought the size of the army had been exaggerated. 

Dillan held Ariane’s gaze for a moment before asking the young man to free the guards. Then he turned his attention to me for the first time since our arrival. 

“We’ll need to begin preparing immediately if we hope to survive. Ariane, Arc, come with me. I want you to meet one of the elders. We’ll need to speak with him if we hope to call a village meeting.” 

Dillan began walking away. Ariane and I exchanged a glance before hurrying after him. 

We made our way toward a large house located outside the village wall. 

Dillan knocked on the door, and a moment later we were greeted by a masculine elven man who appeared to be in his thirties. His muscular body strained against his simple clothes. 

Most noteworthy about his appearance, though, was that one of his ears looked as if it had been torn off halfway. He was clearly an experienced warrior who’d seen much of battle. 

He introduced himself as Serge Ful Drant, then invited us in and led us to a spacious living room. Serge gestured for us to sit. 

Ponta hopped up next to a window and gazed outside while gently wagging its tail. 

Apparently, Serge had known Dillan for some time. He was the one who’d sent the request for assistance to Canada. 

He let out a hearty laugh. “There’s no shortage of narrow-minded fools in our village. I’m sorry to call you all the way out here to deal with our problems.” 

Dillan groaned, recalling the talking-to he’d gotten from Glenys when he’d first announced the mission. “My wife certainly wasn’t too pleased.” He shook his head and steered the conversation back to the topic at hand. “But that’s a story for another time. Right now, we need to figure out how to move forward.” 

Serge nodded. “I need to make preparations for the meeting. You two may attend as well, but I ask that you not cause any trouble…like you did at the gate.” 

Ariane opened her mouth to defend herself, but Serge cut her off with a gentle laugh. He told us to make ourselves at home before leaving the room again. 

Dillan slumped down onto the sofa and fixed Ariane with a hard stare. He looked deeply troubled. 

“Could you go over once again what you’ve been up to since we parted ways? Unfortunately, I don’t believe the village of Drant has many options. They’ll either need to leave their homes and escape to Canada, or we’ll have to send for reinforcements. However, the prospect of fighting beside humans is a good one. Efforts with the Rhoden Kingdom and Dukedom of Limbult are also moving forward to prohibit enslaving the beast…err, the mountain people.” 

This caught Ariane and me by surprise. 

“Is that so?” 

“Well, that’s certainly a fortuitous change of events.” 

“I was surprised as well. Though I have to admit that I was even more surprised to hear that you’d pushed similar changes through to several countries all on your own.” 

Dillan let out a wry laugh. I responded with a humble bow. 

“Anyway, now that the situation has escalated here, I’ll have more leverage when I report to the high elders in Canada. The reason we came here in the first place wasn’t just to help our comrades in Drant, but to put a stop to the enslaving of other elves and mountain people that’s so prevalent across this continent.” 

I knew that Dillan had been busy traveling around the Rhoden Kingdom, but I’d no idea that there was so much going on behind the scenes. 

Ariane looked over at me and made a face. “Why do I get the feeling that you’re grinning like an idiot right now?” 

I brought my hand up to my face, but only found the cold, hard steel of my helmet. How did she know what expression I had? 

“You’re too easy to read, Arc. So, what were you thinking about anyway?” 

I slumped slightly, dejected, knowing how easily Ariane could read my mind. 

“Nothing really. I was just thinking about how nice it would be to have a town filled with humans, elves, and mountain people, all living together in harmony.” 

That was my ideal fantasy world—each species using their talents to help their neighbors. I’d love to live in such a place someday. 

Ariane and Dillan smiled. 

“It’s great that you have such big dreams. It may be some time before they come to fruition, but the terms you’ve given these countries are an important first step, Arc.” 

Ariane nodded at her father’s praise. “But we need to ensure the survival of Nohzan and Brahniey.” 

I agreed with her, but there was an even more pressing matter we needed to address. “Before that, we need to convince the people of Drant about their next plan of action.” 

Dillan’s smiled widened. “There might be a little arguing, sure, but with Serge in our corner, I think we’ll be fine. This is not only a big change for Nohzan and Brahniey, but also for the people of Drant.” 

Dillan looked over at Ponta, who was now snoozing in the warm sunlight coming in through the window. 

Serge returned a short time later and announced that the meeting was about to begin. We accompanied him out of the house toward Drant, drawing stares from the villagers we passed. Serge and Dillan appeared unfazed by this attention. They led our party to a fat, cylindrical building in the center of the village. 

The interior was made up of large tree pillars whose branches stretched out along the vaulted ceiling like the ribs of an umbrella. It looked completely different from any elven building I’d seen before. It was basically one large, vast room, which was currently crammed so full of people that it seemed nothing short of a miracle that everyone could breathe. It looked as if the whole village were here to watch over the meeting. 

As soon as the crowd caught sight of Serge, they parted to let us through. 

At the center of the room was a large circular table and three chairs. Two men were already seated, awaiting our arrival. The third chair remained empty. I took this to mean that these were for the three village elders. 

I’d originally assumed that the meeting would take place behind closed doors, so the whole atmosphere of a town square meeting surprised me. 

One of the seated men addressed Serge. He looked none too pleased. 

“May I ask why you deemed it a worthwhile use of my time to call us here? Not just us elders, but the entire village as well? And as if that wasn’t enough, I see you’ve brought outsiders with you?” 

The man didn’t look at all like any of the elves I’d met so far. Though he did have the elves’ signature pointed ears, that was where the similarities ended. He was short, balding, and looked to be somewhere in his forties. According to Dillan, the man’s name was Loreto Borni Drant. 

Many of the villagers lining the walls of the room nodded in agreement with Loreto. 

The meeting was already off to a bad start. 

The other man at the table was almost polar opposite in appearance to Loreto. He was tall, with long, pale hair and a beard to match. He sipped calmly at his tea, as if unaware of the tense atmosphere around him. His bangs were so long that it was nearly impossible to get a clear look at his face. He looked exactly like what you’d imagine a hermit living alone in the mountains might look like. A wooden cane leaned against the table next to him. 

This man’s name was Iwahld Waley Drant, and he was, apparently, the oldest of the elders. 

A cluster of women stood behind him, with a woman on either side of him. Groupies, maybe? 

The last one to sit at the table was Serge Ful Drant. Behind him gathered a group of young, muscular men. 

Dillan, Ariane, and I—with Ponta still sitting atop my head of course—stood in front of these men. 

As far as I could tell, the people standing behind each of the elders were their supporters. 

The majority of the hateful glares directed my way were from people in Loreto’s corner. They really didn’t take kindly to outsiders. 

Elves’ appearances didn’t seem to change much, no matter how old they were, but even then, there was still an incredible variety among them. 

All of them generally looked to be between their teens and their forties. In fact, many of the supporters in Loreto’s corner looked to be on the older side, maybe around thirty or forty if they’d been human, while the people behind Serge were all younger, looking to be in their twenties. Iwahld’s supporters’ ages ran the gamut, and most of them were women. 

Interestingly, the group of men behind Serge didn’t show any of the hostility I’d noticed among Loreto’s supporters. If anything, they simply seemed intrigued by our presence. Maybe because they were younger, they were more tolerant? 

The elves with Loreto were around 400 years old, so I assumed that meant that the ones behind Serge were around 300. 

Much like with humans, elves of the older generation didn’t look positively on change. 

Serge called for silence. “Order in the chambers! The meeting of the elders to decide the future of our fair village is about to commence! But first I would like to ask that our allies from Canada report on the situation.” 

Dillan stepped forward and began explaining things, skipping all the introductions and formalities. This seemed to annoy Loreto further, but he seemed to think better of voicing his opinion and instead listened to Dillan in silence. 

“And that’s about the size of it. If you don’t take action immediately, I’m afraid Drant may cease to exist.” 

The hall was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop. 

Loreto was the first to break this silence, his voice booming. “You expect us to believe that an army of 200,000 undead are going to attack us? Ridiculous! What proof do you have?” 

The men standing behind Loreto all murmured in agreement, while Serge’s supporters began arguing back. 

“We’ve already engaged in combat with similar monsters, and suffered massive casualties at that! We wouldn’t even be able to stand up to 10,000 of those things, let alone 200,000. If you want to write this all off, be my guest. But our blood will be on your hands!” 

Others nodded eagerly in agreement, adding fuel to the flames. 

The older men, however, refused to be so openly disrespected. 

“The very idea of working with humans is preposterous! If the humans are wiped out if we do nothing, then by all means, let them be wiped out! We’ll make better use of their lands anyway. We can build more villages!” 

“You old fool! Do you even know how many humans are out there? If the Salma and Nohzan kingdoms were to fall, then their neighbors would just take their place!” 

“There’s not a human alive who would actually honor their word! They have short memories, and will change their minds the moment a threat is gone!” 

“It’s that kind of thinking that deepens the divide between us! What harm could it do to build a relationship with humans who want to be our allies?” 

“Let the humans and undead fight it out and kill each other! I see no reason to join their ranks!” 

“And when the rest of the undead come for us? What then? It will still be our warriors defending Drant. You cowardly old bastards just want to hide in your homes while you send the young out to die for you!” 

“Who are you calling a coward?!” 

What had started as a civil meeting had quickly turned into a screaming match. Some people even began hurling objects at one another. 

Up until now, I’d always viewed the elven species as one of great intellect. However, what I was seeing here proved to me that they were no different from humans. 

Elder Iwahld decided he’d had enough of this ruckus and reached for his wooden cane, striking the stone floor with it several times. The tip of the cane began glowing, filling the room with a blinding light. 

“Whoa! What’s that?!” 

“What?!” 

“Kyii!” 

Ariane, Ponta, and I pulled up our cloaks (and tail) in unison, to shield our eyes. I could hear the cries of the rest of those in the room. 

The light faded. I opened my eyes and saw a room full of people holding their hands tightly to their faces and groaning. At least the shouting had stopped. 

“Gah! What do you think you’re doing?” Loreto wasted no time grumbling about Iwahld’s sudden and aggressive use of magic. 

The older man ignored the outburst. “If it comes down to fighting alongside the humans and building a relationship with them, then we might as well leave this village and move to Canada. Our people will benefit regardless of the outcome.” 

Loreto smiled. “Gyahaha! I like your style. If the elves of Canada are so eager to fight alongside the humans, let them do it!” His short body shook with boisterous laughter. 

The people murmured among themselves at this latest suggestion. Iwahld quickly put an end to this with a few loud raps of his cane. A smile graced the old man’s face. He let out a raspy laugh. 

“Since this was all my idea, perhaps I should head off to Canada myself?” 

Iwahld let out another raspy laugh, though the crowd remained unsure how to respond. The oldest elder turned toward Serge, making eye contact as best he could through his long bangs. 

“And what about you? I’ve always been rather fond of Maple’s famous syrup. What if you could come and enjoy their delicacies with me?” 

A broad grin spread across Serge’s face. “Hahaha! I suppose I could make time, old man.” 

Serge’s supporters all agreed with this plan, many of them even proclaiming that they would become citizens of Canada. 

Many women, ostensibly Iwahld’s supporters, initially seemed shocked at the suggestion. However, with all the young warriors of the town backing Serge, their lovers, wives, and mothers also began declaring their intentions to leave. 

Lacking the support of the military class, and even their own families, the men in Loreto’s corner followed suit. 

This just left Loreto and one other old man as the remaining voices of dissent. 

“Now wait a moment! You think you can just decide this all on your own?! Even if you were to go to Canada and ask for help, it would take days before they could assemble their forces and return. It would be better for us to lie low and wait for the dust to settle.” 

The gathered elves all looked to Iwahld and Serge, seeking a response. Iwahld merely smiled and turned to Dillan. Dillan turned to me. 

All eyes in the room, including Ariane’s, fell on me. I knew at once what he was asking, and replied with a simple thumbs-up. 

This brought a smile to Dillan’s lips. “You have nothing to worry about.” 

Iwahld’s smiled widened. “Well then, I see no issue.” 

Serge turned to the men standing behind him. “All right! Prepare to move out! More specific instructions to follow!” 

With that, people began leaving the building for their own residences. Loreto and his men stood in stunned silence at what had just happened. 

As we followed Serge back to his house, Ariane’s face broke out in a broad smile. She stretched her arms triumphantly above her head. Ponta tried to mimic her pose. 

The Drant issue was resolved for now. 

Back at Serge’s house, Dillan discussed our next steps. “If forces aren’t dispatched immediately, this village and the human kingdoms will almost certainly fall. I must return to Maple to ensure that we start mustering our armies.” 

Ariane nodded firmly. 

“We’ll need to make the most of your magic, Arc. Even so, I don’t think we have much time. How long did they say it would be until the undead armies arrive at the humans’ front lines?” 

I shook my head, which sent Ponta slipping onto my shoulder. Dillan looked to Ariane next, but she didn’t know either. 

“All right, we’ll pick Chiyome up and ask King Asparuh and Margrave Brahniey while we’re there. I’m sure they’re eager to hear what’s happening on our end.” 

Dillan shot me an excited grin. “Good plan. Do you mind if I accompany you? I’d like to meet this king of Nohzan and begin building a relationship with him. Besides, I haven’t had a chance to experience your fabled teleportation magic yet.” 

Serge’s eyes went wide in surprise, but I shot him another thumbs-up. The elder gave me several hard, but friendly, slaps on the back. 

“Well, I’ll be! It looks like we might have a shot after all! Gyahaha!” 

Ponta, who’d just regained its position atop my head, slid down the front of my helmet with each hard slap, plunging me into darkness. I was glad my abilities would be of use. 

“We’d best get going. We’ll be back in about a day or so. Transport Gate!” 

I used my long-distance teleportation magic to send us on our way. 

The world around us went dark, and I felt completely weightless. After the briefest of moments, the darkness faded to reveal that we were now back in front of the crumbled remains of the southern gate at Saureah, the capital of the Nohzan Kingdom. 

The sun was low in the sky, nearly dipping behind the peaks of the mountains off to the west. 

“So, this is the Nohzan Kingdom’s capital? It certainly looks like it’s seen better days.” 

Dillan gazed out across masses of fallen undead soldiers, still wearing their charred armor, as the setting sun cast the whole scene in a scarlet glow. 

This was what was left after using my powerful Paladin ability to summon the Archangel Michael. 

To my surprise, figures were milling about the charred fields here and there. 

Upon closer inspection, I saw that they wore baskets on their backs and were collecting any salvageable weapons or armor. They weren’t all human, either, as I spotted a few mountain people among them. 

As far as I could tell, they were collecting the raw metal to reforge into new weapons. 

Turning my attention to the southern gate, I saw numerous bricklayers and carpenters hurriedly repairing the damage that had been done to the wall. 

I was glad to see that the town was beginning to recover. 

“Hmm, pretty impressive.” 

Ariane agreed. “It is, isn’t it?” 

Dillan urged us onward to the capital. “Let’s look for Chiyome and get these introductions with the king out of the way, shall we?” 

With that, the three of us made our way to the gate. 

*** 

A few of the people working near the southern gate recognized Ariane and me, so we were allowed to enter the capital with little issue. I figured the king probably had something to do with this. 

Several guards along the way asked that we pass along their thanks to Chiyome. Apparently, she was helping the soldiers in the new town district wipe out the remaining pockets of undead warriors. 

Ariane appeared comforted by what we’d seen so far. “You know, I was a little worried about this place, but it looks like they’re doing all right.” 

Dillan shot a teasing grin toward his daughter. “You’re growing up into a fine young lady, Ariane. If only you’d remembered that back in Drant, with those two guards…” 

Ariane trembled slightly and quickly turned away. 

I decided it best not to intervene. 

A young girl dropped soundlessly off of a nearby roof to land in front of us. She was dressed entirely in black ninja garb, cat ears springing out of her black hair, and a long, black tail drooping from her waist. 

Chiyome looked over to Dillan and bowed. 

“Aah! Chiyome! What’ve you been up to?” 

The young girl’s ears flittered a bit at Ariane’s question. She reached back and drew a dagger from the sheath at her lower back. 

“I was hunting undead. Some of my fellow mountain people have joined me, since we’re able to smell them out.” 

Chiyome sniffed the air to emphasize her point. But she must have caught a whiff of dust or something, because she immediately started sneezing. After composing herself again, she responded with a question of her own. 

“Did everything work out with you two?” 

Ariane and I exchanged a look. I kept my response vague. 

“Things aren’t exactly going to plan, but…they worked out well enough, I’d say.” 

Chiyome didn’t press any further. “Do you know where you’re heading next?” 

Dillan responded. “I’d like to meet the king and see if we can share some information.” 

“Well then, let’s get going.” 

Chiyome turned and began leading the way back to the palace. 

As we walked, I mentioned the stories we’d heard. “By the way, some of the guards send their thanks. Apparently you’ve been quite busy.” 

Chiyome blinked at this. “Ah, is that so…” Her tail began wagging with a bit more vigor than before. 

We reached the castle gate and asked one of the guards to open it. She led us to a room deep within the castle. 

It was the same room we’d been brought to for King Asparuh’s secret meeting with Margrave Brahniey. The two men were once again in the room waiting for us, looks of anxiety on their faces. 

King Asparuh was taken aback for a moment by the sight of Dillan. 

“I don’t believe we’ve had the pleasure. You are…?” 

Dillan bowed his head low. “My name is Dillan Tahg Lalatoya, the elder of Lalatoya, in the Great Canada Forest. It is an honor to meet you.” 

King Asparuh and Margrave Brahniey looked like they were hoping Dillan’s presence meant that the reinforcements had been approved. However, Dillan shook his head before they had a chance to ask the question. 

“I was only dispatched to oversee the forces in the Ruanne Forest. I don’t have the authority to approve any additional reinforcements.” 

The two men managed to hide their disappointment well. 

Dillan smiled and continued. “Though, I don’t believe the central council will agree to simply abandon the Ruanne Forest. The people of Drant have expressed a willingness to fight, and they’ve agreed to join forces.” 

The two nobles listened, wide-eyed. 

“The next step is for me to head to the central council and encourage them to muster their forces.” 

The two men finally smiled. This was the news they’d been hoping to hear. 

“Well, that’s good news.” King Asparuh sounded drained. “So, we still have a chance of surviving this then.” 

I hadn’t noticed it when I first entered the room, but the king looked as if he were wasting away. Even Margrave Brahniey looked a bit gray. 

What had happened while we were gone? 

Before I had the chance to ask, a soldier barreled into the room. The man hesitated as soon as he caught sight of us, but the king urged him to speak with a wave of his hand. 

“Apologies for the interruption, Your Highness! We’ve just received a report from one of our spies in the Delfrent Kingdom. ‘Capital under attack by strange monsters. Downfall imminent. Number of enemies impossible to count.’” 

The report took everyone in the room by surprise. 

If I recalled correctly, the Delfrent Kingdom was located to the north of the Nohzan Kingdom. That meant… 

“Chiyome, isn’t Delfrent where Goemon was heading?” 

Ariane and Dillan also looked to Chiyome. She nodded, and Ponta copied her. 

“I haven’t heard anything. I can’t say anything for certain, since I don’t know exactly where the capital is located, but I doubt that Goemon and his team are unaware of recent events.” 

That made sense. Not only were Goemon and the rest of his platoon mountain people, but they were the best of the best. 

Assuming the force was on the same scale as the one that attacked Saureah, the stench alone should have tipped Goemon and his people off and given them a chance to steer clear. 

This report meant that the Nohzan Kingdom was caught in between massive armies to both the north and the south. 

King Asparuh thanked the soldier and sent him on his way. As soon as the door closed, he let out a heavy sigh. The exhaustion was evident on Brahniey’s face as well, despite his best attempts to hide it. 

It was probably rare for these two men to show their feelings, given their social standing, but it looked as if they’d hit their limits. 

The tension in the room was palpable, the silence hanging heavy. Finally, Dillan spoke. 

“Well, this certainly is problematic. I’d planned to go back to Canada to muster our forces, but unfortunately, we don’t have nearly as many soldiers as you humans do. If we wish to stand any chance of fighting off either of these threats, we’ll need to concentrate all of our forces on one enemy. How far is the capital of the Salma Kingdom from Saureah?” 

King Asparuh furrowed his brow. “Hmm, I’d say…maybe ten days by horse.” 

Dillan nodded, then asked the same of the capital in Delfrent. 

“I believe it’s around a seven- to eight-day journey.” 

Dillan looked to the margrave. “And how far is the capital of Salma from Brahniey?” 

“Seven days by horse, six to the border,” the margrave answered immediately, anticipating Dillan’s question. 

Taking both of their answers together… 

“So…we’ll be attacked on two fronts at nearly the same time.” Ariane’s words hung heavy in the air. 

“But that means that the Holy Hilk Kingdom launched an attack on three different countries at once. Just how many undead do they have anyway? We’re talking about at least half a million troops dedicated to attacking Salma, Delfrent, and Nohzan.” 

My words only managed to make the whole thing seem even more dire. 

King Asparuh and Margrave Brahniey looked at the ground, their bodies trembling almost imperceptibly. 

Dillan muttered to himself. “Without any further information on troop movements, it will be hard to concentrate our forces on just one front. Plus, there are no assurances that the undead armies will head straight here. The timing of their attack could vary dramatically depending on when the other cities fall. We need more soldiers…” 

Something seemed to click in his mind. He looked up and locked eyes with King Asparuh. 

“Soldiers…yes,” the king replied. “Actually, my son Terva should be returning soon with the reinforcements he was sent to muster. We may also be able to ask for assistance from the Rhoden Kingdom. And then there’s Arc here, assuming he’s willing to offer his skills once again.” 

The Rhoden Kingdom was separated from the Nohzan Kingdom by the sea of Bulgoh, but they maintained stable trade relations, so it seemed entirely possible that they’d be willing to send at least some reinforcements. 

Ariane looked at me, apparently thinking the same thing, but she just shook her head. 

Chiyome’s cat ears perked up, and she turned her gaze toward the door. 

Before I had the chance to say anything, however, King Asparuh continued. 

“My younger sister, Melissa, was the Queen of the Rhoden Kingdom. She’s already passed, of course, but Princess Yuriarna is my niece, and she may be willing to help us.” 

This was a surprise to me. However, I had a nagging feeling that I was forgetting something. What was it? 

Ponta looked down at me and mewed. 

“Kyii?” 

I put the question aside for now. The pressing issue was…who would we send to the Rhoden Kingdom to ask for reinforcements? 

Considering that the Nohzan and Rhoden kingdoms shared a connection through their royal bloodlines, it only made sense to send a member of the royal family. 

Dillan seemed to be thinking the same thing. “I would think it best to send someone who has a connection to the royal family as a messenger. I’ve had some meetings with those in power in the Rhoden Kingdom, so I would be more than happy to make the introductions if necessary.” 

The king scowled as he realized the obvious answer. “Riel would probably be the best for the job. I can think of no one else.” He sounded resigned. 

It was clear from the tone of his voice that he had reservations about sending Princess Riel out on such a mission. She was only ten, after all. 

The young princess was certainly reliable, and she’d taken a great risk to bring back soldiers from Count Dimo to save her kingdom. However, the love of a father toward his one and only daughter was not to be taken lightly. 

Another figure burst through the door, and a girl’s voice filled the room. “I’ll do it! I’ll deliver your request to the Rhoden Kingdom!” 

Princess Riel stood in the doorway, her eyes red and puffy from crying. She wiped them on her sleeve and looked pleadingly at her father. 

Had Chiyome told her about what was going on while we were away? 

I glanced over at the ninja, but she just shook her head. She’d probably been too busy running around the new town district to engage in gossip. 

“Didn’t you say you were going to rest, Riel?” 

The king regarded Riel not as a princess of the royal family, but as a father concerned for his daughter. 

The young girl shook her head vigorously. “This isn’t just for me, but for Seyval as well! I want to do everything I can to ensure that our country still has a future! I can’t just sit around crying while our country…” 

Big, fat tears rolled down her cheeks. Her sleeve grew damp as she continued dragging it across her eyes. 

Another figure appeared in the doorway, drawn to the scene by the princess’s cries. 

Niena, one of Riel’s bodyguards, pulled out a handkerchief to wipe away the girl’s tears. Then she stood at attention and saluted the king. 

“My apologies, Your Highness. I took my eyes off of her for just a moment and…” 

The king dismissed her apology with a wave of his hand. “Riel, the Rhoden Kingdom is quite far from here, way off to the east. I was going to ask Arc to…” 

I could tell where the king was going and butted in before he had a chance to finish. “I have no problem with it.” All eyes were now on me, so I continued. “I’ll escort Princess Riel to the Rhoden Kingdom. If we’re able to secure reinforcements while we’re there, then I’ll lead them back as well.” 

Ponta also chimed in, its chest puffed out with pride. “Kyii!” 

King Asparuh blinked at me. “Are you sure you’re okay with this, Arc?” 

I pumped a fist in the air while Ponta wagged its tail back and forth excitedly. 

Princess Riel’s sniffling stopped, and she grinned at the odd sight. 

“We’ve come this far. It’d be a shame for me to hold back now and not see this whole thing through.” 

Sensing that his daughter was firm in her resolution, the king stood up, walked over to her, and ran a hand through her unkempt hair. 

“The sun’s already setting, so why don’t you start making preparations and go to bed early. You’ll leave tomorrow. I’ll prepare a letter of introduction. Also…” 

He carefully removed the intricately decorated flower necklace that hung from his neck. Then he draped it around his daughter’s neck and took a step back, a warm smile gracing his face. 

Princess Riel glanced down at the necklace and back up at her father. “What is this?” 

“It’s the necklace I gave your Aunt Melissa when she moved to the Rhoden Kingdom to be wed. Think of it as a protective talisman.” 

Princes Riel fixed her steel-gray eyes on the king. “Thank you, Father.” 

King Asparuh turned his attention to Niena. “Take good care of her.” 

The loyal bodyguard offered up another salute and urged Princess Riel out of the room. “Come on, princess. We have a lot of work to do for tomorrow.” 

As she followed Riel, Niena stopped and looked back into the room one last time. Her eyes caught Chiyome’s. 

I was worried for a moment that we’d see a repeat of the other day, but instead, Niena bowed. 

“I’d like to apologize for my rash behavior the other day, Chiyome. I know you’re busy right now, so I hope you’ll allow me to offer a proper apology tomorrow.” 

Niena bowed again. 

Chiyome looked away. “It’s… It’s no big deal.” 

Niena seemed a bit let down by this. “I see…” 

Chiyome’s ears twitched atop her head, and the faintest of smiles tugged at the corners of her lips. She turned the conversation back to Niena with a dramatic wag of her tail. 

“Shouldn’t you be keeping an eye on Riel? You’re going to get punished again, y’know,” she teased. 

Niena made a face. “W-well then, I best be going. Thank you, Chiyome.” She left to chase after her young charge. 

Chiyome stared at the now-empty doorway for some time before letting out a breath and turning her attention back to the rest of us. At least we’d been able to resolve one issue. 

However, there was something that still struck me as odd. “Your Highness, if I may ask, what was Riel talking about earlier?” 

The king didn’t respond right away, instead slumping back in his chair and staring off into the distance. He closed his eyes and began speaking in a controlled tone of voice. 

“When we first learned that Saureah was under attack, I sent my two sons off on a mission to drum up reinforcements from across the kingdom. This afternoon, I received a report that my son Seyval was ambushed and murdered.” 

I’d figured as much from the way Riel had looked when she’d first appeared. Ariane and Chiyome seemed to be on the same page. Judging by the way the margrave showed little surprise at the news, he already knew of this. 

I gained a newfound respect for Riel upon hearing this. In spite of her young age, she was able to compartmentalize the devastating sadness she must be feeling over the loss of her brother in order to do whatever she could to protect the country he’d died for. 

Her dedication humbled me. 

“We’ve got an intense day ahead of us tomorrow.” 

Ponta let out a shrill cry of excitement and puffed up its tail. 

Ariane’s eyes seemed to drill straight through the steel of my helmet. “If you spend too much time hyping yourself up, you’re going to lose track of what’s actually important.” 

All I could do was nod in response. Atop my helmet, I could feel Ponta shrink back as well. 

*** 

The next morning, we gathered in an off-limits garden in one of the corners of the castle. There were eleven humans, including Princess Riel and her two bodyguards, Zahar and Niena. Behind them stood another eight guards. 

All told, it was a rather small party heading off to the Rhoden Kingdom. 

A short ways behind the group stood Dillan and Ariane from the Grand Canada Forest, along with Ponta and me. Representing the mountain people—and more specifically, the Jinshin clan—was Chiyome. In total, the whole envoy consisted of fifteen people and one furball. 

Completing the image of a proper royal convoy was a four-horse-drawn carriage, and two additional horses for Zahar and Niena. 

We were all inspecting our armor and supplies. 

King Asparuh and several of his ministers stood to the side, talking among themselves. 

Apparently, news of my ability to use the mythical “spirit path” had spread among some of the nobility, and they were eager to see it in person. 

Dillan gazed at Princess Riel’s carriage with a look of concern. 

“What’s wrong, Dillan?” 

He frowned as he turned to me. “It’s just… I was looking at the royal crest Princess Riel is using to mark her as a messenger of the Nohzan Kingdom, and I couldn’t help but think that we don’t really have anything to identify us as elves. I was wondering if we could find something.” 

I wasn’t sure I understood what Dillan was saying, and looked over at Ariane for clarification. However, she only scowled. 

“If we want to draw attention to ourselves, we can just have Arc lead the way.” 

Dillan shook his head. “Dressed up in flashy armor like that, he’s not instantly recognizable as an elf. I was thinking we should do something to make us stand out a bit, and to make it obvious to observers that we’re part of Princess Riel’s envoy.” 

Finally, I understood. Even if there was a relationship between the royal families of the Rhoden and Nohzan kingdoms, people still might doubt that we were actually an envoy from the Nohzan Kingdom. 

If our luck was exceedingly poor, then we might be stuck for several days while the authorities tried to confirm our identities. 

Considering that Dillan had recently held high-level talks with the decision-makers back in the Rhoden Kingdom, he had a good understanding of the situation. And of course, anyone could see from a distance that he was an elf. 

If he led our party into the capital of the Rhoden Kingdom, it would be even more likely that people would accept Princess Riel and the rest of us as part of a royal envoy. 

Which meant… 

I looked up at Princess Riel and her carriage, then back to Dillan, then over his shoulder. A goofy grin lit my face as I was struck with an idea. 

“You know, I just remembered that I left Shiden in the castle’s stable!” 

“Huh?” 

“Oh!” 

Ariane and Chiyome looked at me before exchanging a glance. 

I had a palace guard lead me back to the royal stables only to find my precious mount lazing about a small, open field. Apparently, it was too big to fit into any of the stalls. 

“Sorry for taking so long, buddy.” 

Shiden looked up at me and blinked in disbelief, then wagged its tail and rolled over to face away from me. 

“Looks like it’s pretty mad about you abandoning it, Arc.” 

“How could you just leave behind a loyal battle companion like that?” 

Ariane and Chiyome didn’t seem to think very highly of how I’d treated Shiden. 

Though it wasn’t entirely my fault. 

“I agree that it wasn’t very kind of me. But to be fair, neither of you are above criticism here, are you?” 

Both women averted their eyes. 

But regardless of who was at fault, I couldn’t just leave Shiden lazing about in a field forever. I decided to try a different tactic. 

“Kyii! Kyikyiiiii!” 

I followed up Ponta’s entreaty with one of my own. 

“All right, Shiden, what do you think about heading home and running around for a bit?” 

I figured it’d do my buddy a little good to see some familiar sights. 

“Grweeeeeeee!” 

Shiden pushed itself up onto its massive legs and joined us on our way back to the enclosed garden, where the rest of our party was waiting for us. 

I rubbed Shiden’s snout gently as I made my proposal to Dillan. 

“I think if you lead the envoy on good ol’ Shiden here, you’ll definitely stand out…for better or for worse. What do you think, Dillan? As long as I hold the reins, I don’t think it’ll have any objections.” 

Shiden, at least, seemed sold on the idea. 

“Grween!” 

Dillan hopped onto Shiden’s saddle, and Ariane slid up behind him. Chiyome stepped up to my side, apparently choosing to walk with me. 

“Well, this is certainly more than I could have ever expected! Thank you, Arc. Now, shall we get going?” 

After ordering all the onlookers to step back, I prepared to summon my long-distance teleportation spell. 

It had been a while since I was in the Rhoden Kingdom. In fact, it was so long that I didn’t have anything drawn in my teleportation diary to help jog my memory. I ran through a list of locations in my mind, trying to find one that I remembered clearly. 

Since our ultimate objective was the capital of Olav, I racked my brain to pick somewhere close by. 

The first image that came to mind was the field overlooking the capital, where we’d teleported all of Chiyome’s newly freed comrades before escorting them off to the hideaway in the Calcut Mountains. 

“Transport Gate!” 

Considering the large group we’d be taking with us, including Princess Riel’s carriage, Shiden, and all the soldiers, I put a little more power into my spell to create a large enough rune to encompass the entire envoy. 

The world went black for a moment before the Rhoden capital appeared before us. 

Olav looked a fair bit different from the city in flames we’d left behind so many moons ago. Chiyome and Ariane were quiet as they looked at the capital, the site no doubt stirring up many emotions. 

The rest of the envoy was looking around to get their bearings. This situation was beyond anything the royal guard had ever trained for, and they were startled by the sudden display of magic. 

Princess Riel leaped out of her carriage and looked off toward the mountain ranges to the north. 

“Wow! This is like nothing I’ve ever seen!” 

The land around Saureah was completely flat, so the mountains must have been quite a treat for her. 

Shiden also jerked its head in surprise, before settling down and munching on some grass. 

Dillan called out to the young girl from atop my driftpus. “We haven’t a lot of time, so we should make our way to Olav as soon as possible. Please, return to your carriage, princess.” 

“Got it!” 

We pulled the envoy together and started making our way south toward the capital of the Rhoden Kingdom. 

Unfortunately, the location we’d teleported to was quite far from the nearest road, and traveling by carriage was more than a little challenging, but after a few false starts, we were finally under way. 

If I remembered correctly, taking the westward route would lead us to the port town of Lamburt. 

I thought back to the time when I’d lost my bearings and ended up leading Ariane to the desert town of Branbayna. I felt an odd sense of nostalgia for those days. 

As we continued down the road, we drew a great deal of attention, due to how bizarre our group appeared. By the time we’d made it to the outer gates of the capital, the guards were already rushing about, making preparations. 

With a six-legged, four-meter-long lizard leading a horse-drawn carriage, this reaction was to be expected. After all, Shiden must look like some kind of monster to them. 

As we approached the west gate, two soldiers on horseback came racing toward us. I could feel a sense of unease ripple through Riel’s guards. 

These two were either a scout patrol or messengers. 

I doubted we would have drawn as much attention if the caravan consisted of just Princess Riel and her carriage, so in a way, Dillan had been right. 

The two horses gave us a wide berth as they approached. One of the riders called out to us. 

“Halt! Identify yourselves immediately and state your business!” 

The soldier’s horse bucked in surprise. He reached down and stroked its neck in an attempt to calm it while also keeping an eye on Dillan. After a moment, he seemed to realize what he was seeing. 

Dillan shouted back in as polite a voice as he could manage at that volume. “I am Dillan Tahg Lalatoya, from the Great Canada Forest. I was recently granted an audience with your king, but now I’m here to serve as a mediator for an envoy from the Nohzan Kingdom. I’m afraid there’s great trouble brewing, and we haven’t much time. I request an audience with your king at once!” 

At the direction of one of the soldiers, the other raced back to the city’s gate to convey Dillan’s message. 

A short time later, a messenger arrived with King Karlon’s decision. 

Though he had no idea what this whole affair was about, King Karlon had granted us an audience. This approval came as a great relief to the entire Nohzan envoy. Dillan, meanwhile, clearly felt a bit conflicted over his decision to come out into the Rhoden Kingdom in such a showy manner, considering how easily the king had agreed to meet with them. 

“I should have just handed over King Asparuh’s letter of introduction from the start.” 

The king of Nohzan had entrusted Princess Riel with a letter explaining her purpose here to the king of Rhoden, but Dillan had deemed it easier to avoid spending a lot of time sitting around outside the city waiting for a response. 

The Rhoden soldiers led our envoy through the gates of Olav. 

Olav was far larger than Saureah back in the Nohzan Kingdom. The four layers of walls encasing the city were a testament to its strength. Everyone in the envoy, including Riel, who pressed her face against the window of her carriage, looked around with great interest as we made their way into the city. 

“I never would’ve figured we’d be back here. Especially not under these circumstances.” 

I spoke in a low enough voice so as to not be heard over the drone of the surrounding crowds, but Chiyome picked up on it thanks to her sensitive cat ears. 

“Right?” 

The last time she was here in the capital, Chiyome had been running a secret operation in the middle of the night to free her fellow mountain people who’d been enslaved. It seemed odd for her to be walking out in the open now. 

Though I couldn’t see her face, due to the scarf wrapped tightly around her head, she seemed to share this sentiment, judging by how Chiyome’s tail was wagging about. 

There currently weren’t any free mountain people here in the Rhoden Kingdom, as far as I could tell, but according to what we’d heard from Dillan, that was about to change. 

The sight of my intimidating driftpus marching toward the palace elicited cries of surprise from citizens everywhere. But once they got over their initial shock, they noticed the two elves riding atop it. Traffic coming our way gave us plenty of room, to avoid drawing too close to us. 

After making our way through the crowded bustle of the outer parts of the city, we passed through the elegant residential districts where the nobles made their homes. Soon after, the palace came into view. 

Unlike the battle-hardened fortress that served as the castle in Saureah, the palace in Olav was a thing of beauty, with grand spires soaring high into the sky. The sight of it took the entire Nohzan envoy by surprise. 

Our escorts led us into an open field in front of the palace, where we were greeted by a crowd of people, all of whom watched us with surprise and curiosity. 

A man stepped out of the group. “M-may I ask who leads this envoy?” 

Princess Riel stepped out of the carriage. “That’d be me.” 

The man looked around with a bemused expression, as if someone was playing an elaborate prank on him. But once he caught sight of Zahar and Niena standing behind their young charge, not to mention the intense stares from Ariane, Chiyome, and me, he realized his mistake. He offered a broad smile and gestured for us to follow. 

“Y-yes, of course. Please follow me.” 

The man glanced at Dillan, no doubt catching the bemused expression on the elven elder’s face, but said no more as he led us into the palace. 

We left Shiden and the horses behind with Riel’s royal guards and followed after the man. 

Her eyes went wide, her head darting back and forth like a kid in a candy shop, as she tried to take in all the sights and sounds. It was nothing like what she was used to back home. 

After leading our party down a long hallway, the man stopped and looked back at us. A guard opened a door, and the man ushered us inside. 

“Please wait here.” 

Princess Riel’s face tensed for a moment as she stepped into the room. Zahar and Niena accompanied her inside, followed by Dillan with his ever-present grin, then Ariane, Chiyome, and me. 

This wasn’t exactly the type of room I’d expect to hold an audience with a king. In fact, it looked more like a large meeting room, with several maidservants standing at attention along one of the outer walls. 

The sight of our motley crew was more than these simple maidservants could handle. Several sets of eyes went wide, and a jaw or two fell open, before the maidservants managed to compose themselves. 

I alone made for quite the spectacle—a tall knight dressed from head to toe in armor, and armed with a large sword sheathed at my back. And, of course, Ponta sitting on my head. 

Ariane and Chiyome were also armed, thought they mostly kept their weapons hidden. 

The more I thought about it, the more I realized just how important it was to have Dillan here with us, given his previous experience with the king. 

According to Dillan, the last time he’d visited the Rhoden Kingdom he was accompanied by a large number of elven soldiers. I wondered if both sides had taken this as an opportunity to show off their respective military mights. 

Elven warriors were skilled with various weapons, of course, but even unarmed, every one of them could have easily taken on a few human soldiers at once. 

Someone like Ariane’s mother, Glenys, could probably take down the entire complement of guards here in this palace armed with only a sword. She was that strong. 

With that in mind, the Rhoden Kingdom was probably doing their best not to provoke us. The guards at the door looked incredibly tense. 

Not finding anyone to talk to in the room, Princess Riel sat down in the chair at the end of the table, with Dillan at her side and Zahar and Niena standing watch behind her. 

Ariane, Chiyome, and I stood behind Dillan. 

I was starting to think we’d be waiting here for a good while, but after a brief moment, footsteps echoed from beyond the door on the far side of the room. 

The door opened wide, and a man and woman walked into the room. 

The woman looked just barely older than Chiyome. Her long, bright blonde hair curled at its tips, accenting her pale skin and warm, brown eyes that blinked as she took in the sight before her. Despite her regal appearance, she wore a simple dress and a necklace with a flower design. The look of intensity in her eyes made it clear that she was no ordinary young woman. 

She was accompanied by a tall, young man with chestnut hair and intense blue eyes. He was dressed in an elegant robe, also giving off the impression of royalty. But there was something off about the smirk on his face. He felt…fake. 

The two stood on either side of the door to make way for an older man of around fifty or sixty. His eyes scanned the room, taking in its occupants. 

The man had faded blond hair, blue eyes, and a long white beard. His forehead was etched with deep wrinkles, and his face wore a grim expression, which spoke of long years carrying a heavy burden on his shoulders. 

From the way the younger man and woman bowed to this newcomer, I took it that he was the king. 

Princess Riel and Dillan also stood up and bowed. Before I could follow suit, the man put up his hand. 

“This is an informal meeting, so let’s skip the formalities.” 

Everyone hesitated for a moment. Rather than sit down, Princess Riel lifted her gown to keep from tripping and stepped forward. 

“I beg your pardon, Your Highness. My name is Riel Nohzan Saureah, and I am the princess of the Nohzan Kingdom. I am truly grateful that you have chosen to grant us this audience.” 

Her words came out slightly stilted, either because she was nervous, or because she was reciting a rehearsed speech. 

The king registered surprise at the young girl’s name. “Oh? So you’re from Melissa’s…?” 

Princess Riel nodded. 

“I am Karlon Delfriet Rhoden Olav, ruler of this honorable kingdom. And your uncle.” 

King Karlon smiled down at Riel before turning to introduce his two companions. 

“This is my daughter, and your cousin, princess…” 

The young woman at his side stepped forward and curtsied. “Yuriarna Merol Melissa Rhoden Olav, but please, just call me Yuriarna.” 

Her infectious smile spread to Riel, causing the younger girl to relax a bit. 

King Karlon continued. “And this here is my son, Prince…” 

The young man smiled at Riel and executed a perfect bow. “Sekt Rondahl Karlon Rhoden Sahdiay. I look forward to getting to know you, Princess Riel.” 

King Karlon turned his attention to Dillan. He raised an inquisitive eyebrow. “I believe we’ve seen each other quite recently. I take it you accompanied my niece?” 

Dillan smiled cheerfully and bowed to the king. “It’s nice to see you again, Your Highness. We’ve already met, but for the sake of formalities, I am Dillan Tahg Lalatoya, elder of Lalatoya Village in the Great Canada Forest. You are correct. I was given the opportunity to join Princess Riel for today’s meeting.” 

King Karlon’s eyebrow arched higher. “I have to admit, I’m surprised to hear that you have relations with the Nohzan Kingdom.” 

Dillan responded with a gentle laugh. “Let’s just say that our paths have crossed. It’s funny how the world works, no?” 

“Shall we sit? Then we can get down to business.” 

The king sighed and slid down into the seat prepared for him. Yuriarna and Sekt sat on either side of him. 

Riel curtsied and sat, followed by Dillan. Zahar and Niena continued standing behind their young charge, so I decided to do the same. 

I could feel the king watching me. Dillan answered his unspoken question. 

“These are my attendants—my daughter, another elf from our village, and their companion.” 

The king’s eyes went wide. “They all look…quite different from you.” From his tone, it seemed he was most surprised to hear that Ariane and Dillan were related. 

Dillan laughed. “Yes, well, my daughter takes after her mother.” 

Ariane scowled and looked away. The tips of her ears seemed to have turned ever so slightly pink, but it could have just been my imagination. 

King Karlon cocked his head and let his gaze fall on Chiyome and me, though he didn’t say anything more. He returned his attention to Riel. 

“What brings you all the way from the Nohzan Kingdom? I can’t imagine it’s a social visit. Is there some sort of emergency?” 

Riel pulled out the letter from her father and set it on the table. Zahar picked up the envelope and delivered it to the king. 

“I’ve come here to ask a favor of you, Uncle Karlon. My father, King Asparuh, has laid out our request in this letter.” 

Riel’s face turned gravely serious as she regarded the man across from her. She wasn’t looking at a fellow royal, or at the ruler of the Rhoden Kingdom, but at her uncle. 

King Karlon didn’t respond immediately. He picked up the envelope and broke the wax seal. His face tensed as he read the letter, soon turning to a look of shock. 

Yuriarna and Sekt watched this change in their father. 

King Karlon looked up from the letter and addressed Riel. “Is this all true? That the Holy Hilk Kingdom has attacked Salma, Nohzan, and Delfrent with an army of over 200,000 undead soldiers?” 

Yuriarna let out an audible gasp, while Sekt merely put his hand to his chin and furrowed his brow. 

“Let me see that, Father!” Yuriarna jolted to her feet. She rushed to her father’s side and attempted to read the letter over his shoulder. 

“Calm down, Yuriarna! I’m still reading!” 

Thoroughly rebuked by her father, Yuriarna looked to Riel for confirmation of the letter’s contents. 

“Is the Holy Hilk Kingdom really raising the dead and attacking its neighbors? How can that be?” 

“Y-yes, everything my father has written is true! We were attacked by monsters! They nearly destroyed our city!” Princess Riel’s regal poise crumbled. 

Never one to worry about proper decorum, Yuriarna began pacing back and forth. “But the Hilk church has been around for a long time, y’know? Their teachings are usually pretty reasonable, and I’ve never known them to take a particularly harsh stance on anything…” 

King Karlon let out a resigned sigh, apparently deciding it was pointless to chastise his daughter’s behavior further. Once he finished reading the letter, he looked back up at Dillan. The cordial smile remained on the elf’s face. 

“It says there that elves from Canada intend to send reinforcements. Are you really willing to fight on behalf of humans?” 

Dillan nodded, his smile never once wavering. 

“To be frank, it would be to our advantage to have the Hilk removed from power. I’m confident that I can gain the support of the high elders.” 

King Karlon scowled at this. “So you mean to say that you have yet to secure approval from your council?” He made no attempt to hide his incredulity. 

Dillan simply offered a casual shrug. “Not yet. But this is not a matter that a single village elder can decide on his own.” 

The blood seemed to drain from Princess Riel’s face. Her bodyguards didn’t look much better. 

I could certainly understand their dismay. The elves’ assistance would be absolutely essential if they hoped to defeat the undead armies of the Holy Hilk Kingdom. If the council of high elders back in Maple withheld their support, the Nohzan Kingdom’s destruction was practically guaranteed. 

However, Dillan appeared certain that this wouldn’t be the case. “You’ve nothing to worry about, princess. The people of Canada will rise to the call to defend our brothers and sisters in Ruanne. We have little choice but to enter this battle.” 

No one seemed to think much of Dillan’s reassurance, other than Prince Sekt, who grinned and raised his hand. Dillan turned toward the younger man, looking slightly perplexed. 

“Yes, Prince Sekt?” 

“What does Canada seek from the Nohzan Kingdom in exchange? I find it hard to believe that you would offer your assistance and ask for nothing in return.” 

Karlon and Yuriarna also appeared interested in Dillan’s answer. 

Dillan smiled. “All we ask in exchange is that the Nohzan Kingdom, and the land of Brahniey in the Salma Kingdom, agree to prohibit slavery of the elves and mountain people. These terms have already been agreed to.” 

“That’s quite a big thing to ask for, especially if you’re including the beast people.” 

Sekt glanced over at Chiyome, who was glaring daggers at him. But the prince simply shrugged and offered yet another roguish grin. 

“These are merely promises made by mouth, no? Do you have any assurances that they will be kept?” 

Riel puffed out her cheeks in anger. She banged her fists on the table as her eyes filled with tears. “Papa’s no liar! Of course he’ll do what he says!” 

King Karlon and Yuriarna both shot scolding looks at Sekt. With a dramatic sigh, he mumbled a vague apology. “Ah, excuse my choice of words. I didn’t intend to call your father a liar. I’m simply concerned about whether such weak terms will be enough to convince the elves to join us on the field of battle, given the tumultuous history between our peoples. The elves might not know what a great man your father is.” 

Apprehension once again washed over Princess Riel’s face. She turned back to Dillan, who offered a comforting smile. 

“Let’s just say that we have ways to ensure that these promises are kept.” He glanced over his shoulder at me. 

Prince Sekt cocked his head quizzically. 

I didn’t want to threaten them into accepting our terms, but I couldn’t exactly help it, given my appearance. 

Ariane leaned in close to me and whispered. “After what you did back there, no one would put it past you.” 

I whispered back. “The only people who saw what I did were Riel and a few of her closest guards. That’s nothing compared to what you did to Cardinal Palurumo, and in front of King Asparuh, no less.” 

Ariane and I locked eyes, neither willing to give in. 

“Kyii!” 

Ponta decided to enter the fray with a swing of its tail, sending my world into darkness. This was the fox’s way of mediating our argument. 

Princess Riel continued speaking, paying no mind to our quiet spat. “I beg you, Uncle Karlon, please help the people of Nohzan!” 

Yuriarna looked at her father to gauge his reaction. 

The king, however, responded with a question of his own. “Assuming that the elves of Canada agree to send reinforcements, how much time do we have until the Hilk armies close in on your allies?” 

Dillan pursed his lips. “Assuming they make their way straight toward Nohzan, around seven days.” 

The king sputtered in surprise. “S-s-seven days?! Then the battle is already lost!” 

Prince Sekt’s response was more collected. “Even if you were to leave right now, the battle would probably be over with by the time you arrived in Lamburt.” 

King Karlon looked at Riel sympathetically. “That’s enough, Sekt. Asparuh likely sent her here so she wouldn’t suffer the same hardships.” 

A deep sadness filled Yuriarna’s eyes as she, too, gazed at the young princess. 

All three of them had come to the conclusion that King Asparuh had sent his only daughter off on this fool’s errand to ensure her survival. 

Under any other circumstances, this would have been a reasonable conclusion. 

Riel searched for a way to explain the situation to them. “No, you don’t understand! We just left our castle today! With Arc here, distance is no object!” 

Her rambling explanation had no effect. The king continued regarding his niece sympathetically. 

“So, what shall we do?” Sekt pressed. 

Dillan spoke up before the king had a chance to answer. “There’s more than enough time to send reinforcements. That’s why I brought Arc with us. For the time being, you need not worry about the distances involved.” 

The three faces across the table registered confusion. From the way their gazes converged on me, I could tell they needed proof. Dillan let out a hearty laugh as he came to the same conclusion. 

I nodded and summoned my spell. “Dimensional Step!” 

An instant later, I was standing behind King Karlon. 

“Wha?!” 

“Hey!” 

“Huh?” 

The royal family’s eyes went wide as saucers. They were completely at a loss for words. The maidservants were practically beside themselves too. 

Having a giant knight disappear before your very eyes and then appear behind you must have been truly terrifying. 

“Dimensional Step!” 

I teleported back to Ariane’s side. 

The room remained in stunned silence until Sekt spoke up at last. “The spirit paths… I thought they were nothing but a fairy tale.” 

Dillan smiled at this. 

Apparently, spirit paths and other aspects of the elves’ lives were not entirely unknown to humans. Perhaps Evanjulin, the founding elder of the Great Canada Forest, had spoken of the elves’ teleportation shrines to humans. 

A bead of sweat ran down the king’s forehead. “Well, I, umm, certainly had no idea that you had such power at your disposal. But I have to ask…why, Dillan?” 

Dillan flashed the king another charming grin. He was clearly enjoying himself. “Why what, Your Highness?” 

The king’s voice was so low that everyone in the room had to strain to hear him. “If you have such power available to you, then why assist us humans in the first place? What could we possibly have to offer you?” 

Dillan laughed dryly. “You have a point.” He turned his gaze to Sekt. “However, as you pointed out earlier, there’s something we’d like from you as well.” 

Prince Sekt snorted and leaned over to the king to whisper into his ear. 

“Hmm, I see…” 

More sweat beaded on King Karlon’s forehead. 

Yuriarna looked at her father with concern, then turned a harsh eye toward Sekt. The prince leaned back, a sly grin on his face. 

The king stared at the letter in front of him. After a moment, he nodded his head firmly and turned his gaze back to Princess Riel. The young girl looked like she could hardly take any more of this. 

“We cannot simply stand by and watch as these events unfold. Due to the limited time available to muster troops, I fear that we can only spare around 5,000. Are you sure that you can teleport such a large number of people?” 

Dillan put his fears to rest. “That will be no problem at all.” 

“Well then, I entrust all matters regarding the reinforcements to you, Sekt. I want you to aid in planning their defense.” 

Riel was clearly overjoyed at this. 

But Princess Yuriarna seemed to take exception to the king’s decision. “Wait a moment! Please reconsider, father! I should be the one to lead the armies that fight alongside the elves. After all, it will do wonders to help build relations with them!” 

The king, however, did not give in to her pleading. “And that, dear Yuriarna, is precisely why you should not go. I have plenty for you to do here, which is why I have entrusted Sekt with the task. My decision is final. Please return to your seat.” 

Yuriarna puffed out her cheeks in anger. 

Sekt ignored Yuriarna’s outburst and stood at attention in front of the king. 

“I gladly accept the appointment, Your Highness. I will do my best to carry out your wishes.” 

The king smiled in satisfaction. “The decision is made then. Once the reinforcements have been mustered, you’ll transport them back to the Nohzan Kingdom.” 

Dillan glanced toward me, and I nodded. 

King Karlon declared the meeting finished, and everyone hurried to begin their preparations, including me. 

This was the first time I’d be teleporting 5,000 people at once. Despite what Dillan had said, I didn’t even know if it was possible. 

First, I needed to find a place here in the palace to sketch for my teleportation diary, to make it easier to travel back and forth between Nohzan and Rhoden. 

Prince Sekt approached Dillan and spoke in a low voice, barely above a whisper. “Do you also plan to ask the empire for reinforcements?” 

While it would certainly make sense to seek assistance from the empire, considering they weren’t lacking in soldiers or other military resources, that simply wasn’t possible. 

Dillan responded with a smile. “Unfortunately, we don’t have any connections to the empire.” 

However, Sekt pressed on. “If an introduction could be made, would you ask them?” 

Dillan bowed his head apologetically toward the younger man. “At this time, we aren’t considering the empire as a potential ally for…various reasons.” 

Prince Sekt smirked. 

I figured that Dillan was just focused on our current request for reinforcements as a means to convince the elves as well, but there was also an even bigger issue. 

I wasn’t able to use my teleportation magic to travel to the empire. 

Or, more accurately, there were only a very few places within the empire that I could travel to. 

In order to use my long-distance teleportation magic spell Transport Gate, I needed to have a clear image of the place I wanted to teleport to, meaning that I couldn’t travel to a place I’d never seen before. 

Speaking of which, whatever happened to that Hilk church that was destroyed during the chaos while we were out in the empire? For some reason, thinking about all our past adventures brought back a strong feeling of nostalgia. 

Prince Sekt turned to me with a grin. “Well, that’s too bad. I must be going, but I promise to give this task my all, for the future of both our peoples.” 

He gave a shallow bow, turned, and left the room. 

While he certainly played the part of a prince, there was just something about the guy that was utterly reprehensible. Judging by the scowls on their faces, Ariane and Chiyome felt the same.