Chapter 121
Artson, who had created the massive thunderbolt, floated in the air, cackling.
“Ah, how refreshing! Oong! I feel so good!”
After being defeated by the warrior, how humiliated and angry had he been?
He was angry at Lani for not informing him of the warrior’s true strength, and he was so furious he wanted to tear that warrior apart and kill him right away.
However, Lani could not be found, and he dared not challenge the warrior to a fight.
So, for a while, he had been trembling with rage, suffering in silence.
– The warrior has a daughter.
– Lani wanted to kill that daughter.
Artson heard the story of the warrior’s daughter from Yan, the leader of the spirits. Daphne, Daphne! How immense was the thrill that swept over him the moment he heard that name!
If he killed Daphne, the warrior would be frustrated by the sorrow of losing his daughter, and Lani would be angry because he snatched her prey. Wouldn’t that be killing two birds with one stone!
With that goal, Artson had come all the way here after hearing information from Yan to find Daphne.
“But, hmm. To die in just one hit. Isn’t she a bit too weak?”
Artson grumbled as he looked down at the ground hollowed out by his lightning.
“Even if she’s just a brat and a human, I thought she’d be able to play with me for at least a little bit….”
It was a bit disappointing that she died in a single blow like this.
But what did that matter? He had already succeeded in achieving his goal!
“No! The important thing is that I killed that Daphne, and I can screw over both the warrior and Lani! Oong! I’m so excited!”
“Who are you going to screw over?”
“The warrior and Lani!”
“Why?”
“Well, because those guys made me angry… Wait, what?”
Artson’s face crumpled as he answered the voice casually. Artson turned his head with a stiff movement as if a mechanical creaking sound would occur, and as soon as he did, he could find Daphne standing right behind him.
“You.”
Black ash was smeared on Daphne’s face, and the tips of her hair were curled from being burnt.
Was that why? The anger filling Daphne’s expression was even more vivid.
“You’re a dragon.”
“……Huh?”
“Dragon. Blue. Right?”
Artson’s eyes rolled around as he clutched his head. How did she recognize him? He hadn’t shown any sign of being a dragon at all? In fact, even now, his body was in a polymorphed human state, so just how?
“Just how did you……!”
“How did I find out?”
Swoosh!
A black whip that surged from behind Daphne’s back flew toward Artson. Uh, uh-oh?
“It’s because I have the nose of a dog, you crazy reptile!”
This wasn’t how it was supposed to go.
***
“Ugh…… Thank you, thank you. If it weren’t for you, Mage, my son would have surely died. Thank you. Thank you so much!”
A middle-aged woman said as she bowed repeatedly to Shio. Shio smiled bitterly and shook his head.
“You are injured as well, Mother, so please go over there and receive treatment.”
The place Shio pointed to was where Teiti was located.
Teiti was sitting in the middle of the village, continuously treating patients who had suffered burns or appeared to have broken bones.
“Why on earth do I have to do this…… Ha…….”
Teiti let out repeated sighs, feeling skeptical about his life, or rather, his elf-life. It was only natural that the patients were walking on eggshells around him.
“Lord Teiti?”
Shio said while putting out a fire in a nearby house.
“Why don’t you fix your expression? You’re scaring the people.”
“Don’t even talk about my expression. I’m barely holding it together right now, you know?”
Teiti glared at Shio with sharp eyes as if a surge of anger was rising.
“Hey. If you just cross this mountain, it’s the elf village. Daphne said it herself, let’s visit the village once. The home where I was born and raised is in a place close enough for her to say that! Do you understand what I mean?”
He shouted through gritted teeth.
“It means those damn black magicians might have even gone to my village!”
It was a natural way to think.
Since there were five black magicians here based on what had been identified so far, it was reasonable to think there were many more black magicians besides them. It was also natural to worry in advance that they might cross the mountain range.
“I’m so worried I feel like I’m going crazy, but because of orders, I have to stay here! I’m forced to treat these damn humans that I don’t even want to touch! But you want me to manage my expression too? Are you kidding me right now?”
“…….”
Shio looked down at Teiti with a flat gaze.
If a problem had occurred in the elf village, Teiti would have known immediately. Because the race known as elves were beings through whom telepathy could pass.
Judging by the fact that no contact had come yet, the elf village was safe.
However, Teiti was worrying about the elf village.
Even though things had already happened here, in the human village, and people were dying.
“Lord Teiti, you are worried about your family.”
“Of course!”
“Since you haven’t received any contact, there shouldn’t be any problems there yet, but these people here are those who have lost their families.”
Shio took a breath as he looked around at the people who were trembling.
“In the middle of a village that is already a mess, shouting that helping people is annoying and shouting that you want to return to a home that is obviously safe…….”
Shio’s cold gaze swept over Teiti’s face.
“It is truly wicked.”
“…….”
Teiti bit the inside of his cheek hard.
Why, why? Isn’t it natural that my family is more precious than these insignificant humans? They’re so weak they’d die off anyway even if it wasn’t for something like this! Why is everyone only nagging at me?
“Do you think I’m the same as…… those insignificant humans?”
In the end, Teiti stopped his healing magic and sprang to his feet.
“The lives of insignificant things are of no use! Whether they live or die, they can’t influence anyone! Even if a hundred weaklings die, will the world change? There is no value in their lives!”
“Lord Teiti.”
“I’m going. Don’t stop me! If Daphne asks, tell her! Tell her I went back!”
At his unfiltered and honest shout, Shio was lost for words. This was because he felt that he wouldn’t be able to change a philosophy that had been lodged in Teiti’s head for hundreds of years with just a few words.
Shio lowered his eyes and smiled bitterly.
He thought they could become good comrades,
But in the end, they wouldn’t be able to be together.
He sighed again while staring at Teiti, who was cutting through the crowd.
It was then.
“Huff, huff, we’ve arrived. Oh, I thought I was going to die.”
“Uah! Arrived!”
The children appeared.
Children who had come down from the mountain almost as if they were rolling……
“Wow, but it doesn’t hurt even though I rolled like this. Pain-relief magic is the best.”
No, that just makes it so you don’t feel pain for a short while. It’s going to really hurt once the magic wears off.
“Hey, hey. Look at this. My arm is broken? But it doesn’t hurt at all.”
“Ooh.”
That’s not something to be impressed by……?
Shio, dumbfounded, looked at the children with his mouth agape, and Teiti also stood with his arms crossed, wearing an expression of disbelief.
But the children didn’t care about the two of them at all.
“What should we do first? Should we put out the fire first?”
“You guys go fetch water, and you guys, let’s start by saving people. Hurry!”
“This way! There are people over here!”
Then, without anyone having to go first, they scattered and squeezed between the people and the debris of the buildings.
In one way, it was a truly virtuous act,
And in another way, it was a truly reckless action.
Teiti shook his head while pressing his hand to his forehead. To waste a life that was barely saved in this manner.
He really didn’t want to be involved with these stupid humans at all.
Teiti, muttering as such, turned his feet again. He intended to leave this place.
However,
“Lord Teiti!”
There was a voice that caught Teiti’s feet.
“Please help over here! There’s a child inside!”
It was none other than Bunny.
“I’ll go in and save the kid, so Lord Teiti, please support this! Quickly!”
Teiti stood still in his place and looked at Bunny.
“……Why?”
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