Chapter 08
The Traitor Elf (1)The Traitor Elf (1)
Actually, the concept of 'sensation' is as vague as the concept of 'soul'. The well-known five senses merely accept external stimuli, but human senses clearly encompass something beyond that.
Sometimes, we feel sensations that cannot be explained. A sudden chill down your spine, a sense of foreboding, or the certainty that someone in front of you is lying.
There's definitely something there, but it's hard to explain precisely what it is.
I slowly drew my sword and closed my eyes.
"...Whew."
Having lived an ordinary life in my past life, I quickly realized that my senses were exceptional.
Today, for instance, I had a feeling that the food at the orphanage wouldn't taste good and could see the beggar in front of me cursing me in his mind.
This made everyday life much more convenient, but the biggest change occurred when I held a sword.
‘It was fascinating the first time I held a sword.’
My senses become sharper in actual combat. There’s no need to face an opponent directly. Just holding the sword changes the world I see.
Srrng-
The sword slid out of its sheath and revealed itself. It was quite a decent sword, given to me when I became a guard captain. As I carefully opened my eyes, the world appeared different from just moments ago.
Woooong-
The sword radiated a fierce aura like a flash of lightning.
A smile naturally spread across my face as I felt this sensation after a long time.
I extended my foot diagonally and swung the sword down from above. My sharp senses read the path of the sword, and there was no hesitation in my movements.
Whoosh-
I raised the sword again and looked into the empty space.
Typical of medieval fantasy, the sword was absurdly heavy, but thanks to mana, I didn't have to make a fool of myself by being dragged around by it.
‘Still, heavy is heavy.’
Under the scorching sun, I swung the sword again. Since I hadn't formally learned swordsmanship, I had no sword techniques. I simply mimicked the movements of swordsmen I had seen in real battles.
My strong, high-performance body faithfully executed my thoughts. I lunged forward and slashed at the chest, then thrust the sword into the solar plexus. I lowered my body and retreated, then rammed my shoulder into the opponent to push them back. I brought the sword down to smash the head of the staggered opponent.
My body moved as I thought about how to efficiently cut down the opponent. It wasn't just my arms swinging wildly. My legs, waist, back, and shoulders—all parts of my body naturally followed the flow.
How long did I swing the sword?
My clothes, soaked in sweat, clung to my back, and my limbs trembled and ached.
‘Any more movement and I might get hurt.’
My sharp senses clearly informed me of my physical condition. I brushed off the regret and sheathed the sword.
To be honest, practicing with the sword is tiring but quite enjoyable. There's an old saying that a genius can't beat a diligent person, and a diligent person can't beat someone who enjoys the work.
‘What a load of crap.’
In this life, I’ve realized the secret behind that saying. Enjoying work itself means being a genius at it. If you learn one thing and grasp two and realize three, how could you not enjoy it?
I was the same.
I hadn’t learned swordsmanship, but I rose to the rank of guard captain with a sword learned by mere observation.
“If only I had just enjoyed the perks of being a guard captain... Sigh, what a lousy life.”
I raised my arm to wipe away the sweat trickling down my eyelids. Holding a sword usually puts me in this state. My sensitive senses drain my mental and physical energy even without much movement.
“That’s why it’s hard to wield a sword.”
I need to control these senses better, but I haven’t reached that level yet. It would be helpful to meet a swordsman who relies on their senses like me, but I’ve never encountered such a person.
“...Hmm?”
I suddenly felt a gaze and turned my head. Somehow, a fox had approached and was looking at me.
“What the...?”
What is a fox doing here? Could it be a polymorph dragon? The thought of a dragon made my body stiffen.
Haak-! Haak-!
However, the fox approached with a gentle expression and started hissing. Its behavior was clearly that of a wild animal.
“Why is a fox hissing like a cat...?”
I could tell the fox was staring intently at me. It was cute, but didn’t hissing mean it disliked me?
“Ah, do you want this?”
I rummaged through my pocket and pulled out some jerky. It’s a must-have snack for guards, something to munch on when bored.
Haak-! Haak-!
Seeing its enthusiastic response, it seemed the jerky was indeed its target.
“Alright. Even animals need to eat to survive. Are you struggling here too?”
Does this fox know it’s in the eye of the storm? I’ll take you to the orphanage before the Ghost King goes berserk.
Haak-! Haak-!
The fox rubbed its head against my leg as if in agreement. I tore off a piece of jerky and tossed it in front of my shoe. The fox pounced on it with glowing eyes.
Chomp chomp chomp-
“You eat well.”
The fox buried its face in the jerky and began eating immediately. It seemed to eat better than the dog we had at the orphanage.
‘That dog was adorable too…’
Remembering it, I crouched down and petted the fox’s head. It didn’t resist, which meant it was somewhat accustomed to human touch.
Instead, it lowered its head further to make it easier for me to pet. Finding this endearing, I offered the entire piece of jerky.
“You’re a smart one, aren’t you?”
“Vermiel the Third? Where are you? Vermiel the Thir…”
Then, I heard a familiar voice. Looking up, I saw Reina with her hands cupped around her mouth, scanning the area. Our eyes met.
“Vermiel the Third…?”
She looked at the fox, now happily munching on jerky at my feet, then back at me before turning away. I called out to her.
“Reina.”
“…”
Thud—
Reyna halted at my call. She seemed worried I might ask her to do something, considering I was her “Oppa” in name. But I was a gentleman.
“You don’t have to call me ‘Oppa’ when Gant isn’t around.”
“You’re not going to snitch to Gant, right, Rael Oppa?”
“Don’t worry. Honestly, I’d prefer not to be called that by an elf older than me.”
Reina, despite looking my age, was over 100 years older. Elves have their coming-of-age ceremony at 100 years old, which they must complete before leaving their forest.
She’s older than my grandfather in my previous life, yet she calls me ‘Oppa.’ It’s quite the experience.
“Older? I’m only 150. That’s like 15 in human years.”
“...What kind of nonsense is that? 150 is 150.”
A hundred-year-old monster claiming to be 15 is absurd.
“What, think what you want. Humans are short-lived, so we elves have different standards. By the way, that’s surprising. This little one usually hates being touched by humans. Even Yuri and Gant took a long time to get close.”
Reina cautiously approached and petted Vermiel the Third, or rather, the fox.
“Really? This tame fox?”
The way it accepted jerky, it seemed like a street animal.
“It’s not a fox, it’s a spirit beast. Its soul’s level is different. A regular human would feel their knees buckle just looking at it. To it, ordinary humans are no more than beasts.”
“Ah…”
Again with the soul stuff. I’ve been hearing about souls a lot recently. If I had known it was this important, I would have done something about it sooner.
“You secretly let me off the hook on my promise with Gant and Vermiel the Third likes you. Rael, you’re nicer than I thought.”
Reina smiled brightly, praising me.
I hadn’t done much, but she called me kind. Maybe it was because I stopped her from calling me ‘Oppa.’
‘She’s surprisingly innocent.’
By the way, being called innocent isn’t a compliment. In this harsh world, maintaining innocence equates to being crazy. It’s the same for non-humans.
While working as a guard for the Empire, I met many non-humans. Most were jaded by the human world.
‘Except for a few exceptions.’
But occasionally, there are those who maintain their innocence. Reina seemed to be one of those, despite being out of the elf forest for quite some time.
‘There’s always a reason behind everything.’
I’ve learned from surviving in a fantasy world that suspicious things should always be questioned. There’s only one reason why an elf can remain innocent despite their age.
‘...She’s incredibly strong.’
She’s so strong that no one dares to argue with her. She can maintain her innocence and even foolish opinions because anyone who opposes her is silenced by her strength. That explains why she spends her days lying in a hammock.
‘The craziest person is always the scariest.’
Yuri is extremely sensible, and while Gant is strong, he’s not the type to suddenly attack people. But Reina is unpredictable.
‘I’d better keep my distance from this crazy elf.’
I decided to step back quietly. However, Reina, unaware of my thoughts, smiled brightly.
“It’s perfect timing. I’m going to District 2 tomorrow and need someone who knows the way. Will you come with me?”
“…”
Haaak- Haaak-
The fox pawed at my shoe, as if encouraging me to go. Its whole body communicated its intent, almost as if to say, “Do you want to see what happens if you don’t?”
‘Spirits are indeed spirits.’
But I’m not an ordinary person either. I responded firmly.
“Of course, I should help. I’m a kind person.”
“Really? You’re a nice human after all.”
“Yep. Absolutely.”
I nodded, wearing a gentle smile.
*
The next day. After getting permission from Yuri, I strolled through the shopping district of District 2 with Reyna.
"Hmm-hmm-. Hmm-hmm-."
Click. Click.
Reyna was walking beside me, humming cheerfully.
“What are we here for?”
“There’s a new convenience store with an opening sale.”
“…”
You called me for that? Was I brought along as a pack mule?
I continued with a disgruntled expression.
“So, are you treating me to lunch for helping you?”
“Huh? Why?”
“...Never mind.”
This creature doesn’t understand common sense.
‘If she weren’t a close aide to the future emperor, I’d flip this place upside down. She’s lucky, this elf.’
I’m not scared because she might be stronger than me. I quietly followed Reyna.
“Here we are. Let’s hurry inside before it gets crowded!”
She was right. There was indeed a new store having an opening sale. I followed Reina inside. She immediately headed to the butcher section and started scrutinizing the meat.
“Hmm… What should I get today? Last time, it was chicken…”
I watched her mumbling to herself and asked,
“Is this for the fox?”
“For Vermiel the Third, not a fox.”
Reyna didn’t even look at me as she put meat into her basket. She was buying an astonishing amount of meat.
“That’s a lot of meat for such a small animal. It could last a lifetime.”
“No? It’s for me.”
“...Can elves even eat meat?”
“What do you mean by that?”
That’s what I want to ask. This crazy elf.
“Don’t elves have to be, um, vegetarians? Shouldn’t you love nature?”
“We love the forest, not nature. So, we eat meat, not plants. Are you stupid?”
“…”
Her logic was absurdly convincing. It’s ridiculous for me to dictate what elves should do, but… Isn’t this a bit strange?
“Humans’ stereotypes are the problem. While some elves are vegetarians, many, like me, eat meat. Maybe 5 out of 100?”
“If 95% are vegetarians, you’re the exception…”
What a weird elf. I always thought elves were noble, beautiful, and elegant… But she’s just a pretty troublemaker. Reina was shattering my image of elves.
“North Boar. Hmm, hmm. North Boar is cheap and good.”
Regardless, Reina continued filling her basket with meat. She bought so much meat from the butcher that it drew the attention of everyone around.
“How do you eat it? Don’t tell me you eat it raw?”
“Grilled meat is the best.”
I looked at the meat Reina was picking and tilted my head.
“You buy North Boar’s front legs to grill?”
North Boars are stupid animals that only charge straight ahead, so all their muscle is concentrated in their front legs. Especially North Boars that run around snowy mountains—they’re too tough and usually fed to other animals.
She’s the first person I’ve seen buying that part to grill.
“It’s the cheapest. I can’t afford expensive meat.”
Reyna candidly admitted and continued picking North Boar’s front leg meat.
“…”
Her honest confession opened my heart a little. That’s a very real reason. You’re struggling more than I thought.
‘Come to think of it, she’s always wearing the same clothes.’
Even as a street kid, I remember such times. I used to buy the cheapest, hardest bread from the bakery and slowly dissolve it in my mouth all day—tearful memories.
After the army, that was the first time I tasted bread soaked in tears. I patted Reina’s shoulder as she chose her meat.
“Reina, if you ever need help, just ask.”
“Huh? What’s with you all of a sudden?”
For some reason, I felt a bit more connected to Reina.