Chapter 34 – Elfriede and Levius
Chapter 34
The Kingdom of Vesta.
It borders the Kingdom of Minerva and the Empire of Mars, and is a kingdom facing the great Ocean of Okeanos to the east.
Since it is located along the ocean, trade naturally developed, and it is a country with a high level of trade, taking charge of trade between the continent of Gaia, where the Kingdom of Vesta is located, and the continent of Uros across the ocean of Okeanos.
If trade is active, wealth accumulates, and when wealth accumulates, the power of the country grows stronger. The Kingdom of Vesta naturally became the most powerful country among the five kingdoms on the Gaia continent.
There was the most powerful aristocratic family in the Kingdom of Vesta, and that was the Duke of Batory’s family. It was the home of Elfriede Bathory, who is regarded as the strongest hero of the current generation.
“Did you call, Father?”
“…Yes, are you here?”
After parting ways with Abel, Elfriede returned to Poculum, the capital of the Kingdom of Vesta, after receiving a call from his family, where he met his father, the head of the household. He had come to ask why he had called him.
“Did you come right away without taking a break?”
“It’s okay. Rather, why did you call me home?”
Elfriede asked as if inquiring. He seemed willing to go back if it was for no reason. Duke Bathory turned a blind eye to her daughter’s attitude and told her.
“Hmm, Elfriede. As you know, it’s the Crown Prince’s birthday soon. Do you know?”
“…Yes, I know.”
“Attend the banquet. I know you’re busy as a hero, but shouldn’t you still attend the birthday banquet of Her Highness the Crown Prince?”
Elfriede was a little dissatisfied with her father’s order, but her father would surely be angry if she refused to attend other events on the pretext of being a warrior. Elfriede nodded her head reluctantly.
“I will.”
“Yeah, well thought out. Go and rest The banquet is tomorrow evening.”
“Yes.”
Coming out of her housekeeper’s office, Elfriede let out a sigh, then narrowed her brows at the sound of her words transmitted directly to her brain. She ignored her words and took her steps back to her room, but she couldn’t stand her constant chatter.
“Luna, you are noisy.”
Luna. It was the name of her self embedded within the Holy Sword of Trust, the holy sword of her Elfride. Luna, her holy sword of trust, didn’t care about her Elfride’s nagging, she kept talking about what she wanted to say to herself.
[I’ve been asking if you’re going to a banquet, but you ignored it! So, are you going to a real banquet? Then you will see a lot of good-looking people, right?]
Not a normal sound transmitted through the ears, but a voice transmitted through thoughts. This was Elfriede’s holy sword self talking to her.
“…Yes, because I need to go.”
[Kyaha! Exciting! Do you know how bored I am when you always refuse to banquet? Ah, look forward to it!]
“…What is there to be bored with the eyes of the sword?”
[Hey, you know that as much as we all have our own selves, there are things we like and dislike, right? Oh right. Since I’m talking about a handsome guy, I want to see him. The new hero this time!]
When Abel’s story came out, Elfriede stopped her steps abruptly.
[Isn’t he really handsome? I’m proud to say that I’ve seen quite a few guys, but I’ve never seen a pretty boy like him. Also, her hair is very rare white hair. When I first saw him, I was really surprised at how handsome he was!]
Even after hearing Luna’s rapid-fire words, Elfriede didn’t take any chances this time around. It was because everything Luna said was judged to be true by Elfriede as well.
Actually, Abel was a very handsome man even to Elfriede. Even she, who grew up watching her younger siblings, was a bit surprised.
From noble mtl dot com.
In addition, he has a good personality. The same hero, Levius, also has a handsome face, but if that personality is a problem, Abel doesn’t have that.
Kind, gentle. On top of that, he had a great attitude as a warrior. It was amazing that a man like him existed.
[Isn’t that right, Elfriede?]
So when Luna asked that question, Elfriede couldn’t deny it.
“…Somewhat true.”
[Right~? Because I’m not making a fuss for nothing. I don’t know how he was born that way. Are your parents very good looking? Right? Apparently, heredity has the most influence on appearance […]
At Luna’s chatter that started again, Elfriede shook her head and headed for her room.
#
The next evening. As scheduled, Elfriede attended a banquet held to celebrate her crown prince’s birthday. It was as if she attended as a representative of the Bathory family, along with her father, the head of the household.
When the two most influential families of the Bathory family, the largest family in the Kingdom of Vesta, appeared together, all the nobles in the Kingdom of Vesta were a little nervous. This was especially true since Elfriede rarely appeared at such events.
Brilliant blond hair that came down to her chest seemed to be soaked in starlight, and her blue eyes seemed to be looking at a clear sky without a single cloud. In addition, Elfriede’s pure white dress blended with her skin today, giving off a harmonious beauty.
The crown prince couldn’t help but pay attention to them. The Crown Prince saw them approaching him and welcomed them with open arms.
“Duke Bathory, welcome. Oh, Princess Bathory, you are here too.”
“Congratulations on your birthday, Your Highness.”
“Congratulations, Your Highness.”
As the two politely handed over their congratulations, Sergio, the crown prince of the Kingdom of Vesta, smiled happily and accepted the congratulations.
“Elfriede, talk to some people. I’m going to talk with Her Highness a little.”
“Yes, Father.”
After hearing the duke’s words, Elfriede left her seat for a while. When Elfride retreated, she gathered around the crown prince her father and other major powers of the Kingdom of Vesta.
‘…It’s still the same.’
Elfriede intended to spend time quietly in a corner of hers.
She herself is famous as a warrior, but as an aristocrat, she doesn’t go to banquets, so she didn’t have close friends. Thanks to her, she didn’t have much to bother with herself.
“Princess Bathory, you look beautiful today too.”
Of course, there were also those who approached her only for her own reputation. Like this man she has been talking to herself now.
A gaze filled with calculating actions and impure intentions approaching in hopes of something. Everything was visible in Elfriede’s eyes.
Elfriede, a warrior with the holy sword of trust, was able to know the intentions of her opponents when approaching her. In that sense, this man…
“Let’s get down to business and get to the point. Ternak English.”
It was the kind that Elfriede didn’t like very much.
“To the point. I just wanted to get acquainted with her princess.”
“Then would you like to go back? I’m a little tired and I want to be alone.”
At Elfriede’s clear order to celebrate, Young-sik Ternak bowed his head in shame and retreated. The other spirits who saw her lost her courage to talk to Elfride and gave up.
[Hey! You’re so handsome, why are you throwing me away!]
“Who kicked me out for…”
If it wasn’t for the Holy Sword of Trust, I wouldn’t have known what the other person was approaching with. However, the person who provided the ability rather bruised himself, and Elfrieda was dumbfounded.
[Originally, human relationships are built on trust, but is there anyone who approaches based on trust from the beginning? You are very young too.]
“Isn’t there? You should have seen it too.”
There was a man who approached me with pure purpose and no other intentions. At Elfriede’s words, Luna refuted.
[He’s unusual! Most humans can’t?]
“Isn’t there another person like that?”
[Ugh, what kind of world did he learn from fairy tales?]
At that time, she saw a familiar face in Elfride’s eyes. She has short cropped red hair and long slit snake eyes. Even the dagger on her waist was familiar to her.
It was Levius Grospel, one of the same warriors as Elfriede. He could understand why he, the hero of the kingdom of Minerva, was here even if he thought about it a little.
“Did you come as an honored guest from another country?”
[Who?…Ah, it’s Levius! Levius is also handsome. Except for the angular personality, it’s really good. By the way, I like the guy I saw earlier more than the guy who looks like Levius?]
“I’m not curious about your taste, Luna.”
While Elfriede did not accompany Cynthia, Levius seemed to have brought all his companions with him. He wondered why he needed to bring his companions to the church among the nobles, but perhaps Levius wanted to show off his position.
“It’s all useless.”
[What are you saying all of a sudden?]
“No.”
Perhaps he looked at him for too long, as if Levius read Elfriede’s gaze and found himself. Levius smiled and approached Elfriede with his comrades.
“Elfriede, long time no see!”
“…Long time no see, Levius.”
It was Levius who greeted Elfriede warmly. Even if he read the inside with his holy sword of trust, Levius had no other intentions. It was really nice to see her reunited with her.
However, unlike Abel, he did not like it. Because, Elfriede knew why Levius welcomed her like this.
He is a member of a prestigious family in the Kingdom of Minerva called the Grospel family. Maybe that’s why, like other nobles, he didn’t regard non-noble people as the same person. It was not once or twice that he showed the gaze of commoners as tools or livestock.
Levius’s affection for Elfriede was also an act that came out of those values.
Because Elfriede was not a commoner, but a nobleman among nobles, the daughter of the Bathory family, the best family in the Kingdom of Vesta.
“I heard the news. You subjugated another Barbatos-class monster in Habsburg City. As expected Elfriede, you are strong.”
“You don’t have to make it pop like that. To be honest, I’m not even sure what I did was right.”
At Elfriede’s answer, Levius made a puzzled expression. As if Elfriede’s words were not understood. But Levius didn’t bother to argue with it.
“Is that so? Still, it’s true that you saved the Habsburg city. Congratulations, you will receive a generous reward at the next regular briefing session.”
“…Yes.”
“By the way, when monsters appeared in the Habsburgs, I heard that he was there too.”
“What about him?”
Elfriede didn’t know at first that Levius was talking about Abel. It was because he thought there was no reason to call his fellow warrior Abel that way. However, Abel was right in what Levius said.
“A warrior from the Empire. Was it named Abel?… To be honest, I can’t even remember the name.”
“Abel is right. Just like you said, he fought alongside me.”
“You said you fought together? It can’t be. How long has he been a hero now, can he fight Barbatos-class monsters?”
“I don’t mean that. He was talking about saving people together.”
“Ah, well… You must have caught an intermediate level monster.”
Elfriede narrowed her eyebrows slightly. From Levius’ way of speaking, she could sense that she was subtly trying to put Abel down.
“It’s been a while since I became a hero, so I can’t help it. Rather, I want to praise the fact that he responded to the call to save people despite his lack of skills.”
“…Elfriede, you are much more pure than I thought.”
At Levius’s words, Elfriede’s expression instantly turned cold.
“…What are you talking about?”
“Did the warrior Abel come with such pure intentions? Elfriede, he must have come to ask for something from your performance.”
“…What?”
“You know, aren’t commoners like that? If there’s an opportunity to get something easily, I’ll rush to it. Even if you’re a hero, you’re basically a commoner. What would be different Elfriede, he must have come to gain even a little bit of merit by being carried on his back by you.”
After saying that, Levius asked his colleague behind him.
“Isn’t that right, Natalie? What else could be the reason a hero who managed to catch even a mid-level monster went there?”
“Uh…Yes, that’s right. But Levius, that…”
“Natalie, what’s wrong all of a sudden?”
Natalie looked ahead cautiously. Levius read her eyes and turned her head again, and she couldn’t help but be startled.
Because the blue eyes were glaring at Levius so coldly. Looking at Elfriede, who was clearly in a bad mood, Levius expressed his doubts.
“Elfriede? Why are you doing that…”
“Levius, do you remember when you first became a hero?”
“Why are you talking about that all of a sudden… Of course I remember. At that time, he received a lot of help from Elfride.”
“The reason I helped you. What do you think?”
Levius still couldn’t get rid of his doubts, but for now, he answered Elfriede’s question.
“Yeah…Isn’t it because you are the same hero?”
“Yeah, I know that.”
You mean you act like this even though you know that? Elfride narrowed her brows and said in a cold voice.
“But why do you, who know that well, keep denigrating him even though you can’t help him?”
“…Elfriede, are you defending that commoner hero?”
Ha ha, Elfriede burst into laughter and scolded him.
“Commons or nobles, what does that matter? It is enough for a warrior to be a warrior. In that sense, Abel is more like a warrior than you.”
Levius’ brow twitched.