5. Bread and Dagger (52)
As a child, I thought of elves as monsters.
It was the fate of those who were born into the nobility of the empire.
Elves have long been enemies of mankind. And since the Empire was the main conflict with them, I was instilled with a negative perception of them.
How many innocent people the elves killed.
I heard that hundreds of private houses were burned, and that they did not hesitate to commit atrocities during the battle. As my hair hadn’t grown yet, I had no choice but to think as follows.
Ah, elves are monster beasts.
It was just beautiful in appearance. Isn’t that why it’s no different from a monster?
But I was no longer the naive kid of those days.
As I got older, my horizons gradually widened. As a result, I realized something.
It wasn’t necessarily only bad people who were criticized.
Power is consolidated by creating enemies. That imaginary enemy becomes a demon or a monster and is considered a target to be thoroughly incinerated.
Maybe the elf was the same.
I thought there would be good people among the elves too. Most will be full of hatred towards humanity, but some will take a more moderate attitude.
So, there were times when I also made up my mind to keep a moderate attitude.
However, the power of fixed thinking was powerful.
I’ve been feeling it for the past few days.
I had no choice but to regard the elves as enemies. As the nobility of the empire, the villains that we must subdue.
It was a deeply rooted perception from childhood.
There was no way I could easily erase this.
Elves still felt unreliable and dangerous to me.
And there is one incident that destroys that world view.
It was happening right now, right in front of my eyes.
“Papa, bread! Was the bread this soft?!”
Isha was asking me with her eyes wide open.
She had a face deeply impressed by the new world of gourmets. If left as it is, it was ready to pour out tears.
It was a little more gentle, but not much different from Ruggett’s reaction.
He shoved the bread into his mouth with a look of admiration.
“Hey, hey! (This, this! Soft!)”
Then, my throat got choked and I hurriedly swallowed the water in one gulp.
It was fortunate that this place was a snowy field. Since the snow was melted and distilled, the drinking water itself was plentiful.
It’s just a matter of storing it without freezing it.
I said with an awkward smile.
“Well, this bag is a special virtue. In fact, the longer the bread is stored, the harder it becomes and the less flavor it has. And most of all, it contains a lot of seasonings like sugar… … .”
“Sugar!”
The cheers the elves showed in every single word I said were quite enthusiastic.
The same goes for the elf woman who introduced herself as ‘Miera’. She was called ‘Aunt Miera’ because she was older than Isha, but to be honest, I couldn’t tell the difference.
Both looked just like my age.
Indeed, it was like an elf that aging did not occur until just before death.
That gorgeous auburn hair was impressive.
Aunt Miera asked me with twinkling eyes.
“Have you heard of sweet stones? There is a record that we elves used it for cooking in the distant past… … .”
“Are the records of that time still handed down?”
“then! We cherish our traditions. Also, since it has a long lifespan, if you lose it, there are many people who will use it again as soon as they remember it… Well, if you’re curious, can you tell me the traditional recipe of our elves?”
It was an interesting story.
If so, there was a possibility that records from thousands of years ago were also preserved. Could it be that there is information about the Dark Church?
To be honest, I was curious about the traditional dishes of the elves thousands of years ago.
It was a dish from when I was staying in the Great Forest. Since they were driven to the northernmost part of the continent, it would be impossible to obtain the ingredients of the time.
But what if it could be reproduced with the ingredients I have?
Wouldn’t this also be useful to earn the favor of the elves?
Actually, it was a meaningless worry.
The elves were showing a surprisingly favorable public opinion with just one piece of bread.
It was not like those who had lived under persecution for hundreds of years.
Rather, it was more like a simple country man.
I was particularly perplexed by that.
I feel like I’m no different from people in my hometown.
“Thank you for letting me know. I want to get as much information as possible. Then I feel like my memories will come back… … .”
“Oh, what a pity.”
Aunt Miera immediately gave a compassionate look.
He seemed to have a lot of sympathy for him, even having a child. Originally, it was a feeling that was difficult for hungry and poor people to have.
I’m so busy living right now that I’m dying, so who will take care of me?
Compared to him, the elves had a more tolerant character.
Is it because I live a long time?
Aunt Miera comforted me as if not to worry.
“Don’t worry too much, kid. I heard that there was a human with a sword and an axe, so I was very scared, what! But now that I see it, it’s reliable, and they even give me bread… … .”
“Isn’t there much difference between us?”
The elf who agreed was a muscular man called ‘Dolph’.
He said he was a carpenter in the village. Plus the woodcutter, the builder, and so on.
It was a common occurrence in small rural villages.
“I like it… Most of all, it’s touching that you came all the way here to save that little elf. Even among elves these days, it’s hard to show this kind of kinship.”
“Yes, stay here for a while and think slowly. To be honest, things aren’t going well for us… As soon as you get your memories back, you’ll have time to get ready to leave.”
Miera, Dolph, and even Ruggett.
The elves who were kind to me were like this. Other than that, they were still looking at me with wary eyes.
Of course, after giving the bread, I felt some gratitude.
Still, it was more mild treatment than I had imagined. I was a bit confused.
They weren’t the elves I thought they were.
I expected them to be more hostile to humans, and to be a cruel and ferocious race that was entangled in numerous eunuch relationships.
All of the people I met immediately seemed ordinary.
Only in this way is it no different from mankind?
I suddenly felt my airways constrict. I suddenly stopped breathing.
comes to mind
Countless elves who fell in front of my sword and axe.
Before I could not stand it and knocked on my chest.
“Anyway, humans are humans!”
A high-pitched voice hit my ear.
On the contrary, the sudden accusation took my breath away. I turned my head in the direction from which the shouting came.
Sitting there was a boy who looked to be in his mid-to-late teens.
Ruggett patted my side and whispered.
“That’s ‘Old Man Pope’.”
Is it inspiration?
I was even more surprised by the name. Rather, he looks younger than the elves around him.
Pope was looking at me very frowning.
Untouched bread was left in front of him. Judging from the quick glances, it seemed that he wanted to eat it, but his pride didn’t seem to allow it.
As the eyes of the crowd focused on him, he raised his voice even more.
“Humans are all unreliable! Did everyone forget about it after being hit like that?! Why have we been pushed all the way to the north where there is nothing to eat!”
Old Pope couldn’t contain his anger and jumped up.
The thump, thump, the foot pounding the ground gave an idea of the size of the anger.
As far as the way he behaved, his inspiration was right.
Hmmm, I swallowed and looked at Pope.
I wasn’t angry. On the contrary, I was relieved to see him.
Yes, that’s how it is, an elf.
It felt like my distorted worldview was gradually being restored. Breathing, which had been clogged up until just before, became smoother.
Old Pope glared at me with hateful eyes.
“I am still clear before my eyes! Those devil-like humans who attacked our village… Yes, he was a knight with a nice sword like you.”
“Old Man Pope… … .”
In the end, it was Ruggett who intervened.
He and Isha seemed to be trusted by the village elves. In other words, it could be said that he was the leader of the village.
A voice close to begging came from the man’s mouth.
“Of course, humans should be vigilant. But you’re the one who protected our elf’s child, right? There’s no way a child who has even received a “blessing” would lie… That’s right, old Pope? He also received a ‘blessing’, so you know that well.”
“Kuhm!”
Received a ‘blessing’
That was interesting information. My eyes again scanned old Pope’s body.
From the outside, it looked just like a small child with dark green hair. But to think that the hideous flesh that dwelled in Avian or the snow leopard demon was still there.
Pope spread his shoulders wide, unable to hide his pride.
“Isn’t that because Leoric-sama also acknowledged my faith?”
“Thanks to that, you sent a lot of game to headquarters. The only elf responsible for the meat in our village is the old man.”
“At that time, I thought I would catch more game if I just got a ‘blessing’!”
Perhaps there was something stabbing in his heart, Pope was so moved by Ruggett’s point.
Of course, there was no way the seeds would be eaten.
When Ruggett shook his head incredulously, Pope cleared his throat a few more times before turning his back. And a few last words before leaving.
“Anyway, don’t trust humans! Listen to me, everyone, or you will regret it!”
“Old man, you should eat some bread before you go!”
“Heh, who knows it might have been poisoned?”
In the end, Ruggett sat down in place as if he had given up.
He got up to stop Pope, but seemed to realize that it was useless.
The sound of Isha secretly clicking her tongue was heard.
“You’re still the same, old Pope… … .”
It was a conversation that something was wrong.
Curious, I sneaked up to Isha’s side and asked.
“What is he doing?”
“It’s a surprise!”
Isha was taken aback by my silent approach.
Round eyes turned to me, but I remained calm. I asked again.
“What have I done wrong? I think old Pope doesn’t like me… … .”
“That’s because you’re human!”
Is Isha trying to comfort me or is she blaming me?
He continued speaking in a confused tone.
“Old Pope lost his family to humans in the past… The disaster happened while we were living peacefully in the village.”
“We live peacefully, but there was an attack?”
“Yes, that’s what you humans do!”
Isha stared at me in disgust and began to growl.
It seemed quite resentful.
“You think you’re the only old Pope?! Many elves died of starvation because you periodically burned down the warehouse! At least there are hunters like old man Pope, so I’m not starving to death… … .”
I listened silently and nodded my head.
It was an interesting story.
“You must have been a hunter.”
“… … Hey, are you listening to me?”
Of course I was listening.
only what you need.
I finished the calculation in my mind.
To be honest, I was more comfortable with Pope than I was with Ruggett or Aunt Miera. He hated me, even if he only saw the way he hated me.
It was just like the elf I knew.
A relationship in which angles can be set up as needed and swords can be clashed.
It was ideal.
Because one day I had to leave the elven village.
It was best not to leave even a handful of regrets.
And again he seemed to know many secrets.
From Leoric’s ‘blessing’ to the army that was said to have raided the peaceful elven village.
I thought I should try to increase contact with him.
“Hey, I’m just saying that just in case… Don’t mess around with a knife? Even if you look like that, old man Pope is a very strong hunter who once hunted a snow leopard beast!”
it’s hunting
I fiddled with the sword and hatchet strapped to my waist.
It was not a bad hobby.