INAT - Chapter 90

“Yes, but..."

" I am not suggesting we proceed immediately; I am simply pointing out that this is another option, so please do not feel too much pressure."

"...All right."

I muttered softly as I looked down at the hand I was holding with Thierry. Then, I could see the veins bulging in Thierry's hand as he tightened his grip slightly.

"I keep saying this: if you don't like it, I won't do it."

As I looked up, he whispered softly. The look of hurt from just moments ago was gone, and I felt a strange sensation at his change in demeanor, as if he were calmly trying to soothe me.

"I'm only going to do what you say."

We were so close that my face was clearly reflected in his red eyes. Lately, it felt like this precarious distance was repeating itself more and more, but the problem was that I didn't dislike it. It wasn't even burdensome; I was just worried that he might hear my heart beating so fast.

...Heart sound?

Come to think of it, why is my heart beating so fast? My chest feels tight, and why is my breathing trembling like this?

I was startled, like someone struck by lightning, by the change in myself that I realized belatedly. This was because, although I was thinking about him, I was unable to give a definite answer since it was unclear whether this interest was romantic.

But given the situation, I wondered if I could really be sure that I didn't see him as a romantic interest.

Startled. Blinking, I scanned his face close by. Deep red eyes, a sculpted nose, and soft-looking moist lips...

"Oh my!"

“Ellie?”

I'm crazy. Me. What am I doing?

I don't know why, for a moment, my gaze was drawn to his lips as if I were possessed by something. Although he couldn't possibly hear my thoughts, I recoiled and glanced around nervously, feeling guilty for no reason.

"Uh?"

Before we knew it, we were the only ones left in the empty room. I wondered when on earth they had left without a sound. I muttered blankly as I looked at the empty spot where Oscar and Wagen had been.

"When did everyone leave?" 

"I just said everything I needed to say."

Thierry was nonchalant, as if he already knew. Yet, he naturally tried to close the distance again. Feeling that I couldn't go on like this, I sprang up from my seat.

"What's the matter?"

"Um, just thinking I’d take a look out the window..."

Being a man and a woman pressed together in a secluded room, I might be getting swept up in a strange atmosphere for no reason. Thinking I needed to lighten the mood, I shook my hand off his and walked quickly to the window.

"Ah. But what kind of punishment is usually given for disobeying the Emperor's command?"

And I tried my best to change the subject. Although I had blurted it out impulsively, I was actually curious about it, so I added something.

"Sir Oscar doesn't seem like the type to shy away from punishment, so it's a bit strange to see him suddenly get scared."

"Ah."

Thierry, who had been quietly watching me while leaning back on the sofa, drew out the end of his sentence languidly.

“It’s because of probation.”

"Probation? Isn't that a reasonable amount?"

"That bastard would probably rather receive a different punishment; it absolutely cannot stand being cooped up at home."

"If it were Sir Oscar, that would be understandable..." 

It made perfect sense. As I nodded with a look that said, "If that man is stupid, I understand," Thierry tilted his head and slightly narrowed his eyes.

"Ellie, if you're done looking out the window, come here. Okay?"

He placed his hand on the spot where I had been sitting and stroked it slowly. His overly languid appearance strangely drew my gaze. It felt as if he were letting me slip away.

Enough to find myself approaching him without even realizing it.

"Your Majesty, it is urgent!"

Fortunately, the door bursting open jolted me back to reality. Seeing Wagen reappear so quickly, I hurriedly stood by the window and stared out for no reason when Thierry let out a deep sigh from behind me.

"Ha, again..." 

***

In the quiet room, the elves gathered around a round table and exchanged wary glances.

The reactions of the elders, whose wrinkled eyes twitched incessantly, varied. While some wore expectant expressions, others looked anxious, but their gazes were all fixed on Iker, who stood with his back to the window.

"They say the summoning spell was successfully left in the Imperial Palace."

"Haha, at this rate, we will be able to serve her with ease."

It was the elders, looking satisfied, who spoke first. They smiled broadly at Iker, who was watching them with his arms crossed over his chest, and nodded repeatedly. They appeared completely unconcerned about even the slightest mistake.

While it might have been a small mistake for them, in a way, it was a huge gamble for the elves, making it a dangerous situation.

"...This plan was too hasty." 

"That is right. Even if we are using humans, we treated them too simply as disposable pawns. At this rate, wouldn't we have no choice but to step forward ourselves and take the lead?"

The elders, who had begun to speak as if they could no longer bear it, wore faces that looked like they had a headache. As if the situation was simply baffling. There were also eyes that looked quite contemptuously at the elders who were mindlessly delighted.

They were people who had, from the start, engaged in less than necessary interaction with humans. However, as they became deeply involved in the government and even went so far as to shake the empire, it was obvious that if the location of the village were discovered, they would face a bloody purge at the hands of the Emperor.

In fact, they were initially enthusiastic about this plan as well. Since their secluded existence was partly due to being outmatched by humans, they considered the plan to summon a dragon incarnation to solidify their base to be an excellent idea.

Moreover, seeing how slowly and carefully he put in the effort, they thought the results wouldn't be bad, but recently, they were growing increasingly dissatisfied with Iker, who was suddenly taking action.

"In fact, there are those who are opposed to this plan. Recently, backlash has been occurring among the young elves. If risks continue to arise like this, we will have no choice but to halt the plan." 

Iker, who had been watching them indifferently, smirked.

“Whose will it be?”

It was clearly a beautiful yet chilling smile. The elders all flinched and shivered, feeling a chill run down their spines.

"Didn't you expect there to be some major hurdle anyway..." 

Iker uncrossed his arms and reached back to rest on the windowsill. Leaning slightly, Iker slowly tilted his head to the side.

"Or were you trying to get it for free?"

"Th-that is not it. To use the summoning spell left in the Imperial Palace, a large number of elves would have to move. Given that even the elves who barely managed to escape are being chased, I was worried that it might be too dangerous a choice..."

The elderly elf bowed his head as if addressing a being he dared not even look up to, and barely managed to speak.

At first, he naturally assumed that Iker had carried out all these plans for the sake of the elves, but now he was increasingly doubting Iker's true intentions.

One day 13 years ago, Iker suddenly arrived. No one knew what he had been doing all that time, but the elders were simply overwhelmed with emotion at meeting the legendary being in person.

There was no room for doubt. It was an instant to be captivated by Iker, who demonstrated his power, claiming that he had been able to live in the same form for a long time thanks to the Dragon Heart left behind by the dragon before it died.

Iker went on to say that the Dragon Heart breathing inside him had reacted to something, claiming that this meant the dragon would be returning soon and that they should prepare to welcome it.

They were growing weary of living in hiding for such a long time. Iker's appearance and the meaningful news gave the elders new vitality.

However, following Iker’s opinion that it would be better for only a few people to know his true identity for now, they decided that only the elders would know his real identity, and they agreed with the other elves that he was a descendant of elves who had been living a wandering life and had luckily found this village.

"I will summon the dragon's soul with this spell." 

As if he had been studying a great deal of sorcery for a long time, Iker knew many things not even found in the forbidden books collected by the elves. Especially a spell to transfer a specific soul to another body. It was truly something they had never heard of or seen before.

The elders had no choice but to follow him. For the sake of their better future, and hoping that among the many spells, there might be a way to restore their youth.

"This isn't what I wanted!"

However, contrary to expectations, the spell did not go as planned. They finally located the dragon's soul and attempted to transfer it to another body, but while they were taking it out to do so, the soul of Lari, the original owner of the body, returned, causing them to lose the dragon's soul.

Iker disappeared in a fit of rage. Until he returned seven years later, suddenly claiming to have discovered the location of the soul.

Although they had located the soul, they could not use magic again immediately because the spell required a tremendous amount of magical power. So, instead of using the spell again, Iker devised a plan to bring the dragon to the village himself.

However, they didn't know that the plan would grow so large, spreading like wildfire.

Some elders judged that proceeding further would irreversibly threaten the safety of the elves. Therefore, they wanted to delay the plan, even if it meant buying time, but Iker and the elders who followed him showed no intention of agreeing in the slightest.

"What do you mean! If we stop now, what will become of everything we have done so far?"

"Didn't you foresee that rebellion was going to fail and just watch it unfold anyway!"

"...So I thought he would wait until he had built up his strength. I also considered his feigning to be the royal heir himself to be part of that plan." 

A very timid rebuttal followed, but it was quickly buried.

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