Chapter 173
“A stupidly strong object was created,” Davey exclaimed.
The Transcendence’s Demise did not exist in the Tionis continent, but Atrellia, the continent of magic, which was another dimension for Davey.
Clang~ With a clear ringing sound, the staff that hadn’t fully bounced off the barrier stopped in mid-air due to an invisible force. At the same time, a red wave spread out and created a breeze. Then, light seeped out from the staff’s magic crystal and surrounded the very small barrier.
“Oh my…”
The shining barrier soon grew larger, defying all logic.
Davey would’ve had to pour mana into it and work for months, not days, to slowly increase the size if he had to make it himself. Fortunately, the Transcendence’s Demise possessed powers that could achieve the same in a short period of time while maintaining that close balance between powers.
It could alter its size and strength of any kind of magic that one used; it could make the giant Sun with magic, and it could make it as small as a spoon if the Transcendence’s Demise could handle that level of magic. Conversely, it could take something the size of a ball, something a little larger than a spoon, and make it huge.
The staff was almost a divine weapon that could make fireballs over thirty meters wide. Fitting as Odin’s most treasured item, which was said to have been blessed by God, one of the enemies destroyed by the Transcendence’s Demise was an ancient dragon. And that dragon was even known as the possessor of magic.
The vast energy that absorbed the surrounding power by colliding and circulating around slowly stabilized and created an unexplainable phenomenon. The mana needed to make this barrier larger was about the same battery power needed to start a car. Davey was feeling pretty exhausted from using quite a lot of mana, but he wouldn’t have been able to handle his disappointment if he simply gave up for that reason.
“Ah… Let’s make the transportation portal next time. This uses a lot more mana than I expected.”
“This…is unbelievable. I don’t know a lot about magic… But how is this possible?”
Yuria seemed shocked by the staff’s ridiculous power that was able to expand the barrier to cover the entire forest while minimizing the loss of effectiveness. Actually, she wasn’t the only one who was shocked.
The other elves looked the same way. There was almost a sense of respect and awe as they saw Davey instantly create a huge barrier in such an unexpected way.
—Oh my… You can ignore any laws and either enlarge or minimize magic… Davey!!
‘No, I don’t want it. Stop.’
—Bad guy! Don’t do that!
Perserque frowned sadly as she pulled Davey’s hair.
—Keugh… If only… If only I had a body!
The wide magic circle slowly merged into the ground and fully stabilized, disregarding whatever Perserque had to say.
“Well then, I should give it a test run.”
Davey had been stabbed in the back once, so who was to say that it wouldn’t happen again? If the divine will put a lock on the item because it possessed the power to ignore all laws and nerfed it without him knowing, then he needed to know right away.
* * *
Luckily, the divine will wasn’t that petty. Davey secretly let out a sigh of relief when he saw the barrier safely stabilize and block his attacks without any issues.
“Hahaha! Wise Teacher! It has been a long time! I have been waiting to meet you!”
“Elder Golgouda?”
“I was waiting for you to return, but it seems you did something huge once again?”
“Well, it just happened to be so. I also have something I wanted to discuss with you.”
“Hm, what a coincidence. I actually came to get Goulda, since the Mining Festival is happening soon.”
“Mining Festival?”
Elder Golgouda chuckled at Davey’s question before saying, “Well, it’s that festival: the dwarves’ largest festival. It’s a semi-annual event that happens twice a year!”
It was a time for dwarves to worship and celebrate the God of Iron. Best part, he wasn’t even real.
“Although we can’t tell whether it exists or not, it’s like a superstition of some sort. As such, all elders must participate…”
Davey’s eyes sparkled as he quietly stroked his chin.
“Wait.”
Currently, dwarves and humans were living together in harmony in the Heins Territory. However, there were only a few dwarves, and unlike regular residents, they hadn’t fully settled here. Naturally, conflicts between different kinds could arise over their unfamiliar existence. The solution was to instill familiarity and promote equality as they were all residents of the Heins Territory.
—Think carefully. It could backfire and make things worse.
“You’re right…” Davey murmured.
Elder Golgouda tilted his head in puzzlement. “What’s the matter?”
“Ah, nothing. Do all the tribes gather for this festival?” Davey asked.
“Hahaha! No, each tribe holds their own festival within their tribe.”
Davey squinted at that revelation. It was a specialty that would be different from anything and anywhere; something that would be unique to the Heins…
“That festival… Have you thought about having it here?”
“Huh?”
“I have just obtained a very nice item. I am thinking of investing a bit of magic stones in making a transportation portal between this place and the dwarf village.”
“A… A transportation portal!”
“Yes, it won’t be compatible with mana gates since it has a different structure. And other people won’t be able to go into the village whenever they want.”
“Hm…” Elder Golgouda slowly nodded as he thought about what Davey had just said. Then, he looked up at Davey like he realized something. “Is it to get rid of the strange awkwardness between the humans here and us dwarves…”
“Well, publicly, it is a festival for the ones who have worked hard to develop the territory.”
“Hm.
The real reason was for the harmony of humans, dwarves, and…the elves who were now going to be seen more often in the territory. Although, it was still up to them to choose to reveal their identity or not.
It was actually because of the World Tree’s Covenant that the elves had hidden themselves away. However, the elves in the Moon Forest had no reason to keep that covenant now. In fact, Yuria actually proposed that they should show themselves as the Heins Territory’s residents to truly turn away from the World Tree. Was she reckless? Maybe; she was probably blindly trusting Davey, but it was definitely a bold decision.
However, Davey had given the elves some time at least as they were still wary about it. Although he understood their concerns, he heard news a little while later that rendered their concerns meaningless; about two weeks after leaving the forest, the news that had rattled the western kingdoms had traveled to the eastern continent.
* * *
“Sir Davey, did you hear the news? There’s a rumor that someone saw elf-looking beings in the western continent.”
“E…Elves?”
The people who heard the news were Winley, who was very surprised, Yulis, who smiled softly, and Elder Golgouda, who was here to discuss the matter about the festival.
“B… But aren’t elves beings from fairy tales? There is a record of elves in the ancient books, but no one has seen elves in real life.”
There was a good example of this: a story of a foolish king. A young king of a kingdom in the central continent had combed through the entire continent to find these elves. Some critics said that he had gone mad due to fantasizing about elves, who only existed in fairy tales. However, he kept on going for ten to twenty years…only to find nothing. The kingdom was forced into subjugation to a nearby kingdom after the treasury ran out; he had been sending funds to other kingdoms for exploration and the exploration team. As this was a time when people were actively going to war, they were forcibly occupied by force. However, the king’s last words on the execution stand were quite famous.
[Elves exist. I have seen them, and they were chillingly beautiful.]
These last words of a mad king were remembered as a famous saying amongst the territory’s busybodies. It would be weird if people didn’t know this story, since there was a fable about elves and the foolish king of the Mulk Kingdom that children of nobility learned about.
As Winley spoke doubtfully upon hearing the news, Elder Golgouda cleared his throat and asked, “Ahem! Do you two humans not believe in elves?”
“Well, I can’t be sure, but…”
“Elves exist.”
Yulis and Winley were intrigued by Elder Golgouda’s statement.
“Well, I only heard this from my father, but apparently… My grandfather used to say that he didn’t have a good relationship with elves.”
Winley was fascinated, as if she was hearing old tales from an old grandpa. She blurted out, “R… Really?! Are there any other stories?!”
“Um… I am curious as well. If it isn’t too much trouble…”
“Pahahah! I’m sorry. I wouldn’t know because I haven’t seen them myself. As there’s an old saying that dwarves and elves are not on good terms, I do not know much about those weak pointy ears. We just consider them real.”
The two could not hide their disappointment.
“Sir Davey, you have guests.”
Then, the quiet window opened and Rinne, who was playing outside with Red and Blue Ribbon, hopped into the room.
“Kyah! R… Rinne! How come you look like that?!”
Rinne calmly brushed off the leaves that were stuck on her clothes as Winley screamed, then answered calmly, “Rinne is engaging in intense labor. The energy and activity of Red and Blue Ribbon exceeds expectations computed by Rinne’s computational circuit… Children’s energy is infinite…”
‘That’s right. I waved the white flag in six hours when I was playing with Red and Blue ribbon.’
Perserque, who was more patient, could last about twelve hours playing with the two girls.
Rinne glared at Davey, then said in exhaustion, “Sir Davey, requiring the materialistic compliment you promised. Will go on strike if not met. Rinne is highly considering that option.”
“There should be some bread that the chef has prepared in the kitchen. Go and eat it. Anyways, a guest is here?”
“Ah.” Remembering her original purpose of coming here, Rinne gestured over to the door with her head.
A small rustle could be heard. Davey didn’t have to see who it was to figure out his mystery guest’s identity. The scent of being contracted to a high-rank water spirit was pretty intense.
“I didn’t forget your promise that you’re going to take responsibility.”