Welcome to the Special-Grade Guild! ~ The Beloved Elf Poster Girl Soothes Everyone’s Hearts ~
Chapter 119

119. Residents of the Village

The Demon King and the patriarch vanished in an instant. Well, “vanished” wasn’t quite right. There were explosions, gusts of wind, so I figured… they were just moving too fast for us to see. They were probably battling it out. Even though we couldn’t see them.

“…They’re gradually moving towards the village. It’s better than fighting here in the White Sanctuary. Shall we inform everyone?”

Mara-san said this after letting out a light sigh, then called out to a spirit. It was that large dog spirit who’d guided us from the entrance. She was probably asking it to relay the information to other Water Spirits.

『Master. My apologies for not sensing his presence.』

“Oh, I didn’t either. It’s fine. I apologize, Dillon.”

“…I didn’t notice either. My apologies.”

“Me neither. I guess we’re useless.”

Gil-san and Nika-san, seemingly noticing that she was apologizing to her spirit, interjected. Even Gil-san hadn’t noticed? I could see how incredible the patriarch was.

“Oh my, but you, the Fiery Ring Lion, you altered the trajectory of his attack, didn’t you? And thanks to you, the Shadow Eagle, creating a barrier at the last second, no one was blown away. And he couldn’t destroy this place. I’m grateful. You’re both incredibly skilled, even among humans.”

Wow, Gil-san and Nika-san! They’d been doing all that without me noticing! I guess you have to take precautions before an attack lands. I couldn’t even imagine doing something like that…

“Well, I’m disappointed that I couldn’t do more.”

Nika-san said this, scratching his head sheepishly. But his expression showed that he regretted it. It was incredible enough for me. But then again, I’m just an ordinary person.

“…The Demon King wants to get away from this place. Let’s create a barrier here.”

“Maybe because this is where his beloved is buried. It would help if you could also create one. I’m not confident with mine alone. Ah, and please leave the entrance open. I want to have everyone in the village evacuate here.”

“Alright.”

Mara-san and Gil-san then immediately started creating barriers around this white sanctuary. I couldn’t understand what kind of magic they were using to create the barrier, or what effect it had, but I could tell they were doing something amazing. What’s with this stupid observation…

A while later, the High Elves who lived in the village, summoned by Mara-san, started to gather. I’d expected them to be confused by our presence, but Mara-san must have informed them, because their reactions were subdued. Had they accepted us as if it was normal for us to be here? No, it seemed more like they weren’t even interested.

More than anything, I was struck by the silence. No one was panicking, even though the patriarch and the Demon King had just started fighting. They’d just gathered because they’d been summoned. That’s it. It felt like they had no emotions. And they didn’t even talk, they just went to wherever they wanted, relaxing. Some were even lying down, asleep, it was eerie. And…

“Is this it…?”

“Everyone’s here,” Mara-san had said, telling us that we could close the barrier, so there was no mistaking it. But there were only a few High Elves gathered here. Including the patriarch and Mara-san, there were only fourteen of them. I was stunned.

“We are a race that’s gradually going extinct. We’ve accepted that. And so, even if our lives were threatened, we wouldn’t feel anything.”

But we don’t want to be hurt, so we have no intention of dying in a fight, Mara-san added, winking.

Eh!? What she’d said so casually… was actually a pretty heavy topic. A race that’s going extinct… and they’ve accepted it?

“So the High Elf curse, that only allows them to bear children with their own kind, that’s what led them to this state of near-extinction.”

“That’s right. But none of us, including me, feel anything about it anymore. We’ve grown tired of our long lives. There was a time when we were young, when we were interested in other races, but life here is peaceful and happy. Most are content with that. We have no complaints if this is how we die. …But there were two who were unhappy, two who decided to act.”

“Two?”

Kron-san, who had been silently observing the situation, her arms crossed, asked this, her gaze fixed on the Demon King.

“Yes. The first was Schelmelhorn. And the second, as you know, was Yennaliearl.”

“That one…? Well, that’s to be expected, I guess. Hatred is also a form of attachment.”

She was right. It seemed like the patriarch maintained his peace of mind by looking down on other races, making himself feel superior. At least that’s what I’d heard. And he’d even joined the human world, established a guild? And even gotten a Special-grade title? He was living successfully in the human world. I heard it was shady, but he hadn’t been caught… wait a second. And Yenna-san had been deemed a criminal for venturing out into the human world, right?

“Patriawch-shan’s also left the village. He’s a cwiminal too, wight? Just wike Mama-shan?”

It seems like he’s enjoying the human world. He shouldn’t be allowed to involve others in his hobbies, fulfilling his pathetic sense of self-worth. But it felt like he was having fun.

“…You’re right. I hadn’t thought about it before, since he’s the patriarch. He’s not a criminal. And he rarely comes back here. Now that you mention it…”

N-No one had even noticed!? After all these years!? That’s so abnormal. And then, I realized something.

“Is it… a special abiwity?”

Ah, why did I have to stutter!? Special ability! Mara-san even chuckled, her tension easing. It’s fine, I’m the little girl who always provides comic relief…

“Yes, that might be it. He can sense what others are feeling, and he was using that to cast subtle mental interference magic, individually tailored to each of us. And if it’s subtle, we wouldn’t even notice unless we were incredibly cautious. And maybe after all these years, it gradually took effect, without us even knowing.”

Mara-san said that her mind suddenly felt clear. And then, she thanked me. Eh? I hadn’t done anything.

“By interacting with Yennaliearl and Meg, I was slowly becoming immune to the effects. Oh, dear, this is terrible! This is why everyone’s acting so strangely! It’s strange that we didn’t even question Schelmelhorn’s words and actions. We were becoming like… mindless puppets!”

Eh, ehh? What!? Things were moving too quickly! So, basically, the other High Elves were acting strangely because of the patriarch’s magic? And she’d just realized it? I was confused. I looked up at Gil-san.

“…The key to breaking free of mental interference magic is realizing it’s happening. And Meg inadvertently helped.”

I finally understood after Gil-san explained this, having read my confused expression perfectly. I see… It’s good that we realized it, even if it was by chance!

Seeing Mara-san rushing around to the other High Elves, I decided to tag along, thinking that maybe I could help too.

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