Chapter 66 - Though I Am the Foreign Element Here
——'This place is merely a box garden. A small world created with reference to the world of a game.'
A phrase pierced through Elenoa's mind with a sharp throb.
If this place was a box garden, then surely the god who created it existed somewhere. Elenoa thought this unconsciously, yet before anything else.
It was a standard trope in games.
Buildings, temples, dungeons. They were arranged like mazes, and one could not reach the innermost parts without following a set procedure. This was the fate of RPGs.
The Ruined Capital Grenole had that as well.
It was said that materials regarding the Demon Lord were located beneath the collapsed royal palace. To retrieve them, one had to dig through the rubble, find the door, and enter inside.
Elenoa felt that if they wanted to defeat the Demon Lord without looking at such things, they should just hurry ahead, but that was likely a display of the composure born from being a reincarnator. Because she possessed the cheating knowledge of the Demon Lord's true identity and the majority of events to come, she had approached this journey with ease.
For those without such knowledge, fear of the unknown was only natural. Therefore, they likely did not wish to miss even the slightest piece of information.
Elenoa silently followed the Hero.
Mixing among those who were fated to be killed by the Demon Lord along with their companions at the end of this journey.
"Why are you making us do such troublesome things, geez!"
"Because there is extremely little information on the current Demon Lord. You're having a hard time too, aren't you, sis?"
"Come now, you must not let your guard down."
As they exchanged light banter, stepping onto the stone stairs leading underground, their figures seemed to be swallowed by the darkness.
Elenoa stopped. The sunlight pouring down from above felt as though it was reproaching her small body.
"Elenoa?"
"It's nothing."
She was aware that she was doing something for which she could not face the sun.
Elenoa rode on Louis's shoulder and followed after the Hero's party.
Louis sent several lights flying to illuminate the path ahead of the Hero's party. Elenoa, who was vaguely staring at that scene, gently grasped his hair.
——About Alois, you know.
——What about him?
When Elenoa switched to telepathy, she felt relieved that her husband's voice came through without hesitation.
Although dust had accumulated on the stairs leading underground, it was cleaner than the ground above, which was full of fragments and rubble.
——I heard he was raised by Gilrem-san and the others. I didn't know that setting at all.
——...I see. Black hair and green eyes. As expected.
——W-what...?
——You will surely understand soon.
Louis chuckled softly.
Elenoa pulled the hair she was holding strongly, scolding him with the meaning of 'Stop being so coy again,' and in return, he gently stroked her head.
They drove away the monsters dwelling underground, memorized several numbers, and solved several locks.
The party arrived at a certain simple room. According to Elenoa's memory, it was the room at the innermost part—the room with a save point just before the mid-boss.
However, in the place they actually entered, there was no save point. It had been like this all along. Even if they wrote down records of their journey, it would not become insurance (save), and if they were annihilated, it would surely be the end.
When she considered such minor differences, she reaffirmed that this place was indeed different from the world of a game.
"Huh?"
Elenoa raised her voice. She flew from Louis's shoulder and picked up a piece of paper that had fallen instead of the save point. She took it to the Hero.
The text was abstract.
"'This country deserves punishment. However, the spear must not be directed at children. What I can do is negligible.' 'Even if this is the flapping of a butterfly's wings, let it not become a tornado later.' 'I pray for the children's peace'...? What is this, I wonder?"
Louis took the paper that Hasumi had read. He seemed slightly surprised upon seeing the text.
"...This handwriting is..."
——Ars.
The whisper did not become a voice.
"Louis, do you know who wrote this?"
"Ah, no... It must be a case of mistaken identity."
He passed the paper to the knight next. After everyone had taken a look at it, there was no harvest.
And the problem shifted to the large door at the back of the room.
Ancient language was carved into the iron door, which looked decidedly heavy and dull, and only a mage versed in ancient language could read it. It was either Louis or Emiel.
Then I shall. Emiel stepped forward. He translated it and read it aloud so that those present could hear.
"'I consume the blood of the royal family.'"
——I don't know of such a mechanism.
While everyone frowned at the strangeness of the text, Elenoa was confused by the discrepancy with her own memory.
What was needed here should have been the gold key found in the hidden door of this room. But there was nothing resembling a keyhole in the door before her eyes.
——With this, I cannot help.
The fairy, who had been offering subtle advice using her memory, felt a gradual sense of impatience.
Until now, even if there were minor differences in the scenario, she had thought they were limited to the influence exerted by Louis and Elenoa, who were different from the original work. Like the relationship between Gilrem and the knight.
But this was the first time the mechanism itself was different.
"What is the blood of the royal family, I wonder..."
"Isn't it literally as written? But if so, it will be difficult to proceed beyond this point."
While Elenoa and the Hero tilted their heads in unison, Louis smiled and said,
"There is no problem. What is on this door is a simple magic. As the words say, we just need to capture someone of the Grenole royal bloodline and rub their blood on the door."
"But the royal family is extinct. There is not a single person left. Even if someone from the royal family who was here happened to be safe and was in another region, it would take a great deal of time to find them. We do not have such leisure..."
"They are right here. Hey, Alois."
The knight, whose name was called, went dumbfounded with a "Hah?"
And gradually, his complexion worsened.
"You are one who draws blood from the royal family, are you not?"
"Why..."
The knight stepped back as if fleeing from Louis, who was smiling thinly.
"The color of your hair and your green eyes. These are hues passed down among the royal family who lived in Grenole. Furthermore, I am somewhat versed in fortune-telling, and I had suspected for some time that you were from 'such' a lineage."
"Wait a moment. Is such a thing possible? Certainly, your hair and eyes might match, but it could also be a coincidence, couldn't it?"
"No. His blood is likely very thick. Do you not think he bears a strong resemblance to the portrait of the last king, which was found during exploration? ...Ah, you all did not see it. My apologies."
"Thick? How can you be so decisive? The royal family was destroyed over a hundred years ago."
The discussion continued.
"This is just a thought, but perhaps Alois is not as young as we think? To the extent that one could say he is a direct descendant of the royal family that existed over a hundred years ago."
"What does that mean...?"
"After all, you do not know his exact age. Neither I nor you all have exchanged our ages. At most, we only know whether or not he is of an age to drink alcohol. Examples where appearance and age do not match are also present in Hasumi's mind, are they not?"
"Ah."
The Hero was surprised by the fairy who had taken position on her head without her noticing.
Because the fairy naturally sat on her shoulder or head with natural weight and temperature, she had become so accustomed to it that she no longer felt any sense of incongruity. The Hero tried to remonstrate with a mix of exasperation, saying "Elenoa," but all that came back was an innocent voice asking, "What is it?"
With this, she lost the desire to complain.
She decided to return to the topic.
"...Which means, Alois is..."
"The knight brother is a fairy?"
"If anything, he is likely closer to human. I saw records stating that the king and a fairy were paired, so it is more natural to consider that the prince was of mixed blood."
This was a lie; no such records remained anywhere.
But even Elenoa, who knew Louis's true identity, was impressed with a face that said, 'Is that so? I didn't know that,' so no one doubted his statement.
"If fairy blood is mixed in, it is considered that he would not grow the same as a normal human. I suspect he has lived longer than he appears."
How about it?
Alois bit his lip and glared at Louis, who tilted his head. Louis shrugged and accepted the gaze, which held a seriousness deeper than usual.
Hasumi delivered the finishing blow,
"Is it true?"
"...Do not ask such things."
The knight's eyes naturally turned toward the fairy. Amusingly, the fairy remained frozen with her mouth open in the shape of an 'e', expressing surprise.
＊
And so, on this day, a year and a half had passed since the start of the journey.
Until today, they had gone back and forth to the Demon Realm many times. They advanced like scouts, repeatedly turning back like dragonflies to conduct reconnaissance, and accustomed themselves to the air of the Demon Realm.
They knew the location of the Demon Lord's Castle. They also had the flying dragon they had received during the journey.
Tomorrow, they intended to fly to the Demon Lord's Castle and challenge it in a short-term decisive battle.
Elenoa was experiencing for the first time tonight, a night suited to the phrase 'the eve of the decisive battle.'
At the inn closest to the Demon Realm, the Hero's party was spending their last night as they pleased.
Even now, she could not believe that Alois was someone of the royal family.
——Come to think of it, Louis, when you mentioned the royal family, you seemed somewhat frightened.
Elenoa knew almost nothing about the circumstances of Grenole. Because Louis had not spoken to her about it.
Although she sensed that there was something, she hesitated to ask for details. Somehow, she felt she should not listen.
——But my involvement with the knight ends tomorrow.
Elenoa sat on a tree branch standing next to the inn and gazed at the starry sky.
It was a frontier region close to the Demon Realm. If they had come this far, finding a single fairy was no big deal.
Even her involvement in the human world would end today.
Surely, everything would go well.
The Hero was fond of Louis, and since she did not enter anyone's route in the end, the laughable 'power of love' would not awaken.
And Louis and Elenoa would survive, and for a while longer—perhaps for their entire lives—no sacrifice called a Hero would appear. And she, her beloved husband, and those they trusted would live peacefully in a wide castle...
"...Hehe."
What a charming future it was.
Her one-piece dress, which became longer than her legs when she grew to human size, swayed gently in the wind.
Surrounded by nature, she depicted a future full of hope. It had been a long time since she had felt such fulfillment.
"Elenoa."
"Hmm?"
Called by her name, she looked down. The Hero Hasumi was there.
The girl who had once trembled with guilt and fear every time she slashed at a single monster was now level sixty-five. People all over the world expected the Hero to become a hero.
She had cut her own hair, created a scar on her temple, and the sword at her waist was covered in scratches.
She had broken out of the shell of a peaceful Japanese high school girl and climbed this far.
——What business could such a girl have with me? It seems like there are other people she needs to meet.
When Elenoa appealed with her eyes, asking 'What is it?', she smiled brightly.
Hasumi tossed what was in her hand up, caught it, tossed it up again, and finally threw it toward Elenoa.
"For you."
What Elenoa caught was an apple. Its glossy red color looked vivid even under the night sky.
"What is this?"
"I bought it in the last town we visited."
"Wasn't it heavy?"
"It wasn't that heavy. Since it was just one."
Given Hasumi's personality, it was normal for her to buy enough for everyone.
——No way.
Another scenario came to mind for Elenoa.
"...Was it okay to give it to me?"
"I wanted to give it to Elenoa."
It was the only choice on the eve of the decisive battle.
It was a gift that the protagonist could choose to buy for just one companion.
Since the Hero was fond of Louis, Elenoa had thought she would meet him today and give him bread filled with cream.
"I liked Louis, you know."
It was a sudden confession.
The Hero gave a wry smile, saying, "I thought you knew."
Elenoa, who was on the tree branch, was left speechless by such a Hero.
"But it's fine. I wasn't called here to fall in love. I had to return, so it wasn't the time to worry about such things. Above all, Louis likes Elenoa."
"...Even if the mage says he likes me, isn't that as a friend?"
"Do you really think so?"
"After all, I am a fairy. Humans shouldn't think anything of fairies."
"But I fell in love with Louis. Even though I am the foreign element here. Compared to someone like me, I think there is nothing strange about a man and woman from the same world becoming like that. Besides, the one who gave you the hourglass was human, wasn't it?"
Elenoa fell silent with a 'Mmm.'
"You are a precious woman. When I think about how it was Elenoa who invited me here, and who taught me about the common sense and various things of this place, I feel lonely now, of all times."
"...That's unfair. I can't give you anything."
"It's a thank you, so I would be troubled if you gave me something in return."
It would never end otherwise. Hasumi said.
She lowered her face, which had been looking up at Elenoa, and this time stared intently further away—in the direction of the Demon Lord's Castle.
Her eyes were quiet and calm. Like a white sheath wrapping a sharp edge, a beautiful and solemn sword. That was the current Hero, Hasumi.
"At first, I was afraid to slash at monsters, and I couldn't even believe in the existence of magic."
Hasumi smiled without reserve at Elenoa, who had raised the Hero.
And with a refreshing face as if shaking off everything, she bowed her head.
"Thank you for staying by my side."
——Tomorrow is the end.
Elenoa could return nothing to Hasumi.