Raising the Elf’s Genius Slayer

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Chapter

Early morning.

Before it was even time for breakfast, Zikfrein had gone to seek out the Marquis.

“Yes, young master. I’ll send word right away.”

A not-so-familiar butler bowed. It should have been Lord Pardo, my father’s personal servant; could he be on vacation or something?

While I pondered this for a moment, the butler quickly returned.

“He requests your presence.”

“Thanks.”

As Zikfrein bypassed the butler and entered the Marquis’s bedroom, he bit his lip at the Marquis’s sullen complexion.

“Dad.”

“Yeah, Zikfrein. What is it?”

“I just… wanted to talk about something.”

After a brief pause, Zikfrein began to recount the events from last night slowly.

The time he went to meet Mom’s soul with Enok. The words he heard from Mom through Enok. The words he had blurted out to Mom for quite some time without a coherent thread.

In the midst of it, his emotions surged so much that it could have been hard to understand, yet Dad listened quietly, nodding occasionally.

“I see. Idalian…”

“…Yeah. Why did Mom say that?”

“She was a woman who cared for you a lot. Doesn’t seem strange to you?”

After brushing his face a few times, the Marquis got up and grabbed the bottle of liquor sitting on the edge of the bookshelf.

“Sit down. Let’s have a drink as father and son.”

A golden liquor filled the clear glass. As Zikfrein faced the Marquis, merely fiddling with his glass, the silent Marquis opened his mouth.

“I’ve done a bit of investigating myself.”

Even though he had already investigated many times when the Idalian went awry, he once again revisited everything step by step.

“Perhaps because I can view it a bit more objectively now, or because my butler’s guard has been lowered over time, I’ve discovered a new fact.”

“…Butler?”

A new butler’s face suddenly popped into Zikfrein’s mind.

“Yes. Lord Pardo. No, that incompetent one.”

The Marquis’s distorted face trembled slightly.

“As you know, the Idalian was a commoner. She was a simple woman living at the edge of the Marquisate.”

“…Right.”

“…A vile aristocratic elitist. Without even understanding her status, just because she was a commoner, he did all sorts of things to her.”

Of course, it seemed he had some sense because he didn’t commit any serious offenses.

These were minor harassments that could be regarded as insignificant.

But among the Marquis’s servants, Pardo had to be the most influential. Would other servants not have picked up on his attitude?

Others might have subtly shown that attitude towards the Idalian as well.

How much damage could that have done to a tender-hearted woman?

“…If only she had said a single word to me. No, it’s my fault for not noticing that at all.”

“Then, could it be the butler…?”

“That’s not it. I’ve confirmed that for sure. It wasn’t that there were external factors when the Idalian went wrong.”

It was not homicide. But calling it suicide was difficult too.

Countless doctors and priests all shared the same testimony.

“So what did the butler do?”

“First, he shattered her energy center and kept her confined.”

“…I see.”

It felt strange. Having known someone for almost a lifetime like that…

Zikfrein sighed and downed the liquor in one go.

It felt like a hot fire was sliding down his esophagus. But more than that, the anger simmering within burned even hotter, and his hand reached for the liquor bottle again.

“Stop it. Overindulging from the morning isn’t good.”

The Marquis snatched the liquor bottle away and placed it back on the shelf.

“Rather than that… how about having breakfast with your friend? It’s a good chance to express your gratitude as well.”

Zikfrein nodded at his father’s suggestion.

“Yeah. I’ll ask him.”

*

After finishing breakfast with the Marquis, Enok sat blankly in the training hall, staring into space.

Above the sky, there is a sky. A common saying.

But Enok always thought that even if there was a sky above the sky, it wouldn’t matter once you stepped onto it.

After ascending to Grandmaster, that thought became even more solidified. There’s no such thing as an insurmountable wall. At least not for himself, unlike others.

But what about the recent ghost incident? What exactly was that move that changed the space without him even noticing?

No matter how much he overused the Ki Eye, wasn’t it absurd to not notice anything?

Frustration and anger fizzled up in a mix of feelings.

While he aimlessly moved mana in the air to sketch with Ki, he suddenly heard footsteps behind him.

“Enok.”

“Yeah.”

It was Zikfrein. Without turning his head, he continued to immerse himself in his drawing as Zikfrein naturally settled nearby and spoke up.

“There’s a gathering tomorrow. Are you coming along?”

“Actually, that’s what I wanted to ask. Are you going?”

Zikfrein’s mother didn’t hold as much significance for him, but it was different for Zikfrein. Perhaps he felt a kind of affection for her that was somewhat similar to how he felt about Rionne?

If it were Enok, he would have aimed to resolve the current situation first before anything else.

“It’s something we committed to. A noble’s word should never be taken lightly.”

“But you say all sorts of light things usually.”

“It’s a different kind this time.”

“Hmm.”

He needed time anyway. If things went well, it might help resolve this situation even better.

“Then I’ll go too. I’m curious, and I can continue afterward.”

“…Thanks.”

After closing his eyes for a moment to contemplate something, Zikfrein continued.

“While we are at the gathering, Dad will keep investigating.”

He then revealed what he had learned this time. The fact that the butler had troubled the family matriarch was not something that a stranger would appreciate.

Enok simply nodded and finalized the enormous drawing he had made in the air.

“Got it.”

The gigantic picture drawn in the air. Zikfrein looked at it and thought.

‘Swordmaster? Magic Circle?’

It was something incredibly intricate and detailed, yet to him, it was indecipherable.

It could resemble a portrait of the Swordmaster, or perhaps it was something layered with thousands of magic circles.

“Feeling reassured. Thanks.”

Even though it was a trivial bond, to meet such a friend who would go this far to help him. A friend as extraordinary as that.

As he looked up at the sky, feeling his eyes welling up slightly, a blunt voice reached his ears.

“How many times are you going to thank me? It’s nothing special.”

*

New Generation

There exists a gathering where those known as the new generation come together.

Due to distance problems, it’s generally a gathering attended only by youths from nearby territories unless something significant happens, but still, the value of it is beyond words.

These individuals are indeed the stars of the next generation.

Thus, just the fact that one can attend this gathering is a tremendous honor, and it’s only natural for those who do to swell with pride.

“Did you hear? This time, Demisto’s young master is bringing a guest.”

“A guest? I hope it doesn’t lower the prestige of the meeting unnecessarily.”

“Well… Isn’t that Demisto’s young master? Who knows where things might go.”

Among those who arrived early to socialize, all sorts of rumors were exchanged.

But even if it were just rumors, the ones spreading them were not ordinary folk.

The information was often quite accurate, and even if it weren’t the truth, it frequently turned into truth once it left this place.

“Have you heard about that? I thought you would have by now.”

“What’s the deal? Why the suspense?”

“It’s quite a big deal.”

A young man took a sip of wine and opened his mouth.

“Karten de Pearson.”

“Karten? The second son of the Pearson Count family?”

“What? Haven’t you heard? This guy is slow on news.”

The young man leisurely scanned the area and lowered his voice.

“I heard he reached Master this time.”

“…What? Isn’t he still in his mid-twenties?”

“He just turned twenty-four this year.”

“…That’s impressive. The kingdom will turn upside down. Who would have thought a genius would emerge from Pearson?”

To reach Master at twenty-four—he may not be the Emperor, but who could possibly be ordinary in comparison to the Emperor?

Even the mere fact that he was not vastly different from the Emperor proved his genius.

“So, is that Pearson young master coming to this gathering?”

“Of course. I’ve confirmed that with certainty.”

As the rumors spread and the attendees began to buzz, a carriage trundled across the gates of the territory where the gathering would be held.

*

“Is this the place?”

“Yep. Pretty close, right?”

Enok glanced out the carriage window, taking in the view outside.

Though slightly lacking compared to Demisto, it was still a city that seemed generations ahead in development compared to the towns near the forest of Rionne.

“Oh wow… Humans’ cities have developed quite a bit. I thought Demisto was something special.”

Tsukiyo leaned out the window, eagerly taking in the surroundings.

With cat ears on her head, a girl like her would undoubtedly gather attention. The carriage stopped amidst the gazes of numerous people.

“Are we getting off?”

“No. We’re going to start moving again.”

The carriage completed a quick procedure at the gate and proceeded further inside. After a short while, the group disembarked and followed the guide towards their assigned room, constantly looking around.

“There are so many people.”

[Yeah, more than I expected.]

Acknowledging Eri’s remark, Zikfrein nodded.

“If you’re attending a gathering, you won’t come alone. It tends to turn into an event that draws in ordinary folks as well.”

[Oh.]

Peeking from above Enok’s head, Eri tilted her head curiously.

[But I don’t see any particularly distinguished humans. Didn’t they say this was a gathering of remarkable individuals?]