LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 65
Fairy King Arlon had an authoritarian yet pragmatic personality.
You could tell just by his words to us.
“Sword Saint, they say your swordsmanship is the strongest among humans, but can you maintain that reputation even in front of an immortal being who has lived for hundreds of years?”
Or something like that.
“Golden Lion. They say you made a name for yourself in the barren land of Auriga during the Great Bestial War. But that’s easy to claim when you’ve never faced the beasts of the Great Forest.”
He had a talent for subtly praising while mocking at the same time.
Fairy King Arlon was a character filled with pretentiousness and a sense of superiority over the Great Forest, just like in the game.
It’s the same as the game.
I couldn’t decide if I should like this or not.
“….”
The cherry on top was his attitude towards Emily and Ophelia; he didn’t even spare a glance at the heretics using human sorcery, not even once.
They hadn’t even prepared chairs, leaving us standing awkwardly. It was only after Erwin hurriedly brought over a chair that we could sit down.
It was nothing short of complete disregard—or rather, disdain.
Emily seemed to have already heard something from the Archmage, as she showed no signs of being upset, but Ophelia was different.
She looked like she was about to curse them out at any moment, and I found myself pinching Ophelia’s soft elbow repeatedly.
“Lastly, Hero.”
And Fairy King Arlon was quite the opportunist.
Because Arlon smiled at me, looking pleased, and said this:
“Alright. The great hero wishes to take a marriage vow with our Vinheim tribe’s great warrior?”
Marriage vow.
It was something I had no intention of and wasn’t even on the agenda to discuss.
Even Erwin, the person involved, blinked in confusion.
“Uh, Fairy King? What do you mean by that…?”
“It’s a good thing. The human race is nothing but bugs, but heroes are different. Creating a half-elf settlement in Elvendell wouldn’t be such a bad idea.”
“….”
“Erwin is known as especially young and beautiful among our chiefs. Having maintained her purity for a hundred years, she would be a decent match for a hero.”
“…uh.”
When I sneaked a glance at Erwin, her shoulders were trembling.
It was clear this situation hadn’t been agreed upon beforehand.
The real problem wasn’t that.
—Crack!
I heard the sound of something breaking.
It was none other than Ophelia, who was clenching her fist, having crushed the brooch Emily gifted her.
“This old, busted Ear Demon is really pushing it.”
“Ophelia, please hold back.”
“That bastard is just talking nonsense.”
“There’s no reason for Ophelia to be angry.”
“…Ugh.”
Desperately trying to restrain Ophelia, I took a step forward and placed my hand over my heart.
“Fairy King, I’m not in a position to make marriage vows just yet. There’s a significant task at hand to defeat the Demon King, and I have neither thoughts of taking a wife nor settling down at this time.”
As I stated the truth, Arlon shrugged his shoulders.
For him, having a hero in the family would surely hold great advantages. However, even the Fairy King couldn’t force his will upon the hero.
“Alright. If that is your wish, then we’ll have to defer to a later time.”
“Later?”
“Once you defeat the Demon King, come to Elvendell. There will be a suitable elf harem waiting for you.”
“Uh, um.”
“Is Erwin not to your liking? Or do you prefer ones with darker skin? If so, I can bring in some Dark Elves. Having visited Nua Diel, you’d know. They’re beasts that are so debaucherous they’ll mate anywhere.”
“….”
It seemed that Fairy King Arlon wasn’t ready to give up.
“Hey, Elliot.”
“Yes?”
“Should I kill that bastard?”
“…Please just be quiet.”
After that, the conversation flowed in a desired direction.
Before dealing with the Demon King, he intended to deal with some subordinates and needed the help of the mark holders from the elf tribe, Erwin and Titania.
“Indeed, the warriors of the Great Forest are stronger than anyone on the continent.”
Arlon nodded.
Just when I thought things were progressing well, Arlon grinned slyly.
“However, that’s only considering the hero’s and the continent’s conditions.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’ve lived for hundreds of years and faced two Demon Kings. The Great Forest has put forth all efforts to defeat the Demon King. But the response from the continental society has been cold.”
“….”
“Those maggot-like humans. What does it mean for someone to be the ruler of a continent when they can resolve relationships in just a single generation? It’s utterly laughable to see such fragile beings strutting around.”
With an expression of disgust, Arlon tilted his head while clicking the pearls in his hand.
“Therefore, for the Great Forest to provide aid in this Demon King subjugation, we need you to prove what usefulness you hold for us.”
The next part was predictable.
In fact, it was a development that happened in the game as well.
“Coincidentally, there’s a troublesome pest just right for testing the hero.”
“What is it?”
“Near the border connecting the Great Forest and the northern Empire, a Mined Creature has been causing havoc.”
Mined Creatures.
Cases where humans living in polluted zones filled with monsters have turned into monsters themselves.
I had faced them several times during my mercenary days, and each time my comrades had died.
Of course, in the game, the mined creatures were infamous for being incredibly troublesome enemies.
“We’ve sent several warriors from various tribes to deal with it, but they haven’t returned. Your task is to handle that Mined Creature, including investigating their disappearance. Alternatively, capturing it alive would also be fine. If you do so, the Great Forest promises full support in your Hero’s Journey.”
Arlon was a pragmatic type.
In other words, he seemed to be using the hero to take care of the Great Forest’s troubles.
The talk of marriage was merely a cover for his true intentions.
Just as I thought, he was a slippery serpent.
*
“Bastard! I’m gonna kill you! I swear I’m gonna kill you!”
After the meeting with the Fairy King, Ophelia stomped her feet in anger. It must have been tough for her to hold it in, so I decided not to stop her here.
For the record, Erwin was red as a tomato, resting her hands on the window frame, gazing out at the distant mountains.
“Hmph. Old maiden.”
As Ophelia mumbled that, the window frame broke.
“…Ophelia.”
“What?”
“You’ll end up dead at this rate.”
Not me, but for Erwin.
“…Sorry.”
Only then did she lower her head.
“Anyway.”
To lighten up the dark atmosphere, Albrecht stepped forward.
“We just need to handle that Mined Creature. Even if it’s not a request from the Fairy King, having Mined Creatures near the Empire’s borders is a serious matter. As a knight of the Empire, it would be correct to deal with it.”
He was stating the obvious.
That Mined Creature was indeed among the more difficult enemies to face in the game.
I couldn’t recall the name exactly, but you had to expend a ton of items in a war of attrition to clear it. I remembered having several strategies for it too.
But over here, taking stock of the people around me, I figured this squad could easily take down even a high-ranking member of the Demon King’s Army.
Of course, that didn’t mean I should let my guard down.
“It seems we don’t have a choice in the matter.”
Azar reached a conclusion, and everyone nodded in agreement.
Ophelia tugged at my clothes.
“But what is a Mined Creature?”
“….”
It looked like Ophelia truly had no idea.
“Hey, Ophelia, did you… sleep through the Holy Cathedral class?”
“Bastard, what do you take me for?”
She wore a grin that seemed overly stretched.
“Of course, I was slacking off!”
“….”
*
A Mined Creature, fundamentally, is closer to humans than monsters.
Of course, it doesn’t possess perfect reasoning like humans. Their intelligence diminishes during the turns into Mined Creatures, but they gain overwhelming physical abilities instead.
However, unlike monsters, which are completely uncontrollable, Mined Creatures possess some degree of reasoning, enough to consider pros and cons.
In other words, Mined Creatures can be controlled to some extent, unlike wildly uncontrollable beasts.
“Now, raise your arm.”
At my words, the Mined Creature before us, T-800, raised its hand.
Of course, T-800 was merely a temporary name. A fitting name for a puppet-like creature that couldn’t even remember its original name.
Originating from a movie about robots I had seen in my previous world, of course.
“Haha. This level of tuning should suffice.”
With a smile, the Possessor Daniel cast the Mark.
A sinister light spread as the Mined Creature rose to its feet.
It was something that could hardly be called a human or a monster. A patchwork human was the most fitting description.
It had bodies of elves around it pieced together. It looked to be lacking in arms, so I added more, and I added some legs too. The third eye embedded in its forehead belonged to an elf ranger.
I thought about adding more appendages to it, but that seemed impractical for immediate combat, so I postponed those ideas for later.
In short, the Mined Creature had grown even more formidable than its notorious reputation in the original work, and it was right before Daniel’s eyes.
“Idmien’s teachings are truly wonderful.”
Possessors are, by nature, forcibly brought here to be exploited by the Demon King.
Many possessors have been disillusioned with such a fate and have taken their own lives.
To most possessors, the Demon King and its subordinates represent fear. They would want to escape at any opportunity.
But not for Daniel.
He adored this world, which he was pulled into for simply enjoying the game.
Everything he wished for was granted.
He could see corpses that he wouldn’t have seen otherwise, and if he desired it, he could kill or even commit rape.
Wasn’t this the ultimate playground?
“Hah.”
This was no different from torturing insects as a child.
It’s a memory shared by most people’s childhoods.
And Daniel was convinced he was still a pure boy with the heart of a child.