Chapter 121 – Ea (2)

At the elf’s words, Zahina strode forward to stand before them.

When Zahina stood before them, the elves made expressions like they’d seen something they shouldn’t.

As the elves turned away from her, the central elf who had spoken earlier opened his mouth again.

“Though we heard about it, I never thought the connection would be so completely severed.”

Then, one elf in the corner watching her with pity muttered quietly.

“I thought it was a temporary issue from being somewhere without the clan…”

Though spoken softly, everyone here was mana users.

No one failed to hear.

Though spoken softly, Zahina answered in a calm tone.

“It seems I became like this after receiving severe injuries when cut off from the clan.”

It was a severe injury where over half her body was blown away.

Even I thought she was just part of a corpse when I saw her half-buried in the ground.

“Injuries… I heard the World Tree’s power is extremely weak in that world.”

“Yes, recovery took a long time.”

Though someone with just their upper body remaining returned to normal in less than half a day, seems that recovery was too slow for them.

“Though connection severed, to think even the World Tree’s first daughter can’t properly use power.”

“We should reconsider sending clan members to that world.”

As the elves muttered such words, the earlier elf spoke to Zahina again.

“How about returning to the World Tree’s land to wait for recovery?”

Though it sounded like telling her to rest and receive treatment, that wasn’t his intent.

“I understand there are no cases of recovery from this state. Do you wish to confine me?”

“I apologize if it sounded that way.”

The elf apologized expressionlessly at Zahina’s words.

But even while apologizing, he didn’t deny her words. Clearly, that had been his intention.

“If you won’t return, nothing can be done.”

Saying that, he looked around. The elves silently met his eyes, and after confirming everyone’s gaze he spoke to Zahina again.

“Understood. From now on, you will no longer be called the World Tree’s first daughter. Though regrettable, live well in this harsh world.”

I had wondered why they weren’t speaking privately but in this public place, but now I understood the reason.

The elves were publicly announcing Zahina’s exclusion from the clan to everyone.

“Yes. Peace to the World Tree’s children.”

“That greeting too shall be your last. May you find peace, Zahina.”

With those words, the elves flowed out of the hall like the tide.

Though some elves initially looked at her with pity, by the time they left their gazes were no different from how they looked at us.

After they left the hall, Zahina turned to look at us.

She smiled slightly and said:

“Now I too have become a duck egg in the Nakdong River.”

Zahina immediately used words learned from that world.

Though her words translated strangely, the party members could understand what she meant.

Ye-rim ran and hugged Zahina tightly.

Hoffman also scratched his head while patting Zahina’s shoulder.

I looked at the door the elves had left through while stroking my waist that felt empty without the broken sword.

Should I say this was fortunate?

Zahina wore a calm expression.

Though I thought I could somewhat read her expressions now, I couldn’t tell at all what she was thinking right now.

As I stroked my waist like that, David beside me spoke:

“Never thought it would be this chaotic. Moreover, things are hectic right after coming here.”

Though he spoke to me beside him, the viscount who had greeted him answered first:

“I apologize. They are not a race that considers others. I apologize on their behalf.”

The atmosphere immediately became awkward, but a guard knight couldn’t intervene.

When I said nothing, David accepted his apology.

“It’s fine. I wasn’t seeking an apology.”

Like that the awkward situation passed and the chaotic atmosphere settled.

As things concluded, the viscount stepped forward to guide us.

“Then shall we go? First I’ll guide you to the command center here.”

He walked sticking close beside David. And before anyone could speak, he chattered enthusiastically.

“First, this is the dungeon where the Demon King who crossed to your world was. We’re using it after the Demon King left. And…”

Even after leaving the hall, we saw almost no civilians or soldiers without mana.

In the corridors and stairs, everyone here had at least enough mana to see it like Hoffman.

The absence of civilians and normal soldiers was due to death energy still remaining in this dungeon.

When we crossed to the other world, regular soldiers who drank holy water did follow.

But after making this their base, they couldn’t live drinking holy water like then.

Black currents swept past my eyes in the corridor.

Though over a month had passed since crossing to that world, the dungeon’s death energy hadn’t fully dissipated yet.

Well, this dungeon was the Demon King’s headquarters, so death energy wouldn’t disappear in such short time.

Yet they made this their base.

Though it could be because they were doing their best to defeat the Demon King, it must be because the newly discovered world was that important.

Walking through roughly repaired passages and climbing stairs while constantly chattering, the viscount frowned seeing half-collapsed stairs.

“…This is still like this too. Death energy remains so we can’t use soldiers. So there are many inconveniences like this now. Even pressuring mages and priests isn’t making much progress.”

“There’s death energy?”

David asked with a surprised face at the viscount’s words.

“If you have mana you should feel it even if not visible. Ah, you don’t have mana? Then how…”

The puzzled viscount looked over our party then widened his eyes seeing Ye-rim.

“Could it be, a priest? Could priests emerge from that world too? Then this was a more balanced party than expected.”

Ye-rim wore a casual jacket over the bulletproof vest obtained from the U.S. carrier.

Thanks to that she looked like a normal civilian from that world.

The viscount who had ignored us after seeing Zahina being shunned.

Naturally he couldn’t notice that Ye-rim in normal clothes was a priest.

At the viscount’s words, David came beside me and asked quietly:

“She’s been protecting us all along?”

“That’s what guards are for.”

While answering him, I felt Ye-rim waving her hand spreading holy power behind us…

The allied forces command center was set up at the dungeon entrance like before.

Outside the dungeon no death energy was felt except what leaked from inside.

The command center buildings had changed from before.

Instead of large tents, proper buildings with earthen walls had been erected.

Though not enough time had passed for such buildings normally, it was fully possible with magic.

After guiding David to the command building, we were separately guided by a soldier to empty barracks.

While going to the barracks, Ye-rim looked around with a fascinated expression.

Actually there was nothing worth seeing.

The Demon King’s dungeon looked like abandoned ruins, and surroundings were just a barren ravine with withered twisted trees.

The soldiers looked no different from medieval soldiers seen in movies in my previous life.

The mages and knights looked much dirtier than in fantasy movies.

Even our assigned barracks were just tents surrounded by old cloth.

Actually, without magic this place was no different from Earth’s medieval period.

But Ye-rim still seemed completely fascinated.

“Wow, it’s really similar to barracks in movies. That lamp is an oil lamp right? And though I heard regular soldiers struggled to get armor, the soldiers here all wear leather armor.”

She kept turning her head around frantically satisfying her curiosity.

Though uncertain how long this would last, it was much better than being disappointed and struggling.

“Ah, the beds were much better there… The food was better there too.”

Rather, the disappointed one was from this world.

I almost nodded at Hoffman’s lament.

Indeed, the allied forces rations were terrible.

Even the meal served midway was completely awful, so even Ye-rim who had been purely fascinated sprinkled various spices brought from that world into her soup.

“Can’t be helped during war. There are countries with terrible food even without war in that world too. Well.”

Though I remember that country was also because of World War 2, anyway we finished our unappetizing meal and got up.

Because David who finished greeting the command center came to our barracks.

Seems there were various discussions inside command too, as David looked somewhat tired.

But he hadn’t come to our barracks to rest.

“Since it seems not good for a civilian like me to stay here long, decided to move right away.”

Not wrong. The death energy flowing from the dungeon wasn’t a small amount.

Seems he looked tired because he had to finish talks with command in a short time.

“Going to the Empire?”

“Yes.”

David nodded at my question.

Though called allied forces, actually over half this army was Imperial forces.

When the Demon King’s army swept across the continent, not just one or two countries were devastated.

When the continent was heading toward destruction like that, the Empire moved.

Numerous soldiers, knights, mages, priests, and sword masters moved to block the Demon King’s army.

When the front lines stopped like that, the Empire gathered all continental countries to form allied forces and begin counterattack.

In some ways, these allied forces were similar to the Allied Forces of World War 2 in that world.

Since the Empire was in a similar position as America, it wasn’t strange for an American envoy to go to the Imperial capital.

When the sun remained high after lunch, we left the ravine with the Demon King’s dungeon.

David boarded a carriage with the viscount who had guided us, while we began walking escorting the carriage along with the viscount’s guards.

Though we could move faster riding horses, bringing horses to this place with the Demon King was not easy.

Even the horses pulling David’s carriage now weren’t normal horses.

Seems the Empire exerted influence since an envoy came.

Like that we left the ravine and walked a while with one of the viscount’s guard knights and several soldiers, until we saw people lined up on a hill where the sun was setting.

Dozens, no hundreds of people.

They wore old armor and blocked the road standing on the hill.