Chapter 988: The Second Holy Beast Festival 9
After the play ended, there was a celebratory banquet or rather, a cooking competition, combined with a dance party. After taking off my cool, elf-style costume from the play, I joined the female slaves who had traveled all this way, the Cosmos Main Store crew and the guys like Keiron and the Masturbation Brothers to sample the dishes each clan had prepared with great care. Or rather, the beautiful women from each clan were pushing their way through the crowd, each carrying a dish they were proud of.
“Your Holiness, this is a Orange clan’s specialty, forest root vegetable soup”
“Ah, ah, thanks”
“Please try this while you still have room. It’s the Silver clan’s pride and joy, roasted fruit marinated in mare’s milk♪”
“Isn’t that a huge portion!?”
“It’s delicious♪”
“How about a whole roasted wise bird? It’s a delicacy you’d rarely find outside of the Green clan”
“Wait, is that something I’m supposed to eat!? Are wise birds even meant to be eaten!?”
I haven’t really asked about it in detail, but aren’t wise birds supposed to be the kind of birds used to send messages across distances equivalent to a neighboring country? I’ve never heard of them being used anywhere other than the Elven Forest (though I’ve heard that sending letters via pigeons is a pastime for the refined folk in the royal capital), but is it really okay to eat them?
“Even among birds of the same species, only a very small fraction possess the intelligence required to serve as messengers……the rest are kept as pets or for food”
“……If they’re that smart, won’t they rebel if they find out we’re eating them……?”
“It’s just like any other livestock. It’s nothing to worry about”
……The lady from the Green Clan says something incredibly blunt, yet she offers me a whole roasted bird with a gentle smile. W, Well……maybe I’m just being overly sensitive since I don’t raise livestock myself.
“How about some caterpillar gratin?”
“Ah, I’ll have that”
……I feel a little more at ease with insect-based dishes. As long as the legs are properly removed, I don’t have much of an aversion to them.
Surprisingly, Goto is strangely popular at the dance party. He dances one after another with a wide range of elf women, from the slightly younger ones to the elderly and finally returns to the dining area, relieved to be free.
“You’re a real hit, aren’t you?”
“Ah, 10-man Captain Smithson……I’m the only ogre here this time, so I think that’s probably why”
“Ah, I see”
“I don’t know about Celesta, but around here, it’s rare to see an ogre walking around openly in the forest. ……If I hadn’t been around white and cherry blossom-haired girls at the manor, I might not have been able to handle it either”
“Well, you and Lantz, though……”
They’ve always been a couple of total oddballs. There’s no way they’d ever get used to dealing with women. Well, aside from the fact that they love masturbating, they’re harmless. Seriously, other than that, they’re both hardworking and capable.
“But don’t worry. I’m going to skyrocket the ogre race’s popularity right here. So that beautiful elf ladies, both adults and young girls, can feel safe coming to the Polka Hot Springs!”
“O, Oh”
“Yes. To the Polka Hot Springs!”
“You don’t have to say that twice, do you?”
His spirit in acting as a representative of his race is admirable, but he really should hide his ulterior motives a little better.
Gloria is hanging out with Kathy, a dark elf prostitute, just like they’re a comedy duo.
“Actually, this is my first time in the Northern Forest, too……”
“Really? I thought all elves were born here”
“……I wonder if that’s how dark elves perceive it. It’s not like that at all, you know? I’m from near Klaves, after all. Though when I say near, it actually took a full week to walk there”
“Hee……so you’re practically an outsider, then?”
“……It’s a hassle that I can’t exactly say that either……well, yeah, let’s call it excommunication……how should I put this?”
She’s struggling to explain it. I’d always thought dark elves were generally well-informed for their age, but maybe this is just how it is when it comes to fields they’re not interested in. Well, I’ve had the chance to delve into the unique society of the white elves to some extent, so I understand it, but I think if I’d been living an ordinary life, I probably wouldn’t have known anything about it either. Come to think of it, it’s a place the white elves don’t go near, a race they don’t associate with and a profession they don’t pursue……so maybe this is actually normal. And escorting them is Broll-san, Maia’s great-uncle and a leading figure at Misty Palace. With him nearby, no fool would dare pick a fight. His intimidating presence is even stronger than that of the clan chiefs. I made eye contact with Broll-san, gave a slight nod to signal that I’d leave the matter in his hands and walked away.
Meanwhile, Selenium, Apple and Neia were walking around eating together in a tight little group. Their escort was Asti, also known as Maia’s mom.
“The Northern Forest is truly bountiful, isn’t it?”
“Ahaha……well, I suppose there aren’t really any starving elves”
“It’s kind of unfair that it’s always spring. It’s also unfair that it never gets burned down. The forest in Renne used to get burned down all the time”
“B, Burned down……?”
“We didn’t get along very well with the other races. Well, the forest never actually burned down completely, they’d make up for it with fast-growing trees and restore its appearance quickly, though”
“Wouldn’t that lead to an imbalance in tree species?”
“It would, but over there, they’re pretty laid-back about that. I think there was a mindset of as long as the main forest is safe, that’s good enough”
“Over in Kalwin, trees, let alone forests, were a rarity to begin with, so I don’t really get what there is to worry about……”
Neia was devouring all sorts of food at a particularly fast pace, while Selenium and Apple were eating at a moderate pace. Asti just smiled and stuck to her drink. Occasionally, a male elf would pluck up the courage to try talking to Neia, but Asti would step in to shield her. I think a little interaction is fine, but then again, it’s rare for an elf not to try to assert dominance over a half elf they’ve just met……. Incidentally, it seems there aren’t many elves who don’t know Selenium and Apple, so the only ones who dared to approach them were clan leaders who knew their place and Christie’s subordinates.
And then. Anzeros made me do a double-take. There she was, talking alone with a handsome young elf. Anzeros is a half elf, too. Wasn’t she supposed to have a dragon watching over her? I frantically looked around, but there was no one to be seen near Anzeros. Wait. Could it be that everyone forgot Anzeros is the only half elf……?
“Please calm down, Andy-san”
“Eh?”
Noticing me flustered from a distance, Aurora glided over and handed me a cup of wine. Then, glancing sideways at Anzeros and the mysterious handsome young man, she said.
“That’s her father”
“……A, Ah……”
I don’t see him very often, so I’d honestly forgotten what he looked like, but that’s definitely Anzeros’s dad. Probably. What was his name again? Aaron-san……I think.
“At a time like this, it’s perfectly fine to chat casually”
“W, Well……yeah”
“Given Anzeros-san’s recent achievements in particular, even the haughty traditionalists say they wouldn’t hesitate to officially grant her the title of White. Perhaps you shouldn’t be so overprotective”
“……Well, he’s probably stronger than Diel, after all”
“Yes”
If he’s stronger than Diel, that means, aside from dragons and Breakcore, he has no enemies in the forest. Well, I guess I don’t need to strike a deliberately protective pose, then.
“When you act like that, I really start to wonder if you’re actually older than me”
Watching Anzeros speak to her father with a slightly childlike expression, Aurora flashes a smile full of tenderness. ……Yeah. Sure, that’s cute, but objectively speaking, it’s also just that Aurora seems a bit too mature for her age.