Chapter 177 – 177 – What Happened to Nenya
Although many people misunderstand, aptitude is not something you receive directly from the gods.
That’s a special thing that only happened during Edin’s time. Since the population has increased dozens of times compared to the time, it would be a headache even for the gods to have to deal with each person directly.
Therefore, today’s aptitude is all inherited from parents. Just like the mysterious gift in the fairy tale that the old man outsources to his parents to avoid death from overwork.
Therefore, the ceremony in which the priests of the temple declare the baby’s aptitude is nothing more than confirmation of what has already happened. Hero couple’s son is a warrior. The wizard couple’s daughter is a wizard. If a warrior and a wizard are married, the probability is 50/50. It was decided that way from the beginning.
Of course, if one of your ancestors was a porter, you may have been born a porter. This is why you need to carefully look at each other’s family trees before quickly suspecting an affair.
That’s it. Compared to some problems, it is relatively simple.
In comparison, the inheritance of ethnicity is complicated. This is especially true in Elan.
The elves, who had lived separately from other races until the Age of Aptitude, realized a shocking truth only after coming into contact with the outside of the forest under the leadership of Edin, the savior of the world.
Elves and humans were closely related species. Considering the difference in lifespan, it is difficult to recall. This was even more so considering the perception they had of humans whose lives were as meaningless as candles.
If humans had been able to crossbreed with pigs, the shock people would have felt would have been similar. Shock gave birth to denial, and denial gave rise to countless conflicts and accidents.
Even Eternal Queen Evenna, their first grassroots guardian and the first monarch of the new Elan, became an object of criticism because she loved humans. Her backlash was even stronger because the child was not even the heir of the great Edin, but had low and insignificant aptitude.
After Evenna’s short reign, her half-blood Danar, who inherited her throne, was thus in a position where his legitimacy was attacked even more fiercely than his mother. He ultimately took the lead in protecting purebloods. Thus, a cruel group called the ‘Bloodline Management Agency’ established a nest in Elan, and for hundreds of years, countless illegitimate human children had their ears cut off and were thrown out of the forest. The small elan outside the big elan was created by those who were abandoned.
However, even if they are illegitimate, children with long ears are often born because they are eventually mixed with fairy blood. The Great Elan allowed hybrids who missed their parents’ forests to colonize neighboring lands and build dependent nations, but they could not tolerate those who dared to impersonate fairies.
So, if you don’t have your ears cut off by your family by your tenth birthday, a group of fairies carrying garden shears will be sent from Great Elan. To ask whether you would give up your vocal cords, which would be used to claim you are an elf, or your ear flaps, which would show that you have inherited blood. Most people give up their auricles.
The scissors held by ancestors, the bleeding cheeks of descendants. It is an old sentence that gives an idea of the emotional distance between the two countries.
“The scissors held by ancestors, the bleeding cheeks of descendants.”
So Elan’s death squad hid in the Amethyst Palace, chanting the words of resentment as slogans.
Now that there is an outbreak of monsters in Greater Elan, the monarchy of Lesser Elan has made a terrible decision. They decided that now was a never-again opportunity to punish the world that denied them.
Taking advantage of this chaos, they oust the eternal murderer Danar. Remove the scum of the Elven Senate that will be cursed forever. Otherwise, their children will also not be able to avoid suffering for a thousand or ten thousand years.
The third priority target is the Archmage of Elan and the 2nd Grassroots Guardian, Ebenenyar. Before there was a king, the fairies’ representative was a grassroots guardian, so she would be the person closest to the right to succeed to the throne after Danar’s death. If King Danar had had heirs, they would have also been targets, but due to pressure from the tribalists in the Senate, he was unable to see his children.
If Danar died of stress, he would have been anxious to ascend to the throne, but we cannot allow those who are polarized in the purity of the race to take the throne. That spot should belong to little Elan.
The great Elan, which has lost its command and is in political turmoil, will be taken over by its abandoned children. The world may condemn them for acting boldly while the world is in crisis, but what So Elan wants is revenge, not justice.
It is also ridiculous to appeal for self-control from a vicious dog that has trampled parents and children to death right in front of their eyes. If the abuser holding the leash shows an opportunity, he just has to bite.
“The scissors held by the ancestors, the bleeding cheeks of the descendants!”
However, what met them who were looking for an opportunity was…
“The scissors held by our ancestors-“
“Shh. Shut up.”
“···Do you want to omit the password? I understand, General. But what is going on?”
“Keep your voice low. And don’t pretend like you know anything, just go away! What are you going to do if your disguise is discovered?”
“It looks like they have no intention of paying attention to us. Why are these scum calling our guests and pointing their weapons at them?”
It was a strange scene where the warrior party members who had been treated well by the elves were suddenly surrounded.
“Do I understand? Damn it! I’m more curious about what that flash of light was just a moment ago!”
“A little while ago, the entire hall sparkled mysteriously. It was as if the curtains had suddenly been lifted and sunlight came in. Immediately, the fairies pulled out their spears. Was it some kind of signal?”
“For now, let’s stay quiet and watch the situation. It might be King Danar’s trap to embarrass us!”
While the Great Elan army was slowly approaching the adventurers, the Lesser Elan army, disguised as servants and hiding, sweatily observed the situation.
And we confirmed an even more bizarre fact. Grassroots Guardian Ebenenyar raised his staff on the side of the adventurers, not the fairies.
“Is it a trap…?”
“Could it be that something is going on that even the guardians of the kingdom don’t know about?”
—————
Nenya wished she knew what the English sentence was.
Lennie’s suddenly cold attitude recently, and what’s happening now.
The construction of magical power failed with a crackling sound. For the first time in her life, the reversed spell struck her heart like a thunderbolt, and Nenya collapsed with a single cry.
The people around her who helplessly helped her fall also didn’t look good. This is because everyone at the banquet hall is experiencing similar difficulties as Nenya.
Archmage Ebenenyar, one of Elan’s most powerful weapons, lost much of his magical abilities a while ago. The forces that made up nature were suddenly not responding to any wizard.
For others, it is more serious. The porters are confused and stumbling under the weight of the world that has suddenly become heavier, and those who are good at strength are being crushed by the weapons on their backs and are asking for rescue. Nearby, a necromancer with a rare aptitude is spinning in place in panic, saying he cannot hear the words of his ancestors.
And the warriors refused contact and hastily removed the flame-spitting sword from their bodies and laid it down. The warriors, who were easily disarmed, fell into panic.
I couldn’t believe it, but I had no choice but to believe it. They have lost the aptitude that was with them from birth.
This happened when a hot flash like sunlight flashed in the banquet hall and the giant amethyst tree shook violently.
The elf soldiers quickly approached the group of adventurers who lost their will to fight and began handcuffing and leashing them. There was strong opposition from some, but in the end it was a losing battle. Those who struggled were struck in the back of the head with the hilt of a sword and fainted.
In the midst of such terrifying confusion, someone thought of a faint sneer. Then he took the knife from the soldier and came straight towards Nenya. Perhaps because he had a high rank, the soldiers did not stop him.
However, a warrior with a boyish look stood in front of Nenya. The calluses on his hands look like they are used to fighting, but because he has lost his superhuman physical abilities, he is shaking like a newborn baby chick. The high-ranking elf frowned.
“What happened? What happened that made everyone lose their aptitude? Where are they taking us?”
“Get out of my way. I won’t tell you twice.”
“I won’t get out of the way until I get an explanation. I don’t know, but it looks like he’s planning to harm the elf behind me with that sword. I was born as a warrior, so I can’t just watch that scene-“
The tongue-tied elf put his warning into practice. To put the special seal on his chest to shame, the warrior was hit on the head with the back of his sword and fell down, hardened like a piece of wood.
The female orc, who was struggling under her axe, saw this and opened her eyes.
“You touch Padvan? You little bastard, I’ll rip out your intestines and make a carpet for you!”
“I see. You are a porter.”
“What nonsense are you talking about, you idiot! I’m a skilled strongman!”
“That is what I have decided, you lowly thing! When the time comes, you will know what I mean!”
The elf smiled triumphantly and approached Nenya, who had collapsed from exhaustion. Then he lifted Nenya’s chin with the tip of his sword.
Wheezing under her breath, Nenya looked up at her opponent with her bewildered eyes.
“Are you worthy of calling someone lowly, Baseldenan?”
“It may not be now, but it will be so in the future, ‘Grassroots Guardian’. The only archmage chosen by the great Elan. You are a goddamn magic aptitude, and you show off and look down on others like that, but it feels like your pride has gone to waste. How about this?”
“How does it feel to lose 21 zodiac units of magical power? Three of the Empire’s top-class magical towers are completely leaving my body. Will you feel comfortable then? One thing is certain. As an apt gardener, it’s a feeling you’ll never know in your life.”
Hehe, it looks like he really can’t understand the situation without one exception.”
“How could I know when you never told me anything, Baseldenan? Tell me. Wasn’t it enough to try to get me out of office with dirty rumors about the porter? What have you planned to drive me out of your family this time?”
“Well, I admit it because it’s no longer something to hide. It’s true that the elders of our family hate you for the appointment of the ‘Grassroots Guardian.’ But this matter was not the family, but was ordered directly by His Majesty.”
“Well, there’s no way those bastards who were weaker than me and couldn’t even be candidates for grassroots guardians could have accomplished such an incredible feat. Separating aptitude from the soul. What on earth has our immature majesty done? Talk to me, his staff, Without even doing it?”
“Wand? You don’t even know you’ve been dismissed, you stupid bitch! It’s no wonder the king left you in the banquet hall to absorb your aptitude. Since you have no sense of reality, you hang out with dirty blood-“
Nenya wanted to hear the reason for the dismissal until the end. But Basel Denan did not finish his sentence.
It was because the fist that smashed his temple ended Baseldenan’s sanity first. Nenya opened her eyes wide and looked around.
Knights wearing dull heavy armor were attacking the elf soldiers and suppressing them at will. The elf archers who were aiming at the warrior party members from the upstairs balcony were also falling one by one. Nenya squeezed his eyes shut as the table shattered with a scream.
As the army that threatened them fell upside down in an instant, the adventurer guests at the banquet hall looked blankly at the group of saviors.
“Wow!”
And soon they were praised with thunderous shouts and applause. It was something unthinkable for the members of So Elan’s death-fighting unit who went into hiding, bragging about dishonor and ready to die. The members of the death squad struggled to get rid of the adventurers who tried to snatch them away as if they were treating them like heroes.
However, in the meantime, Nenya could not relieve her tension. The manner in which the intruders wiped the blood from their swords was very businesslike, and their armament was efficient and without any unnecessary elements. Without realizing it, Nenya reminded the intruders of Lennie.
“···Are you from So Elan?”
“Yes.”
“Did Leni call you? You knew something like this would happen and you wanted to help us?”
The members of the Soelan Death Squad hesitated for a moment and then responded with action. As the sword was placed on the little elf’s neck, the adventurers’ excited cheers cooled.
Nenya, who had received two swords from her uvula during the day, began to cry at her unfairness.
“Or you can just say no, Mr.!”
“You are the ‘uncomfortable dog owner’ that Lenny spoke of… Where are King Danar and Lenny Astala?”
‘Uncomfortable dog owner?’
Nenya paused. But now was not the time to wonder what he had heard about himself.
“···Our party members are doing something strange right now. Put away the swords and I’ll tell you what I know.”
Instead, the death squad members were handcuffed and leashed, rolling on the ground.
It seemed like Nenya’s sad day wasn’t over yet. The grassroots guardian of Dae Elan began to sniffle even his nose.
“I told you, you bastards!”
————-
“···Something like that happened?”
“Don’t make me say it twice. Unless you want to see me cry!”
Nenya nodded eagerly.
The knight who grabbed Nenya and lifted her to her side of the railing so she could face us and talk, along with her nod of approval.
It seems that he is not fully prepared to harm Nenya. For a hostage taker who sneaked in to get elf blood on him, he’s pretty soft.
Perhaps because of this, she felt a little relieved, and Nenya raised her voice higher.
“What happened to you, that you left footprints and wandered from the Amethyst Palace to a place that not even I know about? Why are you confronting His Majesty Danar with swords drawn!”
“It’s long, so to speak, but I don’t think we’ll have much time to explain.”
Lennie pointed next to her with a gloomy expression. Tena recovered enough to jump up, but when she turned around, she sat down again with a blank expression on her face.
The Dragon Lord rushes this way and opens his mouth wide. Its body was covered in snow and ice, as if it were wearing a winter mountain range instead of a coat.
“···Going crazy.”
“Tan, I think you are truly amazing. How can you be like that?”
“I agree.”
Every time the ugly horns that grow all over its body get caught in a building, the pillars break like chalk and the walls tear like paper.
That huge mouth that opens without even a roar looks like it’s going to chew us up like a railing. Danar and the Soelan rebels were frightened by the premonition of death and pressed against the wall.
However, Nidrogar calmly caught us who were about to freak out as well, and nodded his head loudly as if he could feel at ease. It seems that being eaten by that powerful person will only be at the bottom of the mouth.
“It looks like even my mother can’t handle that Evenna. They said that all the members of the first party had the power to bring down a nation. It seems like that wasn’t a lie.”
“Then what?”
“What can I do? I’ll count to three. Everyone, jump into your mother’s mouth!”
“···It’s a trait that can be eaten even by comfort! Jeez!”
“Into your mouth? Into your mother’s esophagus?! Why! Why! Why-!”
“What is it? What is it?”
Tena’s urgent cry embarrassed those of us who had no conscience.
Nidrogar narrowed his eyes and gave the promised hand signal among the party members to his companions on the ceiling.
Jump off Go there.
And destroy it right now.
At that moment, Erina and Florica jumped.
They had already moved far behind Danar, not above his head. The knight who captured Nenya was frightened when he saw the two girls rushing over her head.
The rope was cut by the warrior’s sword, and Lenny was lightly carried on the porter’s shoulder. The two, who had taken the rebels by surprise, closed their eyes tightly and jumped off without even a moment to stop.
Beyond the railing, into a huge mouth as dark as the abyss.
I swallowed my saliva. Then, I lifted Sister and Thena again, placed them firmly on either side, and threw myself after my colleagues.
I hope this isn’t the method of dragons who die honorably when cornered.
