I Picked Up the Hero Who Banished Me - Chapter 34



33 – [In the Land of Elves – 01]

“Where should I move this? No, wait, *should* I move it?”

“You don’t need to worry so much about your manners. If it’s more comfortable for you, go ahead and use informal speech.”

“R-really? Sorry, I’m not used to this kind of thing.”

“That item should be moved over there, but you only have one hand….”

“Huu, over there, right?”

Livia, completely unfazed, casually lifted the logs with one hand and strolled over.

The people of Half Village didn’t seem to know that Livia was a hero, just that she was a busybody who was incredibly strong.

Even so, they wouldn’t be suspicious of the person who saved them, so they were generally friendly.

Well, even if I revealed that I was the hero, they wouldn’t turn hostile, but depending on the situation, I could get caught up in something dangerous.

It’s been quite some time since the incident in East Port, so it’s possible the royal family has grasped the situation and might send someone to this Eastern Continent.

Luckily, Half Village isn’t a well-known place, and it’s quite secluded, so it’s unlikely they’d come all the way here to investigate.

It would be much more efficient to visit other larger towns in the Eastern Continent to gather information, or they’d make use of the port town.

Either way, my visit to Alven Heim would already be known, so they might be scheming something there as well.

Especially Reyna.

Reyna Forest.

‘Reyna is none other than Titania’s child. Considering her influence, in the worst case, I might not even be able to enter Elven Heim, let alone reach the World Tree.’

There’s a barrier around the forest, and if Titania doesn’t accept me, entering itself becomes impossible.

Of course, since it’s a barrier, I could break through it by force, but if I did that, it wouldn’t be something I could just laugh off, and we wouldn’t be able to have a peaceful conversation.

Livia’s time was now plentiful, but the issue of pursuers or similar interference was perilous.

If Reina were to openly incite, even deceiving Titania and turning her outright hostile, things could become bothersome.

However.

“…….”

In card games, there was always a reversal card.

A card like a Joker, capable of overturning everything with a single play.

And right now, in this half-village, there was a figure no different than a Joker.

Or perhaps, more accurately, a figure who *might* be a Joker.

“Sylphie.”

“Yes!”

“Why are you so tense? Did I say I was going to eat you or something?”

“No! It’s not that… Ahem, I genuinely thank you for saving our village. Our half-village isn’t financially well-off, but we have prepared a token of our gratitude!”

“Keep your money for now. It doesn’t feel right to take anything from a village already struggling to make ends meet. Instead, I’ll consider taking something else.”

“Something else, you say?”

It was obvious she was pretending not to know.

She’s bad at lying.

There were people like that sometimes.

People whose pupils would tremble with nervousness just from the act of hiding something. Sylphie was exactly that type, someone who wouldn’t fit in politics or such places.

“Information.”

“Information, you say… Haha, what kind of information could a half-elf raised in a half-village possibly have! I’m just a civilian who’s lived long, nothing more! Haha, hahahaha… haha.”

Even amidst the awkward laughter, I remained silent, watching Silphy. She shuddered under my gaze, then let out a small sigh.

It seemed she’d finally given up on hiding it, but I thought the stage for hiding it had already passed.

“You really know a lot about elves.”

“I don’t discriminate when reading books. There just happened to be some about elves.”

“…….”

“You took out a bow during this attack, didn’t you? A bow made of magic, that’s quite unique.”

Even in this current world, which you could call a great magic world with all sorts of magic being developed, there were things that required specific lineage or talent, and one of them was shaping magic itself into a form.

Making magic into flames, for example.

From noble mtl dot com

Enhancing physical abilities with magic.

Producing matter with magic.

Those things were possible.

But shaping magic itself was impossible.

“It’s not impossible to make a bow with magic. With basic knowledge and skill in shaping magic, it’s possible to create a bow with magic.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“But that’s making a bow *with* magic, not magic *becoming* a bow. The ability to have magic take on the form of a bow, that’s an ability that only exists within elves, and not just any elf, only a chosen one.”

Magic is truly mysterious. Creating a sword with magic was possible, but making magic itself into a sword was impossible.

The same was true for bows. But there was an existence that *could*.

“That chosen elf is…”

“Haa.”

Silphy let out an even bigger sigh this time, and spoke.

“High elves, or rather, unless you have the blood of a high elf, a rare lineage even among elves, flowing through you, it’s impossible to create a bow and arrow solely with magic. That’s right, you’re spot on.”

It was a privilege unique to high elves, and the same power manifested in their descendants.

In other words, Sylphie right beside me was, in fact, an elf who could’ve easily attained a high social standing worthy of legal repercussions for any impudent behavior.

But because she’s a half-elf and not a pureblood, she’s living here in a half-elf village like this.

“A half of a high elf, who are extremely rare… it’s even more exceptionally rare.”

It’s no joke, there probably weren’t more than you could count on your fingers.

Moreover, in Sylphie’s case, she’s likely a first-generation half, born between a high elf and a human, so her blood would be quite concentrated. Perhaps she’s the only half high elf with blood that strong.

“Well, I’m told I’m of some noble blood, but I’ve never received any noble treatment, so I’m not sure. This is a real secret, but since you, Sir Royce, and Lady Olivia, are the saviors of this village, it’s not right to keep it a secret, I think.”

“……”

“Since you saved this village at the risk of your lives. …I’ll tell you in advance, I don’t have a surname. My mother hates half-breeds.”

“…A high elf who hates half-breeds. …Wait a second, then Sylphie’s mother is…”

“The current Titania’s daughter. I’m Titania’s granddaughter.”

“……”

I shut my mouth.

There was no such story in any history book.

Was the current Titania originally a human slave?

“Hmm, Titania was married twice, and she lost her first husband during the war. And that husband had a child, which is your mother.”

“That’s right.”

“This is the first I’m hearing of it.”

I knew that Titania had a previous husband and child, but it was only mentioned that they died young from an illness, nothing more was specified.

So, that Titania’s child had another child, and *that’s* Sylphy.

Meaning, Titania wasn’t the human slave, but Titania’s *daughter* was.

Her being short-lived, whether it was due to the injuries she sustained back then, making her weak, or if she couldn’t bear the trauma and took her own life, I don’t know, but it probably wasn’t a proper death.

“My own daughter was raped and broken by humans, ending her life short for an elf,”

Sylphy said, fidgeting her fingers.

“I understand if they’re not fond of me, that child.”

“Well, I have a different opinion, but if the person in question is saying that, I have nothing to say.”

“…….”

Sylphy awkwardly rubbed the back of her neck.

“Still, as a minimum act of goodwill, they taught me some archery and then exiled me. I believe they did it so I wouldn’t die to, at least, lower-level monsters.”

“…….”

“So, it’s not that they completely hate me, I think. It’s probably that seeing me reminds them of their dead daughter and they don’t know what to do about it. I don’t want to admit it, but I even look like a woman, so it must be even more likely that I look like their dead daughter.”

“But, you see, they discriminate against other half-elves too, not just you.”

“I think that deserves criticism. I understand grandmother’s pain, so I can overlook it, but I don’t have the right to stop other half-elves if they hate or resent grandmother.”

Indeed.

I smiled.

“You have a large heart.”

“All of a sudden?”

“I still don’t really understand it.”

“Whoa! O-Olivia-nim! How long have you been here?”

“You’ve been here the whole time?”

It seemed like they’d been listening to the conversation the whole time, ever since I’d returned after quickly taking care of things.

“So, what are you going to do?”

“What?”

“Titania might have some feelings for Silphy, but Silphy, like other half-elves, was exiled after being subjected to one-sided hatred.”

“Yes, that’s exactly it. If I go, maybe Grandmother will show some flexibility, but conversely, she might lock her heart even tighter because she’s a half-elf.”

“Hmm.”

Taking Silphy was going to be a gamble.

If we were lucky and Titania still had some lingering feelings of both love and hate towards Silphy, it might be the key to easily solving the problem. But it could also be a lock that seals the door shut.

“Honestly, I think the risk of taking her is greater.”

“I see.”

I spoke not just my opinion, but the cold, hard truth, rather than what was truly in my heart.

Even statistically, there was a higher chance of Silphy causing even greater chaos, rather than Titania showing flexibility because of her.

“What about Silphy? Do you want to meet Titania?”

“Grandmother… um, she’s a kind person at heart. I don’t think she actually wants to be like Titania. She always seems indifferent, but I think she’s screaming inside, so I want to help her. But when I’m near her, it’s like she screams even louder.”

“No, who asked you that?”

Livia tilted her head, looking at Silphy.

“Huh?”

“Do you *want* to meet her?”

“……If it’s about wanting to talk, yes, there is. Apart from pitying Grandmother, there’s a conversation that I have to have. But I don’t have the courage, and that’s why I’m still wasting time like this.”

“Alright, let’s go.”

“Huh? W-wait a sec!”

“If you’re agonizing over whether or not to do it, then just do it! Either way, life keeps going, and whatever you choose, you’re gonna regret it. It’s pretty much a given that there’s no such thing as a choice without regret. So, at least let’s regret *doing* it.”

Damn, that’s hardcore, I’m speechless.

Sylphie gave an awkward laugh and said,

“You’re truly a hero, aren’t you? You’re so tough.”

“That title’s too much for someone as inept as me… Huh? Wait, you knew!?”

“Erm… sorry. When I heard the name Olivia, I already figured it out. It just felt like I shouldn’t acknowledge it.”

“Ugh.”

She *did* figure it out, huh?

At first, I thought maybe Livia was oblivious like that, but as we talked and time passed, she just didn’t seem like that type at all.

She was observant, actually, even shrewd, so good at it that it was hard to notice, which I figured meant she must be good at things like scouting or eavesdropping.

Thinking that far, I was sure she’d figured out my identity long ago.

“O-okay, anyway! Royce!”

“Yes.”

“I want to apologize to Titania. Honestly, I don’t really *want* to, but I’m the one asking for a favor, after all.”

“Sure, whatever.”

“If you think I’m going too far, will you stop me?”

So, she’s not so confident, huh.

Well, whatever.

They might be here, but still…