Martial Elf

“Ah… Ah…”

“I really came back.”

As the brown city wall, presumably Pohelrn, began to come into view, the merchants had faces filled with emotion.

I was, apart from the men’s misery, in awe of the scale of the city.

The height of the city wall was about 3 Elte, not particularly tall, but from a distance, it enclosed a remarkably large area.

In fact, it seemed that even that 3 Elte was still being built up.

Outside, several kilns were visible, likely firing bricks; under the supervisor’s instructions, it appeared that destitute people were stacking fine soil from somewhere to transport it to the kiln in carts to make bricks.

In front of the kiln, numerous people were stuffing the soil into molds, while another person placed bricks onto a large spatula and loaded them into the kiln, closing the door.

Then, those bricks were transported by others toward the walls under construction.

What was unsettling was that there were almost no adult men among those working; the majority were women or very young children.

Each wore ragged clothing and had eyes that seemed to have lost all hope.

“They must be people from a village that lost in the war. Even after being away for about two months, the construction has progressed significantly; probably because winter is approaching, they seem to have brought in everyone.”

I had snuck away from my companions’ lament and gazed suspiciously at the procession of labor.

‘It’s going to be hard to get brick-making soil when the ground freezes and becomes solid in the cold.’ remarked Remil.

There was no sense of regret in his voice regarding the privatization of humans by other humans.

‘Are they slaves…?’

The conflicting emotions of excitement from finally encountering the first human civilization and the dark feelings arising from witnessing the darker side of human history stirred in my heart, complicating my thoughts.

I saw a sturdy-looking man, who appeared to be a supervisor, strike a child who seemed no more than a few years old with a whip, causing the little one to collapse without even screaming.

An older child, possibly a sibling, blocked the supervisor’s way in a protective gesture, saying stop, but instead, it seemed to infuriate the supervisor further as he began to lash out in anger.

Before the atmosphere worsened, the child, clutching their sibling, endured until another supervisor came over to intervene.

The child, who had been watching the departing supervisor with resentful eyes, eventually succumbed to the cumulative injuries and fell, while other slaves gathered around to care for the fallen child.

“Well, honestly, it’s not a good sight at all. Hey! How long are you going to stay like that? Let’s hurry up!”

Observing my expression harden, Remil quickly urged the party to move on.

After walking a bit more, we passed the kiln district and arrived in front of a gate being constructed from blue bricks.

In front of the gate, a long line of people was forming to enter the city.

“It seems quite a lot has changed since I briefly stepped out. The gate looks quite impressive.”

“Yes, there are way more people than before.”

While Remil spoke excitedly about the changed appearance of the city, I scrutinized the tall blue gate before me.

The city walls were still under construction, but the gate itself was complete, adorned with an engraving of a snake coiling around the tower above the gate.

It was a similar height to the giant brothers I had seen recently.

However, what was bothersome was the energy emanating from the gate.

The snake design engraved at its center seemed to glare ominously.

It appeared to have been inscribed for some sordid magical reason, similar to Saras’s magic yet somewhat different.

Another difference was that the energy surrounding the gate felt antagonistic toward me.

If it was this foreign, other humans might feel it too, yet the merchants were chattering animatedly about the changed city, seemingly oblivious.

‘Is it only me who feels this?’

As the presence—unsure if it was a hex or barrier—became more pronounced when the person ahead started to pass through the gate, the pressure intensified.

It felt as if the atmosphere around me was trying to crush me, accompanied by an unpleasant sensation that seemed to probe at my emotions.

As the energy flowing from the invisible gate pressed down on me, the energy in my body naturally surged and began to collide.

The energy emanating from my body clashed with the gate’s energy, crackling like static electricity, producing a bothersome sound that only I could hear.

Just as I pondered how to respond to this, it was our turn to be inspected.

Remil waved at the gatekeeper with a friendly gesture.

“Hey, Dale! How have you been?”

“Who’s this? I thought you were dead since I hadn’t seen you for a while.”

“I’m not joking; I almost died. There was a wolf at the marketplace.”

“…What? Really?”

Only then did the gatekeeper, named Dale, start to examine us.

“About ten of you went, and now only this many are back? …Where’s Mr. Deadadol?”

“Oh, Mr. Deadadol decided to stay behind to help Bairen recover from being seriously injured during the ambush.”

“That’s a relief out of a major crisis.”

“So, can we go in now?”

“Ah—well, about that…”

Dale said, appearing troubled.

“See, it’s hard to explain this to people I know, but now passing through here, it costs ten silver coins per person.”

“…What?”

“Hey, don’t make that face. I’m just doing what I’m told. Pohelrn is growing continuously, and since you were gone, they’ve introduced a tax. You may find out when you experience it, but there’ll be costs every time you go through the gate or when living in Pohelrn.”

“…This is insane.”

“But think about it this way. Ever since this gate that Priegoss commanded to be built, monsters haven’t come near the Pohelrn area. The walls are being built, and since there are no monsters around, it’s safe, which attracts a lot of people and goods. If you look around, there are probably plenty of ways to make money than before. Don’t be too negative.”

“Hah…”

Thinking there was no other option, we pooled together the toll.

In my case, I only had silver coins, and Kyle was willing to pay for me, but since I wasn’t out of money, while exchanging coins, Dale approached me.

“What about this one? He looks like a new face.”

“Oh, this is…”

“I don’t think I’ve seen him before; could you take off that thing on your head?”

Remil, flustered, blocked Dale’s inquiry.

“What are you doing?”

“This person is someone I met at the marketplace. I’m vouching for their identity.”

“Remil.”

Dale, who had just been talking pleasantly, now lowered his voice.

“Do you see those people up ahead?”

“What do you think is going on in Pohelrn lately?”

“There has been a lot of resentment among the surrounding villages since they’re all being pulled under us. There are even some villages, like those ahead, that have been utterly devastated. The current situation in Pohelrn is filled with people willing to die if they can just get their hands on Priegoss’s daughter. If this child has any grudge against Priegoss and attempts an assassination, we would be held responsible. The atmosphere is serious; please understand.”

“Even without that, letting someone in who covers their face with something like that without inspection would defeat the purpose of having gatekeepers.”

Dale’s words left Remil struggling to find an adequate rebuttal, and he bit his lip.

“Dale.”

“Hey, don’t do that; it only makes it look more suspicious. Who is this friend of yours?”

Remil attempted to secretly place a silver coin in Dale’s hand, but he quickly recoiled in horror.

“That’s alright. Remil. What he says is valid. He is just fulfilling his duty as a gatekeeper.”

After all, he was representing the Elves to some extent.

There was no need to hide his identity, especially since the energy from the gate had been bothering me.

Wanting to pass through the gate as quickly as possible, I took off my hat to reveal my face.

“Is this okay now?”

“Well…”

For a moment, there was a tense silence at the gate.

The people who had been impatiently urging the ones at the front due to the delay in passing through quieted down as well.

“Gatekeeper?”

“…Ah…”

Dale, who had been staring blankly at me, snapped back to reality and began speaking.

“Um! Yes! Yes! I confirm.”

He nodded exaggeratedly and only then accepted the pouch of coins that Remil had collected.

“Wow, I’m surprised. What’s going on? Where did you meet him?”

He spoke to Remil while handing it to another soldier in charge of managing the pouch, though his gaze was fixed on me.

“…It just happened.”

“By the way, he seems to have rather long ears, and he talks a bit uniquely.”

“My ears have been like this since I was born.”

“Really? Well, if you look like that, you might as well have some quirks.”

I considered saying something to Dale, who was being rude without care, but I figured he wouldn’t listen, and I didn’t want to delay crossing this bothersome gate further.

“What brings you here?”

“It’s an invitation from Remil.”

My original purpose was to meet Priegoss, but after the recent conversation, I felt there was no need to clear up unnecessary suspicions, so I went with Remil’s excuse.

When Dale looked at Remil, he nodded.

“Okay, good! You can pass!”

As the signal to pass was given, the soldiers blocking the gate stepped aside.

I put my hat back on and, seeing that the others seemed to have resolved things as well, began to move forward with a lighter expression.

Crackle! Crackle!

The pressure of the gate intensified as I approached, almost as if questioning whether I’d still come close, but ultimately it dispersed as it collided with the energy rising within me.

And at the moment I passed through the center of the gate, the atmosphere around it shifted dramatically.

SHRRRRAK!

The last thing that registered in Araya’s eyes was the gaze of a massive snake looking down at her.

My body was ensnared by the giant snake before I even realized it.

The snake tightened its grip, its pupils vertically contracting, shimmering ominously.

As my body reacted to the hostility surging from all directions, my perception expanded, fracturing time into dozens of pieces.

Araya Technique

Yuyulyoung (如律令)

“Break!”

Kyaaaak!

Kugugugugung——-

“What the hell!?”

“The ground is shaking!”

“Is it an earthquake?”

“The gate wall is cracking!”

For about ten seconds, the earth quaked briefly before falling silent.

People around the gate, including Remil and Kyle, lay prostrate with just their heads peeking out, looking around nervously.

“Let’s go.”

Ignoring the chaos, I turned toward the city, and they hurriedly followed, opening their mouths.

“What was that just now?”

“I don’t know.”

I cast a glance at the snake that burst apart into particles and vanished, heading toward the city.

The gatekeepers behind, unconcerned about the fallen bricks from the engraved snake at the gate, were in an uproar.

◈ ◈ ◈

“Oh dear?”

Inside the residence of King Priegoss of Pohelrn.

“The barrier has broken?”

Alia, known as the advisor to King Priegoss, tilted her head, sensing the barrier she had set up had been destroyed.

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