第４６掘：妖精族の事情 (Part1)
**Chapter 46: The Fairies’ Circumstances**
**Side: Mauve**
I don’t know how to put it… I’m just exhausted. In every sense of the word.
We are currently walking toward the border town of Kiris, which is now in our line of sight.
“Hey, can’t we at least put our gear in the Item Box…?”
Exactly. We have a rare and convenient Item Box, so why on earth do we have to carry our own luggage individually? I can understand the Marauder, but there’s no need to haul our personal belongings around by hand.
It’s been about two hours since the absurdity of the Troll subjugation.
Time-wise, we left the dungeon around 9:00 AM, so… let me open the call screen and check the clock.
4:00 PM. Oh, wow. We reached the border town in just seven hours? That’s actually pretty amazing.
“Don’t be an idiot. Item Box users are rare, aren’t they? If someone like that is spotted, they’ll become a target. Besides, what are you going to do if I disappear? All the items would be gone. Keep the bare minimum of personal belongings on you.”
Guh. Yuki is hitting me with cold, hard logic again.
Tch, I never feel like I can win an argument against him.
“Still, the distance is roughly 490km, assuming we traveled for seven hours at an average speed of 70km/h. I should have kept an eye on the tachometer.”
Oh, oh, I know the units of distance, but you can calculate that on the fly? Just what kind of rich kid or scholar are you?
“Hey, heeeey!! Why aren’t we riding in that car!? Nana hasn’t fully recovered yet, you know!!”
The fairies we saved from the Troll herd are buzzing around Yuki.
When I asked how they could fly without wings, they just mocked me, saying, “We’re composed mostly of magical power. We’re quite different from humans.”
Well, when I asked why they didn’t just fly away to escape, they snapped, “You think we could just leave our friends behind and run!? You stupid old man!! That’s why our movements were slowed down!!”
And so, I ended up getting into an argument with that brat.
I need to make sure my daughter and Aslin don’t turn out like that.
“I told you already. If we ride in that car, it’ll cause a scene. And if you’re carrying around rare species like Covil and Nana, it’ll draw even more attention. I’m already carrying Nana on my back, and you’ve recovered enough to fly. We didn’t save you because we wanted to help; it was just on the way. Just on the way.”
“Muuuugh!! We’re the Fairy race!! It wouldn’t kill you to be a little kinder!! Don’t you want enchanted equipment!? What about Elixirs!?”
“I don’t know much about Elixirs, but is there anything more convenient than the car we were just in? Something that can move faster, is sturdier, and can run over monsters?”
“Nguuuuugh…”
See? If they weren’t fairies, I would have ditched such noisy creatures a long time ago.
The one biting at Yuki looks like a 14 or 15-year-old girl shrunk down to about 60cm, with red hair in a side-tail… she’s got a good figure, I suppose, in all the right places.
But, well, the scale is just so different that I can’t even muster any interest.
Still, to think I’d run into the Fairy race in a place like this…
“So that’s the race everyone says is ‘hands-off’ in every country…”
I muttered to myself, and Raiya, who must have heard, replied.
“Well, she is just one individual. I doubt they’re all like that. The Fairy race generally lives deep in the forests, using their high magical power to build their own unique culture. The most famous things they produce are enchanted weapons and Elixirs. The rumor is that they are the best in the world at those.”
“That’s right,” Curse added to the explanation. “In the past, every authority figure who tried to search, dominate, or kidnap the Fairy village was crushed by them. As a result, the regions or countries involved suffered massive losses when the export of enchanted weapons and Elixirs stopped, causing their economies to collapse. Because of that, the rule is basically: ‘Don’t touch the fairies.’ They are never found as slaves, either. If you save them like this, aiming to receive their immense gratitude and benefits is the right move.”
Is that how it is? Personally, I don’t have much interest in that.
“Come to think of it, Elixirs are like panaceas, right, Covil?”
“That’s right!! Unless it’s something extreme, they’re excellent items that provide a complete recovery!!”
“You didn’t have any Elixirs on you?”
“You idiot. If Elixirs could be mass-produced that easily, we wouldn’t be running away in a place like this, and our village wouldn’t have been crushed by monsters!!”
“Huh. From what I hear from Covil, the Fairy race is supposed to be incredibly skilled at magic, right? And you still lost?”
“I don’t know!! Some strange monster came along, and our magic didn’t work on it. I used up all my magic until I barely had enough to escape, and when I realized it was hopeless, I grabbed Nana and ran. After that, you know the rest. In the middle of our flight, we were ambushed by a Troll herd and ended up running around without knowing left from right.”
Covil was explaining to Yuki why they ended up here.
I see… but a monster that magic—high-level fairy magic at that—doesn’t work on?
“…Was there such a monster?”
“…No, there are monsters that are resistant to magic, but there shouldn’t be any that are completely immune.”
“If it were something special from Yuki’s dungeon, maybe, but that’s impossible. Besides, even the fairies didn’t know about it. If that’s the case, should we say Yuki’s joke has become reality?”
“What do you mean?”
“Yuki ended the conflict by blaming the commotion on the Demon Lord. But hearing their story now, the monsters attacked the fairy village. That means we should assume that special monster was a subordinate of the Demon Lord, intentionally targeting the village.”
“Haha, I see. To the Demon Lord, the Fairy race, who won’t submit, is a thorn in his side. So there was a reason to crush them. But couldn’t it just be a coincidence?”
“Yes, but it’s better to prepare for the worst. If it’s a coincidence, then all the better.”
That’s true. If the Demon Lord actually attacks, I don’t want to be caught off guard.
“Wh-why are you just standing there!! Save our village!! Just run over them with that car!! It’s simple, right!!”
“Are you stupid? Your village is in the middle of the forest, right, Covil? How are you going to get that massive car in there?”
“Ugh.”
“Besides, I’m in a hurry. You’ve been treated, and I’m delivering you and Nana to Kiris safely. If you want help, go ask the Adventurer’s Guild. You’re talking about rescuing a fairy village, right? Everyone wants to build friendly relations with you, so unless it’s something truly impossible, I’m sure they’ll help you for free.”