CH 5.46

The Blacksmith, the Magician, and Winged Bird*

Translated by Mlzkzr

Edited by Mlzkzr

I taught Kauschman blacksmithing, then he taught me magic, and after a while, I received a letter and a delivery.

The letter, delivered by a traveling adventurer, was sent by Airena, an elf of my acquaintance

It was a status report from her.

First of all, regarding the situation in the Kingdom of Ludria, the royal family executed them all, claiming that the cause of the disturbance was the nobles who had enslaved the elves.

They must have thought that otherwise, they would not be able to calm down the criticism of the people who were frightened by the earthquake.

However, no apology was made to the elves, as the matter was the arbitrary action of the nobles and had nothing to do with the country.

Well, the Kingdom of Ludria has its own face, so it is to be expected that they cannot bow down their heads there.

The royal family should have guessed that the elves have disappeared from the country, but they probably haven’t guessed what the consequences of that would be.

The change will happen…… maybe three to five years from now.

By that time, even the elves who migrated would have gotten used to living in their new homes, so not all those who migrated would want to return to their original forests, which had changed.

In other words, it was inevitable that the forests of the Kingdom of Ludria would become a nest of monsters in the future.

That is very unfortunate, but without a formal apology from the royal family, the elves have already decided not to move.

If we don’t make it clear in the history of the Ludria Kingdom that it’s become such a big deal that even the royal family apologized, a similar incident could happen again.

So it will be nearly ten years, or even longer, before I can show my face to my sword master, Kaeha.

But putting aside the inevitable big story, what is important to me is the rest of her story.

Among the rescued enslaved elves, there was only one person who conceived a child.

No, I don’t know if this is really the right way to put it.

…… Whether you consider a child as a gift or as a misfortune based on the circumstances, is not for me to say.

The chances of having a child between a human and an elf seem to be quite low, so…… if I could, I would have liked to think of her as a gift, but I knew it was a lukewarm thing that did not conform to reality.

Elves, like High Elves, are also raised as children of the community.

Therefore, inevitably, the affection between parents and children is weaker than that of humans.

And half-elves who are raised as children of the village will inevitably stand out from their surroundings.

This is because half-elves differ from ordinary elves not only in their lifespan, but also in the degree of growth.

I, think I mentioned earlier that high elves live for over a thousand years, but normal elves are said to live between 500 and 700 years.

Half-elves, however, have a life span of 200 to 300 years, almost the same as that of dwarves.

High elves grow up more than ten times slower than humans, and it took me thirty years to come to my senses.

Normal elves are not that laid-back, but it still takes nearly 20 years for them to become old enough to remember things.

Half-elves, on the other hand …… are not well known because most of them will be returned to the earth as babies, but it is said that they come to their senses after about six or seven years.

If one were to ask whether the elves would accept a child growing at such an unusual rate in the village as a fellow being, the answer would probably be no.

Even if I say that the custom of regarding half-elves as abominations is wrong, the prejudice will not disappear so easily.

Furthermore, if the half-elf has a strong human blood expression and cannot see the spirits and take them as friends, there would be no place for them in the village anymore.

Then, when the suckling period is over and they can recognize things, the elf that had that child in her belly and the head of the village want me to adopt and raise them as soon as possible, regardless of whether the child will be able to make a spirit a friend in the future. (TN: I don’t know the gender of the child, I’m gonna use them/they for the time being)

They want me to do it before feelings spring up, love and hate mix, and things become troublesome.

If I refuse the offer, will Airena take over?

No, of course I, won’t refuse.

I was the one who told them not to return the half-elves that are born to the earth.

I should take responsibility for that statement.

But yes, the feeling I have for that child now is a pity.

I cannot feel anything but pity for the child who has not yet been born, and yet I am troubled by the treatment of that child.

But being directed with pity is what makes that child pitiful.

Will I be able to love the child properly?

I fold the letter, close my eyes, and ponder deeply, deeply, and deeply.

I guess I have thought about it long enough.

It suddenly occurred to me.

…………Ah, yeah, I thought it was totally doable.

Or rather, I think I feel sorry for that child?

I don’t know, but I’m kind of looking forward to it.

If the child is a boy, we’ll catch bugs together.

No, I’m a high elf, but I don’t really like bugs that much, but ah, fishing is fine too.

If it were a girl, I would dote on her.

When she becomes a bride, I will cry and scream.

It doesn’t matter if he, or she, can’t make friends with a spirit.

I’m friends with the spirits, but it’s only natural that the friends of his/her adoptive parents won’t necessarily become friends with their child.

The way that they can live with me is to be a blacksmith or a swordsman…… maybe even becoming a magician in a little while, if they want to be one, I can teach them many things.

If they want to choose any other path, I’ll do that with them.

Whether it was a tanner, dyer, embroiderer, poet, farmer, or merchant, it should be fun doing that together them.

Even if I outlive him or her, and he or she dies first, I will still love him or her.

Although I had never met her or him before, I was convinced of this.

I’m probably a selfish, if not free-spirited, elf who doesn’t have the personality or qualifications to be a parent.

But I am sure that I can become their guardian and closest friend.

So I write in my reply letter.

I’m looking forward to the day the child is born, the day I can pick him up.

Well, that is still a long way off.

Ah, the delivery was the tanned greed boar leather brought by an adventurer from the village of Parnor.

I have nothing special to say about this one.

I have no complaints about the quality, and I’m happy about it, but you see, compared to the small friend I haven’t seen yet, its impact is weak.

Guess I’ll take my time and think about what in the world am I going to make with this.