A queen’s dream

I was able to retrieve the Water Knight from the traveling theater. Since I paid for her as for an elf man, my wallet became smaller, but this amount still couldn’t be compared with the amount I paid for Thief E, who had deceived me.

Knight of Water, she was an elf healer. You couldn’t tell from her appearance, but she was kind to patients and had pretty good skills.

▷ Race: Elf

▷ Level: 999

▷ Healer Specialization (Age → Healing ↑)

▷ Skills: Heal S, Farming B, Blessing C, Spirit D, Cooking D …

▷ Condition: Curse

As expected of an elf, the skills were in complete disarray. First, they farmed, then something happened, and they started to lead a double life. Because of this, elves’ skills weren’t at all focused on one thing. However, there was nothing to be done about it; since there were few elves, each person had to do more work. On the other hand, representatives of the human race from the continents of Fantasy relied on the division of labor.

Soldiers or mercenaries perfect their combat skills until they die, and it was very rare to find those who retire due to age. When experience points were increased, youth was prolonged because the body became stronger. Although they still could not go beyond the lifespan of their race.

“Hi. I am a righteous Hero.”

“Are you a Hero?”

“I don’t understand why you look at me like a dead man who has risen from the grave, but I am really a Hero. Heaven and earth can confirm this. Ah! And even the spirits that are pretending to be innocent.”

Did she notice that I had introduced myself? The Water Knight spoke quickly.

“I accompanied the beautiful Queen of Elfheim…”

“I know everything, so you can shorten your explanation.”

“Do you know?”

“You are one of the Queen’s escort knights, you lost to a high-ranking demon and you were cursed. I just wonder why the queen went to the land of the humans.”

I could, of course, sneak into the Demon Lord’s fortress and ask her personally, but the purpose of this passage was release. In play 4, I had missed the course and immediately cut the Demon Lord’s throat, only to still fail. Theoretically, there were no problems. In just a day, I had dealt with the resurrected Demon Lord, and the first of the Heroes quickly brought peace and tranquility to the fantasy world.

However, due to the unfair decision of the God of the fantasy world, I was never able to graduate. Therefore, I’m not going to repeat past mistakes.

Question: Cadet Kang Han Soo, is it really necessary to collect the elf knights?

Miss Trainee, you may not know, but I’m a perfectionist.

Surprise: I didn’t know!

During the first playthrough, I solved many problems. I couldn’t say that I had solved all the mysteries of the fantasy world, but I knew about the main major events. But an event happened that I knew nothing about, despite my twenty-five years of experience.

If I were to think about it, the more specific the event, the greater the reward for it. I didn’t know if someone set it up on purpose, but there was a high probability of such a development. And this event was the rarest among others. If the summoned Hero weren’t strong from the very beginning, he wouldn’t be able to save the Wind Knight (Archer) at the auction.

And the next one too. Ether Knight (Tamer E) was with the orcs. To take her out of there, you needed a high-level Hero or a lot of strong friends. Still, all this had a time limit. That was, this was a rather difficult task.

Understanding: So you think you have a huge reward?

That’s right, Miss Trainee. That’s why I am collecting five knights step by step. Missing something may change the result.

I had already approached all of this with great care.

“Healer E, tell us about the goals of the licentious queen you accompanied.”

“About the queen’s goals?”

Confusion: This elf doesn’t even deny that the queen was licentious.

Miss Trainee, be quiet. Now, something important will arrive at our ears.

“She was extremely interested in the human world, especially in Heroes who were summoned from another world. Because when they arrived here, the culture of Fantasy changed and transformed.”

“Ho?”

“Have you seen my companions?”

“Of course I have.”

“Really?!” Healer E worried as she wiped away her tears. It seemed that she had a hard time after those people grabbed her. Having reserved a room in a city hotel, I replied.

“Yes. I met the Ether Knight and the Wind Knight. Do you want to ask if they are okay? The Archer returned to the kingdom, and the Tamer teamed up with me but died in the battle against the King Dragon of Oblivion, Noebius.”

It was an accident. Why exactly did her neck break?

“Is that so…she fought bravely to the end?”

“Of course! She was just incredible from the start. When I first discovered the Tamer, she was surrounded by orcs, but even unarmed, she didn’t give up and fought to the end. Seeing her ardor, I almost fell in love with her.”

Although I had to admit I immediately cooled down as soon as I saw her breasts, like a LED monitor. But I refrained from adding that.

“The Kingdom of Elfheim has lost one important star…however, I think she would be content to die fighting along with the Hero against one of the Five Disasters. I hope the patrons of Elfheim will bless her soul.”

“She’s glad.”

“Although these are empty words, thank you.”

“But it’s true.”

This was because Tamer E was forever in my heart. Healer E, folding her hands and praying for the peace of her soul, should have heard my words. Returning to our topic…

“You say the queen was interested in the Heroes summoned?”

“Yes. The Elven King was not interested in this, so she couldn’t conduct an active investigation. Still, under the pretext of entertainment, she wandered in the world of humans and collected information about the Heroes…”

“Indeed…”

In play 9, he had died, but I could understand why Prince Nasus grew up so outstanding. The daughter looked like an inept father, while the son looked like an educated mother. Sitting on the wide bed, Healer E sighed.

“But there aren’t many places where the elf can move around quietly, so this didn’t bring many results.”

“I expected that.”

Not all elves in the human world were slaves. There were evil elves who work as mercenaries, and there were happy elves who become engaged to people and received citizenship. There were even elf slavers who sold their kind!

However, you have to be careful as there was a distinction. There were people everywhere who would scoff just because you had a different ear shape, especially in the black market. They would only be happy if the goods came to them.

Healer E responded bitterly. “The Elven King denies it, but the bulk of processed goods and intricate items have appeared in Fantasy thanks to the Heroes’ knowledge. There is even a legend that the First Hero told the Third Elven King that springs were needed for a soft bed.”

“Is that so?”

How wild was the fantasy world? I also knew about the cultural work of the Heroes, but I didn’t think that it was so serious. Senior heroes accomplished more important welfare business than suppressing the evil king.

Healer E continued. “You may not believe me, but the queen’s dream is to travel to the homeland of the Heroes. She has been looking for a way to get there for a long time.”

“Um? …Hmm?!”

My eyes widened in surprise. In the first playthrough, I managed to meet several inhabitants of the fantasy world who had similar thoughts to the queen; they wanted to go to Earth to adopt the products of civilization. But they were weak-willed, so everything ended in as mere desires. They weren’t looking for ways to get there, and so they just gave up.

The loose queen was different from them.

“You seem to be interested in how you can return to your homeland?”

“Yes.”

I wondered how far the queen had come in her research.

“If you want to know more, find the Knight of the Earth and the Knight of the Fire.”

“Hey! Are you kidding?”

Should I beat you to the point where your chest will swell?

“There’s nothing you can do. Unlike the other knights who were in charge of guarding and caring for the queen, I was also in charge of the asylum in the capital of the elf kingdom. Therefore, for a long time, I wasn’t with the queen.”

“Useless elf.”

“I’m grateful to you for dragging me out of that awful theater where I was forced to become a man, but could you please speak more politely?”

“It’s far better than a lie.”

“Oh…”

Pouting like a capricious girl, Healer E lay down on the bed. Burying her face in the soft pillow, she covered herself with the blanket.

“Zzz…”

And immediately, there was a snoring sound. She passed out as soon as she went to bed.

“Ha! The Hero is talking to you! Hey!”

Slap!

I slapped Healer E on the only rounded part of her body.

“Oh my god?!”

Healer E immediately began to look around from such a sudden awakening. Seeing me, her expression immediately turned to distaste.

“How can you touch the buttocks of a well-bred adult woman so shamelessly?”

What? A well-bred woman? With a grin, I began to lecture her as a just Hero.

“Wash yourself first, and then go to sleep. Dirty savage.”

She should be grateful that I even cared about her. If I were a bad Hero, then without hesitation, I would’ve hit between the 4th and 5th lumbar vertebra without thinking about whether I would break something or not. She didn’t get hurt just because I hit her ass.

Surprise: You’re caring…

*

The journey thus far brought results. There was a high probability that I wouldn’t have been able to get information personally from the queen if I had just snuck into the Demon Lord’s fortress and asked her personally.

Why? Because the Hero was the Enemy of the Demon Lord. A queen who had begun a loving relationship with the Demon Lord was unlikely to cooperate with me. If I were to ask her a question, she would most likely give false information. Or, she might skip an important part on purpose.

If so, was I too negligent about this event?

“Healer E, what are you going to do?”

The next morning, I asked Healer E if she would like to come with me.

“I would like to return to my homeland to heal my wounded body and soul, but I’m thinking about wandering with you, like my sister, and also find my missing companions. I am concerned about something else. How upset the members of the royal family were when they learned that demons had kidnaped the queen…”

“Don’t worry about that.”

“It’s easy to say.”

“This hero vouches.”

Prince Nasus and Princess Sylvia, who were forever in the Hero’s heart, had no time to worry about their missing mother. And the pathetic King of the Elves…

“Although these are empty words, thank you.”

“You don’t know, even when I’m telling the truth.”

“I’m sorry. But if I take all the words of the Hero seriously, then my mind will hurt.”

“You need to be more generous.”

“How can I be even more generous than now?!”

I shook my head. This elf would have a persecution mania for a long time, as her nerves were now inflamed to the limit. And so,o I changed the subject.

“Where could the Fire Knight be?”

Tamer E and Archer E said they didn’t know; if Healer E also said that she didn’t know, I would have to look for the Earth Knight or attack the Demon Lord’s fortress.

“She is the best magician in the elven kingdom.”

“Just tell me the place.”

“The Fire Knight who was defeated by the demons wasn’t pursued by his followers because she used an escape scroll. This scroll contained the magic of spatial movement, which ignores all restrictions and instantly sends one to a certain place. This thing has always been with the queen…I’m considering the possibility that the Fire Knight betrayed us…Hey, are you listening?”

“Yes. Go on.”

Although it was annoying that her tirade was so long.

“Unfortunately, only the Knight of Fire and the Knight of Earth, who the Queen trusted the most, know that place.”

“And the queen?”

“It is highly likely that she has already forgotten. She is very inattentive in emergencies.”

I rubbed my chin. The way to travel to Earth…it was cool if they gave this as a reward, but there was a high probability that they might say something like “we found a clue but couldn’t find a way.”

And for this, I needed to move across the sea to the eastern continent? Or sneak into the Demon Lord’s fortress and torture the queen there…

Oh! Miss Trainee, erase my last statement from your memory.

Difficulty: Even if you say so…it’s not me who is evaluating you.

Thinking about everything, I turned to the window.

“Come to think of it, I have never seen Healer E.”

My first playthrough lasted about ten years. At that time, I wandered around different places and saw the performances of all the traveling theaters. This I could say with confidence as traveling theaters weren’t very common. Yet I had never seen Healer E playing the king of the elves, like yesterday’s theater with that man.

And there was only one reason for this.

“Are you treating me like I’m not even here now…?

“It’s not like that. You delusional elf.”

Charuru-

I opened the windows in the hotel room and spread my wings. I had a satisfied smile on my face, and then I said, looking in the sky.

“Welcome, I am a fair Hero.”

Like the other wild elves, the elf mage was embarrassed by the generous and warm gaze of an S-rank Hero.

Hwaruru-

She answered me by calling forth a fireball the size of a watermelon in her palm. Hah! So shyness and aggression coexist in this girl?

Kwagagang-!