Raising the Elf’s Genius Slayer

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Chapter

“Haah… I wonder what Enok is doing.”

[You really need to stop saying that. I think I’m developing an anxiety disorder!]

“What do you mean how often I’ve said it…?”

[You’ve been saying it every 3 minutes for days now…!]

Undine yelled at Rionne. Seriously, after giving me that ring, what’s she so worried about? I swear, at this point, just hearing that phrase might send me into a fit.

“That ring isn’t perfect, you know.”

[What? Shouldn’t it be common courtesy for a demigod to show up and bash his head in? No matter who you are, how can you stop that!?]

“That’s not the point…”

The ring I gave Enok definitely had exceptional powers. It not only blocked attacks that could threaten his life but also sent an immediate signal to Rionne. With that level of protection, he should have been safe unless something really unexpected happened.

But there was one problem…

“It blocks outside attacks but doesn’t prevent damage to himself.”

[What? So are you worried he’ll hurt himself?]

“…Yeah.”

[Why would he do something like that…? Hm?]

Undine suddenly started to get worried about Enok, too. What if he goes off and messes things up all on his own…?

[Hmm… should we go check on him?]

“No, no! If we go once, then we’ll keep going back, and soon we’ll just be following him everywhere!”

That was not a good thing for Enok, who had to endure the command of the Heaven Slayer.

[Hmm… well, he’s no fool; he should be fine on his own.]

*

“Enok, look at that.”

Following Rionne’s gesture, Enok moved closer. He hopped onto a silver rock leading to a sheer cliff. From a spot that looked down at the clouds, Rionne smiled softly.

“What do you think when you see this?”

Enok peeked over the edge. It was indeed a breathtaking sight. The cliff was so high that regular people wouldn’t even be able to get close.

As for what he thought of it…

It felt like having the world at his feet. A feeling of being overwhelmed by majesty. A sensation of being awed by something rare and beautiful. Well, there were many standard answers to that, but they strayed far from Enok’s actual thoughts.

“It’s just… high.”

“Right?”

“Yeah. Wouldn’t it hurt if you fell?”

“Hmm… I think it wouldn’t hurt as much as you think?”

As Rionne said that, she took a step over the cliff’s edge. Standing in the vast air, she twirled around.

“Don’t forget your uniqueness, Enok. When you step outside, you’ll meet countless people and experience many different thoughts.”

The sun-painted pale clouds resembled a soft cover over the earth, extending below the steep cliffs, the distant sun, and sporadically grown tall trees, along with one lone elf standing among them.

“Don’t lose your own thoughts. The breathtaking scenery that makes people gasp, the brilliant heroes who receive praise, the food that gets rave reviews—if they don’t spark anything in you, then they’re just that, nothing more. There’s no need to feel anxious or to force a fit. You are special.”

Her soft-spoken demeanor felt mature. Even though she had lived through countless eras, she still retained a childlike appearance, and seeing her like this sometimes brought about strange feelings.

“Yeah.”

With that brief reply, Rionne smiled a little.

“Right?”

Enok smiled back.

“Yeah, you’re pretty.”

“Oh? Changed your mind, I see?”

Rionne turned back. The changing position of the sun painted a completely different landscape that filled his heart. It was definitely beautiful. As he admired it, Enok’s answer came back.

“No, nothing changed.”

“Liar. Earlier, you just said it was high.”

“True.”

Rionne turned to him at his completely nonsensical reply. The soft light that poured down made a bright smile on her face.

“But I thought that from the beginning.”

At her rare bright smile, even the elf couldn’t help but laugh.

“Yeah. Guess it is what it is.”

*

A familiar yet strange ceiling.

Enok blinked and reached out to the ceiling.

“Ah.”

His chest hurt like crazy. It wasn’t because he had a dream about Rionne or anything, just physically.

[Does it hurt…? I’m hurting too… I really feel like I might die, Dad….]

Enok glanced down at the voice that seemed to gasp its last breath. Eri, battered and bruised, curled up next to him while groaning.

“…? What’s wrong?”

[What’s wrong? Oh, good question. Why the heck is this happening!? Who in their right mind puts something like that inside their body! I did my best to stop that!]

“Ohhh.”

No wonder he felt fine after such an explosive incident; Eri had been working hard to block it. Honestly, Enok thought his body would shatter into a hundred pieces.

[You should never do something that insane again!]

“Hmm… we’ll see.”

[Why!?]

“Maybe it could work.”

That’s how life is. If it works out, great; if not, well… too bad.

“Hey, you’re finally awake? You crazy idiot.”

Iris, who grumbled as she entered, plopped down in a nearby chair, rambling incoherently.

“Do you even know what you did? That donut shape you made is loosely called a tokamak, and I never thought I’d see a punk who thought about putting something like that, successfully making nuclear fusion, inside his own body. What are you thinking, dude?”

“Why are you coming in and spouting nonsense?”

“Don’t you understand? If you just make what you did bigger and let gravity get involved a little, it’s no different from a star. And you shoved that inside yourself.”

“Oh, a star?”

So, embedding a star into his body…

Since he already had a star embedded in his Ki, there shouldn’t be a reason that he couldn’t put one inside his body too, right? If he succeeded, it could yield quite amazing results.

Unbeknownst to Enok’s thoughts, Iris let out a sigh and relaxed.

“Well, as long as you’re safe, that’s what matters. Damn. If you messed up, the Swordmaster would’ve taken your head right off.”

“Yeah, probably?”

“…Really? Honestly, I didn’t do anything…”

“Probably this territory would be blown away?”

It might be a bit self-congratulatory, but honestly, if it was Rionne, she would probably think so.

“That sounds terrifying… Oh, by the way, now that this happened, tell me about the Swordmaster. I’m honestly curious. What does the Swordmaster usually do?”

“Rionne? Is there really anything interesting about that?”

“If she’s at that level, doesn’t she always have her sword in hand?”

“No? She doesn’t use it much?”

Only sometimes when she’s poking at the campfire.

“Really? That’s surprising. Well, if she’s that skilled, she doesn’t need to physically train. Mental training would be more effective.”

“Hmm….”

Mental training seemed to mean practicing by visualizing imagery in the mind, but Rionne didn’t seem to do that either…

He didn’t mention that for the sake of Rionne’s image.

“Does she enjoy sophisticated tea time or something like that?”

“Oh, she likes tea.”

Though she didn’t drink it elegantly; she often drank it while lounging in bed, but he didn’t mention that for Rionne’s image.

“Of course, huh? Honestly, I don’t know about much else, but whenever I hear about the Swordmaster, my heart races. It’s just so cool.”

“Yeah, right? It’s cool.”

This girl, Iris, may have an odd hairstyle, but she seemed like a good person. For a human, she actually had decent thoughts.

“Well, anyway, what are you going to do now? I tried to drag you into the experiment for a quick moment, but if you’re leaving, I won’t stop you.”

“Hmm… I don’t know. I should probably go to the Elf Union.”

Although the primary reason was training, he still had to take Yonia to the Elf Union. She seemed like she could go alone, but seeing how she handled herself, it made him a bit anxious.

“Don’t worry about me.”

*Creak*, as if she’d heard the conversation, Yonia entered through the door, accompanied by a strange man dressed entirely in white. He looked like someone whose mental state might be a little shaky.

“Oh, you’re awake. It seems the Divine One has helped you.”

“Divine One? Who’s that helping me? It was Eri who helped me.”

“Uh…”

The man, momentarily flustered, awkwardly laughed and approached Enok, who was lying in bed.

“Isn’t it also a blessing from the Divine One? Could you lend me your hand for a moment?”

At the sudden request for a hand, Enok looked at Iris. His gaze clearly asked, “Who the heck is this guy?” Iris sighed and replied.

“He’s a priest, so just give it to him if he asks. He wants to check how well you’re healing.”

“Ah, I see.”

As Enok extended his hand, the priest grabbed it. Then, he began to release some kind of energy and opened his mouth.

“I am Enok, a priest of the Divine Church. I heard your name is also Enok; could you perhaps be a devotee… or not?”

There was no way a devotee would ask who the Divine One is.

“Looks like your parents are believers.”

Enok’s name means “dedicated to the Divine.” Typically, people named Enok often had parents who were believers.

“Don’t know? I guess that’s possible?”

Enok casually replied while analyzing the strange energy that had entered his body. If he had to classify the sensation, it was warm and comforting. However, it felt oddly out of place.

It wasn’t entirely the priest’s energy; it felt as if part of ownership belonged elsewhere. He didn’t know what it was, but it felt fascinating.

“Hmm, got it.”

He decided.

Staying a bit longer here seemed wise. It looked like there would be quite a few things to learn.

Whether it was about plasma or nuclear fusion, he wanted to learn more, and since he met a mage, he might as well delve deeper into magic. He didn’t love studying, but if it were to become stronger, he had no qualms about it.

No, he had to. Otherwise, Rionne wouldn’t marry him.

“Yonia, can I stay here a bit longer?”

“Huh? I told you, it’s fine. Do as you please.”

“Aren’t you worried about your family since you were kidnapped?”

“They won’t know since I left home and got caught.”

“Oh….”

Is running away a fundamental part of elf culture? If so, claiming he was half-elf because he had run away before would add credibility to that argument.

“That’s a perfect theory.”

Enok seriously evaluated it.