Chapter 69

The Fairy and the Young Lord

The young master has slave blood flowing in him.

That fact is not such a great secret. It is a secret, yet an open one. Among the nobility of the Jokuster Empire, there is not a single person who does not have at least a drop of fairy blood.

Naturally so. How many would dislike fairy blood? Other races may divide opinion in appearance and temperament, but no one disliked fairies. When their blood is mixed, it only grants beautiful looks and a long lifespan—who would reject that?

Anyone with the desire to cultivate their lineage cannot help but covet fairy blood. Moreover, the nobles of Jokuster had many opportunities to encounter fairies. As they inherited the legacy of the previous empire intact, they also inherited the slaves of their ancestors.

When desire meets opportunity, the outcome is obvious. The great houses of the Empire all carried the blood of other races, differing only in degree.

Even the Emperor has, somewhere in his lineage, a long-eared race. The blood is faint, and the idea that the ruler of the human empire carries another race’s blood is somewhat embarrassing, so it is quietly hushed up.

“Nowadays, the only ones who can truly claim purity would be the Kormillius. It’s said that the legitimate line of that family has preserved purity since the beginning.”

However, the reason the fairy Vermelani was surprised was different. It wasn’t because an open secret had been exposed, but because Ulrich had precisely identified the nature of her relationship with the young master.

Not all fairies within the Empire form deep relationships with humans. Only a portion of them do. Most maintain a relationship of lord and retainer and form bonds with their own kind.

In that sense, Vermelani was an exception.

“Who are you?”

“Armin. That is the name I am using now.”

Roberta observed the fairy’s reaction closely.

For a moment, she had been struck at the core, but Vermelani quickly regained her composure. Holding her teacup with both hands, she looked at Ulrich.

Her mind must be in turmoil, trying to deduce his identity. He appeared to be a very young human, yet spoke like an old man, knew history akin to secret chronicles, and even called her distant ancestor a child.

“What I asked is not your alias. I wish to know your true name. Who are you? What are you, that you can speak so?”

“Have you ever heard the name Schlegel?”

Vermelani pondered, then shook her head.

“You see, it is easy for me to say who I am, but whether you can accept it is another matter. For now, whatever I say will be difficult for you to believe.”

“You simply know too little,” he added, taking a sip of tea.

“But there is no need to worry. What harm could come from me knowing your story and that child’s? I only revealed my hand because I wished to hear your story.”

Vermelani met his gaze.

“Please do not tell the child.”

“It is hardly a secret worth hiding, is it?”

“I believe it is not yet time to reveal it.”

“I think you are being overly protective.”

Ulrich muttered to himself and nodded.

“I promise.”

She let out a sigh and, following him, absentmindedly took a sip of pine pollen tea, only to groan, “Ugh.” Ulrich watched her with a faint smile in his eyes.

“Then, will you answer my question?”

“You asked how many generations apart we are. If I must say… about twelve.”

“That is quite distant. Hardly something one could call close kin.”

Roberta recalled the appearance of Elias, the young master of the House of Landeyar.

The youthful young man showed no trace of fairy heritage. Like any human, his ears were blunt and short. His appearance was simply bright and refined, but lacked the distinctive traits of Galois.

The physical traits of other races nearly disappear after three or four generations. Internal traits such as lifespan persist a few generations longer, but outwardly, it ends at well-proportioned features like Elias.

From this, it seemed that even after Vermelani, there must have been fairies connected to the ducal house, though none particularly close.

“By blood, he is a very distant descendant. However, I was entrusted with that child from infancy, according to the rules of the family.”

At the word “rules,” Ulrich nodded.

“Yes, a custom your kind created in this era. Pairing one human and one fairy to form a bond. Sometimes like parent and child, sometimes like lovers—forming ties to protect one another or to mix blood.”

The fairies of the Empire have their roots in the fairy slaves of a previous age, but they are not the same as those slaves. Though they call themselves slaves, in truth, they are not.

People develop attachments. Even a human slave, if raised together from childhood, will inevitably form bonds. Though their status is master and slave, it is not a relationship that can be cleanly severed.

Then what of a fairy? One who has lived for an incomprehensibly long time by human standards, and has served a family throughout that time? And furthermore, whose blood flows, even slightly, within that very family?

Can such a being truly be called a slave?

“Humans cannot ignore emotions. The children of Erelbur understood that well. They themselves developed feelings for humans and were swayed by them many times.”

That was why, even since the Isturia Empire of the previous era, the fairies of the Empire allowed their blood to flow within humans.

They had realized that bonds based on emotion could become a stronger shackle than any sworn oath or written contract.

Of course, that shackle does not bind only one side. It entangles both humans and fairies alike.

The reason the Empire’s fairies voluntarily wear earrings is not merely out of fear of being hunted as other races.

“Previously, I served Elias’s great-grandfather. Elias has inherited much of his temperament.”

“A troublemaker full of adventurous spirit, I presume.”

“Yes, he was.”

For the first time before the two of them, she smiled. Then she fell silent. Her focus drifted, her gaze turning distant, as if recalling something far away.

Roberta realized that the fairy before her had sunk into memories—reminiscing about someone from the past whom Vermelani had once served.

At length, Vermelani let out a long, quiet breath.

“Someone once said that time is relative. Even in the same place, time flows differently for each person—long and drawn out for some, fleetingly short for others.”

“The harsher the time, the more it feels that way.”

Tilting his teacup, Ulrich continued,

“When you trace back your memories under the name of recollection, the past feels so distant that you begin to wonder how far you’ve come.”

“…You do not seem human. Perhaps you are a dragon disguised as one?”

“I wish that were the case. Then I would never forget my memories.”

Vermelani quietly looked at him, then opened her mouth to speak.

“Please, I ask you again. Keep what we discussed just now a secret from Elias. I would prefer that the child not be filled with foolish fantasies.”

“If you’re that worried, wouldn’t it be better to just drag him back by force?”

At Roberta’s question, the fairy shook her head.

“I would like to do that immediately if I could… but once we return to the main house, it will be difficult to come out again. The Duke has already made arrangements, and an engagement is expected soon.”

From the looks of it, it was a political marriage. Yet it did not feel unfortunate. For other nobles, it would have been something to be grateful for. At least he was not being treated as a discarded child of the main family, but instead being given a proper position. And for a great house of the Empire, there would be no shortage of suitable matches.

“Most people would welcome such a situation, yet he does not seem willing.”

However, Elias was a young man full of a spirit of adventure. One might even think he would have been better off born as an ordinary free citizen rather than a noble.

Vermelani gave a bitter smile.

“That is precisely why the head of the family permitted this outing with only me accompanying him. Knowing the child’s nature, he wanted him to create some small memories before he is bound by his duties.”

“It doesn’t seem to be going very well.”

“The world is rather chaotic these days, but how often does something occur that would truly satisfy that child?”

Roberta fell silent, thinking, Is that so? Ever since she had been appointed as the chief priest of Dithmarschen, she had encountered far too many incidents—it made her sense of normalcy feel somewhat distorted.

We decided to accompany them to the Kingdom of Turnia.

She turned to Ulrich and asked,

“Do you have any business in Turnia?”

“Nothing comes to mind at the moment. I suppose I’ll know once I get there.”

Leaning back against his chair, Ulrich continued,

“As you know, it’s not as though I have ties to every place in the world. Unless something I’ve forgotten suddenly comes back to me, I’ll likely continue heading toward the Pantheon for the time being.”

“Bel!”

Vermelani turned her body.

Beyond the open inn door, the young master of the ducal house was approaching in hurried steps. Behind him, the boy Fritz followed closely.

“I found it!”

Elias shouted again, his voice brimming with excitement. With a flushed face and a bright smile, he walked over to the table where Vermelani, Roberta, and Ulrich were seated.

“What do you mean?”

In contrast, Vermelani’s tone was cold. It was the same expression she had shown when first meeting Ulrich’s group. Since she had revealed her true feelings when the young master was absent, Roberta knew this was merely a mask.

“I mean an incident, an incident!”

“Please calm down and explain it step by step.”

“I heard it from a traveling merchant—there’s trouble.”

Vermelani narrowed her eyes.

“Isn’t it another one of those strange stories?”

“No. This time, it’s real!”

Emphasizing the words this time, the young master protested.

But the fairy did not drop her suspicion. As if this had happened more than once, she crossed her arms and turned her gaze toward Fritz.

“Is what the young master says true?”

“Yes, they say a monster has appeared.”

“A monster?”

Roberta immediately rose from her seat.

“The merchants had to take a detour and come here because monsters have been appearing nearby.”

“You heard that? Monsters!”

The young master clenched his fist tightly and raised his voice.

“Let’s go right now!”

Vermelani frowned.

“You intend to face monsters directly? That’s far too dangerous.”

“It’s just something that strayed out of the demonic realm, right? Sure, it’s dangerous because it’s a monster, but it’s still better than hunting one inside the demonic realm, isn’t it?”

As far as Roberta remembered, there was no demonic realm nearby. If monsters had appeared, it meant they had infiltrated from afar.

Such monsters were rarely overwhelmingly strong—but they were cunning. They had to suppress their instincts, hide themselves, and slip past boundaries. In many ways, they were more dangerous than ordinary monsters within the demonic realm.

“Please wait. Young master, it would be better to observe the local lord’s movements first and then join them.”

“If we follow the lord, we’ll just end up watching.”

“It’s better than dying foolishly.”

Elias frowned in dissatisfaction but said no more.

That’s unexpected. I thought he’d ignore her and run off.

He still clearly looked like he wanted to rush out immediately. But at Vermelani’s firm expression, he could only grumble. Though full of adventurous spirit, he had not entirely lost his sense of judgment.

“Really not allowed?”

“With just the two of us, it’s too dangerous.”

“There are more people here.”

“They are companions, not mercenaries.”

At that, the young master scraped the floor with the tip of his right foot, glanced at Ulrich, and muttered to himself,

“…What if I pay you? Would you come with us…?”