The group heads back to the Elf forest, bringing Elana with them.
The girl brought by Rondoral was still young, no taller than Piyo. Her hair was blonde and reached her shoulders.
“This girl’s name is Cecilia. As you can see, she’s still young, but her skills are proven. I’m sure she’ll be of great help. Honestly, we should be the ones going, but it’s not possible.”
Fjord showed a flustered expression at the suddenness of it all.
“W-what are you saying! She’s not ready yet, and moreover, to go with these kinds of people?”
“No, no, as they say, ‘Let a cute child go on a journey,’ right? Besides, when it comes to the Dark Elf problem, we can’t just stand by idly and do nothing. May I entrust Cecilia with the investigation?”
Cecilia simply replied, “Yes,” with just one word. However, her immature eyes glared at us. It seemed as if she viewed us as enemies.
“Then I’ll leave it to you. Please, don’t push yourself too hard.”
“Yes, I understand, Lord Rondoral.”
She replied plainly and then started walking briskly. We had no choice but to follow behind her. From behind, we could hear the two of them talking.
The village was lined with simple, well-constructed wooden houses, and everyone was quietly engaged in their work. Cecilia continued walking as if she hadn’t even noticed our presence.
“Hey, my name is Arisugawa Hiroaki. This is Pillon, the Harpy, and Sharin, the cat demi-human.”
“I’m Pillon, everyone calls me Piyo.”
Even when spoken to, she ignored us as if we didn’t exist.
“Hey, what’s your problem? Don’t you think you should at least say ‘nice to meet you’?”
Nina, unable to bear Cecilia’s attitude, pressed her. Then, with a small, bothersome sigh, Cecilia turned to us.
“I’ll say this in advance: I am not here to play house. I am here to carry out the orders from Lord Rondoral.”
With that, she started walking again. Behind us, Nina exclaimed in anger. It’s always good to have more combat power, but if she’s this difficult, the future looks bleak.
