A green, grass covered plain suddenly spread out from the wasteland where even grass did not grow. However, even though the scouts of the Chivalric Order headed towards it, they couldn’t move past that point.
This, of course, is natural, as the area beyond this is where the security barrier of the Great Spirits was erected. That barrier is incomparably stronger than the barrier erected over Yggurle Kingdom. .
「This is, a Spirit’s barrier.」
As an excellent Spirit Mage, Mimir was able to sense the Spirits’ powers from the boundary. As such, she was bewildered. Why are the Spirits rejecting elves?
「Princess, we are still unable to advance further.」
A returning knight reported to Mimir.
「…… I will try to proceed.」
「That is unacceptable. We are unsure of what is there. It’s dangerous!」
The knight hurriedly dissuaded her, but Mimir vaguely felt that she herself could go beyond this point.
「This is a Spirit’s barrier. It is not dangerous.」
「Even so.」
「The likelihood that I, too, will be obstructed by the barrier is high. Let us try what we are able to.」
Mimir instructed the knights to wait up to one day at the maximum should she be able to cross the barrier, and alone, she began to walk.
「Oh my, could that be a guest, I wonder. It would be fine if it is this child, is it not?」
「It seems so~ I’ll notify Takumi-chan~」
The beautiful-type Undine and the amorous-type Dryas perceived Mimir approaching from outside the barrier.
「Ah! Princess!」
Mimir understood she passed through the barrier. The next instant, an unbelievable sight spread out before her very eyes.
「………………………………」
Mimir stood stock still, speechless.
What filled her view was a surface carpeted entirely by greenery filled with flowers of various colors. And what her nation had been looking for, the Spirit Tree which towered approximately 50 meters high. Beside it was a spring filled with clean water, and opposite of it was a lush thicket of trees.
Then she noticed a house made of stone. Tables and chairs were set up on its yard, and there were people drinking tea there.
A Human silver haired young man, Beastkin women and girl, a Human red haired young woman, and one Elven woman. That much would have been within Mimir’s range of tolerability. But in that place, two women and one young girl, one aged man of small stature, and one red skinned young man were present, all clearly not people.
「I-it can’t be, it is the Great Spirit-samas.」
Mimir approached with an unsteady step.
Smiling, Undine ushers her in.
「Welcome. To our land.」
「A-are you Undine-sama? ……and beside you is Dryas-sama, over there are Sylph-sama, Gnome-sama, and Salamander-sama, the Great Spirits…………」
Seeing and meeting the Great Spirits, she kneeled immediately. This, too, was inevitable. There were no Elves residing in the present Yggurle Kingdom that have caught a glimpse of the manifested Great Spirits.
「Marnie, prepare a seat.」
「Yes, Sylph-sama.」
Marnie brought out one chair from inside the house.
「Elven miss, take a seat.」
「Y-yes, please excuse my discourtesy.」
As told by Dryas, Mimir stood up nervously and sat on the chair that Marnie had prepared.
「So, how may we help the elven miss?」
「Y-yes, u-umm, we were searching for the cause of masses of Spirits leaving Yggurle Kingdom, and we had then determined that a Spirit Tree exists outside of the country. However, not even Spirit Mages were able to enter this land…………」
「That is so, this is not the land of Elves. It would be worrying if people could enter as they please, as such, we Great Spirits had formed a barrier.」
Mimir was perplexed by Undine’s words. To Mimir, who believed that the Elves exist together with Spirits, it felt as though they were rejected by the Spirits.
Today, when I was doing civil engineering work by the request of the Great Spirits and the Spirit Tree, I was informed by Dryas that someone from outside the barrier had paid a visit.
「It’s an young Elven lady. Undine had said she’d let just one person pass the barrier, so let’s have some tea and wait.」
「Hee~ it’s rare to have visitors.」
We arranged a table and chairs in front of the mansion made of stone, and waited for the person who passed through the barrier.
The person who came through the barrier was an elven young lady wearing a beautiful dress.
She’s apparently the Royal Princess of Yggurle Kingdom. I haven’t heard how she came to this place, but she knew that the Spirit Tree was the cause.
「You Elves might be misunderstanding, but both the World Tree and the spirits are not the Elves’.」
「Eh! ………………………」
「Hold on, Sylph, be a bit kinder.」
Hearing Sylph’s remark, Elf Princess-sama was brought to tears.
「It’s fine, there are many Elves that have been misunderstanding this recently.」
「Sylph, there is a way to say it a bit kinder, so please.」
「………… What kind of land is this? This land overflowing with sacred energy, where the Great Spirits manifested, is…?」
Ah, this girl recovers fast.
「This is the Spirit Sanctuary.」
「Wha!! Why?! Why this place and not Yggurle Kingdom?」
Mimir had received quite the shock from the spirits’ rejection of the Elves and couldn’t agree to the Sanctuary being anywhere but in her country. With a weeping expression, she made an appeal to Undine and Sylph.
「We don’t have a particular reason.」
「Yes, if I had to say, then because the World Tree seed was coincidentally here and Takumi coincidentally purified this land, the Spirit Tree was provided an environment it could grow in. That is all.」
「Indeed, if I had to add another reason, differing from the Elves who prepared environments where Great Spirits like us could manifest in, Takumi worked without calculating the profits and loss.」
No, I remember being ordered to do various work though. It somehow felt like Undine and the Great Spirits were being cold to the Elf Princess. Mimir increasingly grew teary eyed.
「To begin with, Spirits do not consider the Elves as unconditional allies simply because Elves just happen to have the aptitude for Spirit Magic.」
Ah, please stop already. Salamander’s statement seems to have finished Mimir off. Overcome with surprise, she had turned white, you know?
Seeing the terrible treatment of the Royal Princess of her motherland in front of her, Sophia seems to have chosen to become one with the air. She’s been erasing her presence since a while ago.
As for the result, the Royal Princess Mimir of Yggurle Kingdom was informed that individuals without permission, no matter who they may be, will not be able to enter this land which is a Spirit Sanctuary that centers around the Spirit Tree. Furthermore, Mimir believed that the fact that the only beings allowed free entry are Humans, Beastkin, and monster subordinates was definitely not something she could report back to her country.
She knew that it was a fact that would be difficult for the proud Elves, who frequently look down on other races, to accept.
「How should I report this to father…………」
The retreating figure of Mimir, who was trudging her way back out of the sanctuary alone, seemed awfully sad.
***