“H-Hey!” I protested, taking a few steps back to put some distance between us. I pulled the hood of my robe up and stood on guard to prevent another attack on my hair.
The elven woman seemed pleased by my reaction, an amused smile curling on her lips. “No need to be so defensive. Besides, my mana pool is not as shallow as you may think. Teleporting two people is a mere trifle for one of my stature.”
“Is that so? Well, I guess that’s elves for you.”
She had incredibly good Mana Control, so I couldn’t see how much mana she had, but I supposed it made sense for an elf.
“Come, child. Follow me.”
“Yes, yes.”
We resumed our walk; I once again found myself gawking at our surroundings.
“What do you think, child? Is our capital to your liking?” she asked me, amused.
“It’s a wonderful place. It looks like it came right out of a fairy tale.”
Most of the buildings were white, but the pristine water of the canal passing through the city and the scattered pockets of greenery added some color. Taking a closer look at the flowers and shrubs, I could tell I had never seen anything like them before.
“You are adorable. I am quite used to this city, so I do not see its charms anymore, but I am glad to see you do,” the elven woman said.
“I’ve never seen any city like this one before, so I’m genuinely in awe,” I said.
The elven woman flashed me another smile before leading me to a building at the root of the World Tree.
“Come,” she said.
“Uh... Am I really allowed to go in there? Are you some sort of big shot here?”
The building she had led me to looked like some sort of imperial palace.
Was she a court magician or something? I wondered as I followed her into the building.
I must have been onto something; all of the people in the palace lowered their heads when they saw her.
“Welcome back, Lady Elnea.”
“I have returned from my walk. I found a little guest in the forest, so I shall be taking her to one of the guest rooms.” Elnea waved her folding fan around and added that they didn’t need to bother with ceremonious greetings.
Stiff smiles formed on the servants’ faces. Judging by their reactions, they seemed to be used to Elnea acting casually around them.
“Hmm... Not this one, not this one... Here. You may sleep here tonight,” she said, opening the door to a room.
“Thank you very much...”
I entered the room and was bewildered by how lavish it was. Not only was it much, much bigger than my room at the mansion, but I could tell with a single glance that the furniture and decorations were of the highest quality.
As I gawked at my surroundings, Elnea went to take a seat on the sofa. With a wiggle of her fingers, she summoned a shadow, from which she retrieved a wine glass and a bottle of alcohol.
“There is nothing quite like a refreshing drink after a stroll in the forest,” she said.
“Um... I’m happy you’ve decided to keep me safe until I’m reunited with my friend, but why are you staying in the room with me?” I asked.
“Well, I cannot leave a child like you in such a large room by herself, can I? Fortunately, the bed is quite roomy, so we should have sufficient space to spend the night together.”
I mean, I guess it is, but...
I glanced at her from the corner of my eye and, upon noticing my gaze, she tilted her head to the side and held out her glass to me.
“What is it? Are you curious about what I am drinking? Would you like a sip?” she offered.
“No, thank you.”
“What a shame,” she said, sounding a bit disappointed. “This fruit wine is brewed right here in our forest. It is quite delectable.”
She tilted her glass back and took an elegant sip of red wine.
“You must be someone important in the elven kingdom, right, Miss Elnea? Couldn’t you just have let the servants from earlier look after me for the night?” I asked.
“‘Miss Elnea,’ hm? How long has it been since someone last called me that...”
She repeated “Miss Elnea” a few times as she sipped on her wine. When she noticed my gaze, she cleared her throat and said, “You are right; I could have sent you with the domestics. However, I have taken a liking to you, child, so I decided to keep you by my side.”
“That’s quite kind of you, but I should probably mention that I’m not a child,” I pointed out.
“Yes, yes, I am aware. Children like you always like to pretend that they are all grown up. Besides, from my perspective, everyone is but a mere child,” she said, smiling warmly at me.
I didn’t know how to reply to that.
“Here, do not just stand there. Come and join me.” She patted the sofa next to her, but I decided to take a seat on the one opposite her instead. However, before I could take a seat, she folded her fan with a quick movement of the wrist, and the second sofa disappeared into the shadows.
I let out a long sigh. “Fine,” I said, begrudgingly sitting beside her.
She started fawning over me, petting my hair and repeating how cute I was over and over again. Teto also liked to pat me on the head and call me cute, but this lady was clearly treating me like a child. I wasn’t exactly pleased by the situation I had found myself in, but she had kinda saved my life, so I decided to bear with it for the time being.
“Oh, this reminds me, have you ever ventured beyond the border of the forest?” Elnea asked me, still petting my hair.
“I’ve traveled to a lot of places, if that’s what you’re asking?” I replied.
“I have seldom left our forest, you see. I would be most intrigued to hear tales of the outside world.”
I gave her words some thought. I had heard before that not only were outsiders rarely let into the elves’ forest, but the elves themselves almost never ventured into the outside world either. I wasn’t too surprised to hear that she was curious about what lay beyond the kingdom’s border.
“Hm... Would you like me to tell you about the Town of Soap?” I offered.
“Oh! Soap! We also wash our clothes with soapwort herbs we gather in the forest!”
Her eyes sparkled like a child’s, standing at odds with her ethereal beauty. I couldn’t prevent a wry smile from curling on my lips at the sight.