Upon hearing the news of the Elf’s Second Princess’s appearance, the Evergarden family immediately rode Tene towards the Great Forest.
Tene, once again finding herself in the role of an airplane, transformed into a dragon without complaint this time, carrying them on her back and flying swiftly.
Was it due to the shocking news of the Second Princess’s appearance in the Great Forest, or was she simply getting used to becoming the Evergarden family’s personal transport?
Whatever the reason, once the dragon flapped her wings, the Evergarden family arrived at the Great Forest in less than an hour.
“You’ve arrived!”
“Where is the Third Princess?”
“She’s waiting this way. We urgently need your help!”
As soon as they arrived at the Great Forest, a group of Elves quickly approached the Evergarden family, as if they had been waiting for them.
“Grandfather!”
“Ah, you’ve come?”
Thus, the Evergarden family burst into the office of the Third Princess, Celebrian Estel, who greeted them.
Estel had an unusually long pipe, similar to a kiseru, in her mouth, puffing out smoke.
To ordinary humans, it would be an awkward sight of a child smoking, but to the Elves, it was just a normal scene of someone smoking.
However, Freya knew that it was a habit Kim Hanseong, inside Celebrian Estel, had whenever something wasn’t going his way.
“What’s going on? The Second Princess…”
“It’s as it sounds. This morning, the Second Princess, who had left the Great Forest, suddenly returned.”
The Great Forest’s Second Princess, Celebrian Asir.
She was the Elf heroine who would naturally appear in any fantasy novel.
In the original [Dawn’s Starlight], she disliked the stifling ways of the Great Forest and, abandoning all her status, left the forest to enter the Empire’s Academy.
There, she made a name for herself as an Elf prodigy, and initially disliked the protagonist who entered as a freshman, but eventually became his comrade-such was her role.
However, unlike the original story, why was she, who should have been at the Academy, in the Great Forest?
“…First, please explain the situation. The Second Princess’s return is quite confusing, but… I know you wouldn’t contact us so urgently for just that reason, Grandfather.”
“Ahem… I understand. It will be a bit long, but I’ll summarize it quickly.”
At Freya’s question, Estel cleared her throat and summarized the situation so far.
Currently, the main power in the Great Forest was held by the Third Princess, Estel.
With the Elf King asleep, Estel was the only member of the royal family in the Great Forest, and with the Council of Elders supporting her, the rule of the Great Forest rested solely with Estel.
In this situation, the sudden return of the Second Princess, Asir.
So far, it was somewhat understandable.
Estel, having already heard about Asir from Felix, thought that she was more likely to side with Estel, who was changing the rigid and stifling situation of the Great Forest.
However.
“What?! She suddenly returned and banned the harvesting of the World Tree Leaf?”
“Yes. And she banned it strongly for almost forced reasons, without any clear justification.”
Estel’s expectations were spectacularly wrong.
Asir, who had argued for broader perspectives and active interaction with humans when she left the Great Forest, had suddenly returned and invoked the Elves’ traditions and honor, banning the use of World Tree Leaf needed for Elixir production.
“…The biggest reason I can rule the Great Forest right now is because I have the status of the Elves’ Third Princess.”
“In that situation, I can’t openly refuse the Second Princess’s words.”
“What about the Council of Elders? The Council of Elders, who have immense power besides the royal family, are on your side, Grandfather!”
“…The Council of Elders are not the King, and if she invokes the Elves’ traditions and honor, the Council of Elders have no grounds to refute…”
“So… you’re saying we can’t make Elixir anymore?!”
“I’m not the sharpest tool in the shed, but even I can see that this situation… is a big problem, right?”
The sudden appearance of the Second Princess, and the even more sudden ban on harvesting.
“…Grandfather. How much stock of completed Elixir do we currently have?”
“At best, 243 boxes of 20 each.”
“That amount isn’t enough for full-scale sales.”
“This is a disaster! The reason our Evergarden County can exert its power is ultimately because of the power of Elixir, but if we can’t sell Elixir…!”
The Evergarden County could withstand the public opinion warfare from Ganix, the threats of murder, and even support the Fifth Princess, all because of the value of Elixir.
If the supply of Elixir were cut off in this situation, they would be in a truly difficult situation.
“Is there anything we can do?”
“The situation itself isn’t the worst. She’s the Second Princess, but she has a history of leaving the Great Forest because she didn’t like it, and we’ve tamed a dragon, so most of the Elves are on our side.”
“We have to obey the Second Princess’s orders for now, but… if we keep pressuring her, she’ll have to back down.”
“Then how long will it take…?”
“That’s the problem. The Elves’ sense of time is absurdly long! Even if it’s just a delay, it could take years.”
“…If it takes that long, it’s already useless.”
Ganix’s public opinion warfare would clearly put increasing pressure on the Evergarden County as time went on.
The best thing to do in that situation was to start selling Elixir as soon as possible, but if that period was suddenly extended, they would be buried by Ganix’s public opinion warfare.
“But why suddenly the Second Princess?”
“…Possession. That Second Princess. She’s possessed. And she’s on Ganix’s side!”
“…Could it be!”
The appearance of the Second Princess, which was not in the original story, at the same time as Ganix’s public opinion warfare.
There was only one reason to explain the situation.
“Lady Asir. Lady Estel has requested an audience—”
“I won’t see her! I said I won’t see her! Didn’t you understand?!”
“B-But…!”
“Are my words a joke?! The words of the Second Princess?”
“…No, they aren’t.”
The highest floor of the royal castle.
In a room where only the royal bloodline could reside, a woman’s shout erupted.
Brilliant blonde hair softly draped over her shoulders, and a crown made of World Tree Leaf, as if to prove her status as a High Elf, rested demurely on her forehead.
An Elf woman with burning golden eyes like Estel, but with a much more mature figure.
The Elves’ Second Princess, Celebrian Asir.
“Anyway, you’re guarding the World Tree Leaf well, as I said, right?”
“Yes. We are making sure that no one can carelessly touch it.”
“Good, keep guarding it so that no one can take it without permission!”
“Understood.”
“Now, get out!”
“Yes, may you rest in peace.”
Asir, shouting arrogantly at her subordinates as if to prove that she was of noble blood, lacked the dignity of someone in power, unlike Estel.
“-Haa. This is really tough…”
After dismissing her subordinate as if chasing them out of the room, Asir leaned back in her chair, exhausted, and muttered.
“Blocking the World Tree Leaf is good, but….. who is that brat?! She’s clearly a character with no particular importance in the original story…”
“And all the Elves and the Council of Elders are on that brat’s side… it’s so different from what I heard!”
She had returned to the Great Forest according to orders, but it was so different from what she had expected that her mental fatigue was extremely exhausting.
“Besides, could it be…”
Moreover, there was a huge variable that she had not anticipated—
Whoosh-
“Perfect timing.”
At that moment, the crystal ball placed on the table in her room emitted a soft light and trembled slightly.
Asir picked up the crystal ball.
[It’s me, did things go well?]
“Haa… Ganix, is that you?”
[Who else would it be? So, how did it go?]
Then, a voice came from the crystal ball.
It was Ganix Obina.
“I blocked them from taking the World Tree Leaf, as you ordered. They won’t be able to make that Elixir for a while.”
[Excellent! That’s enough!]
Asir, as if used to talking to Ganix, sat comfortably in her chair and muttered.
This was Ganix’s aim.
Simple public opinion warfare could not stop the Evergarden, Freya.
No matter how much he used his subordinate nobles and newspapers to create public opinion, the excellent performance of the Elixir would quickly
reverse public opinion once it started selling.
But what if that Elixir wasn’t sold?
The seed of doubt that Ganix had sown would bloom, crushing the Evergarden County as it was.
“Ah! More importantly! There’s a bigger problem!”
[What is it?]
Just as Ganix was pleased with the success of his plan, Asir continued urgently.
“The Black Dragon… Tenebrix Nox is here…!”
And Asir leaked the most shocking information she had seen to Ganix.