Chapter 14: Truth or a Well-Intentioned Lie

“Ugh.”

As she woke up from her sleep, she clutched her head, suffering from a headache.

The memories of just before she drank began to surface, and soon, she found herself regretting her choice.

She had somewhat expected this.

Currently, she was well aware that her body was far from normal, and because of this, her alcohol tolerance was much lower than her usual self, let alone that of an average human.

‘Still, to be affected like this after just one sip…’

The alcohol entering her system after several centuries was more than just stimulating—it carried a punch that blew her consciousness away.

In the past, she couldn’t get drunk even if she wanted to, but now, with just a tiny bit of alcohol, she became so intoxicated that she could barely stay conscious.

She wondered whether she should be happy about this or not.

‘Oh no, what time is it now?!’

As she recalled the fact she had forgotten, she looked out the window.

Outside, the bright blue sky and the shining sun warmly greeted her, indicating it was already morning.

With the sky fully brightened, the pounding headache, and the fragmented memories, she could only conclude that she must have slept soundly through the night.

“Even now… I should at least…”

And so, Arsep belatedly started to put yesterday’s pre-purchased bread into a basket.

She wanted to bring freshly baked bread if she could, but she would have to wait another two to three hours for the stores to open. She decided to handle the immediate need first.

***

“Huh?”

But something was strange.

Some of the bread she had bought yesterday was missing, and the milk that should have been there was also gone.

‘Did he have it for breakfast?’

‘If so, it was fine, but if not, that would be a different issue altogether.’

“Ah, you’re up? Good morning.”

“Oh, yes… good morning.”

Just then, he returned to the lodging, with a towel draped over his shoulder.

He had likely washed up early in the morning before coming back.

“Did you perhaps eat the bread and drink the milk I bought yesterday?”

She asked cautiously, careful not to sound like she was scolding him.

If he had eaten it, she didn’t mind at all and would even be happy for him to have more.

But she needed to be sure, just in case someone had broken into the lodging.

“No? There are plenty of restaurants around here, so why would I settle for bread in the morning?”

It seemed he wasn’t the one.

Indeed, he usually didn’t snack much and was in the habit of having a hearty breakfast.

“I see… Then why are they missing?”

“Now that you mention it, I remember you were looking at the bread bag before I went to wash up last night. Did you maybe eat it then?”

“Me?”

“Yes, so I thought maybe you were hungry.”

“I see.”

According to him, it seemed she had been fiddling with the bread bag.

Based on the circumstances, it looked like she ate the bread but couldn’t remember because of the alcohol.

However, she was sure she hadn’t eaten it herself.

If she had, there should at least be an empty milk bottle.

But even after searching the trash can in the lodging, she couldn’t find any empty bottles.

‘Could it be that I already took it to that child?’

But she had no recollection.

Her mind had become so diluted by alcohol that she couldn’t even recognize herself.

Even if she had, her memories were so fragmented that it was impossible to piece them back together.

***

“Would you like to go for a short walk?”

“A walk, all of a sudden?”

“Yes… I still feel a bit dizzy from last night’s drink. I thought it might help if I could take a brief walk in the morning sunlight.”

But she couldn’t fully relax just yet.

Even if she had already taken the bread and milk to that child, she needed to see for herself to shake off this nagging feeling that would likely bother her all day.

In the end, she took a walk as an excuse and passed through the alley where that poor child had probably waited for her.

‘Oh…’

Unfortunately, the child had already left the alley.

At night, it might have been different, but during the day, people passed through this alley, so staying there wasn’t a good option.

‘…That’s a relief.’

Still, she felt a sense of relief.

In the pile of trash in the alley, she spotted an empty milk bottle and the packaging of the bread she had bought yesterday.

There was a slim chance it could belong to someone else, but the odds of someone else buying the exact same items she had and discarding the wrappers here were low.

“You seem in a good mood. Did something nice happen?”

She didn’t know exactly what had happened.

Whether she had somehow, despite being drunk and lacking memory, made her way here to give the child the bread and milk, or whether someone else had done it on her behalf, she couldn’t say…

“I just feel good because I went for a morning walk.”

“That’s great.”

One thing was certain—the child hadn’t gone hungry last night.

And that fact gave her peace of mind.

Rustle, rustle…

Moving through branches and thickets, the child walked quietly.

When morning arrived and the streets filled with people, the child would deliberately leave the city to hide in the forest.

The reason lay in the child’s origins.

***

A Dark Elf, a race once so numerous that countless perished in a war that began with the death of the World Tree.

Now, there are not even hundreds left.

‘I knew it… I thought they were heading to the restroom, but it was for something like this.’

They recalled the voice they heard that night.

If asked who it was, they wouldn’t know. It was a stranger, a human.

The man was probably an outsider, unaware of the situation surrounding the Dark Elves.

Otherwise, he would not have approached so easily.

The Dark Elves were known as the cursed race.

Although the child didn’t know if their race was truly cursed, the stories told by their people from long ago suggested it might be true.

The Elves blamed the death of the World Tree on the priestess.

And because the priestess was a Dark Elf, the entire race was persecuted by the Elves and, eventually, even massacred.

Since then, the Elven leaders spread rumors across continents, declaring that the Dark Elves were cursed, so even if some survivors lived, they would not be able to live peacefully.

Were they truly cursed?

The child wondered if the Dark Elves were indeed cursed but had no way to find out the truth.

All those who knew the reality of those times had long since passed away.

No matter how long-lived the Elves were, now, thousands of years later, those who understood the truth of the World Tree’s death had died of old age.

So, all that remained for the child was to carry the label of the distant past simply for being born as a Dark Elf.

But surviving was not easy.

The child had been separated from their parents long ago, and the rumors of the Dark Elves as a cursed race had spread far and wide, not only among the Elves but also to other races.

They were treated worse than demons by Elves, practically regarded as a living curse by other races as well.

They continued living only because they feared death.

Death seemed scary and sad.

Even the child’s parents, who were adults, cried in the face of death.

So, the child did not have the courage to face it.

Even if that meant enduring centuries of persecution as a long-lived Elf.

***

“Strange people.”

For this reason, the two people the child met in this city were unusual.

“Hey, kid, are you alright?”

The first was an unknown demon woman who had approached them.

The woman had completely hidden her demon aura, so others might not have noticed her identity, but somehow, the child knew she was a demon.

In fact, demons were somewhat of a relief to Dark Elves.

After the massacre, surviving Dark Elves with nowhere to go managed to hide in the Demon Realm.

This was possible only because the leader of the Demon Realm at that time quietly allowed Dark Elves to take refuge there.

Though they could no longer stay in the Demon Realm due to the ongoing war between the human and demon worlds.

Regardless, the child felt grateful to the demon woman.

Thanks to her, it had been a long time since the child had felt the sensation of a full stomach.

But the human man who came the next day… He was a little odd.

Though he was certainly human, he didn’t seem like a typical human.

Usually, humans went wild at the sight of a Dark Elf, eager to collect bounties or sell them into the slave market, but strangely, this man didn’t show such tendencies…

“I’m here in secret, so if someone comes looking for me today or tomorrow, just cover for me.”

Then, just like the demon woman, the man handed over a basket filled with bread and milk.

Listening to his words alone, it sounded like the human and the demon were companions.

Indeed, when the child took a brief look at the city in the morning, they saw the demon and the human walking together.

It was odd.

They had heard that humans and demons were at war.

Why were these two walking together as if it was the most natural thing?

Surely, the man couldn’t be unaware of the demon woman’s true identity.

Of course, that wasn’t the strangest thing.

It was peculiar enough that a demon was hiding in a fairy city.

It was odd that a human treated a Dark Elf kindly.

And it was strange to see a human and demon traveling together.

Those were all unusual things, but what left the deepest impression on the child was something else.

‘Is he truly human?’

The man was undoubtedly human.

Yet, for a brief moment, the child had sensed his aura.

When he had found the child, a faint energy had leaked from him.

It was something entirely unidentifiable, neither human nor demon.