“How do you think the elves’ situation is right now?”
“Is there anything different? Isn’t it peaceful and nice?”
“That’s right, that’s right. It’s all thanks to the ancestors of the World Tree who diligently built this land, and now others too, each using their wisdom and humanity to create a prosperous age.”
“Shouldn’t we always be thankful for the present?”
The five elders gathered at the Council of Elders, all giving their answers to the elf princess’ sudden question during their usual tea time.
A peaceful and stable life in the Great Forest, without war or strife.
It was, above all, a precious time.
“No, that’s not it.”
However, Estel shook her head upon hearing the elders’ nodding responses.
“From my perspective, elves are merely caged birds in a prison.”
“…Haha, I suppose even the princess is starting to think like this.”
“She’s still young, so she doesn’t understand the ways of the world yet.”
Upon hearing Estel’s harsh words, the elders couldn’t help but recall her age.
She wasn’t even 100 years old yet, and to the elves, she seemed barely five or six years old. Her words sounded almost like a child’s tantrum.
“Storms? Can you even say such a thing?”
“…What?”
“That remark should be taken with caution, Princess.”
Yet Estel let out a light sneer, mocking them.
“What do you mean by storms? Is being stuck in this cramped wooden house and letting the years pass by considered a storm?
Even if something is well-maintained, if you lock it away in a corner, it’ll eventually rust and grow mold. If that’s what you mean by a storm, then I suppose you’re absolutely right.”
“Ha… Even though you’re young, you should know there are things you should and shouldn’t say, Princess! This is such disgraceful behavior!”
“Did you just call it disgraceful?”
“…?!”
“Has anything really changed for you all sitting here? You’re just standing on land that the previous generations built, letting time pass without purpose. That sight is pathetic and deplorable.”
At first, they thought Estel’s words were just childish outbursts, but as her speech grew more intense, the fifth elder, who had been shouting, flinched as he met Estel’s gaze.
‘What is this…! Am I really scared of a child who hasn’t even reached 100 years old yet? This can’t be happening…!’
Though Estel was clearly a young elf, she radiated a charisma so intense that the elder found it hard to even speak to her.
“You little brat! This is a place of safety! No matter how much of a princess you are, you should show respect to your elders!”
The fifth elder shouted, still incredulous that a child barely older than five or six was managing to outmatch him with her presence.
“These young ones are the problem. They think they’ve conquered the whole world when they’re still so green.”
“That’s true, the words of the ancestors were always right.”
“Yes, yes, it would be good to show her a little harshness.”
As the fifth elder continued to speak, the other elders slowly began to stand up, as if to lecture the impetuous princess.
“…Why not listen to her first?”
“What? Are you saying you’re not bothered by her words?”
Until now, the fourth elder had only tilted his head in confusion, repeating “Is that so?” or “Was that so?” But for the first time, he spoke up.
“Isn’t this just an immature child’s opinion? Still, as adults, we should listen to her patiently first, and then decide. Don’t you think?”
“…Hmm, that’s true.”
“Yes, it does seem strange to get so angry over the words of a child.”
“…..”
“And Princess, for now, please tone down the blunt criticism.”
“…I will. My apologies.”
‘This old man, I thought he was just a hollow shell, but he actually has some strength.’
Estel admired the fourth elder in her heart as she realized he had swiftly brought the situation under control. She then apologized to the assembly.
“I admit, I was a bit too harsh in expressing myself, but I do think it’s the truth.”
“Elves are indeed exceptional. That much is certain.”
“They live long lives, and each of them has great talent. However, in the end, just like a frog in a well, they are trapped in their own confined existence, and without growth, any being will eventually be left behind.”
As Estel spoke more calmly, she rummaged through her belongings and pulled out something.
“This is a map of human territorial distribution from about 1000 years ago. I thought we might not have anything like this, but it turns out the elves weren’t completely indifferent to the outside world.”
She held up a map of the continent from 1000 years ago. While searching through the archives, she had found this material, and now it would serve as a valuable foundation for her argument.
“After the war with the demon race ended, the five races, having no common enemy, scattered.”
“The beastmen returned to the barren wilderness, the dwarves to their underground homeland of iron and lava, the merfolk to the peaceful seas, and we elves returned to the Great Forest.”
“But humans, with no common enemy, immediately turned on each other, spilling blood across the continent.”
“The continent, once torn and divided, saw nations rise, borders drawn, and blood spilled as wars were fought in order to unite the land.”
As Estel spoke, her finger traced the map of the continent.
Unlike the demon race, which had been weakened by war, and the other races scattered across various territories, the human regions were all divided into multiple countries.
In contrast, the elves’ homeland, the vast Great Forest, stood in stark contrast to the fragmented human territories.
“Foolish, truly foolish. The moment their common powerful enemy disappeared, humans immediately divided into factions and began spilling blood. The Elven race cannot understand such behavior.”
“Hmm, yes. The short-lived species are always bound to make foolish decisions, aren’t they?”
The second elder, who deeply agreed with Estel’s words, shook his head in pity. The others seemed to share similar thoughts.
“However, look at this.”
“This map is the most recent we have from 54 years ago. Unfortunately, this is the most recent map we could find.”
Estel pulled out a second map from her possession.
“…Hmm?”
“This…?”
“Something’s different, isn’t it?”
As the new map was placed beside the old one, the elders immediately began to murmur in surprise.
“These people, who once fought among themselves, have now united.”
Indeed, the lands, which had once been divided into dozens of nations a thousand years ago, now showed only one empire ruling over the continent.
The Ovina Empire.
Founded by the first Emperor Ovina, after a conquest that unified the continent.
“Can you believe it? In just one thousand years.”
“For elves, a thousand years is just the beginning of our true lifespan, but for humans, it’s more than enough time to unite and develop an empire and become the dominant force of this world.”
“Hmm… their growth is certainly rapid, but how does that connect to what the princess is saying?”
As the assembly murmured, the fourth elder calmly asked Estel for clarification.
“Didn’t you notice? The species that conquered the continent in a thousand years were humans. Despite their shorter lifespan, they relentlessly build legacies, passing their will down to future generations.”
“So, what do you think will happen in another thousand years? How far will humans go in this continent?”
“……”
“Princess, are you saying humans will one day reach out to claim the Great Forest?”
“Exactly. They will, without a doubt, start eyeing the lands of other races, once they’re done with their own territories.”
Estel answered without hesitation, her confidence clear. After all, she was human too.
“However, will humans really be able to break into the World Tree’s Great Forest, a natural fortress?”
“Although it may be difficult in the short term, if elves continue to stagnate, humans will eventually surpass us.”
“You brat! How dare you say humans are superior to elves?!”
“Such nonsense. This is just a child’s exaggeration! Is that even a reasonable claim?”
Unable to contain themselves, the second and fifth elders stood up and scolded Estel, pointing their fingers at her.
To them, the high pride they held for their elven race was being insulted by a mere child barely a hundred years old.
“But… it does seem like humans are no small threat…”
“If you look here, the nearby forest, not blessed by the World Tree, is depicted simply as a forest on this map from a thousand years ago.
But now, humans have settled almost up to the border…”
However, the first and third fingers, while showing some caution in Estel’s words, were somewhat in agreement with her.
“Is this how you elves, who live in the World Tree’s sanctuary, act!? You let yourselves be swayed so easily by the childish words of the princess!?
The title of the elder council is wasted on you!”
“But looking at the materials the princess brought, this is the truth!”
“Then what do you intend to do? Whether humans invade or not, can’t we just defeat them with our superior strength!?”
“Heh, did you forget? Elves may be great, but it was a human who drove the sword into the demon king’s chest during the Great War a thousand years ago.”
“Didn’t our ancestors open the way for that human’s sword with arrows!?”
“Even so, we can’t completely ignore them!”
The elder council quickly split into two opposing factions, with each finger passionately asserting their points, and the discussion became chaotic.
At that moment.
“Enough! Stop it!”
As before, the fourth finger, who had remained silent, silenced the rising debate with a sharp command.
“…Then what is the princess’s plan? Do you want us to fall under the humans because they’re powerful?”
“No, that’s not it.”
Estel then turned to the council, asking for a clear answer, and spoke with a light smile at the corner of her lips.
“I told you. Humans, when facing external enemies, band together, but once the external threat disappears, they turn on each other.
They are creatures of such nature.”
Despite being united under the framework of an empire, humans ultimately live and die by their desires. Now…
“Money, fame, love, all those strong desires they chase after throughout their lives. What do most humans want?”
“Money. Simply put, money.”
“Currency, gold coins, bonds, credit, real estate. Humans live and die by these things.”
“They’ll stab their parents for a single gold coin, abandon a newborn for a loaf of bread.”
“Perhaps foolish, but it’s thanks to these primal emotions that humans have developed as they have.”
“And I plan to use this weapon called money.”
Bang!
“!”
“Hmm…!”
As soon as she finished speaking, Estel slammed her palm down onto the map she had unfolded.
Under her hand lay the vast Ovina Empire.
‘How can such a young girl exude such resolve…!’
‘Impressive, yet restrained and dignified.’
‘I thought she was foolish at first, but now, everyone’s listening to the princess with rapt attention. We’ve just been worn down by time…’
Each sentence she spoke, without losing composure or becoming impassioned, made the council listen, and with her powerful performance, Estel soon swayed the hearts of the elder council members in one fell swoop.
‘How shameful. What are we, the elders, doing, being scolded by this child who isn’t even a hundred years old yet…’
The elder council members looked inward at themselves.
Though they had lived for thousands of years, they hadn’t noticed the human encroachment on the Great Forest, while the young princess was already concerned about the elves’ situation. They felt a deep sense of disappointment and shame.
“And what of you? Will you remain stagnant here, or will you follow me and make this Great Forest so grand that no one will dare approach it?”
With clear determination, Estel laid out her vision. The once arrogant and complacent elders who had sat comfortably in their seats now seemed small. To them, it felt as though the World Tree itself was looking down and watching over them.
“…Princess, no, Third Princess. It seems we’ve rusted and molded over time, just as you said.”
With that, the fourth finger raised their hand and spoke, extending it towards the other elders.
“If you allow it, Princess, I wish to cast off this rust and mold, and be of service to you.”
‘The princess is no naive child. How foolish I was to have viewed her with cloudy eyes.’
His declaration was shocking.
The fourth finger, known as the great sage among the elders, knelt and bowed to the princess. If any other elves had witnessed this, they would have been utterly shocked.
“I, El Grindel Abraham, the fourth finger of the elder council, wish to be of service to you, Princess.”
‘Even though I thought my old age had come to its end, she makes my heart race like never before…’
Grindel felt his heart beating faster than it had in years, as he believed that Estel would truly become the leader of the elves.
“…First finger of the elder council, El Delis Erich Brigette. I swear my loyalty to you, Princess.”
“Third finger of the elder council, El Grisha Norton Jeos. I pledge my loyalty to you, Princess.”
“Second finger of the elder council, El Longis Grimoire. I too swear my loyalty.”
“Fifth finger of the elder council, El Licht Gehanda. I wish to be your strength, Princess.”
As the fourth finger, Grindel Abraham, knelt, the other fingers followed suit, kneeling and swearing their loyalty to Estel.
“…Now I see those eyes looking at me.”
The once dull eyes that had been clouded now gleamed with intelligence. Estel, with her sharp gaze, looked at the council elders, and they were captivated by her.
She folded her arms and smiled, feeling satisfied with the outcome.
Her behavior was haughty but not arrogant.
Thus, just eight days after taking over, Estel had secured the authority to lead the elves.