Chapter 14

Chapter 5: Misconceptions are Free

Creak.

Espresso, awakened from her sleep, heard someone approaching and tried to scream.

“Mmph, mmph!”

But a firm hand stuffed cloth into her mouth, silencing her attempt. She tried to see the culprit’s face, but a sack was placed over her head, blocking her vision.

Why?! She had expected everything to be over when she woke up, and now she felt as if the world was crumbling. The culprit threatened her in an eerie tone.

“Move quietly. Don’t try anything, or you won’t like what happens.”

Devastated, Espresso didn’t resist and obediently followed the instructions. Shortly after, she heard the voice of a man, presumably an accomplice. “How’s your end?” “No problem. But what about the wound on your hand?” “…I got bitten trying to gag her.”

“Is that so. Let’s go.” Hearing the culprits’ conversation, it seemed she wasn’t the only elf being captured and dragged away. Clack, clack, clack…

“Mmph! Mmph?!” Although she couldn’t see anything, she instinctively realized as soon as she stepped onto the stairs leading downstairs. This was the chief’s house! And worse, they were heading to the basement she never wanted to revisit. “Stay still.” “Mmph!” Dragged along, Espresso heard the voice of the healer who had treated her earlier that day.

“…Crimson thought we knew nothing. There’s no helping it, though. We, who found a new home and family, have been deliberately ignoring it.”

The one who abducted her responded to the healer’s monologue. “This is our karma. The sin of letting a friend, with whom we built a new home, fight alone. We have no right to resent him.”

She also heard the voice of the woman who had made her gruel earlier.

“I heard it at the restaurant today. These elves hate humans. If we let them live, they’ll take away our families and home again.”

Following that, the village guard captain reported. “Today, the village is in chaos, so I’ve instructed everyone not to go out except during patrol hours. I’ve also appeased the mercenaries so they won’t wander around.” The villagers, having exchanged a few words, fell silent for a while.

Then, the healer spoke with a determined tone.

“Let’s begin.” “…Yes.” “May Crimson rest in peace.” “For our friend.”

Thud!

The village guard captain, without any warning, plunged a knife into Espresso’s heart.

She, who was already quite weak even before being dragged back here, died in vain.

Thud! Thud! Thud! The other elves dragged into the basement followed Espresso’s fate one by one.

“Now…” “Only one left.”

“What do we do?”

The four exchanged glances and turned to the elf woman tied hand and foot to a chair.

She wasn’t gagged or had a sack over her head like the other elves.

Courteous treatment, almost on par with a captured noble.

The elf, who had been silent until now, spoke. “…Is your objective not complete until you kill me too?”

Even with her kin being slaughtered before her eyes, the elf’s tone was detached.

“That’s… “Sigh…” “Troublesome.” “Hmm…” She was the elf who had insisted on going out of the village to retrieve the body of her benefactor, who had fallen from the cliff. Of course, she was abducted as soon as she left and imprisoned in this basement. And she had been left there until now. The reason was that she was a big fish, too important to kill carelessly! “I fully understand your motives for the crime. But my anger flares at you taking the life of our benefactor to silence him.” “That…” “I’m sorry.”

The four, despite holding this elf’s life in their hands, couldn’t straighten their shoulders and cowered.

Grand Elder Celebreth.

Originally, her noble status was such that they couldn’t even face her directly.

Let alone abduct her?

If they were caught, it wouldn’t end with just the massacre of the villagers.

“Why do you hesitate? You have no choice.” “Elder.” “Impossible.” Celebreth refused without even listening.

“…If you swear not to reveal this, we will release you immediately.”

A vow.

A value more important than life to elves who live for thousands of years.

Celebreth responded coldly.

“Do you believe a vow made under duress has any effect?”

“That’s…!” “Do you want to test me if you don’t believe me?” “Elder Celebreth. Why are you telling us that? If you had hidden it, we would have released you with peace of mind.”

The smartest healer in the village questioned her. Celebreth smiled. “Take this opportunity to learn well. Elves do not lie to preserve their petty lives.”

However, even she, who spoke proudly, knew well.

That there were plenty of elves who lied to survive.

Also, there were elves who lied to atone for their sins through death, just like herself.

“…Then there’s no choice. Elder Celebreth. We will send you off with as little pain as possible.”

Swish. The guard captain pointed his blood-stained knife at her.

Celebreth closed her eyes peacefully and awaited her end.

“Behind…!”

“Watch out!”

“Gasp?!”

“What?!” Just then, the simultaneous screams of the four, filled with shock and terror, erupted.

Celebreth, slowly opening her closed eyes, saw it.

Thwack! The guard captain’s severed head flying through the air. Of course, her surprise wasn’t because of that. “How…?”

“OOO?”

The benefactor, who was said to have died after falling from the cliff, had returned.

” …?” “What’s she saying?” I didn’t know what the female elf with wide eyes was saying, but I decided to think about it later. First, cleanup… Thud! Slash! I quickly dealt with the villagers who had dragged the elves into the basement.

Revenge for the elves?

My timing of intervention perfectly lent itself to that misunderstanding, but I had planned to kill them all from the moment I started following them. Both the elves who betrayed me, and the villagers who were allied with the chief.

“□□ Save me!” “Oh! I know that word!” I was glad that the foreign language I learned from the mercenary Misa came out, but it wasn’t enough motivation to save them.

Slash!

“Aargh!”

It was the right choice to deal with the most muscular man among the four first, as he showed an opening to kill the female elf. The other three were nothing special. The elves wouldn’t have been abducted so easily if their bodies hadn’t been in such a weakened state.

“□ Save me gasp?!”

I ended the situation by thrusting the Blue Cutter into the medulla oblongata of a middle-aged woman trying to escape through the basement entrance. The only survivor left was the elf tied to the chair.

“OO? OO OOO.”

“We meet again.” It was the female elf I had intended to present as a living witness.

She was still as gaunt as a mummy, but after washing away the filth and covering the scars all over her body with clean clothes, she looked a little like a ‘beauty.’ And a status window, which I hadn’t seen before, caught my eye.

[Name] Celebreth

[Level] 12

[Blessing] Taming A, Life C, Nobility B

[Curse] Noble B

“Huh…”

A dry laugh escaped my lips as I checked her blessings.

I was boasting with just one F-grade blessing, but this elf had three blessings. And their grades were very high.

However,

[Taming]

▶ The abilities of animals you tame are slightly improved.

▶ The chance of taming wary animals greatly increases!

A professional animal trainer, you could say? It wasn’t an effect that strengthened herself, so even with a high grade, it was a bit ambiguous. A blessing that’s no help if you don’t have a pet nearby.

Besides that…

[Life]

[Nobility]

[Curse] Noble

The other two blessings and the curse I briefly checked weren’t anything special either. Anyway, I guessed the reason why this female elf tied to the chair showed me her status window.

“Celebreth?”

“□. □□ Celebreth.” She probably wanted to tell me her name.

The elf Celebreth looked up at me without a hint of fear and drew a smile on her lips.

[Outcast]

My emotions, protected by the blessing, remained unchanged, but for some reason, it was a reassuring smile.

A certain god is very uncomfortable. A certain god emphasizes ‘Outcast’.

“I understand well.”

Always maintain the Outcast status.

You will be cursed if you abandon the life of a lone wolf.

“□□?”

I cut the ropes binding the elf’s hands and feet, who was looking at me curiously as I mumbled to myself while staring at the ceiling.

Thump, thump. “Lucky elf.” I had intended to kill everyone to leave no loose ends. But I stopped because she showed me her status window and told me her name. I had a similar experience. Gary, Cole, Misa.

I tried to gain favor with the first fantasy natives I met by telling them my name. It was futile, though. If I killed this elf here, wouldn’t I be no different from them? “Take care of the rest yourself.” The basement reeked of blood, stained with betrayal and backstabbing.

I felt no need to stay in this vile place any longer and was about to turn to leave when. ” …!”

Stumble~ Grab. As soon as she stood up from the chair, the female elf tripped and was about to fall, but I quickly caught her. “What a bother!” “□. □ □□ Kang Han-soo □.” “You know my name?” “Kang Han-soo □. □□□.”

I wrapped my left arm around the elf’s skeletal waist, tucked her under my arm, and exited the chief’s house.

Outside, it was still quiet.

Strange, isn’t it?

Elves were abducted in the middle of the night, many mercenaries died, and four villagers went missing. It should have been chaos, normally? “Respected Outcast God. What could be the reason?” A certain god says they’re not in the mood to talk. “Oh, right.”

I should get rid of this elf quickly, or the god’s anger might not subside. But I can’t trust the village, and the forest is teeming with gnolls who like elf meat. What should I do?

First, I decided to leave the village, then think. Tap, tap, tap.

I stepped on the ladder inside the palisade and easily leaped over the barrier. How far did I run after that?

Squeeze, squeeze.

“Kang Han-soo □. □□□.” The elf, who had caught my attention by tugging at my sleeve, pointed to the sky with her skeletal fingers.

“What is it?”

Whoosh~ A hot gust of wind powerfully swept over my head.

I tilted my head back and witnessed a surreal fantasy creature. “Phoenix…?”

A peacock covered in fiery red flames instead of feathers was following us, looking down from low altitude.

What a bolt from the blue!

Flicker!

As the phoenix flapped its wings, a wall of fire formed around me. [Outcast]

“…This will be tough.”

I’m fine with my cheat-like blessing, but this elf, with only mediocre blessings, will be well-done.

“You want me to put you down?”

“.”

Even if we don’t speak the same language, there’s such a thing as understanding.

She must be telling me to abandon her, who’s only a burden, and escape!

I didn’t decline and released my arm from around the elf’s waist. And gently set her down on the ground.

Whoosh… Then the wall of fire slowly disappeared, and the phoenix, which had been circling, landed beside her.

“□. □□□.”

Flicker!

“OO.”

Flicker?

The elf and the phoenix seemed to be communicating across species.

As soon as I saw that heartwarming scene, I understood the situation.

[Taming]

Are they not in a trainer and pet(?) relationship! “Kang Han-soo □.”

“Hmm? “□□. □□□ □ □ Celebreth Mi □ □ □□ Kang Han-soo O OOO Mi □□□ □□.

“What are you saying… Mmph?!”

A certain god is appalled by the sudden turn of events. Whoosh! The phoenix, which was ostrich-sized, was enveloped in intense flames, and its body transformed into the size of a light aircraft. “Kang Han-soo □. □□□□.”

Flap!

Celebreth, hugging the neck of her giant pet and climbing aboard, soared high into the sky.

And left like the wind.

“……”

A certain god firmly states that the outcast’s sin is clear.

A certain god is about to judge the sinner. “No, wait a minute! That’s what I want to say!”

I wiped my lips with the back of my hand, suppressing my anger at being sexually harassed by the female elf.

“My first kiss…!” To repay a favor with sexual harassment…! From now on, I will never associate with elves… Oh!

[Name] Kang Han-soo

[Level] 1

[Blessing] Outcast F, Elf C

[Curse] Hero E

[Payout] 4.85

A new blessing! And the grade is high too! My discomfort, caused by the elf who stole my lips, eased.

A certain god glares with narrowed eyes.

A certain god disapproves of the outcast’s relaxed expression.

A certain god is uncomfortable. “…Sometimes you have to endure humiliation in life.” A certain god is very uncomfortable.

“Ahem!” You certainly have a lot of uncomfortable things!

While waiting for the god’s anger to subside, let’s examine the new blessing I just got.