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Chapter 190: Sanctuary of the Elves. Elfo Sagrado. (3).

“Come, sit down.”

Arkamis unfolded the chair.

Ketal sat down on the very luxurious and plush chair.

She expertly opened the wine bottle.

A fragrant aroma spread out.

“It smells quite good.”

“It’s a very fine wine that only high elves can drink. Consider it an honor.”

“Thank you for that. It’s always good to make connections.”

Ketal smiled.

Arkamis smiled back at him, her eyes quietly calm.

‘...Ketal.’

He was the first, suitable partner she had found.

High elves are solitary.

Born in perfect form from the World Tree, they only value two things: themselves and the World Tree.

There was no sense of camaraderie, nor was there familial love.

Even if one were the queen of the high elves, they could influence them but could never give orders.

They would only comply to an extent.

Arkamis disliked that.

She wanted to live an ordinary life like in fairy tales.

She wanted friends.

She wanted companions.

She wanted a family.

And she wanted to have children.

She knew everything about how to achieve that from a biological standpoint.

It wasn’t anything new to her.

That’s why she traveled the continent to modify her body.

But having children was merely the result she wanted.

More important was the process.

She wanted not just to have children, but to experience love.

A poignant love where emotions are exchanged.

She decided in her heart that Ketal would be the one for that.

‘...He’s a good person.’

They communicated well, and he understood her.

He was very kind and treated her without prejudice, even knowing she was a high elf.

Even if he naturally exuded an intimidating presence, he was a very attractive person.

But there was a problem.

Love had to be mutual.

It meant nothing if it was one-sided.

She had no way of knowing how this barbarian felt about her.

‘...It seems to be a good feeling, but.’

She couldn’t tell if it was love or friendship.

In her judgment, it was closer to friendship.

Still, since the feelings were good, she thought she could approach him slowly.

But upon hearing that Ketal traveled with Aquaz, she felt a strong sense of urgency.

‘There might be a competitor!’

Objectively, Ketal was outstanding and intelligent.

Though his intimidating presence was an issue, once that was overcome, he was a very attractive man.

Arkamis judged this to be true regardless of what others thought.

So, she decided to turn Ketal’s feelings for her into something deeper before anyone else could intervene.

She was a high elf.

She was confident in her appearance and had a good rapport with Ketal.

She intended to take their relationship to a deeper level during this opportunity.

She planned to seduce Ketal.

This drinking session was created with that intention.

“Here, Ketal.”

Arkamis smiled brightly and poured the drink.

Ketal savored the aroma and then drank it down.

“Wow.”

He exclaimed in admiration.

The drink went down smoothly without any resistance, spreading a fragrant aroma through his nose.

It was a high-quality drink he had never tasted before.

“Tastes good, doesn’t it?”

“Amazing.”

“Do high elves always drink like this?”

“Not that often. After a few hundred years, it gets tiresome. Want another glass?”

“Please.”

The relaxed drinking session continued.

Arkamis clenched her fist under the table.

‘G-good!’

She had no experience in romance or seducing men.

But she had read countless books, literally an entire library’s worth of romance novels.

She knew perfectly how to set the mood and what lines to say when a man and woman were creating a romantic atmosphere.

As she intended, the mood was very good.

‘And, what was I supposed to do next?’

But if there was a problem, it was that she lacked experience in the end.

A high elf.

Noble, perfect in themselves.

Naturally, they had no experience of romance or feelings like that.

No matter how well-versed in theory she was, without experience, she was bound to be clumsy.

As Ketal savored the wine, he looked at Arkamis.

“Arkamis, your posture seems a bit odd?”

“Oh, uh. Does it?”

Arkamis was sitting with her legs crossed and leaning back in her chair.

It would have been a seductive posture if done by someone familiar with it, but since Arkamis had never done it before, it looked awkward.

“...Isn’t it attractive?”

"You look like a broken wooden puppet."

"..."

Arkamis quietly adjusted her posture.

She tried various things she had read in books, but she was too inexperienced to execute them well.

"A toast to your eyes?"

"Huh?"

"Oh, never mind..."

However, despite this, the atmosphere didn\'t become awkward.

Since they had spent the entire day together in the Kingdom of Denian, their conversation flowed smoothly.

"How\'s the progress on alchemy?"

"It\'s still vague, but the outline is starting to take shape. There\'s plenty of potential."

\'This isn\'t what I wanted...\'

Arkamis sighed inwardly.

It was enjoyable enough, but it wasn\'t the atmosphere Arkamis had hoped for.

Ketal asked leisurely.

"I heard the sanctuary is under attack by evil, but it looks perfectly fine."

Ketal had also visited the Sanctuary of Kalosia, which was likewise under attack by evil.

While the interior of Kalosia\'s sanctuary was intact, the outside was completely surrounded and corrupted by evil.

In contrast, the Elven sanctuary appeared completely unscathed.

If he hadn\'t seen the attacked villages, he would have doubted whether it was truly under attack.

"The queen is protecting it."

Arkamis sipped her drink with a gloomy face.

"Black magicians have attacked several times. They even tried to burn the forest. But the queen repelled them all."

"Ho."

The High Elf Queen was a powerful hero.

It seemed she had thwarted all the attacks.

Ketal\'s interest grew stronger.

"And how have you been, Ketal? Could you tell me in detail?"

Arkamis decided to give up her immediate goal and just enjoy the conversation.

Since Ketal would stay in the sanctuary for a while, there would be more opportunities.

Ketal calmly recounted his recent experiences.

He talked about heading to the sanctuary with the priests of Kalosia, encountering and defeating bandits along the way.

And upon reaching the sanctuary, dealing with black magicians.

Arkamis listened with fascination.

From her perspective, having left to explore the outside world, Ketal\'s adventures were extremely interesting.

The story continued to where Ketal received the blessing of Kalosia.

When he mentioned meeting Kalosia and receiving a holy relic, Arkamis was astonished.

"You met Lady Kalosia... and even received a holy relic?"

"Yes. Here it is. Thanks to this, I can use divine power."

Ketal smiled brightly and showed his bracelet.

The jet-black bracelet emanated a profound divine aura that anyone could recognize.

"..."

Arkamis stared at the bracelet in amazement.

It was a holy relic that would be preserved by the church.

"Uh... were there any problems?"

"None at all."

"R-really? That\'s a relief. From what I know, there was supposed to be a conflict between the gods and beings from the Forbidden Lands. Since you\'re a being from the Forbidden Lands, I thought there might be an issue, but it seems not."

"Hmm? What\'s that about? I haven\'t heard of such a thing."

"It\'s a very old story. Even for a High Elf like me, it\'s more of a legend."

Long ago, except for a few long-lived species, no one remembered it.

There had been conflicts between gods and beings from the Forbidden Lands.

Each conflict shook the world significantly.

It was only after several clashes that the world finally settled.

"That\'s a strange tale. Beings from Forbidden Lands can\'t leave the Forbidden Lands."

There were no records of beings from Forbidden Lands coming out of the Forbidden Lands throughout history.

Although there had been recent changes, it meant there hadn\'t been any issues before. Thus, there was no reason for conflict between the gods and beings from Forbidden Lands.

Arkamis shook her head.

"I don\'t know the details either. Like I said, it\'s more of a legend to me. If you haven\'t had any issues, it might be false."

"Hmm."

"Perhaps the dragons might know something? There are some ancient dragons who have lived since before the era of the emperor."

"Dragons, huh."

Ketal sipped his drink.

His eyes grew contemplative.

"Where are they?"

"I don\'t know. They haven\'t shown themselves on the surface for a long time. Maybe the queen knows?"

"Hmm."

Arkamis didn\'t notice the dangerous glint in Ketal\'s eyes.

"Oh, right."

Arkamis clapped her hands as if she remembered something.

"I\'ve also been researching the uniqueness of your body."

"My body?"

"Your body is very special. You know that, right?"

The density crushed under her observation.

The power of Severance.

A body that could withstand the attacks of high-ranking spirits.

She was very curious about how that was possible.

So, she researched it after returning to the sanctuary.

As a result, she discovered a possibility.

"What is it?"

“Your accumulated deeds and accomplishments, known as karma. That’s probably the reason.”

“Ho?”

Ketal showed an intrigued expression.

Arkamis was saying the same thing as the demon of the Demonic Lines, Rubitra, whom he had previously fought.

[What have you accomplished and what have you built up?]

This was what Rubitra had said while facing Ketal.

He had asked what Rubitra meant, but received no answer.

Now, Arkamis was claiming to have figured it out.

She began her explanation.

“Your body is special. It\'s close to a mystery in itself.”

Ketal\'s body had withstood all kinds of powers and mysteries with just its physical form.

It meant that his body itself was a mystery and had a certain level of status.

“And when I looked into such cases, I found a few examples. Have you ever heard of a story where someone exposed to a beast that eats humans becomes paralyzed?”

“I’m aware of it.”

It was said that a person who encountered a beast that had eaten many humans felt instinctive fear.

It implied that beasts that had engaged in cannibalism exuded a unique aura.

This wasn\'t just a story limited to beasts.

It was said that an emperor who achieved numerous feats radiated presence no matter where they were.

A saint who performed many good deeds exuded a gentle aura around them wherever they went.

It was similar.

When an individual accomplished and achieved something significant, they accumulated karma and gained a corresponding aura.

The story was plausible enough that Ketal stroked his chin thoughtfully.

“That kind of concept, huh.”

Even on Earth, there were similar stories, but they were only matters of perception. However, in this world, it seemed to directly influence reality.

“If approached that way, your body\'s uniqueness can be explained as well.”

However, Arkamis looked at Ketal with a puzzled expression.

“…The problem is that there are still many parts that remain unexplained.”

Even an emperor who ruled a nation or a saint respected by all could only exude a level of presence.

To go beyond simply possessing an aura to having a body that itself held a mystery and status—how much would one have to accomplish?

How many great deeds would one have to perform?

Even as a High Elf, she couldn’t grasp it.

She swallowed nervously and asked cautiously.

“Ketal, what did you do in the White Snowfield?”