Magic Gems Gourmet Chapter 170

Chapter 170

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ED: LonelyMatter

Chapter 170 – A Certain Old Tale

It was not just about Marco.

He didn’t know how much he could speak about Cain, Sylvia, and the Demon Lord Arche.

Ain asked about the most innocuous things, trying not to say anything too carelessly.

“The former royal capital… that’s what you call it, right?”

“Now, there is no one who speaks of it but me. Well, shall we make preparations in the room first?”

As she spoke, the Chief took a short staff from behind her and tapped it three times on the ground.

A shrill sound echoed for a moment, and the air became cool as if the temperature had dropped several degrees.

“Please don’t worry. It’s like a seal. I just used an ancient technique to keep the sound from escaping.”

When she told this to Ain, who was on his guard, the Chief smiled uneasily.

“I don’t like long stories. Your Highness, you saw the word ‘Wernstein’ on Queen Raviolla’s tomb. Is that correct?”

She asked directly.

She spoke with a sense of conviction, and Ain was momentarily overwhelmed by the Chief’s words.

I see. This is the aura the Chief possesses, he thought, and he steeled himself.

“…Yes. I thought it was probably her maiden name, but I was surprised to find it was the same as Chris’, so I’m asking you about it.”

“Phew… I never thought I’d feel such a connection.”

She lets out a nostalgic smile and begins to speak with a serious expression on her face.

“Was it Marco-sama who showed you around?”

“What… you know Marco-san?!”

“Yes, I know him. Well, where should I start?”

There was no way that Ain would not be surprised to hear that she knew Marco.

The Chief spoke Marco’s name as if it was the most natural thing in the world, and while she had a difficult expression on her face, she organized what she wanted to say in her head.

“It seems to be a very long story.”

“Long… yes. It will be a very long story.”

“――Can I hear it?”

Ain stared directly at the Chief, appealing to her with her strong eyes.

In this silent room, where not even the sound of the wind can be heard, Ain’s strong feelings continue to float through the air.

They move towards the Chief as if drawn, and the Chief accepts them.

“We should probably talk about the time before the war, but that would take too long. …Then let me start with the last time I met Queen Raviola.”

She had not only met Marco but also the wife of the first king of Ishtalika.

Ain was pleased to hear this, as it seemed he would be able to get a lot of clues.

At the same time, he felt his pulse quicken and noticed that his whole body tensed.

“The elven village at that time was located near the former royal capital, and on that day, I was working with the few remaining elves to help rebuild the village. However, I’m the only one left of the few elves from back then.”

“…Yes.”

“It was an ordinary day. Suddenly, a messenger from Queen Raviola arrived. Then that person said to me, ‘Her Majesty the Queen is calling for you. Please come to the Demon Lord’s castle…'”

“…..”

“At that time, there were no water trains. So, even with a carriage pulled by monsters, it would take quite a long time to get there. So I hurried to go with the messenger to where Queen Raviola was waiting.”

That would be surprising.

They had taken the time to come all the way by carriage, even though it would have taken longer by water train.

It seemed that the royal capital was already in the same place as it was now, so Ain was well aware of the distance.

“The Demon Lord’s Castle was close to the Elf Village back then, so I could get there after riding for a while. When I arrived at the Demon Lord’s castle, Queen Raviola was waiting there with her own servants. And next to them was Marco-sama.”

“…Marco-san…”

Ain muttered as if sad.

“Then Queen Raviolla replied in a loud voice, ‘It’s been a while!’ I replied that it had been a while, too, and then Queen Raviola smiled softly and went into the castle. I was worried about what had happened, but then Marco-sama waved me over.”

It’s easy to imagine Marco as a gentleman.

But Ain wanted to see what Marco looked like when he was healthy, if only for a moment.

“…As you probably understand, the cursed room is just before the royal tombs.”

“…Yes, I have pa.s.sed through there as well.”

It was a room that made him feel sick.

He remembered it as a creepy room full of a sick sense of reality, where black desires stirred.

“The reason why the tomb of the royal family is at the back of this room is because it is the place where Sylvia-sama created a barrier. It is a kind of sanctuary that was created to protect the residents of the former royal capital. I don’t think you will try, but this place is a special area that can only be accessed from inside the castle.”

In other words, even if someone tried to break in from the outside, they wouldn’t be able to get in.

It was a convenient ability, but when Ain heard that Sylvia did it, he was convinced.

“That cursed room was actually just made to look like a labyrinth. She changed it.”

“…I knew it. Those beasts were involved, weren’t they?”

“…Well, that was a long explanation, but let’s get back to the story. After being reunited with Queen Raviola, I pa.s.sed through the cursed room while being protected by Marco-sama and Queen Raviola. Then, in the royal tomb, a new hole had already been dug, and a coffin made by a craftsman had been placed inside. …The tombstone had already been prepared.”

“Could it be…?”

“You guessed it. The person inside is the first king who pa.s.sed away early.”

Who on earth took the body to the former Demon Lord’s territory?

This was the moment when this unknown fact was revealed.

But he never thought that the queen herself was involved in the burial.

“I didn’t ask about the cause of death, but I didn’t hear anything about His Majesty’s death at that time. I think they probably took the body there secretly before making it public. They also pretended that His Majesty was buried in the royal family tomb in the current royal capital, and they proceeded with the matter without notifying anyone except the two attendants.”

“I’ve been thinking about it, but even if the two attendants knew about it, I think the plan was too much, don’t you think?”

“Yes, yes. As you say, I think Queen Raviola pushed herself too hard. I think it was extremely difficult to leave the royal capital and bury His Majesty without even telling his son, the heir to the throne. However, at that time, Ishtalika had many more openings than it does now. This can be seen in many areas, such as security and communication networks. Also, magic tools were not as advanced as they are now, so it might have been easier to conduct covert operations compared to today.”

It was just a guess, but the Chief probably didn’t know any more than that.

She continued to speak with a worried look on her face, then looked at Ain with an apologetic expression.

“I am sorry. I seem to have gotten a little upset.”

“No, that’s not the case at all. Then I’ll continue with the rest of the story.”

Ain apologized for interrupting, and the Chief continued her explanation.

“I heard that His Majesty was buried there. I was very surprised, but my surprise didn’t end there.”

Her eyes darted from side to side, and she blinked rapidly.

She looked suspicious, but perhaps she had made up her mind in her own way.

Ain just waited patiently for the Chief to calm down.

“…Queen Raviola told me that she wanted to leave her child in the care of the elven clan.”

Wait.

Why did she entrust her child to them? Why would she think of entrusting her child to them?

And why did she choose the elves as the recipients? Many questions crossed my mind.

But even with all this, there was one thing he understood.

“…C-Chief! Wait a minute! Then you don’t mean Wernstein…!”

Ain put his hand on the ground and approached the Chief in a panic.

His hands were sweating profusely, and for a moment, Ain’s hands almost slipped away.

Perhaps seeing Ain’s panicked state, the Chief spoke immediately after Ain’s words.

“Yes, I took care of him. The second child of Raviola-sama.”

Was it good for him to hear this story?

Or would everyone have been happier if he hadn’t?

No matter how much Ain thought about it, he couldn’t find an answer.

“The Pixie race is even more special than the other fairy races. This is especially noticeable when they are pregnant and give birth, or when they are about to die.”

The chief continued to speak softly to Ain, who looked confused and unable to organize his thoughts.

“They are born with light and disappear with light. This is said to be the life of a pixie, and even when they carry a child, it is not visible from the outside. When they give birth, they give off light from their own bodies, and the child is born with that light. Even in their later years, Pixies remain young and will pa.s.s away with their youth preserved.”

“…..!”

A queen who carried a child would definitely have her security tightened.

Ain had never heard of anyone with a const.i.tution that could avoid it.

That’s right, so you wouldn’t know that she was pregnant at first glance.

That meant the queen probably didn’t tell anyone but her two attendants that she was pregnant with a second child.

“As she lovingly held the newborn child in her arms, Queen Raviola received a clean cloth from Marco-sama, wrapped the child in it, and kissed his forehead. Finally, looking tired, she said, “I’m sorry,” and handed the child to me with great care.”

“Why…?”

Why would she do that?

Ain wonders as his feelings become more complicated.

However, he is unable to say anything more.

“It seems that Marco-sama and the two attendants asked why she entrusted the child to me. However, I did not have time to ask at that time. I remember replying at the time, ‘Please leave it to me.'”

By the way, who exactly were those two attendants?

The fact that so many secrets were shared with them shows how much trust was placed in them.

There were few doc.u.ments from the time of the founding of the kingdom, but if the chief did not know, it would be necessary to look into it later.

“The child’s name is Wilfried… Wilfried Wernstein. He inherited Queen Raviola’s maiden name. And he inherited pixie-like blood and lived a long life of about three hundred years.”

“Three hundred years…?”

“Yes. The pixie race is very long-lived, next to us elves. If he had been a pureblood pixie, he might have lived even longer.”

She smiles with a friendly expression, but there is a hint of sadness or loneliness in her eyes.

She must be thinking back to the time when Wilfried was alive.

“I want you to raise him as a member of the elven village, not as a member of the royal family. That was Queen Raviola’s wish, so I raised him that way. I think I may have favored him a bit, but that was inevitable.”

“Haha… I see.”

“Wilfried-sama was a very shy boy who was very reserved around strangers. He loved books more than swords and never opened up to elves other than me. Maybe that’s why he didn’t fall in love until he was almost in his final years.”

When you hear the word “final years,” you think, “Huh?” but we are talking about a race of people who have a different lifespan than humans.

It’s not that strange for such a race, so Ain nodded and listened.

“However, there was an elf woman who visited Wilfried-sama diligently. She was a very young elf, but she must have been attracted by Wilfried-sama’s calm atmosphere. In other words, she was in love with Wilfried-sama.”

In terms of age, it would not be acceptable to have a crush on an older man, but if his appearance remained young, it might be okay.

“I think he was defeated by her pa.s.sion. In the end, Wilfried-sama became the elf’s lover. They had a child, and after a while, that child had a child, just like the parents. Two daughters. Well… you can probably guess the rest.”

Even though he didn’t want to, Ain understood what the chief was saying.

It wasn’t just that they seemed to be related.

Rather, it was proof that their blood was even thicker than Ain’s.

In the midst of an unknown emotion that made his blood run cold and then boil, Ain’s mouth moved naturally.

“…The eldest daughter is Celestina Wernstein, and the second daughter is Christina Wernstein. In other words, Chris is…”

“As you say. …Christina Wernstein is the great-granddaughter of King Mark and Queen Raviola.”

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