WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Order

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Chapter 126: Parent of the Elves (3)

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Over the past few days, Elbridge had sparred with the three Sentinels and received their instruction.

Bella said, "We'll stop here for today."

"Understood. Hah... hah... hoo..."

Leaning on his sword like a cane, Elbridge panted heavily before collapsing to the ground.

His breath came in ragged gasps, yet his mind was clearer than ever.

Elbridge had not won a single one of the dozen or so sparring matches he had fought against the Sentinels.

He wasn't disappointed. More than anyone, he knew he couldn't defeat a Sentinel with his current abilities. If he had managed to beat one, he might have been disappointed instead.

His goal wasn't to win, but to imprint the movements of the three Sentinels on his mind as accurately as possible.

Elbridge closed his eyes.

Bella took shape in the darkness. He saw himself standing before her.

Feeling like a spectator, Elbridge began to recreate the movements the three Sentinels had shown him, along with his own. It was so precise that even he was surprised.

The Elbridge in the darkness moved slowly.

Bella approached him with her sword hanging loosely at her side. Elbridge swung his sword, and Bella caught the blow. Twisting her wrist, Bella aimed the tip of her blade at Elbridge's shoulder. He blocked it. Bella's next strike targeted his thigh. He knocked it aside. Then, in the next instant, Bella's sword was beneath his chin.

Elbridge slowly replayed that flow countless times.

He imagined Bella's sword from his own perspective, then observed his movements from her perspective. He tried to understand why Bella had moved that way and what she had intended.

'It's hard to understand.'

He couldn't understand it, but Bella's movements and judgment had surely been close to ideal. The results proved it.

Yet the realization before Elbridge remained hazy, as if shrouded in fog. He still couldn't understand.

After catching his breath, Elbridge rose and slowly moved his sword to gain even a little more.

'The Sentinels' skill levels vary greatly too.'

The youngest Sentinel was Orion. Elbridge could understand Orion's movements to a degree. Given enough time, he felt he might somehow catch up.

Jin and Bella were different. Their abilities lay beyond what Elbridge could comprehend.

Jin, who had been watching Elbridge move, laughed.

"This feels oddly hollow."

"What feels hollow?"

"Elbridge. You were replaying your spar with Bella just now, weren't you?"

"Yes."

"When I watch you, it feels like all the time I spent teaching the Pre-Sentinels was wasted. It shouldn't feel that way."

There was only one reason Jin would say something like that.

"It seems the Pre-Sentinels learn slowly."

"Right. So slowly that it's hard to compare them to you."

It was a conversation they could have only because none of the Pre-Sentinels were nearby.

Jin sat down, leaning at an angle against the sacred tree.

"There's nothing strange about it. There are far fewer elves than humans, so there are fewer talented ones too. Fewer still have talent and want to become Sentinels, and fewer still are willing to work hard."

Elbridge recalled the Pre-Sentinels he had watched over the past few days.

They diligently sought out the Sentinels for instruction. At the very least, didn't they deserve recognition for their diligence?

"It would be presumptuous of me to judge their talent. Still, they all seemed to be making an effort."

"They're diligent by elven standards. The biggest problem is their mindset. None of the Pre-Sentinels desperately pursue strength. Diligence without that mindset won't bring satisfying results."

"Elves have long lifespans. There is no need for them to hurry."

"That's right. Even without receiving the divine power of longevity from the Goddess of Thornbush, they'll live for around a thousand years. They think that as long as they don't give up, things will work out somehow."

Jin crossed his legs and rested his head on his interlaced fingers.

"Honestly, it would be fine if they simply weren't desperate. The problem is that their mindset goes beyond that."

"What do you mean?"

"Elves think desperately pursuing something is a bad thing. It may be hard for you to understand."

Jin was clearly right. Elbridge couldn't understand it.

"Why is that?"

"Because a fierce attitude inevitably wears people down. They think it's better to walk slowly and reach the end without tiring yourself out than to run at full speed and give up halfway through. That's how ordinary elves think."

Elbridge nodded.

"Just as there is a pace of life that suits humans, there must be one that suits elves."

"That's true. But Sentinels can't be like that. What Sentinels need isn't effort, but results. They have to raise their abilities enough to protect the sacred tree and the Goddess of Thornbush in any situation."

"Did you work desperately, Jin?"

"Of course. For people without talent like Bella and me, all we could do was work hard for a long time."

Elbridge narrowed his eyes.

Jin, who had defeated him again and again over the past few days, was talking about lacking talent. Didn't that sound like deception?

"You don't seem untalented to me."

Jin laughed.

"Elbridge, how long have you trained with a sword?"

It was probably right to exclude the two hundred years he had spent inside the seal.

"About fifteen years... At most, it hasn't been more than twenty."

"It probably took Bella a full three hundred years to reach a skill level similar to yours. It may have taken even longer."

Bella nodded at Jin's words. It didn't seem to be an exaggeration.

Jin asked Elbridge, "Elbridge, would you be willing to struggle for three hundred years to gain the skill you have now?"

Three hundred years.

An ordinary person might say they could invest three hundred years out of a thousand-year life.

Elbridge was different. He had personally experienced how long two hundred years could be. Two hundred years had been unbearably painful, so three hundred years...

"I don't think that would be easy."

Yet Jin and Bella had endured three hundred years. That span alone revealed how earnest they had been.

Then, a question he had long held rose to the surface.

"May I ask roughly how old you two are?"

"Older than we look."

It seemed Jin didn't want to answer. Elbridge gave up and asked another question.

"Then what did you endure such a long time for?"

"To protect the Goddess of Thornbush and the sacred tree."

An immediate answer without even the slightest hesitation.

Just as the dwarves of the mountain city served the God of the Iron Anvil, the elves served the Goddess of Thornbush.

But dwarves and elves had different reasons for serving their gods.

The dwarves had chosen the God of the Iron Anvil because they couldn't choose another god.

That was why they served the God of the Iron Anvil as they would a ruler.

The elves were different. They often referred to the Goddess of Thornbush as their mother.

What the elves felt toward the Goddess of Thornbush was closer to love and respect than fear and reverence.

The love the Goddess of Thornbush bestowed upon her children, and the love the elves offered her in return. Their relationship might be closer to that of parent and child than god and devotee.

Elbridge murmured, "You respect the Goddess of Thornbush more than anyone."

Jin wore a slightly strange expression.

"No. I don't respect the Goddess of Thornbush."

"Then...?"

"But I love the Goddess of Thornbush more than anyone."

* * *

Elbridge wasn't the only one in the group receiving instruction from the Sentinels.

Recently, Marcus had been joining the Pre-Sentinels to train under the Sentinels as well.

This hadn't been Marcus's wish. It had begun at Jin's request.

"Elbridge, your abilities are above those of the Pre-Sentinels. Even if you improve, the Pre-Sentinels won't learn much from it. Marcus is different."

The Pre-Sentinels had widely varying levels of skill.

Marcus's skill was similar to that of the weaker Pre-Sentinels.

Jin believed that if Marcus showed clear improvement, the other elves would feel a sense of urgency and train seriously.

"Elbridge, learn the Pre-Sentinels' faces, names, and approximate abilities. That way, when a demon appears, you can lead the Pre-Sentinels."

Jin didn't expect Elbridge to blend in among the Pre-Sentinels and fight a demon.

Jin and Bella wanted Elbridge to lead the Pre-Sentinels in their place, since they couldn't leave Thornbush Forest.

For the first time in his life, Elbridge would have to take on the role of a commander. The pressure he felt continued to grow.

* * *

One evening amid those busy days, Jin came to the group's cabin.

Jin scratched the back of his head with an embarrassed expression.

"Sorry for coming so late."

His voice was warmer than usual. There was also a faint smell of alcohol around him.

In Marcus's experience, arguing with a drunk was foolish. Even more so when that drunk was monstrously skilled.

Marcus immediately pulled out a chair for Jin.

"No need to apologize. We're the ones being looked after in Thornbush Forest. Please, have a seat."

"Thanks. Could I have one more chair?"

Another silver-haired elf appeared behind Jin. It was Bella.

Bella also smelled faintly of alcohol.

'...We need to be careful.'

Without asking questions, Marcus brought out a second chair. The two elves sat down and looked around awkwardly.

There had to be a reason they had come all the way to the cabin while drunk. Elbridge asked Jin and Bella from across the table.

"What brings you here?"

Bella answered.

"We made a deal."

Bella was quiet by nature and had rarely spoken until now.

For Bella to speak instead of Jin, perhaps the alcohol had loosened her tongue.

"A deal... Yes, we did."

"You agreed to fight in our place if a demon appeared on the outskirts of the forest. In return, you asked for two things. To be taught how to fight, and to be told how to deal with the Master of the Central Magic Tower."

"That's correct."

"In this deal, we get one thing and give two. It's unfair."

Bella pouted as she said that. It seemed Bella became childish when drunk.

Of course, Bella's argument didn't make much sense. The number of conditions didn't matter in a deal like this.

Still, Elbridge and Marcus decided to hear more.

"What do you want?"

"Tell us stories. Stories about the world outside the forest."

It wasn't a difficult request. Elbridge glanced at Marcus. Marcus was better at telling stories.

"Hmm. What kind of story should I tell? A countess running off with a local widower?"

Bella shook her head.

"No. Tell us about memorable places, and what they look like."

It was an oddly specific request. Marcus scratched his chin.

"Well, that won't be difficult. Shall I start from the east...?"

Marcus began telling stories as if following the path he had traveled. From a small eastern village to Solenion. From Solenion to the Red Mountains and the mountain city. From the mountain city to Middlemarch in the central region, then back down to the southern part of the continent.

Bella listened with her eyes closed, resting in Jin's arms. Jin also listened carefully to Marcus's story.

At times, Bella asked Marcus trivial questions, such as whether the mountains in a certain region looked like this or whether there had been a strangely shaped tree there.

Watching the two, Elbridge realized two things.

Jin and Bella were either married or lovers, and the two elves had once set foot in every place Elbridge's group had visited.

When the long story finally ended, the two elves left the cabin and bowed deeply to Elbridge and Marcus.

"Thank you."

That was the end of the conversation.

Yet for the first time, Elbridge found himself wondering about the two Sentinels.

What kind of lives had they lived? What had made them become Sentinels?

Footnotes:

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