WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Haruto

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◈ The Pushover Young Lord in a Romance Fantasy Won't Take It Anymore ◈

Chapter 54: Should I Steal It Away?

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There was a temporary garrison at the entrance to the Ashen Forest, naturally for defense and sentry duty.

We had greatly expanded it, turning it into a forward base for the expedition.

Building a palisade fortress and a forward base in only one month would normally have been impossible.

But that changed when we used the existing stone walls as a framework and poured in the Patrian Merchant Guild's capital and manpower.

After reinforcing it with palisades and converting it into a logistics fortress, the garrison had become the heart of our supply lines.

I walked between the tents, carefully taking in the state of preparations.

"Young Lord."

A voice cut through the bustle. Lucia, dressed in a Black Lion uniform, approached me.

"The elves from the Great Forest in the south have arrived. As you instructed, I had them politely escorted to the estate so there wouldn't be any trouble."

"They came later than I expected."

I'd been wondering when they would show up.

Without delay, I turned toward the estate.

As Lucia walked beside me, a familiar feeling suddenly came over me.

In the first timeline, Lucia had led the elves.

She had brought them into the campaign to conquer the Ashen Forest for the same reason I had.

To be honest, the way she had negotiated back then made her seem like an easy mark.

'She's the typical protagonist, I suppose.'

She had genuinely cared about the elves' well-being. She treated them like comrades, not subordinates.

'I did help people in trouble too, though.'

Irina of the Patrian Merchant Guild came to mind.

At a glance, it might have looked like I'd helped Irina out of the same goodwill Lucia had shown the elves.

But the essence was clearly different.

Helping Irina had been an investment with guaranteed returns, something essential to the Ashen Forest Expedition.

The elves were different.

They remembered kindness, but they were in no position to repay it. Compared to Irina, they were the weaker side, with uncertain returns.

'They're the ones who need us, not the other way around.'

I was different from Lucia, the protagonist.

From my position of strength, I intended to put a collar around the elves' necks and squeeze them dry.

It might seem vile to exploit their desperation, but it couldn't be helped. That was how the world worked.

* * *

Gulp.

Ariel cautiously raised her eyes.

Astin sat across from her with one leg crossed over the other, his chin raised. That arrogant posture completely dominated the room.

His deeply composed golden gaze betrayed not a trace of emotion.

"I knew you would come, and I know your purpose as well. You wish to join our expedition and reclaim the home you lost."

Astin openly flaunted his superiority.

It wasn't cruel. It was realistic. The elves had no leverage over him.

"Let's be honest. We can continue this expedition without you. You would be a great help, but it wouldn't matter much if you weren't here."

Ariel's shoulders drew in slightly. She couldn't surrender the initiative so easily.

"Our numbers may be small, but every member of our tribe is a skilled guide. No one in this world knows the Ashen Forest's terrain better than we do."

"So you're telling me not to pass up such a valuable card?"

Don't make demands when you're the ones who came begging.

At the unspoken warning in his words, Ariel lowered her gaze. She had been completely overwhelmed by his presence.

Ariel clenched both fists in her lap. Her voice barely remained steady.

"We want only one thing. We will not object to Cardenos developing the forest's resources. We only ask that you grant us part of the forest, a place where our people can live."

It was humiliating, but it was her tribe's wish.

Despite her desperate plea, Astin remained silent with his arms crossed.

A suffocating silence filled the room. Only the ticking second hand of the clock echoed through the spacious drawing room.

"What do we get from that?"

His question was dry. Ariel answered at once.

"We will help with your expedition."

"Must I repeat myself? You want to reclaim your homeland by joining our expedition."

"......"

"There will be no compromise. You will accept our demands unconditionally."

To be looked down on by a human like this. Ariel bit down on her lip.

"Fine. What is it that you truly want?"

"First, every elf will be drafted as a scout. You will be the first to set foot in the forest."

It was a reckless mission, being the first to enter the Ashen Forest. His words implied that he didn't care whether they lived or died.

Still, Ariel had expected it. If anything, she considered it a reasonable decision to assign them where they would be most useful.

'I was planning to do that anyway.'

She had already said they would lead the way as guides.

But now the real demands would begin. It was time for the human's terrible true nature to reveal itself.

Astin raised an eyebrow as he watched Ariel's tense expression.

"Throughout the expedition, you will handle the night watch without sleep. Your night vision is excellent, so you're suited to it, aren't you?"

He intended to let the human forces sleep comfortably while working the elves to the bone.

It was certainly harsh, but...

Ariel tilted her head slightly, then obediently nodded.

The forest's nights were more familiar to elves than its days.

Entrusting nighttime security to the forest people was entirely reasonable.

It wasn't over yet. Ariel tensed her jaw again and swallowed her anxiety.

"Scouting will not be the elves' only duty. Mobilize your spirit mages and devote yourselves to purification work along every route of advance. Teams will be assigned separately, so rest time will not be guaranteed."

Guiding the way, keeping watch all night, and carrying out purification work on top of it all.

It was exhausting labor that would push even elves beyond their limits.

'...What is this?'

Ariel's thoughts were the complete opposite of Astin's.

To reclaim their homeland, she would gladly offer even two lives. She had come here prepared to become a slave.

The very reason they had joined the expedition was to purify the Ashen Forest.

It was work they would risk their lives to do without anyone ordering them.

'Something's strange.'

Ariel suddenly came to her senses.

This was a subtle psychological game. It was too early to let down her guard.

Narrowing her eyes, Ariel tried to gauge his intentions. That cunning human's real objective had to lie elsewhere.

"The elves' ultimate goal is the World Tree, correct?"

Ariel's eyes changed in an instant.

To insult the World Tree was blasphemy to elves. Ariel clenched her fists and restrained herself.

"Remember this. If you are going to sprout the World Tree Seed, it must be at the center of the forest. We don't care how potent the demonic energy is there. Absorb every last bit of the forest's poisonous energy and purify it."

"...?"

It was only natural that the center of the Ashen Forest held the most potent demonic energy.

That also meant a greater risk of contaminating the World Tree Seed.

Still, it was right to take that risk.

The World Tree belonged in the heart of the forest.

There was no better place for it to absorb enough nourishment and undergo purification.

...There must be something more.

He was obviously pretending to offer a sweet reward while planning to exploit the World Tree.

"Even after the expedition ends, you will belong to Cardenos. You will be permanently mobilized for labor developing and purifying the forest."

He was openly saying he would use them as lifelong slaves.

Ariel ground her teeth. So he was finally showing his true colors.

"We will station Cardenos's standing army around the outskirts of the elves' settlement. We will protect you from magical beasts and threats from outside humans."

"...Pardon?"

"Nothing in this world is free. In exchange, you will have to work hard, and we will collect taxes."

He meant to exploit the World Tree under the pretense of protection fees, on top of forcing them into harsh labor...

That was what this meant, right?

"You will devote at least twelve hours a day, seven days a week, to purifying the forest. There will also be no workers' compensation. If you suffer an accident while working, that will be your own responsibility. As taxes, we will collect thirty percent of the special resources and fruit produced by the forest each month. No more, no less. Thirty percent, fixed."

Using them like slaves throughout the expedition, then exploiting the elves even after it ended.

He was even taking thirty percent of their income as taxes.

As Astin reviewed his own terms, he was appalled. It was literally a slave contract.

Silence filled the room.

Ariel's eyes wavered wildly.

'...Something's strange?'

If they diligently did what was asked and paid protection fees, they would be granted the forest's center and protected from outside threats.

That didn't sound like exploitation. It sounded like it was all good for them.

And didn't it mean he had no intention of touching the World Tree?

Depending on how one saw it, it could even be taken as an incentive.

'No.'

It couldn't be over yet. Ariel pulled herself together once more.

Grin.

Astin's lips twisted again.

Just as she thought.

Their demands were only beginning.

"That's all."

"...What?"

"If you think it's unreasonable, then forget it. I have no intention of begging you to stay."

Ariel's mouth fell open like an idiot.

Buzz. Buzz.

A tiny fly buzzed in front of her.

"U-Um. What happens to us after the expedition ends?"

"I told you. A lifelong contract with Cardenos awaits you."

"You mean the purification work you called labor, and the taxes we must pay as the cost of stationing troops?"

"Yes."

"...Are those all the conditions?"

"Huh? Why?"

Astin had certainly made unfair demands.

But they only went as far as exploiting the elves' labor.

Ariel couldn't believe it.

If he were an ordinary human noble...

"No. For example, using us as sex slaves, or exploiting the Divine Tree..."

"What?"

Astin tilted his head, looking as though he genuinely had no idea what she meant.

Without blinking once, Ariel stared at Astin.

What in the world was this human?

* * *

The grand ducal estate's annex.

Only an anxious silence hung over the waiting room where the elves had gathered.

Everyone held their breath and stared at the door.

Creak.

The door opened, and Priestess Ariel walked in with a vacant look on her face.

The waiting elders and spirit mages hurriedly surrounded her.

"Priestess! You're safe!"

"W-What happened? Did that infamous grand duke's son make any outrageous demands?"

At the elves' barrage of questions, Ariel slowly shook her head. She still looked dazed, as if she were dreaming.

"The demands he made were..."

The elves' expressions changed by the second as Ariel began to speak.

Once she finished, an elder elf let out a hollow laugh.

"Really... that's all?"

"Without any condition that we become sex slaves or surrender the World Tree?"

Ariel nodded again, still looking stunned.

A breathless silence settled over the waiting room. The elves blankly looked at one another.

Ariel's cheeks reddened as she watched them.

Ariel could no longer hold it back, and a broad smile spread across her face.

"You did well, Priestess! You saved us all!"

"No. I didn't do anything. Lord Astin was simply kind enough to make a merciful decision."

"Ooh! Long live the Priestess! Long live Cardenos!"

The elves who had been wracked with worry moments ago raised both arms and burst into cheers. Some embraced one another and shed tears of joy.

Ariel laughed aloud, enjoying the festive mood.

The elves' laughter and sobs drifted through the crack of the door.

Lucia and Celine, who had been listening outside, smiled as well.

"Young Lord Astin really is kind."

Celine nodded vigorously at Lucia's words.

A nonhuman people who had lost their homeland and been driven to the edge of a cliff.

Another noble would have been blinded by the elves' beauty and sought to satisfy their own desires first.

Rather than exploiting their desperation, Astin had shown mercy and embraced them.

Lucia had expected him to respond that way.

That man was a knight who understood the greater good and walked the righteous path.

Lucia truly liked that about Astin.

Sway, sway.

A single strand of hair sticking up from Celine's bright golden hair swayed like a reed.

For some reason, Celine had pressed herself right against the door, peeking inside.

People who saw elves for the first time couldn't take their eyes off them. Everyone was the same.

"They're all so beautiful, aren't they?"

"Um... honestly, I don't think they're that beautiful."

"Really? I thought you kept looking because they're pretty."

"I'm only looking because their pointed ears are fascinating."

Celine pulled her eyes away from the glass window in the door and looked toward Lucia.

"I don't think elves are that pretty. Maybe it's because I'm used to seeing your face and my brother's?"

"How do you always pick such pretty things to say?"

In Celine's eyes, Lucia was the prettiest and Astin the most handsome. Lucia felt the same way.

"I used to think it would be nice to have family like Young Lord Astin, but I've changed my mind a little. I think I'd rather have a younger sister like Lady Celine. Want to come live at my house? I'll treat you well."

Her last words were said jokingly.

Flinch!

Celine's shoulders jumped. Celine hesitantly watched Lucia's reaction like a small animal.

"I-I like you too, Sister Lucy, but I like Brother more..."

Celine remained as devoted to her brother as ever. If this girl became my younger sister, she'd become an older-sister fanatic, wouldn't she?

Lucia couldn't resist pulling Celine into her arms.

"This won't do. I should just steal you away."

Shake, shake, shake.

Celine desperately shook her head.

Lucia didn't show it, but she felt a little hurt.

Author's Note

There will be another chapter today. One more will be posted at noon.

Footnotes:

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