Became the Patron of Villains Novel MTL - Chapter 280

C280. The East (2)

On the cliff of Rosario, where the completely destroyed city was recently in the midst of full reconstruction.

In the cave where the pope had lived, a silhouette observed Rosario in silence.

A man dressed in a black sacred habit, adorned with various metal chains. After contemplating a Rosario of which half had been blown away, he shifted his gaze toward the cave—

No, to be exact, toward the place where that battle had taken place.

It was unknown how much time passed like that.

On the lips of the man, whose face was hidden by a hood leaving only his jaw visible, a slight curved smile appeared.

“He got rid of the Glutton fed by greed, and also the incomplete sin… I see.”

He murmured, as if he found something amusing.

“Well— although he isn’t completely perfect yet.”

Saying that, he looked up at the sky.

Even though the sun hadn’t set yet, a faint glow of the Milky Way could be seen. For a good while.

In silence—

“At this rate, it will be worth seeing him. Since he will appear soon.”

He said while contemplating.

---

As Magrina had said, the ritual didn’t take that long.

It started in the morning and finished around early evening. But even after the ritual ended, Alon couldn’t rest.

The reason was—

“Sir Alon, I will be at your service from now on when you come here. My name is Rutubia.”

“Sure, likewise.”

The endless introductions of the elves.

Exactly.

Alon was greeting every elf one by one.

Not even in groups. Literally one by one.

He didn’t plan to stay in Greynifra for long, so he thought perhaps so much wasn’t necessary… but unfortunately, Alon had no right to refuse.

Magrina had told him it was a tradition of the elves.

When in Rome, do as the Romans do. Alon decided to respect the tradition.

…or so he thought.

At least until he was introduced to about ten elves.

“…Are you alright, Sir Alon?”

“I’m fine…”

Magrina looked at him with concern.

Alon said he was fine and looked away toward the window.

By then, the moon was already hanging in the center of the night sky.

In other words, from the afternoon until now, half a whole day had been spent just on greetings.

‘I didn’t think they would actually introduce me… to everyone.’

Although technically they were only introducing him to those working in the kingdom.

Even so, the number was huge, and a sigh escaped him.

Alon, with an unpleasant feeling, asked:

“Uh, does this end today or continue tomorrow too…?”

“Hmm— there is a bit left.”

“How much is ‘a bit’…?”

“An hour?”

Alon tried to ask with hope.

But—

“…Uh, about half a day more.”

“Ha-half a day?”

“Yes.”

Unsurprisingly, his hope died on the spot.

Alon lost his words for a few seconds before forcing himself to speak.

“This… was a tradition, right?”

“Yes. If you find it too tiring, do you want us to stop?”

Magrina asked with concern.

“No, no need. And since we started, better to finish it.”

If he had known from the beginning, he would have politely declined.

But being already so far advanced, it made no sense to stop.

So the next day, Alon also received introductions well into the afternoon.

“Is it finished already…?”

“Good work today, brother.”

Alon felt his neck stiffen.

“Can I rest now?”

“Yes. You’ve practically finished everything you had to do, brother. But… before that, can I ask you something?”

“What is it?”

“Was there anyone you felt uncomfortable with among the elves you spoke to?”

“…Uncomfortable?”

“Yes, someone who was difficult to talk to, or who had a bad attitude.”

Alon thought about it for a moment and shook his head.

Recalling, recalling… there were indeed some, but he saw no reason to keep them in his memory.

There were too many.

“Hmm— no, no one I remember especially.”

“I see.”

“And why do you ask?”

“Well— you are now royal family, so if anyone behaves badly towards you, I must warn them.”

Alon nodded.

He wasn’t going to complain about the occasional rudeness of the elves.

No matter how extraordinary he was, from their perspective, he was still just a human.

He understood it perfectly.

But he didn’t deny her words.

Because any bad behavior toward him could harm Magrina, who was now his family.

As a prince, every time someone ignored him, Magrina‘s reputation could also be damaged.

It wasn’t something he could simply let pass, so he left that matter in her hands.

“In any case, good work today, brother.”

Thus ended another exhausting day.

After that—

Dragging Penia, who was screaming “please just one more day!” while being pulled away, Alon left Greynifra.

“I will be waiting for you, brother. Safe travels.”

“Yes, see you later.”

As expected, being part of royalty didn’t change much.

The elves who were already kind continued to treat him well.

Those who always seemed grumpy remained the same, but Alon didn’t pay it any mind and headed toward where Hazard was.

“Ahhh, it would have been so good to stay just one more day—”

Penia reached out toward the direction of Greynifra like a tragic heroine separated from her lover, with tremendous dark circles under her eyes.

Alon said firmly:

“We’ll see each other later.”

“…Yes, so it will be…”

She was downcast for only a moment.

“Does it take us about two weeks to reach where the Lizardmen live?”

“If we go to where Hazard, that god, is, it will take about three weeks being generous.”

Alon conversed with Evan about the upcoming plan.

Several more weeks passed.

[Huhu, I was waiting for your arrival.]

Hazard received them with a smile.

“Were you really waiting?”

[Didn’t I tell you before? In exchange for lending me your name, I would also give you power.]

“Ah, right.”

[You didn’t forget… did you?]

In fact, he had forgotten, but he didn’t show it.

“Is everything ready?”

[Not yet. Creating the stage takes time. I need a little more.]

“…Then, why did you say you were waiting?”

[I heard from Magrina. You are going to the East, right?]

“Correct. Do you have something prepared regarding that?”

Hazard scratched his head awkwardly.

“Hmm… strictly speaking, no. There is a problem.”

“A problem?”

“Yes. Going to the East will be difficult now.”

“What’s happening?”

Hazard made a thoughtful sound and began to explain.

After listening in silence, Alon summarized:

“In short, the path to the East is full of monstrous creatures, so one cannot pass.”

“Yes. That is why even trade is practically halted.”

Alon thought and asked:

“Can’t you take care of it either?”

[It’s not that I can’t. But since I am a wise god, I can only use my power in my own territory.]

“……You have restrictions?”

[I do. But explaining it would take time, I’ll tell you later. In any case, it is difficult for me to intervene.]

“Then, if I want to go to the East, must I take care of those monstrous creatures myself?”

[Or you can wait. They have appeared several times before, and they normally disappear after half a year.]

What was better?

Waiting half a year.

Or taking a risk and breaking through to the eastern country now.

The decision didn’t take long.

“I will go.”

Alon thought of a method to advance without problems and decided without hesitation.

At that same moment, in Greynifra—

“My queen. Here is the list of observers.”

“Did you receive it from Ramu?”

“Yes.”

“Give it to me.”

Myu, Magrina‘s secretary, handed her a document.

While Magrina reviewed it calmly, Myu asked with curiosity:

“Your Majesty, excuse me, may I ask you something?”

“Yes, go ahead, Myu.”

Without taking her eyes off the document, Magrina smiled kindly.

Myu hastened to ask:

“I heard that during the ritual you introduced everyone working in the palace to Sir Alon.”

“Ah, weren’t you there that day?”

Magrina finally looked up.

Myu nodded.

“I was away on business.”

“Ah, it overlapped with that day.”

“Exactly.”

Magrina observed her for a moment.

“Well— it’s okay.”

“Huh?”

She shook her head as if it were nothing.

“No, nothing. So, what did you want to ask?”

Although Magrina‘s reaction seemed strange to her, Myu continued with her original question.

“I wondered why you maintained the tradition so strictly. Usually, you don’t like those kinds of traditions… and you also aren’t one to make lists of everyone who met Sir Alon.”

Furthermore, Myu knew that Ramu belonged to the Black Leaf, not to those who dedicate themselves to these types of jobs.

Magrina nodded.

“Yes, you are right.”

She lowered the document and fixed her gaze on Myu‘s eyes.

“Myu, did you know something?”

“What do you mean, Your Majesty…?”

“We elves do not know how to hide our emotions.”

“…Emotions?”

“We are pure beings. If we like someone, it shows. If we don’t like them, it shows too.”

“I suppose so… yes.”

Myu nodded, but the doubt on her face grew larger.

Her question didn’t seem to connect with Magrina‘s answer.

Magrina leaned back a little in her chair.

“That is why I like elves. They are pure and…”

It is very easy to distinguish them.

She murmured it almost inaudibly even for Myu, and she looked back at the document.

The name tags that could only be seen under a certain hidden magic pattern.

And then—

“I see…”

Myu nodded without understanding anything.

Magrina smiled.

Serenely. Silently.