<CHAPTER 21>

What is this?

‘So that potion that’s supposedly sold at exorbitant prices on the black market… I actually made it?’

As I followed Roakin mechanically, my mind busily ran calculations.

Suddenly, my chest swelled with excitement.

Clack, clack, clack, the sound of counting stacks of money rang in my ears.

This… this might even be a shift into a chaebol story genre.

It was a lazy afternoon with shadows stretching long.

Even the massive tree that seemed to cover the sky was drenched in warm sunlight, looking as if coated in gold.

The oldest tree since the beginning of time.

The enormous temple spanning the human realm, Yggdrasil.

Its origin was right here.

The center of the Hasen Kingdom and its capital, Elysium.

The roots of Yggdrasil spread across the entire continent. Temples were built wherever its power condensed, and since Hasen Kingdom was the starting point, its Yggdrasil was the most renowned.

Thanks to this, Hasen naturally grew in influence and could even host the Human Kingdoms’ Alliance Council.

Though someone might grumble at such consistently exceptional circumstances, it had been silently observed as an unspoken rule for years.

In Hasen’s Yggdrasil, there was the sole priestess, Elize.

“Have you all gathered?”

The kings lightly bowed as the black-haired priestess gracefully entered.

Elize, with a picture-perfect smile, crossed the hall and stood before Yggdrasil.

In a world where power equaled authority, her status was unambiguously high.

A celestial maiden did not merely signify an upper class of saints.

The reason she had been called the representative of the gods until now was because they received the goddess’s oracle.

The second-in-command’s breathing grew heavier, and his face flushed.

Those sharp yellow eyes stared like waterproof paint, unrelenting.

For a few seconds, everyone held their breath in the tense air.

Nox clenched his jaw tighter for a moment, then released it completely.

“Boring.”

“Of course.”

The second-in-command breathed like someone just pulled from water as soon as the fork slipped free.

Tears formed from the terror of nearly dying if he hesitated.

‘This lunatic…’

Despite outwardly maintaining composure, his true nature was trashy. I wonder if the kind faces of those around truly knew.

The Elf King, perhaps thinking the same, openly showed displeasure and scolded.

“With such a temperament, he’s praised as a noble king? Isn’t he afraid of divine punishment?”

Nox lightly jumped from the table, chuckling.

“I don’t think you’re in a position to say that.”

“What did you just say? If we strip away that rough exterior, aren’t we all the same people? Dirty and unpleasant.”

The Elf King’s face twisted in irritation as he added.

“Are you calling me dirty and unpleasant?”

“Oh, got pricked, did we? But what can we do? Even if you refuse to admit it, it smells.”

“What kind of priestess is this! Whether of the bloodline of the great dragon or not, isn’t she a hybrid from the start! We shouldn’t have enthroned such a nurtured person as king! I told you!”

“Everyone…”

Her small voice was enough to draw everyone’s attention.

Elize forced a polite smile and continued.

“Shall we not make a scene during the meal? We didn’t gather here to fight.”

“Yes, the Elf King should calm himself.”

The King of the Sea God supported her. Murmuring that this wasn’t a new occurrence, the Elf King reluctantly sat down, scowling, and Elize turned her gaze to Nox, who still stood.

“You should sit as well. Or do you wish to keep stealing time from busy people?”

Once the attendants left, Elize looked around the round table before starting the meeting.

“Will the Hero not attend again?”

As each avoided answering, the Elf King spoke.

“Priestess, you may not understand his heart, but his soul has long lost the pride of a Hero. He would now be better described as a Radiant Angel.”

“Then his whereabouts are still unknown?”

“They are not known. He’s still busy making noise like a seal, indulging in filthy magic and land-grabbing.”

Encouraged by the Elf King’s harsh words, the previously silent Hero interjected.

He had always had to occupy the second-in-command position, overshadowed by Killian in the past.

“Wasn’t it obvious from the start? All slick like a dandy, ignoring the nation’s important affairs, only caring for fame and self-preservation.”

His accumulated resentment made his speech increasingly harsh.

“Doesn’t the current situation speak for itself? He wasted it all on a love affair. Truly. Going mad over a woman who forgot her place with a half-decent body!”

He couldn’t finish his sentence.

Nox suddenly seized his jaw.

The second-in-command Hero was so shocked that his already rough jaw opened even wider.

‘He was sitting on the opposite side just a moment ago?’

At a speed human vision couldn’t track. Evidence lay in the path across the table.

Dishes and food scattered in a straight line.

Nox sat in front of the second-in-command as if nothing had happened, like a street ruffian.

One hand held a fork piercing a piece of meat.

“You seem too busy talking to eat, so let me feed you directly.”

The fork was pushed into his mouth with a half-turn between Nox’s graceful fingers.

“Specially brought from ‘soft’ or ‘napolnare’, leaving any behind would waste the Priestess’s effort.”

The second-in-command wrinkled his nose, trying to pull his arm away.