Chapter 1-36 : The Girl Gets To Know The Dark Elf (part 1)
「Hnggh! Phew… This rock is heavy…」(Ingrid)
Ingrid lifted the huge rock, which was almost half the size of Elle’s body, and put it on the table.
「So, can you take out the magic ore inside this rock?」(Ingrid)
「Let me see… Hmm…」(Elle)
Elle put her hand on the rock and sensed the extraordinary presence of the magic ore inside.
「I can sense a magic ore inside, but… This is a rare one. I think it’s a top-grade magic ore.」(Elle)
「Really!? I thought so too, that’s why I brought this heavy rock home! I knew I wasn’t wrong! If you can take it out, you can have it.」(Ingrid)
「Eh? Are you sure?」(Elle)
「Yup. You gave me your fire magic stone, so I should give you something in return, right? Consider it as my thanks to you. Besides, I’ve kept this rock in my storage for five years. It’s about time to get rid of it.」(Ingrid)
「Five years? Why didn’t you hire a miner to extract the magic ore for you?」(Elle)
「I tried to hire them, of course, but… Miners in this city hate dark elves. Well, most people do. They didn’t want to help me, even though I was willing to pay. Argh, I still remember how they kicked me out of their shop. It was so annoying…」(Ingrid)
The impression of dark elves among other races was always bad.
“Dark elves are bad” has become common sense. However, Elle thought it was wrong. She met a good dark elf, and she believed there were many dark elves with good hearts like Ingrid out there.
「I see… Those people… Who are they to judge you like that? Not all humans are good people, either. In fact, I met some bad guys on my way here.」(Elle)
「Right? I knew you would say that! I’m not a bad dark elf, for God’s sake!」(Ingrid)
「It’s not you or other dark elves that are bad. It’s this world and the community.」(Elle)
Listening to what Elle had just said, Ingrid couldn’t hold her laughter.
「Hahaha! Well said! You’re still young, but you have a mature way of thinking! I like that! Anyway, here are the tools. You can use them.」(Ingrid)
「Thanks.」(Elle)
Ingrid picked up a hammer and a chisel lying haphazardly on the floor and put them on the table.
Elle then used them to start chipping away the rock.
「Can you really tell the ore’s exact location inside this rock?」(Ingrid)
「Yeah, I can.」(Elle)
「That’s impressive. I can’t tell at all.」(Ingrid)
Ingrid put her hand on the rock, but she had no idea at all where the magic ore was.
「You would have done it yourself long ago if you could sense the ore.」(Elle)
「Haha, right. Seems like I have no talent for mining magic ores. Speaking of magic ores, they have become very expensive in the past few years, and their price would skyrocket even more after they are processed into magic stones. You’re not from this city, so you might not be aware of it.」(Ingrid)
While carefully chipping away the rock with the hammer and chisel, Elle listened to Ingrid. She then recalled her conversation with Mr. Forster in the stagecoach when they arrived in this city this afternoon.
「Umm, actually, I heard about the shortage of magic stones in this city. Someone told me it was because of magic stone vehicles.」(Elle)
「Oh? So you’re not completely clueless then. You’re right. Those stupid vehicles caused the shortage and resulted in an increase in magic stone price.」(Ingrid)
Magic stone vehicles consume a large number of magic stones every single day. Not only did they cause the shortage of magic stones, but they also emitted gas and polluted the air of the city.
However, despite the trouble they caused, most nobles and rich people refused to stop using them because those vehicles had become a symbol of wealth in the community.
「If only those prideful and selfish people wanted to use their damn feet to walk in the city or ride horse-drawn stagecoaches more often… But, no… They choose to drive their stupid vehicles even when they just want to go to a shop near their houses. Like I said, noblesー」(Ingrid)
「ーlike to waste things.」(Elle)
「Exactly.」(Ingrid)
Of course, not all nobles like that. At least Elle knew one who shared the same thoughts as Ingrid’s.
「Has anyone tried to persuade those people to use their vehicles less often?」(Elle)
「I don’t know if there is someone like that among middle and upper-class people, but we, lower-class people, won’t dare do that. Even if we did, I doubt they would listen. They’re too stubborn to listen to peasants.」(Ingrid)
「I see… If we can’t change their minds, then maybe the only way to solve this problem is to revamp those vehicles.」(Elle)
「Oh? You have something in mind?」(Ingrid)
While continuing to move her hand, hammering the chisel, Elle shared her thoughts with Ingrid.
「I think it would be great if we could reduce the mana absorption rate of those vehicles as minimally as possible and prevent the exhaust gas from polluting the air. Well, I’m not a professional magic tool engineer, so I don’t know if it’s possible.」(Elle)
「Hmm, that would be wonderful. It would solve all the problems. But, you see, the manufacturers who make those vehicles are as stubborn and selfish as their consumers. All they care about is money. As long as they can profit, they won’t give a damn about the magic stone shortage or air pollution.」(Ingrid)
「Ugh, I see… Why are people with power mostly greedy and selfish? What a shame…」(Elle)
「My words exactly. I’ve always been poor, but unlike those people, I won’t let money take control of my life. Thinking that those kinds of people are at the top of this city makes me sick. Aa-ahh, sometimes I regret coming to this city.」(Ingrid)
「You said you used to live in a forest, right? How did you end up in this city?」(Elle)
「It’s a long story. You want to hear it?」(Ingrid)
「Sure. Extracting this magic ore will take a while. Besides, I want to hear more about dark elves. I read about them from books, but none of them said they were good people. I highly doubt that, so I want to hear it from you.」(Elle)
「Alright. First of all, actually, your books were not completely wrong. There are indeed evil dark elves, but there are also the good-hearted ones.」(Ingrid)
「Just like humans and other races.」(Elle)
「That’s right. I know some bad dark elves, but at least the village I lived in had many good people, including my family.」(Ingrid)
Ingrid started telling Elle about her life before she came to the royal capital.
She lived in a small village in Fermeta Forest far away from human settlements. She had a large family, but they were poor, so she had to work hard every day. Since her childhood, she had always been busy with doing chores, hunting, and taking care of her younger siblings.
However, in the midst of her busy schedule, she had a unique hobby that she always looked forward to whenever she had free time. The other girls from the village always spent their free time playing with dolls or combing their hair by the river, but Ingrid was different. She spent her free time learning how to make magic tools.
The village chief would send some people to human settlements to sell goods and but supplies once in a while. Ingrid always got magic stones, materials, and the tools to do her research from them. She worked really hard to hunt animals and earn money to buy them.
She reminded Elle of when she lived in the forest. Her life was not so different from Ingrid’s. She also went hunting, did some research, and made magic stones. The only difference was that Elle didn’t have any siblings to take care of.
「So, you learned how to make magic tools yourself?」(Elle)
「Yeah. First, I read books about magic tools and tried making some easy tools myself. I started making magic tools because I wanted to make my job easier.」(Ingrid)
「And did you succeed?」(Elle)
「I did. I made some tools that could help me hunt animals and do chores. Thanks to that, I had more free time and was able to play with the other girls in the village, but… they avoided me.」(Ingrid)
The other village girls had been taking good care of their faces, hair, skin, and nails, trying to look as pretty as possible, like normal girls would do. However, unlike them, Ingrid had been dealing with greasy tools and materials in her small workshop. As a result, her face was dirty with oil, her hair was messy, her palm skin was covered in calluses, and her nails were cracked. She looked completely different from the other girls.
「Uhh… I know how it feels when people avoid you… They should let you play with them.」(Elle)
「Nah, I can’t blame those girls. Compared to them, who spent years maintaining their beauty, I must have looked like a dirty beggar in their eyes back then.」(Ingrid)
「Umm, don’t tell me… You left your village because they avoided you…?」(Elle)
「Huh? Hahaha! No, of course not. I’m not that emotionally sensitive, you know? The reason why I left my village and came to this city was… A human…」(Ingrid)
「A human?」(Elle)
「Yes. A man. His name is Gerald Noymer… He was my benefactor, but… also the person who betrayed me…」(Ingrid)
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