"Hiro! Stop being charmed by some old woman!"
Hiro patted Tsuki's head to stop her from talking further. He noticed the dark elf queen's stare. Her pale golden eyes carried a distant look as if reminiscing about something. He quietly activated «demonic perception». Unsurprisingly, her strength seemed comparable to an upper Ultimate Class Devil.
The elf queen rose from her throne and walked through the hall. Her light steps exhibited an elegance befitting of a Queen.
Tsuki glared at the Queen flaunting her assets in front of Hiro. She squeezed her own small breasts and puffed her cheeks. The Queen stopped in front of Tsuki. She leaned forward and pinched Tsuki's cheeks with a smile.
"Little girl, you are so cute~"
Hiro stared blankly, her teasing voice was completely opposite of her Queen-like image.
"Shtwap!"
Tsuki pleaded with teary eyes. Queen released her cheeks and moved over to Hiro. Her height was 170cm so naturally, she stood equal to him.
She showed a faint smile and grabbed his right hand with both hands.
"Goddess Freya really sent you. I'm Alicia and as you can see I'm the Queen of Svartalfheim. What shall I call you?"
The name somehow seemed familiar to him but he never heard of it in his or Elans's memories.
"Hiro and this is my friend Tsuki."
"What do you think about our city? We dark elves might seem far-fetched compared to the legends. But believe me, we aren't like that. Who would be so absurd to think sunlight can petrify us?"
Hiro silently nodded at her question, his gaze fixed at his hands grasped by her.
"Very well, follow me for your fated gift."
"Can you tell me what the gift is?"
Alicia's lips curled in a mysterious smile as she pulled him out of the throne room. "You have to see for yourself~"
He tried to release his left hand but her grasp only tightened while trembling. The warmth in her hands incited indescribable emotions in his heart.
My mental fatigue is piling up… I'll rest for a day after this…
He turned to Tsuki who rubbed her red cheeks. Using his right hand, he sneakily healed her cheeks, earning a cheerful smile from her.
What he did not know was Alicia sneaking glances at him. Naturally, she also saw the origin energy in Hiro's hands. Releasing a sigh, she kept walking.
Alicia led him through the corridors before descending the spiral stairs and arrived at a locked door carved with many different runes. She released his hand and touched the runes in a pattern. One by one, all of them lit up with a yellow light.
Rune Magic…
It was one of the least used magic in the current supernatural world. Carving the 'Rune symbols' on a paper with 'thoughts' of your calculation and result, it required extreme precision at figuring out the phenomena. Not many magicians even touched this system, so it was quite rare to see someone of Ultimate Class utilizing this.
Alicia silently entered the room, her elegant back appeared relatively lonely in his eyes. He shook his head to shake away the thoughts and entered with Tsuki.
The small room was illuminated by a yellow light. He only discovered a single metal chest placed on an old wooden table, which Alicia opened after disabling the runes and froze in her place. He walked toward the table and peeked inside the chest.
A pure white stick…
Alicia picked it with both hands and handed it to him.
"This weapon is called 'Hvitsving', forged by the Old Dwarfs who also forged the legendary 'Gungnir'. This was left here by Elans…"
Hiro grabbed the nearly 1m stick in his hand, not noticing the gentle look on Alicia's face.
[Scanning… Weapon Rank - S]
[Requesting permission to possess the weapon]
'Will this affect Ortus in any way?'
[Negative. It will be useful in utilizing the maximum potential of this weapon.]
'Alright.'
Right then, the stick let out a glow and slowly disintegrated into white particles that gathered around his left hand to form a pure white bracelet.
The magical transformation awed Tsukiha, making her stare until it was over. Turning her head, she shot a smug smile at Alicia and clung to his right hand.
Alicia shook her head with a bitter smile.
'The future we all feared from the bottom of our hearts occurred. I wonder how she will react to this…'
Hiro finished examining the Bracelet, nodded his head at Alicia. "Thank you for keeping this safe. Can I ask a question?"
"Sure. If you want to ask if I'm single then yes I am."
Hiro narrowed his eyes at her joke. "I'm sorry but I already have a girlfriend who I love… I wanted to ask about your… relationship with Elans?"
Her body flinched momentarily which he noticed. She took a breath and answered, "He was a great friend…"
Her sad expression made him hesitate. In the end, he buried this topic in his heart while pinching Tsuki's cheeks to wipe her smug face.
She really is a bundle of emotions…
"I'm sorry for asking something insensitive. Then we'll be on our way."
Alicia stepped closer and surprised Hiro by hugging him. His expression loosened from the faintly refreshing fragrance coming from her hair. The hug lasted for a few more moments before she released him and brought her head closer, touching his forehead with her soft lips.
"I understand the weight resting on your shoulder. Protecting the world all by yourself… If you ever need something then don't hesitate to come here. I will do everything in my power to help."
He gratefully nodded his head while Tsuki glared at Alicia with a bit of resentment. She stuck her tongue out before turning her head away.
Smiling wryly, he bade farewell to Alicia. She herself wanted to escort him to which he denied. He walked out of the palace with a pouty Tsuki clinging to him.
The scene outside truly shocked him…