"Is this the attitude of someone wishing to curry favor? The first thing you say when I get in the carriage is something rude. You're not so big yourself." Hikari looked to the protrusions on the princess's chest. This girl wasn't much taller than the elf, but the sizes were very different.
The princess covered her mouth and giggled. "Sorry, I meant no offense. It's just that given the story Esalda told me, I expected something else."
Hikari looked towards the Duke's daughter and raised an eyebrow. "What did you tell her?"
The one to answer was the princess. "She told us how you saved her life from an army of skeletons. The story sounded exaggerated, but the knights reported the same."
Hikari chose to remain silent. Instead, her hand gently rubbed Kurayami's thigh. She felt like it was the only thing keeping the dragon from having an outburst.
The carriage neared the towering structure of the castle. Towers surrounded a vast courtyard, and rows of knights stood on either side of the walkway leading up to it. Guards stood on top of crenelations and observed the incoming carriage. A thick metal gate opened and let the carriage in.
Off to one side of the courtyard were stables, but the group was let off in front of the palace. The carriage rode towards the stables before the door of the throneroom swung open.
Opulence was a small word to describe this place. It exuded an air of grandeur beyond anything Hikari had ever seen with her own eyes. She had seen more bizarre stuff behind the screen of a game, but there was something about seeing it with your own eyes.
Golden crested banners hung from the walls. Stained glass windows depicted murals of a goddess—most likely Amelia. A pink carpet led up to an ornate throne, and the place was sizable enough to fit a dragon.
Plate-armored knights stood on either side of the carpet and blared trumpets on ceremony.
A tall old man stood next to the Queen's throne, and he unraveled a lengthy parchment. His voice was the first one to echo inside of the giant room.
"Princess Alfa Arianna Amelia has returned with Her Majesty's guests…"
It looked like he would say more, but the queen raised her hand. "Queen Ieffy Arianna Amelia, presiding over this castle. Honorable guests, please step forward."
Hikari observed the delicate queen who exuded a motherly aura. She had long pink hair and eyes like her daughter. However, she appeared more mature. Age didn't do her body a disservice. If anything, it heightened her beauty. Her Majesty's robes clung tightly to her curves, accentuating them. She held a scepter in her right hand with a pink jewel at the end.
The elf stepped forward nonchalantly, and her dragon followed. Hikari felt some magic spread from the queen. She calmly raised her right hand to preempt her dragon. Hikari thought the queen had activated some aura skill, but whatever it was had no effect on the elf.
Name: Ieffy Arianna Amelia
Age: 44
Race: Human
Level: 90
Title: [Chosen of Amelia]
Strength: 460
Agility: 470
Intelligence: 880
Wisdom: 1,000
Faith: 1,000
Health: 500
Mana: 960/1,000
Skill: [Aura of Faith] – Those of low faith are powerless before the might of angels and the divine. Urge those of similar belief to follow you, and the heretics will be revealed.
What is this cryptic language!? Just say what it does! Though, the elf could sense the effects if she focused on them. It would reveal evil entities, and it would make people of the same religion want to follow you in your beliefs. Hikari had no idea this place would be full of religious fanaticism. She was spending some of her own mana to release a calming spell on her dragon.
The queen smiled and the magic aura dissipated. Under her gaze, the room fell silent, and the knights and people of the hall looked up to her in reverence. The only exception was her own daughter who was rolling her eyes.
Her Majesty looked at Hikari as if she had found something interesting. "I heard the story from the knights already. It seems you've saved my daughter from a dire fate." The queen clapped her hands. "Knights and retainers, please let me have a few words with our guests."
The surrounding knights slammed the end of their ceremonial spears on the palace floor. It was a practiced routine. The knights closest to the doors opened them, and the rest marched out in an organized line.
The solemn old man who didn't get to read his parchment looked bitter, but he ended up following the orders and leaving through a separate door.
Now that there were only five people, Hikari decided to speak boldly. "Aren't you worried something bad will happen? You sent away all of your soldiers."
The queen smirked and stood from the throne, descending the steps until she was before the elf. In front of Hikari, the woman was almost double her height. If the elf moved forward, she'd have been smothered in between two mounds.
Though, Hikari didn't need to move forward. Ieffy did it herself. She grabbed the elf and hugged her tightly between her boobs. "You are just soooo cuuuuute!"
Huh!? What is this!? Her demeanor shifted entirely! The act had caught Hikari completely off guard.
The queen smothered her while speaking in a motherly voice. "Thank you for saving my daughter, miss Hikari!"
Before the queen could continue a dragon interrupted, her voice laced with venom. "Release Master or face the consequences, mortal!"
Ieffy obliged the request and giggled. "My, my, pardon me." Then she caught Esalda who was trying to run and squeezed her. "I just couldn't bear the thought of my cute little daughter getting hurt!" She rubbed her cheeks against Esalda's like a poor little kitten she managed to catch.
"Pause…" Hikari squinted her eyes at the queen. "She's your daughter, too? And what happened to that other girl?"
The queen smiled brightly. "Hmm, a bunch of curious children. How about we take this conversation elsewhere? A feast is planned for the evening. In the meantime, why don't you accompany us to my study?"
"What about the knights?"
"They'll all be fine." Ieffy sighed. "Everyone is always so serious. It makes me wish I could travel around again."
"Mother, if you did that, the people would be the ones who suffered," Alfa said in a bitter tone. "You should take this job more seriously. You're not an adventurer anymore."
Hikari didn't let the confusion show on her face. Instead, she nodded towards the queen.
The queen looked at the elf curiously. "You're quite strange for an elf child."
A vein appeared on Hikari's forehead. "You're strange for a queen. Also, I am not a child."
As they walked down palace halls, Hikari saw two statues of Amelia. The stone face of the goddess was indiscernible, but she had a pair of wings protruding from her back. There was no time to observe them closer for now as they were led to the queen's study.
The room had two blue couches standing across each other. A wooden table stood between them, and the walls held several book cases. At the back, towards a large window, there was a desk with a plush looking chair.
"Please take a seat, everyone."
A maid entered on cue with a cart of tea. As they got comfortable on the couches, the maid elegantly poured each of them a glass.
Hikari picked up the porcelain while staring at the queen. "Is this really okay? I feel like this goes against some template."
"Template? These tea leaves are the best in Amalin. I swear on Amelia!"
"Mother, don't say those words so lightly!"
The elf took a sip of the green tea. If she had to say, it was better than any she'd had while on Earth. There was a calming sensation, and it seemed to activate her mana. However, Hikari still felt like something could be better.
Queen Amelia seemed to notice something in the elf's expression. "I suppose if it was compared to elven tea, it would not be as great. Well, Amelia's commandments speak nothing about tea."
Hikari shook her head. She wondered why they hadn't seen the king yet, but instead, she decided to ask a different question. "What happened to the emissary from yesterday?"
"She left this morning to the guild, accompanied by several knights. She's staying in the palace, though. You will be able to see her if you attend the banquet." The queen adopted a more serious expression than the one before. "Is there anything you desire, miss Hikari? Saving the emissary and my daughter is no small feet."
Hikari wanted to ask how it was possible. Did this mean the duke was a concubine? Though, to the elf, it didn't matter either way. It was best not to get involved in this country's politics. At the same time, the queen probably wouldn't let her leave empty-handed. That's when she remembered the strange alien metals spread across this city.
She also remembered the few books in her inventory. If there was one thing the elf was lacking it was knowledge. She hadn't had a chance to properly read the three books.
Hikari looked at the bookshelves surrounding them. "I would like books. Specifically if you have anything related to metals."
The queen laughed. "Books is it? You looked so serious for a moment, but it seems I was right in my assessment…Very well, you can browse any of the books in this room. There's also a library here. I will instruct the librarian to bring materials on metal. In the meantime, you are both free to stay in the palace."