Free Web NovelElf Ranger Leader Moiken clearly hadn’t undergone some miraculous overnight transformation. He struggled the entire way in, hauled forward in a thoroughly undignified state. What made the scene especially bizarre was that the ones dragging him were his own subordinates—who, for reasons obvious at a glance, had not only tied him up but gagged him as well.
“Deputy Commander. The captain kept trying to bite us for ‘trusting humans,’ so we had no choice but to bring him like this.”
“What should we do with him?”
“Lord Ian, may I try speaking with him first?”
Ian nodded readily at Hiikan’s suggestion.
“This is an elf matter. Elves should settle it themselves. Try clearing up the misunderstanding.”
“Thank you!”
Hiikan and the rangers dragged Moiken off to a corner while Genea quietly followed after them, clearly worried about her brother.
Ian watched the group with a trace of concern. If another fight broke out here, things could become troublesome. Moiken was the ranger captain and one of the village’s leading figures. If he started shouting about how no one should trust “that Ian bastard” and began stirring up support for war, the alliance could fracture before it properly began.
Thankfully, that never happened.
Armed with testimony from the newly reborn World Tree, the rangers, and Genea’s very physical method of knocking sense into him, Moiken eventually grasped the situation.
Surprisingly enough, he turned out to be a fairly reasonable elf.
“What?! That happened?!”
Moiken’s stunned shout echoed through the area, and moments later he abruptly pulled Genea into a tight embrace.
“Well done! That’s my little sister! I knew you’d ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) never betray the village!”
“Mm. Sounds like you, Moiken. I knew you’d understand once you calmed down.”
Genea answered with calm magnanimity.
Ian had absolutely nothing to say to that.
‘Is “That makes sense” their family motto or something?’
Keith glanced toward him.
“What are you staring at?”
“I was worried they might start fighting again... but apparently there was no need. I’m prepared to pursue the culprit immediately. Are you ready as well?”
“How could I refuse to follow where you lead? There’s no need for you to spare consideration for me.”
Keith answered like a knight pledging eternal loyalty. Ian let out a dry snort.
Now he says that?
“Since when have you ever warned me before charging into something?”
“You know I must remain by your side whenever danger arises. Wouldn’t you be troubled if I were far away while you stood in the middle of a blazing inferno?”
“You had your own things to handle... and what difference would it’ve made if you were there?”
“You would’ve been safe.”
The confidence in his voice was absurd.
Ian smiled benevolently.
“Right. You’re incredible.”
‘Let’s not curse. Let’s not curse.’
Honestly, considering how thoroughly the Vatican had brainwashed him, Keith maintaining a healthy sense of self-esteem probably wasn’t the worst thing in the world. It wasn’t as though this world treated pride as one of the seven deadly sins.
Ian was just barely managing to think positively about it—
And then Keith calmly said something insane.
“Lord Ian... do you perhaps like elves?”
“...What?”
If the question was whether he liked elves as a race, then yes, objectively speaking, he did. They possessed naturally excellent physical abilities and high growth potential.
Even though he’d criticized Genea’s limited gameplay freedom before, her actual character performance had been solid.
But Keith’s line of thought had clearly veered somewhere completely different.
“Come to think of it, you were unusually generous toward that elf merchant as well. It seems you prefer the slender, delicate type, Lord Ian.”
Ian genuinely could not follow the conversation anymore.
“What kind of preference are you talking about?”
“The kind involving affection between partners. I’m not particularly perceptive about such matters, but... your treatment of that elf did seem rather special.”
Keith spoke with an immaculate expression, wearing the same faintly disapproving look he always had whenever Ian did something that violated doctrine.
‘When is this damned “libertine” reputation going to disappear?’
Was he seriously about to be labeled promiscuous again?
Normally, rumors like that should have faded long ago. The only reason they persisted was because Keith kept feeding them with utter nonsense.
“What exactly was special?!”
“You forgave the destruction of a precious dungeon, showed leniency even when your favored subordinate was threatened, and now you’re reviving their village while showering them with even greater kindness.”
“You—?! After you strangled me and nearly killed my subordinate, I still spared your life, and you call that ‘showering kindness’?! Then what about the things you do every single night?!”
“Ah.”
Keith abruptly covered his mouth.
The tips of his ears flushed scarlet.
‘......’
Ian wanted to die.
Keith spoke again with his face still hidden.
“My apologies. It appears I was the one lacking self-awareness, blinded by jealousy and questioning others without recognizing the grace I myself have received.”
Ian desperately wanted to tell him to shut up.
Then Keith pulled out a whip.
Ian inhaled sharply.
“You still haven’t thrown that thing away?!”
“Yes? Since you confiscated the previous one, I simply made another.”
“Throw it away!”
“But Lord Ian, without the whip, how am I supposed to punish myself?”
“I’ll kick you myself, so throw it out!”
“...Lord Ian?”
Ding!
[Genea thinks you are a tyrant!]
Ding!
[Moiken thinks you are a tyrant!]
Ding!
[Hiikan is questioning your preferences!]
‘No!’
Ian whipped his head around.
Every elf nearby was staring at them in stunned horror.
He immediately stomped on the second whip he’d snatched from Keith, snapping it in half before kicking the pieces away. His face burning bright red, he yanked his hood down low and took several deep breaths.
After forcibly regaining his composure, Ian spoke as though nothing had happened.
“So. Have all misunderstandings been resolved?”
“Yes... though regarding that conversation just now—”
“Everyone understands the situation now, correct? Whoever dried out and killed the World Tree is a powerful enemy. Most likely demons or something similar. We may be dealing with an extremely dangerous foe. Genea, make sure you prepare thoroughly.”
“Of course. I’m ready. But about that earlier conversation...”
“Let’s move out!”
Ian pretended not to hear her.
At his call, Louise and Sema—who had been resting nearby—approached immediately.
A massive dragon descended from the sky.
THUMP!
‘Perfect.’
Ian’s excitement rose instantly at the sight of the strongest race in the world.
Not only was this thing absurdly powerful, it could also serve as transportation.
Was there any faster method of travel in the game?
Probably not.
“Mom.”
“Yeah, yeah. Fully recovered now?”
“Yes. It’s time.”
‘Right. Time to catch the culprit—’
Ian started to answer, then paused.
Actus probably wasn’t talking about the elf quest.
The dragon stretched out its long neck and gazed into the distance.
“I must fulfill the mission given to me from the moment I was born. I can no longer delay it. My power has returned.”
“...Mission?”
‘Oh, come on. Seriously?’
“Yes.”
The dragon lowered its enormous head and rubbed against Ian affectionately. Ian nearly stumbled backward.
At this rate his neck was going to snap.
Just as he was about to complain, the dragon spoke softly.
“Mom. I know you aren’t my real mother.”
“......!”
Ian’s heart dropped.
“You were so warm... At first, I didn’t notice. But eventually I understood. Mom is fragile. You have no wings. You can’t grow the way I do... But because you cared for me, I stayed beside you anyway. I knew I had duties to fulfill, yet I pretended not to. I wanted to remain with Mom.”
“......”
“But I can’t keep doing that. My kind need me. They’re all asleep. If I don’t wake them, they’ll remain lonely and cold forever... just like I was before I met Mom. I’m warm now. I’m happy now. It would be too sad otherwise...”
The dragon licked Ian from head to toe, soaking him completely. Its rough tongue scraped painfully across his skin.
Red marks immediately bloomed across his face, and Keith instinctively stepped forward to pull him away. Ian stopped him and instead wrapped both arms around the dragon’s massive scaled face.
A quiet sigh escaped him.
Only then did he feel like he could finally stand upright again.
‘Yeah. There was no way they’d let me keep using a cheat character like this forever.’
That would completely destroy the balance of a trash-tier game.
Ian looked up and asked,
“There are other dragons sleeping somewhere?”
“Yes.”
“And you know where they are?”
“Yes... My mother. Well—not you. My real mother. She told me when I was little. I remember everything.” fгee𝑤ebɳoveɭ.cøm
‘When you were little? You mean when you were still inside the egg?’
Ian grimaced.
“Then come with me first. Catching the culprit won’t take long. Why are you making this sound like some final farewell?”
Awakening dragons.
That hidden quest.
...And beyond even that, Ian found himself unexpectedly reluctant to send this creature away alone.
He wanted to know Actus’ story. Even after playing the game extensively, he had never uncovered this part of the lore. The developers must have buried it deliberately.
And exploring Heaven—a realm never accessible in-game—was undeniably exciting.
But more than curiosity, he simply felt uneasy.
Actus had once fought the Demon Archduke head-on, but back then Ian hadn’t truly understood just how young the dragon actually was.
Now that he did...
Sending him off alone felt wrong.
