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Chapter 5. In the Name of Freedom
Since brother Elzen found his soulmate, many things have changed.
The half-elves, all around a hundred years old, took the entrance exam to join the navy and were assigned to their respective departments.
Thanks to receiving part of Joy’s lifespan, or life force, brother Elzen’s illness was cured. However, that didn’t mean he immediately regained full health.
The rare disease called reflux sickness creates blood clots, and it takes quite a long time for all of them to dissolve.
‘They said his body was severely damaged, so he needs something called rehabilitation training.’
Anyway, he can now walk freely around the mansion!
Brother Elzen is even able to join family meals, bake cookies with me, and read lots of storybooks to me before bed.
I’m super happy because he plays with me!
“Will brother go to naval training after fully recovering?”
“That’s the plan. According to the doctor, rehabilitation should only take about a year.”
“Wow! But that means you won’t be able to go on many outings with me.”
At 11 AM, with the sun shining brightly like a polished apple pie, today was the long-awaited group picnic day.
It was the day when the children of Pashayen went on an outing together under the guidance of Teacher Cedric and class leader Leviwood.
I wore a white hat on my head, pumpkin shorts that came up to my knees, and carried a bag with wings!
Since I kept singing about wanting to join the navy, Lina made me clothes similar to the white uniforms worn by sailors.
“Hehe, I’m so excited!”
“Oh, are you excited?”
“Yes!”
I hummed a tune while holding brother Elzen’s hand.
Unfortunately, brother Mikard couldn’t come because of his training duties, but Ilyad and Naiad were here.
‘Maybe I’ll take this chance to get a bit closer to class leader Leviwood?’
Because the last time I met him was ages ago.
Class leader Leviwood was so busy that I didn’t get to see him often.
“Vice leader, could you come here for a moment?”
“Yes!”
Just then, class leader Leviwood called me.
Wearing a badge on my chest that said ‘Vice Leader,’ I let go of brother Elzen’s hand and ran over.
“Even though today is a picnic, as the leader and vice leader, we are responsible for managing the children well. If you see a child trying to enter the forest alone, make sure to shout loudly and alert us.”
“Yes!”
“Good. Very reliable. Of course, it’s fine if they want to go into the water.”
Raising one hand high and responding loudly, class leader Leviwood smiled.
But it was strange how only the corners of his lips lifted, while his eyes didn’t smile at all.
How does he do that?
While I tilted my head in wonder, class leader Leviwood grabbed Teacher Cedric to give him some instructions.
“Cedric, no napping. No slacking off. Don’t go off alone to rest in a corner. No matter how troublesome it is, don’t forget to keep an eye on the kids.”
“Yes…”
“If you behave well, I’ll let you quit your job someday.”
“Yes!”
Teacher Cedric looked very annoyed, but the words ‘I’ll let you quit’ brought a bright expression to his face.
Meanwhile, Ilyad lifted me high and carried me on his shoulders.
“Yahoo! Let’s go!”
“Let’s go!”
Today’s picnic destination was near the lower reaches of the Alexandrite River, far to the west of Pellun.
According to the other kids, it would take a full week by carriage.
“But how do we get somewhere that far?”
While holding onto Ilyad’s head like reins and looking around, I noticed there were no carriages or horses anywhere.
Even though Lina, the maids, and the guards were all here, there was nothing for us to ride!
“Oh, you mean transportation? You don’t have to worry about that. Now we have brother Elzen.”
“Huh?”
Is brother Elzen going to do something?
Come to think of it, what is brother Elzen’s special ability?
“Now that everyone is here, let’s get into the water.”
At that moment, brother Elzen quietly gave his instruction.
Splash, splash.
In the official garden of Pashayen Manor, there was an artificially made stream.
It was shallow, only reaching ankle height, so everyone stepped in without much trouble. However, I hesitated since I was wearing new shoes.
I didn’t want them to get wet.
“What are you hesitating for? Just hold on tight to me.”
“Okay.”
Is this really okay?
Following Ilyad’s words, I tightened my grip on him with both hands.
And then, moments later…
A water splash rose high around brother Elzen as he stretched out his hands, creating a rainbow over our heads.
“We’ve arrived, little one.”
“…….…!”
I was so caught up in the scene that I didn’t even realize what was happening. But suddenly—huh?!
When the water splash cleared, we were no longer at the manor but in a completely different place.
It was like teleportation!
“Brother, brother, what is this? How did you do it?!”
Waving my hands frantically from atop Ilyad’s shoulders, I called out to brother Elzen. He immediately turned to me with a beautiful smile.
“This is my ability. As long as there’s water, I can move anywhere. Up to 50 people at once.”
So, so… that means…
It’s the perfect ability for going on picnics!
How cool!
***
Pashayen’s children had gone on a picnic, leaving the grand mansion in Pellun unusually quiet.
In this rare moment, the adults gathered for tea.
However, not all the adults were present—Cecilia, who found Violet insufferable, didn’t come, and Nine, the father of the twins Ilyad and Naiad, was absent due to exhaustion.
Thus, only four gathered: the head of the family, Galizard, the deputy head family, Violet, the Resonator Maliasha, and Diegon, who was responsible for training supervision.
“Haha, that child truly is a treasure.”
These days, Galizard’s face was constantly beaming with joy.
A resource he had nearly discarded had been miraculously revived.
Although Elzen’s ability wasn’t particularly remarkable, he was clever, perceptive, and emotionally composed. He had the foresight to see the ocean rather than just the stream in front of him.
As Mikard’s kin and someone uninterested in vying for position, Elzen was poised to become a significant asset to the entire Pashayen Navy in the future.
Losing such a child had been a painful blow for Galizard.
“He’s truly precious. How did such a child come to us?”
No sooner had he spoken than Maliasha quietly set her teacup down and yanked her husband’s beard.
“Didn’t I tell you not to value people solely by their worth?”
“Ouch, ouch! I’m sorry, my dear. It’s a habit. Even at my age, I can’t seem to fix it.”
“Tsk. It’s a bad habit. I should’ve fixed it when we were younger.”
Across the world, the only person who could treat the head of the Pashayen family this way was Maliasha, his soulmate.
Even at his age, Galizard still yielded entirely to Maliasha. If she said ‘Come,’ he came. If she said ‘Go,’ he went. If she said ‘Sit,’ he sat, and if she said ‘Carry me,’ he carried her.
No matter how fearsome someone was, it was only natural for an awakened one to kneel before their soulmate.
Diegon watched his parents’ bickering with a wry smile, while Violet pretended not to notice.
“But dad,”
Clack.
Violet deliberately set her cup down loudly, drawing their attention, and parted her lips gracefully.
“Diegon manipulated the Alexandrite River’s flow, drying up its upper reaches.”
“Yes, that’s true.”
“There will be retaliation.”
“Indeed. The Velarions aren’t the type to sit still, are they?”
Galizard laughed heartily, brushing his disheveled beard, while Maliasha gave him a sharp glance and sighed.
“Why can’t you be more careful with the children? You never listen.”
“They need real-world experience. Besides, it won’t escalate into a full territorial war. The head of the Velarion family isn’t a reckless person. At most, that fellow Goliath might act independently.”
“What if they get hurt?”
“Kids grow by getting hurt.”
In truth, the head’s words weren’t wrong.
The current Pashayen generation had grown up in far more prosperous and peaceful times compared to Galizard’s childhood.
Naturally, they had never experienced a proper territorial war before.
If the Velarion launched an attack, it would be a valuable experience for them.
These small experiences would prepare them to handle larger crises in the future.
You can’t prepare for war simply by being protected.
“You all know that this peace won’t last long. There are unsettling currents stirring across the Empire.”
Finally, Galizard erased his smile and began to speak solemnly.
“War will break out soon.”
