บท 230: Big news
The Elvenkin Kingdom, Opaliteia, was celebrating the most important but also he most secretive festival of the entire year - the Bestowal of the Sacred Tree's protection.
Each year, the representatives of each family of pure-blooded elves would come to Opaliteia's capital, Scepterio, and gather on top of the Sacred Tree, where one of them would be chosen by the Tree as its vessel for the year and spread its blessing around their land.
While it was most definitely the grandest, the Bestowal of the Sacred Tree's festival was also the most zealously guarded secret of the elvenkin.
The Tree's vessels wouldn't lose themselves or turn into puppets. Instead, they would remain conscious people who are able to use bountiful nature mana to perform miracles of magic.
Revitalize the barren land, turn deserts into lush jungles, and even spawn various types of monsters, most of which would be most suited for domestication.
It was of the highest priority for the elves to keep such borderline ridiculous power a secret from the outside world, and it was kept by various humane and not so much means…
For example, if an elf who traveled outside Opaliteia or had contact with non-elvenkin travelers or merchants learned about the festival, they would get that particular memory wiped out by a Druid or a Nature Mage.
And if a filthy half-blood would end up learning about the festival even by chance, they would be executed on the spot, often together with their freak of a parent and the filth they laid with.
The sole fact that the festival remained a secret from the outside world spoke volumes about the efficiency of the Elvenkin special forces.
On the day of the festival, in the Royal Palace tucked in between the massive roots of the Heaven-piercing Sacred Tree protruding from the rocky island in the middle of an azure lake, a certain holly-skinned elf was peacefully sleeping in her room.
Even amongst her kind, she was particularly tall and slim, and her splendid ears were longer and more pointy than those of the masses.
With a pale green-almost yellow hair cascading down her pillow, she looked like an illustration from a fairy-tale book about a slumbering princess.
Well, part of it wasn't just a mirage.
*bzzzzzz*
Together with the warm breeze, some sort of tiny nuisance entered the room through the minuscule opening between the heavy curtains.
The tiny nuisance, making a noise similar to that of a mosquito or some tiny fly, made its way toward the sleeping elven woman and landed in her hair.
*bzzzz* *bzzzz*
…where it began to make even more noise before even going as far as to start tugging on the greenish-yellow strands as if attempting to pull them off with the roots.
"Nnn… Nnn…?"
The sleeping elf furrowed her brows and let out a bothered groan, but the high-pitched buzzing nuisance didn't stop. Not even when the woman moved and ran her fingers through her hair, barely missing the nuisance by the skin of its teeth.
"Lina! Princess Lina! Lina Opalitte! Wake up!"
The nuisance gave up on tugging on the woman's hair and instead flew up and then landed on top of her nose where it released an ear-piercing shrill.
"...!"
That finally made the elven woman open her eyes and look around in shock before localizing the source of the noise and going cross-eye while attempting to focus on it.
The nuisance turned out to be a tiny elderly woman with transparent buzzing insect wings sprouting from her back, dressed in a sort of poncho fashioned from a single leaf..
"Princess Lina! You're awake! Good!"
The tiny woman brushed aside her frail gray hair and cheered out in relief.
"A… a pixie..? No, an inchie!? Does that mean…!?"
After taking a closer look at the creature, the elven woman gasped and sat up slowly so that she wouldn't throw off the tiny grandma.
"Princess Lina! You will be participating in the Bestowal of the Sacred Tree protection!"
The creature the elven woman called an inchie screeched out in amusement.
"Mother Tree doesn't want you to be late!"
"Eh?! You're the Sacred Tree's messenger?! No, more importantly, I am supposed to represent the Opalitte family?!"
The inchie declared joyfully, causing the elven woman to gasp again.
"Yes! Mother Tree overheard that your aunt wants to go herself or at least send her son! But Mother Tree wants you to show up instead!"
The tiny, wrinkled creature nodded her cherry-pit-sized head and called out in a high-pitched voice.
"...!"
Lina's eyes widened and she opened her mouth, but no words ended up coming out.
"That's odd… I thought the festival was a secret… tee-hee… why do all of you know about it…?"
The inchie lost her train of thought and instead asked the first question that seemed to bother her.
"O-oh! That's because Opalitte family is the royal family of the elvenkin. We're bound to know more than the masses. Everyone knows that, silly."
Lina ended up coming to her senses and announced proudly.
"Ohhh! Te-he-he! I didn't know! I was born yesterday, after all!!"
The tiny creature screeched out in realization and added playfully.
"Y-yesterday?! Already?! Did you at least had something to… Wait a second, I'll get you something!"
"Hmm? Okay, tee-he…!"
The elven woman gasped and stood up, making the inchie chuckle as she flew up and began buzzing around Lina's head.
"Do you have any idea why the Sacred Tree would ask specifically for me? I mean, of course, I agree and will go. I'm simply curious."
Lina glanced up at the flying inchie and asked while measuring a single drop of water from a cup and placing it on a leaf of a plant she kept by her bedside, imitating the morning dew.
"Here."
"Tee-he… he… thank you… tee-he…"
As she was done, Lina pointed at the droplet of water and the inchie let out a tired laugh, floating down slowly until she sat down by the droplet, leaning toward the water, clearly struggling in her old age.
"Do you know why the Sacred Tree wants me to be the royal family representative? I'm nothing special amongst the youngest generation."
Lina repeated her question and pointed out, hesitantly.
"...that's because… tee… hee… Mother Tree will pick you as her chosen…"
"~!"
The elderly inchie muttered weakly, swaying from side to side, about to fall face first into the droplet – but Lina missed it completely, too excited about the revelation.
"Me?! Sacred Tree will choose me?! Oh, lucky day~!"
Lina sang out with happiness, spinning around in pure joy.
"Wait… are all chosen ones informed beforehand? It seems odd to even hold a festival if the chosen one is picked before…"
*plup*
The elven woman stopped in place, furrowing her brows and turning around to face the Sacred Tree's messenger, but that only ended up with her freezing up as she witnessed the water drop dripping down the leaf she placed it on.
"...hand…"
Lina finished her sentence with her expression clouded by pity.
Where an inchie was sitting only a moment before, a fragile clump of dried petals was crumbling down into dust.
"..."
The elven woman reached down and scooped the dried petals in both hands, the approached the window and passed through the curtains.
"You completed your mission. Return to your mother, little one."
As she was leaning outside, Lina put her hands to her mouth and spoke softly before blowing at her palms and sending the dry petals flying…
"..."
And watched them turn into dust in the wind before coming even closer to the ground or the Sacred Tree.
Lina lowered her gaze, offering a silent prayer, before turning around and walking to the dresser, where she had to choose an appropriate attire.
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Sound_Hammer
Sound_Hammer >:3
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