“Ah, I really can’t take this anymore. There’s no way anyone has actually achieved memorizing the entire legacy of each former king and queen.”
Elric sat in a slouched position on a chair in the kitchen of his parents' inn, clutching a book titled “Regal Chronicles: An Epic Odyssey Through Royal Legacies,” its pages marred by water damage.
“You rascal. Did you already forget what your mother said the last time she visited? Not only did Princess Lucina memorize the legacy of each king and queen, she also could name the years they took place,” replied Serena as she stood over the stove preparing silkberry pie.
Elric rolled his eyes at his aunt’s comparison.
“Yeah, yeah, I’m sure the princess will become the next royal historian.”
Serena smirked at her nephew whose pride was obviously hurt.
“Anyways, are you done with history now? You still haven’t touched the arithmetic books your mother left.”
"Ughh!" Elric whined, lowering the book. "I don't want to!"
"Don't be like that. Your mother worked hard to teach you to read, and she worked even harder to bring back these damaged academic books so you could get an education. The least you can do is study them."
“You’re doing it again.”
“Doing what?”
“Guilt-tripping me into studying!”
Serena laughed.
"Okay, fine,” Elric relented. "I'll take a look at the arithmetic books after helping you with the pie."
"No!" Serena immediately protested, vividly recalling the last time Elric had "helped" her. How could he make silkberry pie taste like garlic?!
"You're thinking something weird, aren't you?" Elric accused.
"Haha, no..."
"Yes, you are! You liar! I'm going to help!"
"Ahh! No!"
As the two scuffled over the pie ingredients, loud knocks interrupted them at the inn's entrance. It was Elric who answered, and he was surprised to find Hanna, old lady Agatha's granddaughter, tearfully standing before him.
"Hanna?! What's wrong?"
Her loud sobs made it difficult for Elric to understand her response. "Village chief…hunting…mana beasts…hurt."
"It's okay. Calm down," Elric said, trying his best to soothe the eight-year-old.
Serena emerged from the kitchen with a concerned face.
"Hanna, why don't you just show us what happened?"
Hanna nodded and led Elric and Serena to the center of Vailee. When they arrived, Serena loudly gasped, covering her mouth.
"He's the last one," Tip sourly said, dragging the final body out of the forest.
Before all the villagers, half of Vailee's hunting expedition team lay dead.
* * *
Vailee, a village once filled with vibrant laughter and lively chatter, was now submerged beneath a somber ambiance as grieving hearts gathered in unity.
Situated on the border of the Simmons fiefdom, Vailee found itself entangled in the expansion plans of Count Simmons. Eager to expand his estate, the count ordered cutting down the trees in the dense forests that surrounded Vailee. Such heedless deforestation disrupted the natural habitat of several mana beasts, provoking their anger and prompting them to steadily venture closer to the village.
In response to the looming threat confronting Vailee, all able-bodied men in the village were mobilized to undertake patrol duties and carefully prepared hunting expeditions to safeguard their community from danger. This heightened state of vigilance has persisted for the last three years.
Galeran, who had served as Vailee's chief for over three decades, stood at the forefront of the decision-making process. However, all villagers mourned on the day when he, along with three other men from the village, tragically lost their lives during a confrontation with a ferocious Frost Hound—a grim outcome of a failed hunting expedition.
“Fucking shit!!!” Tip yelled bitterly as he wept over his father’s dead body.
Earlier that day, he had avidly tried to dissuade Galeran from going hunting, arguing that the funds sent by Elia and Maurim were sufficient to cover the minimum of the village's necessities. However, his father remained adamant that they couldn’t just depend on the Sinclair couple every time things got hard. He emphasized that it was his responsibility, not theirs, to take care of their village.
"That heartless count!" cried old lady Agatha, her voice filled with a mix of sorrow and anger. "Even after all those times we stood outside of his manor to complain, he still callously chose to ignore us. May goddess Ymer have mercy on us!"
Her sentiments resonated with many other villagers, who murmured in agreement. Old Lady Agatha had vocalized their collective frustration, condemning the inhumane decisions of the count that had led to the loss of cherished lives. The sounds of weeping and the flickering of candles became the poignant backdrop to the graves being dug for the fallen, each shovelful of earth echoing the communal grief that gripped the hearts of the entire community.
In the midst of the grieving assembly, Elric, who stood with a heavy heart, suddenly felt a dampness on his right shoulder. He looked up, and his aunt Serena was trying her best to conceal her tears. Serena, the strongest woman he knew, appeared remarkably vulnerable at that moment.
When the last candle fizzled out, Tip, at the age of twenty-five, became the youngest village chief Vailee ever appointed.
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