EFB Chapter 183: Childrens Mistakes Are the Adults Responsibility
Chapter 183: Childrens Mistakes Are the Adults Responsibility
The spirit stone was also mentioned several times in “The Blue Knight of the Holy Sword”.So Arendt expected Llewellyn to react violently.
The spirit stone was literally a jewel imbued with the power of nature’s spirits, and was a treasure of the elves.
It was given that name because it was created in a place where a spirit stayed for a long time, and it was said to be a rarer item than a magic stone.
That was all that was known to the world, but there was something more important.
New spirits were often born from old spirit stones.
A newly born spirit possessed a pure self and pure power, and was therefore very precious even in elven society.
After the great wars of the past, spirit masters had become very rare even among the elves today.
However, while waiting for a new spirit to be born someday, the elves treated the spirit stone very preciously.
Although it contained more powerful and pure magic than a magic stone, it was a rule among the elves to never use a spirit stone for meaningless killing.
Furthermore…
“They are hardly ever produced now, so the ones that exist are all kept by the elders. You need to get permission to see them in person.”
As Llewellyn gave a long explanation, the expressions of those listening became serious.
“So… to sum it up, there is a possibility that Jin is the elder’s blood relative.”
“…Yes.”
Kendrick, who had been listening quietly, let out a sigh.
The elder’s daughter ran away with several stolen spirit stones.
If that were true, elven society would have been turned upside down by now.
Diana, who had been furrowing her brow, opened her mouth.
“What does that homunculus have to do with the spirit stone?”
“This is just a guess… As I explained earlier, there is a legend that spirits are born from old spirit stones.”
Llewellyn answered complicatedly.
“The reason the alchemists gave up on developing homunculi was because they failed to give the body a sense of self. But think about it. If only they could give the homunculi the self of a spirit just born from a spirit stone…”
The prince trailed off, but it was easy to guess what he was saying.
The moment that plan is successful, the artificial human that alchemists have long dreamed of would be completed.
Arendt, who had been listening quietly, intervened.
“But since spirit stones are not common, they must have needed a substitute. The experiment they conducted on the villagers was probably an extension of that.”
Cantares, who had been staying silent, slowly let out a sigh.
“This is… ridiculous. I can’t believe this is real.”
“The Count said that he would like His Highness the Crown Prince to decide what to do with the remaining spirit stones.”
“We must return them to the elves. If the Empire has the spirit stones, it could lead to diplomatic conflict.”
Llewellyn interrupted Arendt’s words urgently.
The Crown Prince also nodded.
“I agree. The fact that the spirit stones that were lost in the Elven kingdom were found in our Empire is enough to warrant a charge.”
“It is as you said. First, we should contact them and inform them of the situation and initiate the return procedure… Oh no…”
Diana suddenly trailed off with a trembling face.
Those who were puzzled naturally turned their heads to where her gaze fell.
“…”
And then they found it.
Arendt, with a sly look on his face, crossed his arms and seemed to be lost in light contemplation.
“Hmm….”
They were able to realize this naturally through their past experiences.
That was definitely the face he had when he was thinking of some wicked idea.
“Arendt.”
Laius called him quietly.
But there was no answer in response.
There was an ominous silence.
A moment later, a smile appeared on the apprentice knight’s young face, sending shivers down everyone’s spines.
“That’s great. The responsibility has become clearer.”
“Responsibility? What are you talking about now…?”
When Cantares muttered in annoyance, Arendt lifted his head, his smile disappearing as if nothing had happened.
“There is more than enough to make an issue out of this. The other race came all the way to the Empire and caused a ruckus, so it’s only natural that we can protest, right?”
“Of course that’s true, but let’s talk about it first…”
Kendrick came to his senses and started to speak, but Arendt struck first.
“You said they ignored your calls first, didn’t you?”
The captains naturally looked at the Crown Prince for answers.
Instead of Cantares, who was sighing deeply and resting his hand on his forehead, Jereon smiled awkwardly.
“Yes, that’s right. Unfortunately.”
“That’s not what I meant.”
Cantares regretted it later, but it was already too late.
“Hey, you too. You said there was no response from the communication port?”
“Was it so?”
“Yes, unfortunately… When I last visited the kingdom, I gave the elders a communication device as a gift. I tried to connect to it several times, but there was no response at all.”
In response to the Crown Prince’s question, Llewellyn followed Jereon’s words and then added:
“…But elves don’t really use communication devices. They might have forgotten where they were stored.”
“Is it normal to treat gifts from foreign dignitaries in that way? That’s a problem in its own right.”
But such excuses would not have been acceptable to Arendt.
“I’m not trying to make a fuss about it. But if the other side refuses to talk, we have no choice but to find another way. Right?”
“…”
“There’s a chance that Jin is the daughter of an elf elder. Don’t you know that? A child’s mistakes are all the adult’s fault.”
Arendt finally put the finishing touches on it.
“…Next time I see Count Eckhart, I’ll definitely have to ask him. What kind of parenting style can produce someone with a temper like yours?”
In the end, the sincerity that was buried deep in Cantares’ heart spilled out.
But Arendt went a step further.
“I’m curious about that too. Please ask him that. I’ve been disowned for a while.”
“…”
It seemed as if Count Eckhart was already paying a heavy price.
Because he was being torn to pieces and thoroughly criticized.
The captains coughed in vain and averted their gazes.
As an awkward silence fell, Llewellyn hurriedly stepped forward.
“I agree that they should be held accountable. However, if His Highness the Crown Prince makes an official complaint, I am sure there will be some kind of response. I will also try to contact them through other means.”
“That would be good. We must return the spirit stones, but we must also clearly point out that the elves have caused trouble within the Empire.”
Laius also wholeheartedly agreed.
Cantares gave them a cold look.
“That’s absolutely right, but why did you suddenly change your stance to respond so strongly? Wasn’t the idea just now to try to resolve the issue with nice words?”
“I think that would be better than that bastard, no, Arendt, getting involved and making a mess of things.”
Llewellyn answered honestly, and the captains nodded with serious faces.
Even Laius.
After the meeting ended, Llewellyn first contacted the allied members near the Nephele Kingdom and had them monitor the situation in the Elf Kingdom.
But there was no significant income.
Because the former Crown Prince Alois was hostile to the elves, all contact with the elves was completely cut off.
“A bastard who is useless at everything…!”
Llewellyn, who received the report, exploded with anger, holding the communication port.
Although they belatedly tried to restore the trade route, it was difficult as the Nephele Kingdom had only recently emerged from chaos.
The answer that came back from the Everan Kingdom was similar.
A few months ago, they were contacted by their trading partner, who told them that they would be unable to send any goods for the time being.
That was happening while Llewellyn was busy searching for the dragon.
“That, so that happened, brother? Did they just tell us that without saying why? When was that?”
– It’s not like this hasn’t happened before. And do we have the right to veto it? If you were in the kingdom, I would have asked you for the reason, but I don’t know where you are or what you’re doing.
The Crown Prince of the Everan Kingdom, who had been responding irritably, finally let out his anger.
– And what are you doing now after such a long time? Elf? Do you have any idea how worried your mother is right now? You were in the Nephele Kingdom a while ago, so why are you in the Caerleon Empire now? Don’t cause trouble there and hurry up and…
“Hahaha, is everything okay there? If anything happens, please contact me! Definitely!”
Before the real nagging could begin, Llewellyn abruptly cut off the call.
The Crown Prince seemed to be shouting at him from beyond the communication port, but he tried to ignore it.
Arendt, who was sitting on the sofa watching the scene, said in disbelief.
“Isn’t that just telling them not to contact you unless something comes up?”
“That’s just how life is. No news is good news.”
Llewellyn sighed deeply and scratched his head irritably.
“By the way, at this point, if something happens, it’s definitely going to happen. Oh my, this is driving me crazy! Why did I only notice this now?”
“If this is how it is, then the official document His Highness sent will be meaningless…”
Arendt also could not have predicted that things would turn out like this.
Trade with the Caerleon Empire had also been cut off at some point.
They say that the ship that carried Cantares’ letter was the last.
‘It’s not like they used to visit each other often in the first place.’
Since ships would come and go two or three times a year, it would be impossible to notice even if contact was quietly cut off.
Moreover, because elven society was so closed off and the humans were careful not to cause trouble, no one noticed that there was a problem internally.
Arendt, who had been silent for a moment, opened his mouth.
“Hey, what do you think?”
“Ugh… I can’t be sure since they are such fickle people, but there is one thing I can predict. They are in chaos right now because of Jin.”
As soon as they realized that Jin had run away with the spirit stones and was causing trouble, they locked the doors inside and out.
Arendt’s brow furrowed slightly.
“They chose isolation because they couldn’t take care of one child?”
“Damn, that’s just how they are. They would think it’s shameful. Besides, if they found out that Jin had joined the evil cult, they wouldn’t have shown up until the problem was solved in order to avoid responsibility, right?”
A very excited Llewellyn spoke quickly.
Since the number of elves was small, it seems that they reacted more sensitively.
It was as if they had tried every possible official method at the time.
Judging by the fact that they even ignored Llewellyn’s call, it seemed like they had no intention of talking.
‘What was it like in the “Blue Knight of the Holy Sword”?’
Arendt’s consciousness naturally turned in that direction.
When the Caerleon Empire was engulfed in flames and the full-fledged civil war began, Laius was chosen by the Holy Sword.
After the news was announced to the world, elves and dwarves expressed their willingness to provide assistance.
He guessed that they must have felt quite a sense of crisis at the fact that the Holy Sword had appeared.
Arendt’s face hardened as he thought about it that far.
‘Wait for a sec.’
No, no way.
But no matter how he thought about it, it didn’t make sense.
When Arendt’s mood suddenly changed, Llewellyn tapped his shoulder curiously.
“Arendt? What is it? Why are you like that?”
But the answer he got back was something completely unexpected.
“…Aren’t these guys just sons of bitches?”