I Got Reincarnated as the Villain and Saved the World, but After the Ending I Was Betrayed and Exiled. I Just Wanted a Peaceful Life in the Frontier, but for Some Reason My Former Companions Started Chasing Me with Yandere Eyes… - 86-87

Chapter 86: The Elves’ Conspiracy

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After hearing Elena’s story, we hurried to the building assigned to us. However… When we opened the door, we found Ceres, commanding the elves in front of a table extravagantly piled with fruit.

“What on earth are you doing!?”

“Oh my, long time no see, Elena. You look quite worn out. Would you like something to eat? The followers brought all this even though I was already full, and I didn’t know what to do with it.”

Smiling at Elena while being doted on by the elves attending her, Ceres looked every bit the picture of overwhelming influence. Wait, didn’t Ceres arrive at the elves’ village at the same time as we did?

“…Oh. That look on your face, Phantom-sama… It seems the problem is more serious than we thought. You all, leave us.”

“““Yes, understood, Ceres-sama.”””

“Why are the elves, who think of themselves as the most superior race, obeying her so readily?”

When Tia voiced her surprise, Ceres turned toward us with a proud look and gave us a bewitching smile.

“Well, perhaps it’s due to my personal virtue. Don’t you think the saintess who can even command elves deserves to be ranked number one as the proper lover for the hero who saved the world, Phantom-sama?”

“She’s just ranked number one in the list of people you really don’t want as an enemy… Mmmmph…”

“You seem quite worn out… Let me provide your mouth with something better to do than say unnecessary things.”

“Wow, harsh, even though it’s been so long since we last met…”

Without mercy, Ceres shoved a luxurious-looking fruit into Elena’s mouth as punishment for saying something unnecessary. Even while mumbling through it, Elena began to eat—it must have been delicious, or perhaps she simply felt relieved after reuniting with us.

“Sorry to trouble you while you’re busy. Do you know where Cain is?”

“Cain, you say… He mentioned he was going sightseeing at the ruins with the elves. He said that once Phantom-sama and the others returned, he wanted you to come join him…”

“Thish ish bad… Mmmph mmph… That’sh my shishter’sh plot… mmph…”

“Elena-san… Let’s either eat or talk, not both at once, please.”

Warned by Tia, Elena hesitated for a moment before continuing to eat. It seemed she prioritized filling her stomach over worrying about Cain.

Even though she was so panicked just a moment ago… Is this really okay?

Then, after polishing off the fruit and even draining a drink, Elena smiled with satisfaction and finally began to speak.

“Most likely, Cain has been caught up in the schemes of my elder sister, Echidna. In the elves’ village lies the resting place of a half-elf hero. There, one can also find powerful magical tools he created. That is probably her target. However, the seal can only be broken if both a human and an elf go together.”

“Why would it be set up that way…?”

“My guess… The half-elf hero likely wished for humans and elves to join hands. But as her younger sister, I can say this for certain. Echidna-neesan has no interest in such ideals! She only wants to lay her eyes on the magical tools left behind by the half-elf!! And the elven elder has gone along with her.”

“…So it’s a warning against humans who allied themselves with the demon tribe…”

With a grim expression, Elena nodded. If that was the case, then we couldn’t just sit still…

“Elena, take us to those ruins. I don’t think Cain is the type to let himself be used without realizing it, but we should back him up.”

“Of course. We elves have caused enough trouble as it is.”

“Don’t worry about it. Besides, the fact that you were captured means you were opposing them, right? Thanks for that.”

As I patted her head in gratitude, Elena gave a smile so genuinely happy it was almost dazzling. Surely, even while we were fooling around in the capital, she had been doing her best here.

“In that case, I’ll quit my little prophetess play and go along too. But in return, when I do something praiseworthy, you’ll have to pat my head as well, Phantom-sama.”

“Of course, I’ll come too, Master. And in my case, I’d like to request sleeping beside you… I am your girlfriend after all!!”

“Ah, thank you.”

For a brief moment, sparks practically flew between Tia and Ceres—it was honestly scary. Still, even if her motives were a bit impure, Ceres being motivated was a good thing.

And so, we set out for the ruins.

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Chapter 87: The Elf Ruins

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“There’s a guard…”

Under Elena’s guidance, we headed for the ruins. Towering trees grew around the site, and in the center stood a door but, of course, a guard was stationed there. The one guarding the ruins was a sharp-eyed Elf.

“This is bad… That one is part of the Elder’s personal guard. He has sworn absolute loyalty to the Elder. Persuasion is hopeless. In fact, he ignored even my sexy appeal and locked me in Echidna-neesan’s lab!”

“…Sexy?”

“Tia, sometimes reality can be cruel to Elves. The kind thing to do is to just ignore it.”

“You two look like you’ve got something to say, huh…”

Watching Elena glare at Tia—who had a blank look—and Ceres, who was laughing merrily, I couldn’t help but feel nostalgic. It really was nice having everyone together again. But still…

“So that means we’ll have to use force? I don’t think he’s an opponent we can’t handle, but… If a fight breaks out, that’ll be bad.”

On the surface, they hadn’t shown any hostility toward us yet. The incident with Cain was still just Elena’s theory. If she turned out to be wrong, we might end up starting a war with the Elves for nothing.

“Hehehe, don’t worry, Master. With my skill, even an Elf can be charmed easily.”

“Tia…? But what if he turns out to be hostile?”

“Phantom-sama, let her go. The guard probably doesn’t want to start a direct conflict either. And even if she fails, they’ll just think some overconfident human tried to flirt with them.”

“That’s a terrible way to describe using a charm skill…”

She had a point. Giving this method a try was probably safer than fighting head-on. I called out to Tia, who was glaring at Ceres for her rude comment.

“I’ll be ready to step in at any time. If you sense danger, come right back, okay?”

“Ufufu, Master, you’re so overprotective. But when it really counts, I’ll be counting on you, okay?”

She smiled so sweetly that I couldn’t help grinning… That was, until I noticed both Ceres and Elena glaring at me silently. Right… This was not the time to flirt.

“Hey there! Elf-san!~ What’s beyond this place?”

“Hmm, a human guest? Sorry, but this area is our ruins. Outsiders aren’t allowed… Whoa, you’re huge!!”

“Eeh, ruins? Now you’ve made me curious~♡ You know~ Can’t you let me in, just a little bit?”

Pressing her cleavage together, Tia spoke in a purring, seductive tone. For a moment, the Elf guard smirked lecherously. Incredible… Her charm skill even worked on Elves, who were supposed to have a high resistance to beauty?

But then the Elf suddenly stabbed his own leg with the knife he was holding and, with a straight face, said to Tia.

“Sorry, but only chosen Elves are allowed inside. If you’re sightseeing, there are plenty of other places to see.”

Wow. He snapped himself out of it with pain. So this was the strength of the Elder’s personal guard…

“Aww, can’t you make an exception for me? Pleaseee?~ Pretty please♡?”

“Tia-san, that’s enough. It seems your charm has no effect in the face of such loyalty.”

Ceres, who had somehow moved beside her without being noticed, spoke to Tia as she winked and continued her attempt to charm the Elf.

“Hey, Ceres. Don’t interrupt—”

“We need to go beyond this point. You’ll let us through, won’t you, Liam?”

“Of course, Ceres-sama!!”

“““Huh?”””

Unlike with Tia, the guard—apparently named Liam—snapped to attention, saluted, and immediately stepped aside. We couldn’t help but let out dumbfounded voices upon seeing that.

“Eh, wait, what’s going on? Why did he resist my charm, but obey Ceres’s words so easily?”

“Well, he wasn’t getting along with his wife, so I offered him some advice and prayed with him.

After that, for some reason, he started calling me his benefactor and said he’d do anything I asked. I suppose it’s just my natural virtue.”

“Thanks to Ceres-sama, my marriage was saved! Compared to that debt, my loyalty to the Elder’s nothing but goblin dung!”

“This is impossible. The ever-loyal Liam… To be this easily swayed…”

Scary. Scary. Seriously, what is Ceres?

Cold sweat ran down my back as I looked at Liam’s eyes. His eyes looked lifeless and they were shining only with blind devotion.

“Now then, let’s go, Phantom-sama. Allow me, the most useful saint, to lead the way.”

“Hey, Ceres… If he was already your follower, there was no need for me to charm him in the first place.”

“Ufufu, you were so adorable trying so hard, Tia-san. And no, I definitely wasn’t curious to see how much charm the woman who ended up with Phantom-sama really had. Not that it was impressive, though.”

“Ugh… Well, whatever. I’m still the one Master chose! But you know~ You sure are amazing, Ceres~ Look at you~ You’re so popular with all the random guys even if the person you love doesn’t, like, return your feelings ♡.”

“Phantom… Sounds like you’ve got it rough…”

While breaking into a nervous sweat over Ceres, who was glaring daggers at Tia—my girlfriend—we made our way toward the door.

These two bickered endlessly, but deep down, they really did get along. My stomach hurt a little from stress, but we pressed on ahead.

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