「It’s finished」
「Hm? Ah, the candy?」
After finishing the toad hunt, we were walking through the dungeon when Diana-chan suddenly announced it was over.
I wondered what she meant, but it seemed she had finished her Alec candy.
「It was delicious」
「I see, that’s good to hear」
「Do you want the stick?」
「……Huh?」
「The stick」
「Um……」
What kind of question is that…
What does Diana-chan think I am? Does she really see me as that much of a pervert?
「You can make more candy, right?」
「Eh? Ah, I see…」
Right, that’s what she meant. She was just suggesting recycling the stick.
…And yet, I somehow jumped to a ridiculous misunderstanding.
In the end, that just proves I really am quite the pervert…
「What’s wrong?」
「Ah, no, I’m fine. You can just throw the stick away」
「Really? Then okay」
With that, Diana-chan handed the stick to a rescue golem walking nearby.
…………
…Why did you give it to him?
「Make more next time, okay?」
「Eh? Ah, yeah. That’s fine, but…」
I kept watching the golem, who looked confused after suddenly being handed the stick… and then he threw it to the side of the corridor.
Well, it’s not like he would carry it around forever… the dungeon will probably absorb it eventually.
「――Ah, by the way」
「Hm?」
「I got another branch from World Tree-sama」
「Again? You get those pretty often」
「This makes four, I think? World Tree-sama said it’s a celebration for me coming back from my journey」
「Eh? I mean, is that really…」
Well… I did come back in just two days, so being told it was a celebration felt a bit strange to me too.
「Apparently, World Tree-sama had already decided to give me a branch when I returned. So she said 『It’s something I had already decided』 and just gave it to me」
「I see…」
I do feel a bit conflicted about it, but I’m still grateful.
I’m happy about Yggdrasil-san’s kindness, and you can never have too many branches from the World Tree.
That’s how it went, so I gratefully accepted it.
I was a little concerned that Yggdrasil-san seemed to think 『If you give Alec a branch, he’ll be happy』… but for now, I accepted it with thanks.
「So, what are you going to make this time?」
「Yeah. So――I was thinking of making a staff」
「A staff…?」
A staff. Using the branch from the World Tree I received――I decided to make a 『World Tree Staff』.
Up until now, I’ve made weapons like swords, bows, and hammers to match my skills, so this time I thought I’d make something to match my magic skills. That’s why I decided on a World Tree Staff.
「What would you even use a staff for? Sword Saint-san and Sage-san aren’t that old yet, right?」
「Yeah」
Careful there, Diana-chan. That comment is probably out of line for Sage-san.
「I thought it might be useful to have a staff when using magic」
「That makes no sense」
「Hmm……」
Just like Diana-chan now, everyone I told about making a World Tree Staff asked me 『Why?』
And when I answered 『For magic』, every single one of them looked puzzled.
From that, it seems clear that in this world――people don’t use staffs for magic.
「…I thought having a staff would help support or strengthen my magic skills」
「…Why?」
「Why, huh……」
Now that I’m asked again, even I don’t know. I don’t know, but that’s how it worked in my previous life.
When I think about it again, it really is strange. Why is that? Who even came up with that idea?
「Mother and Jisrare-san also tilted their heads, so it seems staffs don’t have that kind of effect」
「Of course not… Why would holding a staff make your magic stronger?」
「I’ve just been misunderstanding it this whole time… I’ve believed it since I was born」
「Since you were born…」
By the way, Nana-san, who has the same memories as me, had the same misunderstanding.
When I told her about the World Tree Staff, Nana-san was the only one who praised it as a good idea.
She even said things like 『You’ll definitely be able to use incredible magic』 and 『If anything, shouldn’t you have made it first?』
That could have been very dangerous. I’m glad I asked others for their opinions. Otherwise, I would have gone ahead and started making the World Tree Staff.
「Misconceptions really are scary」
「Yeah…」
「Come to think of it, I used to believe that elves all had long ears」
「That makes no sense……」
And so, the plan to create the World Tree Staff was quickly abandoned.
After that, I completely forgot about staffs, but when I saw Diana-chan using the Alec candy like a conductor’s baton earlier, it suddenly came back to me.
I kind of wanted to swing a staff like that and use powerful magic skills…
Anyway, while chatting like that as we walked through the dungeon――
「Well then, Diana-chan. We’ve reached the deepest point, but… it looks like there’s nothing more」
「Mm…that’s disappointing」
We had made it to the 5-4 area, and in front of us was――
『Do not destroy the dungeon core. ――World Tree Yggdrasil』
――a door engraved with those words. Beyond it was the dungeon core area.
In other words, 『World Tree-sama’s Dungeon』 currently goes up to the 5-4 area. Beyond that hasn’t been implemented yet.
「I thought the next area would be one you can play around in」
「A play area… Yeah, that would make sense based on how it’s been so far」
Just as Diana-chan guessed, the next 6-1 area is planned to be a large field-type zone.
「What do you think it’ll be like?」
「Who knows. What do you think, Diana-chan?」
「Hmm. We’ve had a lake and a mountain, so next is………… a desert?」
「A desert, huh…」
Well, it’s not impossible. A desert could work.
…Whether it counts as a play area or not is another question.
「What else… maybe a swamp?」
「A swamp…」
Well, that’s not impossible either… I guess?
Still, deserts and swamps… Diana-chan really suggests some harsh environments…
「Ah, I kind of want to see the ocean at least once」
「I see, the ocean」
Yeah, that’s another good candidate. I think that could work.
Still, an ocean area might be tricky with safety measures and how to differentiate it from the lake area.
「Or… maybe a place where it’s snowing?」
「Hmm. A snowy field」
…It’s actually correct.
After discussing it with Nana-san, we’ve been thinking about making the next area a snowy field. It should be implemented soon.
「Ah… but even if a new area is added, we still won’t be able to enter it for about a month, right?」
「Probably. We’ll have to wait again」
As usual, the adult elves will likely check the safety first.
It will probably take about a month before it’s opened to us child elves.
「Then… I might not be able to explore it with you, Alec…」
「Yeah… By then, I’ll probably have already left on my journey…」
In one month, summer will arrive. And when it does, I’ll set out on my journey around the world again.
「It’s still sad. You’ll be gone again so soon…」
「Yeah…」
「…Two years」
「Eh? Ah, yeah. Two years」
「I’m not waiting any longer than that」
Saying that, Diana-chan lightly tapped my shoulder.
…We had a similar exchange before my last departure, and it still feels like something out of a romcom. Even the shoulder tap feels like a romcom moment. It’s a little embarrassing.
Honestly, that’s Diana-chan for you. We had been having a pretty silly conversation until just now, but she changed the mood in an instant. As expected of her.
「But two years… Two years, huh…」
「Yeah, two years」
「If you want, you can come back again in two days」
「Eh…」
No, that’s a bit… I appreciate how Diana-chan feels, but that’s a bit much…
next chapter: Elves Drifting Along, Bobbing Gently2
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