Volume 2, Chapter 40 – After the Disaster

“Ooh, ooh, ooh! She actually created so much bread!”

“I never get tired of watching it no matter how many times I see it… If we could sell the food made from magic, we could get a lot of money and become famous merchants!”

“With such a high-tier magic, who would even think about making money by selling bread, you idiot? The princess is not someone us simpletons can compare to.”

Listening to the exclamations of the people around her, Fia couldn’t help but smile wryly. What she was doing now was, at Estelle’s request, preparing food for the people of Oro City. The food Fia made, whether it was the fish preserved with salt or the bread so hard you had to use an axe to cut it, was all extremely durable food. As long as it was stored properly in a cool, dry granary, it could be eaten for a very long time.

As the news of the chaos being annihilated by the elf princess spread, the refugees who had fled Oro City quickly returned. This group of people was much larger than Estelle had imagined. At first, Estelle had only estimated the number of survivors based on the people in the refugee camp, thinking there would be around a thousand people. But in just two days, counting the people in the sanctuary, two thousand people had already gathered in the city. They were all young and middle-aged people, and according to them, there were still many more refugees behind them.

The growth in the population quickly made the city lively again, allowing it to maintain its most basic functions.

As for the incident where Liti and Anastasia had walked in on Fia in Estelle’s room that morning, Fia had cleverly glossed over it. As long as she put on a serious and earnest expression and said she was researching how to restore Estelle’s other wing, Anastasia and Liti would have a hard time saying anything else.

Of course, the most important thing was that Fia had nothing to feel guilty about. If Fia had to say anything, it would be that the act of pulling back Estelle’s dress at the base of her wing and waist had a hint of sexual harassment. However, considering her purpose was very pure, which was just to see the structure of the wing, a person with a clear conscience has nothing to fear. Even if her actions were seen as lewd, there was nothing that could not be shown to others.

The only strange thing was Estelle’s reaction. Her face was flushed, and she wouldn’t look up. Someone who didn’t know would have thought she had been seen naked, which made Fia have to spend extra time explaining to Liti, so that Liti wouldn’t misunderstand that she and Estelle were doing something that, while beyond her comprehension, was still a secret.

In the end, as a result of her investigation, Fia had determined that Estelle’s single wing was, in all likelihood, a congenital genetic defect. Without genetic editing technology, it was impossible to restore it—even if a new wing was somehow attached, it would still die off due to an inability to properly metabolize. A more likely outcome was that the body would reject it the moment it was attached.

Fia could restore genetic editing technology, but with the average person in this other world being someone who had dropped out of preschool, even if Fia had all the knowledge, it was impossible to tell how long it would take to develop the technology to that point.

The popularization of scientific methodology and the cultivation of top-tier talent were not things that could be done in just a few years. What’s more, the underlying rules of this other world were likely different from the universe she had lived in. It was better to hope for a magical solution than to put her hope in restoring the technology of the Human Alliance in a thousand years. At least Anastasia had said that some special magical potions could restore a person’s body. Not only could they restore a wing, but they could also turn an elf into a vampire. A ready-made solution was always simpler than starting from scratch.

However, Fia felt that even if Estelle were to get her hands on that kind of magical potion, she would not choose to restore her wing. Instead, she would use the potion on her sister, Noreen. For one thing, Noreen was currently only sustaining her existence with the remnants of chaos that she had barely managed to grab from the Despair Demon General’s grasp. For another, Estelle was now the publicly and legally recognized Count Oro. She had even overcome the desperate situation created by the Despair Demon General. Even with only one wing, while it wasn’t something Estelle was completely at peace with, she would no longer overreact with an inferiority complex as she had in the past.

Not to mention that even though Estelle was an adopted child, she was still a genuine pure-blooded vampire. The wings of a pure-blooded vampire grew from their waist, while the wings of an ordinary vampire grew from their back. The mere fact that Estelle was not afraid of the sun was enough to prove she was a pure-blood. Although she didn’t know who Estelle’s birth family was, by calculating back from Estelle’s birth date, they could find out where a family of pure-blooded vampires had been exterminated fifteen years ago and trace Estelle’s birth.

—It might even have been a more noble and historically significant family than the House of Oro. The House of Oro had only been a Count’s family for a hundred years, and according to some scattered rumors, Count Oro had actually been a collateral descendant of a very powerful family on the southern continent before he came to the Bart Duchy. Since it was such an old rumor, Anastasia didn’t know much about it.

“Haa.” Fia let out a soft breath and moved to the entrance of the granary. She stretched out her hands. “[Food Creation].”

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In the blink of an eye, a small mountain of black, stick-like objects appeared in front of Fia. Such small mountains had already filled the other parts of the granary. Some people dressed as nobles were holding paper and pens, directing the workers who were climbing the mountains to measure their height.

With this, the last one was also filled.

Fia turned around and looked at the official who was in charge of managing the food. This was the old man who had escaped from the city with Estelle. He had made a very good impression on Fia when he was willing to give her his personal valuables to buy food from her at the refugee camp.

“Is this enough?”

“E-enough, yes, of course it’s enough! We originally thought it would be amazing if we could just last until winter. But now we don’t have to worry about food even after winter. If we add the aid that His Majesty the King will give us later, we won’t have to worry about a lack of food until next autumn!”

The old man bowed and nodded repeatedly, his excitement making his long beard tremble uncontrollably.

Fia had not just filled this one granary. She had already filled many other granaries before this. The granary in front of her was the last one.

“It’s simply a god-like magic!”

“My First-Tier cousin can also create food, but he can only create a fist-sized piece of bitter and sour bread at a time. The princess has already gone to several granaries, right? This is the first time I’ve ever seen so much food created at once!”

“She is, after all, a powerhouse who could beat that goat-headed demon to a pulp. Didn’t you and I hear it too? The wailing that went on all night long was enough to give me nightmares. “

“What are you talking about? That was the Despair Demon General, a cunning demon that even Holy Sons couldn’t deal with in ten thousand years. If not for the princess, we would all be in the Land of the Dead now, drinking and asking each other how we died. The princess is our savior. I heard Lady Estelle say that there’s a celebratory banquet tonight that everyone can attend. We should take that opportunity to properly thank the princess.”

“If we were to thank her, it wouldn’t even be our turn. The line would surely extend all the way to the city gate.”

Although the officials not far away were whispering their praise, they did not know that Fia’s hearing was much better than a normal person’s.

This is so embarrassing.

Feeling shy, Fia pretended not to see the officials in the distance and continued to ask the old man.

“Are there any other granaries?”

“No more. This is the last one. Please, Your Highness, go and rest. Leave the rest of the miscellaneous tasks to us retainers.”

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“Mm. You’ve worked hard.”

Nodding her head, Fia turned and left the granary. Although creating food was not difficult, it was still a tedious task to do all morning.

The bright light from outside made Fia close her eyes. She let out a long yawn and a relaxed sigh. However, she quickly stopped yawning and put on a straight face, as if nothing had happened. This was because she had suddenly caught a glimpse of the people who were coming and going in the square. These were the officials and patrolling soldiers who were in charge of miscellaneous tasks. When they saw Fia, they all stopped what they were doing and saluted Fia from a distance.

The people in the city had either seen Fia’s one-sided crushing of the Despair Demon General with their own eyes or had heard of her glorious feats from people who had. Fia, who was originally “like a divine messenger,” had now become “the incarnation of a divine messenger.”

This is a lot of pressure to live up to.

This is troublesome.

Of course, even without this “divine messenger” status, as an elf princess, she shouldn’t be yawning in public.

Just as Fia was feeling this self-reproach, she suddenly felt a gust of wind from behind her. But because the other party showed no hostility, Fia did not immediately turn around.

Then, Fia’s shoulder was patted, and with it came Estelle’s surprised voice.

“It’s not even two hours, and you’ve already finished everything?”

“I have [Flight] magic. I don’t waste time on the road.”

“No, no. In most cases, the main thing should be the creation of food, not the flight. Well, since it’s Fia, it’s not a big surprise. But more importantly, your reaction was too calm, Fia. If I were an enemy, my sneak attack would have succeeded, you know?”

As she spoke, Estelle clasped her hands behind her back. The light and lively atmosphere around her, like a little girl, showed no hint of a Count’s dignity.

Fia couldn’t help but find this amusing.

“I have my ways of dealing with enemies. Haven’t you already fallen into my hands twice, Estelle?”

“Tch, you have no sense of humor, Fia.”

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“Putting that aside, how did you find me, Estelle? What about your lord’s duties? You even borrowed Anastasia earlier.”

The reason Anastasia and Liti were not with Fia was that Estelle was severely short on manpower and urgently needed people who could read and do arithmetic.

“And won’t you cause a lot of gossip by letting Noreen follow you like this?”

Fia’s gaze fell on Noreen, who was beside Estelle. Noreen was still in her black dress and veil. Although the hem of her dress was dragging on the ground, it showed no signs of wear or stains.

Estelle casually waved her hand.

“It’s a good thing my sister is back. The people who live in the city have all seen my sister Noreen. She was very popular in the city. Although the current Noreen is a little different from before, and even relies on chaos to survive, no one will speak ill of her. Humans are divided into good and bad people. Chaos is the same. And my sister is on the good side. If you look at it that way, it’s much simpler.”

“As for why I’m here, I actually came to inform Fia that there’s a banquet tonight that everyone can attend. Many of the people who fled have returned to the city in the past two days. I want to take this opportunity to raise people’s spirits and announce that I am now Count Oro. This was Liti’s idea. Your sister may not like me, but she’s not a bad person. I should probably praise her for being ‘straightforward’?”

“…I can’t argue with that.”

“Ahem,” Estelle suddenly put on a serious posture. She raised her head and looked Fia straight in the eyes. “What I want to say is that you have to attend the banquet, Fia. You are the great hero who saved Oro City. I have to make sure people know who you are. Hah—normally, as a Count of the Bart Duchy, I should award you the Blue Rose Medal and erect a stone monument for you in the most conspicuous place in the city. But now, with our limited resources, we can’t do that. I apologize.”

“No need to apologize. I don’t need those empty titles. I don’t mind attending the banquet, but you’re not going to make me give a speech, are you?”

Although Fia didn’t have social phobia and was not unable to speak in front of a crowd, she found it tedious. Standing on a stage without having fully mastered noble etiquette would be an embarrassment if she made a mistake.

After Fia nodded, Estelle let out a huge sigh of relief. She patted Fia’s shoulder and said confidently.

“I already guessed that Fia wouldn’t want to speak. So I only plan to have you wave and greet the people. After all, Fia, at her core, is still that cold-looking Dophelia. It’s only natural that you wouldn’t like to speak. Oh, right, remember to show your beautiful wings. Everyone is saying that Fia is a divine messenger—it’s making me want to learn that magic. Compared to the light wings, a vampire’s wings aren’t pretty at all.”

By the end of her sentence, Estelle’s lips had turned up in a pout. Her slightly immature face was filled with resentment. She knew that it was a high-tier magic, and it would be difficult for her to master.

“Speaking of which, when do you plan to leave the Oro territory, Fia?”

Suddenly, Estelle asked this question. Her blood-colored eyes were unreadable.

Fia hesitated for a moment and answered truthfully.

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“In two or three days? I must hurry back to Silvar.”

“As I thought… is it to see that Claire?”

A hint of probing was added to Estelle’s voice.

“That’s not all. Mm… Besides clearing the obstacles in advance, it’s also to get the approval of my mother and father. You know, Estelle, I’ve lost my memory. I have to start all over again with many things.”

Normally, a person would abandon these family ties and see the elf princess’s father and mother as strangers. But Fia was not in a normal situation. Since she had decided to become the elf princess, she would naturally have to accept the family ties, including her parents, not just accept one part and abandon the other.

Fia wasn’t sure if it was her imagination, but a hint of sadness appeared on Estelle’s face.

“When you return to the Elf Kingdom, Fia, will we be able to see each other again?”

“Of course. Why wouldn’t we? Haven’t you seen my flight magic, Estelle? With that kind of speed, it shouldn’t take too long to travel between the Elf Kingdom and the Oro territory.”

“…You’re right. Hehe… I was thinking too much.”

With a pensive expression, Estelle gave a light smile.

After a moment, she took a quick step forward and extended her hand towards Fia, who was standing behind her.

“Anastasia and Liti are on the outskirts attending a funeral. The disaster caused by the Despair Demon General has destroyed many families. Now, everyone who is not busy with official business is on the outskirts. We should go too, shouldn’t we? To pray for the peace of the dead.”

“Pray for the peace of the dead, huh…”

Fia couldn’t help but think of the blessing from the world she had felt when she killed the Despair Demon General. The deceased must have already found peace at that time.

But she did not refuse Estelle. Instead, she agreed softly and placed her hand in Estelle’s warm palm.

“Well. Let’s go together.”