2

ELF TOWN

Shiwanashi Forest Town, in elf country.

The moment Bash set foot in town, he was surrounded by soldiers.

Once he identified himself, however, one of the soldiers nodded. “Yes, we received word from Lady Sonia. You are to be welcomed and allowed to go about as you please.” The other soldiers were all suddenly nodding and smiling, too. “Ah, Lady Sonia is so kind!” “Lady Sonia is so generous!”

And so Bash traveled freely into town, grateful for the assistance he’d received from the noble and beautiful elf lady at the border.

Elf Town architecture differed from that of the humans, who used both stone and wood. The elves built their houses exclusively with wood.

But the area closest to the town’s gates was much the same as that of a human town. Stores lined the street, selling elven wares for outsiders to purchase, and there were plenty of inns for weary travelers.

The major difference was that instead of the town being built around a castle or fortress, as was the human custom, the elf town lay at the base of a great tree. The tree was so vast, with a trunk so thick, that thirty Bashes could have stood in circumference around it, arms outstretched. In other words, it was quite big indeed.

The elf elite built their homes in the tall branches of the tree, and there they lived, higher than anyone else.

The name of the tree was Shiwanashi.

Both the town and the surrounding forest took their names from this tree.

The brilliant red and yellow houses caught Bash’s and Zell’s attention as they meandered into town.

“Elf Town sure has changed, too,” Bash muttered, looking around him.

During the war, Bash had attacked elf settlements on many occasions.

The elf houses that Bash remembered had been heavily camouflaged, covered in netting stuck with leaves and fallen branches—and strewn here and there with cloth dyed green and brown.

At a glance, it was impossible to tell the true shape or size of any of the houses, let alone where one ended and another began. In fact, it was often impossible to discern that there were any houses lodged among the branches at all. They had just looked like dense forest.

“What gorgeous colors! It’s like a flowery meadow! I guess the elves have developed some flair and a sense of style now that the war’s over!”

“I don’t think so. There simply isn’t any need for camouflage in these times. I suspect the houses were always those bright colors underneath.”

“Hmm. Anyhoo, have you noticed how many people of different races there are milling about here?!”

“It’s hard not to.”

As they walked through the town, Bash couldn’t help noticing all the non-elven folk who were out and about on the streets.

There were humans—those were a familiar sight. But there were also heavily furred beastkin, with their distinctive snouts, and dwarves, with their short stature and long beards. All were members of the Alliance of Four. But even so, it was rare to find so many of them in a foreign land, even taking into account the possibility of scattered enclaves.

The human race was also overwhelmingly represented among them.

What was really odd, though, was that almost every single human spotted walking around had an elf mate on their arm.

Bash openly gawked at the rare spectacle.

To think that famously xenophobic elves could have opened their hearts to humans to this extent… Something strange had to be going on. Bash’s intuitions, honed from years of battle, told him so.

“Something’s odd.”

“You can say that again. I always thought elves were…pickier.”

Elves had a reputation for xenophobia and were often hostile to outsiders.

Beyond that, they were also a proud, secretive race and were said to be quick to drive out any intruders who entered their jealously guarded territory.

Up until just a few decades ago, elves wouldn’t even permit ally soldiers to rest overnight in their towns and villages.

But now this town was booming with foreigners.

It was strange, too, that Bash had been allowed to enter the town after encountering what was really only a slight amount of resistance. Come to think of it, it was highly irregular for any orc to be permitted safe passage in an elven town, even if a lone noble had spoken out on their behalf, as Sonia had for Bash.

“There’s gotta be a festival or something going on! I’ll go find out!”

Zell zoomed over to the nearest couple, in typical “strike while the iron’s hot” fashion.

Bash made no attempt to dissuade the fairy. Instead, he focused his attention on the passersby.

Bash could think of no greater pleasure than to freely feast his eyes on gorgeous elf women.

As he gazed hungrily at all the beautiful specimens, he suddenly realized something.

All the elves were female.

Or most of them anyway. There were a few male elves. Very, very few. But it was mostly ladies walking around.

Among the men in the crowd, elves were clearly less represented. Each male had a beautiful elf woman on his arm, and some couples were even holding hands.

And all the elf women were smiling, looking at their male partners with expressions of joy and affection.

Talk about relationship bliss. The whole scene seemed tinged with a rosy hue.

Suddenly, Bash noticed that many of the women strolling with their sweethearts were sporting ripe, rounded bellies.

They were pregnant. Judging from the satisfied smiles of the men as well, these unions were born of mutual love. Elf women were mating with men of other races, and they were doing so of their own free will. What a discovery!

Apart from the happy couples, there were many elf women walking alone as well. They were staring at the pregnant ones, their eyes wide and blank, like dead fish.

Those eyes were filled with envy and appeared glazed over with resentment.

Bash had seen eyes like those many times before in the war.

But the war was over now, and their town was at peace. What could be the problem?

“…”

Bash could make no sense of it.

Frowning, Bash continued through the town. Soon he reached a lush green park, where three female elves were all desperately trying to engage a single human male in conversation.

“I’m an excellent cook, you know. And I’ve been told I’m very good at anticipating a man’s needs.”

“Don’t listen to her. I’ll love you more than any woman ever could. Loyalty is what a man needs most from a wife, and this I can offer!”

“Forget these two. I’m the type of girl who goes the extra mile for her man, if you know what I mean. If you marry me, it’ll be the best decision you ever made.”

As the three beauties vied for his attention, the man looked like he’d died and gone to heaven. “Well, shit,” he said, “I’m totally spoiled for choice.”

Bash felt like his heart would burst from envy.

In Bash’s eyes, the three women were all exquisite beauties.

Slim, tight bodies, sparkling eyes, gorgeous golden hair…

Okay, so they had a few scars on their faces. A couple missing fingers here and there. One girl may have even been without an eye. But none of those things were drawbacks in Bash’s book.

Battle scars were proof they had survived the long war. That they had been warriors.

And these maidens looked sturdier than your typical dainty female elf. They had wide hips, just right for birthing fat, bouncing babies. Bash could have seen himself happily married to any one of them.

Bash had already made up his mind. He would choose one at random, have her part him forever from his virginity, and then live happily ever after, up to his neck in offspring.

Ah, but reality was not so sweet.

“…Huh?”

One of the elf ladies suddenly noticed Bash watching them.

“…The hell do you want?”

All of a sudden, the woman’s eyes stopped sparkling with coquettish delight and became hard and steely.

As if on cue, the other two turned to face Bash as well. Their smiles vanished. All of a sudden, the atmosphere was heavy with tension.

“How dare you stand there staring at us?! Get away, you foul orc!”

“Yes, get lost, you filthy beast! …What, you wanna throw down against us, huh? We’re members of the Elf Nation’s Thirty-First Independence Squad! How did you get into town? You must have sneaked in! Though you don’t appear to be another one of those rogue orcs…”

“Hold on, I think I’ve seen this orc somewhere before…”

“Who cares?! All orcs are bad news in my book! But wait… He does look familiar…”

“Maybe he’s a commander or something? Though he’s missing the armor.”

Bash hesitated, rattled by the women’s sudden and extreme attitude changes.

His guess had been correct, though. These women were warriors. Also, was their treatment of him really a surprise? Elves were known for being exclusionary and hostile. What elf worth his or her salt wouldn’t attack an intruder from a foreign land on first sight?

Bash had never heard of the Elf Nation’s Thirty-First Independence Squad, but it was clear that these women had fought during the war and survived to peacetime.

“My apologies. I was just confused.”

“Huh? About what?”

“About why three elf women were fighting for the attention of one human.”

“…”

The three elf ladies exchanged incredulous glances.

A few seconds later, a deep blush bloomed on each of their cheeks. They narrowed their eyes again, glaring at Bash with haughty indignation.

“You’re really cruising for a bruising, Orc!”

“How dare you talk about us like we’re a pack of hyenas, squabbling over scraps!”

“You got a death wish, Orc?!”

Bash gasped as the three women drew close, pushing their angry faces up against his.

“I… I just…”

Bash was on the verge of fainting. They smelled so fresh, so sweet, so…feminine.

And they were fairly scantily clad, for elves. Their garments exposed most of their smooth shoulders and the upper mounds of their heaving bosoms. Bash’s eyes were drawn to their bare flesh.

Being swarmed by three exquisite elves in this way, Bash could hardly be blamed for the large bulge that had risen from his crotch.

He took an unsteady step backward and tried his best to respond without stammering.

“I just was curious, is all. If I wanted to fight you, you’d know; believe me.”

“I think we know quite well, Orc! You’re practically begging for us to mess you up!”

“I do apologize. I’ve only just arrived in this country, and I am afraid I’m not familiar with the customs. Why are there so many foreign males here, and why are they all arm in arm with elf women?”

Bash was hoping that being straightforward would lead to the best result. But the elf maidens seemed even more incredulous. They looked at each other again, eyebrows raised as if to say, Can you believe this guy?

Then they turned in unison to stare at Bash once again.

Bash’s heart was pounding hard as the women’s eyes raked him up and down. Even during the toughest battles of his life, his heart had never beat this fast.

“Pah! Looks like he’s actually serious! He really has no clue!”

“Unbelievable!”

One of the women shrugged, while the other heaved a huge, annoyed sigh.

The final woman, however, waved Bash away like he was an annoying gnat.

“Fine, fine, we’ll let you off the hook this time. Now, get out of our sight, before we lose our patience.”

“…All right. I’ll take my leave, then. Good day, ladies.”

Like a gentleman, Bash made a dignified exit from the unpleasant scene.

But he left with a heavy heart. He was actually enjoying conversing with those stunning ladies and wished it could have lasted longer.

How pleasant it was to listen to their sweet, lilting voices. Even if they were spitting threats, it was lovely to hear. And he was still dying to know why one human male should be in such high demand.

But they had told him to leave, so leave he must.

If he lingered any longer, things might have ended up becoming…unpleasant.

Bash was an orc. And an orc never backs down from a fight, should he be challenged.

Bash wasn’t looking for a fight, though. He was looking for a bride.

If he fought a woman, she would never happily marry him. Not even if he won.

“Ah well, then, ladies, I think I’ll be taking my leave now, too… I don’t think I’m quite the man you’re looking for, ha-ha-ha… Thanks for the offer, though! Ha-ha-ha!”

“What? Wait! Hey! You’ve got it wrong! That wasn’t the real us just now! We swear!”

“Right! We were just, um, trying to protect you, handsome! You know what they say! Orcs are always looking to fight powerful men such as yourself!”

“I’d fight a dragon for you, honey! I really, truly would! After all, I’d do anything for my man!”

Bash kept walking away as the awkward scene unfolded behind him.

After declining a fight, it’s considered proper etiquette to leave the scene without ever looking back, no matter what insults may be hurled your way.

After all, orcish custom dictates that to turn back once more and face your enemy indicates that you’ve changed your mind and decided to accept the challenge after all.

It’s also customary for the challenger to continue hurling threats and abuse until the declining party exits the scene entirely.

“…Hahhh.”

Once he’d put a safe distance between himself and the elves, Bash collapsed with his back to a tree. There was so much going on, and he understood next to none of it.

Why were elf women strolling around town on the arms of non-elf men? Why were there so few male elves here? Why were such peerless beauties clamoring and squabbling over mediocre men?

Come to think of it, a lot of the women he’d seen fraternizing with non-elf men had visible battle scars, indicating that they had been soldiers during the war.

Their eyes were sharp, and they looked alert, as if their senses had been honed to keep them on their toes against constant enemy threat. Bash noticed that several of the women displayed the telltale signs of serious battle injuries, like missing limbs. Perhaps there was some sort of military-related festival being held in the town…?

“Boss, there you are! Boss! Boss!”

While Bash was ruminating, a tiny glowing thing came zooming right toward him.

The tiny glowing thing catapulted itself against Bash’s broad forehead with a loud splat.

“Boss! It’s serious! It’s life-changing! It’s epoch-making! It’s going to change everything! Nothing will ever be the same! You won’t even believe it! It’s unbelievable!!!”

Ah, of course. Zell.

Well, how many other fairies were there out there who’d come zooming in at top speed like that and glue themselves to Bash’s face?

“What’s up?”

“I’ve got killer info! I’ve got explosive intel! I’ve got dynamite details!”

Bash plucked the fairy off his face.

Zell was all purple and puffy. The tiny fairy looked about ready to explode in a cloud of fairy dust at any moment.

Clearly, something had the tiny creature all shaken up. Bash had never seen his companion so excited.

And it was rare for anything to ever ruffle Zell’s fairy wings.

No, Zell was always chilled out, mellow, cool with the fairies, you might say. Bash had only seen the fairy stressed out to the point of dive-bombing the orc’s face a few times, out on the battlefield. Why, wasn’t it the battle of the Shiwanashi Forest when… Ah, but then again, it happened once before that. The battle of Sandorian Knoll. Ah, and there was also the battle of the Honey Forest. Can’t forget about that. Hmm, come to think of it, it had been more than just a few times…

At any rate, Zell only ever got this flustered when something major was going down.

Like when the orc clan chief, General Baraben, died. Or when Demon Lord Geddigs was attacked. Or when the Killer Queen Bee was overthrown and eaten by her own daughter… Stuff like that.

Those were all shocking events. Devastating events.

What could have happened?

“Calm down.”

Bash grabbed Zell out of midair, interrupting even as the fairy was engaged in the act of performing frantic loop the loops. He was eager to hear what the fairy had to say.

Indeed, what intel had Zell uncovered?

Not that it would ever shake Bash. He was an Orc Hero. Prepared for any battle. If the situation called for action, then Bash would join the fight. As long as the problem, whatever it was, could be solved by fighting, then Bash himself would be fine.

But what if it was something else? What if something had happened to Nemesis, the Orc King…?

What if there was trouble, back in the orc country?

Bash swallowed hard, suddenly afraid.

“What is it? What’s wrong?”

“It’s—it’s… It’s— Just a second…catch my breath… Okay. In the elf country…”

Gasping with excitement, Zell shivered in Bash’s fist.

Was the fairy about to reveal the truth about what was going on here?

Would the fairy provide answers to the questions that had been plaguing Bash ever since he came to town?

“…In the elf country right now, elf women are fighting each other, tooth and nail, to get their hands on a husband…and foreign men are the hottest commodity on the market!!!”

…Bash could have kissed the manic little fairy.