Just a Wooden Staff

Queen Tianis stared at the now-clear sky with disbelief written across her face.

"Y-you manipulated the weather with magic? Is that even possible?!"

"Is that strange? Doing it too much throws the weather out of balance, so it's not great, but this much should be fine."

Evalin answered as if it were nothing noteworthy.

But what she'd just done was clearly far from ordinary.

"And that!"

Queen Tianis pointed at the staff.

"I don't recall giving you permission to carry a weapon. That's rather impertinent, don't you think? The soldiers must have said something to you."

"…? Oh, you think this is a weapon? Human rulers really are timid. Come to think of it, they always have been."

Her tone and voice were like someone soothing a child.

"Go ahead and hold it. Inspect it if you're curious."

Queen Tianis took the wooden staff.

She examined it closely, studying it from end to end.

Gradually, her hands began to tremble.

"I'm no mage, but I've seen mages' staffs before. They have magic stones set into them, all sorts of inscriptions carved into them… but what is this? It looks like nothing more than a whittled piece of wood."

"Let me see it."

He'd appraised plenty of staffs before.

He couldn't examine them as thoroughly as Alexia, but he was confident he could at least gauge their general quality.

Yet no matter how many times he appraised it, the result was the same.

Alexia seemed to have figured it out just by looking.

She shook her head.

This was nothing more than an ordinary wooden staff with no magical properties whatsoever.

He returned the staff to Evalin.

"Humans get upset if you bring weapons, right? But I feel restless without a staff, so I carved this in my spare time and brought it along. This shouldn't be a problem, right?"

"No, it's not…"

If anything, the real problem was her strength.

But he couldn't say that.

She'd apparently tried to be considerate, and he was the one who'd invited her in the first place.

Chancellor Anatia cleared her throat, shifting the awkward atmosphere.

She addressed Evalin directly.

Though she must have been somewhat intimidated, her expression betrayed none of it, replaced by her usual flawless smile.

"Evalin-san, thank you. We were struggling with the rain, so that was a tremendous help. I understand you also assisted when the abnormality occurred near the mines. As a member of the kingdom, I'm grateful."

"I don't mind. It seems I caused a bit of trouble myself. Besides, you're going to let me hear a performance, aren't you? I'm quite fond of human music. I'm looking forward to it."

A bit…?

No, best not to say anything.

"I'll be performing today as well, so please enjoy it to the very end. It's been a long time since there was any contact between elves and humans, but I believe we can build a good relationship. Now then, we need to head to the stage, so I'll leave things here to you. Your Majesty?"

"Huh? Oh, right, that falls to me now…"

Queen Tianis apparently hadn't fully recovered from the shock.

Being addressed seemed to finally get her mind working again.

Chancellor Anatia left with Azu and the others.

The concert was about to begin.

"Your Majesty, it's all right. Evalin-san is on our side. She's safe."

"I'm not worried since you brought her, but seeing something like that was a bit of a shock. By the way, is that outfit some kind of elven traditional dress?"

"It's just my preference. Is something wrong with it?"

"There's a bit too much skin showing, so you might want to dress more… modestly when you're around people."

"So that's why everyone kept staring. I thought it was just because elves are rare."

He'd assumed the outfit she'd worn last time was traditional elven attire, but it turned out it was simply Evalin's personal taste.

He'd hesitated to point it out as a man, so he was grateful Queen Tianis had brought it up, though the answer had been unexpected.

It was a bit too stimulating for walking around town.

To avoid drawing attention during the walk over, he had her put on a robe to cover up.

He had Queen Tianis wear one as well, as a disguise.

"I can feel nature better with more skin exposed, but…"

"It's just for the walk there. Please bear with it. Let's go."

The three of them set off for the inn.

Rather than assigning a visible escort that would draw attention, he'd borrowed Princess Yupe's shadow unit to guard them covertly.

With Evalin around, even that probably wasn't necessary… but better safe than sorry.

It was crowded, so he took both of them by the hand to keep from getting separated.

Like this, Queen Tianis looked like nothing more than an ordinary girl.

She was stepping in puddles and having fun.

"Hehe, this is kind of nice. I used to do this all the time when I was still a princess. Once I took the throne, chances like this pretty much disappeared."

"Come to think of it, you were always quick on your feet. I was quite surprised when you summoned me out of nowhere."

"You mean the drug incident, right? I'd seen terrible things as a child, so I felt I had to act immediately. And I'm glad I did."

He recalled that Queen Tianis had lost her younger brother during the drug crisis. She must have felt a powerful need to do something.

She could be demanding at times, but meeting her then had led to everything he had now.

He didn't regret becoming one of Queen Tianis's people.

They arrived at the inn.

Guards were stationed inside, ensuring no unauthorized persons could enter.

With the entire building reserved, there were no other guests.

They moved to the room with the best view of the concert, arranged chairs by the window, and finally took a moment to breathe.

The two of them removed their robes, and he took them to hang up.

Azu and the others had just finished positioning their instruments on the stage.

Thanks to the magic, the sound would carry far and wide, so it would reach this room clearly.

The crowd stirred with anticipation at the sight of Azu and the others on stage.

Chancellor Anatia stepped to the front of the stage and slowly raised her right index finger to her lips in a gesture for silence.

The murmur of the central plaza gradually subsided until it was quiet.

A testament to her grace.

"Her gestures are beautiful."

"She's always been good at that sort of thing. She draws more attention than any grown-up."

"It's about to start."

Chancellor Anatia slowly bowed her head, then returned to her original posture.

In that moment, every single person's gaze was fixed on her.