[Translator - Peptobismol]
[Proofreader - Demon God]
Chapter 189 – Kirrin’s Black Forest (12)
“Maman… You mean, your mother?”
“Yes. Kirrin’s birth mother.”
At this point, I decided I needed to clear up a question that had been lingering in my mind for a while.
“Then she must’ve been human? Since Headmaster Kirrin is mixed-blood.”
“She was human.”
“But…”
I trailed off, looking at Drebren, Sharian, and Zakrion one by one.
Unlike Kirrin, whose skin was a warm chocolate hue, all three of them had pitch-black skin.
Dark elves strictly divided themselves into bloodlines based on their mothers.
By that logic, there was no reason for them to go against their chieftain just to protect Kirrin, who had a different mother.
Drebren, seeming to understand my unspoken question, gave an almost imperceptible smile.
“Kirrin’s mother was our mother as well.”
“Biologically, you’re not related. You mean emotionally?”
“Yes. You could say that. She was… our Maman.”
There was a rare, tender emotion in Drebren’s voice as he spoke the word Maman.
Dark elves… showing tenderness? Unbelievable.
But it wasn’t just Drebren.
Sharian and Zakrion reacted the same way.
Zakrion, in particular, went so far as to wipe at his reddening eyes.
When I stared at him, he hastily scrubbed his face with his sleeve.
What the hell is this?
Anyway, from what I understood, Nemara dragged me here and is forcing this marriage because of a dying wish left by this Maman, Kirrin’s mother.
A dying wish—so she must have already passed away.
And if she wanted me to be with Kirrin, that would mean she died fairly recently, right? After I started teaching?
“Maman passed away ten years ago.”
“…Excuse me? Ten years ago? Around the end of the war? That doesn’t make any sense.”
Ten years ago, I had just left for Brunswell, and Kirrin hadn’t even moved to the city yet.
Are they saying this Maman somehow knew about me in advance and wanted me to marry Kirrin?
That already sounded absurd enough, but even if it were true…
Why did they wait ten years to seek me out?
The more we talked, the deeper this mystery got.
…Is this just how pure-blooded dark elves communicate?
“To be exact, Maman’s final wish wasn’t for you to marry her.”
“Then what was it?”
“Maman’s wish was—”
“Stop!”
Suddenly, Kirrin shouted.
“I really hate how you’re doing all this without even asking me…!”
“Kirrin, we’re doing this for you.”
Zakrion reached out to her, but she slapped his hand away.
“Even if that’s true, couldn’t you have talked to me first? Dragging Dian all the way here without saying a word—what does that make me?!”
“We thought… this is what you wanted.”
“Well, not like this! I’ve never been able to decide anything for myself! The Academy, the Headmaster position—none of it!”
“Kirrin…”
“What can I even do on my own?!”
With that, Kirrin turned and ran out.
“Kirrin!”
Zakrion called after her and hurriedly chased after her.
Her anger had been like a storm, leaving me completely speechless.
I had never seen Kirrin this mad before.
Even when she should’ve been angry, she would just scratch her head and smile awkwardly.
But now…
“So, this dying wish of Maman’s… Huh?”
I turned back to Drebren—only to find him clutching his head in despair.
“Kirrin… She doesn’t understand her brother’s love at all…”
“…Drebren?”
“This is all my fault… If I had treated her like Maman did, she wouldn’t have gotten so angry…”
“Uh, excuse me?”
“Maman… What should I do…?”
Drebren muttered to himself in a low voice, as if he hadn’t even heard me.
“Professor, let’s continue this conversation later.”
Sharian spoke up.
“Big Brother is in shock right now because Kirrin got mad at him. It’ll take some time before he can talk properly again.”
“…I see. A dark elf… in emotional shock.”
“He cares about Kirrin more than anything.”
I was shocked.
I never thought I’d hear a dark elf use the word love.
“That’s why the fact that he hurt her is eating him up inside.”
“Ah… I see…”
What the hell is going on?
I’ve seen all kinds of things since coming here, but this… This is something else.
###
Following Sharian’s suggestion, I decided to step away for a bit.
But where was I supposed to go?
The area was surrounded by dark elves who were hostile to outsiders.
After a moment of thought, I came up with a good idea—climbing a tree.
I scaled a particularly tall tree and poked my head out.
Above me, the night sky stretched endlessly, stars spilling across it like a river of light.
The Black Forest was so dark I hadn’t even realized the sun had set.
A warm, humid breeze blew through the canyon, typical of summer nights.
Lying back against a sturdy branch, I gazed up at the Milky Way, lost in thought.
Drebren told me that Maman’s dying wish was for me to marry Kirrin.
But I still didn’t know what that wish actually was, and no one had bothered asking what I wanted.
Dark elves—utterly incapable of normal conversation.
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I had never given it any real thought.
Back in Brunswell, when I lived with Olysia, I got plenty of marriage proposals.
The niece of some high-ranking port official, a noble’s distant relative, the daughter of a powerful merchant guild leader…
Maybe because I had money and didn’t seem to do much, people assumed I was some wealthy noble on vacation.
I turned them all down. It was too soon for marriage.
I was happy being alone.
But Kirrin’s words from earlier kept echoing in my mind.
She said she had never gotten to make a single decision for herself.
Leaving the Black Forest, enrolling in the public academy, becoming the Headmaster of the Special Academy…
All of it had been Nemara’s will.
He had used Kirrin, a half-blood, as a foothold for their clan’s expansion into human society.
This whole marriage arrangement was probably another political move, shifting his allegiance from the Emperor to the Second Princess.
Considering how deeply Nemara was involved in imperial affairs, he had to be well aware of my ties to the Second Princess—and to Kirrin.
What a ruthless dark elf.
Just then, I heard rustling beside me.
Sharian’s head popped up from below.
“I brought food.”
She handed me a small basket.
Inside were some unfamiliar fruits, boiled meat, vegetables, and a bit of bread.
“Thanks. I’ll eat well.”
As I started eating, Sharian settled beside me.
“I looked everywhere and thought you left.”
“I was up here, so you probably didn’t see me. Why didn’t you call my name?”
“Do you really think the others would react well if they saw me searching for a human?”
“Fair point. Dark elves care a lot about bloodlines. I’m sure plenty of them don’t like me being here.”
“They’re just a bunch of arrogant, stubborn old relics.”
Sharian’s voice was flat, her face devoid of humor.
That was surprising. Dark elves took great pride in their race.
Born to kill, trained to be assassins—that was their way.
If someone else had said something like that, they would’ve lashed out immediately.
“Does it sound strange, hearing me say that?”
“A little. More like… unexpected.”
“I just woke up, that’s all.”
Sharian leaned back against the tree.
“Maman made me realize it. Just how pathetic and miserable it is to rot away in this dark, damp forest, tearing each other apart.”
“…Who exactly was this Maman?”
“The woman who gave birth to Kirrin.”
“I figured that much. But there’s a lot I don’t understand.”
Like why a dark elf, who should’ve abhorred mixed bloodlines, had a child with a human.
Or why Kirrin’s half-siblings—pure-blooded dark elves—cared about her so much.
“You’re really curious, aren’t you?”
“Wouldn’t you be? I’ve never heard of dark elves being… affectionate.”
Sharian smiled faintly.
“Alright. I’ll tell you about Maman.”
###
In a secluded part of the Black Forest, beneath an old tree.
Nestled in the hollow formed by its twisted roots, a young dark elf crouched, hiding.
That young dark elf was Sharian.
She had just been scolded harshly by her father for failing to throw a dagger properly.
Dark elves were not supposed to shed tears.
If her father caught her like this, he would only reprimand her more severely.
So whenever she felt the urge to cry, she would come here—where no one could see.
At times like this, she missed her mother terribly.
In her memories, her mother had been as cold as her father.
But still, having her and not having her was an undeniable difference.
To be precise, it wasn’t her mother that she missed.
It was the existence of a mother.
But Sharian’s birth mother was dead.
She would never return.
And even if she somehow did, she wouldn’t be the type to hold Sharian in her arms and comfort her while she cried.
Sharian wiped her eyes roughly with the back of her hand.
Crying here wouldn’t change anything.
Drebren and Zakrion were probably already looking for her.
It was time to go back.
“What are you doing here?”
Just as she was about to stand, a voice called out from behind.
She turned to see a human woman standing there, watching her closely.
“Were you crying?”
[Translator - Peptobismol]
[Proofreader - Demon God]
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