Leaving the headquarters of the Gray Wizards behind, Renya arrived at the entrance of a certain vast forest in a certain country, where the rogue mage was said to have fled.
According to prior information, deep within this forest, depopulation had progressed, leaving behind abandoned villages. Renya suspected the rogue mage was hiding there.
Carrying no luggage and dressed lightly, not at all like someone heading into battle, Renya nevertheless stepped without hesitation or undue strain into the forest, which appeared dim even during the day.
Avoiding paths and thickets that clearly seemed like animal territory, Renya advanced with powerful strides through the midst of towering trees so dense they blocked the sunlight.
He could sense the presence of birds and beasts, but strangely, they seemed to be holding their breath. It was as if they were frightened of something.
'That's how dangerous the forbidden artifact is, huh.'
Renya thought this, but in truth, they were also afraid of Renya's own presence, silencing themselves as if waiting for a storm to pass.
Renya had been advancing unerringly toward his goal, but he suddenly stopped as if sensing something.
'...Who's there? Not the rogue mage. But not one of their familiars, either.'
The way they concealed their aura, their positioning, it was beyond the capability of the rogue mage mentioned in the information.
'They know I've noticed them too.'
This also indicated the other party's high level of skill.
Their position was near the trees diagonally to Renya's right. They were hiding behind the grove, watching him.
Renya continued forward naturally, then suddenly stopped and turned around.
"...I don't know who you are or where you're from, but what do you want? If you're an enemy, I won't hold back, but if not, let's agree not to interfere with each other."
As Renya called out toward the trees, the owner of the presence emerged from the shadows of the grove.
The figure was small and slender. They wore a robe with a hood, hiding their face and body, but there were curves suggesting they were likely female.
Standing more than ten meters away from Renya, the figure seemed to be intently studying Renya's form and face from the depths of their hood.
"You showing yourself means you have no intention of hostility? If so, let's part ways here, and…"
"Renya?"
The figure interrupted Renya mid-sentence, speaking his name.
"...Have we met somewhere before?"
To the other person, who seemed incredulous, Renya furrowed his brows suspiciously and narrowed his eyes.
It wasn't just because he sensed a bubbling, rising joy in the emotion carried by the voice of the person, likely a woman.
It was also because Renya himself found that voice familiar.
"...That voice, no way."
"I knew it! I knew it was you, Renya!"
As if convinced by Renya's reaction, the person dashed toward him without a second thought.
And then, unable to bear even the last few meters, she leaped at him, and Renya caught her.
In that moment, her hood fell away, revealing long, light blue hair hidden within.
"Renya! Renya! I missed you so much!"
Saying this, she hugged him tightly, burying her face against his chest. Without even needing to see her face, Renya was certain of her identity and called her name.
"Elfaria... Elfie."
Elfariacalled by her nickname, Elfielooked up, her azure eyes gazing at Renya, a joyful smile spreading across her face.
"Yeah! It's me. Long time no see, Renya!! I'm so happy to see you again!"
True to her words, Elfaria, her face beaming with delight, buried her face in Renya's chest again and rubbed her cheek against him as if to confirm his existence.
Elfaria Albis Serfort...
The nickname only Renya was permitted to use was Elfie. The two were childhood friends.
The beginning of Renya and Elfaria's relationship dated back to when they were born.
Elfaria was born to renowned mage parents, but before she could remember them, they were killed by a rogue wizard.
Elfaria was saved at the last moment by Mephisto, who had rushed over to celebrate her birth, and she was unharmed.
Mephisto, having taken Elfaria in, was troubled about which path would lead to her happiness, considering her parents, with whom he had a long-standing relationship. Due to her magical power, apparent even from infancy, he decided to at least raise her until she could control that power, and then let her choose her own path. From then on, she was raised alongside Renya.
It soon became clear this was the right decision.
One day, Elfaria, then two years old, used a magic spell never seen before. At just two years old, Elfaria possessed an incredible talent for magic, capable of instinctively creating new magic, an impossible feat without understanding the underlying theory.
Being able to activate magic and sorcery based solely on intuition was an achievement reserved only for geniuses of the highest order.
It was talent that rivaled, if not surpassed, that of Renya and Lavinia. Mephisto raised Elfaria carefully.
Despite all this, Renya and Elfaria grew up close, regardless of such matters.
However, sometime after they met and the two had become quite close, the first turning point arrived.
It was when Renya and his mother fell into a life-threatening situation and were saved at the last moment.
Renya, having become a disciple of Cú Chulainn, found it increasingly difficult to meet Elfaria as his daily training grew stricter. This made Elfaria sulky.
Then, one day, the second turning point came.
Elfaria, finally able to meet Renya after a long time following a break in his training, was clinging to him.
Being together after so long, she made a selfish request to Renya, and they ended up going a little farther away than usual.
However, there they were attacked by a magical beast that had escaped from a rogue mage's experiment.
Elfaria tried to defeat it, but the beast had been given the ability to repel magic through the experiment and was instead beaten back. Seeing this, Renya tried to defeat the beast, but it was still too much for him; however, he managed to win, though he was injured.
But Elfaria was deeply shocked that her beloved Renya had been hurt because of her recklessness, and that she herself had been unable to save him.
Elfaria regretted that her own pride and immaturity had caused Renya to suffer like that.
To ensure nothing like this ever happened again, and to be able to help Renya if there was a next time, Elfaria cast aside her pride, left the association, and set out on a journey of training alone to get stronger.
Several years later, Renya and Elfaria were finally reunited like this…
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Early Chapters At: patreon.com/c/Mike_Kun