Chapter 229 - Date at the Summit of Yggdrasil

It’s already noon so Lielle and I left the library, then we had our lunch.

Afterward, she told me that she there’s something she wanted to buy, so we wandered through the streets of the shopping district in the royal capital, and kept Lielle company while she shopped.

It’s evening now. The sun’s starting to sink.

Maybe now’s the perfect time?

I decided to proceed to the main event of our date for today.

“Lielle, I have some place I want to go, but...are you still okay with the time?”

“Time? Eh, ahm….A-actually, today, it’s fine for me to spend the night...out…”

Eh.

D-does that mean —

“You’re fine with staying with me somewhere else?”

Lielle’s face was scarlet red as she turned her gaze to her feet, but she still nodded silently while squeezing the hem of my shirt.

Seriously…

Eh, seriously?

During our previous dates, I had to say goodbye to Lielle by eight in the evening because her family has a curfew, apparently.

And yet, for some reason, she’s okay to stay the night for today.

Just how lucky this timing is!

The deities are also on my side.

Is it because I’ve been a good guy everyday?

No, wait, don’t be too flustered, Luke.

Wait for Lielle’s reply first before you get too giddy.

“Then, accompany me to the place I want to go, okay?”

I grasped Lielle’s hand then strode on.

She was still looking down, but she kept on following me.

—***—

“Luke, is this the place you wanted to go?”

“Yup.”

I took Lielle to the foot of Yggdrasil, the gigantic tree in the heart of Alheim.

“I think it’s already time, so —”

We stood there waiting for a while, when a breeze suddenly started to swirl before us.

And in the middle of that wind —

“Heyyo~! Luke, it’s been a while. I’ve been waiting for you.”

Sylph-sama, the Wind Spirit King and personification of Yggdrasil, appeared.

“S-Sylph-sama!?”

“Ah, it’s fine, it’s fine. Your clothes will get dirty if you kneel down, right? That’s okay, you can remain standing, alright.”

Lielle was about to kneel down in respect before Sylph-sama, but the Spirit King stopped her.

“...Is it really alright?”

“Yup! No need to bother, okay.”

For Lielle and the Elves, Yggdrasil, the one protecting Alheim and bestowing blessing, is an absolute existence.

Thus, Lielle and the Elves held the belief that they should show the utmost respect and most sincere devotion toward Sylph-sama, because she’s the personification of Yggdrasil.

“Ahm, may I know why Sylph-sama is here?”

“Luke asked me to.”

“Eh!?”

Lielle apparently couldn’t believe it, because she whirled around to face me, obviously shocked.

“To be precise, Luke asked my contractor Halt, so that’s why I’m here. Lielle, you also know who Halt is, right?”

“O-of course! He’s the great benefactor of our kingdom, so there’s no way I wouldn’t know him.”

My bestfriend Halt is the contractor of the Sylph-sama, Wind Spirit King. Not only that, he also has contracts with the other three Spirit Kings, so it’s actually beyond surprise, and I could only laugh about it.

“Luke, you can go up on your own, right?”

“Yes. There is no problem.”

“Erm, er...By top, are you perhaps referring to…”

“Yggdrasil’s summit.”

Lielle froze when she heard what I said.

The Elves believe that Ygddrasil is sacred, so they forbid touching it, much less climbing on top.

If it’s the usual date, Lielle would never agree to touching Yggdrasil even if I invited her.

But today, I wanted to take her to the top of Yggdrasil no matter what.

That’s why I requested for this favor through Halt so that Sylph-sama would manifest before us.

“Lielle, I give you permission. So, it’s okay to climb to the summit together with Luke.”

“I-is it really okay?”

“Yup. Lielle, I’m going to bestow my divine protection on you so that Yggdrasil’s mana won’t interfere with you excessively.”

Sylph-sama floated in the air, then she touched Lielle’s head.

Apparently, the high concentration of mana residing inside Yggdrasil favors the Elves too much, and they would surround the Elves whenever they enter the interior of the tree.

The concentration is so thick that it would induce symptoms of magic intoxication among the Elves.

Lielle’s body glowed faintly after Sylph-sama touched her.

She received the divine blessing of the Spirit King, it seemed.

“I-I don’t know what to say….”

She was so moved that she started to get misty-eyed.

“If you’re going to thank me, then thank Luke instead. Alright, got to go now.”

Sylph-sama then disappeared.

“Alright, let’s go!”

“Eh, L-Luke? — Kyaaahhhh!!”

I carried Lielle and flew using magic.

Did I shock her? Oh, come to think of it, this might be the first time I flew while carrying her.

Not sure if it’s out of fear, but Lielle frantically clung to me.

“Did I surprise you? Sorry. But, rest assured, I will never let Lielle fall.”

“...I believe you, Luke.”

She slowly raised her head, but she still seemed unable to look around. She just trained her eyes on me.

That’s fine for now.

Oops, the sun’s about to set.

I need to speed up a little bit.

“Lielle, just keep your eyes on me. I’ll speed our flight up for a bit.”

“Y-Yes!”

I shoot up in order to make it in time for the sunset.

We made it on time.

“Open your eyes, it’s okay now.”

She must’ve been thoroughly frightened, because she’s been squeezing her eyes shut halfway through our flight.

Lielle and I were currently standing on a branch at the summit of Yggdrasil.

“Luke.”

“Can you look around now? I’ll definitely support you. Look over it slowly, okay?”

She’s probably putting her trust in me now.

Lielle slowly turned her gaze towards the scenery behind me.

“...It’s breathtaking.”

The words naturally spilled out of her lips.

What greeted her was the unobstructed view of the setting sun which dyed the faraway sea, the entire land, and Alheim into a scarlet scenery.

This was what I wanted to show her.

A few minutes later —

The sun set, and our surroundings had turned darker.

It was then that we saw, through the gaps between the branches of Yggdrasil, the light started to spread through the cities of Alheim as fire was lit in various places.

Below, the light reflected on the tree, so it looked like Yggdrasil was glowing faintly from the illumination.

The light of the city and the glow of Yggdrasil unfurled a magical landscape before us.

.

“Luke, this is amazing. It’s so beautiful. You wanted to show this to me?”

“Yup. It’s a bit late, but… it’s my apology for the incident during the school festival.”