Chapter 356
Chapter 356
"Hmm
Alfred, who had collapsed, slowly regained consciousness. He groaned naturally, perhaps due to the aftereffects of the intense confrontation.
"Alfred, are you okay? Are you awake?"
"Se Senior? Ugh, I'm fine."
Alfred got up with the help of those around him. He looked around, still a bit confused, but then suddenly remembered something and shuddered.
"Ah! The duel I lost"
A sense of emptiness crossed his face. Then, he looked around and spoke bitterly.
"I'm sorry I couldn't live up to your expectations, even though you all cheered for me."
"No! You don't need to apologize to us."
Starting with me, the others comforted Alfred as well.
"That's right, Brother Elaine. You totally rocked during the match! Its just that you didn't come out on top."
"It was never an easy battle, to begin with. Everyone here knows that you gave it your all."
"I may not know much about swordsmanship, but that was one intense battle!"
Speranza also blinked her eyes brightly and perked up her fox ears.
"Brother Elaine, you looked so cool during the fight. Your sword moved so quickly, like this!"
Speranza earnestly waved her arms, trying to describe the scene of the battle. Alfred couldn't help but smile at her cute display.
As everyone tried to console and encourage him
-Swoosh.
Kaneff, with his usual emotionless expression, silently approached.
"Boss Kaneff
"I'm sorry I couldn't win, even though you helped me so much for a week."
Alfred felt genuinely remorseful.
We were all on edge, worried that Kaneff might say something weird.
-Tap, tap.
Kaneff raised his hand and gave Alfred a light pat on the head.
"You did better than I thought."
"!"
"!"
"It's a shame you couldn't land a hit on that guy, but your hard work over the past week paid off."
"Boss Kaneff"
"Still the fact that you lost the duel doesn't change. Keep that feeling of defeat in your heart and use it to grow stronger in the future."
Surprisingly, he encouraged Alfred with a normal complement and advice, unexpectedly.
We were all shocked to see this side of Kaneff.
"Finally awake, huh?"
Two people from the Verdi family walked over to us. Kael had a gentle smile on his face while Claudion looked calm and collected.
"Don't worry. I'll handle everything from here."
Kaneff gave Alfred another pat on the head and then walked toward the two men.
Huh?
Wait a minute, what does he mean by "don't worry"? That can't be good
"Alfred, did you get seriously hurt anywhere?"
"No, Grandfather, I'm fine."
"Hey, old geezer. Our farmhand is fine, so don't worry about it."
Kaneff blocked Kael's path with an irritated voice.
"Why are you getting worked up again?"
"We'll take care of Elaine ourselves. You guys can head back now."
"Heh, didn't we agree to decide Alfred's fate through the duel?"
"Who decided that? I never said anything like that."
Kaneff smirked wickedly, raising the corner of his mouth. Even though we were on the same team, we couldn't help but feel that his smile was truly villainous.
"This was something Alfred chose to do himself. Are you planning to ignore his will?"
"Ah~ I don't know! Anyway, he can't go anywhere without my permission. If you want to take him, you'll have to try going through me."
I think being "reckless" fits better than being "rash," right?
Kaneff blocked the two's path and slowly raised his energy, looking as if he would use force if things didn't go his way.
As I hesitated whether to stop Kaneff or not, Alfred, who had completely gotten up, stepped forward.
"Boss Kaneff."
"You stay put. I'll handle everything."
"I'm fine. Please step back."
"But"
"Please."
Alfred asked with a serious expression.
Kaneff frowned at him as if he didn't like being told what to do. But he still backed away more easily than I expected.
As Kaneff stepped aside, Alfred stood in front of Kael and Claudion.
"I lost the duel, so as promised a week ago, I'll leave the farm and go back to the family."
"Hmm. Are you sure you'll be fine going back like this?"
"It's a bit disappointing, but I said I would take responsibility for my words and actions. I will follow the advice of Grandfather and brother."
Alfred answered Kael's question with a mix of relief and disappointment.
"Is that so? Then you should stay here."
"Huh?"
"Didn't you just say you'd follow what Claudion and I say? So, you should stay here. That's what we want."
"But but the original agreement was to return to the family if I lost the duel"
Alfred looked panicked, but Kael just laughed as if he was having a great time.
"Heh, wasn't the original agreement different? I wanted to see more than just a simple victory in a duel. I wanted to see a determination to take responsibility for your choices and actions, and you proved that."
"Alfred, even though you didn't win the duel, I think you've shown enough growth and determination. Don't you think so?"
Kael looked over at Claudion, who nodded in agreement with a calm expression.
"The duel was definitely in my favor, both in skill and experience. But Alfred showed us the best he had. As you said, Alfred my brother has proven his resolve and attitude."
Claudion paused for a moment and glanced back at us.
"Contrary to my initial thoughts, Alfred's time spent here seems to have been worthwhile. Since he proved it himself, there's no need to forcibly take my brother back to the family."
"This is what Claudion and I think."
"Then"
Alfred was still confused and muttered, unable to understand Kael's words. Speranza, who was listening to the conversation, exclaimed with excitement.
"Grandpa Kael! So, can Brother Elaine stay here?"
Speranza wagged her tail eagerly.
Kael smiled broadly at the cute fox girl and replied.
"Yes, he can continue to stay here."
"Yayyyy!"
"Elaine!"
Excited farm members came running out, surrounding Alfred and congratulating him.
"You did a great job, Elaine."
"I knew you could do it."
"I'm so glad, Elaine."
At first, Alfred looked bewildered, but then a smile slowly crept onto his face. Eventually, he became so happy that his eyes welled up with tears, expressing his gratitude.
"It's all thanks to everyone's help. Thank you so much!"
Watching the happy Alfred and the farm members, Kael had a contented smile on his face. Claudion also showed a faint smile.
Beside them, Kaneff approached with a sheepish expression.
"Jeez If you were going to do this, you should have told me sooner, geezer."
"Hehehe!"
Kael's laughter grew louder, causing Kaneff's face to wrinkle even more.
After the duel ended, Kael and Claudion quietly returned to their family.
Before leaving, Claudion said, "I apologize for the commotion. Please take good care of my brother from now on."
He requested that we take good care of his brother with a much more courteous tone than when we first met.
"We will take good care of him. And please come to visit the farm sometime. Elaine would love that too."
"I'll make sure to find time for that."
Talking with Claudion still felt a bit awkward, but we managed to end the conversation on a positive note and bid farewell to Claudion and Kael.
With that, the commotion came to an end.
Peaceful everyday life returned to the farm.
We were really focused on getting ready for Alfred's duel all week and didn't pay attention to anything else. And during that time, the area around the farm had changed quite a bit.
The late winter cold spell was finally subsiding, and it was starting to feel warmer.
A warm spring feeling was starting to fill the air around the farm, bringing with it that pleasant sensation of new beginnings.
-Buzzzzz!
One by one, the bees that had been absent during the winter started to reappear, bringing life back to the farm.
Recently, the honey for the honey beer had almost run out, but thankfully, it seemed we wouldn't have to wait much longer.
-Buzzzzz.
-Buzzzzz.
The Yakums, who had spent much of the winter in the barn, slowly increased their activity, preparing for spring.
As the weather started to warm up, they were all excited to follow Bighorn and graze on some fresh grass.
"Kyahaha! It's finally warm, Popi!"
"We can freely go outside the greenhouse now, Pipo!"
As the weather warmed, the fairies left the greenhouse and freely roamed around.
With the fairies having moved to the Vision world, not only in the strawberry field but also anywhere around the farm, their laughter could be easily heard.
It wasn't just the fairies who were excited.
From the baby Yakums to Grify, Finny, Gyuri, and Speranza,
They all happily roamed around the farm, relieving the pent-up frustration of not being able to play during the winter.
"Finally, it's spring"
I muttered languidly, feeling the warm spring with my whole body. I was happy about spring, but I felt a greater sense of relief that I had overcome the harsh winter well.
The farm and the Cardis territory, there had been many worries when preparing for winter.
Without the help from those around me, I wouldn't have been able to comfortably welcome spring. It felt great that we overcame the difficulties together.
As I was happily enjoying the spring scenery,
"Master Sihyeon."
"Master Sihyeon."
I heard a cute voice calling me. Turning my head, I saw the two baby fairies who had been attending the Fairy Queen, looking at me.
"Yeah? What's up?"
"We have something to discuss about the Fairy World, pyori!"
"Could you please come with us for a moment, pyoki?"
As if the farm and Cardis territory weren't enough, now I had to worry about the Fairy World too.
I felt like I was getting caught up in a big deal without even realizing it, so I felt both strange and bitter.
"Okay? Shall we go together then?"
"Thank you, pyoki!"
"Thank you, pyori!"
I waved my hand nonchalantly at the polite baby fairies.
I was about to follow them to the vision world, but someone grabbed my leg.
"Papa!"
"Speranza?"
"You're going to the place where the fairies are right now, right?"
"Yeah. I have some business there. I'll be back soon."
As I tried to make her let go of my leg, Speranza held on even tighter.
"I want to go too!"
"What?"
(To be Continued)
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