Chapter 636: Turned Away at the Door

Tauro and his party were kept waiting in front of the manor for a while, but when the unpleasant head gatekeeper returned with several other elves, the situation changed completely.

“Thank you for waiting! I never imagined the day would come when a member of the dragonfolk would visit this land again! Welcome to the Forest City, the heart of the Elf Autonomous Region! I serve as a secretary to the Council of Elders here. A pleasure to meet you!”

It was unclear how the head gatekeeper had explained things, but the official-looking elf welcomed Ragune with visible excitement. However, upon seeing the two humans, Tauro and Aeris, the elf frowned slightly.

“Thank you for guiding the dragonfolk here, humans. From here on, I’ll take over, so you may return now.”

It seemed the secretary elf assumed Tauro and Aeris were either guides or escorts who had accompanied Ragune this far. Apparently, the gatekeeper hadn’t explained their situation in detail.

“I’m Viscount Tauro Giro Sugar, the new lord of the neighboring territory. This slime on my shoulder is Pella, and this is Aeris, my fiancée. This beastkin girl is Zion, this woman from the dragonfolk is Ragune, and this wolf golem is Garo. We all came together as companions. Today, we’ve come to request an appointment with the representative of the Council of Elders.”

Tauro politely introduced everyone and explained the purpose of their visit.

The elf secretary’s eyes widened in surprise while examining Tauro from head to toe.

“I’m not very familiar with human ages… but aren’t you ten?”

“I’m fifteen. I was granted the former Lunesk territory by the royal family and now govern it as Viscount Giro Sugar. Here is my certificate and the royal crest. The purpose of this visit is to offer my greetings and to discuss the resumption of relations.”

“…I’ve confirmed it. Philion, the representative of the Council of Elders, is very busy, so I can’t guarantee that a meeting will be possible, but I’ll inquire. As for Ragune, many council members would likely wish to meet her, so would it be acceptable for her to stay in the manor? We can arrange an inn in the city for everyone else.”

Tauro immediately sensed the clear difference in treatment and hesitated briefly—but Ragune spoke up first.

“I came here as one of Tauro’s companions. I have no intention of meeting anyone who treats my friends unfairly.”

She flatly refused.

Tauro had briefly considered asking Ragune to mediate, but her words made him genuinely happy as a companion. Aeris and Zion felt the same, both wearing triumphant expressions toward the secretary elf.

“My… my apologies! However… the council’s representative has become particularly hostile toward humans lately… Unless there’s an exceptional reason, I don’t think the representative will make time easily…”

Though the secretary apologized, the elf clearly knew the elders well and didn’t seem optimistic.

“If you can arrange a meeting with the representative, Ragune will attend as well.”

Tauro decided to use Ragune’s status as leverage.

“…That may work for other council members, but the representative will be difficult… The representative is unusually rational for an elf and values productivity highly. Without a compelling reason, a meeting with humans would be impossible…”

Those words gave Tauro a strong sense of possibility.

Tauro had assumed that because elves lived so long, once angered, they might hold grudges for decades. Compared with that, if the representative valued rationality and productivity, there might still be room for negotiation.

While that way of thinking might seem unorthodox among the elves, Tauro imagined that such qualities were exactly why Philion could lead the patient, slow-paced elves as their representative.

“Then please deliver this letter to the representative. It may change Philion’s mind.”

Tauro handed over a letter he had prepared in case persuasion became necessary.

“…Please don’t get your hopes up too much. The representative is also quite stubborn. I doubt the representative will yield so easily to humans…”

The secretary elf, knowing Philion’s personality well, couldn’t imagine the representative being swayed by a single letter.

“…If not, we’ll think of something else then. For now, could we at least have permission to stay in the city?”

Tauro decided to ask for the minimum.

“That much I can approve at my discretion. —Here.”

The secretary handed out tags for each of them, apparently having brought several for the visiting dragonfolk.

“Thank you.”

Tauro thanked the secretary, nodded to Aeris and the others, and left the scene on Garo.

“So in the end, we were basically turned away at the door,” Aeris said in place of Tauro, voicing her dissatisfaction.

That said, she didn’t seem particularly upset.

“Hahaha. In a way, yes, but it’s not the worst outcome. Let’s call it a start. The secretary was at least reasonable. —Glasslow-san, are there any inns in this city that accept guests of other races?”

Since he had imagined even worse scenarios, Tauro chose to remain optimistic for now, hoping the letter would sway the representative of the Council of Elders at least a little, as he asked his capable elf subordinate about securing lodging for the night.