As soon as he finished speaking, several healing mages dressed in white robes rushed through the crowd and toward the stretcher where Victor was.
Even Erica was forced to take a few steps back by being pushed aside by the other mages.
But she did not voice any dissatisfaction.
Only a pair of dazed eyes seemed to still reflect the expression Victor had just made.
Despair, resentment, and the relief of having found some kind of answer.
For some reason, Erica suddenly felt a sense of helplessness, as if she couldn't help at all, as if a strong acid was burning her heart.
This forced her to reach out and cover her chest.
I felt that deep stinging pain.
...
When Victor woke up again, seven days had passed.
Viktor opened his eyes and stared at the somewhat unfamiliar ceiling.
He seemed to be filled with an indescribable sense of powerlessness.
"Awake? Even if you're awake, don't move around."
A familiar and gentle voice echoed in the room, gradually reaching Viktor's ears.
Following the sound, Viktor turned his head slightly to the side.
Through his blurry vision, he saw a strangely familiar figure.
It was a small creature, almost indistinguishable from a human.
If it weren't for her pointed ears, one would almost mistake her for a human.
But it is precisely this characteristic that makes it immediately clear that the other party is an elf.
However, she was wearing a very ill-fitting white coat, making her look like she was playing a doctor.
The smaller elf turned around at that moment.
In her hand, she was carrying... a water bottle?
Immediately afterwards, the elf walked lightly to Victor's bedside.
Then he carefully tilted the kettle and poured the water directly onto his head.
However, Victor did not feel any wetness or the impact of the water flow.
Because, coincidentally, a strange, large-mouthed flower was growing right on top of his head.
It was this flower that absorbed all the water poured out of the kettle.
This familiar method is enough to completely confirm the other party's identity.
“...Kokot Yad?”
"Goose? How do you know me?"
Kokot realized what was happening, lowered his head, and looked curiously into Victor's eyes.
Now, the lazy dog elf's appearance was completely exposed to Victor.
It was the elven queen he knew.
"To be recognized by a legendary mage like you, it seems I am quite famous."
As he spoke, Cocote put his hands on his hips, smugly hummed, and looked quite proud.
Viktor smiled faintly.
"Indeed very famous, the Elf Queen."
"I never expected that we would meet for the first time in this way."
Before he could finish speaking, Kokot in front of him widened his eyes and hurriedly covered his mouth with his hand.
Then she looked around cautiously and anxiously, afraid that others might have overheard Victor's words.
"Hey, hey, how did you know... Please don't tell anyone!"
"I don't want to be discovered by my tribe and called back to lie in that broken tree again."
Seeing Cocot's panicked state, Victor remained silent for a moment.
Everything Kokot did was exactly the Kokot he had known before.
It made it difficult for him to tell the difference.
Just like Gwen, Leah, and Henney.
He can hardly distinguish these familiar characters now.
In the end, only they themselves know everything they've been through.
Powerless...
"Goose? Why aren't you saying anything?"
When Cocotte saw Viktor suddenly fall silent, he thought Viktor had fallen ill again.
Upon closer inspection, he realized his hand was still covering Viktor's mouth.
She quickly withdrew her hand, giving an awkward, apologetic smile.
"Haha, uh, this is really a misunderstanding."
"Don't worry about it, my hands are very clean."
She had heard that these human nobles were usually somewhat fastidious and might be disgusted by physical contact like hers.
But she... well, she should be fine, right?
This was the first time Kokot had been so close to a human, and besides, she was an elf who considered herself very clean.
Yes, it smells delicious.
"But you're really amazing. You're only 29 years old and you're already a fifth-tier mage."
"Even the Calamity of Fire is no match for you! My God, that's a calamity, a calamity, do you even know that?!"
"Don't you know what a calamity is? It's a calamity beast born of nature, just like us elves!"
Clearly, in Kokot's eyes, a human capable of single-handedly defeating a calamity is nothing short of legendary.
"The entire empire is praising you, calling you the great hero who resolved the empire's crisis!"
"Even the emperor is planning to grant you the title of earl and elevate your rank, although I don't know much about this."
It seems that Kokot really wants to say a few things to make Victor happy.
But she saw that Viktor remained silent as always, his mood low.
In the end, she didn't even know what else to say to liven things up, and she herself fell silent.
After a moment of silence, Viktor finally spoke calmly:
"What's the use of defeating the calamity?"
"I only received a glory that was disproportionate to the effort I put in."
Looking at Viktor's dejected state, Kokot felt a pang of regret.
"Indeed, defeating calamity only proves that you have the power to defeat it."
"But that's a huge loss. Naturally generated calamities don't truly die. Even if you defeat them, they will only resurrect after disappearing for a period of time."
"However, you, who also overcame the calamity..."
At this point, Cocote paused for a moment.
She looked at Viktor as if he already understood the fate that awaited him.
"But he won't live long."
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