I woke up the next morning and hopped on my horse. Me and my party, which
consisted of me, the demons, Traya, and the archpriest Elzi reached the capital of the Cobalyon tribe, Azillian.
Azillian was a small city by all standards, with every tribe of demons having around 500,000 members, the city was small, only having around 50,000 demonkin. It was also the only city of the Cobalyon tribe. This wasn't all that surprising as the Cobalyon tribe only had around 200,000 members, one of the smallest tribes of all.
This didn’t change the fact that they were independent, but the large reason for this was due to the fact that the Cobalyon tribe had no industry or other sort of niche to fill. The Mahillia tribe had their ports and tribes like the red tribe had their livestock, and others many members or some sort of craft. The Cobalyon lacked all of those, with few members, and without a specialized craft. They mostly provided agricultural goods, but that was primarily fulfilled by the Green tribe, leaving Cobalyon goods second rate.
They were barely scraping by, some coming was actually a godsend. I reached the fortified city peacefully and dismounted inside the walls.
The city was small but lively, and I felt at ease inside.
“Hey, Traya…” I said, “Wanna go explore the city with me later?”
“Huh!” Traya looked surprised and jumped up. Her cheeks reddened, “S-sure, I’d love to go with you!”
I smiled, “Great! Let’s go after we talk to the chieftain.”
As if on cue, the chieftain approached us. We were standing near the gates to the city, he was riding a tall rose horse. “Hello, esteemed lady, I am Azoria the fourteenth, chieftain of the Cobalyon tribe.”
“Hello, I am Silvi Tephit, princess of the Principality of Tephit.”
Azoria smiled, “I know, and you my lady must be her…” She trailed off, looking at Traya.
Traya tensed, “Uh, yes! I am Traya! Silvi’s, uh, um… A friend and trusted accomplice!”
Azoria giggled good-naturedly, “I see…”
“W-what do you mean! I am!” Traya protested.
I examined her, “Hey, you don’t normally get so flustered, is something wrong.”
“Hmmm? Hmph! No, nothing is wrong…” Traya said.
“Well, shall we get going, I’m sure you’d want a nice bath after your travels. We have several bathhouses ready for you, you can take your pick of the best us Cobalyonions can offer!”
I bowed, “Thank you…’
The chieftain led us to the main bathhouse, fed directly by one of the various hot springs that the Cobalyon territory had, if anything, they prided themselves on their baths.
Ginning, I sank into a deep bath. I was never really a fan of baths in my old world, but then again, no bath was as great as this one there!
Traya bathed next to me, “Sigh, this really is the best isn’t it….” She said,
“Yeah, I don’t think I’ve ever been so relaxed,” I replied.
“No elven bath can compare to this one!” Traya remarked.
“Hey, I thought you said you’ve never been to the elven kingdom… How do you know what an elven bath is?”
“Well, it is true that I’ve never been…. But that doesn’t mean my family didn’t have the luxuries of elven life…”
“Oh, well your family must have been well off to afford a bath…”
“Hmmm? I suppose we were, I never thought about it that way…”
“What was your family like? Could I meet them?”
“Huh! Why’d you wanna do that!” Traya said, her expression turning to shock.
“Well, isn’t it natural to want to meet your friend’s relatives?” I said.
“Oh yeah, I guess it is.”
Besides, I thought, one of the things I wanna do is see how far this friendship has gone, I owe my great uncle that much. And not only that, but I’m enjoying having this relationship, if I see Traya’s parents it will just show how far I’ve gone!
“I don’t think you can, my parents live pretty far off…”
“What do you mean?”
“I’ve never told anyone this, but my parents live in the kingdom of elves…”
“But I thought you said your family immigrated a long time ago.”
“They did, and they came to the mass of man just to serve as envoys for the kingdom of elves. In the end, they ended up staying and having a few kids with the locals. Then those kids had kids… but the elf blood was very prominent. My uncles and parents and cousins could all pass as pure-blooded elves…”
“But you…” I started.
Traya looked down at the bathwater. “Yeah, I got human ears. I am just as strong as the other members of my family in magic and strength, but I look too human… Eventually, my great-grandparents were appointed to another post inside the kingdom and they had to move back to the kingdom of elves. They took all of my relatives, but it was decided that I couldn’t go because I couldn’t pass as an elf…”
“That’s terrible, can you see your family at all?”
She shook her head, tears falling down.
“Hey… I’m sorry…” I said, patting her back.
She laid her head on my shoulder, “Thanks… What about you? What about your parents?” She asked me.
“My dad is gone, I suppose I still have a mom, but we weren’t close. The only person that I could’ve said that was close to me was my great uncle. But he’s gone too…”
“That’s terrible! You lost him! And your dad too!” Traya said.
“I suppose I did, but I don’t feel particularly sad anymore… I have you now, and Amber, and Razana, and Herbert and Juno, and all of these other people! William and Alice… They’re all relying on me and love me all the same… And I love them too.”
For some reason, Traya blushed when I said, love. Nora? Have any idea why?
Sigh, you really don’t get it, do you?
Uh, no. And what’s that supposed to mean!
Nevermind.
Hey! Get back here!
The next morning I and Traya made our way over to the central plaza of the city. Elzi looked at me apprehensively, “Are you ready your majesty?” She asked.
“Yep! I got this in the bag!” I said enthusiastically.
“Pardon me my lady, but isn’t it a little concerning… You’re doing so many summons, is it good for your health?”
“What? I can keep this up all day!” I said happily.
“To possess so much mana… Who are you?” She muttered.
“Just your ordinary hero…” I said with a laugh.
“Alright, let’s get this party started!” I continued.
Azoria approached me, “Your majesty, thank you so much for doing this for us, and the first on your tour too. There is no greater honor. As you know, we as a tribe don’t hold much power, but you still look out for us… Thank you!”
Before she got all teary I interjected. “Hey, I had an idea about how to fix your niche problem.”
“Yes? What do you mean?”
“Like how you can provide something that will help solidify your standing. You want your citizens to prosper right?” I asked.
“Yes!”
“How about turning this place into a luxury spa resort? Your baths are top notch and I’m sure that nowhere else is there a better place to relax. Your scenery is relaxing and your food is pretty good (I spoke from experience). If you just get some training in the service and build the right infrastructure, I can see this place becoming a hotspot for tourists!”
Azuria looked shocked. “I-i’ve never thought about it that way before! Yes… You're right, if we work hard, we could become a resort. As far as I know, there is no other tribe that does that… It could bring so much wealth and prosperity! Thank you! I shall start preparations immediately!”
“Hey, slow down a little, I’m about to call your demon right now!” I said happily.
“Oh right! Here you go, your majesty, the stage is yours.”
“Thank you!” I advanced to the center of the plaza, the crowd around me grew louder in excitement.
“Alright! Come forth demon!” I yelled, extending my hand. The skill Intrinsic mana manipulation let me make the magic circle in my mind, something that I found out during my travels, and the skill quick chant enabled me to cut down or even bypass a chant.
A large circle appeared and from it a tall, male figure appeared.
“Well, it's time to welcome old Blue isn’t it…” Auren muttered, standing next to Traya and the Chieftain off to the side.
“Yes, this will be quite the spectacle, I wonder what sort of ideas he will have, that freakish genius…” Halien agreed.
Traya looked at them with a bewildered look. “I must be hearing things, have you two actually agreed?”
“W-what! Lady Traya! How dare you accuse me of such a deed, I’d rather disperse myself than agree with this demon!” Auren said, flushing.
“Y-yes! I detest this demon! How dare you accuse me!”
“Accuse us!” Auren corrected.
Traya sighed and looked at the ground, “It definitely isn’t me, for some reason those two actually get along…” She muttered, quiet enough so that only she could hear319Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡECzrzPW2RB
