"Yaaawn… Mumble…"
Iris opened her eyes about ten minutes after receiving the hidden reward from the World Tree.
I held Iris, still dazed from sleep with an innocent expression, and wracked my brain for future plans.
The things I needed to do could be broadly divided into two categories.
1. Prevent the war with the Northern Empire.
2. Overthrow Resillia, and either restore Iris to the throne, or end the current tyranny.
As expected, none of them were easy.
The first one was a problem to begin with. War is a matter involving numerous vested interests. Since the Northern Empire was a powerful nation, stopping a war that had already begun would require an overwhelmingly justifiable reason that everyone could accept.
No, even if there was a reason, would they even try to stop the war?
'They wouldn't.'
As the declaration of war showed, the Northern Empire was definitely serious about this war. They were confident of an overwhelming victory, and had already calculated the benefits they would gain from this war.
It was safe to say that it had already reached a stage where the war could not be stopped by normal means.
So, if you asked if I should just stand by with my arms crossed, that wasn't the case either.
There were two ways to prevent the war.
The first method was to kill all the higher-ups in the Northern Empire to stop the war.
'Impossible.'
Of course, that's what I wanted to do, but it wasn't a realistic plan.
I didn't have a way to kill them, and even if I could stop the war in the short term, it would only serve as a pretext to trigger a new war in the future.
Moreover, if the narrative spread that "Pelletia is a country that assassinates high-ranking officials of enemy countries when things go wrong!", it would not be good for international diplomacy in the long run.
"Hyunwoo…?"
Just in time, Iris opened her eyes again.
"Are you awake? You can sleep more."
"Hehe, then hold me tighter."
I gently hugged Iris, who was being extra clingy, probably because she was still sleepy.
The other way to prevent the war was none other than Iris.
More precisely, Iris with the martial prowess of her prime was the second method.
I had heard that Hanlael, who had dealt with dozens of magical beasts with a single spell, had even subdued the ice golem alone after I fainted.
If Iris, who had reached the great realm of the 8th Circle, a step beyond such a monster as Hanlael, existed, she would surely serve as a deterrent to war just by her presence.
Two hundred years wasn't a long time for an elf who lived normally, but it was a long time for humans, enough for two generations to pass.
Naturally, the reputation of the former queen, Iris, would fade on the continent.
'The Northern Empire must know that Iris is gone, and that's why they're waging war.'
Of course, this method was also impossible for now.
The biggest reason was that there was no way to undo the seal.
The World Tree said that I could only get out of here by using the artifact on the third floor, but undoing the seal was a different matter.
[Ashen Knot]
The World Tree said that the seal around Iris's ankle was an artifact used in ancient times.
It boasted overwhelming performance, granting stronger suppression to those with strong power, and concluded that it could not be undone by ordinary means.
It added that the artifact called the "Ashen Flame" was absolutely necessary to undo the "Ashen Knot."
The problem here was where that Ashen Flame artifact was.
It would have been much easier if the World Tree had told me that, but it disappeared after saying that the Ashen Flame was needed, so I couldn't know its whereabouts for now.
In the end, I had to go outside and search for it myself, but it was easier said than done. I didn't know how long it would take.
"Iris, do you happen to know where the Ashen Flame is?"
I could tell without looking that it wouldn't take long for the Northern Empire to form an army and invade Pelletia after declaring war.
In that situation, I couldn't afford to waste too much time searching for artifacts.
If it really came down to it, my last resort was to go back to Earth, even if it took years, and find a sacred relic to break the seal.
Even if I had to steal it.
"Ashen Flame? I know about it. I'm sure I heard it was in the temple of the Santala Kingdom."
"…?"
What? There's no way the world would be so kind to me.
***
From the moment I learned the location of the Ashen Flame, my course of action was pretty much set.
"I'll be back."
"…Don't overdo it."
"Of course."
When I told her that I was going back to the underground dungeon, Iris, with a tearful expression, hugged me tightly for almost 30 minutes and told me all sorts of things.
Don't get hurt, be careful, and so on.
"I don't care if I can't get out of here if I have you, Hyunwoo."
Iris's voice was heavy, as if she thought I was going to that underground dungeon because of her.
I was grateful and found that side of her adorable.
It meant she loved me that much.
I was receiving an overwhelming amount of love from Iris.
"Iris."
I lightly kissed the corners of Iris's eyes, which were red.
"Do you know what I want to achieve most in this world?"
"…A harem?"
"…"
No, that's not it…
"When you came up from the underground dungeon, you smelled like other women. About four of them?"
My vision was blurry.
It was proof that my pupils were shaking.
'I definitely took a shower…?'
And four people? The only women I've met are Cheon Yeohwa, Choi Hyena, and my teacher.
If I had to name another, it would be Hanlael, but I've barely had a few words with her, let alone physical contact.
"Hehe, you don't have to make such a serious face. I've heard that humans are monogamous, but elves have a low birth rate and a shortage of males, so most of them are polygamous."
Wow, elves really are the best race in the world.
"But the distinction between the legal wife and concubines is clear, okay?"
At that moment, I felt a chill down my spine, and even cold sweat seemed to be dripping.
Instead of her usual cozy and warm eyes, a colder gaze than when the World Tree possessed her was pouring down on me.
"I don't care about mistresses. You're not going to live with them anyway, and you need something to enjoy. But not a wife. Got it?"
"…Yes."
With that, I headed to the underground dungeon with a send-off that wasn't really a send-off.
As I was going down the stairs, I suddenly opened my palm, and it was wet with cold sweat.
Only then did I realize that Iris wasn't just a kind and gentle woman.
If you asked if I was dissatisfied with that, the answer was definitely no.
Rather, I liked seeing a new side of Iris.
And the part where she made it clear that she was the legal wife.
Even as I was going down the stairs, the different side of Iris that I had seen couldn't be easily erased from my mind.
If I had more time, I would have spent a few more days with her, but knowing that war was imminent, every minute and every second was precious.
I hurried down the stairs, and it didn't take long to reach the end.
When I reached the first floor, a familiar and unpleasant chilling air brushed past the tip of my nose.
[Mana Detection]
Now that the limits of my mana had been broken thanks to the elixir, it was only natural that the range of my mana detection had widened.
My current limit was about 500m in radius.
Just in case, I turned on mana detection and saw several magical beasts, large and small. The closest one was prowling less than 50m away from here, but I didn't have time to leisurely hunt magical beasts right now.
As I said before, every minute and every second was precious.
Securing more time was more important than the coins and magic stones I would get from hunting magical beasts.
[Haste]
I used a support spell and ran along the map I had mapped before.
Even while running through the dungeon, I didn't hunt magical beasts unless they were coming towards me.
However, that didn't mean I could avoid all battles.
As much as I had spent time upstairs, other magical beasts had taken their place in the mapped area, and magical beasts basically tried to kill humans.
There were magical beasts I had never seen before, and magical beasts I had seen before.
There were also those that attacked in groups, but the magical beasts on the first floor couldn't be my match.
[You have defeated Kobold Warrior x2]
[Duplicate Kill Reward: 100 coins]
[You have defeated Skeleton Warrior x3]
[Duplicate Kill Reward: 150 coins]
[You have defeated Tentaclipper]
[Duplicate Kill Reward: 50 coins]
[You have defeated Low Reaper]
[First Kill Reward: 100 coins]
[You have defeated Blade Wolf x3]
[First Kill Reward: 150 coins]
Of course, that didn't mean the magical beasts on the first floor were weak.
Most of them were D+ grade elite individuals, so they were about the level of a normal C grade magical beast.
Even so, the reason why I could get out of here without a single scratch was because of the cheat-like weapon, Gillennium, and the support magic that an ordinary 2nd Circle magician wouldn't even be able to use because they didn't have enough mana.
With one slash, one spell, the magical beasts' heads flew off and their bodies exploded.
However, that didn't mean there were no problems with the dungeon exploration.
No matter how much I swung my sword, I was still a magician at heart.
My achievements were insignificant to escape from the chronic limitation of having a weak body.
If I allowed even one attack from a magical beast, it would lead to a fatal wound.
The barrier would only block attacks that I recognized, and it wouldn't automatically block attacks coming from blind spots.
Even if the battle ended without any injuries, the mental fatigue that accumulated from arrows grazing my side and clothes being torn by swords was not something to be ignored.
However, I didn't rest in the middle.
I couldn't predict what kind of snowball effect the short rest now would have later.
I didn't want to do anything that I would regret for the rest of my life.
As a result of continuing to run through the dungeon with minimal battles and rest…
"Hoo…"
I was able to break through the distance that took me a little over 2 hours last time in just 1 hour and 30 minutes.
However, I couldn't help but be drenched in sweat.
I roughly chugged a bottle of mineral water and then took out the key from the inventory and approached the door.
There was no keyhole in the huge stone door, but I wasn't worried.
When I brought the key to the door, the key disappeared with a huge vibration sound and the door began to open.
A huge amount of dust flew in the wind, and the familiar stairs reappeared.
"…Do I have to go down again?"
I resented the World Tree for not installing an elevator.
The World Tree, unaware of my resentment, made one mistake.
It said that it would give birth to my child in exchange for saving the elf, but it didn't say how many children it would give birth to at most.
'I have to make at least two or three soccer teams.'
I didn't think the World Tree's stomach would ever go down until I died.
***
In a gorgeous garden, by a quiet lake.
A woman with refreshing green hair is playing by splashing water.
Smiling brightly like a child who doesn't know anything, running barefoot by the water's edge, the scene seemed to depict a peaceful daily life that made you smile just by looking at it.
"Your Majesty."
However, the attendant who was watching the scene from afar knew.
How crazy she was.
"Hmm? Why are you calling me?"
"…It's time for the execution."
"Ah! That's right."
The attendant inwardly spewed out his hatred at the sight of her clasping her hands together again like a child.
He couldn't even bring himself to say how many of her own kind would die at her hands today.
"Shall we go then?"
The attendant recalled a scene from a fairy tale he had read as a child.
Like the hero of light who saved everyone.
I hope that a hero who will save our elves will arrive on this land.
The Traitorous Queen, Resillia.