Chapter 727: Chapter 113: The 2nd Ring Chapter 727 -113: The 2nd Ring Finding Oswald was no easy task.

He was not an active member of the Papal Guard, thus not bound by duty; and at his age, he clearly did not need to work.

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Fortunately, Freya had lived in the Holy Nation for quite a long time, and she had some connections here.

She first took Lily to visit the Sixth Ring, where they found a retired member of the Papal Guard from the place guarding the ruins.

The reason Freya sought him was simple.

She knew Oswald’s age, and the old gentleman was of similar age; moreover, during their previous conversations, he had mentioned that he almost became a Guardian of Avalon.

This meant that he was likely acquainted with Oswald.

...

Indeed.

She inquired with him, and he did know that Oswald had returned.

He also knew that the surname “Morley,” which Freya used now, was one she had chosen for herself, her previous surname being Moriarty, the one Oswald was responsible for.

Therefore, he straightforwardly gave Oswald’s information to Freya.

However, the location of Oswald was somewhat surprising to Lily.

She had a profound impression of the Elf Butler, who was like a lone wolf in his silence.

He was a serious, cold, and unsmiling old gentleman,

Oswald had not gone to the upper levels to live with the Pureblood Elves.

Instead, he stayed in the densely populated Second Ring.

Compared to the noisy and chaotic First Ring, which was even more disorderly and bustling than the market areas of other countries, the Second Ring was at least not that chaotic—the biggest difference being that there were clearly fewer people carrying luggage.

But the streets were also crowded with people, and many of the shopfront seats were occupied by elderly folks in line.

The Second Ring was a more affordably priced residential area where many long-term residents of the Holy Nation would stay indefinitely.

A great number of apartment-style buildings had been constructed here.

With the Elves’ intervention, neither rent nor prices were too high, and so many people had lived here for years, even decades!

Moreover, there were some church schools here, where some Priests would come to teach the children of Short-Lived Species.

Those born in the Holy Nation from said species would often come here to study and work.

Life here was quite stable.

The pressure to study was not great, and working hours were not long.

While one might not be wealthy enough to have substantial savings, it was also not so dire that one couldn’t afford necessary items.

At the same time, there were no wars here, nor disputes arising from economic pressures.

Some people were even born in the Second Ring, lived their whole lives here, and died without ever having ventured to other areas.

Lily looked around and observed that the most numerous residents of the Second Ring were the elderly and children.

Lily had also stepped out of the doors in Avalon.

Compared to the children of Knight families in the White Queen District, the kids here seemed less polite—they were dressed simply, like villagers, running up and down the streets, yelling, arguing, and roughhousing with each other.

But when it comes to simplicity, it was really just the lack of complex embroidery on their clothes, which were mostly made from simply sewn single-colored fabric.

The fabric itself, however, was of quite good quality and could fetch a high price as fashion in the Iris Flower if it were finely crafted using Elven techniques.

Lily even saw a group of human children playing with a young Lizardfolk, a human girl with a young Serpentfolk in her arms; at the corners of the streets, there were Trolls carrying heavy loads on their shoulders, but the attitude towards the Trolls was friendly…

at least much friendlier than in the First and Fifth Rings.

The rarest species here were Goblins.

—And to Lily’s amazement, she even spotted Dwarves.

Elves and Dwarves are considered arch-enemies.

The entire Dwarven race is virtually heretical, and their racial belief is to “await a Pillar God of their own.” Particularly the Flame Celestial Marshal—as a Celestial Marshal who is rapidly growing stronger on the Path of Dedication directly threatens the Candle Master.

Even though Elves have sought the Flame Celestial Marshal’s own thoughts on the Seat of the Pillar God through prayer, the information gleaned from prayers isn’t necessarily true, and even if it is true, it’s not necessarily always going to be true.

And even if the Flame Celestial Marshal truly had no such intentions, at the very least, the Dwarves certainly do.

“You push your big guns up to the border and then you say you’re just strengthening national defense.

Maybe you really are just strengthening national defense, but even if it’s just that, it also means you’ve treated us as hypothetical enemies.”

That’s how the Elves regard the Dwarves.

While it might not match the hatred humans have for Giants, at the very least, it can be considered loathing.

In the second Ring, however, there was even a Dwarf couple walking openly on the streets.

They didn’t conceal their racial traits, and even boldly greeted the elderly men and women on the streets.

The other people clearly recognized this Dwarf couple, greeting each other and all being quite friendly.

“…The people here, they really live a good life.”

Lily sighed.

“Indeed.”

Freya nodded slightly, “Of all the countries and regions I have travelled through, the second Ring of the Holy Nation is the most comfortable.

If the Helasal Empire were still around, it might only be during their most prosperous times that ordinary people could hope to lead such carefree lives.”

“Sometimes I think, if I ever get tired and need a place to retire…

I’d come find a house in the second Ring and teach children alchemy for free.

Compared to getting married and having children, this is more in line with my philosophy.”

“…The Elf mentorship system?”

Lily murmured.

Freya chuckled softly and reached out to caress Lily’s hair, “No, it’s not quite that.

I’m not looking for a successor of my own, I just want to play with the children, to ward off the loneliness of old age.

And instead of giving children candy and cake, it’s better to give them knowledge, for their health and future.”

With that, she looked at Lily with interest, “It seems you still remember me, Lily.”

“…Of course I remember, Miss.”

Lily had a complex expression and murmured quietly, “I’m not Moriarty.”

“Knowing their memory loss is related to Moriarty…

It seems you are also aware of that curse,”

Freya smiled with relief, “It’s good.

Although the moment I saw Aiwass, I knew he must have learned of the curse, which is why he said nothing when he saw me…

But even though you still remember me, you still brought Aiwass to meet me.”

Lily didn’t respond, choosing to remain silent instead.

This was also why she had such a strange expression when she saw Freya.

Although she always prided herself on “taking care of Aiwass when he was little,” it has to be said…

when Aiwass was young, Lily herself wasn’t much older.

She had never taken care of anyone before, and in fact, she herself needed care at the beginning.

And at that time, it was Freya who took care of Lily and Aiwass.

Freya was five years older than Lily and twelve years older than Aiwass.

She was only four years younger than her elder brother, Edward.

This was truly a case of the eldest sister being like a mother.

Aiwass’s fondness for Lily actually stemmed from his forgotten memories of Freya.

Under the influence of the curse, many memories that belonged to Freya had been misattributed to Lily, the person closest to her.

This was the reason why Aiwass was so close and trusting towards Lily, yet Lily always remained very cautious and distant towards him.

Because she worried that one day Aiwass would realize he had remembered the wrong person.

If the truth about her assuming someone else’s identity were exposed, perhaps that fondness would turn into resentment, that could not be ruled out.

——She had always been reluctant to take what wasn’t hers.

But even so, when she actually faced Freya, she would still feel very nervous.

Although she had been very careful never to overstep the boundaries…

she still felt as if she had stolen something.

“How have those two kids been doing lately?” Freya asked.

“…The young master is about to get engaged,” Lily answered, “and Miss Julia’s Phantom Demon Egg issue has also been resolved.”

“It’s good that it’s resolved.

I was afraid Julia might have already…

But engaged…

so soon?

He’s only eighteen this year, right?”

Freya stroked her chin and corrected, “No, that’s not too soon.

He has already become an Archbishop, so he should hurry up and have a child.”

“…What does being an Archbishop have to do with it?”

“The higher the energy level, the lower the probability of having children.

This is also one of the laws of balance in the world—powerful beings are not good at reproducing.

Elves have long lifespans but the population has never exploded, partly because Elves are less passionate about sex and partly because the average energy level of Elves is too high.”

Freya answered calmly, “Given Aiwass’s status, he needs to hurry and have an heir.

Otherwise, when he’s in his twenties, he might reach the Fifth Power Level—by then, it might be difficult to have offspring.”

“…Then there is certainly cause for concern.”

Lily obviously didn’t know this secret, and her expression tightened, “He definitely must have an heir.”

“How so?” Freya said languidly, “Is he getting engaged to a princess?

He must have an heir—well, if my brother doesn’t want to have children, then he won’t, it’s all the same.

I’m just saying, if he wants a child, it would be best to do it soon.”

“It’s not the princess…”

“Hmm?”

“It’s Her Majesty the Queen.”

“…Huh?”

Freya was taken aback, her expression visibly stiffening.

Then she suddenly realized, “Oh right, the new queen is that Isabel…

How old is she?”

“Less than a year older than the young master.”

“…That young?

Is it because of that royal curse?”

Freya said in shock, “That curse is actually real?

I thought it was just a smokescreen put out by Hawkeye…”

They chatted, quickly arriving at the destination.

To their surprise, it was a bar.

And upon lifting the curtain, they were greeted with the thick scent of alcohol, shouting, and the flavor of cursing.

The inside was boisterous—to the point that even Freya couldn’t help but frown.

In the center of the bar, there was a large screen made of crystal.

It was like the surveillance mirror of the Thirteenth Ring, a ritual of Divine Arts that could directly observe a designated area.

From a distance, all they could see on the screen was green; nothing else was discernible.

Suddenly, everyone uniformly chanted, “Unicorn!

Unicorn!

Unicorn!”

“——Goal!”

A heart-wrenching yell erupted.

Then, the entire bar instantly turned into an ocean of joy, filled with shouting, screams, and the clinking of glasses reaching towards the heavens.

Since Freya had ingested the Elixir of Immortality, her ears had become slightly pointed, and her hearing had grown exceptionally acute.

Now, she was being assaulted by the noise to the point where her eyes went wide, and she looked somewhat ill as she covered her ears with her hands—she had not heard such loud noise in over a decade and could hear every single word clearly.

…Could Mr.

Oswald really be in a place like this?

Standing behind Freya, Lily also looked perplexed for a moment.