Chapter 6: Independence

The talk about independence came back and forth. However, it flew past the Aelaranthae head. They wanted to be free but refused to go into conflict. Moreover, LeAestas diplomats and Amantuile can’t get over the fact that there were only two of these Aelaranthae. Amantuile researched the peddlers and the village chief that has now become elderly. However, no matter how he prodded the Aelaranthae, there were only two. Not more. He thought there was a hidden village full of Aelaranthae somewhere deep in the forest or some random caves.

Then, there are other things, the Aelaranthae have not made a name for themselves in battle. Valor in war is the easiest way to gain fame. With Aelaranthae’s strength, it should be easy. The mages in LeAestas and Amantuile thought the Aelaranthae were races of order because they never harmed anyone. Moreover, they never made a pact with chaos gods. Therefore, they should be on the same side. So, Amantuile decided to ask the Aelaranthae to go to war.

“Esteemed Aelaranthae, will you participate in the campaign against forces of chaos?” Amantuile and Lotharine asked. Amantuile and Lotharine had first hand experience fighting against the Aelaranthae, if such powers were used against the forces of chaos, they would win easily.

“We do not like wars.” The Aelaranthae answered. Wars mean many people were injured. The Aelaranthae did not like the spicy feeling the injured emanated.

“We do not like wars too, but the forces of chaos were evil. They harmed us, hunting us like sheep, they are creatures who could only rob, slaughter, and destroy. By eliminating them, you could free many from their evil grasp.” Lotharine said with conviction. He did not like wars either. However, they must.

Lotharine understood Aelaranthae’s grief. Why should they kill fellow humans? Shouldn’t there be other ways to correct this chaos cult? Nevertheless, they were not as powerful as the Aelaranthae. For the cultist has lost their champion years ago. The wars with the cult of chaos gods is a never-ending war, for they could spawn right beneath their feet. In addition to that, creatures from the dark realm such as goblins and orcs also haunted their every step. All humanity could do was stand firm against the onslaught of chaos.

Surprisingly, The Aelaranthae accepted. The promise about saving humans and making them happy intrigued them.

“Great! Then I shall recruit you to our yearly campaign!” Amantuile smiled broadly. Lotharine and Amantuile rejoiced in their hearts. If the Aelaranthae became war heroes, it would be easier to push for their independence. The humans who suffered under the chaos cult would surely worship The Aelaranthae.

“LeAestas shall join your campaign, Amantuile. The mages and knights from the academy will also come. Let the first campaign for the Aelaranthae be successful!” Lotharine cheered. They then opened a bottle of champagne and drank through the night. Aelaranthae smiled and felt comfortable for they tasted the joy from Amantuile and Lotharine were sweet. It was like a fruit tart and a bottle of apple juice. Aelaranthae were immune to disease and poison for their body has no needs. The expensive champagne Lotharine gave them was no different than water from the river. Instead, they rejoiced in the jubilation of Amantuile and Lotharine.

The expedition began four months later. The Aelaranthae were handed armor, chain mail, and helmets, but none suited their small size. Amantuile was about to make a custom armor for them, but he forgo giving them the armor altogether when he saw the Aelaranthae bent the enchanted steel helmet with their hand as if they were clay and arrows merely bounced off their skin. He surmised that The Aelaranthae wouldn’t need armor.

The Aelaranthae were powerful.

Still, for appearance sake, they gave the Aelaranthae each an enchanted sword, made by Aelaranthae’s apprentice a year ago. The sword was called The Blue Jewel due to the blue glow on the blade as it reacted with Aelaranthae’s mana. The sword would harden when it was filled with mana and it could also discharge its stored mana to unleash a wind slash. It was the strongest sword they could make. The Aelaranthae accepted the sword after commenting how hard the smith must have worked for this sword. Aelaranthae were smart. They have been in the academy for a while and knew the standard of its students. The Blue Jewel was certainly on the higher end of the enchanted equipment.

The campaign began. With over ten thousand soldiers, they marched to the fort from the alliance. Near the border of Antheria and LeAestas. The Aelaranthae were given a horse and were also given uniforms for mages. The Aelaranthae accepted them. Seeing them in other clothes except the usual white gown was a fresh experience for Amantuile and Lotharine.

The Aelaranthae had several dresses, but most of them were white for it was made with their magic. When it was winter, the Aelaranthae would go to the cotton plant and use their magic. The plants would wiggle as strands of cotton from its fruit would spin themselves into a thick robe. When it was summer, the Aelaranthae would find a discarded moth cocoon and again, with their magic a comfy and breathable one-piece silk garment was created.

Such clothes were made pure and seamless. Even though they were in a forest, their clothes were never sullied. Whenever a blemish from rain or puddle of water on the street hit them, The one-piece silk garment. would clean them using magic. Moreover, one-piece silk garment. do not produce grime or sweat. So, the clothes they wore were always in pristine form.

Such a performance was bewitching and intimidating at the same time. All seemed to dance within Aelaranthae’s palm. Threads from cotton would spin by itself as if it begged to be worn by the divine avatar of the goddess. Moths would cast their silk into Aelaranthae’s outstretched hand like a loyal retinue giving its mistress her just tribute. The merchants who desired to sell jewelry and clothes backed out once they saw their own wares and compared them to the Aelaranthae’s ethereal magic.

Everything looked good on the Aelaranthae. That is a universal fact approved by the goddess. Amantuile and Lotharine once again reminded of that fact when the Aelaranthae rode their horses with standard mage uniform. They were cute. The robe was black with golden trim on the edges. The blue lining on the inside complemented the Aelaranthae white hair and blue eyes nicely. The robes were open at the front, revealing a white shirt and blue skirt worn by the Aelaranthae. A white hosiery that went up to their waist, tightened by a belt was also worn. A white beret with black lining puffed out cutely on Aelaranthae’s head.

On her shoulder were three stripes of golden embroidery, marking that she is the third rank. Fifth rank is the general, which was held by Lucoria, the commander of this expedition, fourth rank was regiment commander, which was held by Amantuile. Third rank were held by both Aelaranthae as mage commander troops, and Lotharine, as commander for reserve troops. Second rank belongs to team leaders or units inside the respective group. The first rank was for common soldiers.

Despite Amantuile’s rebellious behavior in Lucianne, the empire did not speak a word about the campaign and proceeded as usual. Some talks happened behind the scenes and Amantuile was excited when he was allowed to accompany General Lucoria on his quest to eradicate the remnant of chaos warriors.

During the journey, The Aelaranthae felt the tense air hanging around. Wariness, fear, and some expectation. It coalesced into some kind of spicy taste tinged with umami and chicken broth, like curry inside their heart. Ae Nae did not appreciate the taste, however Ae Zir liked it. The first differences between the two Aelaranthae were finally formed. With telepathy, They were closer to hive mind than most creatures, but each Aelaranthae have their own personality and this war proved it. The Goddess did not want to create a hive mind because She still values diversity.

“Goblins!” a horse rider came to Amantuile.

Goblins were one of the monsters of the underworld. They were numerous and spawned in large numbers. They were known for their strength in numbers. If one goblins were seen, you could expect ten or even a hundred more around.

Together with cavalry groups, The Aelaranthae and Amantuile supported the village where goblins besieged them. In rural towns, corruption easily spreads. If the concentration were high enough, a portal to the realm might spawn, letting hellspawns such as goblins, imps, and even orcs rampage on the mortal world.

After the knights routed the goblins, The Aelaranthae felt relief from the villagers, in addition to that, they felt anger, and lost. Such emotions tasted like thick spicy soup. Such complex emotions made the Aelaranthae frown. Ae Zir was quite eager but Ae Nae hesitated. Lucoria left several knights in the village to help them rebuild the fence the goblins damaged. He didn’t want to dawdle, he just got word that their destination, Tigris Fortress was sieged and they had to cross a forest before reaching their destination. Time was against them.

The tension in the air persists. Forests were synonymous with ambushes, so the soldiers took shifts as night guards. The month-long journey was arduous. The tired soldiers gave both Aelaranthae a hard to digest feeling. The frustration, lack of sleep due to night shifts, and fear of ambush gave the Aelaranthae a smelly feeling and they didn’t enjoy it. The Aelaranthae advised them to take a break, but the commanders advised against it. Even common soldiers refused it, they said that they would be able to take a break once they were at the fort.

Sensing the resolution, the Aelaranthae abide by the command. Amantuile was about to capitulate to Aelaranthae every demand, but sensing that they actually listened to advice made him respect the Aelaranthae even more. He just realized, they were not slaves to pride or arrogance, merely aloof and reclusive. They did not take pride in their enormous power.

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As they arrived at the fort, goblins and orcs were besieging it with crudely made catapult and siege towers while imps flew at the sky, harassing the archers that were shooting at the orcs. Imps were demon-like creatures with ashen skin that could fly and shoot magic from their tail. A single arrow could kill it if it hit the target. However Aelaranthae don’t need such a thing. The Aelaranthae waved them off like waving flies. With a mere wave of her hand, a tornado cleaned up the demons as if people were sweeping dirt out of their house.

Aelaranthae are powerful

Awe and relief from the soldiers were felt by the Aelaranthae after they rendezvoused at the fort. With such big accomplishments at their belt, Amantuile and Lotharine were confident that they could summon a council from The Alliance to discuss about granting independence to Aelaranthae town.

After seeing such a spectacle and being saved by the Aelaranthae, The soldiers treated them with utmost respect after they knew first hand what the Aelaranthae could do. The Aelaranthae asked Amantuile whether they could go back to their town, but Amantuile refused. They had to scout the surroundings for more of the demons before going home. The campaign isn’t over just by relieving the sieging force.

Lucoria gave a briefing and asked the Aelaranthae, Amantuile, and Lotharine to perform raids to the neighboring town and settlement. After a month, 3 towns were liberated from orcs and goblins of the underworld. During the raid, goblin archers managed to shoot the Aelaranthae with their poisoned arrow, but it didn’t even scratch them. The arrow did nothing more than ripping a hole on their cute uniform.

[Nae, you didn’t like war? Want to go home? I can handle it here.] Nae Zir asked telepathically inside a virtual room in their head, they laid down in soft bed. In this virtual room, they could make anything. To the Aelaranthae, this room, this world felt more real to them than the outside.

[Hm… you know I can’t do that, right?] Ae Nae answered. On the outside, they merely sat on the bed, staring at each other without saying anything. However, on the inside, the Aelaranthae were more expressive. The villagers once had a discussion whether The Aelaranthae actually hate each other since they never saw them talk to each other. They also rarely look at each other, never smile at each other, they even barely look at each other. However, their assumption could never be further from the truth.

[Well, we have been together since we were born, I don’t know if we can still talk if you got home and that scares me.] Aelaranthae formed a connection with each other via telepathic link. The goddess desired the Aelaranthae to always understand each other. Through Mana, they should be able to communicate over a very long distance. However, the Aelaranthae felt there was a limit. The thought of trying to disconnect with each other never even crossed their mind.

[Nyaw… this sucks… I wanna taste humans that are happy like loving family, not murder like this…] Ae Nae sprawled on her bed in VR and complained. [I don’t get your taste. They are killing each other. This is dangerous. Some of them were injured. Did you like the taste of agony?]

[it’s up to us to not let it become that! Can’t you feel the awe, excitement, and glory they all felt? But I shouldn’t help them that much. The glory they felt lessened considerably.] Ae Zir pondered on the white porcelain chair. She didn’t like it when others felt pain either. but she wanted those exhilaration when soldiers won the battle.

[Well, if you look at it that way, I guess it was kinda tasty? I am not sure I will risk it though. The grief of the injured and the one who lost their family was a big no from me. If we lose this war, the feeling of despair and loss is disgusting.]

[We are powerful! As long as the humans do not screw up, we will be fine!] Ae Zir jumped and hugged Ae Nae from the top, overlapping her. They loved doing this and played in the virtual room they created. The closer they are to each other, the safer they feel.

Don’t be mistaken, even though the Aelaranthae were playing inside their virtual room, they still did their duty. A window that displayed the real world was hanging on one of the walls. From the outside, the Aelaranthae appeared to be cool as cucumbers, doing their job seriously. Like scouting, riding, and night watch. The heatwave of summer did not affect them, not a single complaint was heard from their mouth. Even the elite soldiers under Amantuile voiced their admiration.

[Munya….] Nae and Zir pinched each other's cheeks as they sprawled on the cozy bed in VR while their real body was sitting on a watch tower. They summoned bunches of pillows and fought each other. Then, they summoned a swimming pool and swam before going back to bed. It is a virtual room, anything they desire could be materialized. A single wave of their hands and the water could be drained from their clothes.

The Alliance was a melting pot of different cultures and It really showed in this fort. The most numerous were soldiers from the Antheria Empire. Followed by the Desert nation of Petraea, then Celestialine’s priest, then LeAestas’s mages and Silvaris’s archers. In these three months, Amantuile tried to convince the Silvaris and Petraea representatives about the Aelaranthae. Even though the Aelaranthae appeared like a human child, they could tell that the Aelaranthae were not human with a single glance. However, the reception was lukewarm.

As Amantuile feared, The Aelaranthae were a new race. They had no more than 2 people in their race. Moreover, they wonder whether they had to include The Aelaranthae as a new race. The Holy Kingdom of Celestialine wanted to include the Aelaranthae as one of their citizens. Of course, Amantuile and Lotharine refused. The Petraea also wanted to include The Aelaranthae as their citizens because they felt the Aelaranthae could make great accomplishments in their glass making industry as craftsmen. Amantuile and Lotharine sighed at the greed of these other nations. Petraea and Celestialine then realized that LeAestas and Amantuile had vested interest in the Aelaranthae. The sign was there. It was not the Aelaranthae who asked them for independence, but Amantuile and Lotharine.

It was true, Amantuile wanted an independent country, free from taxes and the greedy king while Lotharine wanted the Aelaranthae to be free from Antheria, to ensure their magical knowledge was not stolen. Nevertheless, the Alliance couldn’t acknowledge the foundation of a new country when the majority of the populace of the country itself belong to foreign race. If the Aelaranthae were to be granted independence, they would eventually become vassal states due to their small territory and The Alliance didn’t like small countries, rebellion and civil war tended to happen in oppressed vassal states.

Meanwhile, Lucoria was peering at the report of such conversation from his spy. Despite Amantuile's best effort, it still made its way to General Lucoria. Ever since the king received the chalice of life, he has gone insane. He handed down noble titles like cheap bread to anyone who could give him the chalice. Lucoria’s hatred goes to the Aelaranthae themselves. He hated how disloyal these Aelaranthae are. They should be doing their best for the kingdom. Their chalice of lives could save hundreds of lives, yet they refused to give it. However, it changed today.

Humans were known for their greed. But not all of its eyes were on silver and gold. Lucoria in particular was a military man. He didn’t like how infatuated the king was with that simple chalice that could only help ten people at most. However, after seeing the magic that surpassed common sense cast by the Aelaranthae with just a wave of their little hand, he wanted to recruit the Aelaranthae into his rank. Winning a war means saving hundreds or even thousands of people in border towns. Such was Lucoria’s thirst, whose father was slain in a demon’s ambush. With Aelaranthae’s power, he would be able to vanquish all that is evil.

Since Amantuile was close to The Aelaranthae, Lucoria let him do as he wanted. Including sneaking and talking to the captains of other nations. Unlike Amantuile, Lucoria didn’t favor such political maneuvering. He thus called for the Aelaranthae themselves for a dinner invitation. However, little did he know, Aelaranthae have no needs. And so, the huge silverback turkey with twenty five herbs and seventeen fillings his royal chef prepared tasted as plain as water or dry bread for the Aelaranthae.

It was even more insulting when the Aelaranthae fed the exquisite fifty gold feast to a random bird that happened to perch on the windows of their dining room.

“Was the food not to your liking?” Lucoria asked. Sweat of nervousness started pouring from his head. He had never met someone who genuinely disliked his chef’s best food. Never in his life he saw someone acting as uninterested in these luxury dishes as the Aelaranthae. Even ambassadors from rival nations who refrained from eating it still stole some glance at the food.

“We do not need to eat. All food tasted the same to us. It is better to share this food to other soldiers. We love seeing their happy face.” the saint-like responses made Lucoria frowned. Nevertheless, they still eat. But the way they eat was merely as a courtesy. A small bite, not even a mouthful was on their plate. Lucoria who have attended many diplomatic meetings knew the difference.

Nevertheless, Lucoria continued with his recruitment. He passionately shared his vision with the Aelaranthae, “Your achievement was spectacular. Similar to you, I too love seeing my subjects happy. For that, I must protect them from the evil of this world. Will you help me? Together, we can eradicate this world of chaos and we all could live safely!”

“Too many deer will kill the grass, too many tigers will kill the deer. We shall help only when necessary.” Unexpectedly the Aelaranthae gave lukewarm answers. This was because they had seen how the ecosystem worked. Similar to Lucoria, at first the Aelaranthae protected the deer against tigers since they didn’t want the deer to get scared. However, as time went by, the emotions the Aelaranthae felt from the deer lessened. Moreover, the grass the deer grazed soon ran out. No matter what magic Aelaranthae used, the grass didn’t grow for they had exhausted the nutrients from the soil. And so, the Aelaranthae began to let tigers hunt the deer occasionally.

Lucoria who heard about this felt insulted. The arrogance of the Aelaranthae enraged him. He drew his ceremonial sword and threatened “We are not pets or livestock! Are you with the chaos race?”

The Aelaranthae were surprised, the amenable feeling they felt from Lucoria, the hopeful feeling turned into a rage as swift as the wind. This was not the first time it happened, what surprised them was that they did not view Lucoria the same as greedy merchants or nobles who tried to buy the chalice. Moreover, they did not reject Lucoria's offer, so they were confused about the reason for his anger.

As the blade went closer, Ae Zir caught it with her hands and crumpled the sword with her hand. Lucoria was bewildered. His anger turned into fear. He realized his blunder. The Aelaranthae were invincible and he just made an enemy of them haphazardly.

“We shall help. But not always.” The Aelaranthae reiterated their piece. Lucoria calmed down and the Aelaranthae breathed a sigh of relief inside their virtual room. Human language was too obscure and vague for the Aelaranthae. Lucoria then realized Aelaranthae's obscured way of talking might mean they were just evading his recruitment. Through his intel, he had guessed that Aelaranthae bow to no one.

[He was angry for a second there! Why?] Nae asked Zir inside their virtual room.

[Maybe he was angry because we thought of them as livestocks?]

[We didn’t say that! We merely refused to be his underling. And it is true if we help too much, the human will feel complacent, their feelings will be lessened. Moreover, we are but two Aelaranthae. Antheria’s empire alone was about a hundred times bigger than our city, right? Who’s going to guard all the borders and towns?]

[we should not say that. We can’t talk to deer, but humans react to whatever we say. Their emotions are the most delicious but also unstable.]

The Aelaranthae then continued a meaningless chatter with Lucoria while coordinating their speech telepathically. Lucoria was disappointed at the lack of resolve these Aelaranthae have. They felt like one of those corrupt nobles in the capital. They do not care about the fate of villagers and poor people in the boonies. As long as they are not threatened, they will feel content. Sometimes, they will put out a charity to stroke their own ego.

The goddess nodded at Lucoria’s way of thinking. In a sense, he was right. The Aelaranthae do not care about people’s fate so far out of reach. However, The Aelaranthae are different from corrupt nobles. They have no needs, and thus, they should not have greed. Because their only need is positive emotions from their surroundings, the Aelaranthae would strive to make their surroundings a happy place. And it has been proven in Aelaranthae town. Unlike corrupt nobles that desire wealth even at the cost of other people, The Aelaranthae need neither food nor luxury. Thus, there was no corruption. And so, the people were happier. This was the goddess’s goal. She had no desire to fulfill every man's wish for it only brought opulence. The Aelaranthae were made incorruptible.

After three months had passed, Amantuile returned from their campaign. Medals were given to the Aelaranthae and Amantuile before they returned. The return journey was uneventful. But deep down, conflicting emotions arose from the three characters. Amantuile, Lucoria, and Lotharine. The talk about independence came to a halt as they couldn’t prove the Aelaranthae were able to procreate. It has been over ten years, twenty if you count the first meeting with the exiles. Yet the Aelaranthae did not increase. No matter what history Amantuile delved into, there were only two of them.

Soon, that will change. The goddess blessing and curse will soon befall the Aelaranthae.