Arifureta : King Of Demons

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Eight Years Ago, in Ferbergen

"You... are you interested in Aldias?"

"Whoa!?"

Young Altina was silently watching Aldias, a Demonfolk she had never seen before, from behind a tree when a voice suddenly came from behind her, making her jump in surprise. She quickly turned around and saw a blonde girl, slightly older than herself, who had visited Ferbergen with Aldias.

"N-no!? It's not that I'm interested!? It's just that I've never seen an outsider before, so it's rare!?"

"...So, you are interested?"

"Ugh!? That's... yes."

Altina hurriedly denied it, but it was still true that she was curious, and aletia pointed it out again.

"Um... who are you?"

"I'm aletia. Aldias's older sister."

"You're his older sister?"

"Mm!"

Altina observed aletia, who puffed out her chest. While they both shared the trait of being good-looking, Altina couldn't sense any blood relation between Aldias and aletia from their appearances. Since they were of different races to begin with, they probably weren't actual siblings. However, she decided not to pry further into someone's family matters, as it would be impolite. More than that, Altina had something she wanted to ask aletia, who was Aldias's sister.

"M-my name is Altina... Um, aletia-san. There's something I'd like to ask."

"Hm? What is it?"

"...Why is Aldias-san so incredibly strong?"

"Strong?"

"Yes. Even though he's not much older than me, he easily handled Jin-sama, who's one of the top contenders in Ferbergen, and spoke as an equal with my grandfather and the other elders. I could never do anything like that."

"..."

As the next chief, Altina had often helped her grandfather, Ulfric, with his work and attended meetings since she was young. This wasn't something Ulfric forced her into; Altina did it voluntarily. Ulfric had wanted her to live like a girl her age, but since she said she wanted to do it, he decided to let her do as she pleased. He probably felt happy that she said she wanted to become a splendid chief like him.

Altina, who often accompanied Ulfric, was young and inexperienced, so she naturally couldn't interject in meetings and mostly just sat there bewildered. She had considered gaining strength to protect Ferbergen if politics weren't her forte, but her body wasn't fully developed yet, and her personality wasn't suited for combat, so at most, learning the basics of self-defense was her limit.

Nevertheless, for Altina, who had resigned herself to being a child and thus limited, Aldias's presence was astonishing. The fact that someone her age possessed the power to easily handle Jin and converse as an equal with Ulfric and the others was enough to shatter Altina's common sense. How could he acquire such power... how could he acquire such knowledge... Altina found it incredibly mysterious.

After hearing Altina's question, aletia pondered for a while before slowly opening her mouth.

"...Aldias and I aren't real siblings. You understand that, right?"

"That's... yes."

"To tell you the truth, it's only been two or three months since we first met."

"Eh!? Is that so!?"

Altina had imagined they weren't blood-related, but she widened her eyes in shock, never expecting their acquaintance to be so brief.

"Um... why do you seem so close? No, I don't mean to imply that time is everything, but..."

"...Aldias lit up my gray world with color."

"Color?"

"Betrayed by the family I believed in, trapped in a dark place, I despaired of everything. Aldias reached out his hand to me then. He saved me from the utter darkness. He truly taught me hope. I am who I am because Aldias is here."

"..."

The story aletia told was highly abstract, and young Altina couldn't fully comprehend it. Still, she understood that aletia deeply trusted Aldias from the bottom of her heart. It wasn't logical; it was probably a child's intuition.

"Indeed, Aldias is strong. But I don't think Aldias's true strength comes from power or knowledge. I think the root of Aldias's strength comes from his strong will."

"Will...?"

"Aldias has a mission to fulfill. But there are many obstacles blocking that path. If he makes a mistake, he might even turn his own brethren... or the world, against him."

"The world!?"

"Even so, Aldias won't stop moving forward. Even if those he should protect turn their blades on him, even if they show him hatred, he will surely continue to fight... I could never do that."

A shadow fell over aletia's expression. When she learned that her trusted family and the people she was supposed to protect had betrayed her, aletia didn't resist at all. If she respected her uncle's wishes, not resisting was probably the best option. Unlike Aldias, she had no means of countering the gods, so it was clear there was no chance of victory. Nevertheless, the thought continued to swirl in her mind: was that truly the right thing to do? Could things have worked out if they had joined forces?

"...That's why Aldias is strong. Because he has an unwavering belief that he will never give up, no matter what despair assails him."

"...An unwavering belief."

Hearing aletia's words, Altina questioned herself. Did she possess such resolve? Or was she just making a convenient excuse, saying it was because she was still a child? She had always wondered why there was such a difference despite their similar ages. But after hearing aletia's story and seeing her expression, she felt it was even presumptuous to compare them.

Altina averted her gaze from aletia and looked at Aldias again. His back, still confidently conversing with her grandfather. The immense pressure weighing on his smaller frame. The strong will residing in his eyes.

"Aldias-sama..."

A fire ignited in Altina's eyes, and her cheeks flushed. She probably didn't even realize her honorific for Aldias had changed. However, aletia's eyes, already twisted by her brother complex, couldn't be deceived.

"It's a hundred years too early for a little girl to harbor feelings of love for Aldias."

"Huh!? W-w-wait, I don't feel anything like that for Aldias-sama!?"

"Your honorific for Aldias changed from 'san' to 'sama'."

"H-haah!?"

aletia sighed deeply at Altina, who was flustered and sputtering.

"Aldias will eventually stand at the center of the Demonfolk... no, the world. As his sister, I cannot approve of just any random person."

"H-how can I get you to approve...?"

"At the very least, you won't even be able to talk until you can express your opinions in meetings as the next chief of Ferbergen. Well, even then, that's just the starting line."

"Ugh..."

Altina clutched her head at the condition aletia had set. In other words, there was no way she would be approved no matter how hard she struggled now. However, she slapped both cheeks and mentally switched gears. Altina, the granddaughter of the elder of the Sylvani, a high-ranking beastfolk tribe, was literally treated as a noble, a princess of Ferbergen. Even when she spent time with those her age, she was treated preferentially and had never been able to build truly equal relationships. This aspect probably contributed to her willingness to accompany Ulfric in his duties.

Among all of this, she encountered Aldias, who was her age, showed no particular reaction to her status or beauty, and effortlessly accomplished things she couldn't. She couldn't help but be drawn to him. After hearing aletia's story, those feelings surged even more strongly. She could no longer give up.

"Then, I'll become it! A being worthy of standing by Aldias-sama's side... I absolutely will!!"

"I won't approve unless it's an extraordinary effort... but, well, do your best."

aletia replied with a faint smile to Altina's forceful declaration.

"---You said that, didn't you!?"

"...I'm a woman who doesn't look back at the past."

"Look at me when you say that!?"

aletia said something nonsensical, looking in a completely different direction. aletia herself clearly remembered what she had said. At the time, she had the spirit of an older sister, intending to scrutinize her brother's potential partner, but now the situation had changed. Although she had just uttered some rather dangerous words, it was hard for aletia to deny them, given that she had instigated the situation herself.

"I believed in your words, aletia-san, and worked hard all this time! I won't let you say you don't remember!! Is there a reason?! If so, please tell me!!"

"..."

"aletia-san!!"

"Ugh..."

aletia recoiled as Altina leaned across the table, bringing her face closer. However, resigned to Altina's insistence on an explanation, aletia reluctantly began to explain.

"S-so... you, aletia-san, have also fallen in love with Aldias-sama...?"

"......Mm."

"..."

Altina, having heard aletia's confession, sat back in her chair and stared intently at aletia. Just as aletia, feeling a pang of guilt, was about to say something.

"I see. I understand the reason now. Then, I also understand why you hesitated, aletia-san."

"...You're not angry?"

"Why would I need to be angry?"

"Because I said such self-important things..."

"I was surprised, but I'm not angry. Aldias-sama has become an even more wonderful gentleman than I imagined. It's not strange to harbor feelings of love if you can be by such a person's side."

"I-is that so?"

aletia had expected to be met with at least one complaint, but her worries turned out to be unfounded, and she breathed a sigh of relief. Seeing this, Altina grinned.

"But I'm relieved. From your demeanor, it seems your relationship with Aldias-sama hasn't progressed, has it?"

"Ugh..."

"Then I have a chance too."

"Hmm, I'm not planning on losing either."

The two glared at each other across the table. However, after a while, they simultaneously burst out laughing and smiled.

"Then, we are rivals, aren't we? I have no intention of yielding the top spot, aletia-san."

"That's my line. And you can just call me aletia."

"!!—I, I understand, aletia!"

Altina's smile deepened at aletia's words. Besides Aldias, she had longed for a relationship where she could call girls her age by their names without honorifics, as her position in Ferbergen meant she had no friends. Thinking such thoughts, Altina asked something that had been bothering her.

"Speaking of which, it's a bit late to ask, but why hasn't your appearance changed, aletia?"

Compared to when they came to Ferbergen eight years ago, Aldias had grown appropriately for the passage of time, but aletia's appearance hadn't changed at all. Altina, who had been curious about this, somehow decided to ask.

"I'll skip the details, but... I don't age."

If an official alliance with Ferbergen were formed, she wouldn't mind explaining in detail, but for now, she would just omit the specifics and explain that she didn't age.

"W-what is that!?"

"Well, it's understandable to be surprised, and I know you're curious, but—"

"So, that means you can maintain that beauty for your entire life!?"

"...That's what you're focusing on?"

Not aging. Everyone would be astonished to hear that. Nobles consumed by greed would even throw away all their wealth to learn the method. Of course, it wasn't something that could be achieved with money, but...

However, the first thing Altina mentioned was the maintenance of beauty. aletia was also a woman, but having stopped growing at age 12, she was immune to the signs of aging skin and couldn't quite understand the feelings of people like Cattleya or Altina.

(Cattleya said something similar too... I guess women her age all care about that? Well, I understand wanting to be beautiful in front of the person you like.)

aletia casually thought such things, ignoring Altina, who was gripping her shoulders and shaking her violently. At that moment—

"Hm?"

"?—Is something wrong?"

"...Hm, it's nothing."

A momentary ripple in the air. Probably a distortion caused by someone releasing magic. Beastfolk, with a few exceptions, generally cannot use magic. Among those present who could use magic, besides aletia, only Aldias and Gahard could. Gahard was currently with Ulfric and the others. If there was a commotion, it should be heard where aletia and the others were. Therefore, the cause could only be Aldias.

Before Aldias pursued the person who had been monitoring them, Ulfric had briefly told him about them.

(Rabbitfolk trained by a labyrinth conqueror, just like us. I heard they're quite a dangerous bunch... but Aldias wouldn't initiate hostile action without reason. Is it someone difficult to talk to, or...)

aletia's expression turned stern for a moment, but then quickly returned to her usual blank look. aletia debated whether to go and provide support, but if support was truly needed, Aldias would have requested it. Besides, if Aldias were to be in a situation where he had to go all out, the girl in front of her wouldn't feel nothing.

(It seems it won't be easy.)

The Hartzina Sea of Trees, where towering trees blocked the sunlight, creating a dense atmosphere and a pervasive mist that lent it a mystical quality, revealed a peculiar sight in one corner.

"Ugh...!?"

"Damn it...!?"

The surrounding trees were all knocked down, and the ground was heavily gouged. In a situation that looked like a natural disaster, numerous Haulia tribe members lay sprawled on the ground, their faces twisted in agony. And this was no exception for the chief, Kam Haulia.

"Guh, y-you bastard...!"

With a last surge of defiance, he glared at the man who calmly looked down on him. Yet, even when subjected to a dense killing intent that could stiffen the body of a general-class individual, the man didn't even twitch an eyebrow.

"...Is this the end?"

Aldias stated plainly to the fallen Haulia tribe.