When we arrived at the World Tree Forest, the Elf Queen quickly arrived.

　She jumped into my chest and

It's as if a lifetime of happiness has been exhausted, to see Master Ike twice in such a short period of time.

　He laughed innocently.

'How many hundreds of years do you think an elf has in his life? I thought we shouldn't use our luck for such nonsense.

'The basic rule of life for elves is thin and long. I don't mind living a short, thick life.

　She prefaced this by continuing.

''Ever since Ike-sama came to this forest, our clan's destiny began to shift dramatically. Time passed faster as if the hundreds of years before that were a lie. Then my heart is beating faster, and I can't complain to the gods if its life span expires earlier than normal.

That's all right. At least Master Ferrette can't die before me.

Does that mean you're willing to die to protect me?

That's part of it, but...

Do you have one?

Well, if all goes in order, I'll be the first to die.

''Huh, but isn't Ike-sama an immortal?　Is it possible to die?

'Yes. Then I guess I'll be the first one to decay.

　Well, since she is a human inside, she is not in a position to say that she will die first.

　She could reveal her identity to Ferrette, the Elf Queen, but this girl's lightness of speech was as light as a feather.

　And she wasn't the type of person who could hold a secret.

　Once she knew the secret, she seemed to be the type to wear out her mind, desperately trying to hide it.

　It would be in both of our interests to keep quiet here.
　With that in mind, I first thanked the Queen for letting me use the place for this meeting.

''Thank you, Ferrette-sama, for lending us the elven village for personal reasons.

No, no, please don't mind me. Master Ike and I are like a wife and husband. What is mine is Ike's and what is his is mine.

I'd appreciate it if you could.

　Daring to ignore the words wife and husband, I handed him a rare mushroom imported from Zenobia as a hand-me-down.

'What are these?'

It's a rare mushroom imported from Xenovia. It is said to come from the Spice Islands in the south. It's dried and keeps for a long time. You can eat it later. I hear it has a very nice aroma.

　Are you sure about Ferrette?　I smell the mushrooms with a twinkle in my eye, but I frown.

　Apparently, it's not a scent I like very much.

　Well, even in a past life, the smell of matsutake mushrooms is not popular with foreigners. The scent of truffles is also unpopular with the Japanese. It is no surprise that food preferences and tastes vary greatly depending on race, ethnicity, and individual.

　I should have just followed Satie's recommendation and brought a bouquet of flowers.
　I thought about it, but it's not easy for a man to make such a decision.

'You can't eat flowers, can you?

　That's the kind of impression that comes to mind.
　I guess that's why Cephiro scolds me so often. He said you don't understand women's minds.
　However, as expected of Satie, did she anticipate this in advance?

　She told Ferrette.
You can pick this up as well.
　And he took out a tea leaf. It was tea from Ivalice.

　It is not just a tea, but an original blend of smoked and fragrant apples and dried apple peels, with a faint scent of fruit.

　Ferrette sniffed it fearfully, but she seemed to like it.

'I'll have a quick drink later.

　He smiled at me.
　After all, this kind of hospitality would not be possible for a professional maid.
　With that in mind, I decided to ask Satie for more help.

Tomorrow, General E. Ludle will come to the forest. I want to offer him all the hospitality I can at that time. Can I leave the preparations for that to Satie?

　Satie smiles, as she should.

'Of course, sir. Master.'

　That smile convinced me.

　At least this man, E. Rudre, would not complain about the food he was served.

　However, whether that would lead to the success of the meeting remains to be seen.

　If diplomacy and orchestration were successful just by feeding them a good meal, all diplomats would be competing in their culinary skills.

　But even so, you can give them a better impression of themselves than by feeding them bad food.

　With that in mind, I asked Ferrette for permission to use the kitchen in the Queen's palace and let Satie use her skills to her heart's content.