It was the day of the Peledeia Founding Festival, 200 years ago.
"Your Majesty."
"Resilia?"
Chancellor Resilia appeared before Iris, who was so busy with the Founding Festival schedule she barely had time to breathe.
"You look especially beautiful today."
"Oh my, such flattery from you, Resilia. It seems the handmaidens' diligent efforts since early this morning have paid off."
Adorned in traditional attire for the festival, Iris smiled at Resilia's rare compliment.
"But what brings you here? I heard you were busy with the festival preparations."
"I've left the preparations to the officials under my command."
"Hm?"
Iris was puzzled by her words.
Resilia, with her meticulous nature, couldn't stand not personally overseeing every last detail. For her to entrust something as important as the Founding Festival to others?
"There is a matter I must urgently report to Your Majesty."
"To me?"
"Yes. It is something you must be informed of before the festival proceeds, so I had no choice but to entrust the preparations to others. I beg your forgiveness."
Seeing her far more serious demeanor than usual, Iris dismissed her handmaidens and led the way to a nearby room.
"I've added two spoonfuls of sugar, just as you like it."
"Hehe, thank you."
Iris wore a satisfied expression as she drank the black tea Resilia had prepared for her.
However, as Resilia's story went on, Iris's expression grew increasingly grave.
"...The Northern Empire is preparing for war?"
"Yes, the information comes from a reliable source."
The word 'war' made Iris's head throb.
"Their target isn't us, I presume... Who is it?"
"The Santala Kingdom."
"The Santala Kingdom?"
It didn't make sense.
At this time, the Northern Empire stood to lose more than they would gain by invading the Santala Kingdom.
"A mithril vein was recently discovered near the capital of the Santala Kingdom."
"Mithril..."
Mithril was a precious metal used in many fields, but it seemed hardly enough to justify a war.
However, the discovery of a mithril vein also meant there was a high probability that adamantium was buried there as well.
Adamantium, an essential material for crafting Holy Relics, was a prize sufficient for the warmongering Iron-Blooded Emperor to risk a war.
"Has the Santala Kingdom requested aid?"
"Yes, it was delivered unofficially by messenger this morning."
That meant the Santala Kingdom was already certain that war was coming.
For them to request aid from a neutral nation like Peledeia, the Northern Empire must be preparing for an all-out war.
For such a problem to arise right before the Founding Festival... Iris had to swallow a heavy sigh.
"Refuse them."
"But, Your Majesty, the Northern Empire is a military power that does not recognize the Goddess Cult as its state religion. If the Santala Kingdom falls into their hands, the Northern Empire will share a border with us."
"Even so, we cannot. If we send aid, our status as a neutral nation will be compromised. It would be more appropriate to form a peace treaty with the Northern Empire through future talks."
"...The Iron-Blooded Emperor is not a man of reason."
Iris rose from her seat with a resolute expression.
"Resilia, that is enough on this matter."
After leaving the room, Iris felt her mind, already cluttered with festival preparations, become even more tangled.
The Northern Empire was one of the great powers vying for hegemony over the continent. If a war broke out between such an empire and the Santala Kingdom, a countless number of people would surely die.
Rivers and fields would be stained with blood, and the number of refugees created by the war would be impossible to fathom.
Iris had the means to prevent such a tragedy.
She could send aid to the Santala Kingdom.
If the Kingdom of Peledeia sent support, other nations that held the Goddess Cult as their state religion would also send aid to Santala or condemn the Northern Empire.
No matter how powerful the Northern Empire was, making enemies of so many nations would be a burden. It was highly likely the scale of the war would be reduced, or that the war itself might not even happen.
Even knowing this, Iris could not choose that option.
The status of a neutral nation could only be maintained by remaining neutral for all eternity.
For now, there were many human nations that revered elves and had adopted the Goddess Cult as their state religion, but the passage of time was different for humans and elves.
Iris was certain that in the not-so-distant future for an elf, the influence of the Goddess Cult would wane, and an era would come when humans no longer viewed elves as objects of faith.
She had to ignore the Santala Kingdom's request for aid in preparation for that era.
To avoid giving a pretext for war to those who might one day bare their fangs at Peledeia, she had to be able to turn a blind eye, even to a war destined for a horrific end.
For she was the Queen of Peledeia, the leader of the elves chosen by the World Tree.
She had no choice but to save her thousands of kin over the lives of tens of thousands of humans.
'My choice was not wrong.'
As Iris boarded her carriage, her steps seemed somewhat heavy.
As the carriage neared the Holy Land, the streets grew crowded with the people of Peledeia.
-Look! It's the Queen's carriage!
-Your Majesty!
-Aah!
-Thank you for everything, Your Majesty!
Hearing the bright voices of her people, Iris reminded herself again and again, right up until the moment she stepped out of the carriage, that she had not been wrong.
Iris advanced cautiously toward the World Tree—a colossal tree so tall she couldn't see its top even when she looked up, the mother of all elves, and their one true god.
At the altar of the World Tree, Iris quietly knelt.
Then, slender branches extended from the World Tree, forming a laurel wreath and placing it upon her head.
The Peledeia Founding Festival was an important ceremony to pray to their mother and one true god, the World Tree, for the coming year's prosperity and peace.
On this most important day in Peledeia, a day no one was to disturb, an unforeseen event occurred.
-Wh-What in the...?!
-Huh? The World Tree is...??
-No way... It's never done that before!
-Is something wrong??
-Her Majesty the Queen...
The crowd, without exception, could not hide their bewilderment, murmuring amongst themselves.
"W-World Tree...??"
It was as if the World Tree was recoiling, rejecting Iris.
Since Iris's ascension to the throne, the Founding Festival had been held a total of three times, but nothing like this had ever happened.
Like an abandoned child, Iris reached a trembling hand toward the World Tree, but it only pulled its branches back, still seemingly unwilling to make contact.
At this sight, the crowd's murmuring grew even louder.
Just as the knights, unable to tolerate any more chaos, moved to calm the crowd, a voice loud enough to echo throughout the entire Holy Land rang out.
"She is a sinner!"
At the utterly blasphemous remark directed at the Queen, everyone's gaze turned to the speaker.
At the bottom of the steps leading to the altar, quite a few people were shocked to see the identity of the woman standing there.
And Iris was no different.
"R-Resilia...?"
Resilia, the chancellor of the kingdom, stood with her sword drawn, glaring at Iris.
"People of Peledeia! The World Tree is now expressing its fury at having to face a sinner of the most despicable kind!"
At the sudden appearance of the noble, the commoners instinctively bowed their heads.
And the knight commanders, to a man, unleashed their killing intent toward Resilia.
The killing intent emanating from a knight who had reached a master's realm was an invisible blade that could kill.
Yet Resilia, who took the full force of the commanders' killing intent head-on, did not flinch.
The knights looked at each other in disbelief. This was no chancellor, but a traitor. How could a mere civil official withstand killing intent meant to end her life?
"You wretched woman, have you finally lost your mind!"
"Chancellor! How dare you show such disrespect to Her Majesty the Queen!"
"Do not dare to misinterpret the will of the World Tree!"
A few high-ranking nobles raised their voices, but Resilia paid them no mind.
Instead, her calm advance toward Iris was enough to make the knights see red. Enraged, the knights drew their swords and blocked her path.
"Halt! Only Her Majesty the Queen is permitted beyond this point!"
"How dare a wretch like you attempt to set foot in the Holy Land!"
"Traitor!"
A bluish aura formed on the swords of the three knight commanders who protected the royal family.
Even before this proof of overwhelming, superhuman power that no ordinary person could ever face, Resilia didn't bat an eye.
Instead, the expression that bloomed on her lips was not the gentle smile she usually showed her servants, but a sneer.
"Pfft. A queen? Don't make me laugh."
"Y-You... You blasphemous wretch!!!"
The face of the First Royal Knight Commander, known for his gentle nature, twisted into a demonic snarl.
Just as his sword, swung like a flash of light, was about to reach Resilia's neck, a knight in a black cloak appeared from nowhere and blocked the commander's blade.
"Resilia! You've finally lost your mind! How dare you bring outsiders into the Holy Land?!"
"So the knight commander is nothing special."
"You bastard!!"
The furious knight commander began to trade blows in earnest with the unidentified knight.
As the other knights moved to join the fray, dozens more black-cloaked figures appeared before them.
The knight commanders were aghast at their appearance. Where in the world did these people come from?
The Royal Knights were a small, elite force.
Every one of them was a skilled warrior who had reached the state of awakening and projecting their aura. But their enemies exuded a presence equal to that of the knights.
Moreover, about three of them, including the man fighting the commander, were masters who had reached the same realm as the knight commanders themselves.
"Stop them."
"Yes."
At Resilia's command, the mysterious group charged toward the knights.
At first glance, their numbers and skills seemed similar, but once they clashed, the gap became apparent.
Even though they projected an expert-level presence, they were not on par with the Royal Knights. At best, they could only buy some time.
Of course, that was precisely Resilia's goal.
While they held back the knights, Resilia moved with swift agility, reaching Iris in an instant.
"Resilia!"
Iris cherished Resilia more than anyone, but she had now gone far beyond the point of forgiveness.
Iris was gentle, but she was the monarch of a nation.
Benevolence alone cannot rule a nation. Sternly punishing a subordinate who has crossed the line is also a monarch's virtue.
Though she was confused by the World Tree's reaction, it was not enough to make her overlook Resilia's outrage.
"Don't be too angry, Your Majesty."
Her lips were smiling, but her eyes were not. Wearing an eerie smile, Resilia suddenly committed an atrocity no one could have ever predicted.
"Resilia!!"
Iris, the nobles, and all the people of Peledeia packed into the plaza—everyone was horrified by what happened next.
"So this is what you felt, World Tree."
An unprecedented event had occurred: a mere elf, nothing more than a creation of a god, had dared to lay a hand directly on the divine body (神體) of the World Tree.
It was an act of high treason for which annihilating her entire extended family would be insufficient punishment, but the situation did not end there. An even more astonishing event followed.
"The W-World Tree is...?!"
"No way! How could it... to a woman like her!!"
The crowd was left speechless as branches extended from the World Tree, wrapping around her in an embrace.
"You have my permission to be angry now, Lady Iris."
A sinister, ominous smile bloomed on Resilia's face as she looked at Iris.