On The Other Side: I Quit Being Human

A/N: This chapter is messed up for some reason. It has happened twice for reasons I don't know!

———

Pitter-patter.

"I am sorry for making everyone wait!"

A tiny and quick step along with an exclamation attract our attention. All of us turn our head to the direction where the person who owns the voice is coming from, and we find Arieda walking toward us in hurry.

She is already dressed in a black one piece dress that reaches the ground. She has to even lift it slightly to not get tripped. Her hair is no longer tied in a pony tail; each side of her hair is now beautifully braided, whereas the rest is let loose.

She does look more presentable this time; she looked like a tomboy when she was still wearing her leather pants and short sleeved shirt. Now, she looks and behaves like a bona fide girl.

"Huuh... Thank goodness I didn't make you wait too long." Arieda's sighs in relief when she reaches the table. "Oh, I hope I didn't irritate you by wasting your meal time, Mr. Layland."

"What do you think I am? A grumpy old man?" I snort lightly in amusement. Waving my hand, I say, "I just don't like people who treat serious matters ignorantly. I don't frown at many things."

"Ah, yes. You are that kind of serious person." Arieda nods her head in agreement. She already sits herself beside Eliseus. "Well, Mother..." She turns to Haletha. "Why don't we start the meal?"

Haletha quirks her eyebrow in wonder before nodding her head simply. Waving her hand, two of the maids standing motionlessly on the side open the gigantic door that is on my left.

Immediately, seven trolley tables that are pushed by seven maids enter the room. The maids standing by immediately approach the table, before putting all of the foods on the trolley tables on the dining table.

They work swiftly and meticulously. They organise each plate skillfully—they setting looks aesthetic.

After roughly a minute, all of the plates that are filled with delicacies are already put on the table. Six of the maids stay in the room, whereas the others leave the room after doing their job.

Haletha smiles at us, and gestures at the food. "Let us dig in, everyone. I am confident in our cooks' skill, so I hope we will have the same opinion on the food."

Nodding our head lightly, all of us pick up our knife and fork—yes, Elves do use knives and forks. All of them are made from wood; but for the knife, there is an obsidian replacing its edge.

The obsidian edge is shaped smoothly and perfectly, so I doubt the method they use to make it is flint knapping. I also don't find even a tiny bit of shards on my plate; and with a light tap, I can tell it doesn't break easily.

Clearly, Magic is involved in its making. In other words, the knife I am going to use to cut the roasted meat on my plate is a dangerous weapon that can cut any normal human's neck off in seconds.

"Do you find it not to your liking, Layland?" Haletha asks, awakening me from my thought.

"Ah, I was just admiring this knife. I can't sense Mana or see any Rune on it, but despite so, the obsidian still doesn't break easily." I flick the obsidian part of the knife. "It fascinates me."

"Oh, that is actually a quite simple thing to be amazed at." Haletha chuckles faintly. "We coat the obsidian in Nature Essence to temper it. It's as simple as that."

"Oh, so that is the case." I finally got the reason why I can't detect any Mana from many Magical occurrences here. "The light and the Barrier—all of them are powered by Nature Essence, aren't they?"

"Yes, they are."

Nodding my head in satisfaction as I have finally figured out why my mask isn't working, I cut the meat on my plate. It is already tender enough to be easily cut with a cheap knife; with the knife I am using, I don't feel like I have just cut something.

Sticking my fork into the meat I have cut, I bring it to my mouth ... Until, I realize everyone looking at me.

"What?"

"Ah, no. You can enjoy your meal without minding us," Eliseus quickly responds.

"We are not looking at you, Layland," Vibiane lamely says.

"I am just curious if you will like the food," Haletha states stoically.

Arieda is the only one who doesn't give any excuse; but, like others, she looks full of expectation for some reason. I am sure they are curious about how I eat with my mask on though, so I am going to shock them.

Thinking about entering something to my mouth, I feel the part of the mask that is covering my mouth disappear even though it is still there. My fork passes through my mask and enters my mouth; the meat is as tender as it looks.

"Haah..." Everyone collectively sighs in disappointment.

'What the fuck? I thought you were curious about how I eat! Is it not cool enough that I don't have to take my mask off to eat? Well, you guys have a crappy standard for coolness!'

Harrumphing lowly at what I have seen, I stop paying attention to the people ever since. I feel betrayed... By my expectation.

I thought they would gasp in surprise at the fact that I didn't need to take my mask off to eat instead of sighing. I don't know what they were expecting, but they were really expecting too much.

"Well, at least the food is delicious," I mutter. "I like Dark Elves better now, because they cook meat. Light Elves eat nothing but leaves... And fruits."

The Light Elf body absorbs nutrition very well. Because of that, they don't need to eat meat to fulfill the nutrition their body needs to grow properly.

That is one of the reasons why they don't hunt animals—they still hunt Beasts that are not considered normal animals though. Still, the main reason they don't kill animals is due to their connection with nature.

Light Elves are more connected to the nature than Dark Elves. They try to understand the nature, whereas Dark Elves have already accepted it as is; and they can communicate with animals.

They understand what each of the animals say—given their soft heart, they can't bring themselves to kill animals for food they don't even need. Of course, their softhearted nature instantly disappears when it pertains to Cursed Creations.

"...so that's how it goes! It was a fairly short journey, but I love every second of it. I don't mind experiencing it another time."

"I do mind, my little daughter."

"Assassination attempt is pretty much an everyday attempt, Mother. I am bound to experience the same thing someday."

By the time I know it, I have almost finished every food that is put on my plate. The others have been busy talking, meanwhile I have been busy eating, so unlike me, their plate is still full of food.

I am shameless enough to keep eating without minding the gaze the people will probably give me, but Haletha's conversation with Arieda intrigues me. What I have heard is a quite shocking piece of information.

Turning my head to Haletha, I politely say, "I don't mean to be nosy, but isn't it dangerous to always let your daughter be constantly exposed to that lifestyle?"

I turn my head to Arieda before turning it back to Haletha. "Arieda encountering us is not a coincidence that can happen everytime. There is a chance that next time, when the same thing happens... You might never see her again."

Haletha looks at me silently for a few seconds, then puts her cutlery down slowly. She sighs and shakes her head bitterly before looking at me with a helpless smile.

"I always put my daughter in my sight whenever I am around her; however, I can't be always around her. There are times when I need to meet the Elders, and that is when those bastards come for her."

"Who are these people aiming for Arieda?" I ask curiously.

Looking ahead emptily for a few seconds, Haletha spitefully says, "The other two rulers of Lysimork—the people who leech off of my predecessors' glory. They are now trying to take over the entire Lysimork and overthrow me."

Blinking my eyes upon seeing Haletha's fierce face, I immediately conclude I have accidentally brought myself to the territory I should never visit. I try to end the talk there, but Haletha keeps talking about the history of her family.

She tells me that Lysimork was entrusted to the first family head of Envenaddle Family by the first Dark Elf—the ancestor of every Dark Elf. Envenaddle Family managed the Kingdom very well; it looks the way it is now because of them.

When the first head family of Envenaddle Family fell ill though, a conflict occured. The two other powerhouses that had stayed silent for hundreds of years finally got greedy.

They demanded for some authority, and they were, unfortunately, given what they wanted. It was the wisest decision to make at that time; alas, it was the beginning of Envenaddle Family's downfall.

The other two powerhouses have been working together to eliminate every Envenaddle in Lysimork throughout the years. They succeed, unfortunately, leaving Haletha and Arieda as the only remaining Envenaddle.

By the time I know it, I hear unexpected informations that are not asked but welcomed.

———

Pitter-patter.

"I am sorry for making everyone wait!"

A tiny and quick step along with an exclamation attract our attention. All of us turn our head to the direction where the person who owns the voice is coming from, and we find Arieda walking toward us in hurry.

She is already dressed in a black one piece dress that reaches the ground. She has to even lift it slightly to not get tripped. Her hair is no longer tied in a pony tail; each side of her hair is now beautifully braided, whereas the rest is let loose.

She does look more presentable this time; she looked like a tomboy when she was still wearing her leather pants and short sleeved shirt. Now, she looks and behaves like a bona fide girl.

"Huuh... Thank goodness I didn't make you wait too long." Arieda's sighs in relief when she reaches the table. "Oh, I hope I didn't irritate you by wasting your meal time, Mr. Layland."

"What do you think I am? A grumpy old man?" I snort lightly in amusement. Waving my hand, I say, "I just don't like people who treat serious matters ignorantly. I don't frown at many things."

"Ah, yes. You are that kind of serious person." Arieda nods her head in agreement. She already sits herself beside Eliseus. "Well, Mother..." She turns to Haletha. "Why don't we start the meal?"

Haletha quirks her eyebrow in wonder before nodding her head simply. Waving her hand, two of the maids standing motionlessly on the side open the gigantic door that is on my left.

Immediately, seven trolley tables that are pushed by seven maids enter the room. The maids standing by immediately approach the table, before putting all of the foods on the trolley tables on the dining table.

They work swiftly and meticulously. They organise each plate skillfully—they setting looks aesthetic.

After roughly a minute, all of the plates that are filled with delicacies are already put on the table. Six of the maids stay in the room, whereas the others leave the room after doing their job.

Haletha smiles at us, and gestures at the food. "Let us dig in, everyone. I am confident in our cooks' skill, so I hope we will have the same opinion on the food."

Nodding our head lightly, all of us pick up our knife and fork—yes, Elves do use knives and forks. All of them are made from wood; but for the knife, there is an obsidian replacing its edge.

The obsidian edge is shaped smoothly and perfectly, so I doubt the method they use to make it is flint knapping. I also don't find even a tiny bit of shards on my plate; and with a light tap, I can tell it doesn't break easily.

Clearly, Magic is involved in its making. In other words, the knife I am going to use to cut the roasted meat on my plate is a dangerous weapon that can cut any normal human's neck off in seconds.

"Do you find it not to your liking, Layland?" Haletha asks, awakening me from my thought.

"Ah, I was just admiring this knife. I can't sense Mana or see any Rune on it, but despite so, the obsidian still doesn't break easily." I flick the obsidian part of the knife. "It fascinates me."

"Oh, that is actually a quite simple thing to be amazed at." Haletha chuckles faintly. "We coat the obsidian in Nature Essence to temper it. It's as simple as that."

"Oh, so that is the case." I finally got the reason why I can't detect any Mana from many Magical occurrences here. "The light and the Barrier—all of them are powered by Nature Essence, aren't they?"

"Yes, they are."

Nodding my head in satisfaction as I have finally figured out why my mask isn't working, I cut the meat on my plate. It is already tender enough to be easily cut with a cheap knife; with the knife I am using, I don't feel like I have just cut something.

Sticking my fork into the meat I have cut, I bring it to my mouth ... Until, I realize everyone looking at me.

"What?"

"Ah, no. You can enjoy your meal without minding us," Eliseus quickly responds.

"We are not looking at you, Layland," Vibiane lamely says.

"I am just curious if you will like the food," Haletha states stoically.

Arieda is the only one who doesn't give any excuse; but, like others, she looks full of expectation for some reason. I am sure they are curious about how I eat with my mask on though, so I am going to shock them.

Thinking about entering something to my mouth, I feel the part of the mask that is covering my mouth disappear even though it is still there. My fork passes through my mask and enters my mouth; the meat is as tender as it looks.

"Haah..." Everyone collectively sighs in disappointment.

'What the fuck? I thought you were curious about how I eat! Is it not cool enough that I don't have to take my mask off to eat? Well, you guys have a crappy standard for coolness!'

Harrumphing lowly at what I have seen, I stop paying attention to the people ever since. I feel betrayed... By my expectation.

I thought they would gasp in surprise at the fact that I didn't need to take my mask off to eat instead of sighing. I don't know what they were expecting, but they were really expecting too much.

"Well, at least the food is delicious," I mutter. "I like Dark Elves better now, because they cook meat. Light Elves eat nothing but leaves... And fruits."

The Light Elf body absorbs nutrition very well. Because of that, they don't need to eat meat to fulfill the nutrition their body needs to grow properly.

That is one of the reasons why they don't hunt animals—they still hunt Beasts that are not considered normal animals though. Still, the main reason they don't kill animals is due to their connection with nature.

Light Elves are more connected to the nature than Dark Elves. They try to understand the nature, whereas Dark Elves have already accepted it as is; and they can communicate with animals.

They understand what each of the animals say—given their soft heart, they can't bring themselves to kill animals for food they don't even need. Of course, their softhearted nature instantly disappears when it pertains to Cursed Creations.

"...so that's how it goes! It was a fairly short journey, but I love every second of it. I don't mind experiencing it another time."

"I do mind, my little daughter."

"Assassination attempt is pretty much an everyday attempt, Mother. I am bound to experience the same thing someday."

By the time I know it, I have almost finished every food that is put on my plate. The others have been busy talking, meanwhile I have been busy eating, so unlike me, their plate is still full of food.

I am shameless enough to keep eating without minding the gaze the people will probably give me, but Haletha's conversation with Arieda intrigues me. What I have heard is a quite shocking piece of information.

Turning my head to Haletha, I politely say, "I don't mean to be nosy, but isn't it dangerous to always let your daughter be constantly exposed to that lifestyle?"

I turn my head to Arieda before turning it back to Haletha. "Arieda encountering us is not a coincidence that can happen everytime. There is a chance that next time, when the same thing happens... You might never see her again."

Haletha looks at me silently for a few seconds, then puts her cutlery down slowly. She sighs and shakes her head bitterly before looking at me with a helpless smile.

"I always put my daughter in my sight whenever I am around her; however, I can't be always around her. There are times when I need to meet the Elders, and that is when those bastards come for her."

"Who are these people aiming for Arieda?" I ask curiously.

Looking ahead emptily for a few seconds, Haletha spitefully says, "The other two rulers of Lysimork—the people who leech off of my predecessors' glory. They are now trying to take over the entire Lysimork and overthrow me."

Blinking my eyes upon seeing Haletha's fierce face, I immediately conclude I have accidentally brought myself to the territory I should never visit. I try to end the talk there, but Haletha keeps talking about the history of her family.

She tells me that Lysimork was entrusted to the first family head of Envenaddle Family by the first Dark Elf—the ancestor of every Dark Elf. Envenaddle Family managed the Kingdom very well; it looks the way it is now because of them.

When the first head family of Envenaddle Family fell ill though, a conflict occured. The two other powerhouses that had stayed silent for hundreds of years finally got greedy.

They demanded for some authority, and they were, unfortunately, given what they wanted. It was the wisest decision to make at that time; alas, it was the beginning of Envenaddle Family's downfall.

The other two powerhouses have been working together to eliminate every Envenaddle in Lysimork throughout the years. They succeed, unfortunately, leaving Haletha and Arieda as the only remaining Envenaddle.

Ihear unexpected informations that are not asked but welcomed by the time I know it.

———

Pitter-patter.

"I am sorry for making everyone wait!"

A tiny and quick step along with an exclamation attract our attention. All of us turn our head to the direction where the person who owns the voice is coming from, and we find Arieda walking toward us in hurry.

She is already dressed in a black one piece dress that reaches the ground. She has to even lift it slightly to not get tripped. Her hair is no longer tied in a pony tail; each side of her hair is now beautifully braided, whereas the rest is let loose.

She does look more presentable this time; she looked like a tomboy when she was still wearing her leather pants and short sleeved shirt. Now, she looks and behaves like a bona fide girl.

"Huuh... Thank goodness I didn't make you wait too long." Arieda's sighs in relief when she reaches the table. "Oh, I hope I didn't irritate you by wasting your meal time, Mr. Layland."

"What do you think I am? A grumpy old man?" I snort lightly in amusement. Waving my hand, I say, "I just don't like people who treat serious matters ignorantly. I don't frown at many things."

"Ah, yes. You are that kind of serious person." Arieda nods her head in agreement. She already sits herself beside Eliseus. "Well, Mother..." She turns to Haletha. "Why don't we start the meal?"

Haletha quirks her eyebrow in wonder before nodding her head simply. Waving her hand, two of the maids standing motionlessly on the side open the gigantic door that is on my left.

Immediately, seven trolley tables that are pushed by seven maids enter the room. The maids standing by immediately approach the table, before putting all of the foods on the trolley tables on the dining table.

They work swiftly and meticulously. They organise each plate skillfully—they setting looks aesthetic.

After roughly a minute, all of the plates that are filled with delicacies are already put on the table. Six of the maids stay in the room, whereas the others leave the room after doing their job.

Haletha smiles at us, and gestures at the food. "Let us dig in, everyone. I am confident in our cooks' skill, so I hope we will have the same opinion on the food."

Nodding our head lightly, all of us pick up our knife and fork—yes, Elves do use knives and forks. All of them are made from wood; but for the knife, there is an obsidian replacing its edge.

The obsidian edge is shaped smoothly and perfectly, so I doubt the method they use to make it is flint knapping. I also don't find even a tiny bit of shards on my plate; and with a light tap, I can tell it doesn't break easily.

Clearly, Magic is involved in its making. In other words, the knife I am going to use to cut the roasted meat on my plate is a dangerous weapon that can cut any normal human's neck off in seconds.

"Do you find it not to your liking, Layland?" Haletha asks, awakening me from my thought.

"Ah, I was just admiring this knife. I can't sense Mana or see any Rune on it, but despite so, the obsidian still doesn't break easily." I flick the obsidian part of the knife. "It fascinates me."

"Oh, that is actually a quite simple thing to be amazed at." Haletha chuckles faintly. "We coat the obsidian in Nature Essence to temper it. It's as simple as that."

"Oh, so that is the case." I finally got the reason why I can't detect any Mana from many Magical occurrences here. "The light and the Barrier—all of them are powered by Nature Essence, aren't they?"

"Yes, they are."

Nodding my head in satisfaction as I have finally figured out why my mask isn't working, I cut the meat on my plate. It is already tender enough to be easily cut with a cheap knife; with the knife I am using, I don't feel like I have just cut something.

Sticking my fork into the meat I have cut, I bring it to my mouth ... Until, I realize everyone looking at me.

"What?"

"Ah, no. You can enjoy your meal without minding us," Eliseus quickly responds.

"We are not looking at you, Layland," Vibiane lamely says.

"I am just curious if you will like the food," Haletha states stoically.

Arieda is the only one who doesn't give any excuse; but, like others, she looks full of expectation for some reason. I am sure they are curious about how I eat with my mask on though, so I am going to shock them.

Thinking about entering something to my mouth, I feel the part of the mask that is covering my mouth disappear even though it is still there. My fork passes through my mask and enters my mouth; the meat is as tender as it looks.

"Haah..." Everyone collectively sighs in disappointment.

'What the fuck? I thought you were curious about how I eat! Is it not cool enough that I don't have to take my mask off to eat? Well, you guys have a crappy standard for coolness!'

Harrumphing lowly at what I have seen, I stop paying attention to the people ever since. I feel betrayed... By my expectation.

I thought they would gasp in surprise at the fact that I didn't need to take my mask off to eat instead of sighing. I don't know what they were expecting, but they were really expecting too much.

"Well, at least the food is delicious," I mutter. "I like Dark Elves better now, because they cook meat. Light Elves eat nothing but leaves... And fruits."

The Light Elf body absorbs nutrition very well. Because of that, they don't need to eat meat to fulfill the nutrition their body needs to grow properly.

That is one of the reasons why they don't hunt animals—they still hunt Beasts that are not considered normal animals though. Still, the main reason they don't kill animals is due to their connection with nature.

Light Elves are more connected to the nature than Dark Elves. They try to understand the nature, whereas Dark Elves have already accepted it as is; and they can communicate with animals.

They understand what each of the animals say—given their soft heart, they can't bring themselves to kill animals for food they don't even need. Of course, their softhearted nature instantly disappears when it pertains to Cursed Creations.

"...so that's how it goes! It was a fairly short journey, but I love every second of it. I don't mind experiencing it another time."

"I do mind, my little daughter."

"Assassination attempt is pretty much an everyday attempt, Mother. I am bound to experience the same thing someday."

By the time I know it, I have almost finished every food that is put on my plate. The others have been busy talking, meanwhile I have been busy eating, so unlike me, their plate is still full of food.

I am shameless enough to keep eating without minding the gaze the people will probably give me, but Haletha's conversation with Arieda intrigues me. What I have heard is a quite shocking piece of information.

Turning my head to Haletha, I politely say, "I don't mean to be nosy, but isn't it dangerous to always let your daughter be constantly exposed to that lifestyle?"

I turn my head to Arieda before turning it back to Haletha. "Arieda encountering us is not a coincidence that can happen everytime. There is a chance that next time, when the same thing happens... You might never see her again."

Haletha looks at me silently for a few seconds, then puts her cutlery down slowly. She sighs and shakes her head bitterly before looking at me with a helpless smile.

"I always put my daughter in my sight whenever I am around her; however, I can't be always around her. There are times when I need to meet the Elders, and that is when those bastards come for her."

"Who are these people aiming for Arieda?" I ask curiously.

Looking ahead emptily for a few seconds, Haletha spitefully says, "The other two rulers of Lysimork—the people who leech off of my predecessors' glory. They are now trying to take over the entire Lysimork and overthrow me."

Blinking my eyes upon seeing Haletha's fierce face, I immediately conclude I have accidentally brought myself to the territory I should never visit. I try to end the talk there, but Haletha keeps talking about the history of her family.

She tells me that Lysimork was entrusted to the first family head of Envenaddle Family by the first Dark Elf—the ancestor of every Dark Elf. Envenaddle Family managed the Lysimork so well, it looks the way it is now because of them.

When the first head family of Envenaddle Family fell ill though, a conflict occured. The two other powerhouses that had stayed silent for hundreds of years finally got greedy.

They demanded for some authority, and they were, unfortunately, given what they wanted. It was the wisest decision to make at that time; alas, it was the beginning of Envenaddle Family's downfall.

The other two powerhouses have been working together to eliminate every Envenaddle in Lysimork throughout the years. They succeed, unfortunately, leaving Haletha and Arieda as the only remaining Envenaddle.

By the time I know it, I hear unexpected informations that are not asked but welcomed.