I Became a 10,000-year-old Elf

“You look very satisfied. It seems you sold that thing you took last time for quite a high price.”

“That’s right. I sold it for a considerable amount, I have to admit.”

Ethan, who appeared again after two days, was all smiles. He was in such a good mood that he was beaming at me with a proud smile, even though he usually looked at me with an unpleasant face.

I couldn’t even guess how much money he made from selling a single discharged phone that didn’t even work.

He’s clearly hiding the real price from me, but if I had sold it myself, I would probably know the exact price.

However, I had no intention of doing so. I didn’t mind letting Ethan take a cut, considering it as a fee for doing the troublesome work instead of me.

In the first place, I didn’t need that much money, as I was already freely using Ethan’s wealth as if it were my own.

‘It’s good that my power increases just by staying still, but isn’t there a faster method?’

“—.”

Most of my mind was focused on increasing the power of spirit magic through communication with the earth spirit.

It’s true that my usable power increases just by being in contact with the earth, but after a few days, my body started to ache, and I wanted to find a faster method.

‘The only way is to train directly.’

As a result, the method the earth spirit told me was to get used to spirit magic by actually using it. That method was, of course, combat. However, looking around, I scratched my head.

“F-Fight? Are you in your right mind?”

“Let’s just say it’s part of training. Is there no way?”

Unable to pick fights with just anyone, I once again went to Ethan and activated my “do it for me” mode. Of course, considering the wealth I’m giving him, he should naturally do this much.

“There are adventurers who hunt monsters. There are those who do mercenary work, taking requests for money, but there are also those who specialize in monster hunting.”

In the end, he gave me an answer. Not all those living in this world are descendants of those who have continued from ancient times.

The monsters that poured out of the tower together also reproduced in their own way and left descendants, which are today’s magical beasts.

Perhaps these magical beasts can be called the archenemies of the people of the present era, who have continued for 10,000 years. That point piqued my interest.

Isn’t this an opportunity to indirectly fulfill my past goal of becoming a hero who saves the world while climbing the tower?

“I’ll do it. Adventurer.”

“…”

Ethan’s face filled with disbelief at my casual words, as if I was saying I’d go buy snacks at the store in front of the house.

But I’m serious. The idea of doing everything I wanted to do, now that things have become so twisted, was still valid.

“To be an adventurer, you need to register a certified identity that allows you to walk around armed. Not just anyone can do it, and if you register, you naturally have to reveal your identity.”

“Isn’t there any loophole? That’s your specialty, isn’t it? Don’t you want to restore artifacts?”

“Ugh.”

Ethan tried to persuade me not to do it, probably wanting to prevent me from causing trouble, but I had already made my decision. He rubbed his brow at my declaration to find a way on his own.

“Not everyone in an adventurer party is an adventurer. Exceptional adventurers sometimes bring along maids or servants to carry luggage and attend to them. The problem is that there’s no one suitable to be an adventurer instead of you in disguise.”

“You couldn’t do it, could you.”

Ethan, who was willing to embezzle even his own organization’s funds, immediately thought of a loophole. However, there was a condition.

At this point, only two people knew my identity, but one of them, Ethan, was a busy person. He wasn’t free enough to accompany me.

“I could find someone decent…”

“I don’t really like that idea. I’ll just do it with Lina.”

“…What!?”

Ethan suggested adding one more trustworthy companion, but I didn’t like that idea and pouted.

Instead, I decided to use Lina as a stand-in for activities. She had been listening quietly but suddenly perked up her ears and tail in surprise.

“From what I’ve seen, it seems fine as long as the identity is secure, right?”

“Th-That’s true, but this child is just a beastkin half-breed with no abilities, abandoned even by her parents. It could be dangerous… No, I suppose that’s not very important to you.”

Ethan, still misunderstanding something about me, tried to stop me but gave up and sighed deeply. Glancing at Lina, I saw her hanging her head, not knowing what to do.

“We won’t do anything dangerous. I’m not trying to become some famous adventurer, I just want to experience it a bit.”

I smiled and took Lina’s hand, comforting her.

One of the few advantages of having this petite and delicate appearance is that I can soften the hearts of others like this.

If I were in my past form, Lina would probably have pulled her hand away in surprise without realizing it. But now, Lina was nodding her head with a smile without even realizing it.

In fact, she was even fiddling with my hand in return.

“Do as you wish. Sigh.”

Ethan shook his head as if there was no way to stop me when he saw that Lina seemed to accept my proposal.

Grinning, I then began preparations to become an adventurer.

“It suits you well. Is it because of the agile physique unique to beastkin?”

The first preparation was to dress up the appearance. Beastkin, who need more energy than humans but have superior physical abilities, have good body balance and developed muscles, both men and women, even without separate exercise.

They are a race specialized for physical work. In fact, the beastkin I knew also had destructive physical abilities as their special feature.

“I-I’ve never worn clothes like this before.”

Lina, feeling awkward, wagged her tail and fidgeted. The clothes she was wearing now were not the short skirt and off-shoulder maid uniform she usually wore, but comfortable clothes for activity, including tight pants and boots made of magical beast leather, a shirt, and jacket.

With various leather protectors and a belt, and even a sword, she really looked like a common beastkin swordswoman you might see on the street.

“The only knife I know how to use is a kitchen knife…”

“Don’t worry. You probably won’t have to draw your sword unless absolutely necessary.”

She didn’t even know how to hold a sword, but I didn’t mind. The combat was for me anyway. If there was an enemy I couldn’t handle alone, I planned to run away with her without hesitation, not asking for her help.

“And to use Isilia as my maid…”

“It’s a disguise. Let’s be faithful to the concept, or rather, the setting. But don’t actually order me around. It ends when we get home.”

In contrast to Lina, I wore a maid uniform. It wasn’t as daring as what she used to wear, but a modest black long-sleeved dress with a skirt reaching the thighs and pure white knee-high socks.

After tying my voluminous hair in a single braid and covering my ears with a hooded travel cape, the current me in the mirror looked like an ordinary silver-haired girl maid.

‘This really makes me look like a real girl.’

I felt good without realizing it when I heard Lina clapping and saying how pretty and well-suited it was, but then I flinched.

Come to think of it, even though it hasn’t been long since I changed into this body, there was a familiarity as if I had been like this for a very long time.

It felt strange. It didn’t seem right to have this familiarity when the memory of my past self was still vivid.

“Now that we’re all prepared, let’s depart. You memorized the setting, right? You’re a traveling beastkin adventurer.”

“Yes, I memorized it all.”

I picked up my bag and took Lina, who was taking deep breaths, and quietly left the mansion through the secret passage Ethan had shown us.

I immediately put Lina in front and headed towards the adventurer’s guild branch in this city.

The city scenery I had seen a few times before seemed to look a bit different. This feeling is clearly because the current me, even though I’m acting out a setting, has become a member of this world, no longer a ‘stranger’.

‘Whatever I do, it’s better than just being buried in time and dying away.’

This feeling, I liked it more than I expected.

It seemed that even I, who had become a ghost of the past in a world that had survived that great catastrophe and was once again unfolding its future, could find a new path.

“That’s the place, Isilia… I mean, Isilia.”

“Indeed, there are many other adventurers around.”

When we came out to the main street where the delivery knight statue stood proudly, the destination was quickly visible. After confirming the destination, I gently grasped Lina’s tail, which was wagging at just my eye level, poking out of the hole in her beastkin pants, even though she said she had memorized everything but her words were still slipping.

Honestly, I had wanted to touch it very much from before.

The sensation was indeed very smooth, soft, and warm as I had thought, and the way it wriggled in my grasp was quite addictive.

“Eeeek!?”

…However, the reaction was more intense than I expected.

The way she startled and bristled all her body hair suggests that this part is much more sensitive than an ordinary cat.