EXTRA CHAPTER 6: REPOPULATING CHERWOODS

**Kuro**

“Based on my calculations, the pre-war population of the elves would be reached in about 500 years, if we’re going to use your time reckoning, Kuro. Oh yes, I forgot to say that it is a positive assessment. If we go by the more conservative route, the years would be longer.”

“I-I see,” was all I could say while staring at the papers Salis gave me. While I did ask her on her opinion about the elves’ predicament, the owl-lady did travel all the way from Cherwind just to hand me her estimates. I guess she was a god-sent, for the numbers she wrote there—as well as the calculations used, was something my simple mind couldn’t understand quickly…notwithstanding her efforts to explain those to me. Nevertheless, I knew her capabilities lean on the scientific side of things, and so I trusted her judgment when it came to these statistics.

“Well, elves—while they are a sexually-active race—bear children slowly compared to us beastfolk,” the owl-lady explained. “And also, you have to understand that, in elf terms, 500 years is just a sliver of their lives.”

“Yeah, and to us humans, it’s really a long time…”

“I guess, on an objective perspective, it’s nothing to worry about.”

I agree with Salis’ observation. I mean, I’m human, and my life would be long gone before the first signs of Cherwoods’ population recovery appeared. And, as long as there’s no conflict to kill them, their demographics would be secured.

That is, if there’s no conflict. I may be ‘young’ compared to the elves, but I think the Lady Hinwe would agree when I say that the future was always uncertain. We could always project, based on our available data; nevertheless, Fate’s a bitch—one could never know how she would play her cards, just to fuck with you.

The image of Lady Time suddenly crossed my mind at the moment.

“…”

And no, I’m not thinking of her as such.

I did say I wanted to help the Lady Hinwe, and by extension, her people as well. I guess it would be stupid to form plans to keep the elves alive from the desertification of their place, then let them die out by not doing anything about the demographic change, brought forth by the Seductress’ influence. Unlike the beastfolk, elves were monogamous, and their pregnancy duration was something one would expect from a long-lived race: even without something to base it on, I could tell that elves take years before eventually bearing a child.

Yes, a child. Asking around and researching on their culture gave me the impression that there was no chance of an elf lady bearing twins. And I was not even in their customary ‘cooling period’. For elves, child-bearing was a sacred duty, and as time was of no issue to them, those who had just sired children would go on an ‘isolation trip’ to recover their strength, and other related cultural stuff attached to it.

But, with entire cities annihilated, and those that survived had been severely decimated, it’s necessary to find ways to ‘replenish’ the lost people…not only for their survival, but also for the elves’ economic stability. Because, yes, I always believed that economy was tied to the political and societal order of any civilization, or people. And I could back my claims with hundreds—if not thousands—of examples from my old world, from the ancient days up to the present.

“Kuro.”

“Yep?”

“I know it’s kind of difficult, but don’t you think we can encourage elvish immigration back to their former homelands?”

I fell silent at Salis’ suggestion. While the thought did really come to my mind before, I decided against it. For one, the elvish population of Chersea—descended from the earlier generations of elves that migrated from Cherwoods during the days the Lady Hinwe was a famous lazy bum, was radically different from the locals. They lost their ability to ‘talk’ to the trees, which was the only way to settle and find home in this land.

Also, Cherwoods’ elves had a largely ‘rural’ population, compared to Chersea’s ‘urbanized’ elves. The conveniences of the human, beastmen and demon cultures and technology were so ingrained to the latter, that adjusting to rural Cherwoods would be hard.

I don’t think it’s a good way to promote immigration to this place.

“Kuro?”

“Y-Yes?”

“You must be thinking about what I said again. Tell me, have you thought of this before?”

I nodded, then explained to her my opinion on the matter.

“Well, of course, they lost their ability to talk to trees,” the owl-lady pointed out. “However, again, you’re thinking on a ‘human’ perspective, Kuro.”

“Oh?”

She winked, and sat beside me, “Remember that lesson you taught us before? That thing in our blood that passes our traits to our children?”

“You mean genetics?”

Salis nodded, and added, “And also that thing about the development of our bodies, based on how often we used it?”

“Evolution?”

She smiled and pinched my cheeks. “If what you told us is true, then we may say that somewhere in those Chersean elves’ blood, the traits giving them the ability to talk to trees was only hidden…not completely removed. And I think, if we get some of them here, those characteristics will surface once again. Who knows? The more they get to use it, the more they get the ability back and pass it to their descendants?”

“But it will take a long time!”

“Elves are elves. They’re one of the longest-lived races among the five peoples that are connected by the saints’ border crossings, rivaled only by the demons,” the owl-lady chuckled. “If you really want to help them, then you can give the migrants some money, or goods, to establish themselves in this place. And we can ask the supporters of the Lady Hinwe to give them aid as well.”

“Right…” Well, Salis did make a good point. I guess I was just too engrossed worrying about nothing, it effectively clouded my judgment. “So now that we agreed on the migration issue, I should start printing advertisements encouraging the move, right?”

The owl-lady flashed a thumbs-up, and gave me a pat on the back. “Don’t worry Kuro. Your plans will help the elves far into the future…I just knew it.”

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***A few weeks later, in the village of New Elebor…***

When the villagers woke up to another day, they came upon the advertisements on the square encouraging emigration to Cherwoods. Apparently, a messenger from the Maverny palace put up those posters on the boards while they slept.

“The Lord Kuro’s willing to pay any elf who will start a new life in Cherwoods?”

“Oh? Huh? Go back to that place? Isn’t it that our parents warned us about the life there?”

“Hmm? I think Her Holiness the Lady Hinwe is already back to her usual self though. Didn’t you see her at the Holy Palatial Gardens?”

“Well, I like her. Still, Cherwoods is quite a backwater place, compared here. Maybe I’d take a tour around, but starting a new life? No…”

“The duke’s offering a huge payment though…”

“I’d like to think about it, though yes…the offer’s kind of tempting.”

And so, for some days after those posters appeared, there was a discussion among the villagers on what to do with the Duke of Maverny’s invitation to settle in Cherwoods. The older elves hated the idea, but the youngsters—especially those who fought there—wanted to go. One of those who were tempted to emigrate to the old elvish realms was Glamden himself.

“Don’t you think that your family will be missing you once you go?” his sister asked. “Ma even waited an entire day at the station just to see you alive and well again. Then, only a few weeks after, you’ll be leaving us again?”

“Ah, it’s not like I’ll completely disappear,” the former soldier replied. “I love the place, even though my first memories of it aren’t nice. But yeah, I guess there’s something in Cherwoods that I’d like to see…or come back to.”

“Hoho…” his mother backed him. “I guess it’s your old ‘elf blood’ in you. I mean, your grandparents came from there, so—as their grandson—you’ll eventually long to return to the land of your ancestors.”

“So, you’re going to let Glamden go back, Ma?”

The old lady nodded. “I’ll miss my young long-ear, but yes, he has already proven his bravery and worth. As his mother, I can’t be prouder. If you find a lady you like there, Glamden, please invite us to your new home.”

The young elf smiled, and hugged his family, “Thanks! You’ll definitely hear from me again…”