Everyone Else is a Returnee

[It really seems like I am sometimes able to understand what dragons are thinking, while being completely unable to understand them in other situations.]

“Really? I never understood them.”

While Erta had a look at the golden egg that Lecidna left behind, Yu IlHan picked up the letter. He reasoned that her ultimatum for calling Yu IlHan here, and the explanation behind the golden egg would be written in this letter.

Surprisingly, the letter was written in English. Even though it would’ve been fine if it was written in dragon tongue.

“If you’re reading this letter, then it is likely that I have died. I have no doubts that you will keep your promise and return to this place.”

[Is it a letter?]

“I had followed the will of the Garden of Sunset, but I was certain that it would lead to my death some day. Compared to the weight of their decree, my shoulders were too narrow, my allies few, and the dangers overwhelming.”

[Can this even be hatched?]

Yu IlHan found Erta, who was bored of looking at the egg and started talking to him, very annoying, but he suppressed it and continued reading the letter.

“If there’s anything that I am worried about, then it is my child that will be born soon. No matter how strong dragons are as a species, all that power is accumulated over numerous years and with many records, so I was worried about leaving my child alone. Moreover, the thought that that child may become similar to the Destruction Demon Soldiers also tugged on my mind.”

[So there’s such thing as a motherly love with dragons.]

“However, if it’s you, I can believe in you. You, who remains unaffected by everything, free even while possessing absolute power, are an existence that shines brighter than us dragons. I will have no regrets if my child grows up to be like you. So, I request of you. Please raise my child in my stead.”

Erta’s mouth widened. She flapped her wings in rage.

[Do you owe this woman something? She really is shameless, asking you to raise her child! Making a man who hadn’t even dated his whole life, live as a single father? Even if Heaven forgives her! I will not forgive it!]

“Hey, shush! You’re annoying me! Also, do you know about defamation by stating facts, huh!?”

She saved my life! That’s enough of a debt!

Yu IlHan, who had never once forgot his grievances with other people, which was very befitting of a loner, was fortunately, also sensitive to what he received.

Honestly, he was not confident about raising a child, but he had no intention to turn down the request of someone who had sacrificed herself for him, just because he had no confidence.

“My child will become an adult dragon at level 200, at that time, this child may become an asset that helps you in what you may do in the future. I know that it’s a shameless request, but I wish that you will cherish the child.”

[Hmph, at least she knows that she’s shameless.]

“In order for a dragon to incubate, a strong source of fire is needed. The power supplied to the dragon during incubation will also affect future growth, so please keep this in mind.”

Reading up to that point, Yu IlHan stopped. Erta lifted up her head thinking that it was the end, just when Yu IlHan found a line in tiny font at the bottom of the letter.

“If you have the power, could you look after the elves a little as well? or so it’s written.”

[It really is a letter full of requests……]

At this point, it was a marvel.Tthe letter was detailed to the point that she probably knew that she would die while saving Yu IlHan. However, Yu IlHan himself nodded without thinking much.

“Well, I can do that in my own way. I also think it’s more comfortable to have someone that I can reason with rather than monsters. There’s also what I got from Reta.”

[I really can’t understand what you’re thinking.]

“Heh, don’t go falling for me now.”

[Blerrrgh.]

Yu IlHan, who felt a little better after getting the reaction he wanted from Erta, put the golden egg into his Cross Bag. If it was in the Cross Bag, it would be fine even if Yu IlHan rolled on the ground, or shot up into the skies, or spun around in a dungeon.

He also thought up of a few candidates to incubate this guy. Blaze, purple flames, Blaze + purple flames, or Eternal Flame

Although, he currently leaned towards Eternal Flame at the moment……

[Just merge them all.]

“Ooh, that’s good.”

[You really will!?]

Anyway, that was for when he returned to Earth; there were still many things left to do on Dareu.

Yu IlHan activated the magic formation. What he was searching for were the dragon eggs! He thought that the Destruction Demon Army may have left some eggs like Lecidna.

[So people can become so meticulous…]

“But there aren’t any. It seems that the baby dragons were the last one of them.”

It was actually quite fortunate that it was like this. He couldn’t kill them just because they belonged to the Destruction Demon Army, nor could he raise so many children.

After he perfectly erased his worries, he searched for the surviving elves. There were 1,527 in total. There were surprisingly quite a lot of them left.

“Perhaps it really is possible to reconstruct a community.”

[What are you going to do now?]

“First I’ll clean up the remaining dragonkin, then……. I should gather them up.”

Yu IlHan’s answer was very simple. Erta did not ask what or how.

Since she was definitely sure that she would become frustrated if she heard the answer!

After exactly 3 hours and 37 minutes, Yu IlHan gathered up all 1,527 elves in a clearing of a forest. The number of their bruises were proportional to their level of resistance.

“Wh, what the hell happened?”

“What of the Garden of Sunset? Did they end up losing?”

“Shit, will us elves die out like this……!”

In front of the despairing elves, Yu IlHan curtly declared.

“The dragons are all dead.”

No one replied. It was too cruel to accept as a joke, and too nonsensical as a truth. However, Yu IlHan shrugged his shoulders and repeated himself.

“The dragons are all dead. Be it from the Garden of Sunset or Destruction Demon Army, they’re all dead.”

“By, by who?”

“By me.”

“Pfft.”

Yu IlHan made it so that there was no more laughing. In just 3 minutes, they could look at Yu IlHan with a serious face.

“Thank you for killing the dragons for us.”

“It isn’t really for you guys. It’s for my world.”

“Even so, thank you.”

Judging that they were ready to have a conversation, Yu IlHan continued speaking.

“This world should still be very harsh, but you at least won’t have to live in hiding anymore. I will tell you all the locations where weak monsters live, so survive and grow in power. Understood?”

“Yes!”

Courageously answered the elves. However, there were some who had more courage than others.

“However, h…… How do you know of the monsters’ habitat?”

“Make that guy shut up!”

“Don’t retort!”

Yu IlHan’s 3-minute education was so effective that they were holding each other back by themselves.

“I’ll tell you.”

Yu IlHan extended his hand to stop them and just answered them; while activating the formation lightly.

“It’s because the owner of the elven empire’s magic formation is me. Oh, I won’t hand over the possession, so keep that in mind.”

In fact, he didn’t know how to.

“The magic formation……?”

“Oh my god, it’s true,:

However, just as Yu IlHan finished speaking, the elves’ expressions changed. If they had expressions of people who were ruled over with force and fear, their current expressions were like a countryside tribal chief encountering the birth of a new hero.

Thinking back, when he first met the elves, they did have similar expressions when he told them that he used the magic formation. According to his memory, they became obedient immediately, which was surprising.

Yu IlHan didn’t think about it that much back then, but looking at things now, it seemed that it wasn’t such an obvious thing.

“How can a human control our empire’s magic formation?”

“I met that human before. At that time, he told us that he succeeded the last hero, Reta Kar’iha.”

“So there was a successor? I thought that the lineage ended.”

“The magic formation did indeed emit light though!”

No, the reaction was somehow even more exaggerated; much more than he had imagined.

“Why did you let him go even after finding out?”

“Because he was human.”

“It wasn’t like we could hold him there too.”

“Didn’t you hear that he killed all the dragons? What does it matter about him being human!”

“That’s true, but.”

“Yes, he has the qualifications.”

The elves seemed to whisper to each other, and they eventually formed a giant circle of 1,527 elves in order to discuss. When Yu IlHan asked one of them what they were doing, that person politely nodded his head and spoke.

“We’re discussing about how to treat you. Even though it may be annoying for you, please wait a little more.”

Their attitude became different. They were unbelievably kind and polite as if they were never under any suppression or violence in the first place! Yu IlHan somehow felt the shivers. His senses trained through countless books and experience were warning him.

That an irresistable big wave was rising!

“We arrived at a conclusion.”

“Really?”

“Yes, Your Majesty the Emperor.”

Just as he realised that a strange thing was attached at the end, that elf kneeled in front of Yu IlHan. Following that, the remaining 1,526 elves knelt in succession.

“Your Majesty the Emperor!”

“Although there were some conflicts because you were human, we’ve arrived at the conclusion that we can only acknowledge you as our emperor, as you’ve driven out the dragons from this land.”

“……”

Cold sweat started appearing on Yu IlHan’s forehead. It would instead be easier if they took up arms, but what was this? Erta, who saw the trembling in his eyes, whispered to Yu IlHan.

[It seemed that it isn’t the elven emperor that becomes the owner of the magic formation, rather, the owner of the magic formation becomes the emperor. Perhaps, when Reta said that she would develop the continent of Dareu, it was because she knew that she would become the emperor.]

“Unlike her, I’m not exactly happy to become the emperor of an empire without even the slightest, tiniest bit of infrastructure!”

Perhaps these 1,527 elves were trying to stick to Yu IlHan while calling him emperor? Just imagining this him made him feel horrified. Yu IlHan spoke to them while shivering.

“I’m NOT becoming your emperor.”

“But you are our emperor!”

“No.”

“Your Majesty!”

Yu IlHan beat up the elves again, but they did not change. In fact, some rejoiced, saying that they were given His Majesty’s hand, so Yu IlHan shivered and stopped.

It seemed that his identity as a human no longer mattered to them.

“I said I’m not doing it!”

“But we came to our decision. Other than you, there’s no other emperor for us.”

“Even though I’m going to abandon you and return to Earth?”

“Even so, you are our only emperor.”

The elves looked like they would never change their decisions even if they died. Yu IlHan also had to give up and accept that fact.

“Then call me emperor or whatever. I don’t care.”

“Yes, Your Majesty!”

Since they were calling him ‘Your Majesty’ so many times, he felt that he was cast in a historical movie. However, if there were any differences, it was that emperors in movies had their empires, and Yu IlHan was being admired by 1,527 elf refugees.

However, it wasn’t such a bad feeling to be put high by them after being a loner for all his life. Yu IlHan creased his eyes and decided.

“……There’s nothing to do even if I go back early, so should I look after them for a week or so? It will also feel bad if they get wiped out by monsters after all that I’ve done for them, and those monsters may also come over to Earth. It will be better to prevent that by raising these guys.”

Very logical, but it was different to what he was saying until now. Erta asked with narrowed eyes.

[Isn’t it that you feel slightly good about this situation?]

Ignoring her sharp remark, Yu IlHan called for the elves.

“Everyone gather.”

“Yes!”

Would rookie soldiers, who were just assigned to their platoons, be this fast? All 1,527 elves moved according to Yu IlHan’s orders.

Yu IlHan first divided them according to class. He first separated the first and 2nd classes, then short ranged attackers, long ranged attackers, priests, and non-combat classes.

“I’ll help you for exactly ten days.”

[Hey, it just got increased by 3 days!]

“It’s an honor, Your Majesty!”

“3 days is prior education.”

Yu IlHan first looked for, and lead the elves to, the most suitable place to defend against the monsters, and to start making new history.

Not only did he read a lot of history books and geography books, he had even read feng shui books so he succeeded in finding a place that anyone would raise their thumbs on. Which was the remains of the former empire.

After that, he divided the non-combat classes to a few roles and ordered them to collect fruits and vegetables, made them cook, and made them build houses to live in. Like that, the foundation for the elf empire was created.

After that the combat classes were left. Regardless of long or short range, or being priests or not, Yu IlHan spoke to them all with a kind smile.

“There’s one thing I’ve felt while I learned about battle. Which is that you get better the more you get hit.”

No elf could counter argue at the scary words, but the only elf priest asked Yu IlHan.

“I’m a priest that use the power of a god. Is there a need for me to learn to battle?”

“If all the warriors to protect you, die, then who fights next?”

“M, me…”

“Good, it’s fortunate that you understand.”

Yu IlHan himself didn’t know, but he had acquired the virtue of being a teacher of warfare after being taught by Lita for a long time.

He didn’t know until now since he had no opportunities to teach anyone anything as a loner, but he finally realized thanks to the elves.

“KKhak!”

“Kahahak!”

“Remember that a drop of sweat here is a drop of blood in the battlefield!”

[They’re bleeding though?]

Could this be fortunate? It seemed that it wasn’t a coincidence that they survived until now, as they were all talented in fighting. Some of them had extraordinary talent which surprised Yu IlHan.

“How good would it be if all people on Earth were like this.”

“Kahaak!”

“Kkiaaaaaa!”

Yu IlHan, who became engrossed in teaching the talented elves, extended the education period to 5 days. The elves had to cry just as more, but they couldn’t retort since it was true that they were getting better.

When the prior education finished like that, Yu IlHan divided all the combat class elves into parties and sent them to monster fields where the monsters were much weaker than them, through the use of the magic formation.

Although he did tell them to become proficient through battle, their gear were worthless.

“I’ll make some simple equipment for them before I leave.”

[You’re doing more and more things for them, oh Your Majesty.]

“Shut up. It’s quite fun, it’s like playing Sim C*ty.”

Yu IlHan’s other world stay became extend little by little, just like that.

Author’s notes

The dragon next door was so cute, but for this series, it will be hard to make a heartwarming scene, maybe some comedy will be possible though. Our child will grow strong and harsh! Supplement the lacking cuteness and heartwarming-ness next door in the food eating novel. (T/N: This is referring to the novel, ‘Have a meal before you go’. Did NNC drop it?)

Loner becomes emperor.

Then I’ll come back next chapter with IlHan playing Sim City!

Translator’s notes

Reta disappeared so I’ll skip putting names until Liera returns.

Have a Meal Before You Go is an amazing novel… Did NNC drop it? You’re reading this right, JSmith? And no, I’m not picking up anything.

That aside, I’ve mastered the art of creating EPUBs! I will get round to posting the earlier chapters later… please bear with me for a little.

Proofreader: Koukouseidesu