Whether You Call Me a Guardian Dragon or Not, I’m Going to Sleep

The elves' picky eating...?

I looked at Yggdrasil, who was speaking calmly.

No, it's true that the elves hardly eat any ingredients that come from plants... But to set that as a test?

Sylphid's test question about a race with him was a bit unscrupulous, but Yggdrasil's case is just... pushing her own duties onto Baal under the name of a test.

Is this right?

"Picky eating...?"

"Yes, picky eating. Do you know about the elves?"

"Yes. They are a long-lived race with long ears. I've heard they can communicate with grass and trees."

At Baal's words, Yggdrasil smiled slightly and continued the story.

"Then the story will be quick. The elves don't even put plant-based foods in their mouths. Other races have no problem eating those ingredients, but those children refuse to even touch them."

Well, since they can communicate with plants, it might feel like eating their neighbors, wouldn't it?

In fact, it's the elves who eat plant-based foods that might be the problem.

"At least they are getting enough nutrition from carnivory or photosynthesis, but since they don't use any ingredients from plants... Compared to other races, they are starting to fall behind. They are still making up for it with their innate abilities and the experience of their long lifespan, but... As time goes on, more and more new things will appear..."

Worried Yggdrasil. It's like a parent worrying about their child's severe picky eating.

"Therefore, I want to fix their picky eating... but whenever I see those children, my heart softens and I can't be strict with them. So I was hoping you could do that job instead."

After thinking for a moment, Baal tilted his head.

"But how am I supposed to do that?"

"Well, I don't know either. Since I set it as a test, you have to figure out how to do it, don't you?"

Yggdrasil... That's a very irresponsible thing to say....

Anyway, to fix the elves' carnivorous diet...

Hmm... How can I fix that?

First, the biggest cause is probably the problem that arises from the elves' ability to communicate with plants.

Since they can communicate with each other, they can't see the ingredients as food.

Well, if other humans could also communicate directly with plants or animals... They might be a little reluctant to eat them too.

Hmm, no? In the case of beastmen, they can communicate with animals to some extent, but they still eat them well... Hmm...

Let's move on from beastmen. Bringing that up here would make the story go off track.

In the case of elves, it's probably due to the existence of Yggdrasil, who can be considered the god of the elves, as well as their ability to communicate with plants.

Eating the form of Yggdrasil. What a sacrilege!

They might be thinking that way.

And not just any gods, but a mother-like world tree who created and nurtured their race.

To forcefully put plant-based ingredients into the mouths of elves who revere Yggdrasil so much... Hmm...

I could do it, but... Can Baal do it?

I don't know. Sylphid and Yggdrasil too. Why did they set such a difficult test?

Could it be that the whole thing with Gaia has been exposed, and they're venting their anger by setting a difficult test?

"Of course, it will be a difficult problem, so I'll give you plenty of time. 1 month. During that time, somehow make the elves eat vegetables too."

"Ugh..."

At Yggdrasil's words, Baal's worries deepened even further.

Changing the dietary habits of an entire race within 1 month... Hmm...

This time... I don't think I have an answer.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

"Hmm... What should I do?"

Baal was lost in thought as he looked down at the elves.

Skinning the prey and processing the meat.

Their skillful movements showed that this was not a one-or two-day task.

"What would Gaia do?"

"Me?"

When I told him that he could call me Gaia when the other kids weren't around, he casually called me Gaia.

To be honest, I'm still not quite used to being called Gaia, so I sometimes react with 'Gaia? Ah, that's me.'

But well, I've been called by various names, so I'll probably get used to it soon enough.

I looked down at the elves, deep in thought.

"The reason the elves don't eat plants is likely because they can communicate with them, and the person they revere, Yggdrasil, is the god of plants."

"Yeah, that's right."

"Therefore, unless we take away the elves' ability to communicate with plants, and replace the gods they worship as Yggdrasil with another deity... it might be impossible."

I could try gathering all the elves and forcibly changing their nature, but that would be too much for Baal.

Currently, the majority of the Elves live in the forests around Yggdrasil, but a small percentage of the Elves live outside of the forest.

There are elves with a strong sense of adventure, after all.

"So what should I do?"

"Hmm..."

Making the impossible possible? That might be too much for Baal.

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Rather than that, if I could find a loophole in the problem Yggdrasil presented...

What Yggdrasil said was about picky eating, so if I could somehow solve that...

Hmm. The issue seems to be that they can't be made to eat plants.

Wait, let me think about this differently.

What if there were plants that they could eat?

Parts of plants that are meant to be eaten?

Suddenly, an idea came to me.

"Fruit."

"Fruit?"

Baal tilted his head at my words.

"Yes, fruit. I think fruit could be the key."

"Fruit... why?"

I looked at the puzzled Baal and explained.

"Fruit is an organ that develops to disperse the seeds it contains. It actually needs to be eaten, otherwise it wouldn't serve its purpose."

"Something that needs to be eaten?"

"Yes. The plants might even want their fruits to be eaten."

From the plant's perspective, the fruit itself isn't that important. What's important is the seeds.

And animal droppings can even serve as fertilizer for the seeds.

"I think this might be the only way, without completely overhauling the entire elf race."

The test Yggdrasil set was simply to fix the elves' picky eating. Getting them to eat fruit might be enough to pass the test.

It's a bit of a stretch, but this seems to be the most feasible option.

"Hmm... I'm not sure, but if Gaia says so, it must be right!"

Baal nodded without a hint of doubt, simply believing what I said. Seeing his innocent nature, I started to feel a bit worried.

If someone were to deceive this naive child, it could be disastrous. Un.

Education. Education is the answer. I must thoroughly educate this ill-mannered young kid to turn him into a respectable king!

"So I just need to bring a bunch of fruit and feed it to the elves?"

"Don't just do it directly, the elves might get suspicious. Approach it slowly."

"Slowly?"

I nodded at Baal.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

One day.

In the city of Alfheim, built around the World Tree Yggdrasil, a story began to spread.

It started with a question from a young human boy who had come from outside Alfheim.

"I heard that elves don't touch anything that comes from plants at all. Is that true?"

"Of course. To us elves, all the grasses and trees are like family."

"Then you don't eat fruit either, right?"

"That's right, we don't eat fruit either."

The young boy opened his mouth after a moment of thought at the elf's words.

"I learned that fruit is made to be eaten along with the seeds... Wouldn't the plants dislike it if we didn't eat the fruit?"

"Ah, is that so...?"

And so began a small question.

[Is fruit made to be eaten?]

For the elves who do not eat anything that comes from plants, this was a story that sparked much debate.

"Since plants are like our family, we must not put anything that comes from them in our mouths!"

The staunch carnivores argued that nothing should be put in the mouth.

"But isn't fruit made to be eaten? Then shouldn't we respect the will of the plants and eat the fruit?"

The newly emerged moderate faction of omnivores argued that there was nothing wrong with eating fruit.

"Then shouldn't we just do what the plants want, since our ability to communicate with them exists for that purpose?"

There were also those who left the choice up to the plants.

"According to ancient records, the World Tree took pity on our starving ancestors and gave them fruits, which they gratefully ate! This means the World Tree has also said that it's okay to eat the fruit!"

Those who sought answers in the records of history also existed.

"Then how about extracting just the fruit pulp to make wine? I'm sick of those dwarves drinking beer, so let's make fruit wine for a change!"

What are these guys doing?

"The elves have already gained the impression of diligently caring for plants, so won't eating the fruit of the plants ruin that image?"

"Then we can just show a thorough carnivorous image to other races, can't we?"

"It's to preserve the image of elves who cherish plants. I don't like it, but..."

"But isn't it necessary?"

And so, countless debates turned Alfheim into a battlefield.

The young human boy who caused this situation, Baal, simply smiled as he looked down at the elves.

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