Ch.173173. The Sea of Trees (4)

A rain of arrows pouring from the sky.

Massive monsters collapsing to the ground, fading away under the merciless shower of iron.

And women looking down at them with indifference, checking for signs of life with casual glances.

Their appearances were disheveled with dirt and sweat.

Yet this couldn’t hide their exceptional beauty.

What was most striking about them was their cold gaze, sharp as a blade.

I discerned their identity from their nimble movements through the trees and their distinctive pointed ears.

‘…Pointy-ears.’

What else could they be with those long, protruding ears?

They were Elves, the inhabitants who had ruled this great forest for thousands of years.

With chins raised high, they observed the cooling bodies of the Orcs with just a turn of their eyes. Then they locked gazes with me, standing unharmed before the Orcs.

As her gaze swept over my body,

The pointy-ear’s lips twitched as if about to speak.

I eavesdropped on their quiet murmurs, even using Mana to do so.

“It seems all those who tried to escape have been dealt with… but that—”

“It’s a human.”

“Indeed. Unmistakably human. It’s rather unexpected to find one this deep in the forest.”

The great forest was a sanctuary occupied by the World Tree and the clan that protected it.

The Elves, a reclusive race who had secluded themselves here, guarded its borders with iron discipline.

No matter how widely known they were for their benevolent nature,

It was considered disrespectful for anyone without permission to venture deep into the great forest. The common belief that one might incur the wrath of these benevolent Elves was something I’d heard repeatedly from bards in villages and inns on my journey here.

The pointy-ears seemed particularly bothered by the unexpected presence of me and the other humans from our County, not just the Orcs.

“The eldest daughter of the Marquisate of Kallia is stationed in our great forest. They might be people sent by the Marquis.”

“…No. They always send a message ahead when dispatching personnel. We’ve received no such communication from the Marquisate.”

“Hmm. Judging by their position, they do seem to have come from the Marquisate’s direction…”

The Elf beside the woman snorted derisively.

“How foolish. To enter the great forest of their own accord when it’s more chaotic than ever. Look around.”

The Orcs weren’t the only dead creatures.

Wolves wearing singed fur also soaked the ground with their blood, having fallen into eternal sleep.

“It seems they’ve had a skirmish with monsters. They’ll have a hard time if left alone. For us, such monsters are nothing—”

The woman who had been glancing at her superior’s profile,

Examined me and the other knights from the County gathered nearby.

Her black eyes shone quietly, as if penetrating their capabilities like a sage.

“They’re mere humans, aren’t they?”

“Some appear to be knights, so you should mind your words.”

“Is that so? The closest one does carry a sword, but… he’s just one human man. And those knights behind him… they don’t seem particularly high-ranking. It’s not easy to eavesdrop on them… nor does it seem like a situation where they’d be listening.”

She shrugged at her superior and continued.

“Would you like to speak with them? Or shall we ignore them and change our patrol route?”

“…Let’s have a word with them.”

“Just in case, I’ll have some of our people keep watch. Most humans who enter the great forest without notice are just worthless hunters.”

The Elf nodded at her subordinate’s words and jumped down from the tree.

Whoosh!

As she fell, she gathered the wind to suspend herself just before touching the ground. Landing lightly, she maintained a relaxed posture, though her hand rested on the sword at her waist, revealing a slight wariness.

It appeared to be the same type of sword that Friel had used earlier. Judging by her left hand gripping the scabbard, her thumb raised over the bridge of her nose, and her slightly tilted stance,

She could probably draw her sword quickly and bring its cold death around my neck if the situation called for it.

Perhaps because I was closest to them,

I felt annoyed as she approached, looking only at me and ignoring everyone else.

However, I felt no fear.

‘We are guests who came at the request of the Great Elder, following their oracle.’

It was obvious that if I mentioned the Great Elder and Friel’s names, and revealed that we were people of the County of Sianella, there would be no need for her to draw that sword.

Why should I fear a sword that wouldn’t be drawn in the first place?

If there was anything that bothered me:

‘What is Friel doing that’s making her so late?’

She had appeared late to help when the beasts attacked.

And now, even though the monsters had been cleared and the Elves had appeared a while ago, she still hadn’t shown her distinctive golden hair, which was quite annoying.

‘It would be best if Elves talked to other Elves.’

It wouldn’t be particularly pleasant to converse with pointy-ears who would likely unconsciously consider us inferior short-lived species,

Especially from our position as those very humans they deemed inferior.

Moreover, that Elf up in the tree,

From what I overheard, she was subtly looking down on us. And the woman approaching me now hadn’t denied her words.

With these unpleasant thoughts, I stared directly at the Elf.

She had already walked up close to me.

Furthermore—

“This scent…”

True to an Elf’s ability to sense spirits,

Perhaps because I had used spirit magic occasionally when summoning the cotton ball I had just dismissed earlier, and when cutting down the wolves,

She seemed to catch the strong spiritual energy emanating from my body.

Leather armor for ease of movement, and as if it were natural, a bow made from the precious branches of the World Tree. Even the arrow shafts seemed to be made of no ordinary wood, enough to make one covetous.

As I casually assessed her armaments,

Suddenly from behind me:

—Meow!

The cotton ball darted out and perched on my shoulder.

“A spirit…?”

The Elf’s eyes widened slightly at the sudden appearance of the lesser spirit.

—Myaang!

But the cotton ball, as if asking for praise for its hard work, rubbed its cheeks vigorously against my face.

—Hieeng…

When I didn’t give it the usual petting, it started whining as if offended.

Tap tap.

As it began hitting my cheek with its small feet, I stroked the cotton ball moderately while keeping an eye on the Elf’s demeanor.

—Heng.

Finally satisfied, the cotton ball flapped its small wings, climbed onto my head, and lay down on its belly.

The Elf observed me and the lesser spirit—a mirror reflecting human hearts. Unable to completely hide the distrust in her expression and quiet black pupils, she watched silently before opening her mouth.

“The spirit energy is quite dense. Perhaps you and that spirit—”

No, she was about to open it.

“Dienne. It’s been a while.”

Thud, thud.

The sound of several people approaching from behind me.

And Friel Arielt’s voice cut off the Elf’s words.

Friel approached with Sione and Diolia, and naturally, Sione stood beside me.

Diolia, Sione’s knight, stood a step behind us, keeping watch on the Elves in the trees ahead.

Friel Arielt stepped past me and stood boldly before the Elf who appeared to be the leader.

“…Is it Lady Friel Arielt?”

“Then who else could have this golden hair and the clearest blue-green eyes? Dienne, the daughter of the Arielt family has finally brought those who will be our saviors, following the Great Elder’s command.”

“You mean… those people are the nobles from the Sianella family?”

“Yes, with that moonlight-like silver hair. And as Dienne was about to ask, the man with the dense spirit energy who has formed a contract with a spirit. They are undoubtedly the people the Great Elder spoke of.”

“Ah—”

The woman called Dienne nodded slightly.

Friel gave her a small smile, then walked past me and Dienne, scanning the Elves aiming their bows from the trees.

“Therefore—”

Friel Arielt.

From the Arielt family, one of the three honorable founding families of the great forest.

The woman who had grown more brilliantly than anyone else, blessed with innate talent, unleashed a portion of the dignity she had accumulated over sixty years.

“Your bows should be aimed at the enemies we might encounter on our way to meet the Great Elder, not at our honored guests.”

Her voice, carrying the chill of midwinter, echoed through the forest sea.

“If you don’t lower your bowstrings aimed at our honored guests this instant, I will not forgive you.”

The Elves could only bow their heads before her magnificence.