Ch.178Trap (2)

Even the most talented individuals can meet their end if they let their guard down. Especially in crucial moments.

This common sense applies to elves too. Particularly elves, especially those of the older generation, tend to look down on other races.

It’s true that humans are generally weaker than elves, and elves have the skills to back up their arrogance.

But that’s a frog-in-the-well mentality. Among humans, there are monsters with skills comparable to elven Warchiefs, and there are demons who are naturally on par with elves.

When carrying out important missions, considering every variable isn’t optional—it’s essential.

Of course, they probably never thought to include human Warchiefs or higher-level demons among those variables.

“Are these three all of them?”

“Yes. The publishing house said three, and that dark elf girl also said these three were it.”

“Is Mother alright now?”

“She woke up briefly but should be sleeping again.”

After hearing my father’s words, I looked ahead. Three elven men and women were kneeling before the desk, bound with ropes.

They still hadn’t regained consciousness and hung their heads low, but when I saw them earlier, they had the elegant beauty typical of elves. Even their hair colors were interestingly different.

However, these people not only broke into our mansion but also immediately planned to kidnap me once they discovered I was Xenon. Considering the laws of the Empire of Minerva and the current times, executing them on the spot wouldn’t be problematic at all.

“But Issac, did you really have to reveal that you’re Xenon?”

Cecilly, who had easily subdued two of the three elven intruders, asked me with curiosity. She was the one who discovered they were making kidnapping plans in real-time. Apparently, she had eavesdropped on their telepathy.

I looked at the elves in front of me before answering her question.

“They would have figured out I was Xenon soon enough anyway. They may have been careless, but they’re not stupid. They probably already suspected it from the trap we set.”

“Still, it’s too dangerous… What if these people reveal that you’re Xenon?”

“Then I’ll really have to detonate the bombs in their ears. Even without that, there’s always the ‘Oath,’ right?”

“Ah.”

When I mentioned the ‘Oath,’ a magic used to establish master-servant relationships, Cecilly nodded in understanding. As everyone knows, Arwen and Cecilly had formed an Oath during Rain’s punishment.

The Oath inflicts severe penalties on the ‘subordinate’ if they don’t act according to the contract, and the ‘master’ becomes aware of it. This makes hiding anything absolutely impossible.

In the past, when slavery existed, it was commonly used in human society, but it gradually disappeared over time. There were incidents where slaves committed mass suicide because they couldn’t bear living under such conditions, or desperately staged uprisings.

The Oath is that effective at preventing unwanted actions.

“We need to use it well to prevent any loopholes. For example, stating they cannot reveal Xenon’s identity. What happens when someone breaks the Oath again?”

“First, they experience severe pain in their heart, and if they forcibly try to break it, it stops functioning. Emergency treatment might save them, but they’d never think of revealing anything.”

“What about writing it down or communicating through code?”

“Don’t worry about that either. Anything related to your identity can be covered by the Oath.”

Seeing Cecilly so confident is reassuring. Even without the Oath, I could assign Cyris to prevent them from doing anything reckless. I’ll need to discuss that separately with Arwen.

Anyway, now that we’ve caught the fish we’ve been waiting for, all that’s left is the aftermath. To be blunt, disposing of these elves quietly wouldn’t be a big problem.

From the Senate’s perspective, they’d just think their tracking team was defeated and send another one. Until we deal with the source, this fight will continue until one side is finished.

“Alright. Then what’s left is… when will these people regain consciousness?”

“Should I wake them now?”

“Yes.”

*Snap*

Cecilly heard my request and lightly flicked her finger. I could feel a faint wave of mana.

“Mmm…”

“Hmm…”

Soon, the bound elves began to groan and regain consciousness. The bedroom was lit only by a few candles, so it would take time for their vision to recover.

Although the ropes themselves were ordinary, Cecilly had used magic to prevent them from using mana, eliminating any chance of resistance.

“Ugh… my head… huh?”

“W-what? Why am I…”

“…”

Unlike the two elves who panicked upon realizing they were bound, the central elf remained silent. He merely confirmed his bound situation with an expression that seemed to say “as expected,” showing almost no reaction.

According to my father, unlike the other two elves, he had acted alone. The blonde elf is likely the leader.

“Th-this is… I was clearly…”

“Y-you, who are you people?”

Unlike the woman who still couldn’t grasp the situation, the man urgently asked after noticing us. The struggling woman also raised her head to look at us.

When the man with dull blonde hair finally shifted his gaze to us, I crouched down in front of them to meet their eyes. They flinched as soon as they faced me, as if they had something to hide.

“U-untie us immediately, human! You don’t seem to understand what you’ve done…!”

Whether out of brazenness or typical elven arrogance, the brown-haired female elf made an urgent demand. My father let out a gasp behind me, apparently finding her audacity unbelievable.

I stared blankly at the elf who seemed completely unaware of the situation, then smirked and delivered the facts.

“What I’ve done? I’ve caught thieves who broke into our mansion uninvited.”

“…”

“And I think I know what you were looking for.”

“…Are you Xenon?”

The blonde elf, presumed to be the leader, asked in a quiet voice instead of the female elf. Hearing this, his subordinates finally seemed to grasp the situation and kept their mouths shut.

However, their expressions soon contorted. They must have realized that using telepathy was impossible since they couldn’t use mana at all.

Eventually, one of the subordinates reluctantly conveyed the fact verbally.

“Th-this man is definitely Xenon. There was a draft and letter on the desk.”

“…I see.”

Unlike his subordinate, the leader maintained his composure. I wonder if he’s plotting something despite telepathy being disabled.

Cecilly and my father noticed this too and began to move subtly. Cecilly stood beside me first, while my father positioned himself behind the elves.

It was a clear message that they would immediately intervene if the elves tried anything. It truly gives me confidence, not just reassurance.

Meanwhile, the tracking team’s leader noticed Cecilly approaching me and flinched.

“…Could it be the Princess of Helium?”

“You know me?”

“How could I not? I saw you from afar during the speech.”

Cecilly had attended Arwen’s speech. That’s when we learned the true nature of elves after a ridiculous dispute at the immigration checkpoint.

The elven leader quietly observed Cecilly, then smirked and made a statement designed to get under her skin.

“So you knew who Xenon was all along. That’s why you could do something like this.”

“Hmm. Well, I don’t think someone who did such dirty deeds has any right to talk. How’s your conscience doing?”

“…”

He tried to provoke her but got paid back several times over. That’s what happens when you try to blame others for your own wrongdoing.

“Anyway, can you tell us your names? It’s fine if you don’t want to.”

“…Karlas.”

“The other two?”

“Mael.”

“Rena.”

The elves answered curtly, apparently unwilling to bend their pride even while bound. Honestly, I hadn’t expected much.

But soon they’ll have to swallow that pride. I just need to build up to that moment slowly. They’re the ones in a hurry, not me.

Their well-being is essentially in my hands now.

“Let me ask this first. Why are you so desperate to find me? I haven’t done anything to harm you.”

“…Your knowledge is very dangerous. That’s why we tried to persuade you.”

“Persuade?”

“If you helped us, we were planning to compensate you accordingly.”

Persuasion, my ass. These bastards who declared they would censor my book now talk about persuasion? I was so dumbfounded I couldn’t speak.

Cecilly seemed to share my sentiment as she pointed out Karlas’s contradiction in an incredulous voice.

“People like you tried to censor the Biography of Xenon? After doing all that, you talk about persuasion? You’re truly devious.”

“We didn’t do the censoring. It was directly ordered by the Queen.”

Now Karlas is even resorting to lies. It’s a skill in itself to lie so shamelessly without changing expression.

The notion that elves don’t do dirty deeds—I’ve learned through Karlas that it’s all nonsense.

I exhaled sharply before speaking to Karlas in a cold voice.

“Queen? You were ordered by the Senate. Did you think I wouldn’t know?”

“I don’t know where you heard that, but it’s nonsense. We are loyal to the Queen…”

“Phiren Gerrit Stormwalker.”

“…!”

When I mentioned the name of the Senate’s leader who had ordered them, Karlas’s eyes widened. His expression asked how I could possibly know that name.

The other elves had similar reactions. Mael gaped in shock, while Rena seemed to be trying to determine if what she heard was real.

From their perspective, the fact that I know about Phiren must be complicating their thoughts. They might think they’ve been dancing in my palm from the beginning, or that they’ve been betrayed by their own side.

Either way, I just need to guide the situation as I want.

“That old elf ordered you to find Xenon, didn’t he? Am I wrong?”

“H-how did you… no, who exactly are you…”

“I have no reason to tell you. Anyway, you must know well. From the moment you were caught, you became no better than abandoned dogs. If you return like this, you might silently disappear, or you might receive the ear-cutting punishment. Isn’t having your ears cut off a punishment worse than death for elves?”

I’ve heard about Phiren from Arwen. As the head of the Senate, he wields enormous power and desperately clings to it to avoid losing it.

After the Racial War, when the Senate’s very existence was in jeopardy, it was Phiren who forcibly revived it. At that time, Phiren was a shining talent within the Senate, just about to soar when the Racial War broke out.

Naturally, Phiren would have hated to see the Senate fade into history. The taste of power, once experienced, is harder to quit than drugs.

And now, Phiren constantly checks Arwen, who threatens his power, and even engages in all sorts of secret plots.

The reason these elves first visited the publishing house to check the signed copy was because they had obtained Arwen’s speech draft that she had accidentally left in her bedroom through certain channels. Arwen noticed it later and burned it, but by then it was already too late.

The saying that elves don’t do dirty deeds only applies in war; before power, humans and elves are all the same.

“So here’s my proposal. Surely you won’t stick with the Senate out of loyalty or whatever? Life is the most important thing. For you elves, your ears are even more important.”

“D-do you think you can use us with such threats!? A mere human!”

The elven woman who introduced herself as Rena shouted angrily, apparently still clinging to her pride. But her voice was already trembling with fear.

I stared at her expressionlessly. Rena glared at me with a vicious face, but as I remained silent, her momentum gradually subsided.

“Should I cut off your ears right here? You don’t think you can return to Alfheim with your ears cut off, do you?”

“…Hic.”

When I threatened her in a monotone voice, Rena hiccupped. Given the atmosphere, even such a minor(?) threat was enough to put pressure on her.

They can’t use mana, and two lions are waiting with their jaws open in front and behind them. One wrong move and they can’t even guarantee their lives.

If they were beastmen who valued honor above life, they might have said “Just kill me!” But these are elves—life comes before honor.

“I emphasize again, your lives are in my hands. With Cecilly here, you can’t even try any magic tricks. Bound as you are, you’re in a hopeless situation. Understand?”

“…If you’re thinking of using us, you’d be better off disposing of us. The Senate won’t let us go easily either. It would be cleaner to deal with us here.”

“Then the Senate might sense something and send more people. It’s better to pull out the roots completely.”

“Ha. Do you think that’s possible? Using us as bait won’t gain you anything.”

“Well, I think differently.”

I casually showed my right hand to Karlas, who was acting dismissively. Karlas narrowed his eyes.

As he said, the Senate is a political body with hundreds of years of history. Even after pulling off a historic trolling in the Racial War, they’ve managed to survive like cockroaches.

However, as a consequence, opposition to the Senate has grown since the Racial War. Moreover, support for Arwen has increased significantly since her speech.

If I just light the fuse here, the Senate will face destruction without being able to do anything. With this in mind, I smiled and said to Karlas:

“What if I say this? Due to elves, my right hand is injured and I can’t continue serialization for a while. Sabre, which is desperate to elevate me to sainthood, and Helium would join forces. Human countries would do the same.”

“…”

“Even Alfheim wouldn’t last a few months. Just cutting off trade routes would cause massive damage. War would break out before that. What decision should be made to prevent this?”

As I continued speaking, Karlas’s expression hardened and he began to look pale. I don’t know how the Senate would respond, but they would 100% abandon these people.

They would definitely deny it, claiming it was an independent action and they knew nothing about it. For these elves, it’s truly a dilemma.

This way, their ears get cut off; that way, they lose their lives. Even if they plead to the gods, their sins are too great to be forgiven.

“It won’t help to ask the gods. Since you committed such acts even after direct warnings from the gods, they might bring divine punishment instead.”

“…”

“So what will you do? Will you help me eradicate the Senate, or will you silently disappear? Actually, it doesn’t matter much if you’re gone. The Senate will come looking for me again anyway.”

That’s all I have to say. Any intelligent person would have grasped the situation by now. What remains is the choice.

Will they cooperate with us to get back at the Senate that made them do this, or will they quietly disappear?

I hope they choose the former.

“K-Karlas sir…!”

“P-please accept his demand! It’s our only way to survive!”

Mael and Rena pleaded to Karlas with desperate looks in their eyes. Even if they’re a race chosen by the gods, seeing them beg like this shows that people are people.

Despite their strong sense of honor and pride, these mean nothing when their lives are at stake. There’s a reason sacrifice isn’t glorified.

Karlas listened to his subordinates’ pleas, moved his lips hesitantly, and then looked straight at me. My face was reflected like a mirror in his blue eyes.

“Then… what do we get?”

“Hmm?”

“We should get something in return, shouldn’t we?”

“Heh.”

Look how shameless he is until the end. My father even let out a laugh, probably finding it incredibly absurd.

I also lowered my head and laughed dismissively. I feel a growing urge to just cut off their ears and send them back to Alfheim.

However, these elves need to be used until the whole incident is concluded. They might actually be the most important part.

I slowly raised my head and faced Karlas. His expression was hardened, but the corners of his mouth were subtly raised, suggesting he was expecting some benefit.

Of course, there is something good for them.

“Yes, there is something. Something very good for you.”

“What is it?”

To Karlas, who asked with expectation:

“I’ll let you live.”

“…”

“There’s a limit to shamelessness, don’t you think? Where did you sell your conscience?”

I kindly delivered my verdict.