33 Poverty

"Well, how we got here is…" Virgil was about to speak about how they got there when James suddenly tapped him on the shoulder to interrupt him. "Ahem. Please allow me to explain Prince Drake." He stood up and placed his fist across his chest as he bowed. "I am Yale Dusk and he is Prince Drake. We are here on a special diplomatic mission from the Drake Kingdom."

"A prince of the Drake Kingdom?" Chief Tsin looked at the two curiously.

"Right." He nodded. "We used a teleport talisman to travel here. In truth, somebody of greater strength was supposed to come with us. However, an incident occurred and he had to stay behind to hold off the enemy."

"A teleportation talisman? Those are nearly priceless. What could be so important as to waste one to come here?" She questioned.

"The truth is…" He sighed. "We have been at war with a nearby kingdom for a long time. The war has slowly begun to escalate, and it is only a matter of time before it reaches the end stages."

"I see." She nodded. "So, what does this have to do with the elves?"

"We were sent to create an alliance. The teleportation talisman was slightly off in its coordinates. Combined with the fact that we lost our escort, we became trapped within the forest. We had no choice but to hunt for sustenance. I apologize for any offense we may have caused." He looked at her with a very serious face. "Please speak. What will it take to secure an alliance between the elves and Drake Kingdom. We have long heard of your powerful magi. We believe you are the key to turning this war around."

Virgil stared wide eyed as his friend continued to spout bullshit and truth mixed together as one. Had his friend always been such a good liar? He felt like he was seeing him for the very first time.

"Gahaha, I see." She laughed. "What an interesting reason to visit us. However…" Her eyes sharpened. "Almost no one knows where our village is. Who told you where to find us?"

James straightened his back and raised his head confidently. "My master was the one who told us! He is a powerful 9th grade magus who is revered and respected by all. His reputation is outstanding, and students line up to beg him to take them as their master. In an act of great kindness to the kingdom, he told us the secret location of the elf village so that we may try and persuade you to help us. He was supposed to come with us, but he had to stay back to hold off the unexpected enemy. We barely escaped with our lives."

"Hmm…" She began to tap her fingers on her desk. "We elves avoid the outside world. Especially war. We have a low population and have nothing to gain from joining the war. For you to come to us, you must truly be desperate. Especially since our most hated enemy lives within the Drake Kingdom."

"Eh?" Virgil interrupted. "Who's the elves most hated enemy?"

"It isn't surprising you don't know." She sighed. "A truly wicked man. Filled with lust and depravity. A sinner with no morals. Shrouded in darkness." Her eyes slowly turned red with rage. "Our village will not rest until the man known as Skeleton dies for what he did to us!"

"SKELETON?!" The two boys exclaimed in shock together.

"Oh?" She grinned. "Do you know the one I speak of?"

Virgil glanced at James with an ugly look on his face.

"Know him?!" James slammed a hand down on the desk. "I hate him with a passion! How he tormented me! A devil in human's skin! A monster lurking within the shadows! Who wouldn't want such a vile man to die?!"

"You have a grudge with the man to?" The chief's eyes widened in surprise.

Virgil stared stupidly at his friend continuing to spew bullshit. He thought to himself, "Oy?! That's your master! The one you just said was revered and respected by all?!'

James sat back down and slouched in the chair. A depressed expression covered his face as his eyes began to water. "When I entered the academy, I happened to piss off the man you speak of. He tortured me for weeks in his desire for revenge." His entire body began to shiver. "The unspeakable horrors I went through… The nightmares… I still lose sleep at night when I think about it. Fortunately, my master saved me from his evil clutches. Otherwise, I fear I'd be dead. The elves and I share a common enemy and intertwined fate. We must work together to vanquish this great evil someday."

"Ahem." Virgil interrupted his friends monologue. "Why do you hate Skeleton so much?"

Chief Tsin sighed while rubbing one of the large black boils on her face. "Nearly 200 years ago, he stumbled upon our village. We chose not to fight. Who would willingly make an enemy of an unknown 9th grade magus? We welcomed him with a great feast while urging him not to expose our village to the outside world…"

She took a sip of her apple cider and continued. "Things went well at first. He liked it here so much he decided to stay for a few weeks. Then, one of our young elves fell completely in love with him. The two joined together in bed. Normally this would be a great sin to the elves. We can't afford to reduce our population further. However, we thought we had gained a 9th grade magus in the process. It would have been a good deal for us, but then he wanted to take her away!"

"Eh?" James interrupted. "That's all he did? The Skeleton I know would probably destroy the whole village if you pissed him off enough."

"Right." She nodded. "We naturally tried to stop him from leaving. At the time, we only had a single 9th grade magus present. We thought we could win with our combined forces, but he was too strong. Consumed by anger, he released a 9th grade spell on our entire village. A curse. It covered our skin in the black boils you see today. All of our descendants are born with them as well. Not even our 9th grade magus escaped from the effects of the curse."

Their eyes widened in shock as they listened. Virgil spoke, "So, he cursed the entire village and left? Even the elf he got together with?"

"No." She shook her head. "He did not curse the elf he liked. He brought her with him when he fled." Tears appeared in her eyes. "Poor Little White! She was just a child! How could she be fooled by such a nasty man!"

'Eh? Little White?' James thought back to a conversation he had with his master a long time ago. 'One of the maids had mentioned Little White, but he had never actually met her. So, she was another one of master's maids?'

"Sorry for getting emotional." She rubbed her eyes. "Little white was only 50 years old at the time. She must have grown so much since then… Anyways, we will not join you in your war. We have nothing to gain from it. I'll arrange a guesthouse for you until you're ready to leave. It won't be possible for you two to escape these mountains with your measly strength. You may stay until you're strong enough or until an expert comes to pick you up."

The two nodded in agreement. The chances of them escaping the mountains had been quite slim to begin with. Staying with the elves for a while wasn't a bad arrangement.

The chief took out a black stone and handed it to them. "I'll need you both to swear a beholder oath not to reveal our village to anyone. You must also swear to take no elves away from the village with you."

The two swore the oaths and were escorted out of the grand tree by the man from before. They took the elevator down and crossed vine suspension bridges until they reached a small house atop a tree. It was lightly furnished and no one lived there.

The man spoke, "You two may stay here. You're free to roam the village. Break any laws and you'll be executed. So, behave yourselves." He turned and left.

The two situated themselves in their new temporary home. The elves had also returned their belongings.

Virgil sighed, "To think Skeleton caused those ugly black boils. What a madman."

"Right." He nodded. "Aren't you glad you left all the talking to me? How could they kill the prince of a kingdom? Especially when we came here on a diplomatic mission."

"Haha!" Virgil laughed. "I never knew you were so good at lying. I'll have to leave all the talking to you in the future as well."

"So, what should we do now?" He questioned. "I doubt you want to just sit around meditating for years until we're strong enough to leave?"

"Obviously." Virgil snorted. "The war could escalate any moment. As the prince of the kingdom, I naturally need to return as soon as possible. Let's head out to the village tomorrow. Perhaps we can acquire a map of the surrounding area. The locals should also be able to provide us advice for surviving in the nearby forests and mountains."

The two went to sleep. Their new home only consisted of a single room, kitchen, and bath. So, they had no choice but to share the only room.

James used the dream feature of the system as he fell asleep. He relived the experience where the elves had first captured them. He repeatedly weaved and dodged to avoid arrows, but he always got captured. The entire night was spent practicing against the hidden attack of the elves.

…

Morning. The two walked across several vine bridges before reaching a large platform. This platform connected many trees together to create a large central area. It acted as a market hub for the nearby villagers. Quite a few similar areas existed throughout the village.

James walked up to a stall selling apple cider. "How much for two cups?"

"One leaf each." The man replied.

"Leaf?" He turned to look at Virgil who shrugged his shoulders.

The man spoke, "It's unusual for us to have outsiders here. The currency of our village are the leaves from the grand tree. You'll need them to buy anything you need around here."

"Can we just trade goods instead?" Virgil questioned.

"Nope." The man shook his head. "It's illegal to exchange goods for other goods. People used to avoid paying their taxes that way. You'll also need a license if you want to open a stall. You can apply at the grand tree. They should have you sorted out in four to six weeks once you apply."

"Four to six weeks?!" James exclaimed in shock. 'Am I in England? I must have accidently returned to Earth and entered England. I'll probably need to get a license for my television, my katar gauntlets, and everything else I own! I'll probably need to get a license for my licenses!'

Virgil grabbed James by the shoulder and shook him. "Hey, you're murmuring to yourself again. Why do you always do that?!" He turned to the man behind the stall. "Thanks for the help. We'll figure something out." He dragged his friend away from the stall.

The two returned to their home and sat down to discuss the issue at hand. "What should we do?" James sighed. "We'll need money to buy a map. We also need to stock up on food and other goods. My pouch is already almost empty."

"We have no choice." Virgil looked at his friend seriously. "We'll have to find jobs!"

"To bad they don't have mines here." James shook his head. "It's the only job I've ever had. So, what kind of job should we find?"

"Hmm…" He rubbed his horn in thought, "We should probably head for the grand tree. It seems to act as a central hub for the entire village. It's likely we can find employment options there."

"Alright, cool. Let's go!"

The two left once more and went towards the grand tree. They used the same entrance as last time and walked down the same long hallway. They soon reached the elevator. A large sign was next to it that had brief explanations for each floor.

"Looks like the employment office is on the 9th floor." They stood on the elevator and pushed a wooden button. The elevator started to head down. They had originally entered on a higher floor. The doors opened, and they saw many wooden buildings. Elves were traveling back and forth between them while looking extremely busy. The ceiling was nearly thirty meters high. Bright lights were glowing from it.

"Didn't the elves say they have population problems…?" James questioned.

"Mm." Virgil nodded. "They did."

"How?! This floor alone is almost as big as Sea Salt City! There are over 100 floors! This grand tree is basically a country!"

"Perhaps the elves consider that a small number… Anyways, let's see what jobs we can find."