Chapter 85: Pebbles and Leaves Part 5

"Ma-Master?!"

– Kung! Kung!

A response came quickly but Lloyd's voice was not among them.

"El, are you there?"

"Yes, yes! I'm here! I'm here!"

Her voice came from not too far away. After a moment of hesitation, El spoke.

"I'm sorry, I overslept. But when I woke up, I found myself…"

"Here, I see. Are you alright? Are you hurt?"

"No, I'm just really hungry."

"That's a relief."

I let out a sigh of relief and asked again about Lloyd.

"Where's Lloyd?"

"I don't know. He doesn't seem to be here. Ayla and I got separated too. It's very cramped here…"

"Same here."

Lloyd was not here, which under the current circumstances was probably for the best. Right now, he might be our only hope.

After talking with El about various things, I tried to engage the other people around us in conversation. However, most of them just sobbed and did not want to talk, as if they had given up on everything.

But there was precisely one person who responded to me.

"So, everyone here is a dark elf, then?"

"That's right."

"And you are a survivor from the third village."

"..."

"I passed through the third village. There was no one, absolutely no one there, except for a child."

"A… child?"

"Yes. His name was Pebble."

The man took a deep breath. Soon his urgent voice came from the darkness.

"Is that child alive?"

I hesitated to simply call him "alive", considering the boy might be behind this disaster …

"Yes, he was alive when I saw him."

The man let out a sigh that sounded like a mixture of relief and sorrow. Sensing something was off, I pressed him further.

"Do you know anything about Pebble?"

"..."

He hesitated. I spoke with a bit more force.

"That kid was left alone in the village. Doesn't that seem strange to you? All the other dark elves disappeared without a trace, yet an ordinary child remained."

"That is…"

"Shall I tell you what I think? It's likely that child is the main reason you ended up like this. Somewhere in your heart, you must be thinking the same, aren't you?"

"..."

"I too thought that kid was the sole survivor. That was until he caused one of my companions to disappear."

The man sighed again and after a long pause, he spoke.

"Pebble couldn't use magic. From the time he was born, the child didn't have any magical powers to handle. His very survival was a miracle… yes, a miracle."

"Are you saying such a child could have used advanced dark magic to make people disappear?"

"How that is possible, I do not know. But…"

"But?"

"A few months ago, Pebble stayed in this village for a while. It was meant to be a gathering for young dark elves. But after that…"

"..."

"I sensed magical power in him. I thought he had simply absorbed the essence of the Dark Forest."

So Pebble was connected to this village too. I clutched my throbbing head. Not suspecting the child was a big mistake. I should have listened to Lloyd. The cost of my oversight was great.

"I'm well aware that dark elves use dark magic, but I never knew they could delve this deep. You all value 'balance' above all."

"...That's right."

"But the chief of this village is very skilled in dark magic. Just look at this prison…"

"Indeed, he is talented. That's why we can't escape from here."

"Maybe he was the one who taught Pebble dark magic. But how he managed to remove Pebble's magical disability is beyond me."

"I've thought about it since I was trapped here, but…"

"…Then let's change the subject. Why did the chief lock you all up here?"

The man was silent for a long time. It was hard to tell whether he was organizing his thoughts or simply didn't want to speak. Just as I was about to ask again, he answered.

"We refused his offer."

"An offer…?"

"To overthrow the queen."

"...!"

He shared a story I could never have imagined.

The seventh village, which had been in the worst condition, began to thrive rapidly a year after a new chief appeared. The village transformed, and the population increased. It wasn't just a growth in numbers but also a noticeable emergence of exceptional talents. All of this was thanks to the new chief.

The chief shared his methods for restoring the village with the other six villages. However, the six villages did not follow his methods. Perhaps "could not follow" would be a more fitting expression.

The seventh village had been reviving itself by selling the resources of the Dark Forest to "someone".

The abundant resources of the Dark Forest could only be exported under the name of Lysette. This rule applied even to the dark elves. But the chief of the seventh village had been blatantly breaking this rule without any hesitation and with unnerving calm.

"I don't know who the chief was dealing with because we all rejected his offer."

This felt natural. After all, elves were nothing without their pride, and dark elves were no different. Yet the chief of the seventh village…

"The first to be executed as an example was the first village."

That village was completely burned down. I could still almost smell the acrid smoke. "An example"…

"We didn't dare "choose" anything. so…"

"You ended up imprisoned here."

"At first, I thought it was fortunate."

"It certainly is fortunate. The residents of the third village all turned into zombies."

"What a dreadful event."

"No bodies were found in the fourth and fifth villages."

"They're imprisoned here just like us. What about the sixth village?"

"It looked as though a meteor had struck. Perhaps they were…"

Annihilated. I swallowed the word and sighed deeply.

Half of the dark elves were annihilated…

The identity of "someone" was easy to guess.

The crows.

It could only be them who were capable of orchestrating something like this.

I never expected they would reach as far as Lysette though…

Even meddling with the dark elves and the Dark Forest, the most secretive of things.

"The chief of this place had a magical disability just like Pebble."

At the man's words, I perked up my ears and pressed close to the bars. What? A magical disability? But I had clearly felt tremendous magical power from him…. Moreover, the amount of magic needed to construct and manage a structure like this…

"But he overcame his disability through years of steady effort. Of course, he wasn't at this level until a few years ago."

A few years ago. That must have been when he contacted the crows.

I don't know for sure, but it must be with the crows' help that he acquired such abnormal abilities.

This must also be related to the queen being trapped in the Labyrinth of Dreams.

That all this started in a small village in the Dark Forest. It was ridiculous that the elves who were busy ostracizing the dark elves were unaware of all this.

…. Right now, I need to focus on getting out of here.

That would allow me to confront the chief or call for help from the capital.

Come to think of it, I had sent a message. Perhaps the capital has already dispatched soldiers.

So, if I can just get out of here…

-Beep!

At that moment of deep contemplation, Beepy stretched out his neck and chirped. His clear and refreshing chirp echoed throughout the entire prison.

"…Oh!"

Then, I saw the spells engraved on the bars momentarily flicker. It seemed they were reacting to Beepy's cry.

"Beepy, try it again!"

I urged Beepy. But it appeared that even Beepy had his limits. After all, the prison itself was limiting magical power. That he did this much was already quite remarkable…

-Ggggggg…

"...?!"

A strange and unpleasant sound like metal scraping came to my ears. I lay flat on the floor and strained my ears to hear where the noise was coming from. The sharp sound of metal scraping against the floor, heavy boots hitting the ground, and the sound of a cloak sweeping across the floor amid all other noises…

Could it be…!

I sprang to my feet.

It was then that it happened.

-Clash!

A flash of light sparked in the pitch-darkness.

-Creaaak…

-Bang!

And the bars fell with a heavy sound.

…Wow. If I had remained lying down, I would have been crushed to death.

I swallowed dryly and stared at the shadow that had "sliced through" the bars. The sword held by the shadow glimmered eerily.

"I knew you would come."

"…"

"Lloyd."

Lloyd, El, Ayla, and I had safely escaped from the prison. It was already night outside. And for some reason, there was no moon tonight, and the surroundings were completely engulfed in darkness.

We couldn't just leave the village like this. The guards were vigilantly watching in every direction, and causing a commotion in the Dark Forest at night was madness. A wrong move could mean facing not just monsters but also the village's dark elves all at once.

So, should we hide in the village and wait for the soldiers from the capital whose arrival was uncertain? That was impossible too. Once they discovered we had disappeared from the prison, they would thoroughly search the village and the surrounding areas.

There was only one option left.

Here and now.

To confront "Grizel" the village chief and purify this village.

It's easier said than done…

It was a plan so reckless it almost made me laugh at myself. But on the other hand, there was no better plan.

"Haah…"

I gulped down a potion drawn from the [Sage's Flask] and pulled out a scroll from the inner pocket of my coat.

"Demarcushel."

When I called out that forbidden name, a powerful and sinister magical power began to emanate from the scroll. The power was strong enough to overwhelm not just the underground prison but also the village chief "Grizel".

"Let's make a deal."