Chapter 26: Before the War

Turaleone Forest lies on the southwestern border of Alrasia. After ten days of travel from a stronghold near the capital, a band of thieves finally reached the edge of this vast woodland.

As one of the largest forests on the continent, Turaleone stretches hundreds of miles long and nearly a hundred miles wide. From its outer edge, the forest appears lush, with dense greenery teeming with vibrant wildlife—a seemingly harmless paradise. However, everyone knows the inhabitants of its depths are anything but hospitable, making the inner forest a place seldom visited by humans.

The movements of the hundreds of bandits were careful and calculated. Along the way, they managed to avoid any major incidents, and, most importantly, they stayed unnoticed by the Alrasian army. As they traveled, more bandits summoned by Hilika from various regions joined their ranks, swelling their numbers to an impressive four hundred.

The only trouble on their journey had been from internal. Back at the stronghold, over half the thieves had clearly heard peculiar noises emanating from Saunders' room. The woman who emerged afterward left an impression so profound that some thieves nearly lost control of their bladders merely from the sound of her voice. The cries from the room had lasted an excruciatingly long time, varying in tone and content.

The mental strain on the thieves—already tense from a full day of fleeing—was overwhelming. To make matters worse, Hilika demanded they march non-stop toward Turaleone Forest, forbidding them even basic indulgences, let alone the comfort of a prostitute.

Fuel was added to the fire when the strange nightly cries from Saunders' room persisted during the march, growing louder, more uninhibited, and varied in nature. After just a day or two, the black-clad woman became the object of ravenous stares from the thieves—hungry wolves eyeing a piece of fresh meat. Yet, as tempting as her form-fitting attire may have been, she was clearly not prey they could easily devour, especially since she belonged to another predator. Few dared risk their lives for such carnal desires.

However, "few" did not mean "none."

On the fourth night, four thieves, evidently driven by their baser instincts, lured the black-clad woman to an isolated spot under the pretense of discussing plans on behalf of the leader. Their exact intentions remain unknown, but it's doubtful they intended outright force. Whatever transpired, the woman returned shortly after—her voice with Saunders even more intense and feral that night.

By morning, the four thieves were found hanging from trees, stripped naked, with their hands and legs broken. What should have been between their legs was stuffed into their mouths.

The brutal display incited unease among the other thieves, many of whom shared the same forbidden thoughts. Yet, their fear of Hilika's cruelty and the silent menace of Saunders outweighed their anger. The thieves, while bloodthirsty criminals, understood survival often trumped primal urges.

Hilika handled the unrest in his own way. He crushed the skulls of the four culprits with his bare hands as easily as squashing overripe tomatoes. Then, turning to the rest, he declared with a chilling finality: "You'll have all the women you want after the job's done. But anyone who loses sight of our goal now won't live to see a woman again."

With that, the tension subsided, and the journey continued without further incident. Upon reaching the forest, the group split into two factions.

Hilika handed a map and a scroll to Saunders, detailing the inner forest's geography and the layout of the elves' settlement. The scroll was key to breaking the magical barrier protecting the elves.

According to Hilika's plan, Saunders would lead a small team—Hilton, Jessica, druid Anderson, and soul mage Old Bill—to stealthily infiltrate the elves' domain.

"With this scroll, you'll mask your presence within a hundred-meter radius, making you undetectable by the elves' spells. Once you reach their barrier, the scroll will let you slip inside undetected," Hilika explained. "While you infiltrate, we'll create a diversion by storming in head-on, drawing their attention. Your task is to locate a particular leaf."

"A leaf? Are you insane?" Hilton exclaimed. "How the hell are we supposed to find a single leaf in a forest this size? What if the elves toss it on the ground somewhere?"

"It's not just any leaf," Hilika clarified hastily. "It's their sacred artifact. You'll know it when you see it."

"And what if we don't?" asked Old Bill, narrowing his eyes.

"You will," Hilika said, though his tone lacked conviction. He quickly added, "Trust me, once you capture an elf and question them, you'll figure it out. Once you find it, the elves will descend into chaos, giving us the perfect opportunity to conquer Turaleone. Between us and those scrolls, we'll crush them."

Old Bill remained skeptical. "Conquer the entire forest with just this plan? Seems risky…"

"We've got four hundred of Alrasia's best criminals as your backup, ready to sacrifice themselves for the cause!" Esis shouted, his fervor almost desperate. "And don't forget the gentleman who gave me these scrolls—his power is unmatched!"

A low growl rumbled from Hilika's throat, silencing him immediately. It was a primal, guttural sound, like that of a starving behemoth.

Tension thickened as the group exchanged uneasy glances. Something about their benefactor—the mysterious figure behind the scrolls—felt dangerously ominous.

"Enough. I don't care who's pulling the strings," Saunders interjected, his calm and confident demeanor cutting through the tension. "As long as we get the reward you promised, that's all that matters."

"Of course! Absolutely!" Hilika nodded vigorously.

"Good. Let's go." Saunders gestured for his team to follow, leading them into the forest. The others, seemingly reassured by his composure, trailed behind.

"Wait," Hilika called after them. The group turned to face him.

"Thank you for your trust," he said, his words bizarrely out of place, as if he were speaking a foreign tongue.

"Likewise," Saunders replied curtly before disappearing into the dense woods with his team.

Hilika stood motionless for a long time, arms crossed, until he was certain the group was deep enough in the forest. Then, he turned to his remaining thieves and said coldly, "Let's move."

"Alright, everyone, listen up! Stay close to me!" Esis shouted to the bandits. He pulled out another magic scroll from his pouch, identical to the one he had given to the man earlier. "Once we enter the forest, stay within a hundred meters of me, understood?"

Hilika unfolded a map, studied it briefly, and said, "Head east for twenty miles, then turn south. That'll take us closest to the elves' settlement."

"Boss, are you sure this will work?" Esis whispered to Hilika, clearly uneasy.

Hilika replied calmly, "With those people as bait, what's there to worry about?"

"That's not what I mean. I mean, what if… what if that guy gets killed by the elves in their ambush? If their numbers exceed our expectations, and we can't take Turaleone, or retrieve the item…" Esis's voice wavered with fear. "What do we do then?"

"Even if the worst happens, as long as the elves capture a hundred or so people, it'll be enough. Besides, if that happens, it's entirely that guy's own fault. We'd bear no responsibility. Let's move," Hilika snorted, turning eastward. Esis sighed, reluctantly signaling for the 400 bandits behind him to follow.

Meanwhile, in another part of the Turaleone Forest's outskirts, far from the bandits, bishop Adra and Lancelote, commander of the temple knights, had also been waiting. Though Celeste was far from here, the speed of griffins made the journey trivial.

After receiving a report from a temple knight scout about the arrival of the bandit group, Bishop Adra used a Detect Atmosphere scroll.

This type of strategic magic scroll, typically used on battlefields, had no direct offensive capabilities but was highly useful. Its requirements were incredibly high, and its cost exorbitant. Furthermore, only Adra was capable of using such a scroll here. His decision to use it now showed how cautious and meticulous he was about this mission.

Within his clasped hands, a white mist began to swirl, filled with countless tiny glowing dots moving slowly. At the center of the mist was a dense cluster of lights, almost forming a solid orb. A few isolated dots moved toward it, while another group of dots shifted sideways briefly before also heading toward the center.

This mist was a condensed representation of the Turaleone Forest, with the glowing dots symbolizing the humans and elves within its range. Through this magic, Adra could control and monitor all movements in the area.

Adra focused on the image, his gaze fixed on a few of the isolated dots. Though the subtle differences between the dots were imperceptible to others, he could distinguish that these represented the strongest sources of energy.

Standing beside Bishop Adra, Lancelote was accompanied by four temple knights and ten paladins. Together with the archbishop, this small group could easily topple a city.

"What's that?" Lancelote suddenly noticed something unusual on the magical map. Despite not having the magical ability to use such strategic-level spells, his decades of battlefield experience had made him deeply familiar with such maps. Yet, the phenomenon he saw now baffled him.

At the center of the dense cluster of lights—where the elves' settlement presumably lay—was a particularly large light. Unlike the other dots that represented humans and elves, this one was much larger and exuded a strange green aura.

Adra also noticed the anomaly and studied it intently.

The magic map never erred. It detected beings with life force, souls, and magical energy—humans and elves alike. Animals, even those as powerful as behemoths, wouldn't appear unless the user deliberately adjusted the detection settings to include all life forms.

"A life force and magical energy of this magnitude… what could it be?" Lancelote pondered, his pupils contracting suddenly. "A dragon?" He immediately shook his head. "Impossible. There's no way something like that could be here…"

Adra also appeared deep in thought. Suddenly, he gasped softly, his body trembling. The magical image in his hands dissipated instantly.

"What's wrong? Did you recognize it?" Lancelote frowned.

 "No, I don't," Adra replied with a smile. His smile was always charming, but now it carried a hint of allure. "So, we'd better go take a look."