novelAlta Chapter 209: Everyone is out of their minds.
Chapter 209: Everyone is out of their minds.
The Elf Kingdom, which was already in turmoil since broad daylight, was turned upside down by the sudden incident.Because the spy’s identity was revealed shortly after the search began.
This is what the young elves who were last with Arendt testified in unison:
.
Coincidentally, Cheltan was one of the elves that Zakar and Sylvian had identified as suspects.
Sylvian immediately led her warriors and stormed into Cheltan’s house.
But his house was empty.
Less than an hour after the search began, the situation changed dramatically again.
Some children who were taking lessons from Cheltan began to develop strange patterns on their bodies.
Llewellyn knew immediately what it was.
Llewellyn muttered vaguely as he noticed a bruise-like pattern carved into the child’s side.
“This… is similar to what Jiklin had carved into the test subjects.”
Then the elves’ faces turned pale.
“Ha, but Jiklin has already left the kingdom a long time ago…!”
“Then it must be Cheltan’s doing.”
Llewellyn cut the elf off mid-sentence.
“Due to the nature of this spell, if the spellcaster does not touch it for a long time, the pattern will disappear. Perhaps Cheltan has been casting the spell on the children for quite some time.”
It was unclear whether he had taught this spell to Jiklin, or whether Jiklin had taught it to him.
But it was clear that it wasn’t a very good situation.
“First, gather all the children with the pattern in one place. Please calm them down so they don’t get anxious.”
“Oh, what’s going on? What happened?”
When the terrified elf woke up and asked, Llewellyn answered firmly.
“We have to make sure that nothing happens. We will make it happen.”
Llewellyn, who had left the cleanup to Sakhalin, approached Arthur and Richt, who were watching them from a distance.
Richt asked somewhat hastily.
“Is it sorcery?”
“Oh, right. It seems like they’ve been planning this for quite some time.”
Llewellyn nodded with a displeased expression.
“But it’s not perfect. The pattern is blurred and broken in some places. It’s a less skillful work than Jiklin’s… It’s probably still unfinished.”
And as the knights closed in, Cheltan cast a spell in haste and fled.
That’s all they could guess for now.
Arthur groaned.
“For now, it seems like nothing has happened, so that’s fortunate.”
“Well, I guess I should call this fortunate… we still don’t know what effect that spell will have. To put it in an extreme way, it could kill the kids in an instant.”
Llewellyn lowered his voice so the elves could not hear him.
Jiklin’s pattern slowly took away people’s egos.
But no one could be sure that what Cheltan used would have the same effect.
“If he’s holding kids hostage or something, he’s probably in a pretty difficult situation.”
“…”
Arthur and Richt’s faces hardened for a moment.
It was a well-known fact that Arendt was a softie to children.
Richt lowered his eyes.
“It was a good thing that we didn’t rush in when the suspect was close. If he had been holding out with the children as hostages, we would have been helpless.”
“I didn’t know it would turn out like this… that son of a bitch, I’ll beat him up when I see him later.”
Arthur grumbled, his voice full of annoyance.
At that moment, Sylvian and Zakar, who had gone out to search with their warriors, were seen returning.
Judging by their dark complexions, it seemed like they hadn’t gotten much done.
As expected, Sylvian, who had come closer, delivered some unpleasant news.
“We couldn’t find any traces. I think we have to assume that they may have entered the foggy forest.”
“Ugh… As expected.”
Llewellyn’s face crumpled.
Arthur asked curiously at that reaction.
“Is there a problem?”
“Even elves rarely go inside the foggy forest. If you go even a little bit inside, the fog gets so thick that you can easily get lost.”
In short, it meant that it was a great place to hide to kill time.
Sylvian added:
“Only those with enough magical power to avoid getting lost in the fog are allowed to enter. And to search the foggy forest, you need the permission of the Grand Elder.”
The knights’ faces became complicated at the mention of the phase ‘Grand Elder’.
The Grand Elder was now alone with Laius.
They didn’t even have to imagine what he was feeling right now.
“I know I shouldn’t say this, but if he had cooperated earlier, he wouldn’t have suffered this…”
Arthur trailed off.
Richt and Llewellyn nodded quietly.
Zakar, who had been listening quietly, added.
“But the one who is most embarrassed right now is probably Arendt.”
To Zakar and Sylvian, it seemed that Arendt, who had followed the spy himself, had displayed the spirit of a knightly sacrifice.
The spy’s identity had been revealed, and his capture had bought time to ensure the safety of the other hostages, namely the children.
But Arthur was the first to respond with a puzzled expression.
“Are you confused? That bastard?”
“Yes?”
Sylvian let out a dumbfounded sound at the unexpected reaction.
Then Richt shook his head.
“Arendt is the kind of person that even God Luce would send away, saying he’s a pain in the ass.”
“I don’t know if Cheltan is regretting it now.”
“…”
When Llewellyn got involved, Sylvian and Zakar just kept quiet.
Llewellyn blurted out, his hands shoved deep into his pockets.
“He is not the only one holding hostages.”
“Huh?”
“There are things they absolutely must get back. And they’re all in our hands.”
The Frosty Touch, The Shadow of the Strong, and Until Dragonborn.
Cheltan probably intended to retrieve at least the Frosty Touch, if not all of them.
But that also fell through when Arendt wore fake gloves.
So, Cheltan would be quite upset too.
Richt added, “Of course, if he just went back with Arendt’s head, he would be treated as a hero, but that wouldn’t be easy. There’s no way an elf who has been a teacher for decades could deal with Arendt alone.”
Sylvian and Zakar were left speechless for a moment.
They all looked overly calm and composed.
Sylvian finally couldn’t hold it in any longer and spoke again.
“Aren’t you worried?”
“Of course I’m worried, but that’s because that crazy bastard is a guy who doesn’t care about the means… there’s no way he’d end up dying from a spy or anything like that, so don’t worry.”
Arthur shrugged his shoulders awkwardly, as if imitating Arendt.
“It’s better to move quickly and in step with him than to worry and delay. He doesn’t expect us to panic.”
It was something he learned firsthand by hanging out with people who were like moving natural disasters.
Only then did Sylvian realize.
They didn’t just sit back and wait.
They were just holding their breaths so that they could jump out right away when their turns came.
Like hunting dogs waiting to be unleashed.
The parties involved may deny it, but their strange calm was quite similar to Arendt’s, who issued outrageous instructions without a care.
“…”
Was this okay?
Sylvian, who was about to say something, just kept her mouth shut.
“I wondered where Jiklin’s bad taste came from, and it turns out she inherited it from you.”
Arendt von Eckhart, leaning against the corner of the wall, let out an exclamation of admiration.
As if he were visiting a friend’s house, Arendt looked around at the monster entrails and research materials scattered throughout the room.
Seeing that calm look, Cheltan felt his anger rising once again.
But he managed to suppress his outburst with the patience characteristic of an elf.
“If you are even a little bit aware of your situation, you should not talk carelessly.”
But that kind of threat wasn’t effective against him.
Even though he was dragged to an unfamiliar place with his hands tied tightly, Arendt’s mouth would not stop.
“In this situation, shouldn’t I at least be able to move my mouth freely? I’m already feeling so resentful.”
Arendt shrugged his shoulders mockingly.
Seeing that calm and composed appearance, Cheltan felt his anger rising again.
The plan was to use the children as bait to retrieve the Frosty Touch, kill Arendt, and then immediately escape the Elf Kingdom.
But that plan went completely awry.
When he demanded that he hand over the relic, the bastard laughed and threw a plain leather glove in his face.
Arendt’s ramblings continued.
“His followers must be a real pain. All of his followers are such low-level people. What are you planning to do when you can’t even tell the difference between a holy relic and a leather glove?”
“Shut up. Before I strangle you to death.”
“If you can, then do it. If I die now, wouldn’t it be quite difficult for you too? Didn’t you want to get that precious relic back?”
“…”
Crack.
A grinding sound came from between Cheltan’s lips.
Unfortunately, the bastard was right.
Even if he succeeded in taking the young elves hostage and stealing the relics, he still had to flee the kingdom.
The influence of sorcery did not extend far.
So, he needed a means to ensure his safety even after he left the kingdom because Cheltan had a duty to safely deliver the holy relic to the outside world.
“Do you want to see children die?”
“Tsk. Are elves originally this boring?”
Arendt grumbled with a displeased expression. For origınal chapters go to novelhall.com
But the threat seemed to have worked, and there was no more murmuring.
Only then did Cheltan sigh and continue with what he was doing.
When he opened the old box, a jewel with a splendid light appeared inside.
When he placed his hand on the jewel, which was as big as an adult’s fist, he felt a subtle warmth.
It was evidence that it was working well.
Cheltan was relieved.
As he was quickly resealing the box, he stopped again when he heard a voice behind him.
“This is a matter of personal curiosity.”
“…”
“Did you betray the elves? Or were you hiding from the beginning?”
Although no answer came back, Arendt asked questions on his own.
Cheltan closed the box completely, pushed it back, and faced Arendt.
“That’s a strange question. Why are you curious about that?”
“It’s just personal curiosity. Since you stayed in the Elf Kingdom after sending Jiklin away, doesn’t that mean you haven’t achieved your goal yet?”
Cheltan remained silent for a while.
After a moment, he responded briefly.
“We’ve followed him since my father’s father. Is that the answer?”
“…I’m going crazy.”
Arendt, who had been silent for a moment, burst into laughter.
Cheltan continued speaking slowly.
“The way to repay his kindness has finally opened up. Jiklin was also very happy about the good fortune that had come to her.”
“That guy seems more happy that she has an avenue for research than for faith.”
Arendt answered coolly.
“From your father’s father… so that means you’re a remnant of the Great War. I guess the lineage wasn’t completely cut off?”
Cheltan made no reply, but the apprentice knight paid no attention.
“You said that no one among the elves survived the Great War? That’s why all the elves now are young people.”
“…”
“I was wondering what the hell happened, and maybe you know. No matter how brutal the war was, it’s a bit strange that there aren’t any elves over 200 years old left.”
The oldest elder in the Second Kingdom was about the same age as Laius in human terms.
“The Grand Elder was completely terrified, but it would be a bit much to think that it was only because he saw the aftereffects of war with his own eyes.”
Elder Altair, who had not directly experienced the war, seemed to have suffered from quite deep trauma.
“Did anything happen in your generation?”
Cheltan was silent.
After a moment, he spoke a short phrase.
“Divine Punishment.”
“…?”
Arendt’s brow furrowed slightly at the words that he couldn’t understand.