33 – Episode 4. It only takes a moment for things to go wrong. (1)
* @ *
“Abel Sirius of the Duke of Sirius… ….”
Marie Tersi, the mother of the elves, muttered as she looked at the letter brought by the assassination squad.
Even though she rarely came out of the great forest, she had heard of Abel Sirius a few times.
The greatest fool in the incorrigible empire.
The shame of the Duke of Sirius.
If it weren’t for the duke’s restraint, he would have been dead a long time ago.
Etc., Etc., I have heard of various nicknames used to refer to him.
However, when such a person suddenly sent her a letter saying that a monster was attacking, she was shocked.
‘Did you really think we would believe what you said? ‘It’s foolish, but it’s too foolish.’
She did not think that Abel sent this letter for the survival of the elves.
She decided that it would be more reasonable to think that it was their intention to join hands with the Beral Church to exterminate the elves and the world tree.
If you are a famous bastard in the Empire, you may have even approached the Beral Church at least once.
“Is it really Abel Sirius that you all met?”
Marie asked her assassin, who was bowing her head in front of her.
“It is definitely Abel Sirius. “After giving the order to investigate, we have been monitoring the Sirius family and have confirmed that the fragment of the World Tree is related to Abel Sirius.”
The assassin said, bowing his head even deeper. Hearing the unwavering voice of the dispatcher, Tersi trembled and turned her gaze towards the letter.
“Okay. That’s right…….”
‘Is this a struggle to survive from the assassination squad? Or not…… Is it true? Even if that were the case.’
Squeak—!
I tear up the letter that Abel sent. It was torn apart mercilessly so many times that it was impossible to put it back together again.
“It’s a shame. “The fragments of the World Tree do not even belong to humans.”
The content of the letter was not only about a monster attacking the World Tree.
It also included information that fragments of the World Tree could not be given.
Instead, she was offering to continue providing information to prevent the elves from collapsing.
However, Marie did not even ignore this offer and expressed her refusal by tearing up the letter.
“Where is Abel Sirius now?”
“I don’t know the exact location, but I heard that it is headed to the academy in Ferrator, the capital of the empire. “Other extermination team members, including Jan, are watching him.”
“So? Hmm… ….”
“If you give me the order to assassinate him at any time, I can kill him.”
“That’s not a bad thing, but it’s like giving justification to the empire. “It should be used as a last resort.”
The assassination team members could not hide their surprise at Marie’s words. Because she realized that Abel’s words about reading her mother’s intentions were true.
They almost made a mistake.
‘No matter how much of a child you give away, it is dangerous to kill a duke’s child. Still, there is no problem in recovering the fragments of the World Tree. Because there is a cause.’
Marie grinned as she recalled the Empire’s unilateral termination of the contract.
She planned to use it as an excuse for not returning the fragments of the World Tree they had given to the elves while not continuously providing goods to them.
“Think about Abel’s problem later, and first bring the fragment of the World Tree. It’s shameful that they’re trying to trade with a fragment of the World Tree. “Both now and then, humans are too greedy.”
Inherently, every object has its place.
After adding her words, Marie looked down at the assassins and said.
“You must have figured out the location of the fragments of the World Tree, right?”
“Yes.”
“Bring it at all costs.”
“…… “Before that, I have one thing to tell you.”
“What is it?”
She thought she would get an answer right away, but she inadvertently tilted her head at the assassin’s unfamiliar reaction.
In fact, if things had gone as usual, the assassination team members would have simply responded and followed orders.
However, she unintentionally became the basis for the credibility that Abel’s words were true, which caused her to voice doubts.
“Abel Sirius said. “If she dares to touch the fragment, Beatra will punish her and she will lose all her mana and divine power.”
“Ha, hahahaha. Do you believe that? Beatra is an imaginary being. Although he is a god-like being that humans believe in, he has never actually appeared in this world. But what about our World Tree?”
She stretched out her hand toward her stem, which stretched straight toward the sky. She traces the thick stem with her beautiful hands that look as if they have never done any hard work.
“Don’t you often give us grace like this?”
“Yes.”
The killing squad members were positive, but they could not laugh. Rather, only a strange feeling of frustration remained, as if a lump had formed in my heart.
That was because they, who were born as dark elves and lived a life of persecution, could not understand the grace of the World Tree.
“So ignore all the other strange noises and follow what I say. Do you understand?”
“I understand.”
“Okay. Think only of my commands. “If you want to remain a useful elf.”
“Yes.”
The assassination squad members were about to leave to meet Marie’s expectations.
“Wait a minute.”
She threw them a lumpy green fruit and a yellow fruit. The death squad member accepted it and looked around.
“What is this?”
“Those fruits contain mana. “I have the same thing on my side.”
Marie shook the green fruit slightly so that the assassination squad could see it.
“If I explode this, what you have will explode too. If the yellow fruit bursts, it means that a demon has appeared in Daesan Forest, and if the green fruit bursts, it means that she is to kill Abel. “Take care of it and come back.”
“I will do that. Mother.”
“Go and see.”
“Yes.”
After seeing the killing squad leave, Marie raised her head and looked up at her world tree.
“Father, there is nothing to worry about. Still…… “We need to be on guard against monsters, so we need to check whether Abel Sirius’s words are true or not.”
If a monster really invaded, the world tree could be in danger, so I thought I would prepare for it.
But that did not mean that he would believe in Abel.
Even if a monster attacked, she had no intention of trusting Abel.
Because humans are beings that should never be trusted.
· * * *
While I was taking class, I turned my eyes to the quest window that popped up next to me.
[‘Let’s create a relationship with the elves. #1’ Quest has been completed.]
[You intrigued Marie Tersi. We will be keeping a close eye on you in the future. Please be careful.]
“…… “Be careful?”
I tilted my head as I read it without realizing it.
No matter how you look at it, isn’t this something you should say when you fail?
No, I don’t think it was a failure since the quest was a failure…….
I’m confused. Is this really the right compensation?
Is this a warning to be wary of assassination squads?
To avoid offending Marie Tersi, she did not use offensive words in her letter. She chose her words to avoid misunderstanding as much as possible and wrote them to appear favorable.
If there was anything that bothered me, it was that I couldn’t give them fragments of the World Tree.
Still, I couldn’t compromise on this part.
If you give it away, not only will Clara’s growth be slowed, but her sacred power will also be used in a limited way.
In the first place, the magic purification water did not belong to the elves, but was given to me by a quest. Even if their intention was to help Clara grow, I had no intention of understanding their intention to take what I had given them as they pleased.
So, I planned to protect this even if it meant fighting the elves.
[‘Both the saint and the tree are mine. ‘I won’t give it to you.’ The quest has been completed.]
[From now on, Clara will put everything aside and devote herself to you as her priority.]
[Currently, Clara is waiting for an opportunity to awaken her new powers. Give her the opportunity to become a springboard for her growth.]
Then, I felt better as the window rose.
It seemed like the quest was completed safely for Clara as well.
If the church members saw that Clara’s divine power was increasing even without Houston, she would not have said anything.
Now I have to write a letter and bring Clara to her academy.
Although it is a little early, it has clearly been corrected one by one without deviating too much from the flow of the original work.
If things go well like this, I might be able to get a much better ending than the novel I read.
It had been about two days since I thought about such a hopeful future. Something happened that forced me to sigh.
[Someone lost mana due to Beatra’s divine punishment. The opponent cannot recover mana until you give permission.]
[Those who have received the Heavenly Hand are registered in the list so that you can view them whenever you want, and you can check their name and race in the list.]
Is there really such a thing as heavenly punishment?
I smiled bitterly and thought of a list of targets for heavenly punishment in my head. Then a new window appeared next to the text.
[Subject to divine punishment]
Name: Jonah.
Race: Dark Elf.
From Noble mtl dot com
Dark elf.
I thought I was messing with the church, but it turned out to be a dark elf.
Actually, I expected this to some extent when I sent the letter.
Marie Tersi is a woman who is crazy about the World Tree, so she must have been displeased that I, a human, had a fragment of the World Tree.
She must have ordered the assassination team to bring it. As a member of the assassination team, he had no choice but to prioritize Marie’s orders over my warnings, so he would have moved without hesitation.
I understand. A dark elf must continue to prove his usefulness in order to avoid being expelled from his tribe, so there would have been no right of refusal.
But it was not tolerated. The fact that this result came out means that you didn’t believe what I said.
“Ha, this guy really bothers people.”
Even though I sent you such a favorable letter, you still come out like this?
I sighed.
Even in the original work, he was a frustrating and annoying character in the process of making an agreement with the elves to eliminate the Beral Church, so I remember Mine defeating him. In the process, she also hit Jan.
“To put it mildly, not listening is typical of the elves. “Stubbornness is amazing.”
I brushed my bangs and sighed.
What should I do now?
The text in front of you says that you cannot recover mana until I give you permission.
But if you think of this in reverse, it may be an opportunity that has rolled in. An opportunity to appease the assassination squad.
Now that I have the fragment of the World Tree, I don’t know what Mari will do to me. At worst, they will even order an assassination.
And the one who receives that order will be the assassination squad.
In that case, let’s find a possibility to appease the assassination team members.
You may not be able to completely persuade them to your side, but there will definitely be hesitation.
Of course, he followed the words of his abusive mother, Mari, but he did not do so because he wanted to.
Furthermore, the assassination squad knows that Marie Teris thinks of them as chess pieces to be used once and then discarded.
That’s why their friendship was so strong that they called each other lightly.
What would you do if you were suddenly in a situation where one person had no choice but to die?
Can they really abandon their colleagues as coldly as Marie?
Honestly, I think it could be thrown away depending on the situation.
However, we were not in the middle of an operation, much less a situation where we had no choice but to sit back and watch.
Then of course you can’t throw it away. I’m sure they will try to find a way somehow. To me, who gave me a warning.
Therefore, there is room for appeasement.
Wouldn’t it be a waste to just throw away this opportunity?
“Jan. “Come in.”
When I opened the window and spoke, Jan came into the room as if he had been waiting and landed without a sound.
“What’s going on?”
“You ignored my warning.”
I spoke directly.
“What?”
“I’m sure they told you not to touch the fragments of the World Tree.”
“What are you talking about?”
Looking at Jan’s reaction, I guess he hasn’t noticed yet. Is there no way to contact each other?
“Did you think I didn’t know?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about? Please explain in an easy-to-understand way.”
“Among your subordinates, there is a child named Yona, right?”
“Jonah? “Did Jonah make some mistake?”
It seems like it really exists.
With this, I think we can be confident about the divine punishment effect of the Magi Purification Water.
“He touched a fragment of the World Tree. “I would have said that if you mess with it, you will be punished by Beatra.”
When I glared at him with a bit of force in his eyes, Jan was startled. He reflexively put his hand into his bosom, but did not pull out the dagger.
“What is that…?” ….”
“I will tell you clearly that you did not understand what I meant.”
I took a breath and opened my mouth.
“Jan. Jonah will not be able to use mana in the future.”
“What…… ?”
“Beatra’s divine punishment made Jonah unable to use her mana for the rest of her life.”
I intentionally put pressure on her, emphasizing her whole life.
Yan was still looking at me dumbfounded, as if he hadn’t realized the situation.
“So I warned you. “Don’t touch it.”
“Don’t lie.”
Yan speaks, trying to calm his trembling voice.
I guess so. He didn’t expect to believe it right away.
“You will find out whether I am lying or not when I meet your colleague.”
The next morning, about half a day later, the assassination team members who remained in the Duke’s house returned.
“Captain! Jonah…… !”
Upon her return, the first thing she did was confess what had happened at the Duke’s house.
She says that at Mari’s command, Yona tried to cut off her purifying water from Magi, but she literally lost all of her mana. And Yona, who lost her mana, was unable to escape the Duke’s house and was caught by her knight and was even told that she was imprisoned.
Yan only then realized the seriousness of the situation and gritted his teeth as he looked at me.
“Abel Sirius… …. What did you do?”
“I told you so. It’s Beatra’s heavenly punishment. Does Beatra still seem like a man-made illusion?”
I gained this initiative by chance, but I will use it to my heart’s content. Even to protect my life.