Chapter 34

Chapter 34

After leaving the Tree Court, the feeling of being watched dissipated immediately.

The tension in Nifla's mind gradually eased. Perhaps it was just a patrolling elf, worried that they might make mistakes on their first day of work?

Nifla comforted herself and headed back with Hailisha to find the instructor overseeing the teleportation array work.

The work had gone relatively smoothly. Hmm, she needed to think carefully about how to report today's work situation.

Pelan followed Nifla and Hailisha out of the Tree Court and breathed a sigh of relief. He glanced back at the Tree Court's gate. It seemed the news of Sipo's disappearance hadn't reached the Elven Queen and the Council of Elders yet; otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to leave so easily.

When leaving the prison holding Sipo, Pelan had also considered sneaking back to the guesthouse, but this idea was quickly vetoed by Lou Guanyue.

The reason was simple: they were the only three outsiders in the entire Elven Forest. If a prisoner who had been securely locked up went missing, the first suspects would undoubtedly be the two humans.

Although a necromancer might not necessarily manipulate dark elements, Pelan was a mage who had awakened to the dark attribute. Elves were particularly sensitive to the aura of the dark attribute, and hiding this from a thorough investigation by the elves was hardly realistic.

After discussing it, Pelan decided to try to find a way to leave the Elven Forest before the news of the prison break spread.

He still had transformation potion with him, so disguising himself as an elf for a while wasn't a problem. The most crucial issue was how to leave the long-isolated Ithilien.

The stealth talisman's duration was up; the invisibility "magic" was about to wear off. Lou Guanyue found a secluded corner to stop in. The two sat leaning against a tree trunk. Pelan waved his hand, signaling Lou Guanyue to release Sipo first.

Under Pelan's gaze, Sipo, who had been cooped up all this way, stretched his wings and flew out of the money pouch. However, he didn't speak immediately. Instead, he landed on a branch, hanging his head dejectedly, like a wilted little plant.

Seeing him so downcast, Pelan frowned and asked, "What's wrong? Didn't you want to come out of the pouch?"

Sipo looked even more dispirited. He was silent for a few seconds, then let out a long sigh. "I did... You, have you already seen her?"

"Her? You mean the Queen?"

Surprisingly, he didn't hear an immediate answer. Pelan looked down and saw that Sipo had sat down cross-legged at some point, leaning against the tree trunk. After a long moment, he finally gave a slight nod.

"Yes. She is an excellent diviner, and also my mother." Sipo hugged his knees tightly, looking up at the tallest tree canopy in the forest, a faint trace of sorrow flickering between his brows. "Through divination and prophecy, she should have known long ago that you would come to Ithilien, that I would leave with you."

Pelan wanted to comfort him but momentarily didn't know what to say. The elf smiled and said, "Pelan, you must be very surprised, right? That the prince of the elven race is actually a Dark Elf."

Without waiting for Pelan's reply, he continued on his own, "A long, long time ago, the Mother Tree was the tallest and largest tree in the Elven Forest. Every one of her leaves shimmered with a lush green light. Golden, round fruits hung from her branches, each nurturing a future elven child. If an elf wanted a child of their own blood, they could pray to the Mother Tree and drip their blood onto a fruit."

At this point, Sipo paused for a few seconds before continuing, "Mother... she was supposed to be the greatest Queen of the elven race, but my birth brought her shame. And this time, I escaped again... I know that without her, I wouldn't have been able to leave the Tree Court so smoothly."

By the end, Sipo was too ashamed to go on. He buried his head deeply.

Running away was too shameful for an adult elf!

It was downright cowardly!

Sipo had known of his "difference" since birth. The dark power emanating from him carried a scent that elves found repulsive. The elven children in the nursery rejected him, and even teachers would unconsciously avoid him.

Most of his childhood was spent alone in a corner. He didn't meet the Queen often, and even when they were in the same room, they seldom spoke more than a few words.

Sipo had always thought that even if the Queen didn't despise him, she must have had her reservations.

Until the day the Council of Elders announced his execution, his proud Queen lowered her head for the first time.

She knelt before the Mother Tree for three full days before the Council changed his sentence from execution to exile.

On the day he left the Elven Forest, the Queen did not appear. But at one moment when Sipo looked back, he unexpectedly caught sight of a silver figure.

"Is the Elven Mother Tree sick?"

Lou Guanyue's sudden question interrupted Sipo's wandering thoughts. He instinctively replied, "Yes."

His head nodded halfway before Sipo froze instantly. This was the greatest secret within the elven race, and he had just casually revealed it to outsiders!

He tugged at his hair in frustration, his face bitter. "You mustn't tell anyone about the Mother Tree's illness. She is vital to the safety of the entire elven race!"

Pelan recalled the listless, seemingly withering ancient tree in the Tree Court and frowned, asking, "Is the one in the courtyard the Mother Tree?"

"Yes."

Seeing his expression, Sipo guessed he had probably misunderstood and explained, "The Mother Tree's roots spread throughout the entire Elven Forest. Her main trunk actually grows within the palace. The tree in the courtyard is only a part of the Mother Tree."

But this also indirectly confirmed that the Elven Mother Tree's current condition was not good.

Pelan asked, puzzled, "If the Elven Mother Tree is sick, why isn't she being treated? Ithilien wouldn't lack plant healers."

Failing that, they could even go to the Church to ask for priests to heal her.

Of course, the elven race certainly wouldn't lack priests at the Magic Saint level. As a long-lived race, they didn't need to worry about lifespan issues. As long as no accidents occurred, they could even live forever.

Seeing the shock in Pelan's eyes, Sipo explained sorrowfully, "Since the Holy War a thousand years ago, the number of children borne by the Elven Mother Tree has gradually decreased. The Mother Tree bears fruit once every ten years. It went from bearing a hundred fruits each time, to fifty, to thirty... Until the year I was born, the Mother Tree bore only ten fruits."

"Now, it's been three years since the Mother Tree last bore fruit, and there are no more buds on her branches. The elders have tried many methods, all to no avail. They can only watch helplessly as she withers." The more Sipo thought about it, the sadder he became, curling himself into a ball. "After I was born, the time between the Mother Tree's fruitings grew longer and longer, and the number of fruits became fewer and fewer."

"They all say the Mother Tree has been corrupted by darkness and can no longer absorb the power bestowed by the God of Light. She is dying." Sipo muttered gloomily after a while, "The elders have no solution either, which is why they hoped to use my blood and soul to cleanse the darkness and filth from the Mother Tree's body."

"Is that why they captured you?" Pelan's frown deepened, his tone carrying clear anger. "No one can be sure that killing you will cure the Mother Tree."

If healing the Elven Mother Tree were that simple, the Council of Elders would have done it long ago. Sipo would never have grown up!

The elves were simply venting their anger!

Whether to shift blame or divert internal conflicts, the ever-unpopular Dark Elf was everyone's favorite, most convenient target.

As for whether killing Sipo could "appease" the divine wrath, that wasn't important.

After a moment's thought, Pelan looked at Sipo seriously and said, "No matter the reason, Sipo, you cannot go back. If you lose your life because of this, all the Queen's efforts would be in vain."

Hearing the word "Queen," Sipo couldn't help but clench his fists. "But if I don't go back, the Queen will surely face the elders' reprimands. By then, she might even be—"

At that moment, the Tree Court's entrance not far away suddenly opened. Two teams of elves in silver and gold armor flew out, scanning their surroundings warily.

"The Silver Moon and Sun Knights?"

"Aren't they the Tree Court guard and the Queen's personal guard? Why are they mobilized together? Has something major happened?"

"They're coming this way!"

The elves murmured among themselves. The knights' search was swift and was about to reach the large tree where Pelan and the others were hiding.

Pelan's heart sank. The news of Sipo's disappearance had most likely been discovered!

Acting swiftly, he scooped up the elf who was still sulking in the corner of the tree trunk, grabbed Lou Guanyue who had been watching the whole scene like a play, and opened a spatial passageway away from the Tree Court.

The spatial fluctuations quickly caught the guards' attention. Several elves flew over but found no trace of their targets.

The leading elf immediately ordered, "There are residual spatial mana traces! Report back to the elders at once!"

"The rest of you, fan out and search the outskirts of Ithilien!"

The elves vanished quickly, and the branch fell silent once more.

After a while, two figures gradually appeared in the previously empty space.

Lou Guanyue's lips curved into a smile as he looked at Pelan's lively eyes. "Teacher, that feint was truly brilliant."

"Feint?" Pelan repeated, unfamiliar with the phrase. He seemed to grasp its meaning, relying on his strong comprehension.

Was Yue praising him for pretending to use Spatial Magic to divert the elves' search?

Lou Guanyue confirmed his thoughts. "Teacher is very clever and impressive. If it were me, I might have fallen for it too."

The praise made Pelan a little self-conscious. He lowered his head to look at the elf sitting in his palm, cleared his throat, and said, "Sipo, besides the trade teleportation array at Port Colent, do you know of any other way to leave the Elven Forest?"

Sipo shook his head. "The only place I know is that one. Even elves who go to the mainland for training leave through the teleportation array at Port Colent."

This complicated things.

Pelan certainly didn't believe that such a vast Elven Forest had only one connection to the mainland.

But the locations of other teleportation arrays were likely held by the Elder Council and the Queen.

Asking the Queen was definitely an unwise choice. The Tree Court was probably a trap waiting to be sprung.

Pelan didn't want to risk how many Magic Saint-level elders the elves still had.

"The teleportation array at Port Colent seems to be overseen by the two female elves who went to the Tree Court with us today. Should we try to find them first and see if we can obtain the incantation to activate the array before the Knight Corps prepares?" Pelan pondered briefly.

"No need for such trouble." Lou Guanyue smiled. "I know where they are."

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Author's Note: Tomorrow, I'll adjust the update time, temporarily changing it to 21:00 [dog holding a rose in its mouth].