Chapter 180: Bait(1)
Chapter 180: Bait(1)
The lies the Elves were to tell Piren were roughly as follows: Xenon’s real name, his place of residence, his appearance, and finally, the claim that they had taken measures to ensure he could never write again.
Since these lies didn't technically violate the covenant, and the fact that Piren had personally entrusted them with the pursuit meant he trusted them to some extent, there was a high probability he would fall for them.
Of course, Piren wasn't a fool, so he would likely demand proof. To prepare for that, they had readied a 'Fake Covenant.'
While a covenant only took effect when mutual agreement was reached, scams were frequent since it was essentially a form of 'contract.' As mentioned before, the most common method was the Fake Covenant.
Since ancient times, there were many cases where one party would show seemingly reasonable clauses and lie about having formed a covenant when no actual agreement had been made. Because there were various ways to verify if a covenant had been established, this trick rarely worked on strangers.
Therefore, this was a method that only worked on someone who already had a certain level of trust. Kalas had mentioned that Piren chose them because he trusted—or at least relied on—them, so the plan was likely to succeed.
However, it was essential to forge the document meticulously so the deception wouldn't be discovered. Cecile told him not to worry about that part, so there were no major concerns.
Now that all the bait was ready, all that remained was to wait for a bite. By the time the preparations were finished, the sun was just about to rise outside.
I looked at Kalas and his group, who looked haggard from the extreme pressure, and sought confirmation.
"You understood what I said, right? If you don't want your ears to turn pitch black, you'd better do exactly as I told you."
"...Understood."
Having completely folded his pride, even Kalas now spoke formally. After being bound and pressured for several hours, it was only natural for his spirit to be exhausted.
Furthermore, they were Elves. They likely had never experienced a situation like this in their lives.
"Isaac. I've finished writing the covenant here."
"Hmm..."
A moment later, I took the Fake Covenant from Cecile and checked the clauses. I had asked her to write it from the perspective of an arrogant Elf, and I was curious to see how it turned out.
[Henceforth, the Xenon Biography shall be written only with the permission of the Elder Council.]
Okay. The first clause alone was enough. There were other clauses, such as one demanding that all negative aspects of Elves be excluded and only the good parts be written, but the first one settled it.
It was safe to say it contained every clause that would perfectly suit the tastes of someone as filled with racial supremacy as Piren. If the Xenon Biography were written according to these terms, it would be nothing more than propaganda.
The clauses were written solely with the Elves in mind—simple and concise.
"Sign here... and you sign too."
Kalas signed the Fake Covenant and tucked it carefully into his tunic. Now that even the Fake Covenant was ready, I gave them one last warning.
"Keep this in mind. Depending on how you act, it might not just be your ears, but your very lives that fly off. Got it?"
"...I will keep that in mind."
"Then go back to that old Elf, Piren. And make good use of what I taught you."
As I waved them off dismissively, the Elves vanished simultaneously. Judging by the fluctuations in mana, they seemed to have used teleportation.
It was a bit funny to see them flee the moment they had the chance, but there was still work to be done. As soon as the Elven tracking team disappeared, I spoke to Cecile.
"Noona. Did you tell Siris?"
"She should be following them by now."
"Is it okay even if they use teleportation?"
"Yeah. As long as you understand the principles of teleportation, tracking isn't difficult. In fact, teleportation is more likely to be detected. Want me to explain the principle?"
"No, I'm good."
It was better to just treat magic as a mysterious force. I had a lot of knowledge thanks to the memories of my past life, but that didn't mean I was a genius.
"Son. Do you truly believe this will succeed?"
Sensing that the situation had mostly concluded, my father asked me with his arms crossed. Doubt was written all over his face.
I had given him a rough outline of the plan before the Elves broke into the mansion, but he still seemed skeptical. Though he had never personally waded into politics, he had observed it from afar, and he seemed worried about the current situation.
Like my father, I didn't believe it would succeed with a 100% probability either. The world rarely goes exactly as one wishes, and people tend to act unpredictably when driven into a corner.
However, as the saying goes, 'know your enemy and know yourself, and you will never be defeated.' In truth, we held a massive advantage in this fight. Even if a variable occurred, there were allies who could intercept it, so the momentum itself wouldn't break.
"Well, I don't think it's a guaranteed success like you're worried about, Father. But the flow won't be disrupted. The rest will depend on how well the Queen can incite the masses."
"Incite... I've heard her speeches are remarkably good, but I'm not sure about incitement."
Since my father had never personally heard Arwen's speeches, he scratched his chin and spoke tentatively.
However, the line between a speech and incitement is paper-thin. Especially if you mix a few lies into a large truth, people have no choice but to be deceived.
Furthermore, this was a world where information didn't spread properly, let alone have the internet. Someone in my past life once left a famous quote:
Incitement can be achieved with a single sentence, but refuting it requires dozens of documents and evidence. And by the time you try to refute it, the people have already been incited.
There are rumors that Goebbels, the famous Nazi orator, said this, though there is no proof. But the fact that such a quote is attributed to him is proof of how exceptional his skills in incitement were.
And the Arwen I saw, while perhaps not a Goebbels, possessed a deeply moving oratorical skill. I had merely provided the script; it was Arwen who successfully delivered the speech, so it was no exaggeration to call it her own talent.
"She'll do well. You know how favorable public opinion is toward the Queen, don't you, Father? It was Arwen who united the pure-bloods and half-bloods."
"That was thanks to your speech. But you won't be able to help her this time..."
"That's why I'm saying the rest is in the Queen's hands. She's probably preparing even now."
From Arwen's perspective, this was a golden opportunity to wipe out the Elder Council, which was nothing short of a cancerous growth hindering her. Since I had informed her of the plan through Siris, she would be making her own preparations accordingly.
I just had to wait leisurely and watch the situation unfold. If a problem arose in the middle, I could take measures then.
"Hmm... I'm asking because I don't know much about Albenheim's politics, but I wonder if the Elder Council's power and the Queen's power are equal."
"I understand they're roughly equal. It's just that because of the symbolism the Elder Council holds, people couldn't easily act against them, even though many noble families were dissatisfied. In the first place, the throne was created to keep the Elder Council in check."
No matter how great Arwen's social and political skills were, being the sole target of their checks was mentally exhausting. Looking at how many times the owner of the Albenheim throne had changed in the past, one could guess how severe that pressure was.
However, seeing Arwen hold her ground so firmly, the noble families began to think, 'Oh? This might actually work,' and started backing her. Moreover, now that she had captured the hearts of the people through her speeches, the support from the noble families had become even more steadfast.
"If that's the case, it might be fine, but a bloodbath in Albenheim will be unavoidable. The fact that your hand was injured is already a grave matter, but if it's revealed that the Elder Council was the culprit..."
"Arwen must be aware of that. But seeing as she gave her consent, it seems she's formulated a plan while taking that into account."
The Elder Council was certainly a group that hindered Albenheim's development, but their symbolic status could not be easily dismissed. If Arwen were to destroy that symbol, the shock to the citizens would be immense.
She would have to bear all the resulting aftermath. I inwardly hoped she could navigate it wisely. There was a high possibility that neighboring countries would apply pressure, taking advantage of the moment Albenheim was weakened.
"So, what are you going to do now?"
"First..."
I smiled at Cecile's question before answering in a tired voice.
"I'm going to sleep."
I'd write the letter later.
*
After being dismissed by Isaac, Kalas and his group fled the mansion as if escaping for their lives.
They squeezed out every last drop of their remaining mana to teleport to a safe location. The amount of mana required for teleportation increased exponentially with distance, but given the circumstances, they had no choice.
Thus, they hurriedly moved to a region far away from the Maishal territory. The area they arrived in was neither a city nor a village, but a forest—which, for Elves, was no different from a sanctuary.
"W-what do we do now?"
Lena, the brown-haired Elven woman, spoke first, her voice trembling with anxiety and nervousness. her eyes were shaking, and her hands were clutching her ears.
Mael was in a similar state. The only difference was that his expression was closer to despair. He looked as if he had already given up.
"Sigh..."
Hearing Lena's question, Kalas let out a deep sigh and fumbled inside his tunic. He pulled out the Fake Covenant written by the Demon Princess, Cecile.
Part of him wanted to tear the covenant to shreds and burn it, but he couldn't. If his ears rotted and turned black, his pride as an Elf—and everything else—would vanish.
There was nothing they could do right now. Kalas spoke quietly, his voice resigned.
"...For now, we return to Albenheim. We have to hope that Lord Piren notices something is wrong."
"But the covenant..."
"A covenant isn't infallible. There must be a loophole."
A covenant only holds power over the truth; it has no effect if something is a lie. Therefore, they could use this to their advantage.
As Kalas organized his thoughts, a smile replaced his resigned expression as if he had hit upon a good idea. At that smile, Lena and Mael's expressions also brightened slightly.
"Right. When we report to Lord Piren, we just need to signal that we're lying. The covenant won't take effect against a lie."
"T-that would work! But how do we lie..."
"When a person lies, they show physical reactions. For example, shifting one's gaze to the left or fidgeting with one's hands. There are many such tells. Lord Piren couldn't possibly be ignorant of that fact."
Piren had far more political experience than other Elves, and he was quick-witted. Moreover, he was so suspicious that once he caught a scent of something, he wouldn't let go until his doubts were resolved.
Even if they weren't lying, the moment Piren became suspicious, he would dig and dig further. And they just had to take advantage of that.
Their ears rotting from black mana? What mattered right now was buying time. The most important thing was to buy enough time for Piren to take measures.
"But be careful. We don't know who the traitor in Albenheim is. Considering they even knew Lord Piren's full name, there's a high probability it's one of the Great Families."
"How could a mere human be connected to a Great Family... and a young brat at that..."
"There must have been a connection. Or perhaps he really is someone from the future. Surely the Gods placed restrictions on him so he couldn't act freely. That's why we..."
Whish—thud!
As Kalas was speaking, something sliced through the air with a sharp whistle and embedded itself nearby. Startled, Kalas and his companions turned their heads toward the sound.
A dagger was buried in a thick vine stretching high into the sky, and a small note was tied to its handle.
Kalas stared blankly at the dagger that had landed just above his head before reaching out. He pulled the dagger out and, with trembling hands, untied the note.
Gulp.
In the sudden silence following the ambush, the sound of someone swallowing hard was clearly audible. With a sinking heart, Kalas unfolded the note.
And on that note...
[Don't do anything foolish.]
It was a blatant warning.
"..."
Kalas felt the blood in his entire body turn ice-cold. He hurriedly cast a detection spell to scan the surroundings, but he sensed nothing.
'How? We used teleportation! What kind of trick is this?'
Could this also be the power of that Demon Princess? Since almost nothing was known about the Demon race, it wasn't impossible.
Above all, the Demons were a major race that served Mora, just like the Dark Elves. Hiding in the shadows would be child's play for them, so such a feat wasn't out of the question.
It was as if eyes and ears were planted everywhere. The realization that they would be monitored even on the way back to Albenheim made Kalas feel as if his world was collapsing.
'Just what is that guy...'
Just how far did the abilities of Xenon—no, Isaac—reach? Kalas looked up at the sky with a hollow expression.
In contrast to his feelings, the sky was perfectly clear.
'It's over.'
Kalas let out a hollow laugh of utter futility.