Chapter 24
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 24
Chapter Title: Change
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Celine left the 1st Reconnaissance Team's outpost on the outskirts early in the morning, passing through Silvarion's residential area and venturing even deeper.
All the way to the district inhabited solely by High Elves.
No one tried to stop her.
And before long, Celine encountered the person she had been looking for.
Silver and green hair blended in a strangely beautiful harmony framed a handsome face whose age was impossible to gauge.
He was Virtla, a High Elf elder.
The moment Virtla saw her, he spoke with evident surprise in his eyes.
"What about the outskirts? Why are you here?"
"I have something brief to discuss with you."
"With me?"
"Yes."
Virtla was an authoritative elder who personally attended the High Elves' regular council meetings.
If she had something to convey, he was the most appropriate person for it.
"...Before that, may I ask one thing? Have you heard any news from the outside?"
"News? What kind of news?"
"Nothing unusual happening around us?"
"Wouldn't you, who scouts the outskirts, know that better than anyone?"
"In that case... any word from Mother?"
"What?"
At the mention of her mother, deep wrinkles formed on Virtla's forehead.
He felt displeasure at the question itself and hardened his expression.
"Why suddenly bring her up? If there's word from her, it will be properly relayed."
"The Followers of Evil are multiplying around us. We're being pushed back all the way to Silvarion because we've ignored that fact. I'm worried if we can just sit idly by like this."
Virtla's face twisted as he fully grasped Celine's words.
"First off, correct that phrasing. It's not that we were pushed back... We relocated of our own volition."
"Mother said nothing about it."
Celine hesitated for a moment before continuing.
"And she still hasn't."
"...Hah."
Virtla let out a short breath and tilted his head back.
He soon fixed his hardened gaze on her again. A low voice emanated from his lips.
"What exactly is your intent in saying such a thing now?"
"Mother is losing her power—"
"Enough!"
Virtla's shout cut sharply through the air. Mana-infused currents rippled outward.
"You've been out on the outskirts so long you've lost your senses. Leave this place at once."
Celine had already said something irreversible, so she couldn't back down now.
"I'm just saying... the recent movements are far from normal. We all need to stay vigilant."
"You dragged Mother's name into it just to say that?"
Anger flickered in Virtla's eyes.
"I know you've been harboring childish thoughts of leaving the forest. In the end, the chieftain couldn't break your stubbornness and sent you to the outskirts, didn't he? Have you forgotten your duty there? Do you truly not know how we've survived until now? Mother has guided us, and we've followed her will—that's why we've enjoyed peace without incident."
"Without incident?"
Celine met his gaze steadily, her eyes unwavering.
"Not long ago, we abandoned our long-held home and relocated to Silvarion. Is that nothing? The peace we've enjoyed is certainly thanks to the Great Mother. But at the same time, it was only possible because humans forged the Peace Accord long ago."
"What?"
"And the fact that Mother's power isn't what it once was... that's undeniable. We can't rely on her forever. Nothing lasts eternally. Someday, we'll have to make our own choices. And I believe that time is now."
"Enough. I won't waste more time on this nonsense."
With a curt voice, he turned away.
But Celine closely followed right behind him.
"I'll attend the next regular council meeting."
"Ridiculous. You abandoned all rights and headed to the outskirts."
"If I say I'm participating."
Celine stopped in her tracks and spoke calmly toward him.
"You have no authority to stop that, Elder."
"..."
Virtla ultimately said nothing.
He knew it too.
Once she declared it, there was no longer any justification to stop her.
Celine was the chieftain's daughter.
Beneath the shade of a massive tree, High Elf elders sat in a semicircle inside a building set slightly apart.
Celine, making a rare appearance, stepped in through the entrance a short distance away.
As she entered, all the elders' gazes turned to her in unison.
And soon, those gazes shifted to the person seated at the head position.
Elf Chieftain, Erbanek Riandel.
The king who had led these elves for over a millennium.
His title over all elves fell short of "king," but in essence, he was a steward.
One who guided the tribe correctly without distorting the Great Mother's will.
Riandel was the surname bestowed directly by the Great Mother upon the chieftain; the next chieftain would bear a different one.
The chieftain's seed could not take a surname until becoming the next chieftain.
Erbanek silently regarded Celine.
She sat in the seat directly opposite him.
Silence stretched on for a while before Erbanek turned his head toward the priest.
"Speak first, priest. Has Mother given any word?"
The priest clasped his hands and bowed his head.
"The voice of the Sacred Tree... has not yet reached us."
"..."
Erbanek paused briefly.
He already knew why Celine was here.
She had warned an elder to beware of the forces of evil.
...Would Celine think her concerns were unfounded after this?
Or would she raise her voice again, doubting Mother's continued silence?
Erbanek knew that entertaining such thoughts was odd in itself—it was tantamount to admitting he harbored doubts about Mother's condition deep down.
But with Mother's silence dragging on for years now, worry was inevitable.
Especially for the chieftain bearing the weight of the entire tribe.
The chieftain's silence continued briefly. Celine pierced it precisely.
"No word again this time."
"Celine!"
"What do you mean by that!"
"How dare you doubt Mother!"
The council chamber erupted at Celine's single remark.
Sharp voices burst from all sides.
But Celine had anticipated this.
Undeviating, she continued steadily.
"I say it because we can't keep ignoring it forever. We need to prepare for the danger that's coming."
"You claim to see a danger that even Mother hasn't warned about?"
One elder asked sneeringly.
Celine nodded curtly.
The chamber stirred once more at her action.
"What insolence is this! Even as the chieftain's seed—"
"Stirring anxiety with some rumor you picked up somewhere!"
"And you call that noble blood?"
Celine silently endured the mockery.
The old her would have turned and left amid such cold reception.
She had done so before.
But now was different.
Perhaps trying to reclaim her rights at this point seemed selfish, but she had to speak now.
Even if it appeared that way, it had to be done.
"The movements truly aren't normal. There's evidence that the beastkin of Palewood have allied with the Pale Water Tribe beyond our borders."
"Evidence? You saw it yourself?"
"As if. You're just denying Mother based on some shallow rumor."
The chamber sank into a deeply hostile atmosphere.
Sneer and distrust laced every word.
Erbanek quietly observed the flow without intervening.
Some elders glanced at him, but he didn't budge.
It meant they should discuss further.
That wasn't the reaction the elders—or Celine—had hoped for.
Celine finally uttered what she had intended.
"I'll go investigate myself. Grant me authority to scout beyond the forest."
For the first time, Erbanek reacted to her words.
"...That's impossible. Too dangerous."
The elders immediately nodded in agreement.
"We absolutely cannot permit it. Sending you to the outskirts was already... a significant exception."
"Beyond the forest is no place for the chieftain's seed."
Their complete opposition to Celine's words stemmed from her defiance of the Great Mother.
What they protected was conviction and discipline.
Celine knew that all too well, which made it all the more frustrating.
It had always been this way.
She always felt like an outsider, caught awkwardly between the name of princess and the tribe's rules.
That was when it happened.
"Please wait a moment!"
The priest, who had been sitting quietly beside the chieftain, suddenly stood up.
The entire chamber fell silent in an instant.
There was only one reason for his reaction.
"Everyone, calm down and wait just a bit."
The priest hurriedly left the chamber.
The air, boiling with anger and derision, settled quietly at his single sentence.
Everyone instinctively sensed something serious had occurred.
A long silence followed. At its end, the priest reappeared.
"The will of the Sacred Tree has reached us."
"Truly?"
The priest nodded a beat late.
And continued cautiously.
"Prepare for danger."
"......What?"
A short gasp erupted from one side of the chamber.
In that moment, one corner of Celine's mouth twitched upward unconsciously.
But the instant she realized her subtle expression, she startled and hastily suppressed the smile.
She couldn't believe she had made such a face.
Inside the jostling carriage.
I unfolded the diary left behind by Philip Deran.
From the north to the capital—a long, arduous journey.
Spending that entire time cooped up in a carriage was pure torment.
Of course, thanks to the knights' consideration, riding in one was something to be grateful for.
But carriages... I could never get used to them.
Traversing this vast continent solely by carriage felt like something was fundamentally wrong with our civilization.
'...I seriously want to create a better transportation artifact.'
Though it wasn't my specialty... trying it out later in life beat rattling around in old age wheezing.
But for now, impossible.
I suppressed my churning stomach and focused on the diary's first page.
- This is too fun. The world has changed so much these days.
I never thought of this. The Transcendents nowadays are definitely different from the old stubborn ones.
Overconfidence isn't always good, but whatever.
The flames of revolution are already blazing anyway, and I just need to enjoy watching.
I debated sinking back into deep slumber, but good thing I didn't. With their personalities, my castle would be rubble by now. Life Vessel shattered too.
I've always been too meek. If I could surpass that personality, I'd rise to greatness. -
The diary seemed written after he awoke from long slumber.
I turned to the next page.
The dates skipped far ahead, so he wasn't the consistent type.
- At least I didn't live in vain.
Contact from a place called the Moonshadow Conclave. They want to share my ideals.
Sounds fun. Who'd have thought something like this near my castle. In the north, no less?
I chose this quiet northern spot before, but not anymore.
How much they mocked me as a coward for building here.
Those mockers will have to acknowledge my foresight now.
Of course, I don't care about such gazes. Here, no matter what they say, I'm the strongest.
Over long ages, the monstrous human Transcendent died, and that mad Dragon King got sealed.
No one left to bother me.
That monstrous human Transcendent is called the Hero now.
Thanks to him, I've survived this long, so I'll pray for his soul.
He abandoned humanity, but that didn't forge bonds with other races.
Honestly, didn't need that. Just satisfying that the Dragon King died.
Thought that bastard would never go down. -
Dragon King?
Was that the king of another race Joat mentioned, who fought the Hero to the end?
I thought just Demon King... but dragon...
- Looking back now, where did that Hero, the human Transcendent, get his power? Could I reach that?
Used to think lifespan hindered mage creation...
Maybe it's boundaries.
The ones I impose on myself. Caging my mana, my thoughts, myself.
Like being trapped in my castle.
But abandoning the castle is nonsense.
Right, one answer.
Expand the castle! -
After that, pages filled with sudden insights and realizations about limits.
Clearly a mage, with his obsession over perceiving limits and craving enlightenment.
Even if he became a Lich.
Hm... Some might love peeking into a high mage's inner world.
But I've strayed far from standard systems, so it didn't resonate much.
Boundaries I set myself?
I hit walls before even approaching them.
If boundaries define hierarchy, I wouldn't have faced walls until making the phone.
Rather, differing insights per person bolsters my old hypothesis: 'The essence of magic is formless.'
- I conveyed my intent to join the Moonshadow Conclave.
And received something.
Black slime. Wriggles like a spider.
Thin, fine tentacles spread everywhere, glaring at me like a conscious being.
But eat this?
They say it aligns our wills. Creates bonds recognizing each other as comrades.
Even transforms mana, granting access to their unique magic system.
Wonder who made this.
At least Lord Rank. Maybe beyond, Heavenly Rank. -
The diary flowed naturally to the next page.
- Eating it made my stomach churn.
Couldn't write for a while.
Damn... Still feels wriggling inside.
They said no major immediate changes, but whether mana's transformed... the sensation flowing through my fingertips feels utterly alien from what I controlled.
My mana pattern changed too.
Ah... crap. Can't write diary. -
Next page.
Different content there.
Date jumped far ahead to recent times—about me.
- Today, Vinsen brought something curious.
Device recognizing Unique Mana Patterns?
Who the hell made this?
...What a bored bastard.
Who thinks up something like this.
Sold his mage pride somewhere.
Obviously after practical gains.
Predictable. Crazy for money.
Still... seems useful tech.
Unnecessarily brilliant mind. Have to acknowledge his creativity as a mage's virtue.
Problem is the weird, useless direction.
Need eccentrics like him for us to live easier. -
Wow... Didn't expect an evaluation of me.
Of course, he didn't know I made it.
Griped but was impressed enough.
Even thought of integrating into his traps, so he liked it quite a bit.
Turned the next page.
And that was the last one.
- Soon, the regular conclave.
Regular conclave?