The Elven Patrol
A soldier with his elf ears perked up warily surveyed the group.
The soldier coughed a few times, clearly displeased by the desert's scorching air, then tossed out a question.
"Mr. Rand. Didn't we say entry was prohibited for a while?"
A faint contempt lingered in the elf soldier's eyes.
His gaze held a clear sense of repulsion, as if staring at some ominous creature.
The soldier hadn't missed the questions and wariness toward the others around him, his eyes lingering on Rune—who appeared as a child—and the rest of the group.
"I've just guided people who know about the World Tree."
"The World Tree? How would you know about that?"
The elf soldier couldn't hide his fluster at Rand's words.
Rune, watching closely, grasped the situation in an instant.
'I suspected as much, but they really haven't told Rand anything about the World Tree.'
He had even handed over the Seal of the Forest to the elves, yet Rand was still treated like an exiled outsider—nothing more.
Perdikion, equally dumbfounded deep down, felt his cheek twitch.
Only then did the elf soldier realize his mistake and hastily smooth his expression.
Rand continued.
"Whether all the stories you told me are true, I don't know. But they can solve the World Tree's problem. That's all."
"E-even if that's true, Mr. Rand, you still can't enter!"
"……."
Rand glanced subtly toward Rune, rolling his eyes.
A look that seemed to ask, 'What do you want to do?'
Rune could intuitively sense how Rand was being treated, so reading the implication was easy.
In short, going in together would likely end badly.
Sure enough, proceeding like this—even if they were here to help—would only heighten needless suspicion.
Rune stepped forward.
"Going with Rand is non-negotiable. I don't know how it is for you elves, but Rand would never harm us."
"What reason could a child like you possibly have to say that……."
The elf soldier countered Rune's response, but Rune and Perdikion were already conversing via telepathy.
[Brother, did you see?]
[See what?]
[That soldier's face. He looks young, but there's some weird rash on the skin hidden under that cloth.]
[Yeah. Strange pockmarks. Elves I know don't look like that. Odd.]
Thanks to the forest's blessings, elves were uniformly handsome and beautiful.
With pure bodies, their skin was flawless; healthy and resilient, they were nimble folk who dashed through woods and nature.
Yet a soldier—who should be the most agile and enduring among them—looked like this.
It would have been weirder not to notice something off.
'From the looks of it, arguing with Rand will just lead to bickering.'
While the soldier and Rand were focused on each other, Rune slyly slipped his hand into his front pouch where Baekya nestled, plucking one obedient feather from the phoenix.
Pluck!
Baekya looked up with puzzled eyes, but Rune brushed the feather against them and mouthed silently.
'Cry.'
Baekya, somehow understanding, let out a soft peep and dropped a tear onto the feather.
'Right. Seeing is believing.'
Rune, with the tear-soaked feather in hand, stepped forward casually.
The wary elf soldier tensed and reached out to stop him, but Rune grabbed the hand instead.
He rolled back the sleeve, exposing the rash-covered skin.
Rune frowned the moment he saw it.
'What, did he visit some demon or something?'
"Wh-what are you doing?!"
The elf soldier's face twisted as his oozing, pus-filled skin was revealed under the sunlight; he reflexively jerked away.
Without hesitation, Rune pressed the Phoenix Tear-soaked feather against it.
Whoosh!
Not mere wound treatment, but the tears of a phoenix—driving out poison and healing the corrupted body.
Drinking them would be more effective, but this one wouldn't sit still for that, so indirect skin contact was best.
Of course, the effect was plenty strong.
The rash subsided bit by bit, clean skin emerged, and fresh new flesh sprouted.
"No way, this can't be……."
As the itch vanished completely, the elf soldier gaped with wide, rabbit-like eyes in shock.
Only then did Rune show the white feather, waving it gently.
"It's a feather blessed by the phoenix, called the bird of the gods. Just a taste, but the effect is real, right?"
"Ph-phoenix? The sacred bird of fire?"
The shocked soldier alternated between the white feather and Rune, who shook it innocently with his harmless face.
"I'm Rune. I only came to see Rand for personal reasons, but when I heard about the World Tree's problem, I came all this way."
A glint flickered in Rand's eyes. Rune continued calmly.
"You said the World Tree is like your primordial mother, the foundation of life itself. If something that important vanishes, it'd be a disaster—so I couldn't just pass by. But maybe I misjudged."
The elf soldier's eyes wavered at the child's words, which held no lingering attachment.
"I had no idea it'd be treated like this. Then again, no need for an outsider like me to meddle in elf affairs. Especially since elves don't welcome outsiders anyway."
"N-no! Wait a second!"
The elf soldier grabbed Rune's arm in a panic, his face contorted as he waved his hands to stop him.
"P-please come! Please! This way, quick. Yeah?"
Rune dipped his head slightly, pretending to mull it over as the soldier desperately cajoled.
The soldier fidgeted anxiously, eyes darting to the feather in Rune's hand.
"I beg you! I'm sorry for not recognizing someone so precious!"
"If you put it that way, I can't refuse. Lead on, then."
"! Good choice. And call me 'Bark' casually."
The elf soldier, fearing Rune might change his mind, hurried ahead.
Rune chuckled inwardly, half proud, half bittersweet at how accustomed he'd grown to kid-like speech.
'……Still, I didn't expect the attitude to flip this fast.'
The elf soldier who'd introduced himself as Bark pulled a leaf-engraved token from his pocket.
"A path will appear now. To enter the palace, you must stick to it. Don't fall off, whatever you do."
With that, Bark infused mana into his token.
Humm!
A fresh green breeze sliced through the desert heat.
Then, a pale green path of wind unfurled before the group's feet.
Bark demonstrated, stepping onto the path with the elves' signature light, swift gait.
One bounce—boing—and he shot several meters ahead in a flash.
—Oh ho? So this is the famous Path of Wind. They say it lets you dash at speeds no one can match! I knew elf rangers used it, but to see it up close like this.
Clank. Clank-clank!
Even Dullahan, the bulkiest of the group, mounted the path.
One bounce, and he soared forward like a leaf on the breeze.
Heungmi, light as she was, zipped back and forth like she was flying.
"Whoa! So cool. Step on it and whoosh! forward!"
After some quick adaptation, the whole group bounded along the Path of Wind like they were flying.
How much time passed?
Suddenly, Rune sensed a massive magical barrier and looked up.
Designed so only the Path of Wind could pass, it hid the interior completely from outsiders.
The young soldier's impatience. The disease. The palace shrouded in an invisible barrier.
The elves' situation might be even graver than he'd thought.
'This won't be easy.'
And that prediction hit the mark from the start.
***
"How many times is this now?"
Perdikion finally exploded in frustration.
Rand, face screaming for a smoke, nodded in agreement.
"It's a bit off. Even during the war, it wasn't this bad."
"A bit? You call this a bit off? 'Fastest route possible,' he said—three hours just crossing the barrier, an hour wait at every checkpoint. A bit?!"
Perdikion spat fury at Rand's languid words.
Even Rune, who would've normally reined him in, added his own weary voice.
"……And this is already the fourth checkpoint."
The group had been inspected from the barrier's entrance onward.
At each one, they were called up one by one for "procedures"—forms to fill, checks to endure—followed by Q&A that repeated the same rigmarole every hundred meters.
No transport or rest spots in sight, nowhere comfortable to wait.
Rune, in particular, took far longer than the others.
Eventually, exhausted Heungmi yawned atop Dullahan's back as a piggyback ride.
But whenever her turn came, she'd groan awake and trudge through.
It stirred a strange pity.
—It is boring. But I've always wanted to tour an elf palace, so I'm kinda excited!
"Must be nice. They barely checked you since you're treated like gear."
Rune grumbled curtly.
Since Rune owned Paralium, he'd handled Jed's inspections and paperwork too.
'More checks because I'm Baekya's master and the one to fix the World Tree.'
Rune eyed the black cloth mask in his hand.
Child-sized, it had a cute pink jellyfish embroidered on one side with a cat paw.
Rune recalled the recent exchange wistfully.
"Got anything else? Something plain."
"We're short on stock too. Magic-made, so we don't have tons to begin with. This is all that's left—pick from these if you want to swap."
Among the remaining masks, this cat-paw one was the least embarrassing.
'Heungmi got a fox-rabbit monster mashup, and Perdikion a fire lizard.'
Heungmi had loved hers as "adorable," while Perdikion griped, "Do I really have to wear this crap?!"
But once he had it, he'd inspected it closely and seemed oddly pleased.
Only Baekya and Dullahan skipped masks.
"Peep!"
"……."
No use envying the bird, though.
Rune donned the palace-mandated mask.
Then, replaying the elves' expressions and vibes during talks, he mentally sorted the intel.
'Weird. Their reactions suggest they knew we were coming.'
He'd gotten a huge welcome after explaining Bark's treatment and revealing Baekya—fair enough.
But their murmurs, their envious gazes.
The baseless chatter believing hard times were ending gnawed at him.
—Finally! The moment we've waited for!
—No doubt. Look at Bark's clean skin!
—Us elves are free from suffering now. Those words were true!
—Oh, Forest! We thank you for watching over your elves.
—What if I invite them home? Would they say yes?
—Maybe ask for a blessing…….
Some even approached Rune directly, begging blessings—which he'd granted with Baekya's power, no refusals.
'When plague strikes, the most precious aren't the rich tycoons or kings. It's the miracle doctors.'