Vol. 2 Chapter 15: Foreteller (Part 1)

A group of carriages crewed by elves entered through majestic open gates, flanked and installed upon curved sturdy trees colored with green leaves. There was quite a traffic on the way inside the city surrounded by forests.

All manner of creatures can be seen walking on the road. There were elves, beastmen, centaurs, a few dwarves, and also a few satyrs.

The group of elves was instantly allowed inside without any tolls since the guards had already recognized that the head of the group was an important official. She was the elf ambassador renowned through the entire population of the race of mystics who had served for a few centuries now. The one who had the ability to alter fate itself, Lieren.

While inside the fanciest carriage, Lieren leaned her head on the window and watched outside. They passed through a joyful and proud city where different species were united with no conflict in mind. A feat possible only through the help of the gods and people of old.

There were massive trees with doors and windows, used as houses. There were also wooden houses built on top of trees, depending on the size of the tree, it would determine the size of houses that can be built. One way to get down was to use a spiraling wooden staircase.

These types of houses were designed and built originally by elves, but now that times had changed, other races had also begun to use these types of houses. Of course there were other houses as well built on surface level made up of woods and bricks.

One could think this city was a mixture of different cultures as what can be expected from a city where different species live together in harmony. Lieren smiled when she saw children with their parents walking on the streets, some even curiously turned to look at her convoy.

A short time later the scenery changed and they came across a moat under the bridge they were crossing. The bridge they crossed was entirely made up of wood, however this type of wood was not to be undervalued.

The wide wooden bridge was as tough as steel taken from a tree called “Farra.” It was a rare type that could only be gathered from specific areas. Regrettably, the cutting of those trees had to be prohibited since they were endangered to be wiped out.

In the far past, craftsmen would collect wood from the Farra tree since it was an incredibly sturdy tree, the most valuable wood. That in turn increases demands, with the increase of demands, the more Farra trees had to be cut down.

Noticing the dwindling number of Farra trees, the union of the mystic race implemented a law that prohibited the cutting of the now rare trees.

At the end of the bridge was a gigantic and tall tree with countless healthy green leaves and long vines hanging on the branches. There was a castle built and embedded within it, big and majestic made up of white walls.

The great castle was built by the joint workforce of different races, showing the unity between species. The sheer scale and magnificence also went to express the conviction and how far they would go to preserve their unity.

The convoy arrived at the edge of the bridge and came to a halt. There was a translucent barrier blocking the way as one of their security features. The guards guarding the entrance approached the head of the convoy, they consisted of different races with the exception of dwarves.

A satyr with light brown fur approached the carriage where Lieren was currently in and bowed his head before her window. Lieren smiled at him.

“Greetings, Lady Lieren.”

“Greetings. Please open the barrier.”

“Of course.”

It was protocol for the head of the guards to personally meet with the head of the convoy to ensure identity. It was essential to personally see the VIP for more assurance and security. You’ll never know that there might come a time a convoy came and turned out there was no VIP inside despite what they said.

When the satyr gave the go to his colleagues, the barrier on the bridge was deactivated and it dissipated. The convoy continued on, passing the spacious defensive perimeter where guards patrolled all around.

When the convoy arrived by the gates between gigantic protruding tree roots, the guards immediately gathered. Lieren got out of the carriage and every guard present bowed deeply.

“It is good to be back here after a while.”

This was not exactly her home, but it almost completely felt like one.

“Welcome back, Lady Lieren.”

The captain opened the gates and Lieren walked inside with a pair of elves behind her. Past the gate was the front yard of the castle and it was full of foliage giving only a paved pathway for people to walk through.

Tall plants, flowers, grasses, even small trees filled the area. A few officials stood at corners discussing with each other which consisted of different species like centaurs, elves, beastmen, and so on. A thing to be noticed though that there were no dwarves and dark elves to be seen.

As Lieren and her group walked further in, from above a wooden platform in the shape of a box with open corners leaving only the vertex descended to the ground. It was an elevator embedded within the castle wall and tree trunk.

When the elevator reached ground level right before Lieren, a beastman with cat ears stepped forward into the pavement out of the elevator.

“Lieren, color me surprised. I was not expecting a visit.”

“Toshi, it’s nice that you personally welcomed me.”

This beastman, Toshi, was the governor of the city and a friend of Lieren. Not very close since most of their meetings were mostly about business, and Lieren wouldn’t dare to call herself a close friend of his. But because of that, even though Lieren was essentially of higher status, they still address each other with familiarity.

“Of course, I rushed all the way here the moment I heard of your arrival. So, may I ask the purpose of your visit? Perhaps only to stay for the day or month? Like a little vacation.”

Lieren chuckled. It would be good to have a little vacation, but she was not longing much about it. She was concentrating more on the current affair which concerns their entire people.

“Regrettably no, I came here to visit the foreteller.”

“...... I see.”

“So, how is she?”

Lieren asked as she stepped onto the platform and the rest followed, meaning to talk while moving. The governor pressed a metal panel on the column and the platform began to ascend. This entire elevator was made functional by magic, making it move.

“Well, she wants to stay in her room all of the time, it was as though she was… terrified.”

“...” Lieren lowered her head. “It must be hard to repeatedly see the same vision, especially if it had something to do with our people’s ruin.”

“Yes....”

“I need to talk to her and learn if there are any slight changes. Even a glimpse of a good change will be a great relief.”

“I pray that we can change the absolution of this prophecy.”

Lieren wholeheartedly agreed. It would have been different if the prophecy only foretold the destruction of one city, perhaps they wouldn’t have worked to their limits and be this apprehensive of the future.

However, this concerned the entire people of the mystic race. They had to do everything to change it even with the knowledge that prophecies happened in the end even if they do something or not. If one were given the choice when something foretold that they would be wiped out, would they do nothing or do something?

Of course they would choose to do something — they had to change fate. Lieren herself had the ability to tamper with fate, so why should they not hold unto fate that it would change?

They later arrived at the highest floor and the governor led towards the room of the foreteller while coming across several servants of various species. Eventually, they arrived at a closed lavish door.

“Leave us alone for a while.”

Lieren said to everyone around her and they dispersed the next moment. The foreteller would prefer to be alone, so having others see her, especially strangers, wouldn’t be ideal for her. But it was a different case for her friends.

Lieren knocked a few times on the door.

“Lecia, it’s me Lieren. Can I come in?”

She waited a few seconds for an answer, but none came.

“I just came to check on you and…. There’s something I want to learn… if there are any changes.”

There was no reply. She truly needed to enter, besides, she was becoming more worried about her. Thus, she decided to enter without a response.

“I’m coming in, okay?”

Lieren slowly turned the knob and slowly opened the door prompting a long quiet creak.