Chapter 142: "Deep Forest"

Chapter 142: "Deep Forest"

I went outside the tomb and played with Savage after I told Abdullah's guards who were waiting outside what happened.

Specifically, I used cross-talk to ask him.

I had him report back to me about what he had been doing in the Royal Capital after that.

To be honest, there was nothing new, so it was just a time-waster. The second half of the interview was mostly chatting.

After a couple of hours of killing time like that, I heard footsteps and Abdullah came out.

He looked quite refreshed and his steps were light.

"Thank you, Mister Roe, I thank you... deeply thank you..."

Abdullah shook my hand as soon as he came out and bowed deeply.

I nodded anyway.

I am sure he will now comfortably follow my orders.

Having done my business, I immediately returned to the compound.

On the way, I listened to the situation from Fatima via communication and examined the route to be taken.

I had already heard what I knew about the forest from Abdullah and the others beforehand, and I had also drawn a map, albeit a simple one.

The equipment has been repaired in full, and all that is left is to go.

However, the damaged twin headers on the Club Monster are currently beyond repair.

I showed it to Bedziff as a test, and he said he couldn't say for sure as he didn't know the structure, but he said it might be possible if he took it apart and spent some time on it.

I was a little troubled by his suggestion, but decided to give up on repairing the twin headers and prioritised departure.

He said something about an escort, but I politely declined.

I don't want it because it's suffocating me.

... but I want legs, so I'm taking Savage with me.

Now, when we get back to the mansion, it's time to go.

"Azide. Was this the right thing to do?"

"It can't be helped. If we disobey, they will kill us all."

Azide is astonished at Bedziff's words, and responds with a resentful expression.

The place is a cave hollowed out of the mountain where the dwarves live, in the corner where Bedziff lives.

The surrounding area is neatly lined with blacksmithing tools and is well cleaned.

It was a place where the character of the owner could be seen.

Bedziff is sitting on a chair and Azide is sitting on a rock he brought with him, facing each other.

The conversation was about a meeting some time ago.

It was good that they had surrendered to the ringleader of the human being who called himself Roe, but they were inwardly frightened of what he would demand of them.

The story goes that the person giving them direct orders was a woman called Fatima, who was standing next to them, but that was none of Bedziff's business.

When Bedziff saw the two, his impression was that they were "unidentifiable".

The woman, but especially the man called Roe, was creepy, and although he was the highest-ranking man in the place, was the human species such a cold creature?

It is an individual difference, but that look that seems to equate our lives with stones on the side of the road.

That alien look that you never want to look directly into again if you can help it.

Looking at them, I felt a sensation similar to that of cowering fear, as if I were peering down a cliff.

I shudder a little as I recall it.

In direct contrast to Bedziff, what Azide felt was a sense of security.

He agrees with Bedziff that the man is mysterious, and he also feels something akin to fear.

So why did I feel the opposite?

The answer was simple.

If we were on the bottom, that gaze would never turn on us.

Strength is a major criterion of value for trolls.

For them, being able to strike fear into the hearts of their opponents is the only way to frighten them.

It is a pleasure for them that the leader of the pack is strong.

Azide himself is not attached to his position as king at all, and the only reason he was in the position he was in was because he did not want to follow someone weaker than himself.

"I'll follow them myself. I have no objection."

"Well... I have no complaints at the moment. I'll be part of them, but I'll have food, clothing and shelter, and they'll give me some of their fruit, which will be a great help food-wise."

When winter comes, it is difficult to get food, and if it is not good, there is often a struggle for it.

Azide, whom I consulted with, has already solved the problem and doesn't even show any signs of being troubled.

Until now, we have only had to make armour.

We wholesale what we make to other subhumans.

I was content with just repeating that...

Anxiety swirls in Bedziff's chest and his stomach churns.

To cover it up, he took out a bottle of alcohol and decided to drink all night with Azide.

Deep Forest.

That was the name of the forest inhabited by elves.

The exact size of the forest is unknown, but it must be considerable considering that the end of the forest could not be seen from the top of Shudras.

There are three types of elves living in the forest.

Firstly, there are ordinary elves.

Their appearance is not particularly different, except that their ears are longer than those of humans, and they tend to be generally thin.

Although there are individual differences, their arm strength is probably slightly inferior to that of humans.

On the other hand, they are said to be quick to learn magic and archery.

They are, if anything, just like the easy-to-understand images of elves often seen in fiction.

Next, the High Elves.

They are said to be a higher rank of elves, but there are many unclear points about them.

There are no differences in appearance other than longer ears and a generally paler appearance than elves.

They are extremely few in number and are the ruling class of elves.

They are skilled in magic and may or may not be able to use unusual magic by using special tools.

For the time being, we decided to recognise them as the superior class of elves.

...And then...

From this point on, eyebrows are raised, but it seems that they evolved from Elves to High Elves after receiving the 'oracle' of the 'angel of heaven' or something like that.

At least until they received that oracle, it is true that the High Elves were originally just elves, except for the newly born second generation onwards.

...From the elves' point of view, it's a great honour, but from the outside, it's a very shady thing.

The last kind is the dark elf.

These are also the brown elves we often see in fiction.

They have long ears, but are generally well-fleshed, and many of them are said to be of good physique.

However, they do not seem to get on that well with the Elves and High Elves.

Apparently, many of them are sceptical about the teachings of the High Elves and do not get on well with them.

What more is unknown.

At least it is clear that the elves don't like them.

The above was the situation in the forest as extracted from the memories of the elves held captive by Shudras.

Apart from that, I knew the location of roads and towns, and I had done my preliminary study.

I was riding on Savage, wearing a coat and other equipment, and a club monster on my back.

We set off with water and food in good order.

There was a goblin guide on the way, but I asked them to leave before entering the elves' territory.

I nodded and took another look at my surroundings.

I knew it from memory, but it's amazing to see it in person.

The huge trees lined the street and their spreading branches covered the sky.

Light leaks through the gaps in the foliage, but the whole area is dimly lit.

However, the moss-like substance underfoot shines thinly and illuminates my feet, so it doesn't seem like visibility is poor.

...Well, it doesn't matter.

The pale green light emitted by the moss, combined with the dim surrounding scenery, is very fantastic.

It is a scenery that even I can honestly think of as beautiful now, and I even feel a bit moved.

When I touch a nearby giant tree, it is a little damp and moist to the touch.

This alone makes me feel that it was worth coming here.

It would be fine to simply go on a tour of the place, but as long as I can't read how the elves will treat humans, I should probably be a little more cautious.

What should we do?