Before the imperial guard knight Harpe started his night watch, he recalled being summoned by his superior Dominic.
“Harpe, it seems the time has come.”
“The time for what…?”
“Shane. He is a remarkable talent. However, he is a talent that humanity is not yet ready for. Unfortunately, we need to take care of him here.”
Harpe did not deeply examine Dominic’s expression but he could sense genuine regret in his voice.
However, this was unavoidable.
The grand scheme currently being prepared by the imperial family was an achievement that had to be accomplished, even if it meant sacrificing such a talent.
It was only natural for Dominic who had a strong desire for talent to feel regret.
“…Understood.”
“There will be an opportunity tonight. They will assist you, so you can stay hidden for now.”
And so, the time for the night watch began.
Just like Dominic said, the opportunity came soon.
Dark elves lunged out of the darkness.
Harpe drew his sword and began to match their rhythm.
“I’ll hold off the enemies! You need to go and inform the knights about this immediately!”
“Understood.”
Even in this situation, Shane followed Harpe’s words and ran back without showing much panic.
Following the plan, Harpe let two dark elves slip past and they flawlessly drove their swords into Shane’s back as he ran.
“Ugh…!”
With a short cry, Shane collapsed.
“…It’s over.”
Shane who was stabbed by the dark elves’ daggers lay motionless on the ground.
Moreover, a black flower bloomed around Shane’s waist.
Death.
After he confirmed Shane’s definite death, Harpe looked at the dark elves standing around him.
“Your roles are finished.”
Without any hesitation, Harpe beheaded the remaining dark elves.
In an instant, three dark elves fell to the ground after losing their heads.
“The rest will handle it. I need to hide myself now.”
Harpe stared at the corpses of the dark elves who had just killed Shane for him and his eyes were filled with deep disgust.
This non-human race was the enemy of humanity.
Although he had temporarily allied with them for the sake of the imperial family’s grand plan, even that was repulsive to Harpe.
Meanwhile, Harpe looked at Shane who lay motionless on the ground and muttered to himself.
“Tsk, I am sorry. But this was also for humanity. I will remember your sacrifice.”
In another time, Shane would have been highly valued by the imperial family.
But mentioning the Dragon Heart of the Great Mezaiya Forest was a mistake.
Right after Harpe turned to walk away and escaped with a pang of regret,
“I will remember it too. Your disgusting hypocrisy that is.”
“……!!!”
Before he could react, Harpe was engulfed in darkness, accompanied by the voice of Shane who should not have been able to speak.
Contrary to the steadfast image known to the public, the reality within the current imperial family was one of considerable turmoil.
The unexpected health deterioration of the current emperor.
The emperor still sat on the throne, but it wasn’t long before he would lose consciousness and collapse, never to rise again for the rest of his life.
During this time, the person closest to becoming the next ruler was the current crown prince, Zephyr D. Wyatt Samuel.
Prince Samuel had been secretly increasing his followers for a long time.
The method was simpler than expected. Unlike the original emperor, the crown prince encouraged human greed and selfishness. If anyone refused to follow him, they were quietly purged.
The current emperor, whose health was deteriorating day by day, was unable to see the true nature of the crown prince.
In the future, as history flowed and Samuel became emperor, he became the most violence-addicted ruler in human history. A war-mad warmonger who brought a great disaster to humanity’s future.
However, this disaster was a predetermined calamity. It was something created by various adversities and the long preparations of the organization.
Unaware of this fact, countless knights were captivated by Prince Samuel’s grand vision of “unification”.
And the imperial guard knights dispatched on this expedition were also one of Samuel’s tools.
“If only the crown prince didn’t have such a keen interest in the Dragon Heart… it’s not something I particularly like.”
As a member of the Empire, Dominic was very disappointed in the way he dealt with Shane who was a nobleman and a genius at the same time.
But considering the upcoming “unification”, it was a necessary step.
If this operation succeeded, it would greatly help in the needed unification.
Wasn’t it a sacrifice for that cause?
“I should buy Harpe a drink someday for making him do such unpleasant tasks.”
Even though he knew he was a disgusting hypocrite, Dominic could only console himself this way.
“Haaah, when will we find the light?”
By now, Harpe who had received the order would have dealt with Shane and the dark elves before hiding himself.
As the awaited morning arrived, there was a momentary confusion when Shane and Harpe who were supposed to be on watch during the night both disappeared. Soon after, the bodies of the dark elves were discovered nearby and a somber silence fell.
“…It’s a regrettable situation. But if we go looking for those two now, we risk separating from the main group. We should move on first.”
At Dominic’s words, the group nodded and moved forward.
So far, everything was going according to plan.
Dominic walked with a little comfort in that fact, but a major setback was occurring in his plans from an unknown source.
Dilaila and Anais who were fighting back-to-back couldn’t hide their amazement at Klein’s strength.
Seriously.
Is this what they mean by a genius?
The sight of Klein massacring monsters at the forefront while exuding magical power was astonishing.
When they first entered the cradle, Klein’s growth rate was similar to Anais’s but as soon as he separated from Shane, he began to show explosive growth as if he was someone else.
It wasn’t just about his overwhelming magical power; each strand of his magic moved to threaten the enemy’s life.
There wasn’t a hint of hesitation in his sword, and just as Shane had taught him, he followed the optimal path to target only the vital points for more efficient movement.
That way, the remaining members would handle the monsters hit in their vital points.
The expedition team members who had been indifferent to the fierce battle began to focus on Klein.
“Amazing…”
“I heard rumors that he’s the greatest genius ever.”
“Huh.”
Some looked at him purely with admiration, while others briefly despaired in front of the cruel reality of talent.
Perhaps thanks to Klein’s full-fledged actions, the previously sluggish pace of the expedition has quickened.
But then danger came again for the expedition team.
“Dark elves!!”
It had been five days since the team had split up.
The dark elves who had been hiding reappeared on the battlefield.
However, there was a stark difference from before.
Their demeanor was completely different.
Rather than rushing in blindly as if driven by instinct, they observed the situation.
Then, the battle ensued.
The sense of something amiss was correct; the enemies dodged and blocked their attacks. They even inflicted minor wounds on some and certain death on others.
“Damn, these pesky things!”
In response, Raviata widened her eyes and unleashed her magic, engulfing the area where the enemies were and obscuring their view.
Meanwhile, Orca who had been watching the battle from one side suddenly faced a dark elf who had approached her.
[Leaf of the thirty-second branch, Orca.]
[……!]
[I came here following his will. He told me to deliver this message.]
[He?]
[There is no time. I will convey it now. The message is──]
[Wait, what on earth is that…!]
Before Orca could ask the dark elf anything after hearing the message, the elf vanished into the smoke, and when the smoke cleared, the dark elves were no longer there.
Orca was left in confusion but only for a moment.
“Those still capable of fighting, don’t let your guard down! Those with minor injuries, move the wounded first!”
“Ahhh, Jacob!”
“Shit!”
In front of the victims who emerged again from this battle, the expedition team was burning with the flames of vengeance.
Among them were those who looked at Orca with hatred simply because he was also an elf. This showed just how mentally exhausted the expedition team had become.
Dilaila who had been sleeping woke up when she sensed someone approaching her.
Maybe it was because the cradle was such a tense place that she had become accustomed to waking up at the slightest disturbance. She slowly turned around.
“Huh?”
There, she saw Orca kneeling and looking down at her.
“Uh, so Orca, do you have something to say to me? Oh, right, you can’t speak.”
Orca was an elf from the Great Mezaiya Forest. During the exploration period, Dilaila had tried to talk to her several times, but Orca had never given her so much as a glance.
“So, what’s this about… though you can’t speak? Ah, this is frustrating.”
Just as Dilaila was thinking about how to communicate with Orca, realizing once again the value of language, Orca picked up a pebble and began to draw on the ground.
“That’s right. You could just draw.”
Dilaila watched carefully as Orca drew a picture.
“This is me, and this is you, Orca. So, you want to go somewhere with me? Ah! The bathroom?”
At Dilaila’s words, Orca frowned for a moment, then nodded her head.
“Well, given the current atmosphere, it makes sense, right?”
Recently, due to the appearance of the dark elves, the looks directed at Orca have turned hostile. If she moved alone, who knew what the expedition team might say?
Especially the imperial guard knights who were separated from Dominic. They had lost comrades in today’s battle with the dark elves.
The looks they gave Orca were full of hostility.
To them, it didn’t matter if it was a dark elf or an elf; they just needed someone to blame.
Dilaila avoided the gaze of the imperial guard knights and stood up.
“Okay, let’s go.”
Orca who had shown little change in expression until now seemed to appreciate Dilaila’s approach. Dilaila quickly got up, informed the night watch, and stepped outside with Orca.
“Hmm. It feels rewarding to have kept talking to you all this time. Haha.”
She had tried so hard to get close to this elf.
And despite being consistently ignored by her, Dilaila hadn’t given up.
Living among humans was already tough enough, so how much better would it be if two non-humans could at least speak to each other?
Besides, seeing Orca missing a few fingers, it was clear she had been through hard times.
Dilaila thought Orca’s coldness towards her was due to her being wary of others, so she kept trying to talk to her.
While she was thinking that,
“Uh, but haven’t we come too far? Hey, where are we going? Geez. There’s no one else here but us… We don’t need to go this far.”
Feeling they had strayed too far from the group, Dilaila said that but Orca didn’t stop walking.
“Hey? Hey! If we go any further, it could be dangerous!”
Dilaila kept calling out from behind for quite a while.
Orca suddenly stopped walking.
It was because she sensed a familiar presence.
“Ah, you finally stopped! I mean, just to take care of your business, you went this far… w…hat…?”
By then, Dilaila had to stop too.
Someone was slowly walking out of the darkness ahead.
“Ah?”
And the figure that emerged was someone Dilaila also knew well.
“You, you are…”
The problem was that he didn’t appear alone; he was accompanied by a dozen dark elves behind him.
“Why are you here…?”
A man shrouded in dark energy. A man wearing a plain white mask.
It was Shane.
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