Emily strode ahead with great dignity. Following her, the tracking team marched in perfect formation, much like witnessing a North Korean propaganda parade.
I stayed close to Clara, fearing I might end up separated from her. If that happened in this situation, I wouldn’t be able to retaliate against Emily at all.
It seemed like Emily had intended to mock us, as she positioned Clara and me right at the front. Thanks to that, I was practically dying from pretending. Luckily, Emily wasn’t paying much attention.
If she had been, I would have been discovered long ago. Emily and the tracking team entered the heart of the forest. The beautiful sight I had seen from outside vanished, revealing the filthy entrance of the woods.
A toxic stench wafted through the air, with purple moss and sticky spider webs polluting the forest. Could it be that demons were involved? I briefly thought about it, but soon rejected the notion.
The Elven Forest was one of the few areas that had survived till the end in the original story. Even though the forest had become polluted, and its power significantly weakened compared to its heyday…
If demons had truly intervened, the Elven Forest wouldn’t have fared any better than the Dwarf Republic or the Twelve Tribes. Yet, pollution in the forest had never been reported accurately.
So, the community had speculated that there must be another reason. Could this have been something Emily concocted? But there was too little information to be certain.
“It’s always such a dirty place, no matter when you come~.”
How long had we walked? Upon reaching the innermost part, Emily hummed while whistling. However, since no one was making noise, her voice echoed loudly.
I silently gazed at what could only be described as a tree. But it wasn’t just any tree. It was enormous, far beyond the size of an ordinary tree.
However, its condition was also far from normal. Numerous eyes squirmed on the trunk, and roots bursting from the ground devoured everything in their path.
It resembled a living creature more than a tree. More like a monster. I swallowed back the nausea that almost surfaced at the horrific sight. I felt the sour taste of gastric fluid.
“Oh, poor Cluna. Working so hard to sacrifice again today.”
“Emily?! How did you get here…?!”
“I’m just saying, I’ve never understood why those of us with power must sacrifice ourselves.”
And finally, I was able to meet Cluna again. She was covered in wounds, blood flowing profusely. No way she had been fighting that tree all on her own?
No, no. Calm down for now.
Emily had used the term “sacrifice.” That meant Cluna was being sacrificed to that tree all alone. As my head spun with thoughts, Emily laughed heartily.
“You just have to offer up useless things as sacrifices, right? Then at least it’ll be quiet for about 100 years. Am I wrong?”
“I’ve told you countless times. 100 years isn’t enough time for the seedlings of the next generation to grow…!!!”
“So what’s the problem? Just sacrifice something again in 100 years. By then, it could even be about 200 years!”
“Emily, you…!!!”
“Oh dear, could you not move around on your own? I wouldn’t want to see this child get hurt.”
At that moment, Clara, who had been right next to me, moved forward. As she stepped up beside Emily, Cluna, who was watching, gasped in horror.
“You don’t need to take off the mask to recognize me, right?”
“Clara…?! Why?! Didn’t you say you were going back?!”
“I just wanted to give you something to look at. You know? The Elven Forest is practically in my hands now.”
“…What the heck do you want, Emily?”
“All I want is for you not to die. That’s enough for me.”
Ah, I finally somewhat understood. Based on countless anime and novels I’ve read, the source of the pollution in the forest was that tree. Offering sacrifices to that damn tree would reduce the pollution.
But not just anyone could be sacrificed. The quality of the sacrifice would determine how long the tree would remain silent. I didn’t know the details, but it likely depended on the amount of magical power involved.
In other words, Cluna had intended to sacrifice herself. She aimed to completely restore the forest by offering herself as a sacrifice to that tree. However, she couldn’t tell Clara that directly.
So she ended up making excuses, saying she was going on vacation alone to the forest. But Clara couldn’t just sit idle. Being mother and daughter, she probably instinctively knew her mom was in danger.
“I think I’ve got the gist of it.”
“What?!”
I clicked my index and middle fingers together. The sound of the click echoed, and the scenery around me turned gray, allowing me to finally remove the mask. I turned my head.
I saw the Elves wearing masks.
Letting out a sigh at the sight, I muttered, “When was I going to take all these masks off? Damn.”
*
When did the pollution of the forest begin?
It was a fact that, apart from a few elves, nobody knew. Thus, one would wonder if being among those few elves was a blessing or a curse. Cluna couldn’t answer that question.
If it was just a tree, destroying it would be an option. But it wasn’t just a tree. It was the World Tree, which had been worshipped from the dawn of time up to now.
To the elves, it was akin to religion. Therefore, elves tend to hold nature, and especially the trees, in sacred regard. Though it’s somewhat less now…
In the past, they even forced this value onto other races. As a result, elves once experienced ruling more than half of the continent. Although they were eventually defeated by the allied forces.
[Couldn’t we just cut it down?]
[That’s not possible. We need the World Tree to maintain our forest.]
[Then what about us?]
No adults answered that question. Cluna had thought about this since childhood. A prosperity that requires someone’s sacrifice is perhaps worse than having nothing at all, right?
And her belief became even firmer when her mother was chosen as a sacrifice. That which is called the World Tree swallows sacrifices and, in return, nourishes the forest to make it bountiful.
The elves thoroughly hid this fact. Human sacrifices would evoke feelings of rejection in other races. Even though they knew it was an action that couldn’t be justified.
They, no, we have not broken away from the ways of the past. The choice of sacrifice lies with the elders. And the next chosen sacrifice was none other than Clara, her daughter.
[Why was my daughter chosen as a sacrifice?!]
[Do not forget the duty of the Guardian, Cluna.]
[Originally, you were supposed to be the next sacrifice. But due to your numerous contributions, we opted for your bloodline instead.]
[That’s absurd…!!!]
It was nauseating to hear. In the end, it was just bait to draw her in. But she couldn’t ignore it. What about the innocent elves outside?
If she fled ignoring it, someone else would end up sacrificing. That was something Cluna could not accept. After all, she had learned much from the first hero.
[Then I’ll become the sacrifice.]
Making such a choice was perhaps the natural thing to do. But saying it was one thing; she certainly didn’t intend to go down without a fight. She felt she had enough power now.
So she resolved to deal with the polluted World Tree. If she failed while fighting, she’d become a sacrifice. If she won, she could return. It seemed like a decent plan.
“Poor, poor Cluna. Working so hard to sacrifice again today.”
“Emily?! How did you get here…?!”
But an unexpected interloper had barged in. The comrade I had fought alongside all this time. Emily had inserted herself into the situation without a care. She was supposed to be excluded originally.
[Wouldn’t it be better to offer up elves instead of Cluna or Clara? There are plenty of them, right?]
This absurd idea had been swiftly rejected before the elders. Yet, I never imagined her to come all the way here with a bunch of elves.
Cluna tried to stop her. Because she knew what Emily might do. But she couldn’t. She recognized an elf who appeared behind Emily.
“You don’t need to take off the mask to recognize me, right?”
“Clara…?! Why?! Didn’t you say you were going back?!”
Though she wore a mask and a robe that covered her body, her movements and height made it clear it was Clara. Could it be a trick? No, she wasn’t so foolish as not to recognize an obvious falsehood.
That was unmistakably the real Clara. At the same time, Cluna realized Emily’s true intentions. She aimed to use Clara as a hostage to offer up the elves behind her as sacrifices.
“…What do you really want, Emily?”
“I just want you to stay alive. That’s all I need.”
Once again, the answer returned unchanged. Emily was truly someone who would do what it takes. If I attacked Emily, I could potentially kill her. But then there would be the aftermath to deal with.
It seemed she had engraved a mind-control mark. Before dying, she could issue an order to have me offered up as a sacrifice to that tree. And Clara would surely be included in that.
However, choosing Clara would place the other elves behind her in jeopardy too. I couldn’t guarantee their innocence, but surely some of them would be completely unaware.
In this life-and-death moment, the name of a single human came to mind in an ironic twist.
“I think I’ve got the gist of it.”
And, like a lie, I heard that human’s voice.
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