Chapter 361

Words : 2509 Updated : Oct 9th, 2025

“Plante...” Rudger searched through his past memories. But no matter how much he searched his memories, he had never had any connection with Plante. “Was there some kind of mistake?” Gallien shook her head with unfocused eyes. “Our Shadewarden family never makes such mistakes. The scent is definitely there. Other elves might not sense it, but we can smell it because we are trackers.” “The scent...So that’s how you were able to track all the way here.” “A Shadewarden who has trained for a long time can locate enemies just by the scent carried on the wind.” “Then the reason you came to Leathervelk was to catch this one here?” Rudger pointed at Bellaruna. Gallien nodded and spoke in a weak voice. “Our purpose was to capture the traitor who secretly infiltrated the sacred World Tree. And at the same time, we also aimed to recover another World Tree that we hadn’t known about.” The first place Gallien and the Shadewarden family’s trackers headed to was the empire’s capital. Rudger didn’t bother questioning how they were able to reach the capital. For elves who were lighter than the wind and excellent at stealth, national borders might as well not exist. ‘During the Colonial War, that’s why the elf guerrillas were such a huge headache.’ A skilled elf could perform long-range shots comparable to a sniper rifle even with just a bow. It was a famous story that many commanders were killed by arrows during the war. “When we came to the empire’s capital looking for the World Tree, what we saw were human soldiers thoroughly guarding the place. They must have noticed something, as they were trying their best to guard the location where the World Tree was.” “So then?” “We decided to observe the situation first and left the main force in the capital. Instead, an advance party including myself tried to capture the traitor here.” “So that’s when you discovered me and attacked after catching that scent.” “Yes. We planned to capture you first, then interrogate you about what connection you had with someone from the Plante family.” Of course, that interrogation process would not have been peaceful at all. If there was one thing they had overlooked, it was Rudger’s combat ability. “Tell me more about the Plante family.” “The Plante family used to be the closest family serving the World Tree. They were chosen, noble ones. But they became too intoxicated with the World Tree’s power and committed sacrilege. They dared to try to increase the number of World Trees.” “What happened then?” “A revolution occurred, and most of the Plante family was expelled. There was a massive upheaval among the families.” The Shadewarden family was tasked with tracking down and eliminating the survivors of the Plante family. “When you say most, that means there are still Plante survivors out there.” “Yes. But they were very few, and the survivors scattered across the continent. And our Shadewarden family has been eliminating the survivors for hundreds of years. We never expected one to be hiding this deep in the human empire though.” “Hmm.” After hearing Gallien’s explanation, Rudger organized the information. The reason the Shadewarden trackers came all the way to the empire was, naturally, related to the World Tree. But she says attacking him suddenly was due to a coincidence. ‘She says I have the scent of Plante?’ Though he wasn’t sure exactly what kind of scent it was, since an elf in charge of tracking said so, it probably wasn’t a lie. Right now, Gallien couldn’t lie because she had been given the truth serum that Bellaruna used. ‘As for elves around me...’ Besides Vierano Dentis, the spirit magic teacher, no one came to mind. ‘Or maybe Bellaruna?’ Rudger glanced at Bellaruna but shook his head. There’s no way she could be a survivor of the Plante family. “Do you know about Vierano Dentis?” “Dentis. The family that manages the outskirts of the forest. Vierano Dentis is the current head of that family. Arrogantly, despite being an elf, he doesn’t live in the forest and mingles with humans.” “I see the evaluation isn’t very positive.” “The Dentis family is popular among moderate elves, but to purist elves like us, they’re like thorns in our eyes. Despite having excellent blood, they keep babbling about having to live in harmony with inferior races.” The reaction was more heated than he had expected. It seems that even among elves, their internal ideologies were divided. ‘And the fact that they sent trackers to the empire this quickly means the purists must be in power.’ But what’s important now is about the Plante family survivor. The fact that the scent was embedded here means it must be someone he had frequent contact with. “Is there a possibility that you’re mistaken?” “No. They are targets we’ve had elimination orders for over a long time. There’s no way we could be mistaken about that.” “Then...” “However, I notice something peculiar.” “Something peculiar?” “Yes. It’s the kind of scent a Plante family survivor would have, and it seems to be from quite pure blood, but the lingering scent is strangely faint.” “Faint?” “As if some other impurity is mixed in, neutralizing that scent...” “...” Ah. So that’s what it was. Rudger finally realized who Gallien was talking about as the Plante family survivor. Mixed blood meant they were a half-elf and there was only one half-elf who was close to him. ‘Sedina Roschen.’ The girl who belonged to the Roschen family while also being part of the Black Dawn Society. ‘I thought it was strange that she hated her own family despite being born into the Roschen family.’ Rudger deliberately didn’t ask about those circumstances since everyone must have a past they want to hide, especially since family matters seemed to be a kind of trauma or wound for Sedina. ‘A member of the Roschen family, but the elven bloodline is from the Plante family.’ Who would have thought such an enormous secret was hidden in Sedina, who yearned for recognition from others. Moreover, judging by her behavior, she seemed unaware of it herself. While pondering whether he should tell her about this or not, Rudger decided to focus on the reality before him. “Then let me ask one thing. What do you plan to do if you find this Plante family survivor?” “Usually, we capture them alive and take them back to be punished before the World Tree. But if that’s not feasible, we choose to give up on capture and kill them instead.” “So you’re still searching for Plante survivors now?” “Yes. Though the frequency has decreased, Plante survivors are still targets for elimination to us. The Shadewarden never forgets this.” “The Lifrey family must be the ones giving these orders. But you already have full authority, so why pursue and try to eliminate them so persistently?” “That’s...” Gallien hesitated to answer. This was clearly different from how she had been answering every question when given the truth serum. Realizing there was something here, Rudger urged Gallien. “Answer quickly.” “Ugh, uuugh!” Gallien shook her head and then bit her tongue. Blood flowed down her lips. To maintain her reason enough to bite her tongue while under the truth serum. It was an unbelievable level of determination. But biting one’s tongue doesn’t lead to immediate death, though she wouldn’t be able to answer anymore. Gallien looked up at Rudger with a gaze that seemed to ask what he would do now. “Futile struggling.” Rudger reached his hand toward Gallien. His magical power began to move, and soon manifested magic. Magic without a formula. The gentle light seeped into Gallien’s mouth and immediately regenerated her bitten tongue. “...!” Gallien’s eyes widened in disbelief as all the pain disappeared. She tried to bite her tongue again, but Bellaruna moved first. “Ah. Looks like the dosage wasn’t enough.” Bellaruna stabbed a syringe she had produced from somewhere into Gallien’s shoulder. Gallien’s eyes, which had almost regained their reason, became cloudy again. Bellaruna said with a bright smile. “It should be fine now. Originally, directly injecting into the bloodstream is more effective than oral consumption.” “...” It was a thought that occurred occasionally, but Rudger was really grateful that Bellaruna hadn’t joined the Black Dawn Society. If it had been Bellaruna, she probably would have become a mad scientist on par with Victor Dreadful. Pushing away such idle thoughts, Rudger asked Gallien again. “What’s the reason for trying to eliminate the Plante family so persistently? Is the Lifrey family after something?” “That’s...” This time Gallien couldn’t delay her answer. “It’s because of the ownership of the World Tree.” “Ownership?” Once the dam broke, Gallien’s next explanation came without hesitation. “Yes. The World Tree itself contains enormous life energy. If one could utilize it, they could wield tremendous power.” “Is that ownership currently with the Plante family?” “Only the head of the Plante family at that time possessed it but the head fled. We still don’t know where they are and whether they’re alive or dead.” The World Tree, as the elves call it, has lived for many years and contains vast information within it. Naturally, to regulate it to some degree, they needed what they called ownership, in other words, a key. “But we never expected to catch traces of Plante here. This means the head of the Plante family must still be alive.” “...I see.” Things are flowing more complexly than expected. The tracker who came to capture Bellaruna coincidentally caught that lingering scent from Rudger who frequently spent time with Sedina. “You said you can smell Plante family members. Then were you able to do this since entering the city?” Gallien shook her head. “No. The air here is too polluted, full of exhaust and all sorts of strong smells. In this vast city with almost no natural vitality, even a Shadewarden cannot detect it from a distance.” “But you can tell when the distance is close, right?” “Yes. If we get within 30 meters, we can smell that lingering scent.” “Then are there other ways to mask that scent?” “Covering the existing scent with strong smells. It’s very basic knowledge.” “Are there any smells that elves, especially you Shadewarden, particularly dislike?” Gallien spoke with a frown. “Perfume.” “Perfume?” “Yes. An artificial product made by humans. And it contains all sorts of plants as ingredients, making our heads dizzy when we smell it. It’s especially incompatible with Shadewarden who are sensitive to plant smells.” “I see.” Hearing this, their tracking abilities were impressive but not omnipotent. Though he was worried about Sedina, she should be fine staying in Theon since she wouldn’t directly encounter the elf trackers. The elf trackers don’t seem to have considered Theon either. ‘Still, I should prepare just in case.’ He had heard all the necessary information. Rudger gave an order to Pantos who was standing with his arms crossed. “Deal with her.” Without hesitation, Pantos twisted Gallien’s neck. With a snapping sound, Gallien collapsed like a puppet with cut strings. “What will you do now?” Pantos asked. Though they had eliminated all the advance party of trackers, shouldn’t they clean up the rest since the main force was still in the capital? “They’ll notice the loss of contact and send new forces this way. Then we just fight them again when they come.” “You’re not going to the capital directly?” “I’m too busy to go there.” “Where are you going now?” “The Night of Mystery will be held soon. There’s something I need to find there. And some other matters to take care of as well.” “A gathering of magicians, huh.” Pantos snorted as if he had no interest. Come to think of it, among U.N. Owen members, only Violetta had anything to do with magic. Even though she was just talented in wind attribute magic that Rudger taught her, but wasn’t particularly interested in magical mysteries and knowledge itself. Since there had been more need for combat power recently, it seemed necessary to teach her separately. “As for the capital matter, I can call someone to handle it.” “Someone?” “Yes. I have a junior who’s perfect for this kind of thing.” At the mention of a junior, both Pantos and Bellaruna looked puzzled. * * * The Shadewarden trackers watched from an empty house within the capital. Quite a few Shadewarden trackers had come, but since not everyone could move inside the capital, they had specially dispatched only a few swift ones inside. Those who had to observe the movements of the strict security surrounding the World Tree’s roots from inside had rather unpleasant expressions. “Damn it. Why do we have to stay in these stinking human houses?” “Just breathing makes me feel disgusted, like we’re in the same place as an inferior race.” Still, it couldn’t be helped. They had to confirm the World Tree in the underground of this capital, even though it was dead. However, the security was too thorough to sneak in easily, especially since there were quite a few knights with good senses among the humans. “Can’t we at least clean up this corpse?” One of the elves grumbled while looking at the bloody corpse lying on the floor. The original owner of this house was already a cold corpse. Next to what appeared to be the father were the corpses of his wife and grown son. “It’ll be over soon anyway. We just need to confirm and go back.” “If you can go back, that is.” At the sudden intrusion of a third party’s voice, the elves startled and looked toward the door. At the open door stood a handsome blonde man with a smile. What was surprising was that until he spoke, no one had sensed his presence. “...Human. How unfortunate. To witness this scene.” “Hmm. Is that so? I think I came to the right place.” Pasius muttered while glancing at the family’s corpses on the floor. His eyes suddenly sharpened. “I was thinking of hearing why you came, but that thought has completely disappeared.” “Die!” The elves rushed toward Pasius. Since he appeared to be an excellent knight, they intended to deal with him before he could draw his sword but it wasn’t that Pasius couldn’t draw his sword. He just didn’t feel the need to draw it. Sharp aura gathered in both his hands and in the dark house interior where the lights were out, pure white light flowed forth.

Chapter 361

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