The words Ventmin directed at Sedina were soft, yet carried an insight that pierced straight through her.
Sedina involuntarily trembled.
How in the world?
It had not been something expressed on her face. In the first place, it was not even an emotion that could be easily exposed outwardly.
And yet, Ventmin had read Sedina’s innermost conviction with brutal clarity.
Only then did Sedina realize the fact she had overlooked.
The young elf before her, despite appearances, was a being who had lived for countless long years.
Not only that—he was the head of a family, and even a First Order of the Black Dawn Society.
The experience ingrained in those years allowed him to perceive, with ease, what Sedina had struggled not to reveal.
“Interesting. Seeing you think like that, it seems there’s a side to John Doe I didn’t know about.”
Rationally speaking, there was no reason at all.
This was the kingdom of the elves.
A mere human like John Doe could never come here.
Even if he did, what would greet him were the trees and forests sprouting everywhere, and vast battalions of hardened soldiers.
And yet, the reason he would come—just to rescue one cherished subordinate?
The numbers did not add up.
And yet he would come.
“If he does come, wouldn’t that be all the better?”
Ventmin’s beautiful face twisted into a sinister smile, one too cruel to believe it belonged to such features.
“First Order John Doe. I already found him irritating enough. Not as much as Nicolai, but to me, they’re all the same. I’ve always thought he was someone that must eventually be eliminated.”
“W–why on earth...?”
“In my world, humans are unnecessary. So if he truly comes here, it would be a favor to me. This is my kingdom, my domain.”
Even if it were the Zero Order himself, within this forest and this kingdom, none could dare touch him.
“After all, the only things John Doe knows how to do are infiltration, information gathering, and sowing discord, isn’t that right? With no subordinates following him, what could he possibly accomplish alone? Does he truly believe he could infiltrate the kingdom?”
Though Ventmin spoke as if to himself, there was a blatant intent for Sedina to hear it.
No matter how many people John Doe gathered, they amounted to nothing but a handful.
On the other hand, here he commanded legions.
Not all elves followed him, but when it came to punishing humans who had intruded into the forest, he had full authority to strike without hesitation.
An individual against a legion.
The outcome was all too obvious.
‘I thought she’d be frightened by such words.’
Ventmin narrowed his eyes and studied Sedina.
Her reaction was subtler than expected.
It was not that she was desperately trying to hide fear or worry.
Rather, there was even a shade of intent as though she wanted him to think so.
‘She doesn’t look worried at all.’
Was she simply deluded into thinking John Doe was someone incredible, or did she truly believe he had some hidden card left unplayed?
Ventmin chose, for now, to assume the former.
“Well, even so, there’s no harm in making preparations.”
Humans—no matter how many swarmed in, it would not matter.
If he mastered the true power of the World Tree, there would be nothing left to fear.
* * *
When Bellaruna sent word to the head of House Burke, a reply came at once.
—I will come myself.
Surprisingly, the head said they would meet directly without hesitation.
The answer was so prompt that it was almost suspicious, enough to make them doubt if there was some scheme behind it.
“Mr. Vierno, do you know much about the head of House Burke?”
At Ludger’s question, Vierno shook his head.
“Not much. They have not been widely spoken of. Even in the war a hundred years ago, our fronts were different, so I never had the chance to face them.”
“For the head of a house charged with guarding the frontier to be so little known—that is curious.”
“That is because they never boasted of it. Even after the war ended, they never put their merit forward, nor did they appear at public seats. The other families, too, kept quiet about House Burke.”
“So essentially, a figure shrouded in mystery.”
“I once glimpsed them from afar, long ago, but it’s a faint memory now. They must have changed much since then.”
Both Vierno and Ludger turned their eyes to Bellaruna.
Now that they thought of it, wasn’t there an elf here who had recently met the head of Burke?
“Miss Bellaruna. What kind of person was the head of House Burke?”
“Uh, well... what do you mean, what kind of person?”
“We mean simply their personality, that sort of thing.”
“I only saw a little, so it’s hard to be sure, but... they were rather unusual.”
Bellaruna could say no more than that.
That peculiarity of the Burke head was so individualistic it crushed any other traits.
“The head has arrived.”
At that moment, the reception room doors opened, and Viela reported the situation.
They had said they would come, but no one thought it would be this immediate.
Ludger, Bellaruna, Vierno, and Viela all waited quietly, a little tense.
A presence could be felt approaching from afar.
Since the head moved, their guards and retainers must be moving with them.
Indeed, as expected of elves charged with guarding the forest, the aura approaching from the distance was heavy and fierce.
Most striking of all was the presence at the very front.
Everyone in the room instinctively knew—that was the head.
And soon, through the opening doors of the reception hall, the head of House Burke appeared.
“Oh. So this is the mansion House Dentis is so proud of. I quite like it.”
The one who spoke cheerfully upon entering was a female elf who looked to be in her fifties.
Despite being a woman, she had a robust physique with muscle definition visible, and an eye patch of green covered one of her eyes.
Her gray-white hair was neither tied nor styled, simply thrown back, resembling the mane of a lion.
A lioness with a mane.
That was the exact first impression of the head of House Burke.
“Pleased to meet you. I am Vierno Dentis, head of House Dentis.”
“I am Ambella Burke, head of House Burke.”
Her hearty voice was imbued with unprecedented strength.
She was entirely different from an ordinary elf.
Where older elves grew calmer with age, the Burke head burned more fiercely, like a blazing flame.
Her clothing was so free-spirited that she looked more like an adventurer or explorer than an elf noble.
Scars were visible on her arms and skin.
In that instant, everyone present saw the figure of a great old tree overlaid upon Ambella Burke.
‘Now I ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) understand why Bellaruna called her unusual.’
For indeed, no other word could describe her.
Ludger examined the retainers who followed behind Ambella Burke.
Well-trained, they stood silently with expressionless faces.
They did not even cast a glance at the human in the room, nor seem curious as to why he was there.
That alone left an impression.
After exchanging greetings with Vierno, Ambella looked around, and upon spotting Bellaruna, her face brightened.
“Haha! Well, if it isn’t the brave young lady herself.”
“Heh, hehe. Hello.”
“Have you had your fill of seeing the outside world? I never thought House Dentis would send for me like this.”
“Well, there were some circumstances...”
“And those circumstances, I suppose, also involve that man who slipped past our Burke borders into the forest?”
Ambella bared her teeth in a smile at Ludger.
The charisma in her chilling voice froze Bellaruna in place.
“Haha! I jest, I jest! My, anyone hearing this might think I go around eating people!”
“Uh, was that not the case?”
At Bellaruna’s foolish retort, Vierno and Viela were appalled.
How could one say such a thing to the head of a house?
But Ambella found the reply pleasing, bursting into laughter while holding her stomach.
Her laugh was so boisterous that the surface of the teacups on the table quivered.
“My eyes did not deceive me. Brave young lady. Even with the years, your boldness remains unchanged.”
“Th–thank you for the compliment.”
“Yes! That is the kind of spirit one must have. These days, young elves, the moment they meet my eyes, are stricken with fear and only spout flattering nonsense. How could such people possibly protect the forest?”
Saying this, Ambella dropped herself into the seat prepared for her.
The woven-bark hammock-like chair she sat in looked like the throne of a tyrant.
“Well then. If you called me here in person, it must be quite an interesting matter. Let me hear it.”
“Ahem. Understood.”
“But before that, I’d like to hear an introduction from that side first.”
Ambella fixed her gaze on Ludger.
“Is that not so, human?”
“I am Ludger Cherish.”
Ludger did not avoid Ambella’s eyes.
He received her gaze calmly and stated his name.
Ambella’s lips curled crookedly.
Not in displeasure, but with intrigue at facing a human who showed no fear of her.
“You look like some dandy parasite, but your bearing is entirely different. Very well, Ludger Cherish. How did you come into this forest? And past our Burke surveillance, no less?”
“There was no surveillance to speak of. I simply leapt from the sky.”
“Ah, the sky! Ha! A blind spot I never imagined.”
Ambella nodded as though convinced.
“Next time, I must order the sky watched as well. But let me ask something else. If you’ve seated yourself here, then you must have quite the purpose. Why did you come? What is it you seek from me?”
From the instant she looked at Ludger, Ambella instinctively knew.
The true decision-maker in this room was that cold-eyed human.
Though it was awkward for Vierno Dentis, Ambella was an elf who acted as she pleased.
Ludger considered whether to test Ambella’s reaction by answering directly.
It was, after all, a gathering of house heads.
Judging by the conversation, she had lived at least five centuries.
Her current demeanor might well be a calculated act to lull others.
To speak honestly would be no different from revealing his hand at the negotiation table.
It would be wiser to conceal his true aim while still seeking her cooperation.
That was the correct choice, but—
‘That won’t work.’
Ludger shook his head.
It would take too much time.
In this moment, he chose to trust his instincts.
“The head of House Lifret has abducted the last survivor of the Plante family.”
Ambella’s face lost all expression.
It was as if the skin had been peeled from her face—so chilling that everyone fell silent.
Ambella fixed her eyes on Ludger.
It was like being glared at by an ancient tree that had suddenly sprouted eyes.
Even under that immense pressure, Ludger did not avert his gaze.
“Now. If I heard you correctly, you say there is a survivor of Plante. Is that so?”
“You heard correctly. There is one last survivor of Plante. Not a pure elf, however. A half, with human blood.”
“And why tell me this? Do you think because House Burke once held friendly ties with Plante, I would repay that debt? For a half-blood with human blood in their veins, no less?”
“You told me to speak my purpose, so I did.”
As if that were a problem?
When Ludger’s eyes conveyed that question, Ambella burst out laughing.
Her laughter slowly died down.
Ambella tilted her head back, looking up at the ceiling.
She flicked her fingers, and one of her attendant elves approached, placing something in her mouth.
A stubby brown stick.
It turned out to be a cigar.
As Ambella bit down on it, a small flame spirit appeared and lit it.
The head of an elven family smoking a human-made cigar—
And yet, it suited her so well that no one objected.
Ambella inhaled deeply and exhaled.
Fwooo.
The white smoke drifting into the air seemed to mirror her complicated thoughts.
At last, Ambella crushed the spent cigar in her hand and lowered her gaze to Ludger.
“Do you know why our House Burke was driven out from the blessed inner forest, forced to live on the outskirts, gazing out into the world?”
“Because you were expelled together with House Plante, for their crimes.”
“Yes. You know well. And knowing that, you dare speak of a Plante survivor to me? Did it not occur to you that, upon hearing of such a survivor, I might kill them with my own hands?”
“At first, that did cross my mind.”
“Oh? And yet why bring it up?”
“Because now I have met you in person.”
Ludger looked at Ambella Burke, and at the retainers arrayed behind her.
“I saw, and knew—you are not ones who would do such a thing. That is why I spoke.”
“......”
At those words, Ambella first wore a dumbfounded expression, then broke into booming laughter.
Ha! Ha! Ha!
It was laughter that seemed both amused, angry, and exhilarated all at once.
When the laughter finally ceased, Ambella’s lips twisted into a feral smile.
Her uncovered eye glinted with savage light.
“Very well. Let us go and rescue them at once.”