Pillars of Ita

"These are their secret routes to the sacred forest. There are two routes in total. The one that is known to outsiders is generally the one that goes south of the Sacred Forest. But the other one that passes through the Nightingale Trail is less well known. This is a secret of the Elven Court that has never been made public."

The uninvited guest in a brown cloak leaned down slightly, revealing his snow-white wrists under his long robe sleeves. There were silver ornaments in the shape of a serpent on his wrists. He placed an exquisite scroll on the table and gently pushed it over.

When she lowered her head, her silver hair and pointed ears appeared from under her hood, but she quickly brushed them back with her hands, raised her head, and looked at the human official in front of her:
"They will take the northern route and pretend to be an enemy on the southern route. Now I have given you accurate information. It is up to you to decide what to do next."

"In addition to the Sea Witch, we also want Her Royal Highness the Princess." said the middle-aged politician.

The elf woman was stunned for a moment and looked at him, "She is the daughter of the Elf King."

"He is nothing. Our goal is this kingdom," said the middle-aged politician. "Take a long-term view. You will also share in the fruits of this achievement. We are considering the future of this land. We no longer need a new saint."

The elf woman narrowed her eyes and looked at the other party, with a trace of dissatisfaction in her heart. She could imagine the fate of the princess. After losing that symbolic position, she herself was also a prey worth pursuing.

But those were not what she considered. She was destined not to look back after coming here. She released her hand that was pressing on the scroll and nodded, "Leave that human to me. He will be useful to me."

The middle-aged politician frowned and looked at her suspiciously: "I haven't heard of any intersection between him and you."

"Why," the elf woman sneered under her brown cloak, "you want to monopolize everything? It's our allies in Corin-Ishurian who have demands on him. Is that reason enough?"

The middle-aged politician hesitated for a moment, but finally nodded. It was enough for them to have information on the sea witch, and with the addition of a princess, they could prevent the birth of a new saint.

Besides, there should be someone on the other side of the star gate who would be interested in Her Royal Highness the Princess.

"Okay, happy cooperation." He looked at the scroll on the table, "Also, I want to remind you, be careful of those people in the Holy Forest. They may not be sincere."

"We have common interests." The mysterious woman remained noncommittal.

After she said this, she turned into a cloud of smoke and merged into the darkness. Only when the smoke gradually dissipated did she leave a piece of letter on the ground.

The middle-aged politician looked at the letter and hesitated for a while before walking around the table to pick it up. He opened the envelope and took a look. He immediately turned around and asked:
"Has Arryn Ironheart answered us?"

In the direction where he looked, a person hiding in the darkness shook his head.

The middle-aged politician looked in that direction and said, "Go and bring him back. Don't let him talk."

The man nodded slightly.

……

Ailin Ironheart took one last look at his manuscript and picked it up.

He placed it neatly on top of another pile of manuscripts, overlapping them. The flames in the hearth were dancing, casting three long shadows of the candlestick on the scattered draft papers, the shadows swaying and covering the words on the manuscripts from time to time.

But another shadow covered the candlestick, making everything on the workbench a little darker. Ailin Ironheart stopped what he was doing, but without looking up, he spoke:

"To come in without an invitation or asking is not respectful to the host."

The fire dimmed.

It was as if the temperature in the room had automatically dropped several degrees, no longer enough for the firewood to burn and generate heat. The flame flickered weakly a few times and then went out.

The house fell into darkness.

"Master Ailin," the man hidden in the shadows finally spoke, "I'm here to seek your opinion. The Court of Radiance may not respect you, otherwise you wouldn't be here with your talent. The Council of Linoril is eager to recruit talents, and you were born under the Council. Why do you want to work for those arrogant guys in Autumn Glade?"

"Just because you have half the blood of the Holy White Clan? But you know that those people may not look up to you because of this."

Ailin Ironheart put down the manuscript in his hand and shook his head. "It is my freedom to work wherever I want. Besides, if you represent the parliament, these methods of the parliament may not be glorious."

"What's so glorious about the Elven Court?" the man said, "If they really acted honestly, they wouldn't give outsiders an opportunity to take advantage of them. But I'm not interested in discussing justice with you. I just need an answer."

Ailin Ironheart glanced at the sword in the other's hand. "I heard that you have the skills to suppress the starlight. Those things are probably obtained from the hands of the Dark Saints. Don't you know what the consequences will be if you cooperate with them?"

"Then it has nothing to do with the Master."

"Aren't you worried that I might tell His Majesty about this?"

"You won't," the man shook his head. "You know our strength. One wrong step will lead Giant Tree Hill into an irreparable situation, especially at this critical moment. You know that the only hope of defeating the Gray Region lies in our hands."

Arryn Ironheart said nothing. He closed his eyes silently, thinking back to the scene in the carriage at that time. The long conversation seemed to resurface in his memory, so clear at this moment.

A silver moon rises in the forest, spreading its soft light over the earth. Even the nightingales remain silent in the darkness. Silent streams flow in the silence, converging into a river of light.

The silver branches took root and sprouted in the dead soil. Death did not subside, but the new life became more and more withered. The sacred tree no longer spoke, as if telling another story.

A story about the forest.

I hope your guess is correct.

This thought flashed through Ailin Ironheart's mind silently, and he finally opened his eyes and looked at the other party, "Take me to see your people."

"You agree?" The man was slightly stunned.

But Arryn Ironheart shook his head. "I'm sure you won't leave me here, and I don't intend to put myself in danger. But you said you know how to fight the Gray Realm. At least let me see it with my own eyes."

The man looked him up and down as if he was getting to know the Elf Master all over again, and sneered, "Alright, we respect your experience and skills, Master Ailin."

The room fell silent.

The fire in the fireplace was no longer burning, leaving only darkness shrouding everything. The cold moonlight was climbing up the windowsill, shining through the window lattice and falling into the empty house.

But after a long time, the bookshelf behind the workbench opened a slight gap and moved horizontally to the left and right, as if a crack had appeared in the wall.

Revealing the pale-faced elf lady behind.

Lilithel suppressed the uneasiness in her heart and bit her lip hard, letting the intense pain and the smell of blood calm her down. She followed Ailin Ironheart's instructions and groped to the workbench.

Her eyes rested on the two piles of manuscripts. She carefully reached out and lifted one of them. There was a page of paper between the two piles of manuscripts.

A tall, holy white oak tree was drawn on the paper.

Lilithel looked at the oak tree and thought for a moment before she put down the manuscript in her hand, put the paper away, folded it carefully, and put it in her chest.

She put the pile of manuscripts back to its original place, put the bookshelf behind her back in place, checked left and right, and after carefully confirming that everything was correct, she hurriedly left the room.

Shortly after she left, a shadow flowed in from outside the door and re-formed into the human figure. The other party looked around suspiciously but found nothing.

He shook his head, and turned into a piece of fine sand, a flowing shadow, and disappeared from the room.

……

"Lord Elindor."

It was dawn. When Fang He and his party met up with the elves outside the Forest of the Oracle, the lord of the Sun Shadow Land looked a little stunned.

In addition to him, he was accompanied by more than 20 elven knights. These elven riders all rode tall unicorns, wore winged helmets, held spears in their hands, had elven scimitars hanging on one side of their waists, and carried a snow-white longbow on their backs.

On the tips of their spears hung blue and white pennants with the emblem of the Court of Radiance on the flags. These people were obviously the elven guards, the true sons of light.

Arsana held the holy sword and walked with Fang He. The Lord of the Sun Shadow Land looked at the princess and frowned and asked:

"Aren't we going to take the Nightingale Trail in the north? Why did you change the plan at the last minute?"

Fang He was slightly startled and looked at the other party: "Princess Melfina changed the plan temporarily. Didn't she tell you, Lord Elindor?"

"I just received the last-minute notice," Elindor said with a frown, "and the time has been advanced a lot. What on earth is going on?"

Arsana was about to answer, but Fang He stopped her, "Let's talk while we walk. It's time to set off, Mr. Lord."

Elindor looked at him, then looked at the ship officer beside him, hesitant to speak, but finally nodded.

Although the sacred forest opened the barrier, they were destined not to be able to bring too many people into this holy land. Therefore, in addition to the second group staying in the Elf Court, the first group only had a few people accompanying them.

In addition to Sylvie, Fang He also brought Miss Nightingale, May, Jita and Luo Yu, as well as the Sea Witch Mia who accompanied them.

Except for the female pirate Catherine, the maid lady and Baggins who stayed in Fortier to guard the Seven Seas Traveler and their other ship, this was basically the most elite force of the Seven Seas Brigade. There should have been a place for the box, but considering the problem of the magic sword, they finally let him stay to provide some care for the second group.

Daryl also declined his invitation. According to the cat lady, her identity was not suitable for going to the sacred forest of the elves. After all, she was a Knight Templar of the Shadowtree Temple.

In fact, she was considering leaving. After all, after escorting the Seven Seas Brigade here and completing the handover with the big cat people, she had completed her mission.

However, Fang He could see that the other party was not that determined. Compared to the boring life of guarding the temple day after day, it was obvious that the life in the Seven Seas Brigade was more suitable for her.

After all, she is a Chosen One.

However, Fang He had no intention of putting pressure on the other party. Whether to continue the journey depended on her own thoughts and could not be forced by others.

If not, they wouldn't have to go through so many roundabout ways to solve Miss Attila's problem.

However, what really surprised Fang He was the big cat man. He originally thought that it would definitely go to the sacred forest with them. After all, the big cat man himself was Miss Attila's guardian knight.

But Red just patted his shoulder with his broad paw, letting the morning breeze blow his long mane, and smiled, "It's not time yet, Ed."

"It's not the right time. Why?" Fang He looked at the big cat man who was wiping the holy sword with some surprise. The blade was shining brightly against the morning light. "Won't Mr. Reid go with us to see Miss Attila?"

6◇9◇Book◇Bar

"Some people in the sacred forest may not be happy to see me go back," the big cat man raised his paw and stroked the red mane on his chin. "She asked me to leave there, and I must follow her wishes."

"Ms. Atila?" Fang He was stunned. "What exactly is Mr. Reid's mission? Hasn't the Great Saint already arrived at the Elf Court? You said she wanted to see me?"

"It's not the right time yet," the big cat man shook his head, "You will meet her, but not now. It's easier to block an open attack than to defend against an arrow from the dark. Ed, you must be more cautious and more careful--"

Fang He was confused until a voice pulled him back to reality from his thoughts: "The big cat is not with you?"

Fang He looked at the elven lord who asked him the question in surprise, then he realized who he was talking about. The elves gave him a unicorn. That kind of mixed-breed horse was not as noble as a unicorn, but at least it would not refuse him, a mortal, to ride on its back.

Fang He himself was not very good at riding a horse, but the unicorn was surprisingly docile and did not throw him to the ground. Most of the others were also riding on horses, and among them, May and Sylvie were obviously the most skilled riders.

"Lord Elindor," Fang He asked, "Are you talking about Mr. Reid?"

"Yeah." Elindor nodded.

Fang He was stunned for a moment, but then he realized that the big cat man was also a knight of the Temple, and he might have met the lord of the Elf Court several times.

But Elindor said, "I knew him before he went to the temple. Later, he was stripped of his position as a dragon knight and exiled from Lotao. It was with my introduction that he came to this place."

"Why?" He looked at Fang He, "He didn't tell you about this."

Fang He was completely stunned. He had actually imagined the possible status of the big cat man. He was Miss Attila's guardian knight. As the personal guard of the great saint, his strength could not be bad.

When the big cat man was on the boat, he only showed a level of about thirty, but even Luo Yu, the Paparar people and the box combined could not defeat him.

They could occasionally fight to a draw, but Fang He could clearly see that the big cat man was holding back. Moreover, it could be said that he had almost single-handedly led the entire melee team of the Seven Seas Brigade.

This level of strength obviously cannot be explained by the level displayed by the big cat people.

But the big cat man didn't say anything, and he tacitly didn't ask.

Later, they learned from Baggins about the boatswain's experience and realized that the level of the natives could decline. Due to injuries, age and other reasons, the natives would actually fall from their peak just like the Chosen Ones.

Therefore, Fang He once speculated that the big cat people might have experienced the same thing.

However, this free knight of Marlan never talked about these things with them. Once asked by others, he would just laugh it off and joke with them:

"One day, the wind will tell you the answer."

But the answer has always been in Fang He’s heart.

Until it is verified.

Fang He finally confirmed that the big cat man was once a dragon rider, but he didn't seem that surprised.

It turns out that in addition to Mia, there was actually a dragon knight in their team.

"Mr. Reid's strength is actually not as good as before," May suddenly said, "Ever since he voluntarily surrendered his Dragon Knight rank, sealed his main structure underground in the Twelve Star Pillars, and gave up the power of the domain, he was exiled from Rotao."

"——After that, he was no longer considered an active dragon knight."

Miss Knight's eyes sparkled as she silently looked at the Holy White Forest ahead. It was obvious that she had heard the story before.

"Ms. May," Fang He looked at her with some surprise, "Have you also heard about Mr. Reid?"

May nodded. "That was a scandal in the Miro Palace. Mr. Reid was unwilling to bring it up, and I couldn't talk about it. I only know that it was related to his sister."

Fang He suddenly remembered what happened in Idus, where the big cat people met their enemy in the desert. Unfortunately, the enemy escaped in the end.

He shut his mouth.

At this time, the Lord of the Sun Shadow said, "It's related to the replacement of the Saint of the Pillar of Stars. They replaced the sacrifice of the ritual with an innocent girl. All this is normal to mortals, but what is unexpected is that the girl's brother will one day become a paladin of the Temple of Mir."

"What happened next is self-explanatory," said Alyndor. "He did not completely complete his revenge, but the Land of Stars could no longer accommodate him, so he was sentenced to the most severe punishment. In the end, he was able to come to the Holy Forest under the guarantee of the Saint."

It turns out that is the story of Miss Attila and the big cat man.

However, Fang He was still curious. As the Saint of the White Forest, how could she interfere in the affairs of Lotao?
How did Miss Atila get to know the big cat man?

It was a pity that Elindor didn't seem to be planning to answer his question. He just shook his head and said something incoherently, "But it's better if he doesn't come. With his current strength, it's best for him to stay out of these things."

"Are Lord Elindor and Mr. Reid familiar with each other?"

The Elf Lord nodded, "We are friends. Before I leave this time, in addition to His Majesty, he also asked me to take good care of you."

But he turned around and looked at Fang He, "But I have a question, young man. I already know your purpose, but solving the trouble in Giant Tree Hill is the most likely way. Why don't you cooperate with Silver Wind Port? It is said that they have mastered the method of conquering Ninimere?"

Elindor's gaze fell on Mia who was not far away. "Is it because of the Sea Witch?"

Fang He looked at the other person with some confusion, but still nodded.

"Just because of this?"

Fang He shook his head again, "I don't agree with the Linoril Council's approach."

"You think the parliament's method is wrong?" Elindor said, "I heard Melfina talk about this. You think that Lady Apoptosis is not dead, but this is just your one-sided statement. Besides, the parliament has already defeated Ninimer. If their theoretical basis is untenable, how do you explain their progress?"

"Uncle Ailindor," Lian Alsana finally couldn't help but speak, "I believe in Mr. Ed. Besides, you have seen that he was the one chosen by the late King Kwenlar."

"It's not that I don't trust him," Alyndor shook his head, "but there is only one sacred tree, and there is only one chance. Alsana, even if a disaster occurs, mortals can still migrate to other continents to live, but do you understand what this disaster means to the elves?"

"This is exactly what we are going to do in the sacred forest," the Elf Princess said, "Father only asked you to escort us to that place."

"But I am a dragon knight," said Alyndor. "Secular power does not have such a big constraint on me, Your Highness. I protect your father because he represents the Elven Court, but this does not mean that you have the same power."

He looked at Fang He and said, "Young man, tell me your answer."

Fang He was silent for a moment, then suddenly raised his head and looked at the Elf Lord, and asked, "The current situation is a little beyond your expectations, right?"

The lord of the Sun Shadow Land was slightly startled.

"Are you asking me this question, or are you asking me this question on behalf of the Linoril Council?" Fang He asked, "Mr. Elindor, Her Royal Highness the Princess did not choose any of the two routes in the end. Both routes, one south and one north, were deliberately set up to confuse you. We set off ahead of schedule without any warning, which completely disrupted your plan—"

He paused and looked at the other person with burning eyes.

"Right?"

Elindor's expression had completely changed, and he placed one hand on his sword.

...(End of chapter)