How To Live As A Third Son Of A Failure [EN]: Chapter 214

Guided by Gail, I arrived at the Dark Elves’ hideout.

They looked no different from ordinary Elves. In dwellings harmoniously built among the trees, some young Dark Elves couldn’t resist their curiosity and peeked out to steal glances at me and my group.

Their horrified parents quickly pulled them inside and closed the windows.

That was the better reaction. Some Dark Elves guarding the dwellings openly expressed hostility and drew their weapons.

Seeing this, Gail hurriedly waved his hand.

“No! Put your weapons away!”

The Dark Elves wore bewildered expressions at Gail’s dissuasion.

“Patrol Captain! What is going on?”

“It’s a long story.”

“Don’t tell me you guided those humans here?”

“Enough! Where is the Elder?”

“What! You’re not only bringing unknown humans here but also taking them to the Elder?”

Unable to reason with them, Gail, frustrated, burst out in anger.

“Just shut up and get out of the way! Unless you all want to die!”

“What do you mean……”

The guy who didn’t understand Gail’s words saw the patrol unit [patrol队] following far behind and gaped.

“The entire patrol unit was defeated?”

“Everyone is injured, but no one is dead. But if you don’t get out of the way now, that might change.”

“……”

Upon hearing the news that the entire patrol unit had been helplessly defeated, the Dark Elves began to lower their weapons.

Though I didn’t know for sure, the patrol unit seemed to be a fairly elite force for them. They must have thought there was no chance of winning since such a unit had been defeated.

A small question arose in my mind.

‘They are definitely weaker than the Elves of the Great Forest. They manipulate mana, but it’s at a toddler’s level. And it doesn’t seem like they use any spirit magic.’

The Elves residing in the Great Forest each possessed outstanding skills, and in particular, the spirit magic wielded by Elves like Glorian had formidable power.

But these Dark Elves seemed too weak in comparison.

Of course, the reason was somewhat expected. The Elves of the Great Forest would have inherited the power and knowledge of the past based on the vast territory provided by Kerwyn.

But these Dark Elves had been living in the dangerous North, struggling for survival day by day. So, there was bound to be a difference in prosperity.

“……”

“……”

Thus, I and my group began to move into the stronghold, receiving wary gazes from the Dark Elves.

After walking for some time, we arrived at a house deep in the forest, and Gail knocked on the door, opening his mouth with difficulty.

“Elder, it’s me, Gail.”

Perhaps sensing the situation from Gail’s trembling voice, slow footsteps were heard from inside, and soon the door opened.

“We have guests.”

It was an elderly female Dark Elf.

An old Elf. Considering that Elves maintain their youth for a very long lifespan, it was a very unusual case.

Usually, an Elf who had lived that long would undoubtedly possess tremendous power, but ironically, I didn’t feel any particular power emanating from her.

“Are you the Elder here?”

The eyes of the Dark Elf, called the Elder, flickered at my question.

“I am.”

“I have something I want to ask you, and I hope you’ll answer. Oh, and this isn’t a request.”

“……”

After confirming Gail’s fearful eyes, the Dark Elf Elder slowly nodded.

“Come in. It seems we have much to discuss.”

Following her guidance, the interior of the house was ordinary. Even if she was an Elder, it wasn’t surprising, as her status was different from human power structures.

After instructing Ilia and Redran to guard the outside, I entered alone and took a seat at the table.

Soon, the Elder approached the table with a tray holding teacups in one hand. It was only belatedly that I noticed, due to her baggy clothes, that the Elder was missing an arm.

“I am Blaue.”

“Cain.”

Perhaps sensing the power I possessed, the Dark Elf who introduced herself as Blaue continued to use honorifics.

After exchanging names, Blaue picked up a teacup with trembling hands.

“I knew this day would come someday.”

“Are you saying you knew I would come?”

“Not necessarily you, but someone like you.”

Blaue’s eyes trembled.

It seemed like something was going on. Recalling Gail, who had admitted to cooperating with humans, I slowly opened my mouth.

“It must be because you cooperated with humans.”

“That’s right.”

“I guess there’s a lot to hear.”

Upon hearing my words, Blaue let out a deep sigh and then slowly began to speak.

* * *

Blaue’s story was simple.

Hundreds of years ago, the Dark Elves, defeated by humans in the Race Wars, all fled across the mountains to the North.

Naturally, life in the North was not easy. Having lost many of their clan in the aftermath of the war, it was difficult to find a suitable forest to claim as their territory in the North.

Due to the continuous battles with monsters that followed, their already small numbers dwindled further, bringing them to the brink of extinction.

After countless hardships, the Dark Elves barely managed to find a very small forest and barely maintained their existence.

“Is that forest here?”

“Yes.”

“It’s not exactly a small forest, is it?”

“Hundreds of years have passed. Our ancestors desperately fought monsters, nurtured the forest, and expanded the territory.”

“So, you’ve reached the present?”

Nodding, Blaue continued to speak.

Although the Dark Elves had barely established a base, the situation was still bleak.

Having lost most of their skilled warriors in the Race Wars, the descendants who filled the vacancies died fighting monsters almost every day.

In a situation where they were struggling to secure basic necessities, they couldn’t even dream of passing on the knowledge and power they had enjoyed in the past.

As a result, they had become so weak that they were hardly worthy of being called Elves.

“Every day since the end of the Race Wars has been a war. To survive, we gave up everything else and focused solely on teaching archery and swordsmanship. We needed warriors who could fight monsters on the front lines immediately.”

“Does that mean other powers have been lost?”

“We had no opportunity to see and learn.”

Blaue’s expression was bleak as she calmly spoke of the decline of the entire race.

“Then one day, humans came.”

And then came the words that humans had come. I felt that the story I wanted was beginning.

“And they said they would teach us the power to survive in the North.”

Mana users among the elves came to mind when I first entered the forest.

Without teachers to teach them or knowledge to learn from, how did the Dark Elves have so many mana users?

The answer came without much thought.

“Those guys taught you Dark Elves mana?”

“Yes.”

“But it wouldn’t have been free.”

At my question, Blaue nodded.

“In exchange for power, they wanted us to help them with their work.”

“So, what did they ask you to do?”

“……I don’t know the exact details. They only said they would select a few members of the clan and go to the human kingdoms beyond the mountains.”

Taking volunteers to go to the kingdom.

The meaning was obvious. They intended to take them to the Southern Islands and secretly have the Dark Elves make magic stones.

Even if those selected couldn’t handle spirits, it wouldn’t have mattered. Humans’ greatest strength is the transmission of knowledge. With the Elves’ strong affinity, teaching them wouldn’t have been difficult.

Anyway, if Blaue’s words were true, they had made a deal with the Neviros Order to survive. Of course, that doesn’t absolve them of their guilt.

“So, among those who left, has anyone returned?”

“Not a single one. I don’t know if they’re alive or dead. My heart is torn that I can’t know how they’re doing.”

No one has returned. She didn’t seem to be lying.

It was a bit of a shame. If there was a Dark Elf who knew the information there, things would have been easier.

“What do you know about those you traded with?”

“Nothing. Except that they are humans and consist of mages and knights.”

“Have you met them since?”

“Other than occasionally stopping by to select members of the clan, no.”

They still come here occasionally?

Feeling like there might be a way, I tilted my head.

“In my opinion.”

“……”

“I don’t think the Elder, who was heartbroken to send her clan away, wouldn’t have taken any measures.”

Blaue’s eyes flickered at my words.

Feeling like I had caught her properly, I bared my teeth.

“Am I right?”

“……Yes.”

At her admission, I changed my gaze and pressured Blaue.

“Tell me. What measures did you take?”

“I wanted to check on their well-being someday if I had the chance, and if I could, bring them back.”

“So.”

“Since they said they were taking them to the kingdom, they would pass through many human villages, and I told them to leave a certain signal each time.”

“Leave a signal?”

“Yes.”

“You said your abilities have been lost?”

“We can still communicate with the forest.”

Ah, the forest. Right. I had forgotten. Communication is a basic ability that any Elf can do.

“I promised that if they left a signal, I would find them no matter how many hundreds of years passed and bring them back to their homeland.”

“Then……”

“Of course, I don’t know where those signals are engraved. It was just a promise I made to them as a last resort for those who were leaving.”

Hearing Blaue’s words, I frowned.

“You didn’t even discuss exactly where to engrave them?”

“Our generation has never been to the human kingdoms. How could we have made any specific promises in that situation? Besides, they wouldn’t have been free to move around.”

……She’s not wrong. They were selected, but they were no different from slaves, so they couldn’t have left signals wherever they pleased.

“Damn it, then at least tell me the signal. I’ll figure out how to find and track them.”

“……I can’t just tell you.”

“You can’t tell me?”

I tilted my head at Blaue’s sudden uncooperative attitude.

“Don’t you know your situation?”

“I know. I also know that you can end us if you want to. But either way, our fate is the same, so there’s nothing we can do.”

“What do you mean our fate is the same?”

“Eventually, they will find out that you have been here.”

“……”

The Neviros Order will find out that I’ve been here, is that it?

“How?”

“Didn’t I say? I was planning to check on the well-being of the clan members who were taken if I had the chance.”

“And.”

“I made a plan. I was planning to secretly send a few warriors beyond the mountains. But somehow they found out and interrogated us.”

Blaue raised her right hand, finishing her words.

The empty space below her forearm showed that violence followed their interrogation.

“You’re being watched.”

“I realized it late. The reason they didn’t come out aggressively from the beginning was because they had to continue selecting members of our clan.”

“Telling you about mana was also in that context?”

“Yes. The more we were away from the threat of monsters, the more offspring we would have. It was too late when we realized their intentions.”

Perhaps recalling that their situation was no different from livestock, Blaue’s eyes trembled.

“I don’t know what you want here or what you’re going to do. But they will hold us responsible just for the fact that we met you.”

They are the ones who cut off the Elder’s arm just for planning to send a few warriors out of the forest.

What would those guys do if they heard that they had contacted a human other than themselves? Moreover, if that human was me?

“Death is not scary. But I’m afraid that the clan can’t escape this miserable cycle.”

It became clear what Blaue wanted from me.

“So, you’re saying you’ll tell me the signal in exchange for guaranteeing the safety of the clan?”

“Gail is the strongest warrior we have. He showed you a fearful look that he didn’t easily show to them either.”

“……”

“You seem to have great power. If you help us, we will also help you with anything.”

“That’s funny. I could burn this forest right now and torture you to find out the signal by force, you know?”

Blaue’s eyes didn’t waver even at my gruesome words. Instead, she nodded with a calm expression.

“That may be the case. But didn’t I say earlier? Whether we die at your hands or theirs, our fate is the same. In that case, it’s best to bet on even a slim hope.”

I couldn’t help but laugh at Blaue’s unwavering words.

“You have a lot of guts.”

Well, it’s a deal that I have nothing to lose.

According to Blaue, the Dark Elves are being watched.

Then, in the end, those guys will come here. What if I set a trap in reverse? Maybe I can capture them?

Yeah. It’s a good opportunity. So, there’s no reason to avoid Blaue’s request. Rather, I can owe a debt to the Dark Elves, so it’s a win.

Moreover, if they are Dark Elves who have spent a long time in the North, they will also be helpful in strengthening the barrier that Kerwyn asked for.

After thinking, I made a decision and held out my hand to Blaue.

“Okay. I accept the deal.”

Blaue’s hand, which I shook, was trembling greatly, unlike her calm attitude.