Chapter 58 : Chapter 58

Chapter 58. Whisper

Eli’s breathing stopped.

The scene in the forest clearing below filled him with a terror and shock born from the deepest instincts of living things.

Countless beasts, whether predator or prey, mighty or weak— they had cast aside the slaughtering instinct engraved into their bones and were lying prostrate in dense, packed rows upon the ground.

Their postures varied, yet without exception, all of them faced the absolute darkness at the center of the clearing, the darkness that devoured every trace of light.

This was not a chaotic gathering. It was a pilgrimage.

It was a humble act of worship that transcended the barriers between species, steeped in the reverence buried in the deepest part of the soul.

Eli felt his blood surging and crashing through his veins.

Sebastian’s aura had changed as well.

It was as though he had completely merged with the shadow of the ancient tree. Only his eyes remained, sharp enough to pierce the darkness, their wariness and gravity almost palpable.

Then, at that moment, an indescribable sound quietly spread through the air.

It was not conveyed through the eardrums. It was more as though it acted directly upon the depths of the soul.

There were no distinct syllables, no rise or fall of melody. It was a low, humming resonance carrying an ancient desolation.

And it was also a wisp of drifting sigh, laden with endless compassion and majesty.

Yet every formless note struck with absolute precision at the most primal sense of awe within all living beings.

Eli’s mind collapsed in an instant.

A surge from the deepest part of his bloodline crashed violently against his will.

His knees involuntarily wanted to bend, and his head grew heavy, yearning to bow.

His consciousness blurred. The center of the darkness seemed to begin turning, radiating an attraction that drew him into ruin...

“Young Master!”

The old steward’s voice rang out.

It was not loud, yet it carried an unquestionable force that pierced through the haze and yanked Eli back from the illusion.

Eli shuddered violently, like a drowning man dragged back to the surface, and gasped for air.

He looked at Sebastian in horror. The other man’s gaze was still fixed firmly on the depths of the darkness, but he had slightly turned his head and cast Eli a warning look, telling him to steady himself.

Almost at the exact moment Eli regained his senses, the beast herd below underwent an even more dramatic change.

The beasts that had merely been lying prostrate now lowered their heads even further. Their bodies trembled violently as they let out indistinct whimpers and low growls.

Their awe, guided by that sound, had transformed into a deeper, more complete submission.

“Magnificent, isn’t it?”

A voice sounded in Eli’s mind without the slightest warning.

It was clear and ethereal, like a spring flowing beneath moonlight.

For an instant, Eli’s thoughts went blank.

The sight before him was already too shocking, and this voice that acted directly upon consciousness was too strange.

By instinct, he answered with a single thought in his mind.

“Yes.”

The instant the thought arose, a chill ran through him!

“Yes?” Eli suddenly turned his head, his sharp gaze sweeping across the dark corners around him.

Aside from Sebastian at his side, there was only the kneeling beast herd below and the darkness at the center.

Who was speaking?!

“What is it, Young Master?” Sebastian’s voice dropped even lower, little more than a whisper.

He had keenly caught the sudden shock and movement that flashed through Eli.

“Steward,” Eli said, his voice carrying a tautness he himself had not noticed, “did you hear... someone speaking? A woman’s voice? It sounded like it was speaking directly inside my head!”

The pupils behind Sebastian’s lenses contracted sharply.

Without the slightest hesitation, his gloved hands shot out and seized Eli by the shoulders.

The force of his grip was so great that Eli felt as though his shoulder blades were about to be crushed.

The next instant, Eli felt the support beneath his feet vanish, and his whole body seemed to fall into a pool of icy black ink.

But it was not a fall. It was assimilation.

The surrounding scene—the colossal ancient trees, the prostrate beast herd—twisted and stretched violently like a reflection shattered by a stone, instantly blurring into streaks of light and shadow that shot backward.

There was no wind, no sensation of weightlessness, only a chill surrounding him completely, as though he were being dragged into a tunnel made of pure shadow.

Sebastian’s figure remained beside him, but it was so blurred that he looked like nothing more than a deep gray silhouette.

At the exact instant they melted into shadow and vanished—

within the absolute darkness at the center of the forest clearing, two faint silver glimmers seemed to flash for a brief moment.

A figure, slender and elegant in outline, floated silently above the darkness.

Moonlight, miserly as ever, outlined the silver-white hair that fell to her ankles, pure as frost and snow.

Her gaze pierced through the distance in space and looked precisely toward the direction in which Eli and Sebastian had disappeared.

The corners of her lips curved into the faintest arc, touched with a trace of amusement.

“A Shadow Demon...”

“And another... one with elf blood? Heh. How interesting.”

She had clearly taken Eli’s dazzling white hair, changed by the cleansing of Moonlight Spring, as proof of mixed blood.

“Whew—”

Cold air rushed violently into Eli’s lungs, carrying the familiar fresh scent of earth and grass.

His feet hit solid ground, and he staggered before managing to steady himself.

Before his eyes there were no longer ancient, towering trees blotting out the sky or that grotesque herd of beasts, but an open valley.

In the distance, the scattered lights of the Black Territory camp flickered in the night like warm beacons, driving away the lingering chill and dread.

They had returned.

Eli let out a long breath, as though he meant to expel all the fear and shock crushing his chest.

His taut nerves suddenly loosened, and in their wake came an intense wave of weakness. The cold sweat on his back was swept by the night wind, sending a chill through him.

As expected, the old steward’s strength was unfathomable...

That method of movement just now was far beyond anything that could be explained by a human knight’s battle aura.

Eli’s heart churned with the relief of surviving catastrophe, but even more questions came surging forth.

Who was that woman who had spoken directly into his mind just now?

Was she the being within that darkness?

Her voice...

What were those beasts bowing to? Was it that white-haired woman?

That worship on the level of the soul—could it really have been nothing more than a pre-battle mobilization for the beast tide?

That was far too inconceivable! And what had that vast resonance been? Some kind of... ritual? A summoning?

Countless thoughts collided violently in Eli’s mind, trying to piece together a reasonable explanation, yet only left his thoughts more tangled than before.

The secret hidden in the depths of Nightsong Forest was far deeper than the elven ruins and Moonlight Spring.

He felt that what he had just touched was no more than the tiniest corner of an immense iceberg breaking the surface.

Sebastian stood quietly half a step behind him and had already reverted to that ancient, unreadable old steward once more.

“Young Master,” Sebastian’s flat voice broke the silence, “what you saw was indeed a beast tide.”

He paused for a moment.

“Please make every possible preparation. The walls, military supplies, provisions, warnings... any oversight at all may bring utter ruin.”

After a brief silence, Sebastian spoke again.

“And one more thing, Young Master.”

He slightly raised his gaze and looked toward Eli’s profile.

“This must be the last time. Please do not undertake such a venture again.”

Eli’s heart trembled.

He understood the meaning left unsaid in Sebastian’s words.

This time, he had been fortunate. This time, he had been accompanied by this unfathomable steward.

But next time?

Before an unknown existence on that level, personal bravery and curiosity would only bring meaningless destruction.

He was the lord. His life had long since ceased to belong to himself alone.

Eli drew a deep breath of the night wind carrying the smoke and fire of the camp.

He did not argue, nor did he make promises. He simply nodded with utmost solemnity.

“I understand, Steward. You have my thanks for your efforts.”

Sebastian gave a slight nod and said no more.

He silently stepped back. His figure seemed to melt away at once into the shadows stretching toward the camp, vanishing completely.

Eli remained standing there alone, gazing in the direction where Sebastian had disappeared, then turned his head back toward the outline of Nightsong Forest behind him, crouching in the night like a monstrous beast.

Scene after scene was branded into his mind like seared marks.

He raised a hand and rubbed his still-throbbing temples, forcing himself to break free from the chaos of his thoughts.

The steward was right.

What mattered most right now was survival. It was holding Black Territory. It was holding Lucerne City.

He did not linger any longer. He stepped forward and headed toward the brightly lit Black Territory camp.

His stride was steady and forceful. Each step that landed on the solid earth seemed to drive away the lingering cold in his heart.

The camp drew nearer and nearer. The soldiers patrolling the watchtowers were already clearly visible, and from far away he could faintly hear Captain Buck’s stern voice drilling the recruits.

Eli did not slow. He walked straight toward the lord’s keep.

But he did not enter immediately. Instead, he stopped in the relatively open space before the fortress gates.

He lifted his head and looked toward the profound night sky.

There was no moon tonight. Only the vast river of stars hung above, cold and eternal, looking down upon the earth.

Beneath that boundless starry vault, the lights of Black Territory seemed so small, while the outline of Nightsong Forest was no more than an almost imperceptible crease upon the land.

An indescribable loneliness and sense of smallness crept quietly into his heart, accompanied by the heavy burden on his shoulders.

He was no longer the wastrel son in the royal capital who knew only indulgence. He was no longer the Frontier Knight who thought only of how to survive his exile.

He was Eli Pendragon, the Baron of Lucerne, the man bearing the lives and deaths of thousands of subjects across two territories.

The road ahead was still long. The storm, perhaps, had only just begun to gather.

He stood silently beneath the stars, his white hair like frost, his figure as straight as a spear, unmoving for a long time.