Chapter 69 : Chapter 69

Chapter 69. Into Nightsong Once More

Bang bang bang! Bang bang bang! Bang bang bang!

A burst of frantic, utterly arrhythmic pounding on the door violently shattered the peace atop the lord’s keep.

The sound carried such brazen force that even the heavy oak door groaned and trembled under it.

The two people sleeping in each other’s arms on the bed woke at the same time.

Eli’s eyes snapped open, and the haze of waking confusion in his blue gaze instantly sharpened into something hawk-like.

Aila let out a soft cry of surprise, her long lashes trembling, her violet eyes still clouded with the bewilderment and faint unease of being startled awake.

“Hey—hey—!

The sun’s already warming your backside—! Get up this instant, both of you—!”

A shrill, piercing voice came crashing in like demonic noise forced straight into their ears.

Aila sobered instantly, a helpless smile touching her lips. “It’s Gulu! She’s back!”

Eli’s brows had already knotted into a tight frown. That lawless little marmot again.

Aila gently pushed him and swiftly threw back the covers to rise.

Morning light streamed through the lattice window, outlining her slender, lovely profile.

She snatched up the clothes by the bedside and dressed quickly and efficiently, her fair skin flashing once in the dim light before vanishing beneath the fabric.

Eli’s gaze rested on her for a brief moment, only to be set ablaze with anger again by the relentless racket outside the door.

He rolled out of bed, swift and silent in motion, not even bothering with an outer robe, clad only in a thin dark shirt and trousers.

He reached straight for Silver, the weapon propped at the bedside, the cold sheath settling into his grasp.

Aila had just tied the final sash of her clothes and smoothed her slightly disheveled silver hair before turning around.

At that very instant—

BOOM!!!

A deafening explosion of sound rang out.

Eli’s right leg struck with tremendous force as he kicked the inside of the tightly shut door.

The heavy oak door flew violently outward as though it had been struck by a battering ram.

“Ow—!!!”

Outside, Gulu had been standing on tiptoe, little paws clenched into fists as she prepared to pound on the door again.

Caught completely off guard, all she saw was a massive black shadow barreling straight toward her on a gale of wind.

Her round little body flew off like a leather ball kicked with brutal force, shrieking as the door smacked her away.

“Gulululu—thud!”

She rolled several times in utter disgrace across the smooth stone floor of the corridor before ending up flat on her back, belly facing the ceiling.

“How dare you! Do you have any idea who I am?! You actually—”

Struggling to flip herself upright, Gulu’s black bead-like eyes blazed with fury as she pointed at the doorway, about to unleash a furious tirade.

Her voice stopped dead.

Eli’s figure appeared in the doorway, backlit by the morning light streaming in from the corridor windows. His tall frame carried an overwhelming pressure.

In his right hand, he held the cold tip of the sheath.

At that moment, it was resting steadily against Gulu’s nearly nonexistent neck.

All her arrogance was like a flame doused headfirst with a basin of icy water, extinguished in an instant.

“Speak,” Eli said, his voice colder than the sheath itself, utterly devoid of emotion.

“Who exactly are you?”

The air seemed to freeze.

The only sound left in the corridor was the chattering of Gulu’s teeth.

“I... I...” Gulu’s voice shook so badly it barely sounded like her own. A sobbing whine crept into it.

“I really was sent by Her Highness the Princess! The great Lady Gulu! I didn’t lie to you!”

Her tiny paws tried uselessly to push the sheath away from her neck, but the effort was as futile as an ant trying to shake a tree.

“I... I remembered last night! The place! The meeting place! I ran back here specifically to tell you!”

“Hmph.” Eli let out a breath and eased the pressure of the sheath slightly.

This marmot appeared and disappeared like a ghost, her movements far too mysterious to trust easily.

“Eli...”

Aila’s gentle voice broke the standoff.

She had already finished straightening herself and quickly walked to Eli’s side, lightly tugging at his sleeve.

“Let her go first. She looks... very frightened.”

Eli’s gaze brushed across Aila’s worried face, then dropped back to the marmot on the floor, who looked as though she was about to faint from terror.

Aila’s plea was like a feather softly brushing the strings of his heart.

With a turn of his wrist, he withdrew the sheath from Gulu’s neck.

Gulu sucked in a huge gasp of air and collapsed limply to the floor, panting violently, her black bead-like eyes still brimming with lingering shock.

Aila crouched down and took out a piece of cheese rich with a creamy fragrance from the little pouch she carried on her person.

She held it out in front of Gulu, her voice so gentle it was like she was soothing an injured little animal.

“Lady Gulu, don’t be afraid. Would you like something to eat to calm yourself down?”

The smell of the cheese seemed almost magical.

Gulu’s pink little nose twitched, and the terror in her black bead-like eyes was quickly replaced by a visible struggle.

On one side stood her anger and fear toward Eli.

On the other was the irresistible temptation of the delicious food right in front of her.

In the end, the power of food won an overwhelming victory.

She shot Eli a wary glance, then looked at Aila’s warm and harmless smile.

Carefully, she stretched out one tiny paw and snatched the cheese away in a flash.

Crunch... crunch...

The quiet but rapid sound of nibbling echoed through the silent corridor.

The taste of the cheese quickly soothed Gulu’s fright, and her tense little body slowly relaxed as well.

Watching her bury herself in the food, Eli felt most of the anger and vigilance stirred by being dragged awake against his will dissipate.

After a moment of silence, his voice returned to its usual steadiness, carrying the faintest trace of apology.

“Earlier... I overreacted. My apologies, Lady Gulu.”

“Hmph!” Gulu paused in the middle of chewing and snorted through her nose, lifting her little head high.

“You young people these days are all so short-tempered! Pulling a sword at the slightest provocation!

None of you possess the virtues of respecting your elders, cherishing the young, and caring for little animals!

Back in my day, this great lady—”

She seemed eager to boast about her glorious past, but after catching sight of Eli’s expressionless face, she wisely swallowed the rest of her words and lowered her head to keep eating.

“Lady Gulu, where did you go yesterday? I couldn’t find you anywhere,” Aila asked curiously from the side.

Gulu lifted her head. “I just... wandered around a little.”

The cheese disappeared very quickly.

Gulu licked her little paws.

“Aila, you’re a good person. Lady Gulu is going to watch over you!”

She cast a lingering look at Aila’s now empty hand before finally seeming to recover completely.

“All right,” Eli cut in, stopping what was likely about to become another attempt to beg for food.

“You remembered the place? Can we leave now?”

If this was real, then he needed to understand the elf princess’s intentions as soon as possible.

Gulu patted her round belly with a tiny paw, forced herself to stand up straight, and cleared her throat.

“Of course! It’s deep inside Nightsong Forest! A very special place!”

Her little black eyes darted back and forth between Eli and Aila before she raised one tiny paw and pointed at Eli.

“You, come with me. You alone. That’s Her Highness the Princess’s will!”

Alone?

Eli’s brow tightened instantly.

To go alone into the core of that forest, where the beast tide had only just erupted, where unknown elven power lay hidden?

The risk... could not be called small.

If Sebastian were here...

that unfathomable old steward would at least give him some confidence.

But now...

In the end, Eli slowly nodded. “Fine. When do we leave?”

Since he had chosen this path, there was no reason to retreat now.

The elf princess might be the key.

“We leave right now!” Gulu seemed very pleased by Eli’s decisiveness and waved one little paw grandly.

“We should go while the morning’s still cool! This great lady will lead the way!”

“Eli...” Worry brimmed in Aila’s violet eyes. She stepped forward and gently took Eli’s hand.

Eli turned his hand and clasped her cool fingers, giving them a firm squeeze and meeting her gaze with a steady look meant to reassure her.

“Don’t worry. I’ll go and return quickly. The territory... I’m leaving it to you.”

He trusted that Aila could hold the rear together.

The unease in Aila’s heart was forced down.

She took a deep breath, nodded, released his hand, and stepped back. “Be careful.”

“Hey, hey! Are we going or not? Why are you two dawdling so much?” Gulu bounced impatiently ahead of them, urging them onward.

“Let’s go.” Eli no longer hesitated.

Aila stood in the corridor, watching as the tall and short figures disappeared around the turn of the stairs.

But as Gulu bounced down the steps, her little head was replaying the scenes of the previous night.

She had not been wandering around at all.

Yesterday, she had practically toured the entirety of Obsidian Territory Valley, from the city wall construction site, where the walls were being raised and reinforced,

to the Training Ground roaring with activity, from the orderly residential quarter to the farmland flourishing with healthy growth...

She had seen the awe in the soldiers’ eyes. She had seen the rare peace on the faces of slaves and freefolk during the pauses in their labor. She had seen women and children moving about in relatively safe areas...

There had been none of the chaos or brutality that were said among the elves to define human cities.

Instead, there had been a kind of... indescribable order, and... cohesion?

“Hmph. No wonder Her Highness the Princess is interested...” Gulu muttered inwardly to herself, one tiny paw unconsciously scratching her belly.

“This young man... really does seem to have some ability. Even if his temper is a little awful...”

“Hey! What are you spacing out for? Lead the way!”

Eli’s impatient voice came from behind her.

“I’m coming, I’m coming! What’s the rush? Young people have no patience at all!” Gulu instantly put away her little private thoughts and sped up her bouncing pace.

Leading Eli, she headed toward the depths of Nightsong Forest beneath the rising light of dawn.