“Calm yourself, Priestess of the Tachia Tribe. We understand the agony of losing your child, but you know as well as we do what becomes of an elf in the hands of human nobles. Even if they survive, what awaits them is endless humiliation. Even if returned, they would be nothing but a stain upon your tribe…”

  “No—!” The elf woman in the white robe let out a ragged scream, clearly provoked by the words of the high elves above.

  “Priestess! Please, mind your health!”

  A dozen forest elves hurried forward, worry etched across their faces as they supported their tribe’s priestess.

  Clenching her pearly teeth and forcing back her tears, the white-robed elf spoke in a voice that was nearly a plea. “Then I beg you—help me. No matter the price, I will bear it.”

  The grand hall fell silent for a long moment before a solemn voice finally echoed from the high platform.

  “We shall dispatch envoys to the Kingdom of Zern. That is all we can promise. Whether your daughter can be recovered… we offer no guarantees.”

  “Thank you… deeply.” The white-robed priestess bowed low, then departed with her kin.

  Once the doors of the hall shut, one of the high elves murmured, “Their tribe isn’t even under our kingdom’s jurisdiction. Is it truly necessary to involve ourselves?”

  The elf standing in the center replied, “All are children of the Great Mother. We should be one people. And the kingdom once decreed that we safeguard the rights of all our kin.”

  “For the Mother, then,” another high elf agreed softly.

  …

  Bayek, the outer forest.

  Gotaia swung a wooden staff with surprising form and focus.

  Ever since Glenn had squeezed time out of his schedule to teach her, she’d made remarkable progress—enough to make her secretly delighted, and even bold enough to slack off during work just to practice. These movements captivated her far more than archery ever had.

  If not for the chaos of recent days keeping Glenn endlessly busy, she would have already pestered him into countless sparring sessions.

  She knew Glenn held far more strength than he ever revealed to her—and the fact that he kept so much hidden vexed her immensely.

  After battling imaginary foes for three hundred rounds, she finally paused to rest.

  Staring at the mist-shrouded sky, her thoughts drifted to her mother—the gentle elf in white robes whose kind smiles remained vivid in her memory.

  “That human said the Sehi Kingdom would send envoys. But nothing’s happened yet… was he lying to me?” she whispered.

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  In truth, Glenn had once told her that if the Sehi Kingdom never sent word, he could find a way—if she wished—to send her home himself.

  Yet she hesitated. These so-called martial arts felt barely learned, and leaving now felt unbearably regretful. And for an elf with a lifespan stretching centuries, her time here was hardly significant.

  As her thoughts tangled, a shout full of complaint rang out: “Elf girl! Your turn to take over! I’m exhausted!”

  Gotaia rose to her feet. It was time for Lawell’s shift to begin.

  …

  Due to the war, the opening of Glenn’s butcher shop had fallen far short of expectations.

  Knights frequently patrolled the streets, keeping most passersby away. Travelers and merchants who once passed through the town were gone—and likely would avoid this region for a long while.

  Three helpers were more than enough for the shop, and Danni would assist whenever she could.

  Though Glenn slept here, he spent most of his days at the old man’s house—training in magic.

  Dawolf’s introductory spellbook was nearly finished. He was only pages away from stepping into the true realm of magic.

  Returning to Dood Town from the old man’s place, Glenn was suddenly stopped by a burly man in a craftsman’s outfit.

  “Excuse me—are you Mr. Glenn?” the man asked.

  “I am. Can I help you?” Glenn replied from atop his carriage, puzzled. He had no memory of this man.

  “Let me introduce myself. I am Cliff, the most renowned carpenter in Kanchi Road Town,” the man said, straightening his clothes with great formality.

  A carpenter? Looking for me? Recruiting, perhaps? Glenn wondered.

  Maybe the man had seen his furniture and wanted to bring him over to profit together.

  But the man’s words surprised him:

  “You may not know this, but the furniture you made has become the hottest trend in our town! The nobles spend extravagant sums to collect them. We ordinary carpenters copy your designs and have made a fair profit ourselves!

  “But no matter how we imitate them, they never look as exquisite as yours, so we end up selling ours cheaply to common merchants.”

  Glenn exhaled softly. “So you’ve come to apprentice under me?”

  “Apprentice?” The man blinked at the unfamiliar term, but quickly grasped the meaning and nodded vigorously.

  “Yes—apprentice! I’m willing to pay you, so please, teach me, esteemed sir.”

  “Apologies,” Glenn said coldly. “My craft is exclusive. I do not pass it on.”

  Knowing that his furniture was now so profitable, only a fool would teach a potential competitor. And fortunately, the man was honest—had he kept these details to himself, Glenn might actually have agreed.

  “Please, don’t refuse so quickly! We can negotiate!” Cliff insisted, unwilling to give up.

  Glenn pretended to consider, then said, “I can teach you—but only if you come work for me. In other words, you would be my employee.”

  Cliff froze, then shook his head furiously. “No, no! I won’t work for anyone else! How much could I even earn as someone’s hireling? I want to make my own money!”

  Glenn didn’t argue. Instead, he offered calmly, “You’ll receive sixty percent of the earnings from sold furniture.”

  Cliff lowered his head and began counting on his fingers. After a long moment, he still hadn’t figured it out.

  Then Glenn added, “Food and lodging included.”

  “Uh…” Cliff wavered completely. Gritting his teeth, he said, “Fine. But—I’ll only try it for a few days. If it doesn’t work out, I’ll leave.”

  “A few days?” Glenn chuckled lightly. “Very well. But don’t expect me to teach you anything in that time. I’ll provide finished goods for you to sell, and you’ll receive only thirty percent.”

  “No problem.” Cliff agreed without hesitation. He knew perfectly well that this was the consequence of his earlier demands.

  “You’ll also need to transport the goods yourself. As you can see, business is slow here. I’m surprised you dared to come.”

  Glenn gestured toward the empty roads.

  “I came only after receiving word that the demon was driven back,” Cliff said, scratching his head.

  “Get on. I have inventory stored away. I’ll take you to see it,” Glenn said with a nod.

  Cliff climbed aboard immediately.

  “By the way,” Glenn asked once the deer-drawn cart began moving, “do you have a cart of your own? How will you transport the goods?”

  “That’s no problem. I can hire a wagon team.”