Chapter 19: 19: The enchanted forest - part 1

It was said that the Dirac estate was surrounded by the largest magical forest in the empire and no one had ever completely uncovered it.

The magical forest was one of the biggest resources of the Dirac family and the empire but it was also one of the most dangerous places one could venture into.

If someone walked in there unprepared, chances were that they would never be able to come out alive.

These rumors were just a few Elysia had never paid attention to. In her defense, there had never been a need to pay attention to such trivial matters when she had to focus on saving her life.

'I never thought I would ever get a chance to see this magical forest. It gives off a terrifying feeling.'

Elysia wanted to move but her body was frozen by the intensity of magic she could feel coming out of the forest. The magic around the forest was so dense that even breathing was difficult.

But if Elysia ignored all that, she could feel the gentle familiarity reaching out to her. The forest's magic seemed to be welcoming her, calling out to her as a parent did to their lost child.

"Don't fear the magic, let it embrace you. You have the Dirac blood inside you so you are a child of this forest as well."

Elysia was mesmerized by the forest's magic. She was lost in the feeling of being pushed and pulled by magic. It was even embracing her all over.

The only part that felt different was where Lord Dirac was touching Elysia. That was the only thing that kept Elysia grounded in reality.

"Don't allow yourself to be swept away by magic. You need to focus if you want to follow me inside and meet your guard."

It took considerable willpower for Elysia to pull herself together. It was difficult due to how lovingly the magic embraced Elysia.

'No! Can't get distracted by my feelings. I need to maintain focus if I want to survive,' Elysia's head felt light and airy but she could finally concentrate.

"Good. Drag yourself out of the fog. The more you come here, the easier it will become to resist the pull of magic here. The first time is always the most difficult."

She felt someone tug her further into the forest. Elysia had not even been aware that she was walking further into the forest.

She quickly looked around but she did not find anyone but Lord Dirac around her. The elder was tugging at Elysia's arm to get her moving.

"Didn't the Head Butler follow after us?"

Elysia was sure there were better questions she could have asked but her mouth decided to fire a random question.

"He can't follow us in here. The magic of the forest will not allow him to come in here since he doesn't share the Dirac blood. Yohan will die if he tried to follow after us."

Oh, was that so? Was that why no person ever returned alive from this forest?

There had been a time in history when people had claimed to have entered this forest but they had all been killed by unnatural means pretty soon.

As more and more such cases came ahead, the claims were reduced as well. Now, no one even as much dared to utter the real name of this forest. It had been lost over time.

Perhaps the only ones who remembered such a name were the members of the Dirac family. But Elysia was too much of a coward to ask about this to Lord Dirac.

"Lord Dirac-"

"Call me Lucas or I will not answer"

"-Lord Lucas, where are we going?"

Never let it be said that Elysia could not improvise on the spot. Her blurry vision did not allow her to get distracted by the scenery of the magical forest.

So instead of focusing on the passing trees, Elysia chose to gather her thoughts and get a rough idea of what was going on.

"We are going to see the Lord of this forest. It had been a long time since a new member of the Dirac line entered this forest so we need to go and get his blessings. Once we are done with that, I will ask the Lord to bestow upon you a familiar as your guard."

'Huh?'

'WAIT, WHAT?'

Did Elysia miss something or did Lord Lucas talk about getting Elysia a familiar?

"Lord Dirac –" a glare was Elysia's answer so she quickly correct her form of address, "Lord Lucas, that is not a good idea. The temple would never agree–"

"I don't care if the temple agrees to it or not. You are a member of the Dirac line so your safety falls under my jurisdiction. If the forest lord agrees to provide you with a familiar you will get one."

Elysia was not sure if she was in the right state of her mind. Everything Lord Lucas said sounded like gibberish. No matter what Lord Lucas claimed, Elysia was still a part of the temple.

According to the law, high-ranking nobility was allowed to keep magical familiars if they passed the affinity test. But only the Head Priest and the people holding the title of 'Saint' or 'Saintess' were allowed to get familiars.

Since Elysia was still a part of the temple circle, her getting familiar would be frowned upon.

Not to mention, the nobility would have a fit over Elysia's ties with the Dirac family. Elysia would no longer be able to deny being a Dirac if she tied herself with a familiar.

"Lord Dirac, I am not registered as a high-ranking noble yet. I cannot get a familiar until that is done. Besides, my magic is too destructive for any normal creature to handle-"

"The child is right, grave keeper. Her magic is not something a mere beast can handle."

Elysia wanted to gasp as soon as she felt the new magical signature. It was so powerful that it even pierced the magical aura of the forest around Elysia.

However, Lucas did not look happy at all to hear the new addition that was standing behind Elysia.

All she could make out was the huge shadow that was blocking the sun but she could not tell what kind of creature it was due to the trees distorting the shadow.

"Lord Ashton, we are here to see the Forest Lord today. Can you lead us to him?"

Lord Lucas finally allowed Elysia out of his protective embrace. Elysia was only able to turn around once she was let go.

The creature she saw in front of her had no way of being described by mere words. It had a fox-like shape but its body was covered in visible magic that gave it a smoky appearance.

Elysia could instantly tell that this was no mere beast but making out any further detail was impossible for her limited visibility.

For Elysia to be even able to see this much was only possible because of the strong aura that the magical beast had.

"Sorias would be glad to see you too Grave keeper so let me take you to him. I feel like you never visit us after our previous lord died."

"I'm quite busy these days so I cannot visit as often as I could. I am sure Lord Sorias knows about this as well."

For the first time since Elysia had come to know Lord Lucas, she heard a hint of emotion in his voice. But Elysia did not have enough confidence to be able to categorize that emotion.

Lord Lucas was a difficult one to read and Elysia was convinced that she would not be able to talk him out of any decision he made.

'I guess I only have one option left. I must make the forest Lord dislike me enough to not grant me a familiar.'

Elysia had done some stupid things in her lifetime. Most of them had been done deliberately in an attempt to help Eve out.

But despite all that, Elysia was sure this was the riskiest and stupidest thing she had ever done. Even attempting assassination in broad daylight came nowhere close to what Elysia was about to do now.

'First, I need to find a way to separate myself from Lord Lucas and Lord Ashton. Then I can try looking for the forest lord on my own and make a bad first impression.'

It was akin to suicide to go off alone in a magical forest with her limited eyesight but Elysia was sure about her potential and magic.

It was only in these scenarios that Elysia was happy to have destructive magic and she flared her aura to scare off some smaller animals.

Her small burst of magic was enough to startle Lord Ashton and Elysia felt her hand being let go. Green fog covered the area due to Lord Ashton's defensive actions and Elysia instantly lost vision of the other two.

'It's now or never,' Elysia vaguely remembered the direction Lord Lucas was in so she made sure she walked the other way.

By the time Lord Ashtone managed to contain the fog, Elysia had disappeared from the clearing.

"She did that on purpose to startle me. Lucas, what kind of game are you playing by bringing someone like that cursed person here? She bears such heavy karma on her soul but none of it is her own."

Lord Ashton did not sound angry, he just sounded resigned. He knew that nothing would change even if he tried to reason with Lucas over this topic.

Still, Lord Ashton believed it to be his duty to warn Lucas of any possible danger.

"I know about Elysia's circumstances better than you ever could. She is the one my beloved wanted to save but the karma she bears is a result of all our actions. I cannot allow Elysia to pay for something we all did a long time ago."

Lucas sounded bitter when he spoke those words. Lord Ashton did not doubt that Lucas blamed himself for what happened in the past.

"Lucas, we all managed to reincarnate in this alternate timeline because of our lord's decision and his sacrifice. We all got to live again so we should honor his sacrifice by living happily."

Lord Ashton sounded like he spoke from experience. The years he had spent in this new timeline had taken their toll on him as well."

"You are right. But I cannot help out still worry about the future. I tried reading Elysia's fate but all I can see is death and despair in her future."

" I tried to get her away from that fate but this world is not ready to let her go. I want to stay beside her but my current position and responsibilities will not allow me to do so."

Lucas sounded angry at himself but also resigned. It was unlike him to give up this easily.

"So that's why you wanted a familiar for her? It is a good idea if you want to keep Elysia safe at all times but her power does make it difficult to match her with someone."

Lucas looked even more sullen when he heard those words. Lord Ashton was reminded of the kid the previous forest lord had cherished and fallen in love with.

"But you know Lucas, there is one person out there who can match your sister in terms of powers. And if your sister is anything like you, I am sure it will not take long for her to charm that stubborn bastard."

"I am sure Elysia would be able to charm Sorias but that's what I'm worried about. That kid is far too much trouble already. I don't know if I want him anywhere near Elysia or not."

Lucas sounded like he was in pain but Lord Ashton knew that no one would be more relieved than Lucas if Elysia managed to get Sorias as her familiar.

"Everything will be alright Lucas. We won't let things happen as they did in the past. Unlike back then, we have power and authority now."

"I know and I hope it is enough to not let the worst pass this time."