Chapter 147: Explaination

"It was a night of celebration. My children had a new priestess, a leader after decades of constant struggle between elders vying for power. They were drunk on relief and joy since the tribe was united as a whole under Celestia's name. As their mother, it fell on my shoulders to watch over them when they had lost themselves in celebration." The World Tree stared into the distance and recalled that night when Vivian was banished.

"I vividly remember that night when I had to loosen my control over Galanor's seal to keep an eye on our borders."

"So, he took advantage of that time and tried to manipulate Vivian?" Raymond made a guess.

"Indeed. Albeit he failed in the end when I realised my mistake and alerted the Elders before anything could happen to her." The World Tree explained.

"I see…" Raymond narrowed his eyes on her, making her fidget nervously.

"Don't look at me like that, I am not omniscient to know what happens all the time!" The World Tree defended herself. Despite her being honest, if Raymond didn't believe her then she could kiss her life goodbye.

Celestia had been watching him for a while now, meaning the World Tree had also watched him since her daughter had used the connection. However, her observations were vastly different from Celestia's.

Celestia believed she knew everything about Raymond and used his weakness of gold to manipulate him. The World Tree couldn't help but shake her head at her daughter. Sooner or later it was going to bite her in the ass.

Because, from what she had observed so far, Raymond was unpredictable. He could brush off some of the nastiest insults hurled at him as if it was nothing but get offended at even the smallest of things.

It was only a matter of time before Celestia somehow offended him and paid the price.

"Hmm… so you can be in this form from now on?" Raymond asked as he decided to give her the benefit of the doubt since he had taken her leaves and traded it for money.

The least he could do was to trust her when there was no clear evidence that proved otherwise.

"Maybe not," the World Tree said, surprising him. "I don't think I will survive till tomorrow."

"What do you mean?" Raymond was confused by her words.

"Why do you think Galanor was able to escape my control and talk with you?" She questioned.

"..."

"It's because I am under attack and doing my all to defend myself." The World Tree said calmly.

"What the? Don't you have any sense of urgency? You could've said so from the beginning!" Raymond looked at her as if she had grown a second head on her shoulders. She didn't appear like someone who was under attack.

"Well, that's why I am here." Suddenly, she kneeled in front of Raymond and dropped her head low.

"What are you doing?" Raymond asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I request you to save me and my children's lives in exchange for my undying loyalty and servitude." Her forehead touched the ground as silence filled the air.

"Uh…" Raymond had the urge to embrace her and assure her that everything was going to be fine. She had this vibe around her that compelled anyone who saw her to protect her at any cost.

However, Raymond had more important matters at hand. He could comfort her all he wanted at a later time.

~~~

The Elven Council was made up of seven powerful cultivators. Together, they oversaw the vast region of WhisperMoon forest.

Here, their words were the law and no one lived to tell the tale after breaking them— until now.

Not only did a human break them, but he even occupied their Sacred Chamber.

Understandably, the elves were royally pissed. They wanted nothing more than to tear that human into pieces and feed his flesh to the crows and vultures.

Alas, the reality was often disappointing. They were helpless against that human. Even the powerful Elders were defeated so easily.

Their High Priestess and Elder Snowfang were making no efforts to hide how reluctant they were to deal with this intruder.

They could only pin their hopes on Elder Ronan and wait for him to return from his trip.

That's why, as soon as they heard about his return, a crowd of twenty elderly elves rushed to his house in hopes of punishing that human.

"Elder Ronan, we need justice!"

"Yes, Elder Ronan! A criminal is running free in our land. You need to set him straight!"

Ronan opened his eyes and let out a tired sigh. He had been searching the forest all night, hoping to find Eldric, as such, he couldn't get a wink of sleep.

And just when he came back to his house in the morning to take a quick nap, he was disturbed by his fellow tribesmen.

He ignored their protests and sat upright in his bed to meditate for a while. Eldric could attack them at any moment and Ronan wanted to be ready for it when that happened.

He had even gone so far as to postpone meeting Raymond in order to keep his mind in an optimal condition.

However, his people didn't seem to be keen on leaving him alone as they had come knocking on his door.

"Elder Ronan, we know you're inside! If you don't answer us, we will never leave this place!"

'Sigh, have I been too soft on these people?' Ronan couldn't help but question his attitude towards them so far. He got up from his bed and walked out of his house, resolving himself to give them a piece of his mind.

"Who is making such a ruckus outside my home?" He thundered as soon as he got out, causing the elves to stop their shoutings.

"Elder Ronan! A human is—"

"Oh, shut up!" Ronan roared. He had enough of their protests. "The Council will deal with this matter as they see fit. Don't come to my doorsteps asking for justice when I have more important things to worry about!"

"That's absurd! What can be more important than someone trespassing our sacred land and killing one of our Elders?" One of the elves asked, feeling indignant by Ronan's words. "Everyone will think we are pushovers if we don't do something about this human!"

Ronan groaned inwardly. He couldn't even tell them about Eldric. It would only create panic among the tribe.

"Don't teach me how to do my job! Go back to your homes!" Ronan's booming voice resounded, shaking their hearts. "We will discuss this at a later date!"

"But, Elder Ron—Urgh!"

-King's Domain-

Ronan unleashed his domain and suppressed any further protests from them. "I said, we will discuss this at a later date! Do you understand?" He asked, not trying to mask his anger as it dripped through his voice.

The people below shuddered in fear, their breathing grew haggard and their throats dried up instantly which made them unable to utter a single word.

Ronan retracted his domain, satisfied with their silence. The elves reluctantly turned around and slowly started to leave the place. He knew it wasn't the last time they would knock on his door.

Just when they were about to vacate the place, the air around them changed all of a sudden. Their surroundings started to give off an eerie feeling.

'He is here!' Ronan instantly recognised that feeling.

"Everyone! Head to the Sacred Chamber! Now!" Ronan screamed at the top of his lungs, dumbfounding the retreating crowd.

"What! What happened!?"

"Elder Ronan! What are you saying?"

"Don't ask any questions! Your life depends on it! Go to the World Tree quickly and don't leave that place until I say so!"