Chapter 224 - Getting Started (Thank you for your support, Daniel Augusto!)

I returned to that town where Ayla showed up wounded and then decided to watch things from afar… soon enough; I confirmed that the place was very quiet. Not because people were that quiet, but because a lot of them left, apparently.

At this point, the army that surrounded the place a few days ago had already checked the place and was no longer on standby. I could see some of them patrolling the streets and it looked like a large number of them had left as well.

“My hearing accessory isn’t powerful enough to hear people there… and I can’t waltz there like I own the place.”

Based on what I heard, the clairvoyant will have a better idea of how to find me, if I get in the way of powerful people that they are aware of. If they find me with their skills, they will try to change the future by keeping some people around to support those who can fight me and the empire should have plenty of those, but would they be already nearby?

In that sense, Rowan’s actions didn’t make any sense, the clairvoyant should have realized that he would die if he went to look for me, then again… using such powers shouldn’t be easy, so that person wouldn’t use it on everyone.

‘This is quite troublesome… should I just ignore my revenge and focus on getting stronger… that guy will probably die in a ditch even if I don’t do anything, after all.’

Revenge is truly a massive waste of time if you are doing it for no personal gains. I could do a lot more things in the meantime that would make me stronger. It was more efficient too…

The chances of me doing what I wanted and remaining hidden were quite low, so this was indeed a pretty risky thing to do… in any case, if some people left the town, I would guess that the elder and those working for them also did the same. They went to the dwarven territory to wait for the conflict or perhaps some negotiations.

‘I guess I can head there too and unlock the other basic smithing classes. After that, my basic set of skills will be complete and I will be able to do what I need all by myself.’

The dwarves have all kinds of magic implements and runes that can help them with their defenses. It was unlikely that I would be able to cross the border without being noticed. At least on the border with the dwarves. 

“What do you think I should do, girl?”

“Awooo! Awooo!”

“Yeah, I really shouldn’t ask an animal about my next steps.”

“Awooo! Awooo!”

Glacien pointed her nose in the opposite direction, as if trying to tell me that I should head there… Clarice should be in that direction, but joining a war because of that wouldn’t be the best of ideas. Even if it was to help a friend, the empire might try to use her to get me and Arslan probably would comply with their demands, as long as they guaranteed her safety.

The empire wouldn’t risk a lot of trouble by letting Clarice die… the Elves were that important ally to them. This was a troublesome situation, and I didn’t know what I should do… just leaving everything behind would grant me the peace of mind that would make me have fewer problems to deal with.

‘Well, I can probably sense the location of the dwarves’ barriers if I get close enough to them and destroying their energy sources shouldn’t be that difficult. Let’s head there.’

I took a roundabout route around the town to look for signs of a large group of people heading to that land, and it didn’t take long for me to find it. The steps of hundreds of people heading in the same direction were hard to miss in such a land filled with grass, after all.

The Elves have a deeply ingrained tradition that dictates how authority and trust are allocated within their society, particularly when it comes to the roles of their elders. Elders are not simply assigned to positions arbitrarily; their role as guardians or overseers is rooted in a community’s unanimous trust and recognition of their wisdom. Without suspicion or reason to doubt an individual’s allegiance or intentions, the Elves cannot justify reallocating an elder to another point of governance or influence. This tradition serves as a safeguard against internal discord, ensuring that power is wielded by those deemed unquestionably loyal and just. It wasn’t working this time, though.

At the same time, the lands where the borders are defended have a lineage of rulership that dates back centuries, if not millennia. These territories have been under the stewardship of families whose claims are cemented by both tradition and history. These ruling families wield significant autonomy and are seen as the rightful protectors of their domains. This system reinforces stability and respect for ancestral bonds but also limits the central authority’s ability to intervene directly in border defenses, as doing so would be seen as a violation of the sacred trust between the rulers of those lands and the broader Elven community.

As a result, while this structure fosters strong, decentralized governance, it also means that controlling or closely monitoring border defense can be challenging. The ruling families operate with considerable independence, and unless there is clear evidence of betrayal or mismanagement, the elders cannot impose their authority.

That made things a lot more stable, even more so when the Elves could be that isolated, but it was clear that they were changing or were forced to change.

“Grrrr…”

“Don’t grrr me… you think with your feelings, but I think with my head, sort of. I am making us head there for revenge, but I am also planning to get the class that will help me make some useful things for all of us. Like a light carriage where I can create my laboratory.”

Although Glacien was an animal, she was also part of the sisterhood. Even if someone like her sees another female doing dumb things, she would do anything to cover for her. Well, that was just my analysis. Glacien was probably just instinctively trying to help someone that had been nice to her once.

It was rather troublesome… I didn’t know if it was because of that or because I lacked charisma, but it would be difficult to convince Glacien. She wouldn’t disobey me, but she would keep bothering me for a while. That made me realize that getting another fighting pet would only double the trouble, given how rebellious they are.

While I was thinking about that, the forest ahead began to thin out pretty quickly. It looked like we were a lot closer to the border than I had expected. There were marks on the grounds of some vehicles and those war towers that the dwarves had. It looked like they were softening the ground for when they would advance through these lands.

It didn’t take long for me to see some mountains ahead in the dwarven territory… they were a bit further away down the south, but they were a lot closer here. All of them seemed massive and, from a distance, it felt like they were shining or something, probably because they were extremely rich in minerals.

I soon forgot about them when I saw a bunch of these war towers nearby. They were even more numerous than the ones I saw in the south.

“Yeah, they are truly preparing for this… another war, huh? Anyway, where is their closest camp?”

I couldn’t get closer recklessly since the last time that happened. I was ambushed with Clarice… they should have some unseen arrows nearby. I couldn’t risk being attacked by them and the dwarves, not when Glacien was with me.

While I was thinking about my next steps, I realized that if the empire reaches this far, and then subjugate the dwarves or force them into an alliance, they would have a foothold to the Kingdom of Felynor… they could finish off the survivors of the Skarnash Tribelands there and they also could fight the beastkin. It made me recall Nimir… he should have had the chance to explore and conquer more labyrinths than me, so he should have gotten quite stronger. Still, I couldn’t help but worry.

‘I have my own sorry ass to worry about, so I should forget about others… for now, let’s wait until night before making any moves.’

I set up my camouflage tent and then decided to sleep for a bit while I also set up a hanging like for the snakes that I got from the lesser chimeras to drop their poison in a pot. I split them into groups of twenty, but I still had thousands of them remaining. I had a lot of work ahead of me, but it also meant that I would have stamina potions for quite a while.

Still, I should stop using them until the next labyrinth and then spam Power Shot and Rapid Fire. Making those skills level up would help a lot.

Eventually, night came and then I began to get ready to move… I wasn’t in a hurry, but soon I changed my mind when Glacien suddenly woke up from her nap and then got tense.

“Grrrr…”

“What is going on, girl? Did something happen?”

It was pretty obvious, but I still decided to ask. Before long, I began to hear a weird sound in the distance… the sound of well-oiled engines turning and making something massive move. I decided to stay hidden in the camouflage tent and I told Glacien to calm down as well. 

Through some holes in the tent, I was able to see some lights getting closer. Before long, I saw the war towers that belonged to the dwarves passing nearby and heading to that town. It looked like I wouldn’t have to worry about crossing their territory, but it looked like their preparations were already over and I didn’t know if I would have the chance to find my target before the war started.

‘I wished that I could see the future too in order to find the best place to find that asshole…’