Chapter 202 - Silver Bows (Thank you for your support, Benjamin Black!)

“... Why would they capture your grandmother?”

We began to move toward where Clarice’s brother was supposed to work. Not acting the way the enemy is expecting me to act was the best option at the moment, but I couldn’t help but feel the growing frustration getting strong inside me.

I couldn’t remember many times where I got this angry… I was pretty forgiving, to say the least, even more so toward kids. I just wanted to live a calm second life since I didn’t even know how I died the first time. Having a second chance and taking the first chance most seemed quite hypocritical.

At the same time, I had a lot of knowledge of Earth. Thanks to that, I knew that fighting left and right and leaving a trail of blood would never end well. Still, I also knew that letting others do what they want and not making them pay for their actions wouldn’t well for me either.

“My guess is that she was sending reports to my brother to make him aware that I was doing fine. The moment their ambush failed, and we escaped alive, their plan must have started to fall apart. They were planning to kill you, capture me and my grandma, and then work behind the scenes to achieve whatever their goal is.”

It made sense… When the people that work behind the scenes start to move, they often have a lot of plans and they put all of them into action when they make their big moves. Those guys usually see themselves as so smart that they come up with those stupidly large and elaborate plans, but they didn’t realize that if a single piece doesn’t fall in its place, then everything falls apart.

I let out a sigh, since this was the type of people I was dealing with. There wasn’t much point in worrying about that… I just had to prepare, so I just kept making decay bolts.

“You are starting to look a bit pale… perhaps you should stop with that.”

The clerk was in front of us, so he didn’t know what I was doing, even though he could smell the blood in the air. He tried to look over his shoulder for a bit, but then he stopped when he saw my death glare for an instant.

Clarice had a point. I was getting impatient and then was getting weakened in order to make more decay bolts. Still, I could use a blood siphon on this guy and recover all my health and blood in a few seconds. Still, when I raised my hand, Clarice grabbed my right shoulder.

“... Don’t do it.”

I let out a sigh. I didn’t want to do it. I didn’t want to use my heritage if I could avoid it, but I wasn’t thinking that much at the moment. I took some deep breaths to calm down…

I knew that Clarice was being cautious of me because of my heritage, showing her that I was willing to go that far would only show what she feared. It was better to leave that kind of action as a last resort.

There were other things that I could do to prepare for any battle, making scrolls or amulets were examples of it. I felt bad for Clarice, but I ended up making a lot of Great Fireball scrolls. If I end up fighting with the enemies, I want to take down as many of them as possible. If the fire burns some trees, I could always use the excuse that I wasn’t the one who started the fight.

In any case, we had to keep moving for the rest of the day and through the night before we reached the town where Clarice’s brother was supposed to be. The place was quite big, but not very different from the others. The only difference was that it was where the headquarters of the Silver Bows were located.

From a distance, I could see that the building was primarily made of pale, finely polished wood reinforced with slender beams of silver metal, which gives it its name. Its roof was arched and covered in overlapping wooden shingles that resembled the scales of a dragon, with silver inlays shimmering subtly in the sunlight. Even the wood seemed glowing, but it was probably because it was magical.

Vines of ivy climb up the walls, carefully maintained to enhance the building’s natural appearance rather than obscure it. Small gardens filled with vibrant, flowering plants surround the headquarters, giving it a tranquil yet vigilant aura. That was quite the odd combination, but it suited the Elves.

A large, silver-etched symbol of a bow and arrow hangs above the main entrance, serving as the organization’s emblem. This symbol is a silent warning to any who might consider crossing the Silver Bows’ interests.

The clerk couldn’t help but gulp while looking at it… it looked like he was heading straight and alone into the enemy territory. He was sweating bullets and about to faint since we didn’t stop once we started to move.

“A lot of the guys here indeed have silver bows, huh? Did they get them ready for me or something?”

“No, that is their main weapon. They always carry them to show whom they work for.”

A lot of people recognized Clarice, and they even nodded at her. It looked like I wouldn’t be stopped as long as I was with her, but they didn’t show very amicable looks at me. It looked like I might have to deal with them once I split up with Clarice.

The only problem was that they looked even more skilled than her, so I would have trouble… I didn’t have much experience fighting against archers, after all. I didn’t know if those bows were magical, but if they also had arrows made of silver or the bows granted them those extra effects, then even a scratch would put me in a bind.

Once we reached the front of the building, we jumped from the horses and then put them in a nearby stable that also served as part of the Silver Bows headquarters. After that, we got inside the building. 

Upon entering, we were greeted by a spacious hall with high ceilings, supported by gracefully curved wooden beams. Sunlight came through tall windows made of translucent crystal, filling the palace with a soft, ethereal glow. The floors were made of polished wood, with intricate patterns of silver and green inlaid to represent forests and the unity of nature.

“We have an armory here, training grounds, private chambers, council room and a main hall as well.”

It appears you have visited here several times while people anticipated your joining this group.

“You are right.”

I wondered for a moment if Clarice changed her mind because she didn’t want to be ordered around by her older brother, who she didn’t get along with very well. Regardless, I had more important things to worry about.

The headquarters exuded a calm yet commanding presence. The air inside carried the faint scent of pine and fresh earth, adding to the connection with nature that the elves cherish. Though it appears welcoming, subtle enchantments ensure that only those with permission can enter certain areas, and a constant watch is maintained by sharp-eyed members stationed at key points.

Eventually, we reached the place where the leader of the organization worked. It didn’t have guards there, but I could sense something in the air. When Clarice touched the door, a barrier was lifted for a short while and that was what made me feel like that.

Clarice opened the door and didn’t wait to be called… Thanks to that, we were received with a frown by another annoyingly handsome elf guy. Although he was supposed to be seventy years old, he didn’t look older than twenty.

‘What was his name again? Arslan?’

Arslan bore an uncanny resemblance to Clarice, almost as if they had been crafted from the same mold. His blonde hair shimmered like strands of gold, perfectly framing a face that was frustratingly flawless. Light green eyes, clear and piercing, seemed to cut right through me, and his sculpted features could have graced a marble statue. Yet that perfection only deepened my irritation.

He was glaring at me, intense and unyielding, as if he had the authority to pass judgment. It wasn’t just his looks that grated on my nerves; it was the way his gaze mirrored Rowan’s: sharp, condescending, and unapologetic. The kind of glare that made me instinctively want to add some imperfections to his face, if only to level the playing field a bit.

“Clarice… as usual, you come and go as you please without showing any respect for your older brother. You even brought some suspicious people to my room. What would you do if they tried to assassinate me?”

“Cut the crap. That crazy woman did something again. She has grandma and a companion of my friend here.”

“... She wouldn’t do that… she isn’t that insane. I am sure we have some misunderstandings here.”

“What do you know about what had happened at the border?”

“About the black bow archer and his unknown ally? I suspected that they were imposters trying to gain fame, but it looks like… they were you two, huh?”

“We were doing that to help with my investigation, since you are so useless. After the second attack, we were ambushed by four units of the unseen arrow. The dwarves were ready to attack us as well, and we barely escaped. When we returned home, grandma was no longer at home and this guy can confirm that. Your annoying friend is at it again… or maybe you are the one who made her do this.”

Crazy friend… that made me realize that I was missing some important pieces of information. Arslan studied with his sister for a while… It looked like he didn’t think that she would come up with some crazy story to waste his time.

“We know that you wouldn’t mind if a war with dwarves started now, but we will only be exposing ourselves. Your allies are too unhinged… Perhaps you don’t even have as much information as you imagine. Unless you bought my allies in my unit as well.”

“I didn’t do such a thing, but if they took grandma without causing destruction, perhaps that woman indeed bought her… Still, she wouldn’t do anything to our esteemed grandmother, you can rest assured.”

“I don’t care. You will help us solve this issue right now peacefully, or we will solve it very non-peacefully. You choose.”