Pillars of Ita

"On behalf of the Linoril Council, I fully support this proposal."

Under the dome of the royal court, Quel'drala's voice echoed repeatedly.

Fang He and Hilvid found that the scene was gradually changing as time went by. They were like migrating from one scroll to another, and the historical events of two hundred years ago were unfolding before them one by one.

And those times are not continuous, but rather like films, freezing the static time in fixed scenes.

They didn't seem to be experiencing the reality of the past, but more like a changing memory. And what did the goddess of fate Elaine want to tell them by leaving this memory in this place?

Fang He couldn't help but wonder, to whom did this memory belong?

The scene changed again, returning to the garden they had seen at the beginning. The sun was shining through the gaps between the branches and leaves, casting spots of light across the courtyard. The conversation was still between the deputy speaker of the Linoril Council and Quel'dra.

"Your statement was too aggressive and caused a lot of dissatisfaction in the parliament. The purpose of the parliament is not to cooperate seamlessly with this young and powerful monarch, but to take the initiative in the cooperation."

"But didn't the parliament ask me to gain his trust? Mr. Deputy Speaker, this plan concerns the future of everyone in Giant Tree Hill. If the sacred tree cannot survive, how will the parliament cope? He has already made concessions on the matter of Isil. This plan fairly takes into account the interests of all parties. The moon elves received the letter but did not express their opinions, but they have always done so. This means that they have acquiesced to this plan. There is no need for us to push for further steps under such circumstances."

Quel'Dra's voice was as gentle as ever, but neither humble nor arrogant: "Excessive greed will cause the council to lose its original goal. He has been tolerant enough. We cannot force a king into a corner."

"Quel'drala, have you developed feelings for the Elf King? There are rumors in the parliament that you are planning to sell out the interests of Silverwind Harbor."

"Yes," the elven girl nodded. "Eloris is calm and wise, with lofty ambitions. I am willing to work with him to revive the elven lineage. But Lord Lysanis, you know my principles. I will never sell out the interests of Silverwind Harbor for my own selfish desires, because I was born in Silverwind Harbor myself, and it is my hometown."

"But kid, the parliament won't think so. Your actions have angered many people. Although the speaker and I still support you, those people will take action. The parliament and the Elven Court have been resentful for a long time, and the speaker can't cover up the fierce criticism."

"But I know that what I did was right, and that's enough. Lord Lysanis, the Speaker all knew that their decision was right. A small number of people were blinded by hatred for a while, but one day in the future, they will understand the significance of today's choice. There will always be resistance to anything in this world. As long as someone takes responsibility, I am willing to be the sacrifice for you and Eloris."

"You... Well, then give us some more time. The Speaker and I will convince those people and at least buy you enough opportunities. But no more. Just like the silent woodland, the wind is not blowing the forest waves, but everything has not yet arrived. The wildfire is raging underground, and ordinary people don't have time to see it destroy everything. One day your naivety will destroy you, but we are still willing to give you this time..."

"Thank you, Lord Lysanis."

Fang He and Hilde still saw the indifferent elf man walking out of the courtyard. He stopped and looked at them, his eyes still on the ship officer.

Only this time, the other party said: "Quel'Dra has done a lot for you. I hope you won't let her down."

When the elf girl walked out of the courtyard, she still comforted the two of them softly, "The deputy speaker is not such a cold person. It's just that reality forces him to restrain his smile. Please understand him. Isil, you don't have to be too nervous. Just be yourself. Eloris will recognize you."

"You haven't eaten yet, right? Let's go get something to eat and talk about what we've seen these days. This is your first time in the Elven Court, so you should see a lot of unique things." Days passed by, and these conversations seemed to be repeated all the time. Under Quel'drala's suggestion, the plan for the Autumn Forest was smoothly implemented step by step. But just as Lesanis described - while criticisms arose in the parliament, even Fang He could sense from the correspondence and the tone of the deputy speaker that there was something unusual beneath the calm:

The flying sparks are breeding ground for a wildfire that will burn everything.

He and Sylvie seemed to be walking into a dark torrent. The dark shadow seemed to swallow up the brightness of reality. In the reflection of history, they saw the Elf King:

Eloris Queya Alrinsa, Alrinsa is the masculine form of Alsana in the Elvish language, and is also the nickname of the Elf King. If one day Melfina also ascends the throne, she will also get this title and change her name to Melfina Queya Alrinsa.

However, the Elf King in history was still young, unlike the old age they saw in later years. He had long, bright silver hair, and the shadows of Melfina and Lian could be seen in many parts of his face. On his head, he wore a crown made of golden oak branches that sparkled in the dark.

A shadow stood in front of the Elf King: "You have seen it, young king. Although you have lofty ideals, the Council of Linoril will not let you achieve your wishes so easily. We are different. We have common interests. The fate of the elves is closely related to the existence of the Two Sacred Trees. We have reason to help you protect it. When you plant another seed of shadow, the trees of light and shadow will intertwine with each other, and will surely weave another glorious era."

"Leave here, evil spirits. This world does not belong to you. The White Descendants planted the Holy Tree for the purpose of destroying you. Don't try to deceive me with sweet words. The glory of the era of the Two Holy Trees came from protection, and the proudest thing we inherited from that time is the inheritance of the oath."

The young and strong king stood on the throne, his eyes were as sharp as torches: "When we find the tree keeper, it will be the end of everything. You will never get involved in this world through the sacred tree again. We will close the last door."

"You know our weaknesses very well, wise king, but you know nothing about the weaknesses of mortals. That woman is on the side of the council, and her concession to you is only to gain your trust. Besides, even if what she said is true, mortals will not keep their promises. This is how they are. They lose themselves in the interests, become divided, and then turn against their former allies."

"Is that what you wanted to say?"

"Yes, brave king, we await your reply."

Eloris came in front of it, drew his sword, and pierced it with one blow. He watched the golden flame on the sword burn the shadow and burn it to ashes: "This is my answer."

"Innocent king, you have foresight, but you cannot see through people's hearts. The sword in your hand can cut through the thorns in front of you, but it cannot prevent the knife from behind. One day, you will understand."

The lingering sound in the darkness echoed for a long time.

Fang He and Sylvie looked at each other. The lonely king stood in the darkness. Time seemed to be frozen at this moment, making the other party ignore them.

Melfina had told them that she wanted to see the Twin Sacred Trees return to prosperity, an ideal she inherited from her father, but the Elf King's heavy dejection made it hard to see that. If he and the Sacred Trees hadn't been scheming against each other, the Guild Alliance wouldn't have taken advantage of the situation, and Miss Atila wouldn't have been inexplicably responsible and become the node of all this. Therefore, Fang He's first impression of the Elf King wasn't very good.

But neither of them had expected that the king had such a side in the past, as if two centuries ago, the one standing before them was not the symbol of the aging throne, but another Arsana.

Yes, the Eloris in front of them at this moment was even slightly different from the eldest princess Melfina. The temperament he displayed at this moment was more like that of the more idealistic Princess Alsana.

But if the Elven Court and the Parliament really wanted to cooperate closely, how could this plan be misjudged? Seeing this, Fang He actually already knew what the plan itself was:

The only drawback of the Holy White Tree is that it will leave coordinates leading to the known world in the Sea of ​​Light, causing the dead world outside the Sea of ​​Light to invade the known world through this weak point.

It is like a door connecting two worlds, and the Holy Tree is the bridge between the two worlds. This bridge can deepen the influence of the Saints of Orin on the known world, but at the same time it also leaves an entrance for the invasion of darkness.

But as long as a gatekeeper is found for this door, most of the disadvantages can be eliminated. This gatekeeper is the Saint Tree Keeper who has been passed down by the elves to this day.

The blood of the elves is derived from the Holy White Tree and naturally has an affinity for the Holy White Giant Tree Terraka. Because of this, the prosperity of the holy tree is closely related to the future of the elves.

And over a long period of time, the elves selected the purest line from this bloodline to serve as the caretakers and tree keepers of the sacred tree.

Next, they only need to anchor the coordinate node of the sacred tree to this caretaker, and have her guard the sacred door promised by the goddess of nature.

It is like adding a lock and a key to the door. If the Dark Saints want to invade Atalia through this node, they must first find this lock and this key.

When such a situation really happens, the tree keeper will go to the Gray Forest, the divine domain of Aimaya, and then pass the inheritance to the next generation of saints.

This cycle repeats itself, the locks and keys are constantly updated, and the humanoid coordinate point anchored in Ataria is constantly replaced, thus eliminating the possibility of invasion from the world of death through human means.

But why this era?

Fang Yu thought that there were two possible reasons. First, before the era of the Two Sacred Trees, the Numelin Elves might not have realized that the Two Sacred Trees had this drawback. And when the Verdant came, it was too late. In order to resist the Dark Saints, they had to burn the Holy Trees, and through this righteous act, they successfully ended the Verdant Disaster.

Later, when Kwivenlar stole the tree seeds and planted them at the Giant Tree Hill, it took quite a long time for the Holy White Tree to grow tall again and for a Saint who was suitable enough to take on this important task to be selected from the new Holy White Descendants. These two reasons led to the fact that until two hundred years ago, when the Holy White Tree was in danger again, the Elven Court had to make a decision to select a suitable candidate from the Saint's successor to serve as the tree keeper.

And this matter not only concerns the Autumn Glade, but also the Mountain Lord, the Council of Linoril, and everyone living on this land. That's why the council got involved, and the Elven Court sent a message to the Moon Elves of Heimwol, but the latter did not respond.

As for the fairies, Fang He couldn't help but think of the fairy queen, Miss Tata's mother. Not only did she participate in it, but she also experienced it all as the dragon soul of the elf girl.

But what happened later caused Lady Death of Withering to sacrifice herself, and the goddess of fate had to block her fate, leaving the memory of the past shrouded in mist.

Another gray disaster struck this land two hundred years later.

The scene is still moving.

The day to decide on the candidate finally came, but the Linoril Council gave a choice that no one expected:

"Your Majesty, we think that Miss Lilandel from the Ironthorn family is more suitable for this position. Her mother's family is from the Star Chant lineage of Moonlight Glade, and the holy blood in her body is more favored by unicorns and holy trees."

The gloomy look on the young king's face seemed like a brewing storm.

Although both candidates were from among the candidates for the Saint, he had already made a big enough concession when he agreed to Quel'drala's nomination of Isil Greenhill-Stars.

Isil Greenhill All Stars's mother's family also came from Silver Wind Harbor, and he agreed to this proposal for her sake. On the one hand, it was also because the Greenhill family name itself came from the royal family, and a thousand years ago it was not much inferior to the Kuiya family name.

It is for this reason that the Council of Nobles reluctantly agreed, but there were already voices of criticism behind the scenes.

Although he is a king, he knows that the power of a king is not boundless. If he gives in again, change will face endless resistance.

What's more, the hatred between Xingyong's lineage and the Elf Court is long-standing. Even if he can let go of the hatred for his ideals, it will also sow the seeds of disaster for the future replacement of the Saint.

The reason why the mortals of Silverwind Harbor made this choice was to drive a wedge into the Elf Court, allowing the Ironthorn family to take over the Sacred Forest and regain the power to decide on the candidate for the Saint.

Their aggressiveness was intended to sow the seeds for the future split between the Elf Court and the Sacred Forest.

The words of the shadow flashed through Eloris' mind - mortals will not keep their promises, this is how they are, losing themselves in the interests and gradually becoming torn apart.

But Quel'Dra, the elf girl and young dragon rider, stood up and said, "I disagree. Isil was chosen long ago for the Holy Tree, and she has passed the test of the unicorn. We have already made all preparations for this. It would only be a waste of time to start over again."

Her clear eyes swept over everyone present: "I want you to understand that we have been arguing about this for decades, and now we don't have much time left. The Grand Speaker made up his mind after many considerations, but how can you go back on your word at this time."

The opposition from their own people shocked everyone. Not only the representatives of the parliament were speechless. Fang He saw the representative from the Ironthorn family. The vicious light in the eyes of the elf lady was like a knife that wanted to pierce Quel'drala.

But they didn't dare to really attack a dragon knight, not to mention that he was one of the most outstanding geniuses of this era, a legend born in Silver Wind Harbor -

Another one who shaped the binary era.

In the end, the representatives of the Ironthorn Family could only leave in anger, and the Linorel Council also expressed regret. Because of the sudden change, the decision on the candidate had to be discussed again at another day.

"I'm sorry, Lord Lysanis has left the Elven Court, and the Council has sent someone else to replace him. That gentleman protested to me about what I said the other day."

In the courtyard, the girl's back is somewhat lonely. She seems to be carrying the burden of this era, but is not understood by the era. The things she wants to do and the people she doesn't want to disappoint are leaving her one by one.

"Mr. Speaker, you can't do anything alone. I heard that Silverwind Harbor has a lot of criticism against me. They all think that I am selling out the interests of Silverwind Harbor. But now that we have come to this point, I don't plan to give up. I firmly believe that what I did is right. History will prove everything. I plan to help you implement this plan."

"Zoya..." The young king looked at his lover silently. He knew that he could not give her more. Ideals and power constrained his steps.

But at this moment, the only way for the two of them to best demonstrate their faith was to continue along this path. They had already considered the worst possible outcome.

Eloris nodded gently, finally putting the shadow in his heart behind him. The shadow might be partly right, but even in the darkest times there are always some shining beliefs. Most of the time, history is driven forward by these tiny flashes until it moves in the direction everyone expects.

The power of the people's wishes is sometimes not easily spoken of, because people do not believe it, until the hope opens a hole in the night -

Let the light create ripples on the sea.

"That woman has completely turned to the Elf Court," Fang He heard angry and sharp words under the laurel tree, and the sound of conspiratorial wings flapping.

He saw the fire of jealousy in the eyes of the woman from the Ironthorn family, a fire that would burn everything to ashes. "We must teach that woman a lesson. She thought she could do whatever she wanted. We must let her know that the parliament is not so easily deceived."

"Make her pay."

The language was like a poisonous snake, spitting out its tongue aggressively. Fang He felt a force coming from his hand, and he looked back and saw that in the astonished eyes of the ship's attendant lady, a mist surged out of the darkness and submerged her.

He pulled hard, but he couldn't pull anything back. He just felt like he was grabbing nothing. When the mist receded, Sylvie had disappeared. Fang He suddenly realized what had happened.

The cold moonlight illuminated the road in front of him. It was still the familiar courtyard, but the elf girl, Isildur, had stopped breathing. That familiar, beautiful face was as peaceful as if she was dreaming. A poisonous arrow was stuck in her chest.

The silver box rolled to the side.

Quel'Dra could hardly believe her eyes. Eloris was like a shadow pregnant with a storm, watching all this with a cold face. Swordmaster Soria was on one side of the two. The assassin had been killed, but everything was irreversible.

This sad and beautiful scene made Fang He feel as if his heart was stabbed. Although he knew that it was just a dream and the noble daughter should have woken up from the dream, this scene still made him unable to help but burst into anger.

"Isil's death cannot be in vain," Quel'dra was the first to react. Fang He saw that there were still traces of tears on her face, but her voice was surprisingly calm. "We must continue to advance our plan."

"But the Council of Nobles can no longer accept Lilandel. They themselves ruined this path," Elven King Eloris said silently. He looked at the silver box beside him, "Besides, the identity of the assassin is a mystery. This box... contains their power..."

He thought of the shadow again.

...(End of chapter)