Chapter 49

"This was a Sabertooth Porcupine. Look at its back—those saber-like spikes were excellent weapon materials. A Sabertooth Porcupine's hide was extremely tough; ordinary weapons couldn't cut through it, so it was often used to make leather armor." Odovish drew back the carriage curtain first and pointed at the huge boar as he spoke to Elufiel. "But contrary to its rough appearance, its meat was very tender. Once we reached Everlook Canyon, we could have fried pork cutlets."

"Does the Council have members besides mages?" Elufiel asked curiously.

Odovish shook his head. "Every member of the Council is a mage, but not everyone agrees with the Holy See's beliefs, do they? Mages don't necessarily come from entire families of mages. They have other friends too."

"My teacher once told me that in Everlook Canyon, ordinary people and practitioners of other professions outnumber spellcasters," Eugene added.

For once, Odovish did not cast Eugene a cold glance. "As you just saw, Everlook Canyon's connection with the outside world depended largely on these non-spellcasting professions. Most of them were descendants of the Itarigis Empire, or relatives of Arcane mages who joined the Council. The Paladins stationed on the north shore of Lake Inoma, including the Holy See, all knew that people from the former magic empire still lived in Moonglade. Ask Arle whether his forest guards got along well with those stationed Paladins."

Arle was the silent coachman driving them.

Elufiel looked at Arle. The quiet burly man glanced back at her, smiled good-naturedly, and nodded. "We often traded magical beasts with them for other necessities."

"Most of the Paladin Order stationed in Moonglade was led by knight commanders pushed out of the Holy See's center of power. Being stationed here was little different from exile. They received meager wages, and to them, the Holy See was simply a stingy employer," Odovish said.

Elufiel spread her hands. "Then why keep working for the Holy See? Uh, I mean, couldn't they find another job?"

Everyone looked at the elf. Even Arle, the coachman, turned back in surprise, as if the elf had said something utterly shocking.

Elufiel was thoroughly confused. Had she said something wrong?

Odovish sighed softly. "All members of the Holy See served for life. They could never leave the Holy See. Your idea was practically equivalent to apostasy."

Now it was the elf's turn to be stunned. "Apo... apostasy? Isn't that too serious?"

"That was the law of the Holy See," Odovish said.

Moonglade contained vast birch forests. Elufiel looked outside at the tall white trunks. New buds had yet to emerge from their branches, and they looked like lonely guards standing in their kingdom, holding fast to secrets no one knew.

They stopped at the ruins of what looked like a temple. Odovish jumped down from the carriage. Just as Elufiel was about to follow, the mage stopped her and called Eugene over. "Come, Mage Eugene. It's time for you to do your part."

Arle remained seated high on the driver's bench, seemingly used to this.

Odovish led Eugene into the ruins. Before long, a huge spatial gate suddenly appeared in the half-collapsed entrance.

Arle drove the carriage forward and charged through the gate. Twisted darkness swept over them and lasted for several seconds. Elufiel realized they had crossed quite a considerable distance.

"Hey, Arle. You're back."

"Arle, who did you pick up this time? Some great Arcane mage's wife?"

"That couldn't be right. No Arcane mage from our side went out to open a gate. Was it opened from outside?"

"Wow, then a great Arcane mage must have arrived. Earlier than in previous years."

Faced with his teammates' questions, Arle replied calmly, "Quit guessing and stand your posts."

After listening to a brief exchange, Elufiel knew they had reached their destination. She lifted the curtain and looked back, seeing the mage and Eugene emerge behind them.

"It's His Highness Weston!" someone cried out.

Elufiel felt the atmosphere around them freeze at once. Odovish seemed oblivious as he climbed into the carriage, with Eugene following after him.

"You seem unhappy." Elufiel noticed that the mage had hidden all expression, his eyes as still as an abyss.

The mage gently shook his head. "No."

The elf looked deeply at him and said nothing more.

The carriage stopped again after traveling only a short distance. Arle lifted the curtain and said to Odovish, "My lord, we've reached the town."

Odovish nodded and said in Eugene's direction, "All visiting Arcane mages rest in this town. When the gathering begins in a few days, the Council will open the inner city. There are inns in town, and lodging is provided free of charge for mages."

"Thank you, my lord. And thank you again for saving my life." Eugene nodded to Odovish and Elufiel before getting out of the carriage.

Arle then continued onward with the two of them.

"Where are we going?" The elf disliked this awkward silence, so she casually found a topic to ask about.

Odovish answered softly, "The inner city, where the Lista Council is located. I have a cottage there. I think you'll like it."

Three mage towers stood in the inner city. Magical runes slowly circled energy gems atop their pointed spires, while an intertwined energy barrier spread outward from the three towers and enveloped the entire inner city. The "cottage" Odovish spoke of stood not far from the northernmost mage tower.

It was nothing like the "cottage" Elufiel imagined. It was practically a small manor, with courtyards in both the front and back. Ivy climbed the iron gate and surrounding walls, its vivid green especially eye-catching this season.

After delivering the two of them to the entrance, Arle drove away. The mage led the elf through the gate. Directly beyond it was a white flagstone path, and the landscaping in the front courtyard was meticulously arranged, though aside from several evergreen plants, only withered branches remained.