novelraw Chapter 452: Crying
Chapter 452: Crying
"None of the visiting Elves are named Gui?"
Upon hearing Mikhail's words, Fisher was instantly stunned in place. However, Mikhail honestly nodded and relayed all the information he had just obtained to Fisher.
"Ah, I checked carefully. There are a total of twenty-seven Elves here to offer tribute. Adding Marquis Bai, the Elf who came to treat the Elf King, makes twenty-eight. Among them, not a single Elf is named 'Gui'."
Fisher pondered for a moment, filled with doubt and suspicion for a while. He thought of several possibilities and planned to verify them one by one.
He first looked at Gou Wen and asked him in a questioning tone.
"Is the Elf King male or female? Are there other Elves in Jianmu Palace?"
"Male. His honored name is [Bing], the first Elf created by the World Tree."
Seeing that there was no one around, Gou Wen no longer had any scruples. Stroking his chin, he walked over, looked at Fisher, and asked.
"It's impossible for other Elves to reside in Jianmu Palace; that would be extremely contrary to Li. Moreover, existences at the Mythical Rank basically have no need to reproduce, and the Elf King has no concubines or anything. What's wrong? Why ask this all of a sudden?"
"..."This was strange. If she wasn't present among the phantoms of destiny, then where exactly did that Elf who bore a striking resemblance to Renee come from earlier?
Fisher seemed to realize something. Following this, he quickly ran outside Marquis Bai's palace. There, the flight demi-humans in charge of carrying the palanquin they rode hadn't left yet, and the one leading them just happened to be a female demi-human.
"My Lord, what are your orders?"
These demi-humans with four black-feathered wings, whom Fisher didn't recognize, all looked toward the exiting Fisher. But Fisher didn't respond to them; instead, strings of illusory golden subtitles spread across his eyes.
But after waiting for a long time, the golden subtitles never took shape and didn't feed back a bindable target, as if the female demi-human before him simply didn't exist at all.
"Nothing, excuse me."
The several demi-humans before him flapped their wings and flew away one after another, leaving Fisher standing alone in place.
Upon learning that the conjecture in his heart had been verified, Fisher's heart didn't calm down.
This meant that the phantoms of destiny within Lord Tao's barrier couldn't be bound. Yet the Gui he bound earlier was genuine. This also proved that Gui truly existed, rather than being a phantom within destiny.
The problem was, which Elf could freely come and go within Lord Tao's barrier?
Fisher believed that apart from the nominal ruler of the Tree Continent, the Elf King, and the World Tree, no one else had the immense standing to enter the barrier of the Nineteenth-Tier Lord Tao.
Or rather, was Gui actually the Mother Goddess of this era?
But Fisher believed that the Mother Goddess shouldn't have descended in this era yet.
Firstly, the night in this era was much darker than the night in Fisher's era. Fisher had seen the incredibly massive and bright moon in the sky countless times, and had also seen it in dreams many times, knowing it was the Mother Goddess's projection in the real world.
Secondly, if Renee truly descended into the Spirit World, in this era where all three Demigods still existed and guarded their duties, it was impossible for them not to notice anything. Unless Renee was so good at hiding that she could conceal herself from the eyes and ears of the three Demigods, and even True Gods like Ramastia...
Then exactly what was the Gui he ran into?
Could it be he ran into a ghost?
Or really, did Renee discover his bad deeds in the future and traveled ten thousand miles to appear here to give him a bit of a warning?
The more Fisher thought about it, the more uncertain he felt. With a solemn expression, he walked back into Marquis Bai's mansion and found Mikhail and Gou Wen also looking at him with great concern.
"That whatever Gui, do you have any thoughts?"
Fisher shook his head and said regretfully.
"No. But I can confirm that what I encountered might be a truly existing person, not a fake phantom of destiny. However, given Lord Tao's status and strength, I don't know who could enter Lord Tao's barrier so freely... Or perhaps, I might have really run into a ghost."
"Hmm, don't worry. Wait for me to ask Marquis Bai later. Elves understand their own compatriots very well; she definitely will know. The key right now is, does that Elf you encountered bear us any malice, or was she actually sent by Lord Tao into the barrier to monitor us?"
Gou Wen was still very reliable. After thinking for a moment, he quickly provided a corresponding line of thought. Hearing this, Fisher carefully recalled the process of meeting that woman that day, increasingly feeling it was like a hook specifically aimed at him. Otherwise, it would be impossible for Gui to specifically appear with Renee's appearance to attract his attention.
But what was the purpose?
After Gui met him, she didn't ask him anything special. Instead, she let him know that he couldn't casually bind Mythical Rank existences.
She shouldn't have any malice, but I still can't be sure. Later, you should beat around the bush with Marquis Bai... Oh right, where's Karasawa? Why don't I see her?"
Thinking about it, Fisher could only place his hopes on Marquis Bai. After all, the Demi-Human Completion Handbook had already bound Gui and had her name on the list. Coupled with her unique appearance, it truly made Fisher inexplicably want to uncover her true origin.
While thinking, he swept his gaze around but didn't see the figure of his newly accepted magic apprentice, immediately asking in doubt.
Gou Wen and the others also turned their heads in confusion to look around, searching for Asuka Karasawa's whereabouts.
"No way? She was just here. Could she have already gone inside the palace?"
The three of Fisher turned to look at the empty interior of the palace, and without further hesitation, walked inside.
Asuka Karasawa had indeed entered the depths of the palace alone. Because while Fisher and the others were talking earlier, Asuka Karasawa seemed to see a shadow swaying inside the palace. Somewhat curious, she walked a few steps inside, not going too far away from Fisher and the others.
The inner hall was spacious, displaying many Elf items crafted according to strict regulations, most of them exquisitely and perfectly shaped. There was also a lot of food provided for those residing here to eat, seemingly some kind of fruit. Behind the table, a neat row of folding screens was placed, obscuring the paths leading to other wing rooms.
Asuka Karasawa paused in the inner hall for a moment, looking at the several fruit platters on the table. Most of the fruit platters held four round fruits, except for one platter which only had three, as if one had been taken away.
Originally preparing to return and rendezvous with Fisher and the others, Asuka Karasawa paused slightly upon seeing this scene. She turned her head in confusion to look at the fruits on the table, then moved closer to observe carefully. It was under her continuous approach that a shadow behind a folding screen in this spacious inner hall suddenly shrugged, unable to hold on any longer.
Asuka Karasawa was startled upon seeing this, but she didn't make a sound. Instead, she held her breath, then boldly took out the previously engraved wind magic from her bosom, holding the magic card in front of her and aiming it at the position of the folding screen.
"Who is there?!"
"Squeak!"
At the exact moment Asuka Karasawa spoke, the shadow behind the screen shrugged, and after several seconds, an emaciated female demi-human walked out trembling.
This female demi-human had a pair of almost semi-circular prominent ears on her head. A head of leaden-gray long hair was casually tied into a braid resting behind her head. Her body was severely emaciated, looking exactly like a severely malnourished rat.
The demi-human wore the same clothes as the flight demi-humans who carried their palanquin up here earlier. It seemed they were all demi-humans working here. However, judging solely from her condition, this demi-human was clearly doing much worse than the group of palanquin-carrying demi-humans outside.
"You are..."
Asuka Karasawa looked at the rat demi-human before her with her head lowered. What surprised her the most was a tiny demi-human clinging to the embrace of this female demi-human. The little demi-human tightly held onto the older demi-human's embrace, one hand clutching a plump, round fruit, while its face was buried tightly in the female demi-human's embrace in fear, not daring to look up.
This was a demi-human mother and child.
"My Lord, please, please do not make this known to the Elf Lords residing here!"
The rat-man before her was originally pale, preparing to await her death. But seeing that the one who spoke wasn't an Elf Lord residing here or some capital official, but merely an unfamiliar human girl, she hurriedly grasped this trace of a chance to live. She knelt directly on the ground, hugging the child in her arms, crying as she spoke to Asuka Karasawa.
"I am a miscellaneous servant doing washing and cleaning here. Originally, my husband worked on errands for the official Lords under the Royal Capital. A few months ago, after my husband entered Jianmu Palace, he never came back out. My child is too young; I couldn't abandon him, nor could I give up the job that fed us, so I secretly brought him up to the Guest Wood. But the food distributed on the Guest Wood is not enough, and the Lords above embezzled from it. So this led to... My Lord... spare our lives, My Lord..."
When had Asuka Karasawa ever seen such a scene? Looking at the demi-human before her pressing her head tightly against the ground, she was instantly stunned in place.
And the demi-human mother, thinking Asuka Karasawa had not forgiven them, hurriedly realized something. She reached out and snatched the fruit from her child's hand. Unexpectedly, the child held on tightly with one hand, seemingly starving, unwilling to give up the fruit emitting a strange fragrance.
The mother had no choice but to grit her teeth and snatch the fruit away very forcefully. The child whose fruit was snatched indignantly prepared to wail loudly, but before he could even open his mouth, his mother firmly covered his mouth with one hand.
Thus, the mother knelt on the ground while extending the fruit in her other hand, hopefully offering it to Asuka Karasawa before her. With her head lowered, she said.
"My crime deserves ten thousand deaths. I hope My Lord can be magnanimous and forgive me this once... Spare our lives..."
"No, hey, um..."
Asuka Karasawa opened her mouth. Not knowing what crossed her mind,她 suddenly panicked. She waved her hands, not daring to take the fruit offered by the other party, wanting to let the other party keep the food to fill their stomachs, but she couldn't even speak clearly.
For some reason, looking at the mother tightly embracing her child before her, Asuka Karasawa's throat instantly felt as if it had been filled with cement and dried stiff, unable to utter a single word.
"Little Karasawa? You're here, you..."
Fortunately, right at this moment, Fisher, Gou Wen, and the others also came in from outside the hall. Seeing the situation, Fisher asked a question.
"What's wrong?"
"Teacher Fisher, I... I just... I... she..."
Asuka Karasawa's words were slurred no matter how hard she tried. And Gou Wen beside Fisher saw the situation before them at first glance. Without even asking, he seemed to know what had happened. He looked at the kneeling demi-human before him, hesitated for a moment, and then smiled and explained to Fisher.
"This is a place to entertain visiting Elves, called Guest Wood. There are many serving personnel kept up here, and basically none are slaves; their treatment ranges from high to low. This one before us should be a [Rat Crone] in charge of daily cleaning, belonging to the lowest treated category among them. But regardless, bringing a family up here is not allowed. This child should have been secretly brought up by her to raise; perhaps some accident happened to her family... alright, alright, don't panic. Just take this fruit, we won't tell anyone else."
"R-really?"
The Rat Crone holding her child before them seemingly wore a look of disbelief on her face, but after seeing Gou Wen's certain gaze, she slowly withdrew the fruit held in her hand.
Because her child indeed needed this fruit.
"Ten thousand thanks... Ten thousand thanks to the Lords... thank you..."
Even so, she still knocked her head loudly against the ground several times towards the few people before her, seemingly using this method to express her gratitude.
Gou Wen forced a smile, remaining silent as he avoided this gesture.
Because as someone who had experienced it before, he knew that in reality, when he finished treating the Elf King and returned to Marquis Bai's mansion to rest, he saw that this Rat Crone who stole to feed her child had already been discovered and executed by other officials.
But at least in this past phantom, she survived because of Asuka Karasawa's discovery.
Gou Wen shook his head and said.
"It's okay. Later, just tell Marquis Bai that I ate it, and no one else will pursue the matter with you. Hurry and leave. Marquis Bai will be returning soon, and then you won't be able to explain clearly. Remember, be careful when eating it, don't let your colleagues notice."
"Yes, yes, My Lord."
She bowed her head repeatedly, then quickly left this palace holding her child and the fruit in her arms, soon disappearing from sight.
Perhaps apart from Gou Wen, who knew the outcome for this Rat Crone mother and child in reality, the events that just transpired only seemed like a minor interlude, and no one took it to heart, right?
Gou Wen sighed, preparing to find a place to rest and wait for Marquis Bai to return. Then tomorrow, she would take them into Jianmu Palace to find the truth about that Transferred Person, and the traitor among the Elves who coordinated inside and outside to steal the World Tree Teardrop...
And Fisher originally also wanted to sit down and rest, but just as he was about to move, he noticed Asuka Karasawa still standing in place, completely unmoving.
"Karasawa?"
He was somewhat confused, then called out to her while walking towards her.
And as he got closer, he suddenly realized that the young girl's shoulders before him were trembling uncontrollably.
Hearing Fisher's call, Asuka Karasawa slowly turned her head. Looking closely, her delicate face had unknowingly become flushed. Teardrops the size of pearls hung on her face, making her whole face look vulnerable and lovable.
"Teacher Fisher... wu wu wu..."
The instant she saw Fisher, with tears falling like a pear blossom bathed in rain, she could hold on no longer. It was as if Fisher's call had opened the floodgates controlling her tears, and once opened, they could no longer be stopped.
She raised her head, tears increasing, immediately leaving Fisher, who had asked the question, stunned in place.
And within the time of this slight daze, Asuka Karasawa uncontrollably reached out and covered her face, pressing her head right against Fisher's chest, crying even harder.
"Wu wu wu..."
Fisher was rendered speechless. He subconsciously patted Asuka Karasawa's back. The still-standing Mikhail before him pursed his lips in a look of confusion. And Gou Wen, who had just sat down nearby, speechlessly looked at the rather innocent Fisher, seemingly already starting to doubt the purity of Fisher's intentions as a magic teacher.
"..."
Fisher, being leaned on by Asuka Karasawa, was naturally unable to clear himself even with a hundred mouths. He could only helplessly reach out and pat Asuka Karasawa's soft and fragrant body to show comfort.