Chapter 171

Chapter 171

“Dojae!”

Sari runs happily toward Dojae, who is walking leisurely toward her.

She looks like a silver poodle running toward him.

“You look okay?”

Dojae ruffled Sari’s hair as she stood before him, patting her head.

Sari pouts her lips and fixes her hair again.

“Tsk… What brings you here?”

“I just had some free time, so I came to see you. I could sense Mangol’s mana nearby.”

“I see…”

Sari’s expression turned slightly disappointed.

But her face broke into a wide smile at Dojae’s next words.

“And I wanted to see you too, Sari.”

“Really? Wow!”

Sari jumped up and down with joy.

Memories of their first meeting came flooding back to Dojae.

“But it seemed like you were having an important conversation with Hamar.”

Dojae’s eyes could see how many acorns hung on that distant oak tree, and his ears could even hear the footsteps of ants crawling on the ground.

Dojae, having overheard Sari and Hamar’s conversation, asked casually.

“Hmm… If you go a little further from here, you’ll come to a large lake. But it’s so dark in color that it’s called the Black Lake. There’s an elf village near there, and I was thinking of stopping by.”

“Ah, the Black Lake Village. I heard about it from Catania before.”

Dojae recalled the elf who wore a skull mask during the tournament.

The gray elf warrior, Catania, had warned him about the skull mask, saying it came from the Black Lake Village and to be careful.

“Heh. But the elves who live there don’t get along well with other elves. So Hamar was worried and said we should just go, but I insisted. Ow!”

Sari smiled sheepishly.

Dojae casually smacked her forehead.

“Listen to Hamar. All the elves over there are struggling because they care about you.”

“I know, but… I still think the Dark Elves’ power could be a huge help.”

“In what way?”

“Dark elves can draw upon the Demon King’s power.”

“Demon King…”

Come to think of it, there were beings called Demon Kings here too.

The first time I learned of this fact was through the Black Scales.

The phrase ‘sealed the Demon King’ written in the black scales’ description.

“It’s said that after the 200-Year War, many gods and Demon Kings perished. If that’s the case, wouldn’t the Demon King side also want to eliminate the traitors? They might not willingly lend their power, but I thought it was worth a try.”

“That makes sense…”

Sari’s words made sense.

After all, the enemy of my enemy is my friend.

According to Altein’s explanation, before the era of peace, the Demon King’s power was overwhelming.

The Demon Kings, who constantly coveted the continent, were only finally bound to the Demon Realm after the Seekers appeared and united their strength.

Gellahan was the one who destroyed the most Demon Kings here.

Now, as the few surviving Demon Kings lie in wait, gradually attempting to invade the continent, meeting with the Dark Elves, as Sari suggested, might not be a bad option.

“But there’s always the possibility the demon lords might stab us in the back, you know?”

“Hmm…”

What if we eliminate the traitors and Gelahan?

Even that would be done using the Demon King’s power.

After that, the continent’s future is uncertain.

It might become a land overrun with undead like skeletons and ghouls.

“Then it can’t be done? Should we not go?”

Sari said in a dejected voice.

But Dojae stroked Sari’s head once more and smiled.

“No. I’m always on Sari’s side. Let’s go. Sari’s idea is a good one if we prepare well.”

“Really? My idea is right, isn’t it?”

“I can’t say for sure if it’s right or wrong, but I understand exactly what you’re trying to do. I can really feel your desire to protect the continent.”

“That’s right!”

“Then let’s promise not to cause Hamar and the villagers any more worry. After all, isn’t it because of them that the continent has meaning?”

“Yeah!”

Sari answered, gathering her strength.

Dojae and Sari headed toward the Grey Elves and opened a pocket dimension to distribute the food supplies.

With the supplies Harques and Peneia had packed, there was more than enough.

“Not sure if it’ll suit your tastes, though.”

“Everyone said it was delicious last time. Thank you, human.”

Hamar approached Dojae and expressed her gratitude.

At first, Dojae thought she was a cheerful Grey Elf, but now he felt sorry for her hardened personality, likely due to the pain she had endured.

“Hammar! You should call me Dojae!”

“Yes… Thank you, Dojae.”

“It’s nothing. I’ll be heading to Sari and Black Lake Village, so you should rest up properly.”

“Understood. Please take good care of our village chief.”

With that, Hamar left to get food, leaving only Mangol behind to await Dojae’s orders.

“Mangol, you stay here and wait patiently too.”

“Understood.”

Sari couldn’t rest yet and hadn’t filled her stomach, but when their eyes met, she clenched both hands tightly to show she was fine.

Then, looking at Dojae intently, she said,

“Hey, Dojae. You seem a bit kinder than usual today… Did something happen?”

“Huh? Nothing happened.”

“Oh? Okay.”

Sari looked at Dojae for a few more seconds.

Dojae hesitated to use the golem’s eyes to discern Sari’s intentions, then stopped himself.

It was better not to read the minds of those close to him or of other races.

***

“This is the Black Lake. A little further on is the Dark Elves’ territory. What do you think? It really is black, isn’t it?”

The two walked side by side.

A vast lake appeared before them.

“Is this a place where living creatures can survive…?”

Dojae’s observation as he gazed at the lake.

The water was so pitch-black it made one doubt anything could live within it.

However, it felt completely still, with only gentle ripples stirring in the wind.

“It’s so clean, you could drink it? Want to try?”

The two approached a little closer.

Sari crouched down by the water’s edge and scooped up some water in her small hands.

The water remained as black as ink.

You could tell it wasn’t dark because the lake was deep or some optical illusion.

“I’ll pass. That color really kills my appetite…”

“Don’t say things like that in front of the Dark Elves! This water is an important source of drinking water for them!”

“Yes…”

Dojae and Sari walked along the lakeshore.

The lake was so vast that the horizon was visible, so simply circling around it took quite some time.

Thanks to that, they moved slowly to let the tired Sari rest, and he got to taste the stew she’d made for him for the first time in ages.

“Their territory starts over there.”

Listening to Sari chatter away, they soon arrived at the Dark Elf territory.

From the entrance, skulls hung on trees of unknown meaning greeted Dojae and Sari.

Almost all of them appeared to be monsters, not human-shaped skeletons.

Moreover, the Dark Elves lived on the plains, not in the mountains. Since there were also Grey Elves living among humans in the human kingdom, this wasn’t particularly surprising.

“Something’s coming?”

Two skeletons approached cautiously through the skulls.

Upon closer inspection, they weren’t skeletons at all, but figures wearing skull masks with bone patterns painted over their armor.

They wore heavy armor like knights would, painted entirely black—whether dyed or made of black metal—with white bone patterns drawn over it.

Thwack!

The two dark elves immediately pointed their spear tips at Dojae and Sari.

Their eyes, like those of the Grey Elves, were filled only with black pupils, devoid of whites. Combined with the white skull masks, they looked downright grotesque.

“What’s happening in our village?!”

One dark elf pressed his spear tip closer as he demanded.

Dojae took a step back, but Sari stepped forward instead and said.

“I am Sarieta, the village chief of Nightingale Forest Village. I have come to see your village chief.”

“The Nightingale Forest village chief? What business could you possibly have with our village chief?”

“The events unfolding across the continent. You know about them too, don’t you?”

The dark elves looked at each other.

They too were aware of the sudden surge in monsters and the chaos they were causing.

Otherwise, would they be walking around so heavily armed even in normal times?

Sari asked on the assumption they knew.

“We know. But what does that have to do with wanting to meet our village chief? We have no business with outsiders. Leave immediately.”

Swish.

The dark elves thrust their spears toward Sari.

It was a threatening gesture, but Dojae grabbed Sari’s arm and pulled her backward.

“What are you doing?”

“I said go back.”

“Is this how you treat guests?”

“Guests? We didn’t invite you. Consider yourselves lucky we didn’t kill you for trespassing on our territory.”

“Seems we can’t communicate…”

Dojae pondered how he could meet the village chief.

He wanted to brush past these scoundrels, push deep into the village, and drag the chieftain out by the collar.

But that wouldn’t be negotiation—it would be causing trouble.

He had to think of a way to accept their guidance without forcing the issue.

And something flashed through Dojae’s mind.

Swish-.

“What the hell are you doing! You want to fight….”

Two dark elves lunging with spears.

The moment they saw the black scales in Dojae’s hand, their expressions went blank.

Clang.

They dropped their spears.

“Oh my… Hey, you guys okay?”

Dojae waved his hand toward the dark elves.

But their gaze remained fixed solely on the black scales, showing no reaction whatsoever.

“Dojae, did you learn some kind of mind magic?”

“No way. Probably because of this.”

Swish-swish-.

Dojae swung the black scales.

The dark elves’ heads turned to follow the direction of Dojae’s swinging black scales.

As if spellbound, they stared blankly, fixated solely on the sword.

“Huh? They’re following the sword!”

“I pulled it out just in case, but it’s way more effective than I thought. They can’t even talk now, can they?”

The Black Scales, where the Demon King is sealed.

I’ve heard there’s a hierarchy among the Demon Kings.

It’s said that lower-ranked Demon Lords swear absolute loyalty to higher-ranked ones.

What if the Demon King sealed within the Black Scale holds a higher rank than the Demon King these Dark Elves follow?

Though sealed, wouldn’t this demon sword, pulsing with demonic energy, resonate with it? Dojae’s hunch proved spot on.

“We need to talk first…”

Swish-.

Dojae slipped the black scales back into his pocket dimension.

The dark elves snapped back to their senses.

“This feeling…?”

“I lost consciousness for a moment…”

The two lifted their heads and looked at Dojae.

Without hesitation, they removed their skull masks and knelt.

“We did not recognize you and were rude.”

“We will guide you to the village chief.”

Then, without another word, he stands up and begins walking away.

Dojae and Sari exchanged glances and shrugged their shoulders.

“Let’s follow him.”

“Yeah!”