Chapter 54 – Moon Elves

  “They’re here?” Rayne stammered.

  Reynard nodded. “For a while now. I believe they started showing up a week ago.”

  “Why are they here?” Zajowle asked.

  “I have not spoken with them,” Reynard said. “They are aware that I am aware of them but have not approached me. All I know is that their intentions do not involve the Order, and they have stayed clear of my territory, so I have ignored them. They are the other Lords’ problem right now.”

  “But I thought the Beast Lords were the reason many people avoid this jungle,” Victor said. “Don’t you kill those that trespass?”

  “No,” Reynard said. “We are only allowed to kill if provoked or we feel that the protection of Kharzast and the Order are at stake. The confusion comes from us being the most powerful creatures here. Whenever anyone dies or goes missing in the jungle, they blame us for it, but I can only think of eight times I have been personally responsible for the death of a trespasser.”

  “Do you count your illusions in that?” Jasper asked.

  “No,” Reynard said. “What happens to the people who do not take precaution and cannot tell the truth from the lie, is not my concern.”

  “You said their intention doesn’t involve the Order,” Jack said. “How do you know? I’m pretty sure Clayton’s intentions was always to find the city but you four did nothing about it.”

  “Not nothing,” Reynard said. “I told you before. We cannot make a move now that he is of the Order. Before that, it was the Eastern Lord’s responsibility to take care of him. It is his part of the jungle to rule, and as Beast Lords, we do not interfere with each other’s territory. He made a mistake in not going in person. Thought Clayton a minor issue, something to sharpen the fangs of his children on. Now we cannot actively work against him. That is why you are needed. The moon elves are different. We can tell they are looking for something, but it is not the Order or the secrets within.”

  “What are the other Lords doing about them?” Elaine asked.

  “Right now,” Reynard said. “Nothing.”

  “Why?” Elizabeth asked.

  “Of the four of us,” Reynard explained. “The Northern and Eastern Lords are the most aggressive. They have been more likely to dispose of intruders that even posed the chance of a threat. The Western Lord and I are less so. We see no need to kill purposelessly. Right now, the Northern Lord is distracted with the loss of its children, and the Eastern Lord has pulled back his children from open raids against Clayton. Some of the Chualtala still fight back, with sneak attacks in the jungle, but most are actively seeking the moon elves now, but I think it is more out of frustration on having failed to take down Clayton. If you have not undergone the Trial, I would be careful when entering his land for the time being.”

  “Do you know what they are looking for?” Teresa asked.

  “I already told you I do not,” Reynard said. “Though I can guess.”

  “They are looking for us,” Sylvian said. “Or rather the humans. They are probably looking to see how far they humans have gotten in creating their city. I wouldn’t be surprised if they intended for you three to meet as well.”

  “You don’t think?” Elaine asked.

  “How could they?” Victor followed up. “We didn’t even know where we were going when we found each other.”

  “Don’t underestimate the information network and planning of the moon elves,” Rayne said. “Remember Erlatra.”

  “That was just a rumor,” Sylvian said. “There isn’t any proof it happened.”

  “What’s Erlatra?” Teresa asked.

  “It is said that the moon elves once disguised one of their assassins as a drunk who insulted a noble of Erlatra, a kingdom to the north, and earn a lifetime imprisonment,” Rayne said. “It was big news at the time, no one had ever imprisoned a moon elf before. They tortured him for years trying to get information out of him. But supposedly, he wouldn’t say a word. All the while, the moon elves never came for him. He was there for three years, forgotten by the rest of the world until the captain of the guard was replaced. Another noble of the kingdom that was always under protection, said to be untouchable. The noble was only supposed to take up the role for a few years before returning to take over his family’s title. It was a simple job, but enough to get him the experience he needed to appease his family while keeping him safe.”

  “It’s common enough for those spineless Erlatrians,” Savgar grunted. “Their nobles rarely have any backbone to handle anything serious. Their warriors on the other hand. Some of the best.”

  Sylvian nodded. “Only the first night of him taking the job, the moon elf broke out and killed him before strolling out the front door.”

  You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

  “Baseless rumors,” Savgar said. “The moon elves spin more tales than spiders spin silk. None of it can be proven.”

  “It does sound unlikely,” Reuf said. “But if they are here, then it is probable that they have followed you Elaine, whether they intended for you to meet the others or not. Perhaps they were just hoping if they let you out, then you would be more likely to find others to pursue your quest with.”

  “Perhaps,” Elaine muttered in thought. “Though I wouldn’t mind seeing Jerza again. I don’t know if all the stories are true, but I did learn not to mention them when I was in Cyri. I didn’t think it was that big of a deal at first. They are treated like the boogeyman. Telling people I spent time with them was a quick way to have people to avoid me. Eventually, I just learned to not bring them up.”

  “What is a boogeyman?” Zajowle asked.

  “A monster that hides under the bed,” Daniel said. “It’s not real. Just childish imagination running wild.”

  “Nah,” Victor said. “Everyone knows the boogeyman lives in the closet. Got to keep that door closed.”

  “It’s both,” Bryant said. “It moves about, I filled my bedroom with toys so when it moved, I’d hear it.”

  “Did you ever hear it?” Jack asked.

  “I thought I did a few times,” Bryant admitted, “but it was always our cat.”

  “So, it is real then?” Reuf asked.

  “No,” Teresa said. “It’s as Daniel said. Irrational fear of the dark making children think there are monsters in it.”

  “There are monsters in the dark though,” Savgar said. “A lot of them rely on it.”

  “Anyways,” Daniel said getting the conversation back on track. “It is irrelevant. What are we going to do about the moon elves right now?”

  “Not sure,” Victor said. “Anyone got any ideas? Should we make an alliance with them?”

  “Suppose it depends on what the terms of the alliance are,” Savgar said. “No point in considering it until you have all the information. At least we know that if they are looking for an alliance, then they are unlikely to be trying to kill you.”

  “It helps that you are new to this world as well,” Zajowle said. “None of you have been around long enough to make the kind of enemies that could hire the moon elves.”

  “I don’t know about that,” Savgar said. “The moment my apprentice ran away with nothing more than a note, I was half considering putting a hit out on you.”

  “But you just had to do it in person,” Victor said.

  “Why give someone else the pleasure,” Savgar grinned.

  “We can deal with the moon elves later,” Jack said. “Sounds like they are unlikely to reveal themselves to us until we have something they want anyways. We should just focus on the current issue.”

  “Yea,” Savgar grunted. “We will need our strength come morning. Once we set up the Foundation Crystal, we will have to overcome whatever challenge the System throws at us and then we need to finish our preparations for Clayton.”

  “You think he will find us,” Victor asked.

  “If we play this right,” Savgar said. “We might have some time before he finds us, but he will find us eventually.”

  “My illusions will help with that,” Reynard said. “But it won’t help much if he comes in person.”

  “To that end,” Rayne said. “I noticed something unusual among the spiders and Wenduags in the camp. It almost seems like Clayton is losing his hold on them. Is it possible that he lost his ability to control them once he changed classes.”

  “It is possible,” Daniel said scratching at his chin. “To an extent, but I don’t think it will last long.”

  “Why is that?” Jack asked.

  “Changing his class, probably broke his path,” Daniel explained. “That’s a guess though. I don’t know what path he chose. If that is not the case, then it could be something much simpler. As a Beastmaster, he had a natural understanding and control over beasts. It made it easier to use and grow those skills. Most people become reliant on the class providing that understanding that they don’t take the time to truly learn how their skills work. It is like this with any skill. When you gain a skill or spell, you suddenly have knowledge of how to use it. Take away the skill and you will take away that innate understanding, but the knowledge still exists and there is nothing stopping you from learning to do the same without the System’s help. But sadly, most people never take that step and so when they change their class, they suddenly find themselves with a lot of that innate knowledge that helped to boost their skills now gone.”

  “That is the reason for the class change curse?” Ciao asked. “Laziness?”

  “More or less,” Daniel nodded. “It is an understandable issue though. If you gain enough experience or knowledge of something, the System will grant you a skill proving that and with it comes an innate understanding. This is often very subtle. Most people don’t even know it’s happening, and those that do know often don’t care. You can see it most clearly with recently gained skills. Especially early on or with skills that you had no prior knowledge of before. If you compare how you did things from before you gained the skill to right afterwards, you will notice the skill guiding your actions.”

  “I remember something like that when I gained my Fishing and Stealth skills,” Jack acknowledged. “I didn’t know what it was, but I noticed my hands and body naturally moving to adjust when using those skills.”

  Daniel nodded. “Classes do the same, but they provide an innate understanding to all the skills associated with the class. Most people don’t change their classes; they just upgrade them. Trying to understand their abilities and skills like that only slows their progress with little to gain from it. I believe this is what Clayton is dealing with. He will keep the skills, but without the boost to them. He probably doesn’t even know why though.”

  “We were discussing something along that line,” Sylvian said. “So, it’s true. Then it is possible he won’t be able to keep control of all the Wenduags and spiders he is currently trying to control.”

  “It is,” Daniel said. “But like I said. It won’t last for long. He might not be a Beastmaster or a Slavemaster, but as a Blood Mage, he will soon be able to cross the enlightened-beast barrier and be able to control anything with blood. The stronger he gets, the quicker he will regain control.”

  “So even if we can get the elves away from him,” Victor said. “He might still be able to keep getting stronger by controlling the beasts?”

  “Eventually yes,” Daniel said. “But I don’t think he will be able to yet. He has only recently gotten the class. In any class, understanding is important. Enlightened species are easier for him to understand on a fundamental level because outside our different races we really are not that different. Beasts on the other hand are very different, and he should have lost his understanding on them. It will be much more difficult for him to control them the same way until he regains that understanding.”

  “So, we have a window,” Teresa said.

  “A small one yes,” Daniel acknowledged.