In the heart of the Gaisenfall Great Forest, close to the “Great Spirit Tree”.
Once, there existed a pure spring there.
The spring, filled with the sunlight filtering through the trees, quenched the thirst of the birds and beasts dwelling in the forest, and was sometimes used by the elven priestesses for purification rituals.
Now, there is no trace of it.
Corrupted by malevolence, the once verdant forest turned black.
The spring had turned into a swamp of evil, where cursed mud bubbled up like pus, tainted by evil energy.
In the center of the not-so-large swamp, black vines sprouted from the mud, tightly interwoven to form a foundation, upon which walls and a ceiling were constructed, creating something akin to a fortress of vines.
This place was, in a sense, a political prison.
Elves who held hostile attitudes or those who did not submit to the “Rose Princess of Hellrage” were imprisoned here among the tribal leaders.
In one of the cells separated by black vines, Kurususarina was held captive.
“…Haah… Haah… Haah…”
Her body, tainted by evil, screamed in pain with each breath.
Both her arms were bound by ominous black thorns hanging from the ceiling, dripping blood under their own weight as the thorns pierced into her flesh. Occasionally, the thorns moved like snakes, changing their positions as if trying to evenly cover her in blood.
The tattered remains of her priestess garb were soaked and dried in dripping blood.
Her feet were also pinned to the floor by thorns, rendering her unable to move even while seated.
The only thing visible beyond the lattice of thorns was a narrow passage of vines.
Through a small window behind her, faint light filtered in (though it felt dim even during daytime), allowing her to roughly grasp the passage of time. Initially, she counted the days since her captivity, but her sense of dates gradually faded away.
Kurususarina was nearly abandoned here.
After some perfunctory interrogation, she was completely ignored.
She wasn’t even tortured. The monsters had already lost interest in Kurususarina.
Except as a target for punishment for defiance.
Kurususarina’s body, contaminated by the blast, was being consumed by malevolence, enduring unbearable pain, yet inexplicably, she did not die.
Twice a day, she was forced to ingest a fluid-like meal, suspecting that something was mixed into it by the monsters to prolong her suffering… simply being kept alive to torment her.
Unable to sleep properly due to the agony, she wandered through endless nightmares with a hazy consciousness.
However, suddenly, a voice from the window behind her brought Kurususarina back to clarity.
“…Kurusu.”
“Liella!?”
It was a whisper, but unmistakably the voice of her best friend.
Kurususarina inadvertently raised her voice, then quickly lowered it, fearing reprimand from someone.
“Are you… here to rescue me?”
“No… I’m sorry. Kurusu, do you have any idea what’s happening in our village?”
“Nothing… the monsters haven’t told me anything. No one has come here before.”
Confused by the situation, Kurususarina fretted, caught in a whirlwind of anxiety and impatience.
Perhaps that was the monsters’ intention.
Liellamires hesitated to speak.
After a brief pause, in a slightly rigid tone, she made up her mind.
“Currently, the Fallen Kingdom of Ciel-Terra, led by the forest elves, is fighting against the Empire, with monsters and the forest elves standing together on the same battlefield.”
That was one of the tragic scenarios Kurususarina had imagined.
“Being used as soldiers…!”
“No, it’s different. For now, it’s only volunteers. And those who fight receive something called ‘military vouchers’? They can exchange them for extra rations… If they have enough vouchers, they can even get food and luxuries from outside the forest. Eventually, they can exchange them for money.”
“Food…?”
“The distribution of food from the forest is managed. But since the Empire took over part of the forest, and the tribe… has fewer members, there’s enough. They receive enough rations to barely survive, and those with vouchers buy the rest to share.”
Liellamires’ explanation took an odd turn.
It seemed more like soldiers of a human kingdom than sl*ves of war.
Not only conscripts but also those who fought for money.
“Is everyone… okay? Living under the rule of monsters, what kind of fate awaits them…”
“Most of those seen in the forest are undead without emotions. They monitor us, but unless we show rebellion, they do nothing.”
Kurususarina was perplexed.
It was eerie that evil monsters, merely by being there, didn’t wreak havoc.
It felt unnerving in reverse.
“What… are they plotting…”
“If anything, … it’s efficient and continuous domination. By treating us fairly, they incorporate us into a system of voluntary cooperation… I, too… am fighting in that way.”
“That’s outrageous! Why!”
Feeling as if her chest were being crushed, Kurususarina screamed.
If Liellamires were only being forced into battle, it would be bad enough, but her willingly standing shoulder to shoulder with monster to fight!
It felt like being left alone in the darkness. It was despair.
“Quiet, Kurusu.”
“…You, too, joining forces with monsters…”
“Kurusu… I pledged to fight in exchange for your life.”
The quiet confession pierced Kurususarina.
It felt as if her insides were bursting with blood.
“Stop it, Liella! Collaborating with demons to save me!”
“Even the ‘Seven Tea Party’… now, only you and I remain! If I lose you too, I…”
Counteracted by tearful words, Kurususarina was taken aback.
It felt as if the air had solidified, choking her.
“They’re… dead!? Eil and… Vita too…”
“When the sanctuary seal was broken, all four of us were there? Only the two of us survived…”
The seven close friends who had sworn to be together forever.
Three died in battle against the Empire, including the former High Priestess Salesaya, and two were killed by the vampire that emerged from the broken sanctuary seal. And now, only two remained.
Kurususarina only vaguely remembered being manipulated by some kind of will of some “ancestors” during the chaos. She was in the epicenter of the disaster that wreaked havoc on the forest. Being alive could be considered a miracle.
A sound of someone slumping against the wall, as if leaning their back on it, came from outside the window.
“Surviving now means cooperating with Ciel-Terra. There’s no other choice left for us. There’s no power left to oppose either the Khenis Empire or the Fallen Kingdom of Ciel-Terra. Our tribe’s treasures… everything we received from the gods in the Great War, they’ve all been taken away… They’ve been offered as sacrifices to the devils, to gain power to defeat the Empire.”
“That’s… awful…”
“What’s truly terrifying is that even with this knowledge, there are few who oppose it… The Fallen Kingdom’s army is actually winning against the Empire, and they guarantee everyone’s lives and benefits. Everything is calculated… We’re already trapped like butterflies in a spider’s web.”
A voice trembled with fear, with reverence.
It reminded Kurususarina of creeping vines strangling and breaking the trunk of an ancient tree.
The monsters were quietly infiltrating the forest, not with brute force, but with something overwhelming and insidious.
“But even just you… I won’t let things remain like this. I will definitely help you.”
“Something like that, I… ”
“…The patrol of Jack-o’-Lanterns is coming. If I can sneak away from their sight again, I’ll come back here.”
“Ah, Liella…!”
The conversation ended abruptly.
Without even a glance at each other. The voice trailed off, leaving only faint footsteps behind, and then nothing could be heard anymore.
“Why… why…”
Tears blurred the blood already drying on the floor.
