119 – Shrouded in Doubt

“Soon, the Demon Army closed in on the Forest of the Elves. From ancient times, our kind has enjoyed the protection of the Sacred Tree and the forest. Anyone who entered the Elderwood without permission would, at best, become lost, and at worst, suffer mental collapse.”

“With the Sacred Forest’s protection, the Elves should have been able to avoid the calamity wrought by the Demon Race, just like before. But…” Diderlay tilted his head back slightly, seemingly lost in memory.

“No one knows what really happened. The gates of the Forest of the Elves suddenly opened to the invaders. The Elves, overly confident in the shelter of their homeland, let their guard down completely. The Demon Race cut through us like a hot knife through butter, advancing deep into our lands…”

“Panic spread. The sacred ground that had birthed and protected us had, for the first time, failed us. Before we could even mount a defense, fear had already consumed our hearts.”

“Looking back now, the way the forest opened up was... very strange. I still don’t know why it happened. Maybe that Demon Lord was a once-in-a-century anomaly, or perhaps... the heavens simply decided the Elf Tribe’s time had come.”

“What I can say is this — the Demon Race struck at the perfect moment. At the time, the two High Elf factions that ruled the Elf Tribe — the Gold Elves and the Moon Elves — were locked in deep conflict. Before then, policy disputes were common, but normal. Families fight. Living under the same roof, it's impossible not to bump heads.”

“But that particular argument had grown especially intense, nearly erupting into a full-blown schism. The people were already talking.”

“And with the Demons invading, the tension between the two sides only worsened.”

“The Moon Elves, seeing the Demons' unstoppable momentum, made a decisive call — abandon the Sacred Tree and evacuate the Forest of the Elves. Survival first.”

“But the Gold Elves took the opposite stance: to defend the homeland to the death. They swore that no filth of the Demon Race would taint the purity of the Sacred Tree.”

“The two sides clashed again. The Moon Elves accused the Gold Elves of ignoring the survival of the tribe, of sacrificing thousands of Elven lives to preserve their own decaying authority.”

“But the Gold Elves remained calm, declaring that they would stand and fall with the Sacred Tree. Until the last Gold Elf perished, the Sacred Tree would never fall.”

“One side was making a painful yet pragmatic choice to preserve the race. The other was determined to fight to the bitter end for their home. Even now, it’s hard to say who was right.”

“But time always reveals the truth,” Diderlay said, shaking his head.

“In the end, the two High Elf factions parted on poor terms. The Moon Elves led the refugees south, to seek a new place to live. The Gold Elves stayed behind, choosing resistance.”

“In that war, the already few Gold Elves suffered catastrophic losses. Most perished — including the second princess of the Elf King, the Elf War Goddess.”

“...Elf War Goddess?”

“Yes... Incidentally, her name was also Teresa. Same as yours,” Diderlay added offhandedly.

Of course, duplicate names weren’t uncommon among Elves. There were plenty of Astrids among the Moon Elves alone. Diderlay didn’t think much of the coincidence.

But at that moment, my fingers twitched slightly.

“The Moon Elves led the survivors to a forest in the southeast — the Forest of Sages, which is today’s so-called Forest of the Elves.”

“At the time, though they mourned the loss of the Sacred Tree and their fallen kin, the Moon Elves were still grateful the race hadn’t been wiped out. We began building anew there.”

“Though this may sound foolish to you, I — and the other Moon Elf leaders — felt that despite our grief, we had made the right decision. The Elf Tribe had survived.”

“The old era was over. A new era had begun. Though wounded, life had to go on. But as time passed, the Elf Mother Goddess punished us — for abandoning our homeland, for abandoning our kin.”

“The longer we were away from the Sacred Tree, the more we felt our affinity with nature, with the forest, slip away.”

“Not only that — we clearly began to lose energy, talent, vitality, even our Divine Authority.”

“For us High Elves, a few centuries meant only a slight decline. But for the other Elves, the effects were devastating — it disrupted their daily lives.”

“Elves call this phenomenon ‘The Fading.’ At first, we thought it was a sickness — something we caught from being in an unfamiliar forest.”

“To cure this ‘plague,’ the Moon Elf King secretly initiated a thorough investigation. The results were chilling: those who had forgotten the Sacred Tree’s form, or believed the Sacred Tree was merely a fabricated symbol created by the Gold Elves to maintain control — they were the ones most severely afflicted. Some even began to visibly age, something no Elf should ever experience.” Diderlay’s voice carried a tinge of remorse.

I listened silently. Alarel stood rigid beside me. Litt, eyes wide, covered her mouth, and quickly checked her reflection in the mirror set inside the tower.

“Though only a minority outright rejected or hated the Sacred Tree, the results were clear. Still, many Moon Elves refused to believe it and continued the investigation — until reality slapped them in the face.”

“Elves who revered the Sacred Tree, who longed for their ancestral home, who kept their faith — were almost completely unaffected. The Fading never touched them. Their hearts were too pure to be eroded by sickness.”

“Stainless and unblemished — that’s how Elves should be.”

“We, the doubters and betrayers, were the stain.”

“The Sacred Tree, our ‘benevolent mother,’ did not forgive us. She showed her wrath not through words but through reality itself: that long life, Divine Authority, unmatched talent, breathtaking beauty, and eternal youth — none of it belonged to us by right. It was all a gift from the Sacred Tree.”

“To sever ties with Her was to surrender Her blessings.”

“This… is punishment,” Diderlay closed his eyes. “The harshest punishment a loving mother could give her wayward children.”

“Since then, I’ve been awakened. I realized how wrong I was — but it was too late to change anything.” He looked at me, eyes dim yet filled with hope.

“I’ve studied the Sacred Tree and the Gold Elves extensively. My theory is this: the Gold Elves still live, and the Sacred Tree endures. The fact that we are weakened, but not dead, is proof.”

“So I’ve been waiting — waiting for the Gold Elves to return, for the Sacred Tree to return.”

“I’ve said so much — surely now you understand?”

“You asked for my motivation to help you. But really, I don’t need one. Even the most selfish Elf, if they have any sense of responsibility, would unhesitatingly choose to protect you.”

“The Gold Elves’ existence directly affects the Sacred Tree’s prosperity. When the Gold Elves were at their peak, the Sacred Tree was at its most flourishing — and the Elf Tribe stood at the height of its power.”

I glanced at Litt, who’d been obsessively checking her reflection. So her little story to me back then wasn’t nonsense after all.

“If that’s the case, then I don’t understand why the other Moon Elves would be a threat to me,” I asked. I couldn’t believe they’d all be blind to the situation.

“Perhaps I worded it poorly. They wouldn’t harm you physically — in fact, they’d never dare. What I meant by ‘threat’ was your personal freedom.”

“At worst, they’ll restrict you. They don’t want you threatening their power. But they also don’t want you wandering and getting hurt — so they’ll likely confine you. From then on, you’ll lose all freedom. Everywhere you go, someone will follow. Lavish as your life may be, you’ll still be a prisoner.”

“We often mock humans for repeating mistakes in familiar places — but are we any better?” Diderlay’s tone turned cold.

“Those stubborn old fools have been corrupted too deeply by power. They’d sacrifice their kin to keep their rule.”

“What about the Moon Elf King?”

“The Moon Elf King? ...I don’t know his stance. But maybe that’s the worst part. If he truly wanted to fix this, why pretend to be blind? You think he doesn’t understand?”

“This may be overstepping, but I advise you not to place your hopes in the Moon Elf King. It’s entirely possible... that he’s one of the people I just described.”

Diderlay had said all this bluntly in front of the other Elves — but their expressions remained calm, as if his harsh words were of no importance.

“What about Astrid?”

“You needn’t worry about Her Highness Astrid. Though she’s his daughter, she’s far more reasonable than he is — and she swore an oath.” Diderlay snorted. “These fools mimicking human schemes — imprisoning their own to preserve power — they’ve forgotten they’re Elves, not some filthy race.”

“Perhaps I’m not one to judge — but those people don’t even want to correct their mistakes. They’ll drag our tribe down a dark road until the end.”

“In any case, Your Highness, where you go is your choice. But do not put yourself in danger. And never reveal your Gold Elf identity.”

“If you’re in trouble — come to me. If it’s within my power, I’ll do everything. If it’s beyond my power — I’ll still do everything.” Diderlay smiled.

“Your appearance is a test and a chance for redemption that the Sacred Tree has granted me.”

“That’s all I wanted to say. If one day you recover your memories and feel like talking, you’re welcome to visit anytime. Think of the Tower of Sages as your personal garden.”

“No outsiders are allowed here. If something happens and unwanted guests arrive, I’ll have Litt notify you immediately.”

I didn’t answer, only nodded slightly, lost in thought.

Diderlay didn’t mind. He had shared a tremendous amount, and with my memory loss, it would take time to process it all.

The broken trust between Gold and Moon Elves would take sincerity and patience to mend. As long as I wasn’t hostile to the Moon Elves, it could be worked out. Diderlay wasn’t in a hurry.

But what I was thinking about wasn’t whether or not to trust the Moon Elves. From his words, I had already reached several conclusions.

For example, if even an Elder like Diderlay didn’t know where the Gold Elves were, then the general Elf population definitely didn’t.

“Lord Diderlay, may I ask — besides me, do you know of any other surviving Gold Elves?”

“If I did, I wouldn’t have gone to such lengths this time.” Diderlay gave a bitter smile. “You’re the only one I know of, which is why I sought you out with such urgency.”

“What about the other Moon Elves? Do they know?”

“That I can’t say. But I doubt it. If they did... I shudder to imagine what they might do.” For power, they might imprison the only surviving kin — Diderlay found the thought abhorrent, yet couldn’t entirely dismiss it.

“Lord Diderlay, may I make a suggestion regarding the Academy?”

“Please do.” Though surprised by the sudden topic shift, Diderlay was willing to listen.

“My Divine Child mentioned that Coleman Academy’s enrollment process includes a soul test, which makes the procedure unnecessarily lengthy. He suggested scrapping it.” I said this in Dylin’s voice, trying to feel out whether Divine Princesses were tested the same way.

“Soul test?” Diderlay’s brow twitched slightly. “What soul test? Our Academy only has a spirit power assessment.”

As I suspected.

I had my answer.

Could it really be true that none of the Moon Elves had any connection with the Gold Elves?

Impossible.

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