Otherworld TRPG Game Master-Chapter 259: Elven Forest Warlock -1

The scene unfolds deep within the Elven Great Forest.

A young man and a crow were walking along a forest path. The Great Forest was by no means friendly to humans, even as a lie. The vegetation was so dense that it was difficult to move, and the area was teeming with all sorts of poisonous creatures.

Every few steps, a venomous snake would strike, cunning beasts lurked, waiting to pounce from behind, and by the time you realized it, leeches carrying plague would be clinging to your skin—this was nature's own hell. Any adventurer foolish enough to enter the Great Forest would lose their life within a day.

"Ugh, this is annoying."

The fact that they were walking through such a treacherous place without concern proved their uniqueness.

A crow with ominous red eyes opened its beak and spoke.

"Bennett, I detect the scent of water at eleven o'clock. I also smell the distinctive scent of a mammal’s milk. If there are intelligent life forms in this forest... we may soon encounter their civilization."

"...Could you speak more plainly?"

"Is there beauty without elaboration? Pay a little more attention to aesthetics, Bennett. It is one of the most precious legacies of sentient beings."

"This is driving me crazy."

The young man, called Bennett, sighed in exasperation at the crow’s long-winded speech.

This talking crow was originally a human known as the "Mad Mage," who claimed that due to "unspeakable reasons," he had taken the form of a bird.

Bennett suspected that the crow had been cursed for blaspheming a goddess. The crow's last act as a human had been to trick the goddess to halt a divine punishment, so the logic was sound. In that sense... it was fortunate that the curse had merely turned him into a crow.

The crow, Mima, seemed to retain his intelligence and could still perform simple illusion magic, albeit in a weakened state. Other than his suspicious speech, not much had changed.

"I’m in the mood for seeds for lunch today. It would be delightful if we could find some sunflower seeds. Of course, you’ll peel them for me, won’t you?"

"..."

Bennett sometimes worried that the crow actually believed he was a bird...

But Mima had mentioned there was a way to return to his original form, so for now, Bennett chose not to worry about it. They had a more pressing goal: escaping the Great Forest.

This content is taken from freёnovelkiss.com.

They needed to find a way out of this vast forest and return to the Holy City.

It wasn’t an easy task. They had been wandering the forest for three days now, and even when Mima flew high to scout, there was no sign of human territory.

They must have been teleported to a particularly deep part of the forest.

How long would it take to get out? Bennett wiped the sweat off his cheek with the back of his hand when...

"Wait, Bennett."

The crow snapped its beak in a warning.

"...Did you find something?"

"Yes. I’ve found hair caught on a branch. It appears to be body hair. It’s blonde and, judging by its thickness and strength, likely human. The condition seems relatively healthy."

"You can tell all that from a single strand?"

"Yes, it’s a basic skill of a mage. You may skip the praise, Bennett. Two days ago, my deductions revealed that this is indeed the Elven Great Forest. Therefore, the one who left this behind is likely—"

Swaaaash—thwack!

An arrow embedded itself in the tree trunk.

Bennett calmly looked up at where the arrow had come from. He recognized it as a warning shot.

Perched on a high branch, silhouetted against the light, was a figure aiming a bow.

An elf.

The elf wore a natural ghillie suit woven from leaves and branches, so it was difficult to spot them without focused attention.

Only after close inspection could one see the pointed ears and glimpses of pale skin.

The elven archer, arrow nocked, spoke menacingly.

"...Human. How did you trespass into this sacred forest?"

"Oh, fair maiden of the forest, race that sings the whispers of nature. We harbor no hostility or ill intent. The only reason for our presence here is an unfortunate accident."

"A talking crow...?"

The elf was taken aback by the talking crow's eloquence, and Bennett took the opportunity to calmly explain their situation.

"We were caught up in a magical experiment that led to an involuntary teleportation. All we want is to leave this place and return to the human world. If you could just point us in the right direction, we’ll leave on our own."

"I don’t believe you. Did the humans send you to infiltrate our territory? Are you a scout?"

"If that’s your suspicion, there’s nothing I can do to prove otherwise. But I’m telling the truth."

"...No, you’re too suspicious! If you’re truly innocent, you’ll have to come with me to our outpost. We’ll perform a mind probe, and if you’re clean, we’ll let you go."

The elf's eyes were full of suspicion.

Bennett had heard that wild elves were highly distrustful of other races, but he hadn’t realized they were this cautious. He exchanged glances with Mima, and they decided to accept the elf’s offer.

Wandering the forest aimlessly seemed less favorable than being investigated in an elven village.

"Very well."

"...If you try anything suspicious, I’ll shoot you!"

"Oh, young lady, why are you so wary? Bennett here is unarmed, and I’m just a talking crow."

"Can’t you tell how suspicious that sounds?"

Can you?

Bennett glanced at his reflection in a nearby puddle.

A young man with ash-gray hair, with one side covering a scar on his face, wearing a swordless scabbard, with a crow perched on his right shoulder.

...Admittedly, he did look a bit suspicious.

The crow cackled.

"Aha. We do look like a dark sorcerer, Bennett. If you squint your eyes, the image would be perfect."

"It’s because of you."

"No, Bennett. You’re suspicious-looking on your own. I may have contributed to the atmosphere, but your appearance alone is enough. Shall we ask? Miss Elf!"

"...Stop talking and follow me quietly!"

Bennett sighed and followed the wild elf.

After about three hours of walking, Bennett arrived at a hidden wild elf settlement concealed between the trees.

Hammocks hung between trees, and roofs were made of leaves. The settlement seemed more like nature than civilization. There were almost no artificial elements, making it difficult to recognize this as an elven village at first glance.

"...It’s closer than I thought. And better camouflaged."

"With this setup, nothing would be visible from above."

It was clear why Mima hadn't spotted anything during his aerial reconnaissance.

Elves moved about on the branches and between the trees. They wore clothes made of leaves, almost naked by human standards.

"..."

However, they didn’t seem to feel any shame in their near-nudity. The only emotion present was their wariness of the stranger.

Mima spoke.

"Bennett, do you know the difference between wild elves and civilized elves?"

"Not really. I’ve never been interested."

"I’ve heard from a Bureau agent that the minds of wild elves are connected through the World Tree. They can read each other's thoughts, living almost like a colony of ants."

"...Connected minds?"

Mima clacked his beak as if to express how fascinating it was. The distinction between wild elves and regular elves was the presence of this connection.

The term "wild elf" was a somewhat derogatory one, given by humans who viewed them through a human lens.

Wild elves were deeply connected to each other, but they were also fiercely xenophobic towards other races whose thoughts they couldn’t read. They were wild and fierce, not unlike beasts in the eyes of humans.

"They’re probably going to use the World Tree’s power to read your mind. To see if we truly have no ill intentions."

"If that’s the case, then we should be able to leave the forest without any misunderstandings."

"Who knows?"

"...?"

A subtle movement of mana occurred within Mima’s body, something so delicate that even Bennett could barely sense it despite being in direct contact.

From this manipulation emerged a whisper that only Bennett could hear.

-Try to observe discreetly. Look at the second tree from the front, to the left. Can you see the elf on the branch?

Yes.

Flowing blonde hair, a small build compared to the other elves, barely covered with leaves. But something was off about her eyes.

If that was all, it wouldn’t have been alarming. But what was Mima trying to point out?

-Look closer. Focus on the movement of her muscles. And her breathing. Isn’t it oddly fascinating?

Breathing, huh?

Judging by the rise and fall of her chest, her breathing was unnaturally slow, as if she were in a deep sleep.

The muscles on her skin seemed to swell and contract strangely whenever she adjusted her balance on the branch.

Once the oddity became apparent, it was clear that something was wrong. Even someone not as sharp as Bennett would sense the unnaturalness—how disturbing it was.

Was it some kind of disease or a curse?

-No, no. That wild elf is being controlled while in a sleep state. And I know of a dark mage capable of such a feat...

Faceless. An assassin from the Redburn family who could manipulate the bodies of others at will.

Mima had detected her presence.

Was she also caught in the goddess’s "forced expulsion" and ended up in this elven group by chance? What was she planning by taking over the body of a wild elf? It was unclear.

But her means and purpose were certainly malevolent.

-What do you think, Bennett?

What do you mean?

-Will you turn a blind eye to injustice and focus on returning to the Holy City? Or will you intervene? The decision is yours.

"..."

Bennett wasn’t the type to let injustice bother him. He moved to protect what he wanted to protect. And right now, getting back was a priority—there was no reason to cause a commotion.

Moreover, the dark mage had taken over an elf’s body. Even if Bennett called her out, the other elves would dismiss him with a sneer. An arrow might follow.

But...

Would she leave him alone? Would the dark mage, faced with an unexpected outsider, simply let him go?

This was... a preemptive strike for self-defense.

Bennett silently conveyed his intention to thwart the dark mage's scheme to Mima, who responded with a satisfied caw.

And then...

"You, foreign human! You lecherous pervert, where do you keep looking?!"

"What?"

"You’ve been staring at Lyra this whole time. You disgusting lecher!"

The wild elf scolded him with a look of disgust.

While the elves themselves might not feel shame about their attire, they certainly felt the other emotions. Bennett had been staring at the young girl for quite a while, and it was easy to imagine how that might have looked.

"...It’s a misunderstanding."

"We’ll see about that. If your thoughts are impure, we’ll cut off your manhood and use it as fertilizer! Step up to that tree!"

-Didn’t I tell you to observe discreetly? You’re not very good at this, are you?

"..."

Bennett was subjected to a mind probe.

The wild elves used the power of a World Tree sapling to look into Bennett's mind and, after confirming that he indeed harbored no ill intentions, accepted him as a guest.

"Welcome! It’s been a while since we had a human guest. You can stay the night if you like!"

"...Didn’t you have a bow aimed at me just a moment ago?"

"That was then, when you were an outsider. Now, you’re a guest."

After the probe, the elves treated Bennett warmly, noticing that his mind was filled only with thoughts of Tara, Niole, and his younger sister.

Given his unchanging demeanor despite being surrounded by scantily clad wild elves, it was no surprise that they started to view him favorably.

"So how did this story turn into being chased by an Elven Ranger?"

"Because I half-stole a wild elf’s sacred relic."

"...Half-stole? You mean, you only took part of it?"