Arcane splendor begins with the throne

Chapter 38 The Temple
Brian followed in the footsteps of the village owner Renate, and walked along the narrow path in the village. Under the surprised eyes of many villagers, he came to the deepest green steep slope.

Brian looked around as he walked. The slope of this steep slope was about 75 degrees. Except for the low shrubs, it was almost completely covered with green grass, more like a natural barrier protecting the back of the village.

The clattering sound from above made Brian guess that there was probably a dense bush there.

Just as Brian guessed, he took out a dagger hidden in his leather boots, climbed up the steep slope on hands and knees, and plunged directly into the dense woods.

Brian, who climbed up first, put away the dagger again, patted the dust and weeds on his body, and then took advantage of the time waiting for Renate to carefully look at the surrounding environment.

The trees here are towering, and their straight trunks point straight to the sky, making him look particularly small standing under the trees.

There are few people in the woods, and when you look up, you can see bleakness. The sun shines through the dense leaves and casts dots of circular light spots on the ground. The ground is covered with thick fallen leaves and dead branches, and the feet rustle.

In the distance, unknown birds chirped, dragging their long notes, revealing the silence in the forest.

A breeze blew by, and a few leaves fell from the sky. The surrounding wildflowers and grasses swayed gently, as if the entire forest was whispering.

The woods appear thicker and more tangled than they appear, with undergrowth so densely covered with brush and weeds that there is almost no way around.

Because of this, their walking speed is not fast.

When the two struggled through the tangled woods, they found a small stream flowing down from a mountain not far away. From time to time, wild deer and rabbits could be seen coming out of the woods and running to the river to drink water.

The bed of the creek was deep, the sides were slippery, and it was covered with thorns. What's more, the creek lay across the road they were going to walk, and it was impossible to go around it.

Brian found that it was impossible to pass without being wet by the stream, scratched by thorns, and covered in mud.

However, Renate, who was leading the way, was obviously used to it for a long time. Facing the stream blocking the way, he didn't stop to think about what to do, but chose to wade directly over it.

The two walked along the creek to a place with relatively flat terrain, where the bank of the stream was lowered a lot, and the river became wider and shallower, winding towards a distant swamp and the Grimre River flow away.

Brian and Renate waded through the bitingly cold stream, and quickly walked to an open field with no trees and only reed grass on the other side.

Further on, they entered a strip of woods, mostly tall oak trees, with one or two elm or birch trees mixed in.

The ground here is fairly flat, and there aren't many shrubs, but the trees are so dense that Brian can't see very far.

The sudden gust of wind whipped up bursts of rotting leaves, and the debris of the leaves flew all over the sky, blowing Brian's eyes.

This made him subconsciously tighten the cloak and put on the hood behind him, which made him feel much better.

When the strong wind subsided, they involuntarily quickened their pace, walking through piles of grass and over thick piles of fallen leaves.

During this period, the two did not have any conversation, only Brian looked back or looked around vigilantly from time to time.

Soon, Brian's vigilance was rewarded as the two made their way through the jungle and were about to reach a valley surrounded by ridges.

He saw a vague outline among the leaves, and a figure was carefully looking towards him in the bushes.

Brian lifted his hood, pricked up his ears, and looked around for a moment, only to find that the non-hostile figure walked up the ridge silently and quickly, and behind the figure, two vague shadows appeared again.

Immediately afterwards, there were many figures walking on the ridge. There were a large number of them, wearing forest-colored cloaks, hoods covering their faces, carrying longbows and hanging swords, lined up in a straight line, appearing focused and vigilant.

Brian touched the hilt of the sword and involuntarily quickened his pace.

Under this bright sky, he saw these vague figures file into the jungle, and then merged into the shimmering shadows of the wild forest and disappeared.

Like ghosts, they disappeared without a sound. There was no sound of footsteps, no crisp sound of tree branches being trampled, and even the weapons hanging from their waists did not make a collision sound.

"It seems that you are not surprised by this kind of thing." Brian walked and said something to Renate beside him without thinking.

"I'm used to it." Renate replied with a smile, then looked at the place where those figures disappeared and said, "Are you curious about who they are?"

"It's nothing to be curious about." Brian snorted coldly, his tense expression gradually relaxed, and his palm that was clenched on the hilt of the sword also loosened, "It's just a group of homeless elves."

Although he could not clearly see the appearance of the group due to the distance, Brian could easily determine their true identities based on the oak forest he had just passed and the agility of these people.

The only thing that puzzled him was why these harmless elves appeared here.

Thinking of this, Brian cast his cautious gaze towards the valley not far away.

"That's right." Renat nodded, and continued to ask: "Then do you know why these elves appear here?"

"Protect something." Brian said thoughtfully, looking at the valley.

Renate was surprised by the clean and correct answer of the half-elf in front of him, and then looked towards the direction of the valley with him, sighed and said:

"It is true that they are guarding something here. These elves call themselves the 'Haters'. They are disgusted with the meaningless wars waged against humans by their fellow Blackmans, and they cannot let go of their hatred of humans taking over their own homes. …”

"Then who do you belong to?" Brian interrupted Renate's words rudely, turned around, looked directly into the other person's melancholy eyes with slightly cold eyes, and asked pointedly.

In fact, he had already guessed the answer to this question, and at the same time he understood the purpose of bringing him here.

"Me?" Renate looked stunned when Brian asked him. He was silent for a long time, and then slowly said: "You can think that I share the same problem with these elves."

Brian looked at him indifferently, shook his cloak, turned and walked towards the valley.

Renate looked at Brian's back, a trace of melancholy floated across his rough brows, and followed.

In front of Brian, in the valley where the trees did not block the view, many dilapidated buildings appeared in front of them. They were covered with smooth granite and marble blocks with rough edges.

Strong winds scuffed the building's surface, rain eroded decorative patterns, frost cracked and shattered the stone surfaces, and tree roots that struggled out of the ground broke the stones into fragments.

Between the twisted trees, Brian could still see broken marble columns and arcades gleaming white in the sun, with surviving decorative carvings coiled with ivy and wrapped in thick green moss.

"This used to be a temple of elves." Noticing Brian who was in deep thought, Renat introduced him with ease.

"It can be seen." Brian was silent for a long time before speaking slowly.

(End of this chapter)