Chapter 1101: Elven World

The World Tree stood tall before Alice and for a moment, she held her breath, unable to breathe. Calling it a tree felt disrespectful. It was something far beyond that of a tree.

It felt like a giant anchor of which an entire reality rested upon. Not quite a realm.

Not quite separate.

And yet the Elves have created worlds upon it’s branches. Pathways that stretched across it’s trunk.

The World Tree’s trunk connected the horizons. As far as the eye could see.

The roots that sunk deep into the swirling cosmic abyss below while the branches stretched towards an ocean of violet light. A swirling nebula flickering with sapphire light.

From its roots, strand energy pulsed up and through the tree itself.

Each pulse sent a ripple through the realm, as though this ’shell’ surrounding them was it’s heart.

A paradoxical view where they were simultaneously inside the tree while also observing it from the outside.

Now that she was finally seeing the tree for herself, Alice now understood that it was less of a tree and more of a manifesting of a phenomenon. It felt simply coincidental that it was dubbed as a tree.

Or perhaps it was dubbed so due to the structure of roots and branches.

Glancing down, Alice could sense a myriad of energies flowing through the roots. Each one connected to a different realm. Some were Abyssal, others were holy.

All realms connected by one.

And within that tangled mess... Was the path to the realm of Nightmares.

However, as expected, it had carefully disguised itself. Making it so that not even with Cayla could she spot the ’corrupted’ energy leaking from the tree.

It’s as though everything is as it should be with no issues at all.

A concerning state no doubt.

"If you’re looking for the Grove, it’s the bubble closest to the base of the World Tree. The Grove itself is comprised of two locations. One hidden in the surface realm and one here." Solana explained while leading the way forward.

With this being the ’door’ connected to the Royal family, there were quite a few high ranking guards nearby.

Nothing at the level or Lord but each of them were far stronger than the average six Sigil Hunter.

"You can probably kill them all pretty easily. These guards are the best of the best but they’re just a stop gap to prevent enemies from breaching the capital.

"Against strong enemies, they are decent body bags at best. Each one can buy a second of they’re lucky. Less than a second of the enemy is in a rush." Solana spoke without care.

Even as they passed the guards, she didn’t keep her voice down. But looking at their reactions, it seems like they were used to this.

Alice could only flash them and apologetic smile as they probably had to deal with this on a daily basis.

"We have a few defensive measures against Lords but I’ll be honest, if it ever gets to a point where we do have to fight in here, the realms are f*cked.

"I don’t mean like we’re going to struggle. No, what I meant is that the damage it may cause to the world would be beyond repair. The clash of Lords will no doubt cause the Tree to take damage.

"If the realms start drifting away from one another, I’m sure you can imagine what might happen."

Alice facepalmed. This girl was nothing but a walking warning system of red flags and potential hazards. It was a good warning but the feeling was... Conflicting.

It’s like eating food while someone was whispering the following sentence into your ear.

"Eat slowly, if you choke you’ll die~ what if you bit your tongue and caused blood to spray everywhere?"

The warning was appreciated but there is a time and place for everything!

Regardless, Solana doesn’t seem to have noticed the things she said and she continued onwards.

"There are only a handful of Lords that belong to Elves. Most of us who reach Lord level are automatically scouted for the King’s guard.

"Those that stay behind are mostly elves who are either defectives or staying behind for reasons they can’t change. Agreements with the council of elders for example."

Alice raised an eyebrow, as did Allura and Karya.

"Defective?"

"Mnm. Since we’ve been banished to this place pretty much, it’s inevitable that certain mutations may occur. Changes in the body that makes it difficult for one to survive elsewhere that’s not this realm.

"Think of it as the difference between fish and fish who live in the Abyssal Waters. Both are fish but the latter has experienced mutations and changes due to it’s environment." Solana shrugged.

"So for certain elves, stepping out into the world is no different from slowly running out of breath. Not exactly a charming death so hence they’re defective."

Solana paused.

"The trade off, if you can even call it that, would be they’re strong in a fight so long as they’re in this realm...

"Which is a little counter productive if you really ask me since we don’t want fights of that level near the tree. So in essence, they’re worthless Lords who are at best, a good looking decoration. And at worst, a liability." Solana explained bluntly.

"So! La! Na!" A frustrated voice cut through as a tall elf approached from the distance.

Like Solana, she too had pale green hair. But where they differed was the eyes.

The new woman had eyes that seemed to reflect the realm around then. An ever shifting mixture of violets and sapphire.

And immediately, Alice realised that this was probably what Solana called a defective. A Lord stuck in this realm despite her powers.

Landing near Solana, the woman grabbed the Lord by the back of her jacket and lifted her up.

"How many times do I need to remind you not to say things like that. You have to be aware of what others may think!" She lecturers while Solana had a bored look on her face.

Yet this response only caused the women to look more annoyed as she slapped Solana on the ass.

"I want to file a domestic abuse case..."

"Rejected." The woman huffed before turning to the three.

"I sincerely apologise for my sister’s rudeness. I’ve been trying to correct it since long ago but it’s been no use. She’s just that stubborn about things." She bowed respectfully.

Immediately her attitude gave the group a good impression as she flashed a charming yet professional smile.

"We’ve been notified of your arrangements. While you are here, I will be your guide along with my sister. You may call me Yuna."

"Eww gross. Stop that sis you’re making my skin crawl."

*Puchi!!!

"I don’t know, something about your tone just makes me wanna throw up. It’s disgusting."

"What do you mean? I’m always like this."

"No you’re not. You’re the kind of woman who will lounge around in the house-"

"Sola-"

" -even though work is soon with nothing but a loose tank top and underwear-"

"Sto-"

"-No decorum, barbaric. In essence, a hooligan." Solana concluded despite Yuna trying her best to warm her sister.

"TAKE A F*CKING HINT!!!" Yuna clenched her teeth and grabbed Solana by the mouth before tossing her off the ledge.

"?!?!?!?" Alice widened her eyes.

"AHHhhhhh..." Solana’s voice faded into the distance as concern was written all over Alice’s face.

"She won’t die so easily it’s fine." Yuna grumbled, scratching her hair in frustration.

Taking a deep breath, Yuna tried to compose herself but it was already too late. Her sister had already exposed her behaviour.

"Man what a pain. Again, I’m sorry about how my sister is. She doesn’t really have friends and she got bullied when she was younger. I hope you don’t take offence at anything she said on the way here." Yuna sighed heavily before bowing once more.

"There are several things we need to handle today but would you like to take a break first? Or would you like to explore the realm?" Yuna asked.

Since they rarely had guests, the Leader had already told Yuna to give them a tour if they’re up for it.

With the royals showing them so much favour, it’s only natural for the elves to treat them well.

Looking at one another, it’s clear that having a tour first might be better. If Alice could see the full realm with her own eyes, she’ll get a better idea of how the World Tree is connected to the Void and how best to resolve things.

Requesting a tour from Yuna, her attitude towards things were much better than her sister. Well... It was more outlook than attitude.

With the way the World Tree works, accessing different realms was actually much easier than expected.

Each of the bubbles held a different ’door’ that’ll lead outward and you can only leave or enter with permission from the council.

Anyone leaving will be accompanied by a trusted companion to ensure that all laws are followed and that news on this location doesn’t spread.

Anyone found to have spread information with the intent to harm is subject to a trial and punishment.

As for the times when they would need to Hunt for Sigils, they would disguise themselves as normal human Hunters to avoid any prying eyes.

The most surprising thing that Alice had learned wasn’t their culture or habits. Far from it.

The most surprising fact was that there were only ten thousand elves alive at the moment. Or around that number.

It was a population that could be easily snuffed out with one wrong move and a pissed off Lord.

A situation where they were essentially on the verge of extinction yet at the same time, it was because of these small numbers that they could form a tightly knit community that worked hard to keep everyone safe.