"... I see. So the reward for clearing the trials is ancient magic, and the gods have actually been deceiving us all along…" Ulfric muttered aloud as he was being debriefed by both Ivan and Yue.
The only thing the two gave him was Oscar's message at the end of the dungeon, what liberators are, and that an ancient magic lies at the end for those worthy. He purposely neglected to specify what kind of magic but seeing as Ulfric knew better than to pry for secrets he nodded with content.
And as he had expected the reason the beastmen were somewhat accommodatable to the two is because of that ancient law spoken of before. A law passed down from elder to elder by the creator of the Haltina Woods labyrinth herself, Lyutilis Haltina. The law stated that anyone who appears before them with a crest belonging to any of the Seven Great Labyrinths were to be allowed unhindered movement to whoever bore it within the sea of trees.
Uflric even went on to state that the symbol shown on Oscar's ring matched the one he had seen on a tablet near the Grand Tree. This made both Yue and Ivan perk up as they instantly knew they were on the right track.
That's when a commotion broke out on the floor beneath them, as Yue and Ivan were in talks with Ulfric on the highest floor of his building in a tree. Ivan locked eyes with Ulfric as he remembered that the Haulia were awaiting them on the floor beneath. He stood out of the chair he was seated in and alongside Yue headed downstairs, shadowed by Ulfric who sighed with exasperation.
The party of three were greeted by the sight of a fairly sized group of beastmen glaring angrily at the Haulia tribe. A bearman, a tigerman, foxman, some kind of winged beastman, and some small dwarfish fur covered beastman. Ivan observed the scene before noticing the Haulia grouped up in the corner, with Cam standing in the front holding his arms out as if to defend them.
As the three descended the steps the bearman spoke out.
"Damn you, Ulfric… What were you thinking, bringing a human here!? You even allowed the cursed girl to step foot in our land… Depending on your answer I might have to call for you to be executed at our next elders' meeting."
Ivan hummed to himself as he identified the group of rather lavishly dressed beastmen to all be elders of the council. It seemed Ulfric had called them here together to decide upon a few things. And he knew exactly what it would be they decided upon, there were only two things to discuss after all. The emergence of Yue and himself, and the fate of the Haulia tribe.
"I simply abided by our ancient traditions. You are all elders of your various clans, so you surely must realize my reasons."
"What ancient traditions!? We've never had any use for that ancient law since Verbergen's founding!"
"Then that'll make this a first. Calm yourselves. You all are elders here, you know you must abide by the laws. If we don't set an example as leaders of our people, then what use are any of our rules or traditions?"
Ivan nodded sagely as he felt he could agree to both sides, on one side here stood an enemy of their race that has despised and enslaved their kind for centuries, on the other side there is a responsibility and duty to fulfill the duties one undertook to come to their position, a duty brought forth by the beneficiary of their land.
But of course his sympathy was lessened the moment he was brought into the argument.
"Are you trying to say that little brat really did get through a labyrinth!? That he's too strong for us to fight!?"
"That is correct."
Ivan sighed at the rather cliché development, hoping they'd be able to talk things out civilly. The problem with his abilities is that he can't promise he won't kill someone, as his abilities usually involve burning, freezing or just blowing someone up. That left him in quite the awkward position as the bearman lunged forward at him in rage.
So he looked over at Ulfric apologetically before removing his gauntlets, he turned back to the large bear arm hurling towards him before he met it with his own.
BZZZZZZZT!
Sparks of blue flew in the air as the rest of the onlookers gasped in shock. The bearman, unable to believe the situation, looked at the socket where his right arm should have been.
"Gaahhh!" The bearman screamed in pain as he stumbled back and held his right shoulder with his left hand, in a desperate attempt to stop the blood from flowing out. The rest of the elders broke out of their stupor and assumed their stances upon hearing the blood curdling scream. Each showing off their own special form of martial arts as every pose each elder struck was entirely distinct from each other.
"Calm yourselves, everyone!" Ufric took it upon himself to stand before these two opposing forces.
"Y-You bastard! Jin… Jin was only thinking of what was best for his country!" The dwarven elder, Guze, spoke out with anger. Jin, the bearman, is someone he considers his best friend.
"And I was just thinking of what was best for myself." Ivan responded curtly, though he sympathized with these elders he still had to prioritize the safety of himself and Yue.
Ulfric spoke up before the two sides became heated again. "Guze, I understand how you feel, but Jin had instigated the matter. It was he who took the first swing. Quickly, have his wounds attended to at once before he dies."
Tensions died down as no one was willing to rebuke that Ivan did not possess the strength needed to clear the labyrinth.
"Paracelsus Von Hohenheim. We elders of Verbergen have decreed that you do indeed possess the qualifications spoken of in the ancient covenant. We will not oppose you… and we will implore everyone within our domain not to do so as well."
Ulfric spoke for the rest of his disgruntled fellow elders as he finished his statement with a bow.
However, the relief that gleamed from Ivan's heart as he spoke those words was instantly snuffed as the tigerman spoke. "It's such a pity that no one will be escorting you two through the sea of trees. If I were you I would head home now, no point in getting lost in these woods with this terrible fog."
Ivan was about to refute that statement by exclaiming that he had the Haulia before he remembered the circumstances, as of now the Haulia were still wanted criminals. He knew it'd be unwise to underestimate the pettiness of these old men. It was likely they'd separate him from them so they could be prosecuted.
"Esteemed elders! I beg of you, please show mercy to my family at least! Please!" Shea dropped to her knees as she begged for the lives of her family. Meanwhile Cam and the others seemingly resigned to their fate as they comforted her selflessly.
"Shea, don't. We've already made our decision. None of this is your fault. We're not so heartless that we'd throw away our family to live. Every single one of us talked this over, and we're all prepared. There's no need for you to feel guilty about this." Cam spoke with a kind hearted smile as he stepped forward to hug his crying daughter.
Tears streamed down her face as she blamed herself for her uselessness. 'If only I had tried hard enough,' she thought to herself. Here she was about to take steps toward the future Ivan asked of her and all she could do was cry helplessly as the elders promised death. Before she could give him her answer, she would die.
Ivan looked on at the rather despairing scene with cloudy eyes, no one could guess what was going on in his mind as he heard the cries of Shea and the Haulia. He looked down at his side as he felt a tug emulate from the direction Yue was standing, his eyes locked with hers as he observed her stoic expression.
But the glint in her eyes couldn't be anymore obvious to him, that's right, he still had a promise to upkeep with the tribe. It'd be rather disrespectful of him to blow it off just cause some old guys who don't know a thing about him said so. It's not like he admired the bond between the Haulia family or anything, it's not like he was jealous of it at all.
He stepped forward in front of the Haulia tribe with his arms crossed, opposing the elders that stood across from them. Even Ulfric raised his brow in suspicion upon seeing his action, he couldn't help but get a bad feeling in his heart.
"I apologize for the confusion, elders of Verbergen. But I have a contract with the Rabbitmen of the Haulia tribe to protect them no matter what until we reach our goal. And as you can see we are not standing before the Great Tree, are we? As such the contract is still in effect, any opinions?"
The elders held their breath before looking at each other, hoping one of them would propose a compromise. As their options right now were, go to war with two people who had cleared a never before cleared labyrinth, or diminish their reputation by letting go of a group of criminals they promised the people they'd punish.
Ulfric sighed as he stepped forward. "Then let's just say they are your slaves. According to the laws of Verbergen, any who leave the sea of trees and do not return, or those captured as slaves, are to be considered dead. While we may stand a chance against humans in this fog-enshrouded first, outside of it their magic would tear us apart. Hence why those who are captured are considered dead, and chasing after them is prohibited to prevent there from being more victims."
The other elders spoke out in dissatisfaction, but as Ulfric explained that it was either that compromise or the death of who knows how many beastmen, their anger quelled down. Though the sourness was still quite evident on their faces, a point Ivan tried his best to not laugh at.
"Mhm, by the rule of the council the cursed child Shea Haulia will be considered a relative of the cursed Paracelsus Von Hohenheim. As he had shown to possess the qualities spoken of in our ancient laws, we shall not oppose his presence. However, he will be barred from Verbergen and its surrounding settlements. Henceforth, anyone who takes any action against Paracelsus or his kin does so at their own risk, without the blessing or protection of Verbergen."
Ivan nodded in satisfaction as Ulfric finished his words. He then turned to the group of dazed Haulia before spreading his arms into the air.
"Did you all hear that? It looks like I became part of your family aye, well never mind that it's about time we go. C'mon, before these elders change their mind."
The Haulia all got up from their seated position surrounding Shea before following Ivan out the door. The dumbfounded expressions on their faces were amusing to him to say the least, but it wasn't until they made it to the exit gate of Verbergen that it started to piss him off a little.
"Hey, you're all still my guides so it wouldn't kill you to focus up. Imma need your guys' sense of hearing to detect the monsters ahead. By the way we're gonna have to find a spot to set up for the next ten days, at least somewhere far enough from here and the other settlements if you guys don't want to end up on the chopping block again."
However his words seemed to have no effect as the fourty or so Rabbitmen that had been staring at the sky in a daze turned towards him. He trembled a bit under their stare before flinching as the mob of them inched closer to him. Then with no indicators at all, they all lunged at him for what could only be called a huge dog pile.
"W-WE'RE ALIVE!"
"THANK YOU SO MUCH, PARACELSUS-DONO!"
"I THOUGHT WE WERE GONNA DIE! THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SAVING US!"
He squirmed a bit under their stack as he listened to the cries of gratitude that wrang aloud. Eventually he stopped resisting before returning this extreme hug back to them. Not minding the smug grin Yue showed as she watched in amusement.
Though the stares of beastmen onlookers was quite embarrassing.
It wasn't long until the group had recollected themselves, more chipper than ever. To Ivan and Yue it was like being around 42 Sheas. And while it annoyed them at first, this warm sight of family brought mellow smiles to their faces.
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Queue Dominic Toretto, cause it's time for family. Maaaa~ I just wanted something warm hearted to write about since these past few days haven't been looking too good for me. So in any case the word of the day is 'family.'
Family doesn't have to be those you share the blood of, it can be anyone you consider close to you. Ones you can confide your burdens to. And them back to you. Remember, the blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb. If you don't got anyone you can call family yet, then keep searching. I'm sure you'll one day find someone who understands you.
But hell, what do I know? I wanna thank you all for reading today's chapter. It truly means a lot to me that there are people who find my work enjoyable enough to come this far. Have a great day/night, and stay awesome.
See you guys next time.
Regarding double chapter releases: more info has been posted on my p.a.t.r.e.o.n so please check it out if you're interested.
If you want to support me and read ahead 10-15 chapters, you can check out my p.a.t.r.e.o.n right here: https://bit.ly/ardoaleister
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