Lu arrived at the Vin Tower's location along with another group of Elves. Yet this time, he did not go to search for more, instead, he followed them inside.
His hands were slightly sweaty as he smuggled himself into the tower.
'This place is uncomfortable…'
He did not have any good memories about this place, his legs were trembling as he stepped inside.
However, it was not the time to pay any attention to that.
'Gotta focus. I can sense that punk here.'
Lu took a deep breath, then ventured into the Vin Tower. He passed through the round corridors downwards, and reached the underground basement.
With each step, the pressure on Lu became stronger. The unpleasant feeling in his heart multiplied once he arrived there.
Although the place was now filled with Elves only, the space overlapped with what he remembered.
'Mother.'
The 14 years old Lu froze in place, feeling himself about to drown. Though, he quickly collected himself back again.
'Idiot, not the time. Breathe.'
He forced his Elements and his mental condition to be back to normal as much as he could, and then pushed those unpleasant memories away.
'Don't be an idiot, Lu. Not the time yet.'
"Today, I have gathered you here to tell you something."
The Chief stood up in the middle of the basement and extended his hands in front of him as he spoke.
Seeing that, Lu glared at him fiercely. If looks could kill, the Chief would have been dead millions of times by now.
'That punk…'
Although Lu could call him dad outside, he could not do it here. In this place, where his mother's memory was floating, Lu only wanted to kill that bastard.
'In the most painful and disgraceful way ever. I'll make sure of it.'
Unconsciously, Lu's bloodlust sparked at that moment, causing his control over the Elements to flicker for a second.
The Chief felt something and looked at the place where Lu was standing, making him flinch.
'Damn it! Did he notice me?!' Lu desperately concealed his presence and froze in place.
Although the Chief was way stronger than him, when Lu was using his Elements, he could conceal his presence from everyone.
Unless the said person was stronger than the Elements itself.
Thankfully, that was not the case here. Despite the strength of the Chief, he was still considered weak against the mighty Elements.
Seeing nothing and feeling the previous sensation's disappearance, the Chief squinted his eyes then decided to continue on with his speech. Which made Lu relieved beyond belief.
"Unfortunately, a war seems to be a must."
"Huh?"
"What?"
"Chief?!"
"How is that-"
"Didn't the Tree of Life decide to help us again?!"
The Chief's words sent the crowds into uproar, and then, one noticed something and took a step forward.
"Chief, I don't get you. In addition, why are we only here? There is no single Dark Elf between us…"
The person who noticed this was the female Elf that Lu encountered with her brother and their friend. Her hesitation was clear, but her bravery to point this out was outstanding.
'She got a point… Why is this bastard deciding to commit to war? And why is this gathering without any Dark Elves?'
The Chief smiled softly and spoke as if he was talking with a child.
"I understand your concerns, but do not worry. This is the request of the Tree of Life. And naturally, I could not bring any traitors here."
'What?'
Lu almost could not believe his ears, and he was not the only one. Many people voiced out their confusion and worries, making the Chief silence them with a gesture.
"The Tree of Life had informed me, the ones who started the series of our Village's misfortune was none other than those Dark Elves that we had sheltered…"
'This motherf-'
Lu was trembling, his heart was seething. He wanted nothing more than to jump on the Chief and strangle him to death.
The ones who had started the attacks on the village were definitely not the Dark Elves, and Lu was deeply aware of that fact.
Why?
'I asked that boy to send someone to do it, and I'm sure he's not an idiot to send a person who would be caught.'
The Chief was just framing them, creating perfect lies, fabricating the most interesting stories to suit his motives.
"The Tree of Life has asked me to personally clear these doubts that you all may have, and to unite the forest."
"Chief, leaving the Dark Elves' matter behind, what do you mean by uniting the forest? That is impossible!"
The female Elf showed no hesitation to ask more, and for some reason, she herself seemed to be as desperate as Lu to get those answers.
The Chief, however, seemed to appreciate that curiosity as it allowed him to play his act more.
"Uniting the forest will never be easy… However, it is what the Tree of Life's wishes. We will have its blessings and we will be able to do it-"
The female Elf could not stay silent as she objected, "But that's a war! We can't do that!"
Seeing her agitated like that, her brother and her friend also chimed in.
"A war means that so much blood will be wasted…"
"We can't simply destroy the relationships between the three villages, can't we just solve it peacefully-?"
"Naive!"
A clear voice had stopped the commotion that was about to occur, it was Rian who arrived later than expected.
Her outfit was torn and ruined, her body was battered with injuries and a big scar on her forehead was oozing blood.
Her appearance made the crowd gasp and fall silent, allowing her to continue her words.
"A war was inevitable. The other villages did not want this peace to last, and despite knowing that, we tried."
She approached the Chief and stood next to him, facing the crowd.
"I am the evidence that a war can no longer be avoided. And so, today, we mark the start of this war!"
The Chief nodded in satisfaction and added, "And the first step would be eliminating every single Dark Elf that resides in our Rami Village."
Both Lu and Rian flinched and grimaced, but no one had noticed any of that.