I left the girls in the room to attend to this important matter.
Jicniv meeting Anna was equivalent to the meeting between two Monarchs as Decem Hougan was hardly acknowledged as a monarch of the Elf Kingdom after he committed a 'heinous' crime against the Sloane Theocracy, starting a war.
He was a depraved dictator.
To free the Elf Kingdom; I stood firm in my answer to Alana's request. Even if at the moment I didn't have a clue of how I was going to go about it.
Tsunade and Azrael still weren't back and by the looks of it, they weren't coming back any time soon. Tsunade wanted to conquer the whole northern region and put it under my Sun Church, she was a bit too dedicated but once she took the role of a wife, she took it seriously.
She was way too efficient, her networking system was starting to give fruit and Katsuyu would tell me every day about the matters occurring all over the world as she continued to spread. She was, for all intents and purposes, a parasite. Although she didn't need her host to live, she inhabited the host and spread upon contact with the next person.
According to her, so long as Tsunade's sun energy reserves kept being humongous, she'd be able to keep spreading to around a million hosts before she began struggling with communication.
That's something Ains Ooal Gown can't even dream to have, he had started his conquer towards the Argsland-council state, but he was meeting fierce retaliation because apparently, someone had infiltrated E-Rantel and they had a hard time catching that intruder who was actively hunting Ains' servants.
Katsuyu theorised it was someone from the theocracy but this individual was mysteriously able to use spatial and time means, someone even we should be wary of.
The Argland-State Council was in a state of disarray. I already knew the armour I defeated was not the real Tsaindorcus Vaision. After I destroyed it, he got a backlash, the strongest dragon is no longer operative in the council-state.
I inadvertently helped Ains Ooal Gown... and he's bound to help me as well.
…
I arrived at the main hall, and was saluted by Jicniv sitting across from Anna, Alana and the dark elves.
During their stay and before the arrival of my girls, I spoke with the Five Saintesses who have been residing in the castle since. About their life, their convictions and the reasons why they travelled and became adventurers. I wanted to understand their story a bit more.
"I fled with the princess and we ran to a dark elf settlement" Alana told her tale.
There, Alana and Anna made a name for themselves with the sword, bow and their magic skills. They were then introduced to Merluna, Yuna and Nocturna. The three dark-elf sisters who were then an orialchum group registered in the guild of the Sloane Theocracy, disguised.
The dark elf villages are quite isolated. They still needed to get most supplements from the human cities and that's why many groups of dark elves would disguise and emigrate.
Anna and Alana changed their surnames from Blair and adopted the sister's 'Clay', effectively merging into this group. Alana took charge eventually with her skills and wisdom, and the group gained notoriety, becoming what it is today: one of the strongest Adamantine-ranked small groups of mercenaries in the continent.
But contrary to the common objectives of their homologues, the five saintesses only wished the best for their tribe.
"We work hard to supply our village, but the passion burning in my heart for the freedom of the forest elves is not yet forgotten!"
As she said, I could feel Alana's passion. As I heard her tales, I became increasingly vexed.
Elysir, playing her video games as always, once told me elves are the most beautiful race in any fictional world. All their members are pretty or handsome, they're skilled in the arts of nature, usually users of bow and spear. Seeing the five saintesses, I could agree.
I had a hard time admitting it, but Anna Blair, this girl staring at me... is one of the most beautiful girls I have ever seen. And I have seen beautiful women in my life.
Her countenance irradiates nobility.
There is no such thing as an ugly elf, and such a precious country is being stained by a single bastard. No, a group of corrupted noble families who actively support the tyrant for their own benefit. Decem Hougan is just the head of a corruption circle that keeps a nation captive.
If I were to go in and behead him, it wouldn't be enough.
"Your majesty, I have heard your concerns" Emperor Jicniv said after hearing the story of the forest elves. All eyes settled on him.
"Although we hold no diplomatic relationship with the Elf Kingdom, as we don't share borders, and the ministers have been widely aware of the situation between the Elf Kingdom and the Slane Theocracy. I am afraid, given the political situation of the Kingdom, that merely slaying Decem Hougan is not going to be enough to quell the tyrant spirit".
I nodded and ordered him to explain further and give me a solution.
"As I understand and Lady Anna may correct me. The Elves are highly patriotic and self-centred individuals".
"T-That's... correct" Anna sighed, "We don't appreciate outside interference".
"Which is to say, a foreign force illegally entering the Elf Kingdom to slay Decem Hougan, even if a tyrant, could be counterintuitive. We have a strong point in our favour... Lady Anna is here, she could lead a revolution in the Kingdom and be widely accepted as a new postulant for the throne as she is inherently a member of the Elf Kingdom's nobility. The only problem would be... Decem Hougan already though about that".
He made a few hand signs and a minister walked in with some paperwork. He put it on the table for us to read.
The document talked about the 'crimes' of the Blair Family, about possible collusions with the Sloane Theocracy and treason.
"This is all false! My family never cooperated with the Slane Theocracy!" Anna was outraged but Jicniv only sighed.
"It matters not if it is true or not. He knew ahead of time that you had fled the Kingdom and could become a sore spot to his plans, so he neutralised your opportunity of ever attempting to take the throne. It is said that during the first two years of his reign, Decem Hougan created a great name for himself, he was a quite benevolent king. This is a common tactic among crook monarchies. Nobody likes a bad King, so the first thing he did was to create a good image of himself... and a bad image of you".
"..." Alana clenched the paper so hard, it was torn.
"This is a lawful letter shared among monarchies of the continent during the time when diplomatic relationships with Decem Hougan were still manageable. I wasn't the Emperor at that time, my grandfather was. What I'm trying to say is... that even Lady Anna Blair may not be accepted by her people as a legitimate queen even if she were to dethrone Decem Hougan... he has already 'vilified' her".
He put forth another piece of paper. This time Anna stared at it and her eyes watered up.
I read it and was a bit confused by the contents, "What does this mean, Jicniv?".
"Your majesty, you may not know but noble elves don't leave the Elf Kingdom. As elves are usually enslaved by the nobles of the Slane Theocracy, noble eves are highly coveted. Much less someone of this lady's standing, she's a high-ranked noble elf. According to this article which was passed down by the Elf Kingdom's senate during the first years of Decem Hougan's reign. The reason this slaving practice started was all because of the Blair Family's collusion with the Sloane Theocracy".
Those words broke Anna and Alana down. They both started to cry there and then, which only deepened my confusion even further.
"But it is a lie," I said, obviously, so why are they so concerned?
"It is... but as I said, Your Majesty... that matters little. To the eye of the Elves and everyone else in the world; the reason why caught elves are slaved and tortured is because of the treason of the Blair Family who outrightly sold out their comrades to escape the tyranny of Decem Hougan" He stared at the crying Anna.
"What you are witnessing is tears of frustration and anger. If I dare theorise, the one to collude with the Sloane Theocracy to take down the Blair Dynasty, was Decem Hougan".
I frowned, this bastard was getting on my nerves. How could someone be such a scum? This was dirty politics at play.
"M-Mother, father..." Anna Blair cried in Alana's chest, I saw her and I saw her helplessness. I guess the real reason she cries is because while she fled for her life, her household lost all standing and reputation.
She had failed her family.
"Anna Blair, why do you cry?" I asked her.
The forest elf cleaned her tears and stared at me, perhaps thinking I was just a heartless god.
"When you are facing this corrupt bastard... did you expect him to fight fairly? Don't worry, we're going to uncover the truth. Wherever there is falsehood there is always a truth to unveil. I am the sun, isn't it always the sun who brings light in the darkness?".
!!!
"Lord Osiris..." Alana and Anna stared at me with stars in their eyes, I think I said something I shouldn't have. The elves all knelt in front of me the next second.
'That was some great bullshit, you're doing wonderfully, Ray-sama!' Katsuyu praised me in a rather dubious way.
'Katsuyu, that was not bullshit!'
"As expected of Your Majesty Lord Osiris. Have you decided to provide your assistance to the Elf Race? If so, I may have useful information for you" Jicniv said after a slight cough.
"Say it".
"Rather than saying it, it may be easier to show you... please follow me".
...
I had the five saintesses follow me with Jicniv across the empire and into the place where the four gods' sacred church used to be. Some of the remaining priests panicked upon seeing me but we ignored them and walked across the hall to some mysterious door that was locked.
Jicniv took a key out of his robes and opened it, taking us down the stairs down a rather long walk.
As we headed down the stairs, the first to stop was the sorceress, Yuna.
"I feel something..." She mumbled.
"Me too, it is a very familial feeling" Anna confirmed.
"Let's continue... I am sure you may understand once you see it with your own eyes" Jicniv led the way even further down the dark passage.
Eventually we a room that was emitting a rather ethereal energy, I could feel the centre of it all come from a gigantic rock that seemed to be covering an entrance. On this door there were some engraved scriptures in an unknown language, shining in blue tones.
"These are...!"
"A-Ancient Elfic Runes!".
The Five Saintesses went all over analysing the energy and the scriptures. As for me, I looked at them with a cryptic gaze. It is weird, I don't know what they say but I can feel something from that energy. More accurately, I could feel what the individual who wrote it, felt when it was done.
As energy records don't only allow me to see and feel energy in a way that mortals can't... I also can feel the past of that energy up to a certain extent. The stronger I become, the farther I can see.
This person was feeling fear... this person was craving help.
"Emperor Jicniv, what is this place?!" Anna's eyes watered up... I think she too could feel the anguish of this person.
"This is one of the secrets that goes from generation to generation of Emperors of Baharut. According to my late grandfather, whose head I beheaded" Jicniv coughed.
'That detail was unnecessary' We all agreed.
"He stipulated that a hundred years ago, a group of powerful adventurers was sent down to investigate the origin of this dungeon, three adamantine-ranked groups of five, six and ten members respectively. They never returned".
!!!
"Back then, my grandfather used to have a slave dark elf servant who also recognised these characters as antique elfic runes. As such, this dungeon was named the 'Fallen Elf Dungeon' and no one who has ever explored it, has come out of it alive".