Chapter 128: 122 Emerald Elf

Byrne gently set down the Crystal Dragon egg in his hand, feeling amazed that he actually managed to bring it out of the Spirit Realm.

“I hope your parents won’t come looking for trouble. The Fischer family will help you grow and become strong, as long as you also become a member of the Fischer family.”

Chris, silent and wordless, stared at the Crystal Dragon egg for a long time but did not ask any questions.

He knelt down to carefully examine Baron Leander’s corpse.

Apart from the banknote, potions, flintlock, and miscellaneous items, he also found two Mysterious rare artifacts that Baron Leander carried with him.

“White Eternal Night Flower.”

Its appearance was of a ring ornament where a white flower took the place of the gemstone, a Collectible class Mysterious rare artifact, its effect was to slowly neutralize toxins within the wearer’s body; however, its potency was not high and would be rendered meaningless against powerful poisons.

“Dark Night,” a treasure class Mysterious rare artifact, looked like a black crucifix brooch that, upon being worn and softly uttering “into night,” would activate it— “Dark Night” would automatically become dark blades made of night colors, rapidly attacking all nearby targets with hostile intentions.

The effect of this “Dark Night” was quite good, capable of enemy seeking, with an approximate range of fifty meters, making it a pleasant surprise.

Its only flaw was that its attacking power was not strong and it would be of little use against enemies that could withstand it.

Among the limited number of miscellaneous items, Byrne examined them one by one and eventually found a piece of paper that looked very special.

It was crumpled, as if it had been flipped through many times, but there wasn’t a single word on it.

Well, that was obviously illogical.

After a moment of thought, he then pulled out his own notebook from his chest, which had signs of having been flipped through but also did not have a single word on it; the written text would only gradually appear after being smeared with a certain potion.

“It should be the same principle.”

The Deconstructive Perspective activated, and Byrne’s eyes shimmered with a pale blue light as he fixed his gaze on the blank piece of paper, figuring out that it had been treated with a common alchemy substance to make the writing invisible.

“Heh, simple.”

A faint heat emanated from his palm, and the blank piece of paper was instantly heated, with the previously invisible writing gradually appearing.

The paper featured several peculiar drawings and jumbled words; it was apparent that Leander’s mind was already very unstable as he wrote them.

“Who am I?” “Who is Andersen?” “Why do I often dream about Andersen…,” “That place is not on the Ouden Continent,” “Could it be that Andersen is my past self?” “He is in the Great Glacier!” “No, I must be going mad!”

The writing on the paper became more and more frantic, messy, and Byrne’s brows furrowed as he read, until the last sentence where the handwriting suddenly normalized and the text was much larger than the other words.

“So that’s it, it was Andersen awakening from within Leander; I finally understand everything.”

Andersen awakening from within Leander!

He felt a chill—what on earth could that name signify?

Why exactly did Leander repeatedly mention the name “Andersen”? Even going so far as to say “Andersen” was awakening from within himself?

“Andersen…”

Byrne found it incredible, yet he couldn’t grasp the meaning and could only continue reading. On the crumpled paper, there were several more bizarre drawings.

The first drawing was a large heptagram with an eye full of blood vessels drawn meticulously inside by Leander.

Although he did not understand, Byrne immediately grimaced, feeling a dangerous sensation rising within him just from glimpsing the intention behind the drawing.

“Damn it!”

He closed his eyes, refusing to look any further at the eye within the heptagram, and even hesitated to recall it carelessly.

“What exactly is that?”

Byrne felt a residual fright but still looked at the second drawing, which was a slender hand with spread fingers that seemed to belong to a woman, with the palm cut open and blood flowing continuously from it.

“What does this mean now?”

The last drawing was a mixture of an upright triangle and an inverted one, with three curved lines beside it symbolizing water, like waves.

He finally shook his head, sighing, “Such strange drawings; none of them make any sense. Baron Leander, you really were one to pose riddles.”

Suddenly, Chris extended his hand without expression and pointed solemnly at the “ferocious eye” in the first drawing.

“I, have seen It.”

He paused, then continued, “And then, the Lord of the Lost saved me.”

It?

Byrne immediately fell into thought; the oppressiveness brought about by the first drawing was actually stronger than the latter two, as if it directly pointed to some powerful and terrifying Evil God.

Even though the great Lord of the Lost would definitely be more powerful than It, the modest Fischer family should still be cautious, better not to provoke such powers, as the secret organizations that worshipped It were certainly not to be trifled with.

As for Leander, who had died once in the Spirit Realm, what he had come into contact with to learn about them, and whether that was why he went utterly mad, Byrne had no idea.

“What a pity, he died carrying so many mysteries.”

Byrne shook his head, put away the paper, and decided not to think about it anymore. It was time to leave this place, and the division of the Mysterious rare artifacts would have to wait until the family meeting.

He gazed at Baron Leander’s corpse and stated resolutely:

“Leander’s subordinates will come looking for him soon; we must dispose of the corpse first, otherwise, it would be bad if undead or prophecy-type spellcasters found the body.”

Byrne raised his hand, unleashing flames to incinerate the body, then left with the Crystal Dragon egg, as the two of them took the various remains of the corpse to a hidden and secluded place for burial.

Just then, Chris suddenly felt something was amiss, as if he were being watched by someone in the shadows.

“…”

He took out a strand of light green hair from his small bag and used “Tracking Senses” to identify the faint traces of presence contained within it.

Chris saw the light green traces of aura winding in circles in mid-air, stretching continuously until they reached the top of a tree some hundred meters away.

Hmm?

He whispered softly into Byrne’s ear, informing him of the issue with that tree.

Byrne slowly rose to his feet, his gaze fixing on the distant tree. After preparing thoroughly for battle, he said coldly:

“No need to hide any longer, elf lady who has turned herself into a tree.”

Both brothers’ gazes were fixed on that tree, not leaving it for a long time, until finally, the tree gradually began to transform within their view.

Byrne was slightly startled, the elven girl he had never forgotten once again appeared before his eyes!

Her features were delicate and gentle, her demeanor serene, her tall figure, her light green hair cascading like a flowing waterfall, unusually bright eyes filled with wisdom, her pure and pale skin.

She was still as beautiful as he remembered!

But now he was prepared for battle, ready to deliver a fatal attack the moment the elf showed any sign of hostility.

The elven girl gazed at them both for a long while before she slowly began to speak:

“Eastern Cyart people, I am an elf from the land of constellations in the west, you may call me ‘Marzo’.”

Her voice was soft and ethereal, giving off an extraordinary and otherworldly feeling.

Marzo?

Byrne and Chris exchanged glances, both finding it to be a very peculiar name.

She was a communicative elf, not a lurking enemy. Since they could communicate, the likelihood of a battle being triggered was vastly reduced.

However, he didn’t move closer rashly, instead, he calmly smiled and steadily said:

“Madam Marzo, the emerald elf, I am the patriarch of the Fischer family from Nasir Town, Baron Byrne. This forest belongs to the Fischer family’s territory, please provide an appropriate reason for your unauthorized intrusion here.”

Marzo pondered for a moment, bowed slightly with a hint of apology, and said very politely:

“I see, I was under the impression that this land had no owner, my apologies.”

“I need to forage for my own food and extraordinary materials in the forest, and I do not wish to leave this place just yet. Baron Byrne, how about we make a deal?”

Byrne quietly recalled the knowledge within his mind; emerald elves have a highly civilized social system and are accustomed to negotiating problems.

He nodded and continued to ask, “We can do that, Madam Elf, but I do not know what you wish to trade for the temporary right of residence?”

Marzo narrowed her beautiful eyes and promptly replied:

“I can hide the fact that you just killed that man, ensuring the secret won’t be leaked. How about that?”

She indeed knew the cause of Baron Leander’s death.

Byrne, being cautious, began to contemplate, his wariness towards Marzo growing inside him.

Marzo continued to speak, “Furthermore, I also promise not to disclose the secret of that cave.”

She even knew about the cave leading to the Spirit Realm!

The hostility deep within Byrne’s heart grew even stronger. He was no longer the naive youth of his early years, and considering the need for secrecy, it would be best to capture or, preferably, kill the elf before him.

“What do you think of my offer?”

Suddenly, a dazzling green light appeared in Marzo’s eyes, and all the surrounding trees rustled. Byrne and Chris immediately felt as if they were surrounded by numerous enemies from all directions, and the whole forest seemed as though it could transform into a frenzied force to become their deadliest foe in the next moment!

The elf’s power was very strong, comparable even to William Garcia, and her strength in the forest could nearly reach high-level Transmutation.

If a battle broke out here, the best outcome for the brothers would be a lucky escape; defeating her was an impossibility!

Byrne made a decisive judgment and smiled subtly, nodding as if he had trusted her from the very beginning.

“As a civilized man, I am happy to negotiate. The deal is on, Madam Marzo! Please swear by your god, emerald elf!”

“Very well.”

Marzo began to smile faintly, her stunning eyes swirling with a hint of mockery, as if she had seen through the human thought changes hidden deep within their hearts.

She then spoke again.

“Additionally, I wish to entrust you with an important task. I need your family to help me find something called ‘New Green Constellation,’ a sacred object venerated by generations of emerald elves containing immense power, which is now under the control of the Stars Embrace Order.”

The Stars Embrace Order?

Byrne hadn’t yet responded when Chris, who had been silent, suddenly had a solemn look in his eyes, recalling the black text on the body of the old man in the mine.

Embrace the constellations!