WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Order

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Chapter 131: Parent of the Elves (8)

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Six fingers broke without any warning.

"Ghk...!"

Marcus's eyes widened as he ground his teeth and let out a muffled groan.

Marcus's life hadn't been as harsh as Elbridge's.

Still, his more than ten years as a Mercenary hadn't been easy. There had been many times when his life was in danger and many times when he had been seriously injured.

Through countless experiences, Marcus had learned that thoughtless screams had a terrible effect on morale.

The inexperienced Pre-Sentinels weren't as accustomed to pain as Marcus, though, and they didn't understand how their screams affected those around them.

"Aaaah!"

The two Pre-Sentinels beside Marcus screamed at the top of their lungs.

Those waiting at the edge of the forest seemed to shrink back.

But it wasn't over yet. Before the elves' screams had even died down, their out-of-control index fingers broke their thumbs as well. The Pre-Sentinels screamed even louder.

Rombel shouted.

"Hold out your hands!"

The two Pre-Sentinels reflexively held out both hands, trusting Rombel to somehow relieve their pain.

But Rombel had little interest in the elves' suffering. All that mattered to him was responding efficiently.

Slice.

Rombel swung his massive axe with precision and severed their index fingers.

The two Pre-Sentinels' pale, slender fingers fell to the ground. A short distance away, two thick dwarf fingers rolled across the ground.

Those fingers then wriggled as if they were alive, trying to crawl away.

"Tch."

Rombel frowned and crushed the index fingers beneath his foot.

Crunch.

Now that the Owner of the Index Finger had appeared, index fingers were uncontrollable enemies rather than parts of their own bodies.

It was better to destroy the severed fingers immediately. They could regenerate the missing fingers once the battle was over.

Rombel then looked at Marcus. There was no need to cut off Marcus's fingers, though.

Marcus had set his sword on the ground, stepped on its hilt, and severed his own index finger.

Elbridge crushed his own finger underfoot and muttered.

"Of all things..."

The Owner of the Index Finger was a demon infamous even two hundred years ago.

It had only one ability: controlling index fingers.

The Owner of the Index Finger had first become known because its ability sounded laughable at first.

Yet it hadn't taken long for mockery to turn into infamy.

In the past, the Owner of the Index Finger had destroyed two cities and caused the loss of more than a hundred Paladins. The number of civilians killed and small villages destroyed was impossible to count.

Though the Owner of the Index Finger could move only a single finger, its effects didn't stop there. As Marcus and the elves were experiencing now, the first step was rendering every finger useless.

And once a hand lost all its fingers, it lost most of its value. What use was a hand that couldn't hold a weapon or make a fist?

Yet even that was only the beginning.

After all the fingers were lost, the next stage was the wrist.

"W-What's happening?!"

An elf waiting in the forest cried out.

Elbridge looked back. That elf's index finger was bent sharply downward, viciously scraping at their palm and wrist.

No, digging into them would be more accurate. It would certainly come to that soon enough.

And deep wounds to the wrist could lead to severe bleeding, and eventually death.

If they did nothing, the damage would only grow worse.

"Move!"

All five of them, Elbridge, Rombel, Marcus, and the two Pre-Sentinels, ran into the forest.

"Hold out your hands if you don't want to die!"

Elbridge's sword and Rombel's axe soon cut through the air. The elves' delicate, slender fingers were severed and scattered across the ground.

Elbridge checked their condition. Almost none of them had a single intact finger left.

The one fortunate thing was that someone had reacted before it was too late.

Jin had cut off only two fingers. His other fingers were fine.

Jin spoke to Elbridge.

"Elbridge."

"Yes, sir."

"I've only heard bits and pieces about the Owner of the Index Finger. This is my first time seeing it in person. Tell me everything you know about it."

Elbridge was inwardly impressed.

Jin had heard only the cry of "Owner of the Index Finger" and immediately cut off his own fingers. It was an astonishing decision.

"Rombel knows more than I do. I've fought the Owner of the Index Finger myself, but Rombel, not I, took part in the battle that sealed it."

Rombel spoke as he stomped on the wriggling fingers on the ground.

"We've cut off all the index fingers, so we've passed the biggest hurdle. But we need to end this battle as quickly as possible."

"Because of the bleeding?"

Rombel shook his head and answered quickly.

"No. The index finger demon can regenerate index fingers quickly. The real danger comes when people can't overcome their exhaustion and fall asleep. Index fingers will grow from the hands of those who are asleep, then crawl across the ground. The fingers will gouge out their owners' eyes. They'll grab the people beside them by the throat and tear at them. That's when the real casualties begin."

To improve the efficiency of their divine power, gods impose restrictions on the conditions under which it manifests.

The same logic applied to demons' abilities.

Few demons had placed such severe restrictions on their abilities as the Owner of the Index Finger.

But in exchange, it had gained near-perfect control, the ability to interfere with many people at once, and influence over a wide area.

Jin asked, "Surely the same problem hasn't happened deeper within Thornbush Forest?"

"The Owner of the Index Finger's ability affects a wide area, but... it shouldn't reach that far. Not yet."

Not yet meant that someday it might. Jin's expression hardened.

"We must deal with it as quickly as possible before the damage grows."

At that moment, a memory surfaced in Elbridge's mind.

"...We need to subdue it as quickly as possible for another reason too."

"Is there a special reason?"

"The index finger is the second finger. And the second implies the existence of a first."

"Don't tell me..."

"Yes. The Owner of the Index Finger brings another demon onto the battlefield."

Bringing in another demon. That had been the single biggest reason it had been so difficult to defeat the Owner of the Index Finger in the past.

Elbridge recalled the dark red well that Mudpit had formed as it melted away.

The well hadn't closed even after it spewed out the Owner of the Index Finger. It was as if it were ready to spit out a second demon.

"A new demon will appear. The dark red well underground... We need to close that passage."

"Right. It already seems to be happening."

Elbridge looked back. A massive cluster of plants had sprung up and spread through the surrounding area.

The Owner of the Index Finger was leaning leisurely against the plant-type demon.

'A plant-type demon.'

It seemed to be one of the demons he had seen over two hundred years ago. Yet he couldn't remember its name or even its traits.

Fuzzy memories were a good thing. It meant it hadn't been particularly dangerous.

'The common trait of plant-type demons is claiming space.'

The enormous plant-type demon was swelling in size at a tremendous rate even now.

Its form was already closer to a small forest than a tree or vine. If nothing else, its growth rate was faster than that of any plant-type demon Elbridge had ever seen.

'It seems we're already a little late.'

Jin fired an arrow into the sky.

Thwang!

The arrow became a ray of light and plunged toward the ground.

Thwack!

Just as it had pierced Mudpit earlier, Jin's arrow pierced the index finger demon this time as well.

One of the Pre-Sentinels shouted.

"Did we get it?"

Elbridge felt tempted to smack the back of the Pre-Sentinel's head.

Sure enough, Jin muttered softly.

"Damn. My aim was off."

Archery was an extremely precise art.

No matter how skilled Jin was, he couldn't perform perfectly after losing his index finger.

"I hit it, but it wasn't fatal."

Before Elbridge and Rombel could move, the plant-type demon had become a complete forest.

If nothing else, its growth rate was exceptional even among countless plant-type demons.

Elbridge and Rombel looked at each other briefly and reached the same conclusion.

"At this point, I think we should wait a little."

"I agree."

Jin asked Rombel, "Didn't you say just now that we had to finish this as quickly as possible?"

"The index finger is the second finger. The Owner of the Index Finger has always brought only one demon onto the battlefield. I don't think the situation will worsen rapidly, so... it'll be better to prepare thoroughly and approach it more carefully."

Elbridge and Rombel had remained calm from beginning to end in the face of the demons' appearance.

Jin understood that, just as he took pride in his own experience, he should respect Elbridge and Rombel's. Their careers were no ordinary thing, either.

"Let's do that."

* * *

Jin, Rombel, and Sonia remained at the edge of Thornbush Forest in case anything happened.

Everyone else, meaning Elbridge and the Pre-Sentinels, returned deeper into Thornbush Forest to report the situation.

Elbridge glanced at the hands of the elves traveling with him.

If he could, he wanted to pray to the Goddess of Spring Rain and Moss and ask her to heal all their broken fingers.

But that was impossible.

Even receiving divine power from the Goddess of Spring Rain and Moss as someone who wasn't her believer was severely inefficient.

If Elbridge wanted to heal someone else rather than himself, there was a high chance that the Goddess of Spring Rain and Moss wouldn't grant him divine power at all.

No matter how close the two goddesses were, there were limits.

Before long, they saw the white sacred tree. As expected, Bella and Orion were beside it.

Unlike usual, though, quite a few elves had gathered around the two Sentinels. Perhaps they had gathered near the most dependable Sentinels to ease their anxiety.

"They're back!"

The elves brightened when they saw the Pre-Sentinels and Elbridge.

But the next moment, they noticed that no one's hands were intact and froze.

"Their hands..."

Orion approached Elbridge and asked, "Have you defeated the demon?"

Elbridge shook his head.

"Not yet. We need Lady Bella and your help."

Starting with that, Elbridge explained everything that had happened.

When they eliminated Mudpit, two demons appeared, and the Owner of the Index Finger hid within a small fortress.

They needed to surround the area so the Owner of the Index Finger couldn't escape, break through the fortress created by the plant-type demonic beast, kill the index finger demon, and close the passage Mudpit had created.

There were too many tasks to carry out at once, so they needed every capable person they could get. Jin and Orion's help would make things much easier.

After hearing the explanation, Orion readily rose.

"Let's go."

Bella was different, though. Anyone could see that she wasn't pleased.

"Elbridge. Could you wait a moment?"

"Of course."

Bella stood and walked to one corner, then began moving her lips as she muttered something.

At a glance, she seemed to be speaking to herself while organizing her thoughts.

But Elbridge could easily guess that intense prayers and oracles were being exchanged between Bella and the Goddess of Thornbush.

Hiding the contents of the prayers and oracles from the other elves meant they were discussing something they couldn't be proud of.

'I think I know what they're saying...'

Elbridge stole glances at Bella's lips.

'Normally, I would go right away. But listen, my child. The demon is outside Thornbush Forest. Mother is in a difficult position.'

'My, if you say that, what does it make your mother and father? If your mother and father simply wanted to live a long time, we would have Ascended instead of letting you Ascend.'

'Mother is old and tired now. If I could have my way, I would return to nature. But I'm worried about you, and I love you so much that I still can't leave.'

'I've cared for you for over three thousand years, and instead of thanking me... You know Mother's birthday was last month, right? I thought you might at least send down an oracle, but you didn't say a word...'

'Once Orion improves enough for me to entrust you to them, I'll leave on my own. When you say things like that, Mother feels hurt...'

Bella wanted to remain a Sentinel without leaving the forest.

The Goddess of Thornbush wanted to send Bella outside the forest and take this chance to get rid of a long-standing burden.

A fierce argument between mother and daughter continued.

The Goddess of the Rusted Shield sent down an oracle in a worried voice.

- Elbridge. Your wise goddess has learned through life that rashly meddling in another family's affairs is foolish.

"I think so too, Goddess."

- But if there must be a conclusion, your goddess wants to take the Goddess of Thornbush's side...

The Goddess of the Rusted Shield clearly couldn't resist the temptation of becoming the Standing Committee Secretary.

Elbridge quietly turned his head away.

Footnotes:

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