Chapter 82: The Price of Ambition

Instinctively, Yulim plucked a leaf from the tree, bringing it to her mouth to chew.

Yet, with each chew, Yulim felt as though she were gnawing on dry, utterly tasteless toilet paper.

Her brows furrowed in distaste. She spat twice, shook her head, and rid herself of the dry, brittle leaf.

It was then that Yulim fully registered her surroundings. Fortunately, she had come prepared.

From within her cloak, she produced several vibrant green leaves, meticulously prepared the previous night, and placed them into her mouth.

The tender, refreshing sap instantly spread through her mouth, finally easing the tension from her brow.

Now, this was more like it!

Having quickly sated her hunger, the girl nestled herself among the branches, intending to doze until evening.

While traversing the Cursed Land during daylight hours was possible, dark elves were inherently more proficient operating under the cloak of night. It was then that she could completely obscure her presence.

This particular mission called for absolute stealth. Yulim had no desire to be discovered, only to then provoke a larger disturbance.

With that in mind, the girl leaned against the sturdy tree trunk and drifted into a light slumber.

Even in repose, Yulim allowed only one eye to fully close. The other remained half-lidded, maintaining a minimal but constant vigilance over her immediate surroundings.

Such had been her routine for the past several days.

Indeed, whenever she operated alone in the wilderness, she remained in this state of semi-awareness during her rest periods, a stark contrast to the deep sleep she enjoyed only when Anna was by her side.

Truth be told, Yulim’s current schedule, with its nocturnal activity and daytime slumber, felt more akin to a true monster’s rhythm than that of a certain little undead.

Surely, this was the biological clock a proper monster ought to possess!

****

The day passed uneventfully. As night finally descended, Yulim’s eyes fluttered open.

After tucking a couple more leaves into her mouth to stave off hunger, she braced a hand against the tree trunk, rising to her feet, her gaze fixed on the distant, desolate expanse of scorched earth before her.

Beneath the pale moonlight, a scattering of crimson lights now pulsed, an unsettling beacon against the utterly ravaged landscape.

Yulim drew a deep breath. Her form began to shimmer, growing ethereal, as she simultaneously leaned forward. Spreading her arms, she launched herself from the tree, landing with uncanny precision within a deep patch of shadow.

Amidst a pile of grass.

A nimble roll absorbed the impact, allowing her to land without a scratch before she swiftly rose, dashing forward with renewed purpose.

The instant her feet touched the scorched earth, Yulim felt an immediate, profound suppression; her elven wings refused to unfurl, and even the simple act of leaping became an arduous task.

Evidently, flight was forbidden here.

Her head began to throb with a dull ache, as countless fragmented images flashed rapidly through her mind.

These were the very beings who had perished by her hand, resurrected by the curse to relentlessly invade and torment her consciousness.

The curse embedded within Yulim’s very being began to awaken, its insidious influence no longer confined to the realm of dreams.

Concurrently, an ethereal, wavering voice resonated in her ear.

[Leave this place, child]

[Leave now, and I can pretend you never]

Upon hearing that familiar voice, Yulim’s entire body trembled. A strange bitterness, coupled with a profound sense of loss, welled within her heart. Her tear ducts betrayed her, and her eyes gradually grew misty and wet.

Before she could even fully process it, tears were already tracing paths down her cheeks.

It was a voice intimately known to every elf, an enduring echo of Its presence, left to linger in this desolate place.

Even as a child, Yulim had stumbled into this very place and heard that identical voice.

Yet, in her youthful innocence, she had merely gazed around foolishly, searching for the source of the voice. Finding none, she had continued deeper, intent on retrieving a ball her playmates had kicked away.

It was from that fateful moment that she had been afflicted with the curse, gradually transforming into the dark elf, reviled by all within the Elven Forest.

Many of her past memories were far from pleasant, but as Anna’s radiant smile flashed in her mind, Yulim’s gaze sharpened, regaining its clarity.

She had not forgotten her purpose here.

Pressing her lips together, she brushed away her tears. After a brief, almost imperceptible pause, Yulim pushed past her hesitation, pressing onward into the cursed domain.

She had barely advanced a hundred meters when the voice resonated once more.

[Leave this place, child]

[What do you seek?]

Yulim halted her steps once more.

Had she not already known this was merely an echo from the past, utterly devoid of true sentience, Yulim would have genuinely believed a deity watched her from the shadows, probing her purpose.

Yulim attempted to take another step forward, only to find herself rooted to the spot, utterly unable to move.

[Answer my question, child]

The voice remained as ethereal as ever, yet Yulim felt a sudden chill crawl up her spine. It seemed that if she failed to answer, an unimaginable divine wrath awaited her.

Yulim instinctively hunched her shoulders, then spoke in a small, hesitant voice:

“I… I’ve come to retrieve the Godslayer Sword.”

After her answer, silence descended upon her surroundings. Yulim waited dutifully for a considerable moment before tentatively shifting her leg, only then realizing the invisible bonds had loosened.

Indeed, the echo possessed no true sentience.

Yulim exhaled slowly, a measure of relief washing over her, and resumed her journey.

For the next stretch of the path, the voice remained absent. Only the curse continued its relentless assault on Yulim’s mind, occasionally flashing gruesome, bloody images to sicken her to her core.

If there was any singular obstacle to contend with, it was undoubtedly the steadily escalating temperature of her surroundings.

Wiping the sweat from her brow, Yulim’s gaze fixed on the distant crimson glow. A renewed surge of determination coursed through her veins.

“I must bring the sword back!”

Sizzle—

Yulim cried out, retracting her foot instantly. Glancing down, she saw the tip of her shoe had already turned a charred black, tiny sparks flickering from its scorched surface.

It was then that Yulim noticed the distinct change in the scorched earth ahead. Unlike the black-grey ground she stood upon, this area had transformed into a menacing black-red, as though still smoldering with an unseen fire.

Evidently, traversing this path solely with her physical body was an impossibility…

“Oh, elements that wander this cursed land, I implore you, grant me your protection.”

Yulim began to chant, weaving a spell that manifested as a vibrant red elemental shield, enveloping her entire body in its protective aura.

She had refrained from employing any other magic until this point, solely to conserve her mana. The true purpose of magic was to be utilized precisely in such unavoidable circumstances.

‘Night stealth was a racial trait of dark elves, not a magical ability.’

Indeed, even in this critical moment, Yulim remained thrifty with her energy!

Instead of expending additional mana to conjure a more suitable water elemental shield, she opted for practicality. She drew directly upon the most volatile fire elements present, shaping them into her protective magic shield.

With the magic shield now active, Yulim tentatively stepped onto the scorched earth once more. Though the heat remained intense, she was no longer scorched by its searing embrace.

Yet, the moment her foot touched the ground, another voice, distinct from the last, echoed through the air.

This was not the ethereal voice from before, but a new one—more corporeal, more solemn, and profoundly imbued with divinity.

[The children of the forest broke free from their mother’s embrace, and aimed the sword at Its heart]

[To achieve the wish of eternal life, they vainly attempted to seize the authority of the gods]

[Little did they know]

[All mortal spirits in the world have a predetermined destiny from birth]

[Everything shall obey destiny; destiny is the source of order]

[They will ultimately pay the price for their greed]

[It is gone, but the forest remembers everything]

[And I shall record this past]

As the final syllable faded, it was joined by the distinct sound of a book snapping shut.

Yulim startled awake, realizing that the sky had, at some unknown point, transitioned from the depths of night to the light of day.

Clutching her throbbing head, Yulim’s brows knitted together in a tight frown.

It felt as though the voice had just led her through the pages of a thick, long-forgotten tome of history. Yet, when she attempted to recall its contents, her mind remained blank, replaced instead by a profound sense of dread.

Her subconscious screamed a warning, urging her not to delve deeper into those memories, for if she did…

She truly would go mad!