Hexbound Apocalypse [LitRPG Apocalypse] (Book 3 Finished!)

Upon encountering Tine and Runa, Hazel guided the elves down the stairs so her partner could have some alone time with her former comrades. She didn't want her conversation to interrupt Astrid's interrogation.

"Before we talk, it would be best for my mom to hear what you have to say about Damien as well."

"Your mother is here as well?" Tine asked with widened eyes.

Hazel nodded. "Yes. I reunited with her when I encountered the Valiant Guild, the very place we are currently in right now."

"My word," Tine placed a hand over her mouth in surprise. "I guess attacking Dolk was the right choice, after all."

Hazel chuckled for a moment before remembering what Astrid was currently doing with Dolk.

"By the way, my partner, Astrid, is currently having a word with Dolk along with the other dark elves. And if worse comes to worst, we might not be able to take him back to the great forest of Meir, considering that he would be..."

"Dead?" Runa finished.

"Yeah...is that alright?"

Since Tine and Runa clearly wanted to bring Dolk back to the Great Forest of Meir, it might become a problem if Astrid were to kill him after she was done interrogating and harming him for what he did to her. Because of that, Hazel wanted to avoid any complications regarding this outcome and decided to warn the elves in advance.

Tine mulled over her words for a moment, clearly considering what to do if Astrid actually killed the dark elf. However, after letting out an annoyed groan, she hung her head.

"If possible, it would be better for her to kill him," She declared with a cold tone. "While I do wish to bring that bastard and his co-conspirators back to Meir, there is too much happening in our homeland now, and I don't wish to add any more trouble to the list."

"Ah, I see what you mean," Hazel nodded.

From what she could tell, the Great Forest of Meir was already in enough chaos and turmoil as it was. What with the whole conspiracy thing happening there and all. That and the fact that their world merged with Earth, so both residents are currently mingling together.

Now that she thought about it, the Great Forest of Meir essentially took up all of Canada. That meant a lot of humans from Earth were going to be in their territory, which would only add even more problems to the table for them.

Yeah, killing Dolk was likely better for the elves since they didn't have to bother bringing him in. Plus, considering the severity of the crime, he could very well be executed after being charged anyway. So, really, Astrid would only be "skipping the formalities" and getting straight to the punishment.

Of course, that was none of Hazel's business. All she cared about right now was knowing what was going on with her brother. Whatever Dolk did was between him and the residents of Meir. She had no authority or power to get involved in such a situation.

Putting that thought aside, Hazel then guided the two elves over to where her mom was so they could talk about Damien. When she explained the whole situation to her mother, it took them several minutes to calm her down because she was crying profusely.

Once she was no longer bawling her eyes out, Hazel then escorted all of them to a separate room on the second floor, using that place to commence their conversation. The room was big enough to have all of them inside and provide enough space so that they weren't too cramped.

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Walking over to the nearest wall, Hazel pressed her back against it before starting their conversation.

"So, how is my brother? Considering that he's in Meir and what's currently happening there, I assume things are a bit stressful?"

Tine groaned. "A bit stressful is an understatement. It's complete chaos within the Great Forest of Meir."

"The High Elves are trying to have complete control over Meir, and several of the most influential tribes are supporting them."

"That does sound bad..." Hazel muttered.

Hazel didn't know much about the High Elves, but she learned from Astrid that they were arrogant, prideful, and above all else, believed themselves to be superior to the other races. There was also the fact that the High Elves were created through experimentation by an Elf who was trying to perfect themselves and succeeded. To a degree, anyway. From what Astrid told her, the High Elves weren't satisfied with their evolution and wanted to go a step further. And during these continued experiments, they incidentally created the Dark Elves.

From what she had already gathered regarding what the High Elves were like, the fact that they were trying to take over the great forest of Meir was very concerning. Since they viewed any other species as inferior compared to them, if they were to have complete control over Meir, then the rest of the residents would likely end up as slaves and such. Worst of all, they could also be used for experiments conducted by the High Elves as well.

And since Damien was currently in the middle of that situation, Hazel couldn't help but worry about him.

"Is Damien helping you guys fight back against the High Elves and their supporters?"

Runa nodded. "He is playing a major role in trying to stop the High Elves' plan to rule over Meir."

"I'm assuming that's why he sent you two here to find us instead of searching himself?"

"Our Lord wanted to come here, but due to the growing threat of the High Elves, he couldn't afford to leave Meir out of fear of the enemy catching him by surprise while he was away."

"Yeah, that makes sense," Hazel reasoned, vigorously rubbing her head. "By the way, how did Damien get involved in this in the first place? Isn't this whole affair something that outsiders shouldn't be a part of?"

While Hazel knew that her brother was kind enough to want to help the people of Meir, she was also aware that the residents of the forest were very solitary when it came to their own problems. They rarely let outsiders get involved in their affairs.

In fact, Astrid told her that people outside the great forest of Meir were rarely welcomed to the point where outsiders needed special permission to enter their territory. Hazel wasn't all that surprised by this since certain countries from her world were pretty much the same. Still, the fact that Damien was helping them and apparently playing a special role, did surprise her a bit. Which was why she wanted to know.

"Lord Damien is involved for two reasons," Runa declared while raising two fingers. "The first reason is that he saved our tribe from monsters that attacked us when we returned from our Tutorial Dungeon."

"Okay..." Hazel nodded.

Saving people's lives is one way to get them to like you. Still, that didn't seem to be enough for Damien to be involved in their business. Especially such a sensitive one like their home, possibly being taken over by the High Elves. So, the second reason had to be the catalyst that allowed her brother to join the elves.

"As for the second reason," Tine chimed in. "He was vouched for by our lady and future chief of the Mapleash Tribe, Hlif Hávarðr."

Yeah, that definitely explains it. Also, Hazel found it kind of funny that her brother also seemed to know a future chief. Not only that, but this person was also an Elf.

"What's my brother's relationship with this Hlif person?"

"Lord Damien and Lady Hlif worked together to try and survive the tutorial dungeon. We were also there and cooperated with our lord since there was no other option."

Looked like Damien went through a similar situation as Hazel. Not only did he team up with an Elf, but he also teamed up with the future chief of an Elven Tribe. Hazel couldn't help but point out such comparisons. Not when they were right in front of her face.

"By the way," Tine spoke up. "Since you are close to Astrid Skogr, I would like you to introduce us to her."

"Sure," She accepted. "Though, you're gonna have to wait until she's done interrogating Dolk and the dark elves. And who knows how long that was going to take?"

"Hopefully not long," She said grimly. "Because we need to tell her something regarding the current state of the Greyvolk tribe."

Hazel raised a brow at this. "What do you mean? What's going on with her tribe?"

If it was anything serious, then Astrid likely needed to know as soon as possible.

Tine was hesitant to say anything about the matter, which was reasonable since although Hazel was Astrid's partner, it was her tribe that was being mentioned, and Hazel had no right to know about it unless she allowed her to.

However, after a bit of contemplation, she inevitably explained the situation. And what Hazel heard next...made her heart drop with dread.