The Forest Race Clonne

Chapter 63

At the deep, resonant voice, Altman’s body trembled. The hooded man also smiled awkwardly.

“Of course, Lord Eliha. I didn’t mean to question your capabilities. If Lord Taron hadn’t been off guard, he wouldn’t have been easily bested by such a young Clonne.”

At this, the ash-gray-haired man called Eliha scoffed quietly.

“I hadn’t received any intel about Clonne infiltrating the palace. That failure is clearly on your side.”

“I understand. In that regard, we sincerely apologize, Lord Eliha.”

“And that Clonne vanished without a trace, right? By now, it must have returned to the main camp and reported our situation back.”

“Hmmm, yes, that’s another oversight on our part. We thought we had adequately placed surveillance, but to lose track so miserably… Truly, they didn’t move in the predicted patterns, proving again how crafty their race can be.”

“At this rate, it might be faster to find out what they know by asking them directly.”

Despite Eliha’s blatantly sarcastic remark, the hooded man maintained his cheerful demeanor.

“I am deeply ashamed as well. I had thought that with a humble plan, we could buy a bit more time. It seems it’s difficult to have everything go as expected.”

“You seem oddly composed for someone in such a situation.”

“By now, the King’s Knights who had been in slumber would have awakened. The inevitable has simply come a bit sooner. There’s no need to suddenly panic, is there?”

Eliha nodded calmly in agreement. However, Altman couldn’t manage the same composure. His face twisted with dissatisfaction.

“This is no time for casual chatter! We failed to kill the Emperor, lost the Clonne, and now we must prepare for an all-out war with them! Is there a plan?”

“Don’t worry too much. There are always variables, but our plan is not so fragile that it can be derailed by this.”

“But…!”

“Of course, if we become complacent again as we did this time, it will be problematic. No matter how perfect the plan, it is easily undone by lax discipline.”

“Grr!”

Altman bit his lip, unable to offer any retort. There had been a time when he had been so excessively complacent, assuming that everything would fall into place. Consequently, despite knowing the Crown Prince’s movements, he failed to prevent the Emperor’s recovery. It was an incontestable failure on his part.

‘Damn Esteban, how dare you stab me in the back like this?’

Altman seethed with resentment internally. Watching his reaction with a leisurely smile, the hooded man continued.

“It’s unfortunate that the Emperor has recovered, but the situation isn’t all bad. The important thing is to prevent the Clonne from breaking the King’s seal. As long as we achieve that, the rest is merely a matter of time. And time is on our side.”

“Hasn’t the Clonne figured things out? Doesn’t that put us at a disadvantage? I thought we weren’t fully prepared yet! I heard we don’t have enough forces from Scal?”

“That’s true. But there are still plenty of ways to turn the tide.”

“What do you mean…?”

“Speaking of which, something has already started.”

At Eliha’s words, the hooded man responded with a deliberate smile. Altman could only look back and forth between them in confusion.

“What exactly has started?”

“We released a horde of monsters into the Forest of Life. They’ve already attacked and devastated the territories of Dras and Nina.”

“…!”

“Those races are favorable towards Clonne. It’s best to eliminate any potential obstacles. Even that alone will exert significant pressure on the Clonne.”

He smiled broadly.

“If we’re lucky, we might even find their dwelling in that forest. The Clonne residing there are few in number, so with our current forces, we should be able to handle them. If we capture them, they’ll become excellent assets.”

“What if they escape and rejoin their main forces?”

“That’s not necessarily a bad outcome. Their main territory is in Dongryeong. It would take a considerable amount of time for them to regroup and return to Seoryeong. Meanwhile, we can consolidate our power in Seoryeong.”

“Hmmm, it would be nice if things turn out as you say. But aren’t you being overly optimistic? You told me not to be complacent.”

“Do you think I am saying this out of complacency?”

“Well, no…”

This was a man who was anything but complacent, rather excessively cautious. Who knew how long he had been preparing all these plans? As Altman’s voice trailed off, the hooded man smiled once more.

“Trust me, Your Highness. This is the best possible time to shake them. The Queen shares my view.”

“…My mother?”

This time, Altman truly swallowed a groan. His mother, Queen Kinisia, was the one person he could never defy. If she had already discussed this, his opposition would be futile. With a grim expression, Altman muttered reluctantly.

“If my mother has said so, there’s no choice then.”

However, agreeing didn’t eradicate his inner anxiety. Seeing the uncomfortable expression on Altman’s face, the hooded man spoke in a soothing tone.

“Don’t worry too much, Prince Altman. The Clonne won’t be able to oppose us. Recall what we hold. The winning card is already in your hands.”

“The winning card? Oh…!”

Altman’s tense expression finally eased.

“But is there any chance they’ll give up on it?”

“No, they will never give it up.”

The cautious words were decisively cut off.

“Their system is entirely different from that of humans. Once they know, they can never give it up. It represents both their power and their future. Who can forsake their future? They might sacrifice themselves recklessly, but they would never abandon what it represents.”

“I-I see. Hearing your certainty reassures me.”

Overwhelmed by the forcefulness of the statement, Altman nodded, a relieved smile breaking on his face at last. The hooded man’s smile grew even deeper as he watched.

“Everything is proceeding smoothly, Your Highness. There is nothing to worry about. Soon, everything under the sky will be yours.”

* * *

The long meeting primarily focused on evacuation plans. Opinions were split between those advocating for fleeing to the main territory and those arguing that they should defend their home even in such dire circumstances.

“This place may be younger in history compared to the main territory, but we’ve cherished and cultivated it for centuries. We can’t just abandon it.”

“Don’t be naive. What if they find this place? Didn’t you see how Lord Aska broke through the barrier? What’s stopping them from doing the same?”

“Lord Aska knew the focal point to break the formation. Normally, it’s not that easy to figure out.”

“That remains to be seen. Reacting after something happens is too late. We have too few people here. Even without restrictions, our King and three Knights were critically injured. Do you really think we can handle them properly? Evacuating to the main territory is the right move.”

“What about our neighbors in this forest? If the monsters are indeed searching for us, they’ll keep attacking this place. Are we supposed to just let everyone die while we save ourselves? Is that what guardians of the world should do?”

The arguments continued, with neither side willing to back down. Both the reasons for leaving and staying were valid, making it impossible to reach a consensus.

In the end, they decided to strengthen the village’s defenses and monitor the situation for now. They seemed to lean towards holding a joint meeting with other forest inhabitants soon.

Afterward, everyone took time to assess their physical conditions. In reality, they were measuring how much weaker they had become. As they swung their arms, jumped in place, and performed various movements, their faces quickly darkened.

“Wow, this is bad. I can’t even do this now? I’ve gotten really weak.”

“No wonder driving the monsters away felt so hard. I thought it was just because there were too many of them, but it turns out I was just weaker.”

“Come to think of it, the fact that Lord Kalph couldn’t handle them all by himself didn’t make sense.”

“What are we supposed to do now?”

During this process, I learned that to the Clonne race, the King was not merely a ruler but the source of their power. When a strong King ascended, the entire race became stronger. Conversely, when a weak King emerged, the race’s strength diminished as well.

Moreover, the death of the King had implications for the survival of the entire race. Losing power was one thing, but the most critical issue was that they could no longer produce descendants.

No matter how many survivors there were, even if all of them married and had children, no new Clonne would be born. Upon learning this structure, it became clear why everyone felt like they had lost their homeland—they were indeed facing the threat of losing their race.

There is only one tree capable of becoming a King. Moreover, in a generation, only one is born, and the current King has no successor. The fact that the King was sealed, rather than deceased, was the only glimmer of hope at this point.