Chapter 24: They Betrayed You?!

“Such as?” Luca tilted his head, wondering what else he has to deal with.

She took a breath, her voice soft but heavy as she said,

“Our strength…our pride as warriors. You see, we elves were never known for brute strength. We rely on agility, speed, and most importantly magic. Especially in combat.”

Her fingers brushed the bow slung across her shoulder as she spoke.

“Our ancestors didn’t use weapons made of wood or steel. Our bows and arrows were born from mana itself.”

“They weren’t forged or carved, they were summoned. Formless constructs of magic that responded directly to our will.”

“We also didn’t need to aim. We didn’t need to strain our arms. We simply willed our target to be struck, and the arrow would fly true.”

“But now…those bows are gone.” She looked down, her voice softening. “The mana that formed them is gone. We tried creating real bows and arrows from wood, but—”

“They’re heavy! So heavy!” Lulu jumped in again, puffing out her cheeks. “And the string is stiff, and it hurts my fingers! I can’t even pull it all the way back without shaking!”

“And when I shoot, it goes sideways! And it’s ugly! All our old magic bows used to look so elegant, glowing with color—now they’re just sticks and strings!”

Luna nodded in agreement.

“She’s not wrong.” She said wearily. “The bows we use now are crude—patched together from whatever materials we can find, since we don’t know how to make them properly.”

“I mean, why would we be? For eons, magic did the work for us. Now that it’s gone, no one knows how to make a proper bow or the techniques to shoot—how to pull, aim, or release.”

Luca’s eyes widened slightly as it all clicked together in his mind.

“That…makes perfect sense now.”

“Huh?” Luna asked, blinking.

“I was wondering why you two were so bad at shooting arrows earlier.” He admitted, smiling teasingly. “I mean, elves—the legendary masters of archery—missing every shot? It didn’t add up.”

“But now it all does. Poor form, weak draw, bad craftsmanship…it’s all because you never had to learn it before. You’ve been forced to start from zero.”

Luna’s cheeks turned slightly pink, and she crossed her arms, muttering, “You don’t have to say it like that…”

“Don’t take it the wrong way. I’m not making fun of you.” He smirked. “I understand it’s not easy to rebuild an entire way of life from scratch.”

Still, he couldn’t help but think of how fragile the world had become.

How similar this was to the collapse of human civilization he had once read about, when technology failed and people forgot how to survive without it.

“It’s like…” He said thoughtfully. “…humans suddenly losing electricity. No lights, no warmth, no communication, no machines. Everything they relied on becomes useless, and they have to relearn how to live.”

“Electricity…? Machines…?” Luna frowned again.

He chuckled. “Ah, don’t worry about it. It’s just another version of mana and arrays.”

“Oh.” She said, though clearly she didn’t understand a word of it.

He smiled to himself, his mind racing.

’So this is what I’m dealing with, he thought. They’ve fallen so far, even the basics are gone. If I’m going to help them rebuild, I’ll have to start from the ground up.’

“Well then, looks like I’ve got a lot more work ahead of me than I expected.” He said out aloud.

“Work? What do you mean?” Luna looked at him curiously.

He just smiled, eyes glinting faintly under the sunlight.

“You’ll see soon enough.”

Then, after a pause, he looked thoughtful again.

“Are there any other major issues I should know about?”

’If their magic is gone, their tools lost, and their culture in decline, what else could possibly be breaking down?’ He wondered.

Luna sighed deeply, her expression turning troubled.

“Other issues…?” She repeated softly. “There are so many, I don’t even know where to begin.”

“Start with the most important ones.”

After a brief pause, Luna nodded.

“Alright. The first is something we don’t quite understand yet. Many of our people have been falling ill. It’s not a normal sickness. They don’t show any clear symptoms, but they grow weaker each day.”

“Their bodies become frail, their energy fades…and eventually, they can barely stand. They just…stay in bed all day.”

Lulu leaned forward over his shoulder, frowning slightly for once.

“Yeah…my friend’s grandmother can’t even get up anymore. She used to be one of the strongest archers in the village.”

“It’s happening to many.” Luna nodded grimly. “We think it’s connected to the loss of mana, as though our bodies themselves depended on it and now that it’s gone, we’re slowly withering away.”

Luca’s brows furrowed, concern flashing across his face.

“Mana deficiency…” He muttered. “Like a world starving of air…but it can also be something else.”

Luna continued, “And it’s not just us. The trees are suffering too.”

“Mana was their lifeblood. It nourished them, kept them healthy. But now, even the strongest trees—the ones our homes are built upon are dying.”

“Their bark is cracking, their leaves are fading, and their roots are drying out. If this continues, even our homes will crumble.”

Lulu, suddenly perked up and said, “The Holy Tree too. Don’t forget that.”

“Yes.” Luna said gravely. “Even the Holy Tree.”

“The Holy Tree?” Luca repeated, curious.

“It’s the heart of the forest.” Luna explained softly. “The oldest tree, the one all elves are bound to. Our mana, our life force—it’s all connected to it. But it’s dying, too.”

“Its leaves are turning gray, and its light has dimmed. The entire village prays daily for it to recover, but nothing has changed.”

“And no one knows what to do.” Luna’s ears drooped slightly.

For a few seconds, no one said a word. Then Lulu suddenly frowned, her ears twitching irritably.

“But you know what?” She said, her tone shifting into one of anger. “The biggest problem of all isn’t even about mana!”

Lulu crossed her arms, her expression darkening.

“The real problem is the traitors.”

“Traitors?” Luca turned his head slightly, puzzled.

“Yes!” Lulu said heatedly. “The male elves! They betrayed us! Every last one of them! They left our village and ran off to the human side!”

The moment he heard this, Luca froze mid-step, his entire body going still.

“…What?”

Luna stopped too, glancing back at him.

“What’s wrong?”

He turned toward her slowly, disbelief plain on his face.

“What did you just say? The male elves…left? For the humans?”

Both sisters stared at him in confusion.

“Yeah, that’s what I said.” Luna replied carefully. “The males of our race have betrayed us. They’ve defected to the human side.”

“But why are you acting so shocked? You’re human. This was one of the biggest turning points in the history of the races. The humans brag about it constantly—how they managed to turn the males of almost every other race to their side. You didn’t know?”

Luca stared at her like she’d just told him the sky was falling.

“…You mean…not just the elves?”

Luna tilted her head.

“No. The same happened with the dwarves, the beastkin, even the fae. All the male members of their races abandoned their kin and joined the human nations. It was seen as one of humanity’s greatest diplomatic and strategic victories.”

Lulu clenched her fists, glaring at the ground.

“Victory? Hah! More like treachery!” She spat. “They betrayed their families, their homes, everything! And for what? To live among greedy humans! It’s disgusting!”

Hearing all this shocking information, he looked between the sisters, his tone growing urgent.

“You’re not joking, right? This isn’t some kind of story or exaggerated rumor?”

Lulu huffed indignantly.

“Why would we joke about something so insulting?! This is the biggest shame in elven history! I’d punch every last one of them if I could!”

Luna gave a solemn nod.

“It’s true, Luca. Every word of it. The betrayal shattered our unity. Our population has been dwindling ever since. We’ve barely managed to hold on.”

’How…How could this have happened?’

Luca thought in absolute disbelief.

’How could an entire gender just switch sides? What kind of power or influence could cause that?’

’And why the hell didn’t that damn goddess mention this before?!’

Finally, he looked back at Luna and said,

“Tell me everything you know about this. Every detail. Who started it, how it happened, and when.”

Luna exchanged a glance with Lulu, both of them puzzled by his intensity. But then, with a small sigh, she nodded.

“Alright, Luca. If you really don’t know then I’ll tell you about…the biggest disgrace in the history of the demi-human continent.”

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