Riku, Rog, and Silvath had been walking for quite some time through an endless corridor adorned with plants and lanterns.
One thing, however, immediately stood out: the deeper they went, the dimmer the light became.
Riku thought back to what he had said to the King.
What I did was wrong... but it wasn't the wrong choice in that situation, even if I hurt someone or made others my enemies. I had to save as much time as possible!
The three eventually reached the end of the corridor, where two more guards stood before a massive dark wooden door.
Silvath stepped forward.
"Open the door!"
The two guards moved immediately as soon as they saw Riku.
"Yes, ma'am!"
The moment the door swung open, Riku tried to make out what lay beyond.
Now the real problem is figuring out what they intend to do to me...
The three of them stepped through.
Beyond the doorway stood an enormous spiral staircase, swallowed by darkness.
The lanterns only lit up as they passed by.
A sense of unease crept over Riku.
I can't even sense where this place ends...
Rog noticed the puzzled look on his face.
"We're inside Svartstofn, one of the three sacred trees of our kingdom. Its purpose is to serve as a prison... though it's easier to say that, if you're imprisoned here, this will be your last home."
Riku fell silent for a moment.
"Rog, right? Why did you try to stop my sentence earlier?"
"Simple. Because it wasn't just. And what you said to the King only confirmed it."
A faint smile appeared on Riku's face.
"By the way... how did you know all those things?"
The human paused briefly before answering.
"Since you helped me, I'll tell you one more thing about us humans living on Aetherion. Pass it on to your superiors as well... I'm doing it because I don't feel good about what I did."
Rog and Silvath exchanged curious glances.
"I don't know what humans were like in the past on this world, but now the gods have given us a way to grow stronger over time... a system. It lets us improve our abilities so we can fight each other—and the other inhabitants of this world—on equal footing."
"A system?" Silvath asked in confusion.
"See for yourselves."
A glowing screen materialized before them.
Its light illuminated the inside of the tree, revealing countless prison cells suspended over a bottomless void, each containing frail, exhausted elves.
The sight sent a chill down Riku's spine, but he forced himself to look away and focused on the system instead.
"As you can see, these are my physical stats, my level, and my skills."
He opened the Skills tab and revealed his Unique Skill: Eye of Truth.
"This Unique Skill allowed me to glimpse the King's memories. It only lasted for a moment, but it was enough for me to absorb that piece of knowledge... I got lucky."
Silvath and Rog were left stunned.
"The gods gave you divine powers!?" Rog exclaimed.
Riku lowered his gaze, his expression growing grim.
"Yeah... but they won't bring anything good. This tournament will only make everyone suffer."
Suddenly, a sinister creak echoed through the hollow tree.
Riku spun around and saw one of the branches supporting a suspended cell begin to crack.
"What...?"
The imprisoned elf met his gaze.
Despite his exhaustion, he gave Riku a resigned smile.
A heartbeat later, the branch snapped.
The cell plunged into the darkness below.
Riku stood frozen in shock.
Rog stepped beside him.
"I'm sorry you had to witness that..."
"What just happened?"
"It's how the white elves deal with prisoners convicted of the most serious crimes. Those cells aren't supported by guards..."
He paused.
"...They're supported by the prisoners themselves."
"What do you mean?"
"Every white elf is born with the ability to manipulate nature, including wood. This... is their method of execution."
"Why would you do something like that? Couldn't you just finish them off without subjecting them to something like this?"
"'Your life is precious. No one can take it from you, except yourself through your own actions.' That was the principle of the first King, created to prevent white elves from killing one another. However, the third King turned it into a sentence: the prisoners would be the only ones allowed to decide the moment of their own death."
"Are you saying that, since you can't kill each other, you force them into a death like this?"
"...Exactly. You're not the only ones living in hell."
Riku noticed Rog's empty gaze.
Then he bit his lip.
"Fuck this planet... how can your people accept something like this?"
Rog urged Riku to continue and descend the staircase.
"There is nothing to accept when you know nothing."
The three continued their descent.
Until, a few minutes later, they finally reached the bottom.
The first thing they saw were soldiers carrying away the body of the prisoner who had fallen earlier.
Silvath approached a cell and unlocked it.
"This will be your cell. I hope you enjoy your stay."
Riku stopped in front of it, noticing the complete darkness inside.
"I guess reading anything in here isn't an option..."
Silvath gave Riku a slight push, making him step inside.
"I hope you'll also get along with your cellmate!"
"Cellmate!?"
Before he even had time to turn around, Silvath closed the cell door, leaving him in absolute darkness.
Cellmate... I wonder how much worse this could get...
The darkness was suffocating.
Come on, Riku. Stay brave!
He began walking around the cell blindly.
"How big is this place...?"
Eventually, he collided with something.
"Woah! What did I hit!?"
"Me, idiot!"
"Ah, sorry..."
Riku froze for a moment.
"Eh!?"
He quickly stepped backwards.
"I think they had mentioned me just a moment ago..."
"Um... yeah..."
From her voice, I can tell she's a girl.
Riku felt a wall behind him and leaned against it.
"So, what's your name?"
"Hellen..." she replied in a bored voice.
Her answers are so cold!
"My name is Inari Riku. Don't worry, I don't think I'll be staying here for long... or at least I hope not."
"I see."
"How long have you been here?"
"I don't know. They never told me."
Riku thought about it for a moment.
Actually, elves have much longer lifespans according to the stories... I wonder how long she's been here.
"Then why—"
"How much longer are you planning to talk?"
Hellen's sudden interruption left Riku frozen.
And my relationship with her is already ruined...
He looked in the direction where she was sitting.
I wonder if this can even work in this darkness.
[Unique Skill Activated: Eye of Truth]
But the moment he activated it, Riku felt an unbearable pain shoot through his head, causing him to collapse to the ground.
"You tried to read me?"
Riku struggled to recover.
"H-How did you know?"
"I felt it..."
Riku pushed himself onto his knees, still dizzy.
"Then what did you see?"
After taking a few deep breaths, Riku stood up.
"Only your full name... Hellen Aethelgard. The same as the King's..."