“What the hell is going on here?”

Alex, bound by the elves of the Dentis family, turned toward Vierno and asked.

He wondered if this was betrayal, but then he saw that Vierno’s own wrists were also shackled with the same restraints.

The bonds were woven from the roots of a special tree that grew only within the Elves’ Forest.

He hadn’t expected a warm welcome, but at the very least, he thought they would be treated with some dignity.

“I do not know either.”

Vierno was just as bewildered.

He had never imagined that his own niece, Viela, would dare do something like this.

Even as he was dragged along like a criminal, he could not distinguish whether this was a dream or reality.

“...One thing is certain though. While I was away, something significant happened. I just do not know what it is yet.”

“We will probably find out once we arrive at our destination,” Ludger replied.

Even while being escorted under guard, his expression was no different from usual.

He walked with such composure and dignity that one could almost doubt whether he was truly bound.

But none of the elves dared point it out.

They were overwhelmed by the charisma radiating from Ludger’s poise.

“My apologies, Professor Ludger. This happened because of me....”

Vierno lowered his head toward Ludger.

After all, the fact that Ludger’s group was being dragged along like criminals was not unrelated to him.

Considering the strength of Ludger’s companions—enough to resist even the trackers of the Shadewardens—it made no sense for them to be captured so easily.

The only reason they allowed themselves to be bound was because the ones escorting them were elves of the Dentis family, led by Vierno.

“Still, judging from the fact that they have not tried to kill us immediately, it is certain they have some purpose,” Ludger said.

“I suppose so. Viela... she was not the kind of child to do something like this....”

“By the way, I heard just now that she called you ‘uncle.’ Do you have siblings?”

“Yes. I had a younger sibling. Viela is my niece. Since I am often away in my duties as head of the family, she has been taking care of the household in my stead.”

Viela was strong-willed and decisive.

She was intelligent, wise, and unlike other young elves, never reckless.

Vierno had even considered passing the title of family head to her one day.

And yet, now this.

Treason? Or something else?

This was not the kind of behavior that should suddenly come from the girl who had always followed him around, calling “Uncle, Uncle.”

For the moment, there were too few clues to be certain of anything.

Vierno decided that, as Ludger had said, it would not be too late to judge once they reached their destination.

But that thought was shattered once they arrived at the Dentis family’s mansion.

The Dentis family’s main residence was carved into the mass of a tree.

That did not mean it was small. Far from it.

Its girth spanned hundreds of meters.

It was not a single tree, but hundreds of them, twined together like ropes, forming a colossal, clustered organism.

What rose from it was a natural monument—over 15 meters tall, with a breadth of more than 400 meters.

This was where the Dentis family lived.

“Holy shit. Looks like some freakishly oversized mutant broccoli.”

Hans’s cheap commentary spoiled the solemn mood before anyone could marvel at the grandeur of nature.

Even the elves of the Dentis family, who had shown little reaction so far, glared daggers at him in that instant.

The escorting elves eventually led Ludger’s group into a reception hall.

When Vierno saw the elves waiting inside, his expression hardened.

“You... why are you here...?”

Three elves sat within his line of sight.

Each wore robes adorned with the crest of their respective family. Their appearances suggested elders well past their fifties.

The crests were unmistakable: Radix, Crown, and Flohim.

They were the three noble families of the moderate faction.

“Viela. What in the world is going on here?”

Vierno demanded an answer from his niece as to why they were present in the Dentis residence.

But Viela ignored his gaze.

“As you ordered, I brought them.”

“Hoho. Well done.”

One of the elderly elves dismissed her casually.

Vierno’s face darkened.

“What do you think you’re doing?”

The icy sharpness in Vierno’s eyes would have shocked anyone who knew him.

He was less enraged by his niece arresting him than by the fact that an elder from another house dared to treat her, the future head of Dentis, with such disrespect.

But to Vierno’s hostile words, the three elders only sneered.

“Vierno Dentis. You still don’t understand, do you? Do you not know why you have been dragged here in chains within your own territory?”

“...There must be some misunderstanding.”

“A misunderstanding? Can you still say that after bringing humans secretly into our forest?”

“These people are my guests.”

“Guests, you say? And yet you smuggled them into our forest? Hmph. But I suppose that detail no longer matters. What meaning does that hold for one accused of treason?”

“Treason?”

Why suddenly such an accusation?

Vierno fought to push back the surge of unease rising within him.

Mocking his confusion, one of the elders continued:

“Vierno Dentis. You knew of the survival of the last bloodline of the Plante family. You hid her, and even acted to protect her.”

“...!”

“You cannot be ignorant of the terrifying weight that the name Plante carries in our society. Or do you have some excuse to offer?”

Vierno could not answer.

How had they discovered the truth?

Could it be that the Lifret family had leaked the information beforehand? But how?

“Were you planning to use the last survivor of the Plante family as your puppet to revive the Dentis clan?”

“That is slander!”

“Whether it is slander or not doesn’t matter. The fact is, you concealed knowledge of a surviving Plante.”

The elder’s words were true in part.

Vierno did know Sedina’s true identity as a survivor of the Plante family, and he had kept silent.

But to leap from that to accusing him of treason was absurd.

‘They’ve got him.’

Ludger understood the elder’s intent.

‘He’s twisting a fragment of truth to condemn him.’

There was no way Vierno would ever try to exploit Sedina.

But would the other elves believe that?

If he truly had no such scheme, then why protect one who was, by elven law, a criminal just by existing?

That alone was enough to shake his standing.

“Still, it is fortunate. The Dentis family might have been branded traitors and erased as one of the Seven Roots. But the young acting head made the right choice.”

At those words, Viela remained silent.

She only gazed coldly at her uncle, Vierno.

“Viela, I...”

Before Vierno could speak further, Viela cut him off coldly.

“Throw the criminals in the dungeon.”

The Dentis elves obeyed without hesitation.

And so, Vierno and Ludger’s group were imprisoned beneath the roots of the Dentis family estate.

The underground dungeon was damp, crawling with insects, and reeked of desolation.

“Well, damn. Of all places, the worst situation had to break out here.”

Even confined in a cell, Alex laughed carefreely.

It was his attempt to lighten the mood, but Vierno could only hang his head lower in guilt.

“I was too complacent. I thought once we reached my family’s estate, at least minimal safety would be guaranteed. But to think it had already fallen into the moderates’ hands...”

“Did the moderates have sharper intelligence than we thought?”

“That is what puzzles me. The moderates know little of the world outside the forest. And yet, to have received word so quickly...”

Vierno shook his head bitterly.

“What does it matter now? The deed is already done.”

“Still, don’t you think this is far too unguarded?”

Alex looked around, baffled that not a single elf was standing watch.

“With just these flimsy bindings, what do they expect to do with us?”

“These bindings are not flimsy. This prison is sturdy enough that no spirit mage or sorcerer, no matter how violently they thrash, could ever break it.”

The thick roots holding them were no ordinary wood.

They pulsed with a powerful life force, harder than any metal.

Even with aura or mana, cutting them was practically impossible.

Alex brushed his hand across the roots and muttered, “Tch. Damn, it’s the real deal.”

“It’s not something that can be broken physically.”

“What if I hack into it?”

Bellaruna cautiously offered.

“There are watchers within the family, people who, like you, monitor information in real time. The moment you connect through the roots, their forces will rush in, as if they had been waiting.”

“They’re probably counting on exactly that,” Ludger agreed with Vierno.

“The fact that they’ve merely imprisoned us means they have not declared treason outright, only suspicion. But the moment we tamper with this prison, suspicion becomes certainty.”

“In other words, we’d be handing them the perfect justification for an immediate execution,” Hans nodded, convinced.

“So what do we do now? Seems like the plan went wrong right from the start.”

“It only means we’ll have to take a detour.”

“A detour? That’ll cost us precious time, won’t it?”

Hans wasn’t asking because he didn’t know.

But after all, this was the very place they thought would treat them most kindly within the forest, and yet here they were.

“Who knows how long we’ll be stuck inside these broccoli roots? And even if we do get out, we’ve got no real method.”

“Er, Hans... calling them broccoli roots is a bit much...”

As head of the family, Vierno felt obliged to at least lightly scold him.

But aside from that, none of Hans’s words were wrong.

They had nowhere to turn, no one they could trust.

Even being stranded alone on an uninhabited island would feel less hopeless than this.

At that moment, footsteps echoed from beyond the dungeon’s darkness.

Someone was coming.

The figure made no attempt to conceal their approach and soon appeared openly.

“Viela.”

Vierno spoke his niece’s name in a voice laden with conflict.

Viela’s reply was cold.

“Uncle. You stand accused of treason. If the family head bears such suspicion, then the Dentis line ends here. I could not just sit by and watch.”

“...I am sorry.”

“In exchange for handing you over, I secured the moderates’ support. They promised me that the Dentis family would not be tied to treason. Uncle, it only takes one sacrifice—yours.”

“It’s not just one, is it?”

Ludger cut in.

But Viela dismissed him with indifference.

“There will be a banquet. More than a mere celebration for the new family head, it will be a feast rejoicing that a new ally has joined the moderates. By midnight, everyone will be drunk and senseless. The elders of the Three Families will surely be gathered, carousing together, congratulating themselves on their victory.”

“...Viela?”

“When the sun rises tomorrow, you will be dragged to the royal castle. At that point, regardless of evidence, you will be branded a traitor. So, use what little time remains wisely.”

With that, Viela turned and left the dungeon.

A heavy silence filled the air.

“W-what do we do?”

Bellaruna was the first to speak.

Viela’s words had been as good as a death sentence.

How could anyone accept that they would be marched to the executioner by morning?

But the other four wore expressions that were not grim.

On the contrary, their eyes glimmered as if they had just received an unexpected gift.

“Master Vierno.”

“Yes, Professor Ludger?”

“Your niece is a clever one.”

“...It seems so.”

Vierno gave a faint laugh, pride for Viela flickering across his face.

“W-wait, what’s that supposed to mean?”

Only Bellaruna remained confused.

“She came to tell us,” Hans said.

“Tell us what?”

“Midnight.”

Hans recalled Viela’s words.

“By midnight, everyone will be drunk, all gathered in one place, raising a racket. She laid the hint down so plainly that it would be harder not to notice.”

“Ah! Then that means...”

“Looks like the Dentis family is about to sever ties with the Three Families completely.”

Hans murmured, his eyes turning to Vierno.

“It pains me deeply. While I was away, my niece must have agonized over how to protect our people. She took on what should have been my ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) burden as an elder.”

“Vierno. Are you ready?”

Ludger rose to his feet as he asked.

“From this moment on, you will become a true rebel.”

“I must. I cannot just sit here and do nothing.”

“W-wait! But how are we supposed to break out of this prison?”

Bellaruna raised the most obvious point.

They couldn’t break it with strength, and hacking into the root network would alert the enemy.

What way forward was there?

“The other side clearly wants us to make a grand commotion,” Ludger said.

By leaving them no obvious means of escape yet dropping such hints, Viela was signaling that she wanted them to draw the elders’ eyes.

“While we draw their gaze, Viela herself will rally the family elves and strike the Three Families. She means to shoulder the dirty work herself.”

“T-to think...”

“She does not want to dump her duty onto anyone else,” Ludger said, then turned to Vierno.

“Will you sit by and watch?”

“No. I cannot heap everything onto my niece. This is my responsibility as her elder.”

“Then let’s go.”

The voice came from right in front of Vierno.

Somehow, Ludger had already slipped out of his root prison.

No sign of force, no warning—he was simply free.

As if Vierno were seeing an illusion in broad daylight.

But instead of shock, Vierno chuckled and nodded.

Ludger had shown far too much already for this to be surprising.

“Yes. Let us go. To become rebels.”