"What do you mean us four? Are you trying to get us killed?"
Since Eliron’s entire time of knowing Artie, this was the first time he had ever seen here so troubled.
And yet, somehow, her voice was still calm albeit slightly strained.
She massaged the bridge of her nose and frowned while waiting for his response.
Eliron shrugged. "The raft can only carry ten people, how would we get the girls back if we took ten people there?"
Artie gave him a dead pan look then her expression shifted, this time, it looked like she was barely able to contain her anger.
"Then... you... should have built... another raft..."
She wasn’t exactly wrong, they could have done as she said, that much was true.
But the only reason she thought he could build another raft like this so fast, was that she had no idea about his skill [Dwarf’s thumb].
Already, the skill had taken a good amount of mana.
Eliron alone was strong enough to cover for ten of the hunters. But without mana? Then it would be a different case.
That was why he could not spend more mana on Dwarfs thumb, he could not risk running too low on it.
Without the skill, it would take far more time to build the raft. During that time, who knows what would have happened to the girls?
But there was no way to explain this to Artie...
She sighed and turned away, staring at the river.
Meanwhile, Yennefer just watched the altercation while chewing on jerky, a smirk on her face.
Ash on the other hand was paddling the raft, a lone sweat drifting down his face as he avoided the conversation entirely.
•••
The river seemed to span on endlessly, the currents pushing them through the path.
Eventually, they entered into a large ravine, the high Stone Mountain framing both sides of the river.
The light reflecting on the leaves cast a green glow over the waters, the clear water also reflecting the stream up above.
"Wow." Yennefer giggled, sitting at the edge of the raft as she stared at the scene. "It’s beautiful."
She placed her hand in the water, the gentle flow rippling at her touch.
Ash was standing while paddling. He smiled when he saw Yennefer’s reaction. "It is..." he said fondly.
But there was a certain sadness in his voice m, Artie’s demeanor also changed slightly.
No one else would have been able to pick it up, but Eliron had been paying close attention to her for quite some time now.
He stared up at the ravine and asked. "Does this place have some sort of history?"
Ash nodded.
"This is Sansha Rave." Artie said, her tone flat.
’Is she still mad about earlier?’ Eliron thought.
"Many years ago, Sandra Rave was one of the bastions for the elven race in this part of the forest."
"This was once sacred ground to all elves, weather outsiders or not..."
Ash then continued from where she stopped. "I wasn’t sure at first since I have never been here before. But apparently, Sansha Rave was built between two mountains as a natural fortification."
"Sansha rave is the only reason we at Artaris are alive today..." he finished, his voice solemn.
There was a short moment of silence before Yen’s voice came.
"But isn’t Sansha rave too close to our village... if it was one of the twelve great elven encloves in the past, then why is it so nearby?"
Normally, great kingdoms would be far apart from each other to prevent competition for food and other resources.
Artie nodded. "That is because Sasha rave and Atrais are one and the same."
"Wait, are you serious?! You mean this used to be your home??" She asked.
Artie smiled. "Many centuries ago, long before even the current elders were born."
Her words took Eliron back.
’So at a point, all these had belonged to us?’
He felt a pang of pain in his heart.
Now all they had was the little stench of land with decaying huts.
It was strange how a prospering nation could easily crumble due to the greed of others.
The wood elves had never wanted anything more, they never stepped out of their forests and yet, somehow, they still had enemies...
Eliron had heard a few stories from his brother about how the wood elves once were.
But he has assumed that the only difference between then and now was that they were at peace, and they had enough food to eat.
Never had he imagined that the elves were once capable of building structures like this.
He let out a breath while watching the magnificent view.
And then their raft took a turn, and the sight in front of them froze them where they stood.
Carved into the colossal mountains were two large statues that stood like sentinel forever frozen in time.
The first was a man with long hair and a sharp angular face. On his forehead was a symbol resembling a star, and in his hand was a large glaive that looked strong enough to rend mountains.
Standing opposite him was a woman with comely features. She was in a simple gown carved from stone and her head bore the same star.
In her hand was a hand fan, and on her clothing, the depiction of a dragon was carved into it.
Ash’s eyes widened. "It’s actually here!"
He said, his eyes wide.
"W-what is that?" Yennefer stuttered, her eyes filled with awe.
"I can recognise him from that star on his head. According to the stories, that is Jugo! The first wood elf to have received a divine ascension!"
He laughed heartily, tears welling up in his eyes. "Who knew our history would still be intact?"
Meanwhile, Eliron turned his attention to the statue by the side. "And who is she?"
Ash stared at the statue for sometime. "I don’t think I recognise her—"
Thump!
Artie got up and pushed him to the side, her eyes wide as she walked to the edge of the raft.
"Impossible...." She muttered.
"That... that is Elveria... The queen of the high elves."