‘I know that I’m not in the position to ask right now…’ I began talking, because couldn’t resist my curiosity. I wanted to know everything about this new and fascinating world, ‘…but how did you manage to hide in these bushes and then reappeared so suddenly?’

‘Yes, you are not in the position to ask such questions…’ started answering Vipin, but Moriko interrupted him.

‘Actually, it’s not a secret…’ he smiled and nodded at Vipin, then continued his story, ‘Ferran Elves lived in these forests for hundreds of years and it became our dear home and fortress; We know every inch of it, every animal and plant is our friend and companion. Our senses are much higher and more precise when we are around our Altwidus forest, every living thing will help us guard this place. A squirrel was sitting on branch above you and pointing its fingers down, that is how we noticed you hiding behind the tree, but decided to look what you are going to do after we talk about the elk and disappear in the bushes. Ability to merge with bushes and trees is one of our clan’s perks that we are proud of, only other Ferran Elves can see us when we blend with the forest.’

‘Clans? What that supposed to mean?’

Moriko grinned and I saw that he has snow-white teeth that looked so oddly out of place compared to his grey skin; then he continued with a smile on his face,

‘You do not know even such thigs… I see… We are not the only Ferran Elves in Seven Kingdoms, our tribes occupy different forests and each village belongs to a different clan. Clan is… is like a group of creatures of the same tribe that share identical perks. For example, we, Elves of Altwidus forest, can blend with forest environment, other clans can clearly see in the darkness, some can even use Higher Elves magic without giving their stamina away…’

Then I recalled what Widogast told me about elves and asked Moriko,

‘Really? I thought all elves could create magic using scrolls and spell words?’

‘No, only Higher elves from Uyaranna can use magic freely,’ Vipin joined the conversation after a long silence, ‘A thousand years ago or something like that our ancestors decided to follow two different paths. Most of the Elves decided to stay in the forests and pay tribute to the nature; that is how Ferran elves came about. The other part started building a society that completely dedicated themselves to magical science and called their village Uyaranna that later became one of the Seven Kingdoms.’

‘Uyaranna, one of the Kingdoms…’ I whispered to myself, ‘So Widogast was talking about higher elves then…’

‘What? What did you say?’ Moriko suddenly asked me, overhearing my whisper; his hearing ability was splendid.

‘No. Nothing… I was talking to myself…’ I had to ask something quickly, ‘Uhm… But why then your village is not considered a Kingdom, Moriko?’

‘Oh, that is a good question. Ferran Elves are scattered all around the world and every clan has his own Jarl. To be a kingdom, first of all, we need to have a king that would unite all the clans together in one place and that is not going to happen any time soon…’ he smiled and looked at Vipin.

‘Hah! That’s true!’ Vipin approved Moriko’s joke, but I didn’t get it.

‘Also, to become a Kingdom you need to have a huge military power. Ferran Elves forgot how to use magic and the only thing that helps us survive is our union with nature. Elves of Uyaranna developed all sorts of techniques to enhance their armour and weapons, as well as, making a lot of tools for their allies to help them use magic without mana,’ Moriko saw amazement on my face and continued, ‘Mana is a flow of energy that goes through their bodies and helps them use magic. Ferran Elves didn’t use magic and after generations passed, mana disappeared from our bodies.’

‘Then how can you blend with forests if you don’t have mana? For me it looks like magic!’

‘You confuse two completely different things. Higher Elves use mana to warp the laws of nature and we, on the other hand, use the power of nature to help us. From clan to clan it differs what powers we can draw from the nature.’

‘No one has an infinite pool of mana in their body and eventually during the fight it will run out, but Ferran Elves won’t ever run out of nature’s power! Ha-ha-ha!’ Vipin also wanted to pay respect for his ancestors.

Moriko also started laughing proudly, their low voices were full of dignity and respect for the nature and what it gives them. Now I finally understood why they were so concerned about me killing the wild elk right on their backyard. This forest is sacred for them and they will make everything to protect the wellbeing of it. It was fascinating to hear, that even such powerful creatures like Ferran Elves must stay in their forests to be safe. Before hearing their story, I thought that only Stoyans are afraid of adventures and prefer staying in one place…

‘I still have a lot of things to learn about this world…’ were my thoughts when we began approaching their village.

‘Vipin and I are the guardians of Altwidus forest borders, every week we go around our lands and inspect every suspicious thing, then report it to higher commanders if needed. This time we have an exceptional case, it is the first case in such a long time when we had a Stoyan crossing our lands,’ Moriko became very serious, ‘There will be a trial. You don’t need to worry about a thing, just tell them the truth. You seem like a decent boy, but we are all responsible for breaking the rules, even if we don’t know them. Every Ferran elf must know his rights and responsibilities against the nature and all the living things around him. Everyone who enters Altwidus forest also must obey these rules.’

‘We are lucky to have a fair-minded Jarl, he will definitely listen to you story carefully.’ Vipin continued Moriko’s speech, ‘If everything that you told us before is true, then most likely you will stay alive by the end of the day…’

We were already at the entrance of the Village, I started seeing other Ferran Elves passing by the high wooden houses. Some of them started greeting Moriko and Vipin, waving their long arms at them. My legs started shaking, I wanted to run away, but it was already too late.