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TWL Chapter 34: Entangled Diplomacy. Standoff in the Forest
🕑 Added 2023-11-15 00:57:30 +0000 UTC"I am Lann Lannister, Lord of the Brokilon town of Cintra. I come here to find our missing princess Cirilla Fiona Elen Riannon. Our soldiers last saw her running into the forest."
Lann decided to be polite first and then engage in negotiation. After all, he might have to go deep into the opponent's territory soon.
Someone among the dryads shouted and interrupted Lann: "If she enters the forest, then she is ours!"
This voice came from the trees. Lann ignored it and just stared at the leader of the dryad. She had bright silver eyes and hair, she was small but agile. She didn't seem to care about hiding.
After shooting the arrow that shot down the slant-eyed soldier, she took the initiative to emerge from the woods. Behind her were several blurry figures, obviously she had brought several dryads with her.
Lann negotiated. "We want to enter the forest to look for our princess. This is her home, we are few and we do not intend to cause harm. We just want to find our princess."
“Humans are not allowed to enter the forest. Only those who join us can enter otherwise they will become corpses.”
Another dryad interrupted and shouted.
Lann glanced at the silver-haired dryad. She just looked at him in silence, as if she had decided to let her classmates speak for her.
Lann continued: "I am the Lord of the Brokilon town of Cintra, and I can make full decisions on the affairs here. I heard that other kingdoms are planning to negotiate peace agreements with you recently?"
"Allow us to find our princess. I can establish a friendly dialogue and ensure that the Brokilon town of Cintra will not seek conflict with the dryads in the future. The terms of the agreement can be initiated by you first."
“There are no human lords in Brokilon! We will fight for what we need ourselves, there is no peace with humans!”
This was the third time Lann was interrupted. He took a deep breath, looked at the silver-haired dryad and asked: "Are these the intentions of the dryads? Can these dryads represent their queen?"
The silver-haired dryad still didn't speak.
'First diplomacy, then force, Ciri may still be in danger.' Lann thought silently in his mind.
But these dryads are really shameless.
"If that's the case." Lann said coldly: "Let me tell you what will happen next. I will summon all my soldiers here and we will set fire to the forest, destroy it to find our princess. And after we find her, our military force will arrive. We will use all the power of Cintra to bring justice for the princess."
"If you and those idiots behind you are different, you should be clear that when a country sets out to destroy you, it will succeed. Because when the time comes you will not only face Cintra, but also the other four kingdoms that surround the forest of Brokilon. And when that time comes, it will depend on how much the princess has suffered inside the forest to decide whether we will only kill you or destroy the entire Brokilon forest."
Lann's cold words came out from inside the helmet, and his tone seemed to begin to smell of fire and blood.
The dryads in the woods began to appear one after another at this time. When they heard Lann talk about setting fire to the forest, some of them could not control their temper and pointed their bows and arrows at him.
Ace was not to be outdone, and everyone else also drew out their weapons, pretending to fight to the death.
But there are still some people among the dryads who are hesitant after listening to Lann's words. They are more rational and know that the dryads have no power to deal with the entire Cintra.
The reason why Brokilon still exists at the junction of the four countries is just because the kings want to eat the biggest cake without getting hurt.
If Cintra is really angered and this country is allowed to become the leader regardless of losses and profits to break this balance, Brokilon will definitely be torn apart by those four greedy beasts.
“You are bluffing.” The silver-haired dryad finally spoke. “Do your words represent Cintra?”
"Actually, I can." Lann said coldly. "The one in your woods is the only princess of Cintra and the only heir of Cintra now. You have no idea how much trouble you are in. As soon as I said it from the beginning, we are here for peace, and I am happy to pay the price for peace, but you are so shameless."
"Now, do me a favor, and save your own lives, and don't be the cause of Brokilon's destruction. Stand back and let us in."
The silver-haired dryad gritted his teeth and said: "Your threats are meaningless, human. But if you just go in to find someone, one person is enough. We can let you in, and the others will stay."
Hearing this, Swade was shocked and shouted quickly: "My lord, no!"
"Nonsense, obviously, I know I can't." Lann said angrily.
Even if Lann was in a hurry to find the princess, he knew that just going in directly would never work.
Although the dryads in The Witcher series may seem good, it is because they are interacting with the protagonist, a witcher who has a long and special friendship with the dryads.
You must know that one of the widely circulated personal traits of Dryad Queen Eithne is relentless hostility towards humans.
The silver-haired dryad said to Lann: "This is all, humans. We can't let all of you in. I can swear on the name of the oak tree that the dryads will not take the initiative to harm you, and I can also send my deputy comes to you as a guide in the forest.”
This kind of condition is not within the scope of Lann's acceptance, but he found that the silver-haired dryad had begun to show a proactive attitude of giving in.
Lann was delighted. "Look, aren't you able to communicate with people normally? You seem to be someone who understands the situation. Why did you let the dryads behind you talk nonsense just now?"
Hearing Lann's unkind words, the dryads who were hostile to humans wanted to speak but were immediately pulled back by their companions.
“The dryads are always loyal to the forest.” The silver-haired dryad said. “You are not the first human to negotiate peace with us, and they have always brought only swords and pain.”
So, humans and dryads have had a long-standing grudge.
Lann thought for a while and came up with another idea. He continued to ask:
"I want to know who is talking to me." Lann turned to look at the silver-haired dryad. "I have introduced myself, but I don't know anything about you. I heard that your queen has silver hair and eyes that others were said to get lost in, despite her supposed coldness. I have a guess, I wonder if you can help me verify it."
The dryad hesitated for a moment and replied: "I am Ellie, the sister of Queen Eithne."
Lann looked back at Levin.
Levin stared in Ellie's direction and thought for a while and said: "I'm not sure if she's the queen's sister. But I've seen her several times, and she's always the leader when several dryads are present. She must have a certain status."
