Reaching where they were tied up, he faced Ayobe.
"You're the one who's an iron etcher, right?" he posed the question, making Ayobe open her eyes and stare at him.
"Yes, I am," she replied with a nonchalant expression.
Ignoring her tone, Rael asked, "Then I believe you should know about symbols, right? Runic symbols, yes?"
"I do. And why are you asking?" she replied as if she didn't already know the reason.
Rael remained silent for a moment. He really didn't have a choice but to persuade her to help one way or the other. He knew he could threaten her with the lives of her sisters, but that would only worsen his chances of recruiting them. After all, the quest did mention their willingness and shared interest. So, with no other choice, he responded,
"I… I need your expertise."
"You mean our help, right?" Yasmin mocked.
Rael ignored her as he stared at Ayobe, who nudged Ivyre, causing her to raise her head and stare at Rael with her pale green eyes.
"And why should she help you, considering we're the ones tied up?" Ivyre asked.
"You just said it yourself ,you're the ones tied up. So I could choose to kill you if you don't cooperate. You really don't have a choice, okay?"
"We could choose to die rather than help you. And looking at how important your symbols are, I'm certain you won't want that," Ivyre scoffed.
Rael remained expressionless for a moment before uttering the words the elves wanted to hear.
"What do you want?"
"The obvious. Release us," Yasmin demanded.
"Not a chance," Rael folded his arms as he stared down at them.
"Then we can't help you," Ivyre replied, tilting her head, making her white hair fall over her left shoulder. Yasmin added,
"Never expected you'd be afraid of helpless women, even when you have the upper hand."
Rael gritted his teeth. "Giving me demands even when you're prisoners…"
He brought out Ivyre's blade and pointed it directly at her, then posed a question while staring into her eyes.
"So if you were in my shoes, what would you do?"
Ivyre remained silent for a moment before replying in a genuinely calm tone.
"I wouldn't trust their words," she paused, maintaining eye contact with Rael before continuing, "unless they take an oath on their elven heart, which is our pride."
Hearing this made Rael frown as he noticed a serious look appear on both Ayobe and Yasmin after her words.
Hmm, that's equivalent to a noble's oath, 'Rael thought. He knew this since he was once a noble himself, but he still couldn't fully trust their words especially knowing the trio were outcasts.
"And you'd make that oath?" he questioned.
"Yes, I am willing," Ivyre replied without hesitation.
"Wait, what?" both Ayobe and Yasmin exclaimed, turning to Ivyre, but she ignored them and continued.
"If I make an oath, you'll not only release us but also return our magic pouches to us."
"No, can't do. I'll release you all, and that's it nothing else," Rael rebutted.
"Alright then," Ivyre said calmly. "I, Ivyre Legolas, swear on my aether-pulsing heart that if you release us and do not harm any of us in any way, we will not harm you either, and we will help you with your symbols."
She uttered the words carefully but firmly, making Rael contemplate deeply.
He wasn't even sure that was her full name, since the Eye of Critic hadn't revealed such, but he knew elves didn't take oaths lightly. If humans saw oaths as simple restrictions binding an agreement, elves viewed them as law that must be upheld.
And besides, they had no aether, and he still had Dominion Senses in case they broke their oath.
"Okay. I'll release you three, but only after the other two make the same oath," Rael replied, pointing at both Ayobe and Yasmin, making them begrudgingly swear as well.
Afterward, Rael with blade still in hand cut off the chains and ropes.
He took a step back and watched them stretch their limbs, their slender waists hugged by their black mercenary tunics. He couldn't help but admire the beautiful and seductive allure carried by the elven race. He had always doubted the tales he'd heard in the taverns of Grandveil, but they weren't wrong.
"Don't go into any of those buildings. You can all sit by the burning fire."
With that, he returned to the fire, continuing to draw the symbols while noticing that the Tier 3 quest still remained active—clearly, they weren't allies yet.
Seeing him seated by the burning fire, Ayobe turned to Ivyre.
"Should I?"
"Yes. We made an oath, so we keep it," Ivyre replied.
With that, Ayobe went to sit by the fire as Yasmin whispered,
"You know we were cast out, right? Keeping such oaths is of no relevance to us."
"I know. And we'll keep it regardless. But we'll also try to find out what's causing the drainage of our aether and I suspect those structures," Ivyre said, directing her gaze toward the four longhouses.
Yasmin nodded, before they went on to sit cross-legged beside the burning fire.
Rael watched them from the corner of his eyes while wiping away another mistake. Finally, he caught Ayobe staring at the already drawn 'A'-like symbol and lines.
"Hmm… that's familiar," she muttered, catching Rael's attention as her curiosity took over.
"You know it?" he asked.
"Well, not exactly. This looks more complex," she answered, drawing closer and sketching something similar with her fingers.
Seeing how easily she drew it and how similar it was to his own,Rael felt a sting. It had taken him forever just to draw that single symbol, and she did it effortlessly.
"What does it mean?" he asked.
"Well, it's a source rune. It can draw energy from any source, but for it to work in an array, it has to be more than one probably a dozen," she said, finishing the exact 'A' symbol Rael had drawn, making him realize just how terrible he was at drawing.