Eiron Calendar, Year 588, 17th of October.
Withered yellow leaves covered the forest. It was late autumn, and though the cold of winter had yet to arrive, the usually mild wind had turned damp and bone-chilling.
At night, the temperature in the forest was close to freezing. Most of the animals that had been hunting for food were nowhere to be seen, and the vast Forest of Silent Whisper was much quieter than usual. Apart from the animals that had yet to accumulate enough fat to survive the winter, the only ones that were still active were the human mercenary groups and the wood elves that lived in the forest.
Ten kilometers away from the edge of the forest, Elsa Village, which belonged to the Wood Elves, was disturbed by a sudden incident.
Although it was called a village, it looked like a forest from afar. The wood elves lived in hollows dug out from the bottom of the tall trees, so their buildings didn't seem to be man-made. If one were to walk closer, they would see a dense cluster of towering trees. Every tree trunk had a sizable hole two to three meters above the ground, and the wood elves lived in the orderly space within these hollows. The biggest hole was the entrance, and the so-called 'door' was a wooden cover. The smaller hollows were windows for ventilation. During winter, the elves would block up these small hollows to keep warm.
In previous years, the elves would have hunted enough prey to survive the winter and rarely came out. But now, there were sounds of quarreling in the center of the village. If one walked closer, they would see a dozen young wood elves talking to an old elf with agitated expressions.
"Silence!"
Chief Brudy's voice was almost drowned out by the elves' words. He was 93 years old, and his face was covered in a beard. His dark brown hair had many tree leaves hanging on it, and his wrinkled face was full of wrinkles. His eye bags were deep and big, and he held a wooden staff full of lumps in his hand. Seeing that the younger generation was still arguing, he frowned and said, "I already know what happened, but I haven't made a decision yet. Why are you arguing with me?!"
"Chief! These cunning humans definitely don't have good intentions! "
"Chief, let's unite the other villages and teach them a lesson they won't forget!"
"They must pay the price for insulting our people!"
"That's right! Pay the price! "
Faced with the chaotic shouts, Village Chief Brudy's expression turned ugly. He simply raised his wooden staff and chanted an incantation. Then, he slammed it on the ground and cast a large-scale 'Mind Calming Spell'. After the emerald green light spread out, the Wood Elves who were affected quietened down, and their excited expressions gradually calmed down.
"Pay what price? Do you want to start a war? "
He pointed at the young elves and said. Some of the elves lowered their heads, not daring to meet his eyes, but some of them were not convinced. The youngest among them straightened his neck and shouted, "What's wrong with war? Village Chief, we are not afraid of humans! "
"You think war is the same as hunting? Do you think you don't have to fear any enemies in the forest? " Brody raised his wooden staff and knocked on the man's head. "It's just a mercenary group that came here to stir up trouble. Do you want to destroy the Kingdom of Karen? Do you really think this is 700 years ago? "
At the mention of 'seven hundred years ago', the elves collectively fell silent. They lowered their heads one by one. The elf whose head was hit still wanted to be stubborn, but when he saw the fierce look of the village chief, he finally swallowed his words and muttered in a low voice, "They beat Aixen! If it weren't for Natha, I'm afraid these humans would have dragged Aixen away … You also said that the humans would sell the Wood Elves as goods! "
"I'll find someone to deal with this, but I won't let you mess around like this … Hugo, go get Natha. I'll wait for her in Aixen's tree hole."
Hugo, who had a few bumps on his head, responded in a low voice. He looked like he was only 17 or 18 years old, the age where he was full of vigor and impulsiveness. Although he no longer talked nonsense, his resentment towards the humans was clearly written on his face. After receiving the order, he pulled a long face and dragged his feet towards the tree hole where Natha was.
The Wood Elves who had gathered here earlier immediately dispersed. It was obvious that they were very obedient to the village chief's authority. However, their conversations were still filled with hostility towards the humans.
Meanwhile, Village Chief Brody had already arrived at the tree hole of the Wood Elf named Aixen. The circular space was about 10 square meters. The pure wood room always had a faint smell of wood. The circular window was open, and dim light shone in. The bandage on Aixen's head was clearly visible. Brody walked over and sat by the wooden bed. He frowned and asked, "Why did this happen so suddenly? You said that those humans attacked you without any reason? "
Aixen, who was lying on the bed, looked thin and small, but he was one of the strong young hunters in the village. Most of the hunting teams in Erza Village worked in groups, but today, he ran off alone to chase a wild boar. Because it was near the village, Aixen let his guard down, and easily caught up to and killed the wild boar. Who knew …
"I don't know where they came from. There were a lot of them, and they were all fierce. I couldn't understand what they were saying, but the leader was very tall and strong …"
Aixen looked dispirited, aggrieved, and angry. He rubbed his head as he spoke, "I couldn't block his attack at all. That guy was fast and ruthless, I …"
"I heard from Hugo that they wanted to take you away?"
"Yes. If it wasn't for Natha's arrival and the help of a group of people, I'm afraid I would've been dragged away by them …" At this point, he revealed a look of lingering fear. "What are those humans trying to do? They've never come close to this place before. "
"It could be a small problem, or it could be a big one. Anyway, the team that goes out must be careful." The frowning village chief, Brody, was also confused. Just as he was about to comfort Aixen, he heard banging sounds coming from the cover of the tree hole. Then, Hugo's head popped in, and he shouted in a panicked voice, "Chief! There's a human outside the village! "
"What's going on?"
Brody's old face was twisted. This group of humans. Are they going to reason with me after beating me up?!
"What are you panicking for? I'll go and take a look. Let Randolf bring the men to prepare for battle. "
Even though he was frighteningly old, Brodie did not hesitate in the slightest as he strode out of the room with large strides.
*****
At the same time, in a tree hole at the corner of the village, Natha, who was holding her bow and arrows, was staring out of the window in a daze.
Ever since she met Roddy in the forest more than a month ago, Natha had been in a daze more often. The two arrows that were taken from the Steel-tailed Leopard had been placed on the small wooden table in front of her. Every time she returned from a hunt and saw them, she would be reminded of that fellow's two precise and swift arrows …
Ever since that experience, Natha had been constantly trying to imitate Roddy's astonishing shooting speed and calm demeanor. Such changes seemed to have improved her skills significantly. Seeing that more and more prey were brought back to the village by a single arrow, the veteran hunters in the hunting team were surprised by her 'improvement'. However, such praises only made Natha more vexed …
Only she knew that this so-called 'improvement' was like child's play in front of that fellow …
Because of Roddy, she began to be interested in humans. She even developed an irrepressible curiosity in her heart. In the past, it was difficult for Natha, who was as cold and rigid as her expression, to be interested in anything. However, after more than a month, she realized that she could not get that figure out of her mind.
Why does that fellow named Roddy know how to speak the Elven language? Why does it feel like he knows me so well?
After thinking about it, Natha gradually realized that humans did not seem to be as' greedy 'and' shameless' as Village Chief Brody said. However, her slightly improved view of humans completely changed today.
An hour ago, when Natha returned to the village and saw Aixen being knocked to the ground by a few humans and about to be dragged away, she had no choice but to use her bow and arrows to 'communicate' with these ferocious fellows!
When it came to the safety of the Wood Elves, Natha never hesitated. If it wasn't for the few humans blocking the arrows with their shields and decisively abandoning the injured Aixen to escape, Natha would have definitely chased after them.
When she rescued Aixen, Natha looked at his battered and bleeding face and was at a loss … Roddy's behavior at that time made her think that all humans were friendly and peaceful. Even if there were some differences, humans should not have the intention to harm the Wood Elves …
But … why?
Why did these humans attack the Wood Elves? Why did they drag Aixen away?
Could it be that fellow named Roddy was the same?
"Natha?"
The voice outside the tree hole interrupted her thoughts. She did not need to think to know that it was Randolf who had just returned to the village. Everyone in the village knew of his intention to pursue her, but Natha really did not want to start a relationship with someone. However, as there were not many people in the village, although Natha had a cold personality, she would not fall out with Randolf because of his persistent pestering. At this moment, she did not speak, and Randolf stretched his body into the tree hole and smiled. "Do you mind if I come in?"
Natha swept her gaze over and turned back expressionlessly.
To Randolf, this was the answer of 'I don't mind'. He entered the tree hole lightly and silently. At this moment, he was wearing a well-tailored linen robe, and his long hair was tied up simply. Although he did not carry any weapons, his strong and slender figure was really extraordinary.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
