Chapter 28 : Elves

Elves

"Huh? You prepared this for me?"

"Yes, my master. I guarantee with my former identity as a royal court chef that the food will definitely suit your taste."

"Really? Then I'll have a try."

Serea walked over and sat down beside Celia. From beginning to end, Celia hadn't uttered a single word, while Dogsius obediently controlled Celia's body to fill a big bowl of porridge for Serea.

Once she got the bowl, Serea, feeling hungry, didn't bother with anything else and started eating right away.

"Mm, tastes pretty good. Sometimes you really are useful."

Serea offered her praise and then began to slowly savor her meal.

"To be praised by my lord is the greatest of honors."

Dogsius still fawned as usual, but Serea simply ignored him.

After the porridge was finished, Dogsius released his control over Celia, and Celia served herself a bowl of porridge as well.

During their meal, Serea's eyes secretly glanced at another pot on the ground nearby. Steam rose from within, suggesting something else was cooking.

"Are there other dishes too?"

Curious, Serea leaned over. Seeing Serea peering into the pot, Celia stopped her with a word.

"There's nothing in there."

"Huh?"

Not understanding why Celia suddenly said that, Serea looked puzzled, and Celia repeated herself.

"There's nothing inside."

Celia's tone showed no emotional fluctuation at all, which only made Serea more curious. She raised herself up a bit and looked into the pot.

"Even if you say so..."

But when she saw that foul-smelling, black, unidentified mass, Serea's face turned a bit unnatural. She looked toward Celia.

"Did you prepare that too?"

Serea asked and glanced again at the 'most abominable thing in this world' in the pot. That mass, vaguely emanating blackness, gave off a dire impression just from looking at it—never mind actually eating it.

So this teaches us a lesson: not everything in a pot is food; it might also be...

"Oh, my master, please do not associate that sort of thing with me—that was Cel—"

Dogsius hadn't even finished speaking before Celia raised her fist and punched herself hard in the chest.

That spot was exactly where Dogsius's true body resided, having parasitized Celia.

BANG!

With that punch, Dogsius's voice halted abruptly, and Celia coughed a little from the powerful impact.

"Cough, cough—Sorry, I choked a bit while eating."

"Uh... is... that so? Dogsius, are you still alive?"

Serea was a little worried about Dogsius, but there was no response for a long time, while Celia calmly sipped the porridge made by Dogsius.

Seeing this, Serea glanced again at the pot, having mostly guessed what had happened.

As for Dogsius...

There were indeed serious consequences for not being able to control his mouth.

With a sense of mourning for Dogsius, Serea finished the porridge from her bowl and handed the empty bowl back to Celia.

"One more bowl!"

After relieving her hunger, Serea returned to her energetic self, and the special herbs in the porridge also eased some of her physical discomfort.

As Serea handed over the bowl, Celia instinctively reached out to take it.

But just then, a sense of danger surged within her, and the next moment, Dogsius's warning came.

"Master, someone's launching a sneak attack—dodge, quickly!"

Even before Dogsius's reminder, Serea had already sensed the murderous intent. She threw the bowl from her hand and then tackled Celia, rolling to the side.

The discarded bowl arced through the air, only to be shattered into porcelain shards by an arrow in mid-flight.

That arrow had been intended for Serea, but this move caused its trajectory to deflect, embedding itself in the wooden pillar beside Serea.

"Get ready to fight!"

The intruder's intentions were hostile. Serea reached for the short sword at her back, while Celia swiftly drew the cross sword at her waist.

Both looked toward the nearby forest—where the arrow had come from.

Seeing her target had dodged the attack, the ambusher in the woods frowned slightly, not expecting such a quick reaction.

But now that she was exposed, there was no need to hide any longer.

Under Serea's and Celia's vigilant gaze, a woman stepped out from the trees. She had long golden hair and a pair of jade-green eyes.

She wore bright green cloth armor, with crucial parts protected by leather, and most curious of all, she had a pair of long, pointed ears.

An elf!

Upon seeing the woman's appearance and attire, the term immediately popped into Serea's mind.

"It's an elf!"

Worldly and knowledgeable, Celia confirmed Serea's suspicion, and after seeing it was an elf, she glanced behind the woman.

Sure enough, after the woman stepped out, several more female elves with longbows drawn emerged. They wore similar garments—all women.

One could say that these legendary elves lived up to their fame; each was strikingly beautiful, especially the leader.

Serea focused on the female elf at the front and gleaned her information.

Character: Vina Darkmoon (Elf, apprentice Elf Archer, Silver Elite)

Level: 16

Status: Good

Spirit: B

Strength: C

Agility: A

Endurance: B

Constitution: C

Charm: S

Luck: C

Skills: Stealth (Tier 1), eagle Eye (Tier 1), sharpshooter (Tier 1)

Profile: A peace-loving tribe of elves—more specifically, forest elves. These elves have the thinnest bloodline among their kind and often dwell in the forests. Thus, they are known as forest elves.

"Forest elves? I never thought I'd actually run into these elusive people here."

Serea murmured. Her soft words were overheard by Vina, who immediately drew her bow and aimed it at Serea.

"Despicable humans! Don't even think about escaping. Surrender at once!"

Seeing their leader taking aim at the human girl, the other five elves also shifted their bows, aiming their arrows at her.

Witnessing this, Serea couldn't help but complain inwardly:

So much for the peace-loving elven people...

Right now, outnumbered and with the Skeleton Warriors still out hunting monsters and not yet returned, confronting them head-on would spell disaster for both herself and Celia.

Celia understood as much and stepped forward to negotiate.

"The elven people yearn for peace and tranquility, and we meant no offense. Why are you attacking us?"

Celia truly lived up to her experience—facing the imposing elven warriors, she maintained her composure and intended to clarify the reason for their sudden assault.

But upon hearing Celia's question, burning anger ignited in Vina's eyes.

"Hmph. Despicable humans! Don't try to deceive us with those hypocritical faces—return our companion immediately!"

At this, Vina's eyes were filled with murderous intent, and the hand drawing her bowstring began to tremble.

(To be continued...)

-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=

Elves are... stupid???

Elves and their assumptions...