Chapter 159: Act 92 – The Dead and the Kings (Seven)
In a dream.
The court of the Silver Elves still shone with a holy white light, the holy white spires, the holy white arched walls, the holy white corridors, and the holy white railings.
How long ago was that dream…
“Sister.”
“What is your name?” The voice in the dream became sharp as always.
“I’m sorry.”
In the dream…
I remember Mom saying that when you gently press your hand to your chest, you can feel the pulse and warmth of life called ‘heart.’ Only by being close there can one feel at ease.
Yet, it is precisely like this that the scenery of Summerl wore clarity, and I really wish to return to that time…
“I’m sorry, my sister.”
“I’m sorry, Father.”
“It’s all my fault…”
※ ※ ※
Brendel’s words made him realize another thing; rather than saying that this young girl had too much health, it might be another possibility. That is, the setting of the plot task. The guide did not mention how to activate the altar, although Brendel believed that with his experience, he could find the right method—
But it seems that the way is already laid out before him?
However, since it’s a task, this young girl would probably wake up soon; after all, the game would not let players wait too long. Brendel raised his head and looked at the star-filled night sky, wondering if this world was the same.
The mercenaries were whispering; Antinna nervously held Romaine’s hand as she looked at the underage Silver Elf girl on the ground. No one dared to approach too closely, as the spirit of the unicorn was still guarding her, and the previous awe was still present; who knew if it would lash out and harm them.
But as Brendel expected, the young girl’s eyelashes soon fluttered, and then she opened her eyes.
They were a somewhat confused pair of eyes.
The rainbow ring was silver, appearing somewhat hollow.
Yet, in that hollow gaze, it seemed moments later to be filled with many things, like memories, emotions, and some even more complex factors. After a brief pause, the young girl moved her body, tilted her head, and reflected the faces of everyone, including Brendel, in her vision.
She seemed to remember something, furrowed her brows, showing a pained expression, then curled her body and started to cough violently. She let go of her hand, her palm stained with silver blood.
Then she trembled as she groped on the ground, gritting her teeth to grasp her silver spear that had fallen to the other side—
The mercenaries warily drew their weapons; someone seemed to want to approach and stop her. But Antinna turned back and shouted, “Brendel, she is no longer capable of fighting.” The previous performance of the elf girl seemed to have touched this noble girl; she too had fallen, and that feeling resonated with her, as if striking the weakest part of her heart.
Indeed, she could no longer fight.
Brendel nodded; this ghost had already entered the final stage of decay. At this point, he could probably stand there and let her kill him, and she wouldn’t have the capability. Ghosts linger in this world due to a persistent desire for something; that desire is their soul’s power, but once the soul’s power dissipates, her last connection to this world would be dissolved.
From now on, the meaning represented by this elf girl would completely vanish from this world, without a trace.
Sure enough, after a while groping, the elf girl suddenly stopped. Because she was dazed to see her hand pressing on the ground was already flickering, seemingly about to disappear at any moment.
Brendel raised his hand, signaling the others to stop.
In fact, there was no need for him to remind them; the mercenaries had also stopped their further actions. If the previous terrifying ghost knight was powerful enough to instill fear, then this elf girl’s ghost was merely fragile, evoking a desire to protect her.
“Human… Sir, am I… going to disappear…?” The elf girl stared blankly at her fading hand and suddenly asked. Her voice was like a nightingale in a silent forest, so beautiful it was hard to believe.
Even the younger sister among the Wild Elves couldn’t help but gasp softly. The Wild Elves were also excellent musicians, yet before the noble Silver Elves, they still fell short in many ways.
Since the bloodline of Vaunte’s elves was passed down from the golden bloodline, in fact, there were only two main branches of the purest silver race, the Silver Elves and the Mist Elves. As the golden faction had long since disappeared, the Silver Elves and Mist Elves became the natural nobility of the elves.
Brendel silently nodded.
The task arrived, but he suddenly found he could not be happy about it. In games, he would not be affected by such scenes, because he knew it was merely an NPC. But here, he found it hard to be cold-blooded.
“You…” Antinna tested softly, “Was that knight you?”
“…” The elf girl did not answer, merely nodded in silence; her arms and legs were already starting to become transparent. But she lifted her head and forced a smile: “I… killed many… It turns out, Lady Martha, must have already abandoned me…”
“That is not your fault,” Brendel replied. Historically, that incident was indeed due to the Temple of Fire’s lack of integrity; otherwise, Lady Martha would not have been enraged. In fact, since then, Erluin’s fortunes had continued to decline.
Moreover, he had generally figured out the cause and effect. It must have been that the monks of the Temple of Fire wanted to change the contract between the ancient kings of the Silver Elves and Lady Martha, and the elven goddess Sáeya. Changing divine contracts was something Brendel had also done; it was not actually complicated, but the risks were immense—he could bear them as a player, but he couldn’t figure out where Erluin’s people would find such courage, though the end result still allowed the evil spirit to take advantage.
That led to a tragedy.
Surely, at the time, the evil spirit must have controlled more than just this young girl. However, the high-ranking monks of the Temple of Fire were not weak; after a fierce battle not recorded in history, this shrine disappeared from all officially recorded history, remaining in ruins until now.
“What is your name?”
Brendel found that even at this moment, Romaine’s question was still so constructive.
“My name is Medisa, my surname is Crescent Moon,” the elf girl answered.
“You’re not of royal blood?” Brendel and Antinna both exclaimed in unison. The surnames of the Silver Elven royalty were named the same as the Empire; the Haryalan royal family was the purest silver race, and unless one was of pure royal blood, one could not enter this royal tomb.
“Yes, I’m the daughter of a craftsman.”
“But this is the royal burial ground of the Silver Elves…” Antinna pressed on.
This question left the elf girl in a moment of daze as her half-body had gradually become transparent: “Because of some special reasons…” she said.
“Special reasons? I’ve heard that the Silver Elves bury their greatest heroes and ancient kings together…” The noble girl recited what was in her books, but she looked at this girl with skepticism; she did not seem like ‘the greatest’ hero at all.
The elf girl touched her unicorn, and her gaze softened: “It’s not like that; actually, I’m here on behalf of someone.”
What?
Brendel almost involuntarily spat out his second mouthful of water, having heard of representation for exams in that era, but never of substitute burial rights. What was this? Standing in line for someone?
However, Antinna was much sharper than he; the girl immediately asked, “Substitution for death? Or sacrificial burial?”
Brendel froze; a substitute? He thought this was a really clichéd development. But he hadn’t expected that the typically noble and elegant Silver Elves would also engage in such things, looking almost similar to humans.
However, the elf girl immediately shook her head: “I volunteered.”
“Volunteered?” Brendel found it hard to believe.
The elf girl displayed a faint smile, as if recalling something proud: “I came here to replace… my sister… no, for… the princess.”
As she spoke, her lower body had nearly reached the point of being invisible.
“Wait.” Brendel interrupted her, “Sister? Princess, what is the situation?”
“My mother is the elven craftsman of Summerl. But my father is the Emperor of the Haryalan Empire; I suppose I could be considered half a princess…”
“So your sister is the princess of the Silver Elven Empire?”
The girl nodded.
“What happened?”
“My elder sister was cursed by the Minren during battle. The palace mage told my father—unless a blood relative died in her place, she would weaken throughout her life until her death,” the elf girl slowly narrated. “But my elder sister is the most outstanding general of the Empire; whether it’s the Dwarves, or human allies, or our subjects, none wishes for such a thing to happen…”
“So, my father chose me.”
Antinna frowned fiercely: “… He’s your father; how could he do such a thing?”
But Brendel stopped this noble girl; she did not understand how powerful the dark dragon was that the four holy beings faced during the chaotic years. All races had to pay tremendous costs to combat that existence. Medisa’s father acting as the ruler of the Haryalan Empire made such a choice quite reasonable.
He looked at this elf girl, silent for a while, and asked, “Why tell us all this?”
“Because… I want to ask you for a favor?”
Sure enough, Brendel thought.
“What favor?”
“The lizardmen in the forest took my sister’s necklace from my tomb; I don’t know what they intend to do. But without that item, the curse cannot be fixed on me, and I’m worried…”
Antinna could not help but interrupt her, “You’re about to disappear, and you’re still worrying about others!”
The elf girl glanced at this noble girl and smiled lightly.
“Precisely because of that, I hope… my disappearance can be… more meaningful…”
Antinna was taken aback.
“This is your own matter; we seem to have the right to refuse, right?” Brendel asked again. Although reason told him to accept the commission, he didn’t know why, seeing this seemingly peaceful little girl made him a bit angry.
The girl looked up; her eyes flashed with a hint of cunning: “Human… Sir, you came to seek the assistance of the souls of the ancient kings, didn’t you?”
Her body had approached complete transparency.
“You know?”
“I can hear even the faintest breeze in the valley…” She closed her eyes and replied, “But to gain the recognition of the ancient kings, you must first gain my recognition…”
“So, I want to make a deal with you.”
Being threatened, and by a little girl no less, Brendel felt an ache of frustration; could he just turn against her? He glanced back at Antinna and Romaine, both girls, along with Husher, nodded.
“Alright then, but I have one request,” Brendel said: “I want to receive the help of the ancient kings’ souls first; otherwise, using our strength against those lizardman bandits in the forest would be like trying to smash an egg against a rock.”
The girl nodded.
“I agree,” she replied.
Brendel was taken aback: “Aren’t you worried I might go back on my word?”
“Of course… I’m worried,” the elf girl was silent for a while, answering like that.
“Then why…”
The girl suddenly started coughing.
When she raised her head again, her face was full of tears: “I… am certainly worried. But… I also… don’t want to disappear… I still have… things… to accomplish… I’m sorry, can you help… me…?”
A breeze swept through the peaks, seeming to bring a distant wailing sound—
Everyone froze in that moment, though she had already disappeared without a trace, the elf girl’s final cries seemed to echo in each of their ears. Brendel turned back to look at the others, speechless for a moment.
(PS. Fourth update completed, seeking support for the Silver Elf LOLI!) (To be continued; to find out what happens next, please log in, more chapters await, support the author, support genuine reading!)
