Chapter 134: The Hunting Hour

Defeated.

Utterly crushed.

He didn’t even need to step onto the battlefield himself; just listening to the flute sounds from all directions and watching the wings roaring across the sky made the situation clear at a glance.

The Bloodslaughter King walked to the entrance of the tent and let out a long sigh.

Thinking back to a week ago, he had been full of ambition, determined to rally his people for an all-out attack and seize the territory of the Elves in one stroke.

At that time, his prestige would reach its peak, and becoming the next Demon King would be within reach.

A week ago, he had laughed in his heart at the former Demon King Aio, wondering how such a treasure could be left untouched.

Hundreds of thousands against tens of thousands—there was no question who held the advantage.

Even if they had to exchange lives directly, victory was certain. How could they possibly fail?

But as the war began, something felt off.

The casualty rate was too ugly to look at.

Still, as the leader of the Blood Demon Tribe, he believed his own strength could turn the tide.

Until he got stabbed a few times by an assassin yesterday.

“If it weren’t for falling into an assassination plot, today’s battle would never have ended like this!”

Damn Elves.

They were supposed to be close to nature and gentle by nature.

The world had been deceived.

Who knew they harbored such powerful killers in secret!

Cursing inwardly, the Bloodslaughter King no longer hesitated.

The moment of decision had come.

“You, you, you, and you.”

He pointed at four of his personal guards.

“Change into ordinary soldiers’ uniforms and come with me!”

He tightened the bandages around his waist, left the camp, and headed north.

As long as they left the Forest and returned to the Demon Realm Borderlands, everything would be fine.

There were many talented individuals in the Blood Demon Tribe.

A comeback was always possible!

After walking for some distance, the wound in his abdomen throbbed with pain, forcing him to stop and rest.

“My King, there’s a Dragon Hawk in the sky. It seems to be following us.”

A guard noticed something strange.

The Bloodslaughter King waved his hand.

“We haven’t revealed our identities. It’s fine. If it’s only one, let her do as she pleases.”

As soon as the words left his mouth, the Dragon Hawk in the sky suddenly folded its wings and dove toward the ground.

“Enemy attack!”

“Protect the King!”

The Dragon Hawk circled at high speed at low altitude, then landed dozens of meters away from them.

It seemed that a figure had jumped down early during the descent, but they didn’t see clearly—and they didn’t have time to care—because their attention was all on the Dragon Hawk’s back.

A Human Race girl.

Pink hair.

Very pretty.

And… a big chest.

How could there be a human in the Elves’ Forest?

“Hello, everyone of the Blood Demon Tribe~”

Ella stepped down from the Dragon Hawk’s back, waving her small hand in greeting.

The Bloodslaughter King and his four guards exchanged glances, unease in their hearts.

Ever since invading the Northern Forest, the Elves had always called them “Demon King Army” or “Demon Race scum” and other insulting terms.

But this mysterious human girl had directly called out their specific tribe name, as if deliberately distinguishing them from the other Demon Race.

The Bloodslaughter King pressed a hand to the bandages on his abdomen and shouted sternly.

“Who are you?”

“I’m a good person.”

Ella shrugged her delicate shoulders.

“But maybe not to you.”

“Seize her!”

The four guards quickly spread out, surrounding the girl from four directions.

Ella didn’t move, just stood there, waiting.

She even smiled at anyone who stepped closer.

Is there some kind of trap…?

“Don’t hesitate! Don’t let her stall for time!”

The Bloodslaughter King ordered his guards.

“Attack directly!”

He believed this mysterious human girl was trying to delay him so that the main force of the Elves could catch up.

The four guards charged forward at once.

As one passed by a tree, a shadow suddenly darted out from the shade.

“Who… ah!”

In that instant, his blood ignited, but he still couldn’t dodge.

The shadow stabbed into his heart, and heated blood sprayed out like a pump.

The remaining three guards immediately halted.

“An ambush!”

“There’s another one?”

It was a question because they weren’t sure if that thing was even human.

Maybe.

Or maybe a ghost.

In any case, it didn’t look like an Elf.

After landing a hit, Zero slipped back into the shadows to hide.

The Forest was dim and overgrown—once she slipped in, there was no way to find her.

The Bloodslaughter King’s expression grew darker.

The moment the shadow appeared, he realized something.

“Yesterday… it was you.”

There was no secret covert operation.

It wasn’t an Elven plot.

Assassination, pursuit—everything had been done by these two humans.

“Who are you really? Why are you involved in this war, and why do you hunt us so relentlessly?”

Ella spread her hands.

“That’s right, we did it. As for why…”

“Kill!”

Seizing the moment while she spoke to distract them, the closest guard attacked without hesitation.

Blood boiling, a faint red mist appeared around his body, and he raised his great ring-blade high overhead.

This was the full power strike of a high-level Blood Demon, using the Burning Blood Secret Technique to push every physical attribute to the limit.

It was an attack of rage, carried out for the King’s cause.

It was…

Squelch!

The Necroblade, Bone Summoner pierced through his chest and out his back.

The churning blood left no trace on the bone, but the ghastly white blade sent chills through everyone, making their bodies tremble.

Even Ella herself frowned.

The response time had gotten faster.

It appeared from the abyssal void almost instantly, with almost no delay.

And even though she hadn’t moved her hand, it felt as if the sword had stabbed on its own, dragging her small, soft hand along with it.

Was this the influence of an Evil God’s possession?

Since the weapon had risen from legendary to pseudo-mythical level, it seemed to have gained some unfamiliar qualities.

She looked at the part of the hilt where the brilliance of the stars flowed—a color that couldn’t be described, like Yiselis’s smiling face.

The Bloodslaughter King wiped cold sweat from his brow and swallowed.

“What is that thing?”

A sword made of white bone.

It looked familiar.

The previous Demon King had used the same type.

But he could sense that the one in the girl’s hand was different—more powerful, more evil, more blasphemous than the Demon King’s blade.

Ella shook off her thoughts and kicked the corpse at her feet aside, walking toward him with the sword in hand.

“Bloodslaughter King, I can’t remember your original name, but it doesn’t matter.

What’s important is that you fools dared to disobey my orders and invade the Elves’ Forest.”

The named Bloodslaughter King stared wide-eyed.

“Who are you, really?”

“Let me tell you why I forbade you from attacking the Elves. First, after days of war, you must have realized that the Forest is part of the Elves’ ecosystem. Aside from the Elves, it’s difficult for others to develop or use it.”

“Second, the Elven armies that routed you today—this is less than a third of their entire race’s power. Finally, as an ancient, high-level race, have you considered how many trump cards they might have left hidden?”

As Ella spoke, she walked forward.

The ground was soft, providing enough cushion that her great white rabbits didn’t bounce with each step.

The pressure lost by this was perfectly compensated by the Necroblade, Bone Summoner, enhanced by Yiselis.

The Bloodslaughter King was sweating cold.