“My people have wronged your family greatly in the past, but as fellow Moon Elves, blood runs thicker than water. Please come back to our clan with us.”
Ina bowed to Yi Lin. From what Xingyao knew about the Elf Race, their traditions regarding seniority, strength, and hierarchy were quite rigid.
But even so, weren’t there still arrogant fools who bullied others through their connections?
Xingyao’s star-blue eyes glanced at the Forest Elf beside the unfamiliar Moon Elf girl. Someone like him, trying to make a name in Satellite City, wouldn’t even know how he got played to death.
Then, a scene that made her want to laugh and cry unfolded. That Forest Elf youth, upon noticing her gaze, widened his eyes and stared at her intensely, as if the little incident earlier genuinely angered him.
“Is this the Priest’s decision?”
Yi Lin suppressed the aura around her, crossed her arms, and narrowed her eyes at the Moon Elf girl.
“Yes. And personally, I sincerely hope you both will return.”
The Moon Elf girl named Ina nodded, acknowledging Yi Lin’s question, but paused briefly before continuing:
“However, those two human girls over there—please do not let them interfere with Moon Elf affairs.”
Upon hearing this, Xingyao raised an eyebrow. Fumier, who was hiding behind her, peeked out from her waist and bared a hint of hostility.
“We can’t just let this slide! Even if Lady Yi Lin is present, she can’t slander our Elf Race!”
Hearing their pillar of support speak thus, the Forest Elf youth immediately stepped forward, pointing at Xingyao’s nose and rebuking her angrily.
“Oh? Is that so? Young lady from the human race, please explain yourself.”
Ina raised an eyebrow and brought the two “humans” she had treated as air back into her line of sight.
Elves had always harbored hostility toward humans. Most of the time, they were no different from enemies—this was a well-known truth among humans.
And for certain Elf tribes, the lowly humans who lacked magic abilities and had occupied countless of their territories through technology and superpowers alone were the most despicable, most detestable things of all.
Thus, with grievances piling up, the two races of humans and elves fell into an irreconcilable conflict.
In the eyes of these two elves, the fact that these two young human girls dared to speak rudely to elves meant that Yi Lin and Yi Shiyue must have told them something. Therefore, their estimation of the two girls dropped another notch.
It was truly hard to understand—why did the Priest insist on having her humbly invite them back? Was it merely because they were of the same race and Yi Lin did possess some real strength?
So, even if giving these two “human” girls a cold shoulder might anger Yi Lin and Yi Shiyue and jeopardize their mission, they didn’t feel they had done anything wrong. They were just a couple of human girls, after all. They’d seen plenty in this village, and every single one of them had groveled in fear before them. When had the Elf Race ever suffered such indignity?
(Elven Language) “It seems the Elf Race has sheltered you too well.”
Xingyao shook her head without changing her expression. Facing these kinds of people, she couldn’t even muster any anger—their stupidity was simply laughable.
“What do you mean?”
Hearing her words, the emotion in Ina’s eyes turned fully into hostility. She couldn’t understand—someone who could speak the Elven Language so fluently must surely know the situation of the Elf Race. And if that was the case, how dare she—
(Elven Language) “Hah, subconsciously questioning me in the human tongue? Moon Elf, how long has it been since you abandoned your proud language?”
Xingyao stepped forward, showing no fear against the two elves’ furious glares.
“You!”
The Forest Elf youth pointed at her nose, so furious he couldn’t form words. Unfortunately, her words seemed to have no real flaw, and his Elven Language proficiency wasn’t enough to assemble a rebuttal on short notice.
Likewise, Ina, who had received proper etiquette training since childhood, could only stare intently at Xingyao’s face, unable to produce anything more vicious to strike back with verbally.
“Haah… For what happens next, I kindly ask Lady Yi Lin not to interfere.”
Ina spoke half seriously, half pleading. She was determined to teach this arrogant human girl a lesson!
Of course, this all hinged on Yi Lin not shielding the girl. If she insisted on intervening, several hundred of her wouldn’t be enough to fight against her.
Naturally, Yi Lin wouldn’t stand by and watch Xingyao get ganged up on. But just as she furrowed her brows and was about to step forward, her granddaughter beside her pulled her back. She turned and saw her granddaughter shaking her head slightly, gazing at Xingyao with trusting eyes. She immediately understood.
She had only just learned that Xingyao was a Midnight-level Hunter and a Star Elf at that. Just now, she had instinctively treated Xingyao as an ordinary girl.
She hoped that this clever little one wouldn’t reveal her Star Elf identity too soon.
“Don’t make too much of a scene.” In the end, Yi Lin nodded.
Seeing that she had tacitly approved their actions, joy appeared on Ina’s and the Forest Elf’s faces. So Lady Yi Lin also had considerable objections to that girl’s behavior! Once they taught this human girl a lesson, the mission the Priest had given them would likely be completed smoothly as well.
At least Lady Yi Lin was still biased toward the Elven side, wasn’t she?
(Elven Language) “One move is all I need!” Ina cried out sharply, icy aura condensing around her.
Xingyao licked her lips, revealing a mysterious smile. She patted Fumier’s little head beside her, signaling her not to worry. Then, she swept her hand under her skirt, slightly crouched, and stared intently at the magic circle behind the Moon Elf girl.
The next second, the magic circle bloomed with an ice-blue radiance. At the same moment, a sharp ice spike burst out from beneath Xingyao’s feet.
Seeing her magic cast successfully and about to strike that human girl, a victorious smile spread across Ina’s face. As expected, this human girl was all talk—in reality, she couldn’t take a single hit.
Of course, she hadn’t aimed for a vital spot. If she actually killed the girl, it would draw the Human Alliance garrison and upset Lady Yi Lin—that would be more loss than gain.
At this moment, she was already thinking about how she would mock the gasping, dying girl after her victory. Yet she completely failed to notice that the girl had long since transformed into a wisp of shadow and vanished from where she stood.
“Captain!”
By the time the youth beside her called out to her and she saw that her magic hadn’t hit the target, her reaction was a beat too slow.
Ina felt something coil around her calf. As a Moon Elf with extremely high elemental affinity, she immediately realized—this human girl had just used Shadow Magic to evade her attack, and now she was using Forest Magic to summon vines to restrain her.