Chapter 23

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"Nean, Shalie, Feth. I have avenged you. Sorry that I didn't die with you." he prayed before the lifeless corpse. We chose to leave him alone for a time. We were exhausted. We took a bath while feeling weathered. The sun was still high in the sky, but we didn't feel like doing anything.

"Hah. Hahahaha!!" Mattheus laughed as we sprawled on the ground.

"Ahahaha." Nora also laughed with him. Lily only smiled as the sun bathed our battered bodies.

"Guys. I am done praying. Lily. Thank you. And I am sorry that we missed our chance to run away earlier. What about the remaining humans?" Lhorne said as he bowed down to me and knelt.

"Ah, they are all dead. They couldn't escape Lily's spell." Nora said. The others have no combat ability. They tried to flee but were ultimately killed by soldiers or burnt in flames. What a shame it was a pyrrhic victory. We won but lost everyone else.

"So, let's go home after a break? We should reach the border by sundown. I don't want to risk any more danger around this area." Lhorne said. His face was dark as if he was anxious about something.

"Well, Lhorne. You heard it yourself, right? Don't you want to save you fellow elves?"

"I do want to save them. But your survival is our utmost priority…." Lhorne bit his lips.

"Let's save them!" Lily said. It was rare for her to put forth her own suggestions.

"Lily… No. It's too dangerous. What if there are other blessed in the city. We can't go there."

"It's fine! There are no other blessed children apart from Silvester. I am sure of it!" Lily said it out loud.

"Thank you!"

"let's go!" Lily shouted.

"Wait, we need to rest first. Our mana and health aren't full yet." I stopped her with my tail and tried to grab her clenched fist.

"I am tired. We need to rest. If we are going to do it, we need to do a night raid…." Mattheus replied.

"Can't we slip in by pretending to be your slaves?" Lhorne asked.

"No. I have criminal jobs. The city won't welcome me." Mattheus replied grimly.

"I see. Very well. I will do as you command." Lhorne bowed to Lily.

Lhorne and Nora hunted while Mattheus prepared a simple camp. Mattheus said that I needed to sleep since I had the worst injury compared to the rest of them. Lily did just that. When dinner arrived, She commented that she wasn't used to eating dinner without doing any preparation work. Lhorne laughed as he commented that she needed to get used to it if she were to be a noble of the elves.

Night finally came. Darkness filled the entire forest as tonight was a moonless night. Lhorne, however, walked as if he was in daylight. He neither trips nor hits the trees around him. The city wall was in full view just a moment later.

"Okay. That's the city wall. Mattheus, how are we going to attack it?" Lhorne stopped mocking Mattheus as humans or apes today. He seemed to bond together rather well.

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"Okay, I will knock on the gate. Then after the guard opened it, we killed them swiftly. Do not let them sound the alarm." Mattheus, the ex-mercenary, seemed to know how guards operate.

We did as we were told. The knights were easy for us though Nora required more time when engaging the soldiers. Lhorne's arrows were quick and accurately pierced their eye even though it was dark.

"Okay. We took over the gate. Lily, you knew this town. Lead the way!" Mattheus said. Five soldiers' corpses lay before us. We then close the gate again. This feels like that infiltration mission in games. I am excited.

"Yes. The slave building is right here." Lily led the way. We all wore a cloak so the passerby won't recognize us as tailfolk and elves.

"Welcome to our establishment. Are you looking for a battle slave? Or are you looking for a sex slave? Or are you looking for a labor slave?" the receptionist smiled while welcoming us.

"Shut up. Where do you keep our companion?" Lhorne spat out while holding a dagger to her neck.

"W-who are you? Elves?" he stuttered as his eye widened.

"Where are they!?" Lhorne now practically shouted. I want to advise him to control his emotion. I didn't realize Lhorne was the type of guy ruled by emotion. He usually acted in a calm and polite manner, but He is out of control today. The receptionist then screamed in panic.

"HELP!! Argh!" Lily quickly stabbed her neck to silence her.

"Ah… Sorry. Mattheus, Lily, I was not in control of my emotion…." Lhorne said while bowing down. He realized he had fucked up. Fortunately, the scream was brief and only woke three other servants. We dispatched them in a quick motion. Lily decapitated one neck, Nora stabbed the other servant, and Lhorne fired an arrow through the last one.

We scoured the building and liberated about thirty tailfolk slaves. They knelt to Lily gratefully as Lily promised them land where they could be free in an elven country.

"The elves are not here…" Lhorne muttered.

"Um… there was another chamber at the top where the expensive stuff is…" a white foxkin said to us.

"Thank you. What's your name?" Nora said

"I am Silly."

"Let's go." Lily raised her bloodied sword. We climbed the stairs, and screams followed.

"NOOO!" We quickly went to the bed-filled room and found an elf naked while some fat, rich-looking guy was raping her.

"W-who are you!" the fat pig shouted, only to be silenced by Lhorne.

"Damn you!" Lhorne lost his cool and butchered him up. His gorgeous face contorted like a maniac as he stabbed him multiple times.

"Hix…" Are you okay? Mattheus came closer, only to be met with a scream, "NO!!! no more!!"

Lhorne regained his sense while glaring at Mattheus. "Sorry. I didn't mean to."

"No. It was not your fault Mattheus. Little elfling, My name is Lhorne. A forest guardian of Edenthal Forest. I came here to save you. May I know your name?

"Methialhar…"

"Methialhar. Will you go to Regoia with us?" Lhorne asked. The girl's eyes lit up at once.

"Please, save mother and father!"

"Of course!" Lily said while patting her head. I followed suit by placing my tail unto her hand.

We scoured the other room and found her father and mother in the same state as Methia.

"He is a Male Elf, right? Why…” Nora tilted her head in confusion. The room where Methia's father in was filled with two other rich-looking teens. Lhorne dispatched them quickly while Lily and Nora only looked puzzled at the naked men huddling together. Being a modern person and a former male, I can only shudder at the scene where Methia's father literally cried when he saw us.

"Don't ask, Nora. You don't want to know these rich guys or nobles' hobbies." Mattheus stopped her.

" Thank god! Lhorne of Edenthal! Really! I, Shalorh, swore to the Forest Dryad. To the holy tree of Yggdrasil. I will never forget you! Let me be your vassal" He knelt while kissing Lhorne's foot. He cried in tears of gratitude.

"I am just a normal elf. I can't have a vassal." Lhorne smiled while patting his back.

We scoured the entire building and found another two elves. They had a dead-looking eyes. Lhorne and Methia's father are forced to shoulder-carried them like a bag of potatoes, and we left the building.

"I would like to find more of my comrades that have already been sold to other cities. But we can't guard these many people in such a short amount of time. We need to go back to the frontier village. I will personally go to Regoia so they can send some backup for our cause." Lhorne muttered.

"Yeah, we are only three people, and we have to guard 35 people. We can't possibly carry anymore." Mattheus nodded.

"Okay. You guys leave through the gate. I will create a huge commotion in five minutes and join you," Lily said.