"I promise it is true, father, she is more porcelain than white jade ivory, her lips are roses, her eyes are crystal blue gems, and the gold of her hair is more lustrous than honey, more sunshine than gold. The elixir of the god of wine, alas, compared to her eyes, is simply a clear stream, without any intoxicating meaning. Ludovina swore to the king, describing the beauty of the elves she had seen: "Moreover—all the more so—all the more so, though she may seem cold and unkind, she is in fact gentle and lovely, and has given me a wand made of sacred trees." It must have been that person who was afraid that he had been deceived, so he asked her to cover up her shy and beautiful nature with cold words. ”

The king's nose twitched, and he disguised his greed and excitement with a loving smile, "Is that so, my dear daughter? That's all the story of the mysterious elves who travel all over the world and you? ”

Aging cannot be hidden. The king's eyelids were sagging, his hair was graying, and his fat was layered in layers that wrapped him in a bleak middle-aged life, turning his former amorous life into disgust. Although he carefully dressed himself, he could not hide the ugliness of his current appearance. He hated all that was ugly, and now he hated himself. He couldn't see a mirror, he just wanted to see more and more beautiful beauty to nurture his ears and eyes, so that he could immerse himself in the perfect day.

Ludovina's mother, who was cursed and forced by him, was familiar with the beauty and weakness of the elves, and everyone claimed that they were strong and handsome, but they were also poisoned and cursed. Ludovina grew up, and this pure, spiritual, tender, and tight little girl was about to use her body to fulfill the beauty in his mind, but she ran away! The king was so angry that he had prepared an army of 10,000 people to attack the jungle, but he didn't expect her to come back a few years later!

The flower-like half-elf girl was very sad: "I am in love with Geralt, the wizard's student, but he already has a heart. Alas, how could I accuse that elf girl against my will? She was a noble Vanya, incredibly beautiful, and kind-hearted—but her name, Elrod, was the elf beloved by the stars. Together, they're only going to bring him sadness—"

She half-truthfully described Elrod's story and wept profusely.

The king smiled lovingly and gently.

"Don't be sad, my girl. You will get the valiant knight, and I will come to meet the elf. ”

He is not a slave to sexuality, but a believer in the god of beauty.

What can kill an elf? The flames of the dragons, the curses of the gods, the great sorrows?

The elves who die of grief must be very beautiful.

***

Although due to some considerations, Chu Songluo had to use a "travel" to delay the time and distance himself from Geraltra. But after all, he was worried that someone would jump out and pull away the love line, so he wrote a letter to the wizard apprentice who regularly studied in the tower-

Dear Geralt,

See the letter like a meeting.

Our treant friend is still healthy, and I recently visited him when I was passing through the Brochon Forest and gave him a leprechaun. However, by the time I said goodbye, they still didn't get along very well. Maybe after a long time they'll become friends?

Also, I received an invitation from the king. He was going to give me a ball to thank me for my help to the princess and to open the palace to me.

I decided to change my plans and meet Ludovina.

Elrod]

The Pandora's box, buried in Ludovina's place, was opened, and the king sent out an invitation to meet the beautiful Vanya elf Elrod. Of course, he knew what the king was up to, and he didn't intend to get around his plans.

While thinking about how the various forces will operate next, he rushed to the capital. The sky was about to brighten, and the shadow of the capital city appeared in the dark night. The banner was hunting and flying in the night sky, and Chu Songluo thought about what it should be like to have seen the hot and cold elves in the world after traveling.

- Worried about the fate that will come at some point, his eyes should always be hazy with a layer of melancholy. He is good by nature, but he has seen the evil of human nature, and he should feel lonely and try to distance himself from joys and sorrows. He has become strong enough, and this strength also supports him to be able to remain naïve.

He stood quietly at the door of the palace and waited for the dawn to break.

The first rays of dawn broke through the darkness, and the long figure of the blonde elf appeared in the earthly world.

The guard yawned, only to find that someone was standing here, his eyes were like polished gems, but he was covered with a layer of warm melancholy.

"Please help me inform His Majesty that my name is Elrod Ambatu, and that I have come to see Princess Ludovina at night, and that I will be leaving soon as I can."

In a moment, the king hurriedly dressed up and ran out of the palace barefoot to meet the elf. The dazzling morning light made him squint at Elrod for a long time before he laughed and said, "Why be in such a hurry! Come in, come in, and let me do my best as the king of men! ”

The elf dodged his hand, but could not escape his gracious invitation, and stepped up the steps of the palace—

He also did not escape the cursed elves' formation carefully prepared by the king's wizards.

Chu Songluo shook his body cooperatively and fell into a fainting.

***

Letter, it's coming, isn't it?

Like the romance of a high school boy, Geralt waits for the letters that come on a regular basis, and although they often end in a few words, they are extraordinarily precious. Although Elrod was always wandering around, and his replies never reached "her", he seriously wrote a long reply of two or three pages to each letter, preparing to confess all to the goddess in the future.

Geralt also tried to learn many confessional verses from the bards at one point-

"I'm willing to sing for you with the most beautiful voice—"

Yes...... But I don't have all five tones! (But yes, when you think of Elrod, he does always want to sing.) ）

"The night will hinder our connection, but I'll get to you early in the morning—"

The stars are "her" names! - Although the sunlight also made him think a lot.

Everything in the world has to do with "her"! It was as if his soul had taken root and secretly touched her soul in the soil. That's why people who fall in love can't help but wander and always have a silly smile.

"Roses are blabla, roses are blabla, moonshine is blabla—"

Geralt angrily threw down the notebook he had used to record.

Bards are all rubbish, how can such a cliché metaphor appear to be out of character?

He had a lot to say, and he spent his days recording what he had been through; But in fact, he just wanted to say one sentence, scribble and change, and finally turned it into a scene of actual practice. Geralt sat in front of the window with his left hand and right hand, and with a movement of his left hand, he cleared his throat and voiced in a deep voice, "Elrod!" Actually, I don't want to be your best friend! With a movement of his right hand, Geralt adjusted several tones but could not imitate Elrod's voice, and said in a foul voice, "What's wrong with you, Geralt?" Kneeling in the air with his left hand, Geralt simulated a good expression—eyes wide, eyelashes fluttering, eight teeth smiling—"I...... I! I! ”

…… I can't get anything out of rehearsals!

What's more, how Elrod will respond, what kind of attitude, he is not sure at all-

Ah, the Wind Elves are here with a letter!

- This time Elrod finally remembered to tell the wind to stay out of the rain clouds, lest he send a wet and clattering ball of pulp. The letter flew to the tower, and Geralt pushed open the window and was about to take the letter, when the wind suddenly lost its strength. The fluttering envelope fell.

Geralt suddenly had a very bad premonition in his heart. He saw that there was no one under the tower, so he jumped straight off the tower - stepping on a big hole.

He didn't bother to hide the traces, opened the envelope, and browsed ten lines at a glance to the end.

"The King? Ludovina? ”

It took him a little effort to remember the so-called "fateful person" that he had completely ignored during the rehearsal, and then his face turned pale.

An earth elf poked its head out of the pit he had just stepped out, crawled out with great difficulty, bent down and patted the dirt on its body, and showed Geralt the badge engraved with the king's name with his chest in high spirits, "Messenger of the royal family!" Your Excellency must be Geralt, a student of the wizard Saviman—"

The dwarf pulled out a letter from his backpack and was about to read it, but Geralt snatched it.

“…… Your dear friend Elrod Ambatu is here as a guest. Presumably, Your Excellency is kind-hearted and brave, and you will not bear to see any accident happen to your friend. ……”

Bastard!

The earth elf, who had been knocked aside by his force, got up from the ground, and first carefully blew on his gold badge and stroked it twice with love, before angrily accusing Geralt, "...... You are simply a barbarian! How can you be a guest of His Majesty the King! Look at my badge - this is the ——!!! of the country ”

Geralt threw it into the passage and quickly blocked the exit. He thought about it for a moment, went back to his room, and prepared the wizard's full outfit—black and white dress robes, magic scrolls, and staffs with gold threads, packed them into a package, and then hurriedly left a note for the wizard Saviman who had been buried in the pile of materials all day, and a flock of birds flew in the forest, and a silver-white dragon flapped its translucent wings and soared into the air, and the wind swept above the clouds.

***

The King smiled smugly, "Wizard Geralt, it is beyond my expectation that you have come so quickly. ”

The well-groomed wizard oiled his furky white hair, and let them lie back obediently, revealing their foreheads and determined eyes.

"Where is she?"

Geralt's angry eyes clearly pleased the King, and he no longer cared for the wrinkles that had become noticeable by his deepened smile.

"Why be anxious, my people. I'm not a stubborn old man who is too far removed from my youth, and I still have the fragrance of roses in my heart. Lovers are always attached to the time they spend together, even if their attachment is not always the right choice. I am touched by how much you miss, but there are still people who miss you so much that it hurts my heart—" He sighed fakely.

"—What's more, this stupid girl who admires you is still my daughter." The king's eyelids were slackened, and the corners of his eyes were full of wrinkles, but this still could not hide the greed and aggressiveness in his eyes, "Young man, why don't you listen to my daughter first?" ”

Geralt's words struck Geralt as ridiculous, "She—Ludovina? Like me? He turned his head to look for Ludovina, and fixed his gaze on the corner of a violet satin skirt behind a pillar on his right.

The silvery-white haired half-elf girl looked up at him cautiously from behind the pillar with her head shyly bowed. The violet dress made her eyes even more beautiful, as if she had a myriad of words, and she exclaimed with joy: "Geralt! ”

Geralt glanced at the king.

The king kept an arrogant smile and said softly, "Go." He said meaningfully, "Before you meet your elven friends, go." ”

In other words, if you want to see Elrod, you have to listen to Ludovina?

Geralt grinded his back teeth and squeezed out, "Okay." ”

Ludovina smiled and groaned, "Father, can we come to my room and talk?" ”

The king nodded generously, as if he understood the young man's enthusiasm.

***

"What the hell are you doing!" Geralt entered the room and immediately asked word for word.

Ludovina immediately lost her shyness and joy, and her haughty and cold expression was the same as that of the king. "Alright, I know you want to see Elrod! I advise you not to lose your temper and listen carefully to me first. ”

Geralt's face was gloomy, but he had to bow his head, "You say. ”

Ludovina pondered for a moment, "That's right, I find that for some reason, I'm suddenly full of emotions for you, commonly known as liking. ”

There was a chaotic clanging of ping-pong, and Geralt couldn't help but overturn the small coffee table with two cups of flower tea at once. The half-elf girl deftly lifted the hem of her skirt and jumped away, not staining a single trace of water. She frowned and said in disgust: "I said that you don't lose your temper!" How could I possibly like someone as rude and impolite as you! The person I love is Wright, the elf of the jungle, but I like you in a way that comes out of nowhere—"

Hearing this, Geralt's hand on the staff relaxed, "-You suspect it's a curse?" ”

"What else could it be?" Ludovina rolled her eyes in an extremely ungraceful manner, "Besides, that old boar has the formation of the cursed elves, and I have been taken care of by the gray elves for a long time, so naturally I can't cause them trouble, so I ran back to appease him not to enter the dense forest." But in the long run, it will definitely not be the solution, and it just so happened that I found that this emotion was not the old boar's idea, so I planned to ask you and Elrod to help assassinate him. ”

Geralt snorted coldly, "This is your attitude of asking for help?" ”

Ludovina was poked by him, her face flushed, and she anxiously paced around the room with the hem of her skirt, "I just thought that if he couldn't detect that I liked you, he would catch you, and thus attract the elves - he wanted the elves!" If you come, I'll be able to get my informant outside the court to tell the Elrod palace that there's a curse, and kill the boar while the May Day parade is taking place!" ”

"-But you didn't expect the elf he caught first?" Geralt could barely contain his anger, "Ha, you've selflessly saved a horde of grey elves!" ”

Ludovina blushed and glared at him for a while, her chest rising and falling, but finally calmed down. She said calmly, "I've tried my best to ask him to bring you over first, but it still doesn't work." I'm sorry for my selfishness to involve you in this – but I'm ...... But I can't really think of anything else. I can only get one or two soldiers at most, and the army is still powerless to fight. There are naturally many strong people on the mainland, but the only one who can forgive my presumptuousness, understand my difficulties, and lend a helping hand is probably Elrod. ”

She was silent for a moment, and then quickly added, "If you really hate me, after the deed, as long as you allow me to say goodbye to Wright, you can kill me to vent your hatred." ”

"—If Elrod really ...... If something happens, I'll kill you. Geralt stared at her, "Definitely." ”

"I know elf, and I've figured out a way to put it off." Ludovina stiffly twitched her lips and whispered, "Clean up your feelings, and when you go out, you rejected my confession and insisted on seeing Elrod." That way you'll have a chance to take most of the danger for Elrod. ”

She rubbed her face, then blinked her eyes, quickly reddened her eyes, shed tears, pushed open the door, trotted away with her skirt in her hand—like a heartbroken princess.