The darkness dissipated, and Rieya, the female elf who could not see or hear, gradually regained her senses.

This... What the hell is going on?

The battle between those two guys, is it over... No, that's not the point, the point is who exactly wins?

That big liar he... Still alive, right?

Some panicked female elves stood in place at a loss, and before they looked up, they heard the surrounding elves staring wide-eyed, and surprised exclamations one after another.

"What's going on?!" the nervous elf didn't dare to look up, and asked Luca looking back at her beside her.

"You ......" The middle-aged elf's eyes widened, and his motionless face fully explained what it meant to have a "complicated expression": "You are still... See for yourself. ”

Following the shocked gazes around her, Liya, who hesitated repeatedly, still mustered up the courage and looked up.

Don't you, big liar... Belch?!

The female elf was stunned.

She saw the Azorean elf lying motionless in the middle of the sand, scarred and tattered, lying in a pool of blood, his neck seemed to be badly wounded, and he was still twitching;

She saw Middel's severed arm tossed aside, spilled blood connected to the corpse;

She saw the strange Azorean long knife, firmly stuck in the dirt beside the corpse, the blade still bright as a mirror, without the slightest trace of blood or damage;

She saw the black-haired wizard standing next to the corpse with a frown, the spear "dragon tooth" in his hand was still dripping blood, and the tip of the spear had been completely dyed red with blood;

It was a bit unexpected, but it wasn't a big deal.

The only problem is ......

"Unscathed......" Luca's eyes flashed with disbelief: "Loren Turin, he actually... Unscathed?"

Lukka is not completely ignorant of the strength of this "Azorean Elf", but it is precisely because of the unique and outstanding swordsmanship of the other party that it is one of the reasons why he can conquer many war dancers so quickly and admire him.

But such a Middel almost defeated Loren's Middel several times... At this moment, he was lying quietly in a pool of blood, and the black-haired wizard who killed him couldn't even see the slightest scar on his body except for being a little tired.

How is this possible?!

If Luca was just incredulous, then the elves around him were not only shocked, but also a kind of inner pride, the pain of being shattered in the face of reality.

A man with outstanding swordsmanship enough to be a hundred blood relatives died tragically at the hands of an imperial human in a one-on-one duel, without leaving even a trace on that human's body......

The sense of loss of pride falling to the ground is the reason for the loss of all voices.

The tired black-haired wizard stood in place, frowning slightly, as if he was a little confused, and as if he was a little lost, staring intently at the corpse of the Azorean elf in the pool of blood, and did not look up for a long time.

Looking at his somewhat frail appearance, a trace of pity slipped through the female elf's heart... In any case, this great liar is for the peace between the Ancient Wood Forest and the Empire, even if the means are too crude and dirty......

The steps she had just taken stopped—for she saw that the little wizard on the other side had pounced forward, and took the hand of the great liar with an anxious expression, and behind her, the retinue of the Mission, followed.

After a moment of silence, the elf quietly turned around and quietly left behind Luca.

"Loren, what are you looking at?"

“...... It's nothing. ”

Looking at the back of the female elf who turned to leave, the black-haired wizard who sighed secretly shook his head and withdrew his gaze: "Uh... Where did you just go?"

"The words that the Azorean elves left you before they died, beware of the sword that kills you. While Ain hadn't shown an angry expression, Lu Sien on the side added a sentence for him, frowning suspiciously: "The guy who is playing tricks is probably just trying to intimidate you before he dies, right?"

Looking at the disdainful and somewhat disgusted expression of the gray-eyed boy, Loren raised his eyebrows slightly.

No, that's not just a lie.

The look in Middel's dying eyes, and his expression, didn't seem like he was deceiving himself—he could have said a few words of truth and one false information to confuse himself, but in the end he chose to keep it a secret and only gave himself this one warning.

Watch out for... Kill my sword?

"Whether it's intimidation or realism, Middle's presence is dangerous enough in itself. Silently stepping forward, Peter Fasha's expression was unprecedentedly solemn: "An Azorean elf actually knows about the existence of the Night's Watch, and can also get information at the duke's level, proving that there are their supporters within the empire. ”

"Even in the shadows, there may be 'night watchmen' and assassins lurking in ambush - if they can't be dug up as soon as possible, this group of powerful elven warriors can definitely do far more damage than the cult of evil gods and heresies fighting alone!"

At this point, Peter sighed with some regret, if Loren had not killed him but captured him alive, perhaps more valuable information could have been unearthed from this Azorean elf, not just to eliminate an exposed enemy.

But Peter, who saw the intensity of the battle just now, also knew that it was definitely more difficult to capture alive than he imagined, so he just thought about it and didn't speak.

"I will send this information to Lord Rut Infinit and the Imperial Palace of the Heavenly Dome as soon as possible, hoping to attract attention. Peter Fasa had a worried expression: "And Duke Fried of Lothair must also let him be cautious, the information has been robbed, and it is likely that the Eagle Hunt Fort has been infiltrated." ”

When the words fell, the expressions of several people were much more solemn.

"It's all for the future, and we have to look at the present. Haringvan Ashamai spoke softly, breaking the somewhat heavy atmosphere: "Once Midl is dead, there will be no second way in the Grove of Ancients, and in this way, the western front of the empire will be completely stabilized." ”

"No matter what the Azorean kingdom is trying to do, this time it has completely failed. Ashmai raised his head and looked at Loren with a smile: "Lord Duke, this mission is very important to your status.

If you make good use of it, you can not only maintain the peace of the empire, but also change Byrne's identity in the empire, from an uncontrolled and tyrannical state to a hometown of knights who save the empire!

It may not reach the heights of the Black Duke's era, but at least it can defuse the hostility of other states and the nobles of the Empire, and it will also prevent the Holy Cross Church from grasping you, and they will have nothing to say, so they will lose the opportunity to do something to you. ”

The black-haired wizard, who had been silent for a long time, raised his head and looked at the old man.

Peter Fasa seemed to want to say something, but his "special status" in the mission became awkward, and in the end he only wanted to say something.

"Master Ashmai is right – if nothing else, it's the present that matters. Loren nodded, as if he was convincing himself, "Whether or not Middlel is a threat or not, it's not what we're concerned about right now." ”

"What should be concerned now is the choice of the elves of the Ancient Wood Forest. ”

As the words fell, Loren looked up at the other side of the sand, in the direction of the Elder of the Misty Moon Court.

The elven elder holding the "Judgment Lance" in his hand was also looking at him, with a hint of sadness in his eyes—it was not a sadness for Middel's death, but the fate of the elves of the Ancient Wood Forest.

At this moment, they have completely lost the right to speak in their choices, the messenger of the Azorean Eagle King is dead, and the elves living in the ancient wood forest have completely lost hope of unifying with distant blood relatives.

And this result has to be said by themselves, as if everything is in the Fog Moon Court, in the control of the Ancient Wood Forest, it seems that the empire respects the Ancient Wood Forest's "own choice".

As a result, everyone saw that Loren didn't take the initiative to ask, and let the elders of the Fog Moon Court take the initiative to announce it, which was already to maximize their ability to retain the last trace of dignity.

Under the cloud canopy tree, none of the elves took the initiative to speak first.

Looking at the silent expressions around him, the Elder of the Foggy Moon Court sighed, pulled the "Judgment Spear" out of the sand with great difficulty, and slowly spoke:

"Gumu Forest, her choice has been made;"

"The light of the sun has shown us the way. ”

The elder staggered towards the black-haired wizard step by step with his spear in hand, but his deep and hoarse voice could reach the ears of each elf unmistakably:

"This fair and just battle of honor... The results have been divided. ”

"The victor is the emissary representing the Sakran Empire, the Duke of Byrne... Your Excellency Loren Torino!"

"Do not weep for the dead, for this duel is sufficient for glory and consolation, and do not rejoice for the victors, for there is another brave and noble warrior who rests forever under the canopy of clouds. ”

Stopping, the elder stopped in front of the black-haired wizard, a pair of sad and deep eyes met his eyes, "And the Ancient Wood Forest will keep her promise to extend a hand of friendship and peace to the glorious victor." ”

"Excuse me, then, Your Excellency Loren Turin... Will the Empire follow through on her promise to forge lasting peace with the elves of the Ancient Wood Forest with a heart of friendship?"

"The Empire will keep her promises, from now until the final day. Loren looked at the elder with the same solemnity, then raised his head and swept his gaze around:

"And I vouch with my own life and honor, as long as the Thirteen Lords of Byrne have not fallen, and as long as the Golden Lion Banner of the Turin family is still flying, the army of the Empire will never cross the Deep Forest Castle by half a step!"

"Even one day, if the elves of the Ancient Wood Forest decide to recover the land in the south that has been invaded by ogres, the Empire will do everything in its power to support it, and whatever your choice is, it will be respected by the Empire!"

"This is my promise, this is the promise of the Empire——!"

The voice fell, and the atmosphere was slightly lifted.

The Elder of the Misty Moon Court smiled tiredly, handed the "Judgment Spear" to Loren's hand, and turned to leave.

Around the sand, many elven elders breathed a sigh of relief, as if they were glad that Loren didn't take the opportunity to put forward more conditions.

Except for the Morning Star Forest, the elves of the rest of the settlement did not have any excitement because of Loren's "declaration", either lamenting the future of the settlement, or lamenting the death of Middel.

Several young Misty Moon Court dancers stepped forward, carefully tidying up Middel's corpse, glancing indignantly at the black-haired wizard from time to time, and then quickly twisting their heads back.

The elves, who had different expressions and complicated moods, turned away one after another, and dispersed towards the settlement where they had settled.

This was not unexpected.

He didn't expect to be able to completely change the attitude of the entire Ancient Wood Forest Elves through a duel and a few words—otherwise, wouldn't it be a joke for Midl to risk winning the Ogre War after several years of planning.

"So... It's over, isn't it?" Looking at the elves around him who turned to leave, Ain couldn't help but ask, "It's all over, we have guarded the peace of the empire, right?"

"Yes, it's over. Raising his head, the black-haired wizard smiled reluctantly: "In a short period of time, no one will disturb the peace of this forest - so for the elves of the Ancient Wood Forest, it is indeed over." ”

But for the Empire, all this is just beginning.

Beware of the sword that is going to kill you......

Middel's last words came back to Loren's mind, like some kind of curse.

"And the Empire, or at least you, has somewhat snooped on the secrets of the way of the Azorean elven warriors. Ashamai smiled and said:

"When the enemy tears off their mysteries, the fear of the unknown will cease to exist - and we will be able to find a targeted way to restrain these Azorean elven warriors. ”

"For example, if all of their 'abilities' are to be displayed through swordsmanship, we can use this to create a situation where they can't use swordsmanship, and I just thought that there is more than one alchemical potion that can exert special ......."

"Master Ashamai, there is one thing I don't know whether to ask or not. Loren interrupted him abruptly.

"Oh, what's wrong?" Ashamai looked kind and dignified: "Your Excellency, but it's okay to say it. ”

"That's right, are you married... Uh, no, do you have any children or heirs?"

"This... Most wizards who pursue their dreams have had a bumpy road in love, and unfortunately, I am one of those who have had a bumpy road - although there have been many people of the opposite sex who have loved each other, I have never had such a happy fate. ”

"yes, then I might want to congratulate you. ”

"Well, what do you say?"

"When we first met before, Middell told me that the Hawking Island, where you once visited, has been transformed from a desert island on the border into a mecca of alchemy. Loren looked at him with a "serious" expression: "The elven wizards there trace their roots, and they are all the juniors of your former apprentices, I mean female apprentices. ”

"What do you mean ......"

"You may not just be a dad already, you may even be a grandfather. Loren blinked his eyes "sincerely" and smiled slightly: "The only pity is that your former female apprentices have probably been taken over by other elves, and they will not recognize you, the 'Ashmai Grandpa'." ”

"......" Haringvan Ashamai.