Free Web NovelChapter 17: Chapter 17: The Elves
Riven’s gaze lingered on the motionless body of the woman in confusion and uncertainty.
"Is she alive?"
Just then, Ayala who was beside him put the creature that she was carrying down and rushed towards the bleeding woman. She placed her ear against the woman’s chest. A heartbeat later, Ayala’s voice resounded through his ears.
"She is alive, mister! I can heal her!"
Riven’s eyes narrowed and he warned her.
"We don’t know who she is... what if she turns out to be a threat?"
Ayala glanced at him and replied while maintaining eye contact.
"In a world full of monsters and races who want humanity dead... only humans are our true allies."
Before Riven could even react, Ayala pressed her hands against the woman’s chest harder. Her hands began to glow and a golden aura swept into the woman’s body.
The woman’s body also began to glow, not lightly but with such intensity that it illuminated the entire tent.
In an instant, flesh slowly began to cover the wounds across her body. Her bleeding became slower and slower until it stopped completely.
The woman’s chest began to move up and down. Her eyes slowly crept open, revealing her beautiful blue pupils. She looked around her uncertainly, but when her gaze landed on Ayala beside her... she roared.
"Elves! You will not kill me."
Then she grabbed Ayala by the wrist and pushed her away. Ayala slammed onto the ground with a loud thud.
The woman immediately stood up and picked up the sword beside her as she rubbed her eyes.
Riven’s gaze lingered on Ayala who was lying on the ground and said.
"Told you..."
He didn’t rush to help her. After all, why should he ignore his warning?
Instead, his gaze locked onto the woman and a mana sword manifested in his palm. He pointed his sword towards her and asked.
"Who are you?"
The woman didn’t reply; instead, she kept rubbing her eyes. When she fully opened her eyes and stared around him, a look of confusion formed in her eyes.
Silence descended. No one spoke for a solid minute. A heartbeat later, the woman spoke, breaking the silence.
"Humans? I thought you were one of the Great Races."
Riven frowned — the Great Races were the rulers of Astrionis and mortal enemies of humanity. Although, some of them had physical traits similar to those of a human, they
Why did she think that they were one of them? Was she lying for some unknown reason or was she telling the truth?
He wasn’t sure.
The woman suddenly turned her head around and maintained eye contact with Ayala. Then she said,
"Thanks for healing my injuries."
She turned back to Riven and before she could say anything. Riven grimaced and said.
"Stop pretending. You have ulterior motives, I know that."
The woman shook her head and said.
"I don’t have any ulterior motives."
"Yeah, I don’t buy it."
The woman didn’t say anything; instead, she put her sword down and kicked it, sending it sliding across the floor until it was just a centimeter from his feet.
Now she really looked like she was defenseless but Riven wasn’t fooled. It didn’t take a weapon for someone to utilize the power of their class.
Just then Ayala’s voice resounded through his ears.
"Mister, I think you shouldn’t doubt her so much."
Riven replied in a serious voice.
"You don’t know the dark side of humanity but I have seen it with my own eyes."
His hometown is burning, people are dying and the guilds responsible for guarding them are abandoning them after the rift opened just because the invaders were too strong.
Riven remembered everything so he refused to believe that the woman didn’t harbor any ulterior motives toward them just because they were in a world full of races that wanted to see humanity perish.
Just then Ayala walked towards him and whispered.
"You can just kill her if she betrays us."
Riven didn’t reply immediately. However, what she said was partially true since his subjects surrounded the entire tent. If he wanted he could tell them to attack her.
Although he had no idea how strong she was... he believed that he had an upper edge due to her body not being fully healed.
So should he listen to Ayala or not?
After considering it for a moment, he nodded his head as the mana sword in his palm dissolved into countless small glowing blue particles.
As he was about to sit down, a scorching wind slammed onto his skin not enough to make his skin burn but enough to make the area feel painful.
Riven turned around and saw a towering wall of sand stretched across the horizon, swallowing the sky as it advanced. Before he could say anything, Ayala’s voice echoed throughout the tent.
"A sandstorm is approaching..."
Riven’s expression darkened. The memories of the first sandstorm resurfaced in his mind. The burns and the near-death experience were still fresh in his mind.
There was only one way to have a chance of surviving...
"I need to create a dome... quickly."
Before he could call his subjects, Ayala walked towards the entrance and pulled a layer of heavy fabric that formed a rugged barrier against the desert’s blistering winds.
Ayala turned her head around, facing the woman and Riven. Then she said,
"Don’t worry... this tent is built to withstand these sandstorms. We are safe inside."
Relief washed over him immediately after he heard her words. It meant he didn’t have to command his subject to create a good dome. He didn’t want to reveal their presence to the woman just yet.
Then Riven sat down but before speaking a single word. He grabbed a pot of water beside him and gulped down the contents in an instant. He put the pot down, glared at the woman, and said.
"What’s your name?"
The woman replied immediately.
"You don’t need to know that, kid."
Ayala asked.
"How did you get to my tent? How did you get so injured?
Riven’s eyes glinted with killing intent as he threatened her.
"If you don’t tell us then you will regret it..."
Before he could finish his words, a low, rhythmic rumble drifted across the landscape, growing steadily louder with every passing moment.
"What’s that sound?"
The woman walked towards the exit, removed the piece of cloth, and took a peek outside. Her expression darkened, and the sound of her teeth rubbing against one another echoed throughout the tent.
She turned towards them and said.
"It’s the elves... they have found me."
