Free Web NovelThe merit task hand-in counter.
The elf lady responsible for guidance and reception was warm and cheerful, with first-rate professional skill. After guiding Aislin through several forms, she finished distributing the merits for this mission.
A perfectly completed task would have yielded 1000 merit points, but now only 250 points had been credited.
“...Ranked nineteenth, still 20 points short of the person above. And 4900 points away from first place.”
Only S-rank tasks could reach a 1000-merit reward; A-rank gave 500, B-rank 200... and now, the Elven Royal Court’s final remaining S-rank task had been wasted by her.
Holding the registration form, Aislin fell silent for a long while before finally turning her head and forcing a smile at Vieya.
“Let’s not talk about this tonight. I’ll take you to eat something good. You definitely haven’t tried—”
“I can keep you company working overtime,” Vieya reminded her, those soft lips delivering words that were suffocatingly cold.
“Work overtime with me?”
Aislin thought about it for quite some time. She was tempted, but still gritted her teeth and refused. “No overtime. I’m taking you to relax! XXLKK says: welcome to the fanfiction site tongrenxsw.com to read this book!”
“Not going to work hard anymore?” Vieya began applying pressure, her tone tinged with troubled concern. “If you don’t work hard, you won’t become queen. If you don’t become queen, you’ll disappoint everyone—your mother, your father, your sister...”
“I...”
Aislin was stunned. After struggling for a long time to organize her thoughts, she finally squeezed out an answer.
“Hard work can wait until tomorrow. One night won’t matter. Yes! One night won’t matter—we still have time. We can overtake them.”
“Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow—how many tomorrows are there?”
Vieya recited a line of verse. Only when the elf princess grew more and more silent did she add gravely, driving the point home,
“We should aim for stability and victory, seize every opportunity that increases our chances. Of course, if you really don’t want to work overtime, I can also use extreme measures to... KO the elves ranked ahead of you!”
As she spoke, Vieya made a throat-slitting gesture at the elf princess, her voice turning cold.
“At worst, I’ll just take on another wanted charge later. Anyway, you absolutely must—”
“—You slime!”
Aislin’s chest rose and fell slowly as she glared at Vieya, clearly furious.
After taking a deep breath, she made up her mind.
“Fine! If you want to work overtime, I’ll agree! But if you don’t go back today, what about your daughter?”
“Jasmine will be fine.” Vieya put one hand on her hip and said calmly. “If she’s hungry, she’ll make something to eat herself. If it rains, she’ll find somewhere to take shelter.”
“You’re really a wonderful mother!” Aislin reached out and poked Vieya’s head twice with force. “But if you’re not going back tonight, you’d better tell your daughter in advance, okay? So Jasmine won’t worry!”
“That’s true.”
Vieya nodded, approving the elf lady’s suggestion.
She had almost forgotten about that—if she wasn’t going back tonight, she really did need to give advance notice.
Under Aislin’s urging, Vieya bought a huge bag of food along the way—dry flatbread, fruit, milk, vegetarian ham, and all sorts of things.
“Buy some meat too. Human children in their growth period need meat to supplement nutrition...” Aislin sighed. “Or if it really doesn’t work, let Jasmine go rest with Elliti at my mother’s place...”
“Is that okay?” Vieya paused while stuffing fruit into the bag. “Wouldn’t that be too much trouble?”
“It’s fine, it’s fine.” frёeωebɳovel.com
Aislin took the bag full of food from the slime’s hands and shooed her toward the palace like she was herding sheep.
“Elliti doesn’t have any friends among the elves anyway—letting her spend time with your daughter would be good. And my mother has a sharp tongue but a soft heart. Although her methods are cold and she seems unapproachable, as long as you’re not a threat to the Elven Royal Court, she’s a responsible and good elf.”
“Sorry to trouble you...”
“Tch!”
Aislin curled her lips. She’d seen through this slime completely—fickle, far too fickle!
...
The Elven Royal Court, the palace complex.
It was already late at night, but as the core city of the entire elven race, it didn’t feel deserted at all. Everywhere, luminescent crystal lamps emitted warm orange light—peaceful and tranquil.
Vieya picked up her daughter and, with Aislin’s introduction, brought her near the palace where the Elven Queen resided.
For some reason, Jasmine was much quieter today, barely saying anything along the way.
Only when Vieya handed her over to the Elven Queen did Jasmine finally open her arms and ask Vieya for a hug.
“I’d heard long ago that the pace of life on the human side is faster than here. Seeing it now, it really is true.”
The Elven Queen looked at Vieya and smiled meaningfully. “It seems your daughter trained magic all day at the training grounds today—she’s inherited a bit of your personality as well.”
Vieya rubbed Jasmine’s hair. Seeing the look in her daughter’s eyes that seemed to be expecting praise, she paused briefly, then said helplessly,
“An orange grown south of the Huai becomes an orange; grown north of the Huai, it becomes # Nоvеlight # a trifoliate orange. Compared to human territory, your elven lands are much safer—not only are there no monster incursions, even the methods of competition are gentle and refined. So differences in atmosphere are only natural.”
“That’s quite a high evaluation. Are you sure you don’t want to reconsider my suggestion?”
The Elven Queen raised an eyebrow. When the slime remained silent, she sighed regretfully.
If possible, she really would like this slime who had inherited the Holy Sword to be a bit more carefree, a bit more heartless—to truly end up together with her daughter.
After all, one day she and Phoenix would leave Aislin. When that time came, if Aislin encountered danger like she had in her youth again, who would she turn to for help? The Moon Goddess?
But a deity unable to descend into the mortal world could only provide limited aid. The slime Aislin had brought back was perfectly suited—one who possessed the Holy Sword was equivalent to holding the hilt granted by the gods.
As long as she herself did not abandon that hilt, the gods’ halo would forever shine upon her.
“It is not that those acknowledged by the Holy Sword are Heroes; rather, one must first become a true Hero, and only then earn the Holy Sword’s recognition.”
The Elven Queen stood silently before the palace gates, watching the departing figures of Aislin and Vieya.
This child was good—well-suited to her daughter’s temperament. freewebnøvel.coɱ
But unfortunately, one carried an insurmountable burden in her heart, while the other still clung to the elves’ slow and meandering approach to romance, an emotional novice.
Difficult.
Forget it—let fate decide for them.
...
The night was like water, starless across ten thousand miles.
Or rather, there should have been stars, but some elf had cast a rain-summoning spell, calling in dark clouds that covered the brilliant river of stars.
Yet no elf cared tonight whether it would rain or not.
Compared to such trivial matters as clear skies or rain, the elves cared far more about the outcome of this queenly election. They all knew their princess had brought in an outside helper—and in such a major election, outside help willing to step in usually only came in two identities: family, or a partner.
“Do you usually not live together with your mother?” Vieya suddenly looked at Aislin and asked this question.
