Free Web NovelSeveral days later.
The Star Dew Festival of the Elven Royal Court was drawing to a close. The Elves’ Queen Selection Ceremony had also reached its final step.
Clear skies. The martial arena was packed to the brim with elves of every kind, bustling with excitement.
They had all come to witness the birth of the next Elven Queen. freewēbnoveℓ.com
“I told you, didn’t I? Her Highness the Princess is definitely going to be the final victor! Hehe, when has she ever been weak?”
“Sigh, I was originally rooting for Miss Lala, but she got eliminated in the second round...”
“Lala? If I remember right, she’s only early Sixth Tier. Even if she made it to the final step, she’d be completely no match for Her Highness—she’d only get crushed.”
“True. In this generation of elves, only Clan Head Sul could have exchanged a few moves with Her Highness. Too bad Clan Head Sul forfeited...”
“Exchange moves? You want Clan Head Sul, who just reached Level 800, to fight Her Highness who’s over ninety levels higher?”
“Well, what can you do? Clan Head Sul inherited the Azdoma Family at such a young age. She’s worked diligently for decades, devoted herself completely—only to have the Princess, who spent more than ten years outside as a bard, come back and pick the peach at the end. Hard to accept, really hard to accept.”
“...You’re an elf sent by the Azdoma Family, aren’t you?”
“Huh? How did you know I’m from the Azdoma Family? Actually, I’m also the head of Clan Head Sul’s fan support group!”
As time passed, the atmosphere grew more and more heated.
Vieya was invited to sit in the VIP section, right next to the Elven Queen. The view here was wide open, giving a clear look at both the stage and the audience.
Originally, she was Aislin’s teammate and could have gone on stage to fight side by side with her. But yesterday’s two-person match had been a complete case of Vieya blowing up small fry. Even though she had been forbidden from using the Holy Sword, she still beat the other little elves until they scattered in panic, crying for their parents.
Bullying. Straight-up bullying!
And so, amid intense protests from the elves, the Elven Queen had no choice but to temporarily revoke Vieya’s qualification to go on stage and blow up small fry.
“Hey, how come I haven’t seen Phoenix at all these past few days? She didn’t even come to watch her daughter’s examination?”
In her seat, Vieya swung her pale legs back and forth, tilted her head, and looked at the Elven Queen beside her with curiosity.
“Don’t tell me you sent her out to work? Queen, Queen, I’ve got another question. Phoenix wasn’t she a bird born in the northern lands? How did you even meet her?”
“......”
The Elven Queen fell silent for a moment.
Ever since these past few days—when Vieya was occasionally dragged into the palace by her daughter to eat together, chat, play card games... after they’d gotten a bit familiar—Vieya had clearly become much chattier. She treated the Elven Queen like an all-knowing encyclopedia, coming to her with every little question.
‘I’m suddenly a bit regretful about promising her that if there’s anything within the Elven Royal Court, she can just come to me...’
This slime really comes looking.
The Elven Queen peeled an orange and handed it to Vieya, then said slowly, “Phoenix went to see an old friend. She’ll probably need a few more days before she returns. Why—do you # Nоvеlight # like her very much?”
“Like?”
Vieya took a bite of the orange, puffed out her cheeks, and chewed slowly. “Mm, I guess she counts as a friend. I think she and you, Your Majesty, are both good people, so it’s normal to ask when I haven’t seen her for a few days. That’s what friends do.”
“So how did you meet her? Tell me about it? And also, why is it that one of you is an elf and the other a bird, yet you could give birth to such a pure-blooded elf like Aislin? That’s so strange...”
“Stop asking for now.”
The Elven Queen felt a bit of a headache coming on and said quietly, “But if you promise me that you’ll honestly stay here and become my daughter’s companion, these private matters aren’t something I can’t tell you.”
“Really? You’re just giving your daughter to me for free?”
Vieya blinked, then asked again, “Is it because you value my strength, or my identity as the Holy Sword’s master? My potential? Or maybe my... hehe, my personality and noble soul?”
By the end, even the slime girl herself couldn’t quite hold it together. She coughed twice and hurriedly looked away.
‘Sigh. Looks like my cultivation still isn’t enough—my skin’s still not thick enough...’
“So that’s why you didn’t want to stay in our Elven Royal Court?”
The Elven Queen was actually surprised by Vieya’s question. She replied seriously,
“Actually, all of the reasons you mentioned matter a little, but none of them are the most important.”
“The most important reason is that I can see it. I can see that when my daughter is with you, she’s happy.”
The Elven Queen looked at the increasingly fierce battle on the martial stage and listened to the wave-like cheers rising and falling from the audience as she continued,
“I think that if Aislin really sat in my position, without anyone by her side who could understand her, she would be very unhappy.”
“Aislin is different from other stay-at-home elves. She longs for the outside world, longs for the sky, the ocean, all of nature... Our Elven Forest is vast, but to her, it’s still too small.”
“And yet she’s a child chosen by the Moon Goddess, destined to sit upon the throne. So I thought—if you were by her side, then after she ascends the throne, she might be a little happier.”
“Sorry. This is my selfishness as a mother. If it offends you, you may pretend you never heard it.”
“But my promise to you still stands. After my daughter ascends the throne, I’ll help you open the sealed gate of the World Tree...”
As her words fell, the battle on the martial stage entered a white-hot phase. At that moment, the Elven Queen suddenly let out a light sound of surprise.
“Aislin... is she trying to use this martial combat to break through to Ninth Tier?”
“Her Highness the Princess is starting her breakthrough!”
In an instant, the elves below all turned their eyes toward the stage, focusing intently. Even for the deeply rooted Elven Royal Court, Ninth Tier powerhouses were rare—on average, only one Ninth Tier elf was added to the court every six or seven years.
This pace was far slower than on the human side, but fortunately, they were a long-lived race. They could live, endure, and turtle. That was an advantage humans could never match.
Accumulating generation after generation, their foundation had grown deep and solid.
On the martial stage, Aislin stood holding her sword. The clamor of the elves below grew more and more distant in her ears, until the entire world fell silent.
In that silence, Daisy suddenly whispered in her ear, ‘Stay calm. Even if the breakthrough fails, you can still win this martial combat.’
Aislin nodded.
Above her head, a silver, sacred crown suddenly manifested. It was a blessing from the Moon Goddess—[Tenacity of Stars and Wind]. In the elves’ eyes, this blessing was equivalent to the human side’s [Child of Destiny] blessing.
It was precisely by relying on this blessing that Aislin had been able to increase her level at a rapid pace over the years, far outstripping other elves.
Condensing the final level of Eighth Tier!
The next second, a dot of silver pattern emerged at the center of Aislin’s brow, shaped like a hooked moon. It cloaked her entire body in a distinct layer of illusory light.
Worthy of a blessing from a true god.
Under this radiance, many of the elves present couldn’t help but feel a trace of the pressure they would feel when facing the Moon Goddess’s true form. It made them want to kneel and worship.
“So this is Her Highness’s trump card...”
The blond elf standing opposite Aislin couldn’t help but sigh. The gap was simply too great.
Yesterday, she had invited her clan elder Sister Sul to fight together, only to run into Vieya teamed up with Aislin—ending in the same crushing defeat.
But having a princess far stronger than herself take the throne as queen wasn’t so bad either.
The blond elf took a deep breath, raised her head, and looked at Aislin, whose aura had climbed to its peak. It was as if she were gazing at a divine avatar filling the heavens and earth, quietly looking down upon her.
Yet she felt no fear at all.
‘In that case, let me give you the final push.’
The blond elf tightened her grip on the long spear in her hands, communicated through intent, and poured in magic power. In the next second, her aura transformed sharply, becoming as sharp as a blade.
[Salt Spike]!
She squeezed out every last ounce of strength from her body and hurled the long spear, now encased in crystallized white salt!
At the same time, in Vieya’s eyes, Aislin’s level suddenly jumped—from 899 to 900.
Immediately after, a vast pressure swept across the entire arena, only to be instantly withdrawn and vanish without a trace.
The elves present were left dazed, as if they had just woken from a dream.
It wasn’t until someone shouted, “Her Highness the Princess has successfully advanced to Ninth Tier!” that they snapped back to their senses, staring blankly toward the center of the martial stage as if seeking confirmation.
There, they saw Aislin carrying the unconscious blond elf as she slowly walked off the stage. Only then did they erupt in cheers.
“Her Highness the Princess won? It’s Her Highness who won!”
“Her Highness won!”
The elves below erupted into noise. Vieya’s mood relaxed as well. She leaned back in her seat, peeled an orange segment, and popped it into her mouth to chew.
‘Everything is ready—only the east wind remains.’
