Chapter 10: The Battle

“Princess Fenitz, we sincerely invite you to visit us. Why do you keep avoiding us?” The four pursuers were completely unaware that Komer, who had used air magic to become invisible, was approaching step by step. At this point, they were entirely focused on their prey. They never imagined anyone could keep up with their speed, whether it was a knight or a mage—especially in the uneven hilly terrain, the chances of such tracking succeeding were practically zero, especially since the four of them were skilled trackers who had trained in wind magic.

When he was only thirty meters away from the four pursuers, Komer dared not get any closer. He could sense the strong magical aura emanating from them, who were arranged in a semi-circle. All four must be magic practitioners. Although their long black robes covered their bodies, Komer realized they were not ordinary magic practitioners—at least their identities were far from simple.

The elf thief trapped in the circle was no stranger to these four. Ever since he fled, they had haunted him like a persistent plague. Though they were dark elves, as fellow elves, they did not dare be too bold in human territory; they merely kept a close watch on him. But this time, it seemed he had made a mistake. He had hoped to use the varied terrain to escape, but these four had such advanced tracking skills that they had cornered him at this cliff’s edge. It seemed he was doomed this time.

“I don’t know why you dark elves are after me. We forest elves have nothing to do with you dark elves. Aren’t you afraid of retaliation from us forest elves?” The elf thief, with no way to retreat, tensed up, ready to break free at any moment. The four pursuers, aware of his skills in this regard, also bent forward, ready to strike at the right moment for the final blow.

“Princess Fenitz, I think we needn’t waste time arguing. Please resist needlessly. Your resistance will only cause you unnecessary harm in front of us four. We don’t want to hurt you, but you can’t test our control.” The leader smiled slightly, his tone polite, but his words made it clear he had no intention of answering her questions.

“I don’t know why you’re trying to intercept me. There’s no enmity between us forest elves and you dark elves. Do you really want to start a war?” The somewhat timid elf thief glanced around nervously while still threatening them.

“Princess, there’s no need to look around anymore. You can’t escape our encirclement. We’ve put a lot of effort into this for you. If you hadn’t gone out alone, we wouldn’t have been able to target you here in Prag. Enough talk—surrender quickly.” The four pursuers clearly had no patience for more nonsense. They crouched slightly, adopting an attacking stance, and stepped forward toward the elf thief at the center of the circle.

“Wait! What exactly do you want from me? If you really have other ulterior motives, don’t blame me if I jump!” Stepping back, the elf thief shouted anxiously, though his light blue eyes were fixed on Komer, who had already closed in with his four companions.

Komer was slightly surprised. This guy’s senses were so keen—even though the four pursuers hadn’t noticed his presence yet, this elf thief could see through his air magic and detect his existence. But since he hadn’t exposed Komer, he must have other intentions.

Hearing such a shameless demand, the four pursuers hesitated. They didn’t want to push him to the brink, as that would truly incur the wrath of the forest elves. They only wanted to achieve their goal, but they were worried he might refuse to cooperate. After a long pause, the leader reluctantly said, “Princess, it’s not you we want. Please hand over the necklace around your neck and come with us. We promise we won’t harm you.”

“I see! So it was you! You dark elves dare to act so recklessly. Aren’t you afraid of provoking widespread anger?” Realizing what was happening, the elf thief stared intently at the four of them and said slowly, “It must be you who stole the Marsh Elves’ Canglang Bracelets, and the Mountain Elves’ Jiuxiao Hairpins as well. What do you dark elves plan to do? Do you really want to bring about the destruction of your own race?”

“Enough, Princess Fenitz. Knowing too much isn’t necessarily good for you. We Dark Elves have our own principles and don’t need anyone to teach us. Whatever you think doesn’t matter. Right now, you should focus on your own fate! Hand over the necklace, or we’ll revoke our promise not to harm you—any consequences will be your responsibility!” The leader’s expression suddenly changed; his pale face darkened, his gaze fixed on her, and his hand rose slightly, clearly signaling that he would attack immediately if she refused to comply.

With a chuckle, as if suddenly relaxed, the elf thief appeared smug and carefree, saying, “Alright, you’d better take care of my companion first before spouting such big words.”

Before he finished speaking, his gaze inadvertently glanced toward where Komer was standing, immediately drawing the attention of the pursuers, and their senses also focused on Komer’s location.

Komer knew that his air magic could only conceal his figure but couldn’t hide him from these exceptionally sensitive elves, especially when their attention was concentrated on his location. Under their puzzled gazes, he openly dismissed his air magic and stood quietly in front of them.

When Komer’s figure became visible, all five of them stared at him, though with different expressions. The elf thief clearly remembered who he was; his gaze grew anxious, though it was hard to tell from his seemingly masked face. However, his attempt to avoid Komer’s gaze revealed his inner panic. The other four were even more terrified—how could a mortal appear silently behind them without them noticing? If it weren’t for their target reminding them, they wouldn’t have even realized it. This situation was a huge shock to them.

“Who are you? Why are you following us?” It was still the leader of the pursuers who first realized something was wrong. With a secret gesture, two of his companions quickly changed positions to block the elf thief’s escape routes, while another stood behind him. He stepped forward, staring intently at Komer.

“I’m sorry, but I don’t seem to have any obligation to tell you who I am. As for why I’m here, it’s because the scenery is beautiful, and I want to enjoy it. Is that not allowed? I haven’t heard that the Kingdom of Bohemia has declared this place off-limits, and you all don’t seem to be court knights of Bohemia, do you?” Komer retorted with a mocking smile. At this moment, Wu Feng finally had the chance to observe these pursuers closely. Although they all covered their bodies with long robes, it was still evident that they were quite thin—this was an innate trait of the elves. No elf could have a bulky figure; female elves were described as slender, while male elves were described as gaunt. The leader’s gaze was sharp, his dark eyes glowing like ink diamonds, with a serpentine light flickering within. His cheeks were hollow, showing that this man had a resolute and decisive personality.

Clearly sensing the teasing tone in Komer’s words, the leader said almost nothing. With a slight movement of his hand, several sharp wind blades, accompanied by a shrill screech, were swung violently at Komer. Silver-white wind elements condensed into blinding sword shadows, creating gusts of wind that formed several angles, aiming straight at Komer’s face.

Komer was momentarily stunned. He hadn’t expected the opponent to attack without even asking another question. Though this simple and effective wind magic wasn’t very difficult, it was highly practical—especially for elves who were naturally gifted with elemental magic. They could cast it effortlessly without even needing spells.

Komer grew angry. These rude elves dared to use lethal magic in broad daylight, showing no respect for the laws of human society. If he didn’t teach them a lesson, they would think they could act recklessly just because they were elves.

Suddenly, he curled his hand as if grabbing something from the air. The soil in front of him abruptly rose, transforming into a giant earth troll mid-air. The shrill wind blades struck the earth troll, splashing dirt everywhere, but the dust almost instantly flew back and reformed around the troll, causing no harm at all.

The earth troll breathed heavily, lunging forward with a fierce bear hug attempt, its deep roar echoing through the valley. The pursuers clearly did not expect Kerrmer to be so powerful—just a gesture, and even before they saw him cast a spell, an earth magic spell had already taken shape.