Redeem The Villain [Quick Travel] Chapter 13
byChapter 13 The Elf Elder: That Detestable Deer Beastman Again!
Lu Li was questioned by the Elves for a long time before being led into the Elf territory. Before him stood an ancient tree, lush with green foliage and faintly shimmering with golden light.
This was Lu Li’s first time visiting the Elf territory. The Elves were isolated from the world and rarely interacted with other races, but he had heard of their Divine Tree, rumored to be the medium through which Elves communicated with the gods, and the most important sacred object of the Elf race.
An Elf wearing cloth armor stood silently, holding a bow and arrow, watching him. They seemed displeased with his continuous observation of the Divine Tree. Lu Li swallowed nervously and stopped looking at the tree.
Not long after, an aged elder slowly approached.
“Hello, Elder of the Elves. I am Lu Li, the son of the Deer Beastman Chief…” Lu Li hurried forward to bow, then revealed everything that had happened over the past month to the Elf Elder.
He looked at the aged Elf Elder before him, considering the situation, and decided to bury the inaccurate rumors deep in his heart.
“Good child, you’ve worked hard.” The Elf Elder smiled kindly, patted Lu Li’s hair, and turned to the Elf in cloth armor. “Lyle, take Lu Li to rest for a while.”
“Alright.” Lyle and Lu Li walked out of the treehouse.
Lyle looked at the Deer Beastman beside him, his face flushed, and scratched his head awkwardly. “I’m sorry, just now… I misunderstood you for a bad person.”
Lu Li shook his head. “It was my fault for trespassing into the back mountain without prior permission. I apologize.”
Lu Li hadn’t realized he had stumbled into the Elves’ back mountain. It was merciful that the Elf hadn’t shot him with an arrow. No other race would tolerate someone entering their back mountain without permission.
“Brother, is this your friend?”
Lu Li looked up toward the source of the voice. It was a two-story building constructed high up in a tree. A window had opened at some point, and an Elf was leaning out. Her golden hair was braided and adorned with many bright flowers.
Lyle smiled and introduced them. “Milly, this is Lu Li, the heir of the Deer Beastman race.”
The Elf before him was incredibly beautiful. Lu Li was momentarily stunned, his face turning red as he said, “Hello, my name is Lu Li.”
Milly waved her hand, and a vibrant flower wreath flew out of the window toward Lu Li. “I’m Milly, his sister. I just finished weaving this wreath. It’s a gift for you.”
Lu Li instinctively held out both hands to catch the wreath. A rich floral scent wafted over him. The thick wreath was covered in bright flowers, including several with multicolored petals—a type Lu Li had never seen before. “Thank you for the wreath, I love it.” He fumbled around on his person, then apologized, “I came in too much of a hurry and didn’t bring anything. I promise to make up the gift next time.”
“It’s alright,” Milly smiled, waving her hand dismissively.
“These are the Five-Color Flowers unique to the Elf race.” Lyle frowned uncomfortably at the Elf by the window, seemingly disapproving of his sister’s actions.
The Five-Color Flower had five petals, each a different color, and they subtly emitted a fragrance. Lu Li placed the wreath on his head. He had never seen such a unique flower before.
Milly rolled her eyes, ignoring her brother, and smiled slightly at the Deer Beastman. “Did you come here because you have news about Thor?”
Lu Li nodded.
Under the Divine Tree, the Elf Elder knelt, hands clasped, eyes closed.
After a long moment, he pressed his hands into the ground, bowed, and said, “Lord Divine Tree, the Elf race will never participate in the campaign.”
Ling Tang held an empty bowl, the bottom stained with dark medicinal residue. Her eyes were lowered, looking at the porcelain bowl, her face unnatural, but she remained silent.
Lu Qinian waited for a long time. When she still didn’t speak, he grew impatient. “What do you want to say?”
Ling Tang looked up. “Your Majesty’s medicine, there is only one dose left.”
Lu Qinian: “…”
Was she asking him to gather herbs? Remembering the last time he was sent to catch jellyfish, he cautiously refrained from responding.
Ling Tang paused, then pulled out a long-dried Five-Color Flower. “This herb is only found in the Elf territory.”
Lu Qinian recognized the flower instantly.
“As the Holy Son of the Elf race, you can easily obtain this flower. If you can bring it, I will do anything you ask,” Ling Tang said firmly, looking at him seriously.
The flower Ling Tang held was the Five-Color Flower. This flower could cure all poisons. Its only drawback was that it could not survive anywhere outside the Elf territory, and it lost almost all medicinal efficacy once dried.
No wonder he hadn’t detected any vitality in Aleksi every time he used his Affinity. He had thought it was because he wasn’t the original host and couldn’t use Affinity properly. It turned out that the medicinal soup Aleksi was drinking was ineffective, merely delaying the inevitable.
Lu Qinian asked, “Who poisoned him?”
Ling Tang initially didn’t want to answer, but meeting the Elf’s steady gaze, she spoke briefly. “…It was the Queen. It would be better for the Holy Son to ask His Majesty about this.”
Hearing this, Lu Qinian didn’t press her further. He looked at the flower and said, “Even if I bring the Five-Color Flower, it won’t work. This flower cannot survive outside the Elf territory and rots very easily. Even when dried, it loses its medicinal properties. The Five-Color Flower is very common in the Elf territory and grows in clusters.”
Lu Qinian thought for a moment, then added, “I suggest Aleksi goes to the Elf territory for treatment.”
Ling Tang looked up in surprise. She had consulted all medical texts and finally found the herb capable of treating Aleksi’s headache in a record about the Elf race. The Elves were isolated, and the people she sent had struggled immensely just to find a few stalks, which all dried up despite their efforts to bring them to the Undersea.
She had thought that the dried flowers would still be effective, but now realized that all her efforts were useless and might even be delaying the treatment. Ling Tang’s face turned pale. She didn’t even notice when the Elf beside her left.
After leaving, Lu Qinian went straight back to his bedroom. When Xiao Guo knocked in the afternoon, he didn’t go out, staying holed up in his room all day.
In the study, a Merfolk Guard knelt before the Merfolk King. “Your Majesty, the Elf Elder is already on his way to the Undersea and should arrive tomorrow morning.”
Aleksi pondered for a long time, then asked, “Who went to the Elf territory?”
The Guard replied, “The Deer Beastman heir, Lu Li.”
The Merfolk King’s face darkened.
That detestable Deer Beastman again.
The next day, Lu Qinian got out of bed early in the morning. During this time, System 009 reminded him that the mission progress had reached 40%, which surprised him, as he had only expected 20% at most.
He had spent the entire previous day thinking about the mission and Aleksi’s true intentions, but couldn’t figure anything out. He decided to sleep on it and ask Aleksi directly before making a decision. Currently, the best treatment option was to go to the Elf territory.
He got up, left the bedroom, and headed to the study.
“Enter.”
Lu Qinian slowly pushed open the door. Their eyes met, and he smiled gently, walking behind the Merfolk King under his gaze.
“Do you feel any better?” Lu Qinian placed his fingers on the top of Aleksi’s head. Aleksi usually experienced the worst pain at night. The daytime treatment only made him feel slightly more comfortable; whether he was truly better depended on the deep night.
“…Much better,” Aleksi narrowed his eyes.
Liar.
Lu Qinian then said, “Ling Tang showed me your medicine. The most important ingredient in it is ineffective.”
Aleksi suddenly opened his eyes but remained silent.
Lu Qinian felt the person beneath his hand tense up and then quickly stabilize. He continued, “Affinity only treats the symptoms, not the root cause. It can only relieve the pain at most. I am not a healer and cannot gauge your condition.”
Aleksi’s eyes darkened. He asked in a hoarse voice, “What are you trying to tell me?”
Lu Qinian was silent for a few seconds. He had been with Aleksi for a month now. During this time, he had led the Merfolk in expanding their home, and he had thoroughly dealt with the previous traitors.
He felt that the Merfolk before him was not the tyrant described in the plot.
The Elf’s hesitation and concern caused turmoil within Aleksi. In an instant, his tongue sharply scraped against his teeth. His tongue instantly stung, and beads of blood emerged, only to be swallowed by him. The inexplicable impulse was suppressed in his heart.
“Given your current situation, going to the Elf territory for treatment is the most correct choice.”
Lu Qinian left without receiving an answer.
He knew Aleksi wouldn’t agree, so he wasn’t bothered by the lack of response.
The following day.
Lu Qinian dressed, got up, opened the door, and was about to step out when he met the raised hand of the black-robed Merfolk. He paused and asked, “High Priest, is there something you need?”
Yang Luo stopped his knocking motion and said, “The Elf Elder just entered the Undersea. His Majesty asked me to inform you.”
Why would the Elf Elder come to the Undersea?
According to the plot, the campaign against the tribes was still several months away.
Lu Qinian didn’t waste time and quickly followed Yang Luo out of the palace.
According to Thor’s memory, the Elf Elder’s partner died unexpectedly in his youth, and he remained unmarried for the rest of his life. When Thor’s parents went out and never returned, the Elder took the young Elf in and raised him. Since occupying this body, Lu Qinian regarded the old man as a family member.
According to the plot, the Elf race should not have participated in the campaign. The only variable was Thor’s death in the Dungeon without even leaving a corpse.
Currently, although the Elf was imprisoned in the Undersea, his life was not in danger. Lu Qinian was puzzled by the Elf Elder’s reason for coming.
When he saw the Elf Elder, his kind and amiable face was now covered with fine wrinkles. His emerald eyes seemed veiled in mist, making them hard to see clearly, and his formerly golden hair now showed signs of graying.
Lu Qinian felt a pang of sadness. He quickly stepped forward. “Grandpa, Lyle.”
Lyle nodded, arms crossed, but didn’t speak.
“Good child, are you doing well lately?” The Elf Elder’s eyes were full of affection, especially when he noticed the Elf before him had short hair, his expression filled with guilt.
Lu Qinian hugged the Elder, resting his head on the Elder’s shoulder, his voice muffled. “I’m doing very well. Why did you suddenly come here?”
After they finished catching up, Lyle spoke. “The Elder came this time to see Aleksi.”
“…” Lu Qinian released his embrace, his eyelid twitching. “What is it about?”
The Elf Elder patted his shoulder, shook his head, and didn’t answer.
In the study, the Merfolk King with long, curly black hair looked indifferent, but his dark eyes glanced deeply at Lu Qinian like a hook, then calmly settled on the old man before him.
The Elf Elder slowly began, “Merfolk King, I have come here to exchange something with you.”
Aleksi disliked the old man, but he couldn’t ignore Lu Qinian’s gaze. After a moment, he rose and walked down the steps, helping the bowing Elf Elder up. “Yang Luo, please seat the Elder.”
Only after the Elf Elder was seated did he ask, “What does the Elder wish to trade?”
The Elf Elder’s eyes shifted slightly. “A piece of information, in exchange for Thor’s return to the tribe.”
Author’s Note:
One day, the young Elf left the Undersea and returned to the land, then shouted, “I, Hu Hansan, am back again!”