Rick didn’t waste any time telling the others to pick up the two Generals, and they once again began moving towards the lands of the Clans. Of course, they didn’t just turn their backs on the Elves.
Rick still held one of them hostage, who, after the pain he had just experienced, had become sufficiently mellow. He was still angry and would much rather rip Rick’s head from his body, but he wasn’t stupid. He was supposed to be the same Tier as Rick, yet he was dealt with as if he were a child.
The shame it brought him wasn’t small, but this was not the time, nor the opponent, to lash out at. Not when the memory of those flames was still fresh…
Now, while Rick and his group moved away, the Warden and her posse of Elves were not far behind. In fact, they stayed rather close. The Warden would not allow Rick to leave her sight until the Elf was returned without harm.
So she followed him all the way until the border, and it was only after Rick felt like he was a sufficient distance away that he released the hold he had on the Elf.
The Elf didn’t say anything to Rick or the Goblins, just quietly made his way back to his people, and once the Warden confirmed his safety and that the Goblins had left, she quickly departed from her location at her fastest speed back to the core of their nation.
They had one major city, and it housed just under a million Wood Elves. Truly small in number when compared to even one of the human nations on the continent.
The buildings were beautifully crafted, and it appeared as if they were built around and part of trees that took your breath away just by gazing upon them.
Of course, the Warden didn’t stop to admire anything as she made her way to the central building in the city.
One of the two strongest people in the Liasante Nation could be found here, on the highest floor of the building.
The Warden knocked on the door she now humbly stood in front of.
“Come in.”
A voice that seemed to be one with nature itself could be heard from the room.
The Warden quickly stepped in.
“I apologize for interrupting you at this time, My Lady.”
“Ah, you are not interrupting anything, little Mel. Come, sit with me and have some tea. I particularly like this blend.”
“As you wish, My Lady.”
The two sat down and shared a cup of tea in silence for a few moments before words were finally spoken again.
“What brings you here, little Mel? Is it the trouble in the Outer Forests?”
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“My Lady… I am ashamed of my actions, but I had no choice but to negotiate with a monster.”
“Negotiate with a monster? When the reports came through, I gave a sweeping glance in the area and saw nothing beyond the Fifth Tier. A bit unusual for our lands, but nothing you cannot handle.
What exactly happened, my dear? Don’t leave out any details.”
After that, the Warden, otherwise known as little Mel to the Lady of the Woods, immediately began a full recount of everything that took place in the outer forest—from the first report she received to the second that the captured Elf was returned.
By the end of the tale, the Lady of the Woods had a serious frown on her face. This situation sounded a lot like…
“Little Mel. You didn’t tell me what he looked like. Were you able to see his skin? Did he have any abnormal markings? Think back carefully. Really think, little Mel.”
The Warden thought back to it in detail, but there wasn’t much to consider when she remembered what Rick looked like in full.
“My Lady, apart from his head and fists, I couldn’t see any other parts of his body. He was covered in armor, a cloak, and other animal hides that covered his upper body underneath his cloak.”
“…Everything was covered…
Wait right here.”
The Lady of the Woods vanished from her seat and shortly reappeared at the very edge of Elven territory in the direction that Rick had left in.
By now, Rick and the others had reached quite the distance from Liasante, but for someone at the level of the Lady of the Woods, it would take a truly enormous distance to be out of the range of her senses.
She peered into the distance, locking onto the figure of Rick and eyed him for quite some time before sighing.
“I truly hope that I’m wrong…”
She then vanished from her position and reappeared in her seat, already with her teacup back in hand.
Perhaps if tensions weren’t so high at the moment, she would have left to go investigate Rick herself, but with the current situation being what it was, for someone of her stature to leave Liasante, it would have to be official business.
To leave unannounced would bring on unwanted questions and potentially spark something unnecessarily.
It was not something she could afford at the moment.
So while she decidedly left it alone for now, Rick—the target of her suspicion—suddenly frowned as he turned his head towards Liasante.
POV Rick
[Is everything alright?]
‘Yeah… I think so. But just now it felt like someone looked at me. Or maybe they scanned me? I’m not sure. So you didn’t feel that?’
[I felt nothing.]
‘Hm. Must’ve been the wind.’
[Must be.]
‘Anyway, we are finally resting. Please show me the status of that one Elf, please. The one in charge.’
[Understood.]
{Name – Melinarius}
{Age – 200}
{Race – Wood Elf}
{Tier – Six}
{Strength – 210}
{Agility – 350}
{Dexterity – 320}
{Intelligence – 220}
{Endurance – 240}
{Mana Pool – 1200/1200}
{Skills}
{xxxx}
‘Hm. Her stats are no laughing matter. But despite that, I still surpass her in strength, and I’m not far off when it comes to endurance or even our mana pools. I don’t think I’d be able to beat her without suffering major injuries, but with my flames and Ruknar, I would’ve been able to manage something.
But what are those x’s under skill? Does that mean she actually has a skill?’
[For your first point, it’s unwise to assume that you would be able to manage something. The gap between Tiers only gets bigger the higher you go. It is arrogance to assume that you can always surpass that gap.]
[And for your second point, I do believe we are seeing a skill, but we are either not strong enough or don’t have enough information to classify it.]
‘I suppose that makes sense… and you’re right, but it’s also important to have a rough idea of where I stand. Overestimating the enemy and underestimating myself can have undue consequences as well.’
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