Bab 43: The Thoughts of the Elders
Ryan didn't really care, because he didn't value the title of Honorary Elder at all. When dark elves give you such a big title, isn't there an expectation of something in return? With power comes responsibility, but if you don't want it, then it's your personal choice. It would be embarrassing to refuse. When Ryan heard the female dark elf voice her opposition, he couldn't hold back his anger. He immediately responded, "Elders, I am willing to become the Honorary Elder." Ryan's reasoning was simple—he wasn't from the Underdark, and sooner or later, he would leave for the surface world. At worst, they could part ways then.
"Hmph! Who's this girl, so rude?" The Fifth Elder sneered coldly and asked, his tone displeased. If he hadn't seen that the female elf had the strength of an 8th-level Magic Archer, he would have already lost his temper. In fact, these elders were easy to recognize; the number on their chest indicated their rank, making it easier for everyone, since the elven language was so complicated, and each elf's name was long and hard to pronounce. Over time, the dark elves had adopted this method of referring to the elders. There was also a ranking issue, similar to how mayors and vice-mayors are divided into specific roles.
"Report, Fifth Elder, this is the Eldest Elder's adopted daughter. She's here for her coming-of-age trial." City Lord Holman quickly intervened to explain.
"Oh, you must be Darkya, right? Why are you opposing this?" The Fifth Elder asked, carefully inspecting Darkya. He then spoke, "Most dark elves don't raise their own children, so each unmarried dark elf adopts a child born from the Tree of Life. Darkya is the Eldest Elder's adopted daughter, in other words, the Eldest Elder's offspring."
"Because I took off my mask in front of this human." Darkya's face turned red as she weakly answered after a long pause.
"Ah, no wonder I thought something was off. I didn't realize your mask was off." The Fifth Elder suddenly slapped his thigh, realizing the issue, while the other elders looked on with curious expressions, as if they found this very amusing.
"Old Five, stop talking so much. Let's hear how things went first," said the Second Elder. The Fifth Elder had no choice but to turn his attention back to Ryan.
"The matter started like this..." Holman began, noticing Darkya wasn't speaking and took it upon himself to explain the situation.
"You all may leave for now. This concerns the reputation of our dark elf race. We'll discuss this and then give you our response, which will be the decision of the Elder Council," said the Third Elder after hearing the explanation.
Ryan, Darkya, and Holman left the City Lord's mansion. Darkya, still angry, glared at Ryan. Ryan, on the other hand, acted nonchalantly and even threw flirtatious glances at her. The more Darkya got irritated, the more Ryan enjoyed provoking her. Darkya felt like she could just slice him up right then and there.
In the Underdark, dwarves and dark elves were considered to have a higher status than humans, mostly because humans couldn't adapt to the underground environment. Dwarves and dark elves naturally lived in caves, and humans were weaker physically than dwarves and not as talented as dark elves. However, humans had one advantage—hard work. On the other hand, gnomes were obsessed with mechanical devices. In the past, if anyone had disrespected Darkya, they would have been pierced by arrows. But this annoying human had somehow become a hero in the eyes of the sisters. Most of the dark elves accompanying Darkya today were there just to watch, either to witness the Elder Council's proceedings or to observe the hero of Muan City up close. Now, with Ryan behaving this way, it was practically asking for a beating. To make matters worse, many of the sisters went up to greet Ryan.
"Haha, haha."
"This is hilarious. I wonder how the Eldest Elder will react when she finds out her adopted daughter is serving a human as a maid."
"Exactly, exactly! I can't wait to see the Eldest Elder's expression when she finds out."
"I think the Eldest Elder will probably want to kill that little guy."
"Not necessarily. The Eldest Elder is very reasonable. Darkya made the bet with him herself. There's no way she can go back on her word."
"True, but this puts us in a difficult position. If the bet is honored, not only does it benefit that guy, but we also have to face the Eldest Elder's wrath. If we don't honor it, it'll damage the reputation of our dark elf race. It's really tricky."
After Ryan and Darkya left the mansion, the elders burst out laughing. In fact, the elders of the dark elves were ranked once every 200 years, with competitions not just for martial arts skills but also for knowledge and strategy. The Eldest Elder had always been suppressing the others, so it was rare to see the Eldest Elder make a mistake. After the laughter died down, the elders began discussing the situation.
"I think we should inform the Eldest Elder to handle this," one of them suggested.
"Shut up. The Eldest Elder will first beat you into a state where you can't take care of yourself," another elder retorted.
"How about we just make that human disappear?"
"We dark elves don't repay kindness with ingratitude. Besides, do you think Muan City is filled with dark elves? Those nearby strong presences are not to be underestimated."
"Those guys must have heard about how Muan City wiped out hundreds of thousands of goblins and came to see it for themselves."
"Let's not deviate from the topic. The human boy is really pushing his luck. If we hadn't granted him the title of Honorary Elder, it would have been fine, but now that he has, it's too late to back out."
"Yeah, but doesn't the Honorary Elder have a trial process? We can work with that," another elder suggested.
The elders continued to discuss, trying to figure out a way to make the Eldest Elder lose face while maintaining the honor of the dark elf race. They thought it would be fine if the human boy didn't become an Honorary Elder, as long as he didn't pass the trial. The question was how to formulate a test for Ryan. They all knew that the Eldest Elder would be the one to decide the questions.
"What if that human kid passes the test?"
"That's not our problem. The test for Honorary Elders is decided by the Eldest Elder. I'm not the Eldest Elder."
"Ha, Elder Four, I didn't know you could be so devious. Now we just have to sit back and enjoy the show."
"Yeah, it's been boring for so long. Let's have some fun. But for now, we should focus on our real job—protecting the Breadfruit Tree. And we should send a letter to the Eldest Elder to personally come and witness this miracle. But to make it more entertaining, let's invite strong humans, gnomes, and dwarves to witness this grand event of our elven race!"
"Elder Seven, are you sure about this? If the Eldest Elder looks foolish in front of everyone, won't that embarrass our dark elf race?"
"What's the problem? If we don't invite them, the people around will know. And the Eldest Elder won't suspect anything?"
They were all crafty individuals, speaking in a way that hid their true intentions. Everyone understood that if the Eldest Elder lost face in public, she would never be able to command respect again. And if that happened, wouldn't the position of the Eldest Elder become available? The secrets of the dark elf race and the immense wealth that had been stored for generations were all in the hands of the Eldest Elder. These elders weren't interested in art or elegance. At this age and in these positions, they had to have some means to maintain control. So, when Elder Seven spoke, everyone fell into deep thought.
"I still don't understand why Muan City is so special. The War Ancient Tree here grows wildly, and the Breadfruit Tree can be cultivated too. But when we tried to grow it, the seeds produced sour, inedible fruit. Not to mention that without the Water of Life, the fruits wouldn't even bloom," said the Second Elder, breaking the silence and changing the subject to a sensitive one.
"The Breadfruit Tree grows well here, and this place is easy to defend. The key question now is, who should go report this to the Eldest Elder?" The Fifth Elder shifted the conversation back.
Everyone looked around at each other, all hesitant. Finally, the Third Elder stood up and said, "I have an idea. The person is already here."
Darkya was called in by the elders, who all stared at her. After a moment, the Third Elder spoke again, "Darkya, we are truly sorry, but we cannot harm the reputation of our dark elf race. And the most important thing is the human who brought us the Breadfruit Tree. I'm sure you understand how valuable this tree is to our race. But privately, we cannot just stand by and do nothing. Humans are deceitful, greedy, treacherous, and lustful. So now we ask you, are you willing to honor your bet?"
"Honorable Elders, I was also caught off guard. I didn't expect things to turn out like this. I really don't want to face that sly and despicable person. Please, Elders, help me out with this." When Darkaya heard the first part of the sentence, her body trembled, and she almost collapsed onto the ground. Darkaya had read many historical records and was aware of how elves were seen by humans on the surface. They were considered playthings, slaves. Therefore, Darkaya had always held a grudge against Ryan. Since Ryan came from the surface, she thought of provoking him. She had already planned what she would do if Ryan lost—how she would make him beg for mercy in her hands. But things took an unexpected turn.
"Before an outsider can become an Honorary Elder, there will be an assessment, and the questions for this assessment will be set by the Grand Elder. So, we are entrusting you, Darkaya, the 8th-level Magic Archer, with the task of notifying the Grand Elder. Are you up to it?" The Third Elder exclaimed loudly.
"Darkaya accepts!" Hearing the Elders' words, Darkaya was so excited she almost jumped for joy. With the initiative in her hands, she could still bet with Ryan. She would win back everything she had lost and then punish that damned Ryan by whipping him every day and plucking all his hair. Darkaya happily accepted the task and left the City Lord's mansion. Surrounded by guards, she headed for the Elven capital. On the way, Darkaya kept thinking of ways to torment Ryan.
"Damn it, who's thinking about me? My nose itches." Ryan, who had only received a notice from City Lord Holman about the ceremony for the Honorary Elder, didn't pay much attention. What mattered more to him was earning money, leveling up, and leaving the place as soon as possible. Compared to all this, Ryan preferred the natural scenery on the surface. So, he returned to his studies of the Goblin's "writing." Ryan considered the tattoos on the Goblin Mage as a form of writing.
"Ada, you don't want to eat meat or drink wine anymore, do you? Look at what you've done!" Ryan pointed at the liquid in the magic furnace, which was emitting smoke. A burnt smell wafted out. The solution was ruined. In fact, the Goblin Mages were easy to deal with. One bowl of wine and they'd tell everything. In the end, Ryan discovered that these so-called "words" slowly absorbed various elements from the air. Initial tests showed that the locations of the tattoos resembled meridians, but Ryan wasn't sure. So, he provided the Goblin Mages with good wine and meat. He didn't expect these creatures to behave like domesticated dogs. Ryan, eager to test whether the "writing" of the Goblins worked for him, decided to experiment with a Level 2 Dark Mage Goblin. He prepared a solution and intended to test it on an Octopus Lizard, a beast of the underground. But Ada, the Goblin Mage Ryan had named, had never seen such high-tech items like a magic furnace. Consequently, the carefully collected materials were wasted. Could Ryan not be frustrated?
Status Power Mingguan
-- Peringkat
Power 
-- Power
stone