The Fake Saintess and the Elf Warrior

"No need! Sir, could you please call a carriage? We need to get back to the city quickly to get the guild members to identify the body. Please keep an eye on it for us. And when the guild members arrive, could you please act as witnesses for us? I don't want someone else to get this benefit."

"Hmm... okay."

Naka calmly responded to all the old man's questions and made arrangements for him to leave immediately. Given Tatya's current state, everything naturally fell to Naka.

With the old man's boat pulling them, Naka and the others finally returned to shore. Naka pulled Tatya to sit on a wooden stake and told the old man they needed to rest.

While waiting for the carriage to arrive, Naka silently held Tatsia's hand, staying by her side. The old man, observing the two in this state, had many questions, but ultimately refrained from disturbing them.

A short while later, the carriage arrived. Before boarding, Naka took out several gold coins from her pocket and handed them to the old man.

"Thank you very much, sir. This is a token of my appreciation."

"Not at all, Miss Saintess. You've rid us of this scourge; I should be the one thanking you."

"I appreciate it if you don't press us further."

"what?"

Naka herself knew that her and Tatsia's behavior was completely out of character for adventurers who had just completed a mission and should be basking in the joy of victory and growth. Her answers to the old man's questions were all made up. If the old man pressed her for details, she would inevitably become inconsistent and reveal some suspicious clues. But the old man didn't do that. Naka knew it was out of consideration for the old man. When Naka saw through this consideration, the old man was taken aback at first. Then he smiled and waved his hand, refusing Naka's gold coins.

"Miss Saint, everyone has privacy they don't want others to know. Everyone also wants time to be alone. This old man of mine was just doing what I felt was the proper way to show respect to others."

"This kind of respect is something many people fail to show. Sir, you are a good man; may God bless you with a long and healthy life."

"Thank you for your kind words, Miss Saint."

Although Naka doesn't believe in gods, her blessing wasn't insincere.

Naka took back the gold coins and helped Tatya into the carriage. The coachman raised his whip and shouted "Giddy up!", and the carriage drove away from the lakeside.

Watching the carriage depart, and reflecting on Naka's words, the old man couldn't help but smile.

"What a strange pair of ladies."

The coachman didn't seem to be a talkative person. Although Tatsia looked strange, he remained silent, only asking about their destination and not exchanging a single word with the two. This relieved Naka of a lot of worry.

Sitting in the carriage, Naka still held onto Tatya's hand tightly. If Tatya continued to be afraid and unable to communicate normally, the problem would only get worse. It was crucial to help her regain her composure.

But what should she do? Naka wasn't sure. Since infiltrating human society, she had seen many little boys and girls. But she had no experience interacting with a girl like Tatya, who was a bit older than innocent children but not yet old enough to stand on her own. This girl, still somewhat childish yet harboring secrets, was a complex character that even the Demon King, who had lived for hundreds of years, found quite troublesome.

If he were a tall, older brother, perhaps she would feel more at ease. But Naka herself is not only a girl, but also looks only about the same age as Tatia. She doesn't even exude the aura of an older sister. There's no sense of reliability in her that makes her feel comfortable opening her heart to her. Even if she were to say something, Naka probably wouldn't listen.

In desperation, Naka pulled Tatsia's hands onto her thighs and held them tightly with both of her own. This was the only way she could think of that might calm her down.

This seemed to have some effect. Tatsia's trembling subsided slightly. Naka turned her head and observed the girl again. Her eyes were still wandering, but at least her teeth were no longer chattering.

"To be honest, I always thought I had a pretty good eye for people, but I never expected that I wouldn't be able to figure out her gender."

From the day they first met, Naka assumed Tatya was a boy. Her medium-length hair, underdeveloped secondary sexual characteristics, masculine voice, and Tatya's somewhat androgynous appearance all contributed to the initial deception.

When applying to join a party, she filled in male as the gender in her adventurer information. Judging from the reactions of the guild leader, Ijima, and the other adventurers, it seemed that no one knew she was a girl. Her elven race goes without saying, and she seemed to have some unspeakable difficulty in discussing her female identity.

"By the way..."

Thinking of this, Naka picked up a corner of her nun's habit draped over Tatsia, and with a "rip," tore off a long strip of cloth and stuffed it into her hand, whispering...

"After you get off the bus, go somewhere where no one is around and put these on, pulling them over your ears. Don't let anyone see. Don't worry. I absolutely won't tell anyone anything about you."

"Na...Na..."

Tatya, who had been unable to respond until now, finally managed to squeeze out a few words in a trembling voice. Though still somewhat incoherent, she had recovered somewhat. She looked at Naka with teary eyes, desperately trying to convey her deepest feelings.

"Na...Ka, sister...thank you..."

"...Don't force yourself. If you can't say it, then don't say it."

Naka knew perfectly well that all the misfortune that had befallen her, leading to her current state, was entirely of her own making. As a demon lord who sought to conquer the world, Naka had never felt any sympathy or pity for those harmed by her or by the demon race. Nor had she ever regretted her decisions. But the series of troubles caused by her actions had ultimately fallen upon her head.

This is what they call cause and effect. Now, the one who needs to take responsibility and address this matter is ultimately Naka, the culprit. Naka couldn't bear Tatsia's gratitude. The fact that Tatsia, the victim, showed such sincere gratitude to her perpetrator stirred a feeling Naka had never experienced before. She didn't know what that feeling was; she only felt a heavy, throbbing pain in her chest and couldn't bear to look Tatsia in the eye.

For the rest of the journey, everyone kept quiet. Even Farn, who had witnessed everything, remained silent.

Upon arriving in Isad, Nakat specifically instructed the coachman to stop the carriage in a wide-open area. She leaned out to make sure there was no one else in sight before alighting with Tatsia.

The fare had already been paid by the elderly man, so after the two got out of the car, the driver drove off without a word. Only after confirming that the driver was gone did Naka speak to Tatsia.

"How are you? Can you walk by yourself now?"

"Um..."

"Don't go anywhere today, just go straight home. Change your wet clothes, and find a new headband to cover your ears. If you can't find one, use the strip of cloth I gave you. You don't need to return my nun's habit; keep it. Come to my inn tomorrow to find me, and I'll share your reward for this mission with you."

After entrusting everything to her, Naka decided to walk back to the city alone to report the mission to the guild.

"Please, please wait a moment, Sister Naka."

Just as Naka was about to leave, Tatsia suddenly called out to her. She had now mostly regained her composure.

When her identity as an elf was exposed, countless painful memories flooded her mind, causing Tatsia to lose control of her emotions. The thought of being discovered by humans and subjected to unimaginable suffering, stripped of her former glory, was a hell Tatsia would rather never recall.

But Naka didn't belittle her at all; instead, she desperately covered for her. Just holding her hand gave Tatya immense courage. In Tatya's eyes, behind the warmth of Naka's hand lay Naka's gentleness, constantly encouraging and caring for her. Since they met, she had received so much help from Naka, yet she had caused Naka so much trouble. She felt only gratitude and guilt towards Naka.

A secret she absolutely doesn't want any human to know—if it were her, perhaps she could open her heart...

After much internal struggle, Tatia finally made this decision.

"Sister Naka... I want to take you somewhere tomorrow."

Interlude 02: The Day the Elves Extinct

"Your Highness, please stay here and hide. No matter who it is or what has happened, please do not come out."

Deep within the palace of the Elf Kingdom, an Elf Paladin gave instructions to a female elf inside a cabinet.

Although he tried to remain calm and did not explain everything that was happening in the palace to the female elf, the sweat beading on his forehead and his fully armed attire already made her aware of the seriousness of the situation.

But all of this happened too suddenly.

The war between the Demon King's army and the elves has lasted for about ten years. Perhaps because the Demon King himself has not personally led the army, the elves, though at a disadvantage, have managed to put up a fight. The two sides have fought countless battles at various strategic passes. Over these ten years, the elves have managed to hold on. The constant warfare has also taken a heavy toll on the demons, and the elves deduce that as long as they maintain the current situation, they can hold out for a few more years. Once the human kingdoms send reinforcements, the situation will eventually change.

That night, however, the Demon King's army appeared out of nowhere, sweeping through multiple lines of defense and suddenly appearing outside the palace. Although this army was small, each soldier was an elite, personally led by General Komre. The palace guards were no match for them. In less than an hour, the Demon King's army breached the palace gates and stormed in. With overwhelming force, they quickly occupied the elven palace. The king and queen had already been killed by the Demon King's army. The only remaining paladin in the palace could now only protect the elven princess, the last surviving member of the royal bloodline, and sacrifice himself to stop the invading demons.

"Wales...may you have good luck in battle..."

"Your Highness, may you be well."

After exchanging best wishes, the paladin closed the cabinet door. Although both had much more to say to each other, and many emotions yet to be expressed, the pressing circumstances forced the lovers to bid a final farewell with the fewest words possible.

As the footsteps of the paladin named Welsh faded into the distance, the princess collapsed to the ground. She was terrified. She had been dreaming of a peaceful next day, only to be awakened by her beloved's frantic calls. She had never imagined such a thing would happen tonight. When asked about her parents, Welsh avoided the question. The young princess hadn't had time to comprehend or accept this abrupt reality. All she could do now was clasp her hands together and pray to the gods for her parents and for the knight who had protected her.

"God...please bless my father and mother, please let me see Wales one more time..."

She didn't know how long she prayed or how many times she prayed. She only stopped when she heard footsteps outside the cabinet.

"Wales...it must be Wales...it must be..."

How she wished that the person opening the cupboard would be the warrior of the highest rank among the elves, whom she had admired since childhood. How she wished he would tell her that he had defeated all the enemies and that she could rest easy.

"Gala"

The princess's hopes were dashed. Instead of the elf's face she saw every day, the cupboard door was opened to reveal a gigantic, massive figure she had never seen before.

"So you were hiding here! We've been looking for you everywhere."

The enormous figure spoke, uttering a harsh voice the princess had never heard before.

"Who are you?!"

"Oh right, I haven't introduced myself yet... Your Highness, I am a general under His Majesty the Demon King, my name is Komre."

"You're one of the Demon King's invading army...! What are you doing? I'm warning you, don't do anything reckless... The strongest warrior of our elves is in this palace. If he finds out, you..."

"The strongest warrior? Who is it?"

"William, Wales will definitely not let you get away with this!"

"Wales? Oh, so he's the strongest warrior among the elves. That's quite disappointing."

With a raised right hand, the princess saw her knight again, just as she had wished.

However, what I saw was his bloody human head.

"I've also heard of a valiant paladin among the elves, level 70. I was really looking forward to seeing how powerful he was. But he turned out to be surprisingly fragile. I just tried to test him with one move, and his head flew off... I was wondering if there were even more powerful ones waiting for me ahead. It seems your elven race is nothing special after all."

"Aa ...

The memory of gazing into her lover's unclosed eyes on his deathbed seemed to have dealt the princess a devastating blow. She screamed and collapsed, unconscious.

"Hey?...She's passed out. Well, that's good, at least she won't move around when I try to catch her."

Kemre helped the princess up. Just then, a demon soldier burst into the princess's room. He reported to Kemre...

"General Kemre. We've confirmed it. There isn't a single living elf in the city. Guards, servants, the king and queen, and other members of the royal family are all dead. We've also checked the area around the palace; no elves escaped in the chaos to spread the word. Only the princess remains missing..."

"If it's the princess, she's here."

Komre stepped aside and pointed to the princess lying in the cabinet for the demon soldiers to see.

"So, she's here! Then if we kill her, this place will be completely occupied by our Demon King's army..."

"No. I will spare her life for now."

"Why?"

"His Majesty the Demon King once said that killing someone at different times and in different circumstances will produce drastically different effects... You, tie her up with rope and throw her in the cell. I'll need her again in a few days."

The demon soldiers looked puzzled. But since their general had given such an order, they had no choice but to comply.

A fortified village sits atop a cliff dozens of kilometers from the royal palace. This is currently the front line of the battle between the Demon King's army and the Elf army.

The border of the Elf Forest was originally much farther away. Over the past decade, the Demon King's army had conquered numerous cities, and most of the Elf Forest had already fallen into their hands. The elves, who had retreated here, successfully slowed the Demon King's advance by utilizing their superior terrain. The Demon King's army had been attempting to capture this city for two years, but had yet to succeed.

However, in recent days, the Demon King's army, which had been consistently attempting to attack the city, has suddenly vanished. According to scouts, their camp remains encamped at the foot of a nearby mountain, showing no signs of retreat. This has greatly puzzled the elven general defending the city.

The pass currently guarded by the elves is easy to defend and difficult to attack. The battlefield is in the Elf Forest, so supply lines are not a problem. Meanwhile, the Demon King's army, engaged in a protracted war, is gradually depleting its food and manpower reserves. They should be hoping to capture the city as soon as possible, and certainly not engage in a war of attrition with the elves. The elves don't know what the Demon King's army is up to, but for now, they have no choice but to wait and see.

Soon, they found out.

That day, the Demon King's army finally made its move. But not to challenge them. Instead, they used the pretext of showing the elves something. The elven general guarding the city ascended the gate, only to see the orc general, Kemre, at the forefront below. What lay behind him made the elven general doubt his own eyes.

Those were banners, all symbols of the elves' glory. But now they were tattered and worn. Beneath each banner hung a human head. The elven general recognized them; they were the heads of the king, queen, other royal nobles, and the paladin Welsh.

"What...what's going on?"

More than shocked, the elven general was bewildered. The pass he was in remained impregnable, unconquered. The king should still be comfortably at home in his palace. He couldn't possibly be in a place like this. So where did these heads below the mountain come from?

One of the elven warriors beside him explained it this way.

"That must be a ruse by the Demon King's army. They're just trying to provoke us and lure us out of the city to fight. Those heads must all be fake. Please, General, see the truth."

"That's true..."

Having understood the Demon King's army's intentions, the elven general looked at the severed heads and laughed three times, emphasizing to Kemre his unwavering stance. However, this move was entirely within Kemre's expectations.

"Pull it up"

"Yes"

At Kemre's command, the demon soldiers dragged a wooden wagon to the front lines. Upon seeing the people on the wagon, the elven general could no longer remain calm.

"That's...the Princess!"

If the head could be faked, then the woman now standing before them, alive and well, was undeniably the elven princess herself. She was ragged and disheveled, bound to a pillar. Her lifeless eyes held only despair as she stared blankly ahead. She remained motionless and silent.

Komre drew his greatsword, walked to the wooden wagon, and pointed the blade at the princess's neck. He shouted loudly to the elves on the city walls...

"Listen! Apart from this princess, the entire royal family of your elven kingdom has been wiped out by our demon race! This princess is the last bloodline of the royal family! Now, it's time for you to be free!"

Having said that, Kemre raised his greatsword.

"You! What are you doing! Stop!"

The elven general roared. But words have no power. Kemre swung his sword down with both hands, and the elven princess's head fell to the ground. A fountain of crimson blood bloomed on her bald neck.

"Now that the princess is dead! No one will order you around anymore! You no longer need to fight!"

Komre appeared to be trying to persuade them to surrender. But his actions only seemed to enrage the elven soldiers.

"Kemre!!!!"

Anger had completely shattered the composure of the elven soldiers. Led by their general, all the elves drew their weapons and roared deafeningly. They flung open the city gates and charged out. The demon soldiers, seeing this, swarmed in as well, and a chaotic battle ensued.

Meanwhile, Komre had already retreated from the front lines and returned to the camp. Entering his room, he found a person dressed in a black robe waiting for him. Upon seeing Komre enter, the person immediately rose to greet him.

"Congratulations, General Komre. I suppose it has been a success."

"That's right. Thank you, you've allowed us to bypass this cumbersome checkpoint and directly enter the palace."