An elf.
A race with long ears and beautiful features.
A race that loves nature and the forest.
On the continent of Astria, elves are known to have lifespans of around 200 to 300 years.
Like the dwarves, they are a long-lived race that surpasses humans in years.
Despite traveling across the Astria continent, I had never encountered an NPC elf until now.
And here, in the cold north, I was finally seeing one for the first time.
But...
I sharpened my gaze as I looked up at the elf in the tree.
At the same time, I scanned the surroundings.
Was he the only one? Surely not—the elf guarding this vast forest?
No way.
Just as I expected, more elves began to reveal themselves in the surrounding trees.
Unlike the first elf with white hair, they had various hair colors.
Soon, an interface window appeared before my eyes.
[Elf Kingdom Favorability: -20]
"Sis."
"Yeah, I see it."
I confirmed this with Chris, who kept her body tense and nodded.
A faction with which we had favorability ratings.
Just like with the Dwarf village.
First encounter. A forced event.
So, they were coming at us with hostility from the start.
Judging by the fact that their arrows didn’t aim directly at our vital points, it seemed these elf guards were trying to subdue us rather than kill us.
If other players faced them, there would probably be two main options.
One: Kill them all.
The 'Elf Guards' had high stats corresponding to the level of this area, but for players who had made it this far, it wouldn’t be too difficult. Honestly, Chris’s ranged attacks alone could wipe them all out. However, our favorability with them would plummet to the lowest level.
Two: Allow ourselves to be subdued and taken to their kingdom.
This was likely the intended route. Our favorability was already negative from the start. They had even cast a magical fog to prevent their location from being discovered. It seemed they were a reclusive society with no contact with humans.
Still...
I didn’t like the idea of being underestimated.
I chose a third option.
Without turning my head, I relayed my plan to Chris.
"Sis, stay here. I’m going to put those elves to sleep."
"What? But—"
"You have long-range debuff skills as an onmyoji, right? Use your projectile protection skill and throw your debuffs whenever you can, but only at those within range."
There was no verbal response, but I knew Chris understood.
I immediately sprang into action.
Tatata-tat!
"What the?!"
The white-haired elf, who seemed to be their leader, shouted a command and raised one hand.
Thwip-thwip-thwip!
Arrows landed where I had just passed.
I zigzagged quickly, disrupting their aim.
Clang!
I deflected a stray arrow with Astaroth, without using any skills.
Of course, I could have used a 'Block' skill on the projectile to perfectly defend against it. However, during the 'Block' skill’s casting time, I wouldn’t be able to move. To push forward through this barrage of arrows, I needed to deflect them with my sword’s movements alone. Their arrows flew continuously in rapid succession, leaving no time to rest.
Whizz!
Among them, I heard the distinct sound of an unusual arrow cutting through the air. It was one I couldn’t ignore.
I cast 'Block' at the right moment.
Clang!
An arrow imbued with the power of the wind spirit, Sylph.
It seemed this elf was a hybrid of a ranger and a spirit summoner.
The arrow that halted my advance was shot by the white-haired elf.
He was already nocking another arrow to his bow.
I glared at him between swings of my sword.
Tatata-tat!
Without hesitation, I climbed a nearby tree.
With my current agility, climbing up trees was no problem.
Thwip-thwip!
I heard the sound of multiple arrows embedding themselves in the base of the tree.
At the top of the tree stood an elf, looking startled.
The height from where I stood to the elf was about eight meters.
I spun around quickly, facing downward, and used the tree trunk as my launchpad.
'Backward Evasion.'
[Backward Evasion (A)]
[Quickly propel yourself 8 meters backward to evade an attack in front of you (Invincible while casting)]
[Cooldown: 8 seconds]
[(E Rank) Increases movement speed for 5 seconds after skill use]
[(B Rank) Transitions into 'Draw Stance' after skill use]
[(A Rank) Grants an additional 0.5 seconds of invincibility]
The advanced version of the swordsman’s 'Backward Evasion' provided increased invincibility time.
But I preferred to use this skill as a movement ability rather than just for invincibility.
A skill that could instantly move me eight meters in any direction.
Whoosh.
In the blink of an eye, my body flew eight meters through the air, landing me directly in front of the startled elf standing on the thick branch.
With one swift motion, I struck the back of his neck with my sword’s hilt.
This was the 'Pommel Strike,' a skill that induced a stun effect.
I put enough force behind the blow to make sure he’d sleep for a while.
Thud!
"Urgh!"
He collapsed in a heap on the thick branch where he had been standing. Luckily, the branches these elves stood on were sturdy enough to support their bodies.
Tack!
I jumped back down to the ground and moved on to my next target.
There were still thirteen elves left.
---
"What the heck! How is she so fast?! Agh!"
"A human moving faster than an elf in the forest!? Ugh!"
What? These older guys can actually speak?
Since they’d fired arrows at us without saying a word, I assumed all elves were the quiet type. Igrain-sis had been like that, too.
Meanwhile, Chris, who was still below, used her onmyoji magic to incapacitate two of the elves.
Now there was only one elf left.
I looked up at the last elf standing in the tree, a white-haired one, and gave him a sly smile.
"There’s only one left, mister."
"...!"
His expression had been growing more rigid for a while now.
His pride must have been hurt by the fact that the elf guards' defenses were being so easily breached.
Thwip-thwip-thwip!
More arrows, imbued with his skill and determination, flew toward me.
Though I could sense that there was no killing intent—he must have realized I hadn’t killed any of the other elves—the intent to subdue me was clear.
Boom!
This time, it was a multi-shot.
Three arrows infused with powerful wind energy, glowing green, flew toward me, covering a wide area to limit my ability to dodge.
A ranger’s skill, I guessed. The one in the center was probably unblockable.
Maybe I should show off a bit.
Instead of dodging, I lowered my stance.
‘Iaijutsu.’
Whoosh!
In a flash of light, my body sliced through the giant energy projectile, cutting it in half vertically. At the same time, I closed the distance between us.
"Gah! This brat!"
The white-haired elf spoke for the first time.
Brat? How dare he call a proper lady like me a brat!
Puffing out my cheeks in annoyance, I quickly started climbing the tree he was perched in.
Crack!
Suddenly, the tree sprouted vines, attempting to bind me.
This elf was definitely different from the others. He could skillfully control spirits.
Swoosh!
Tack!
It wasn’t easy to climb a tree and swing a sword at the same time. While I was distracted, he jumped to another tree and began firing arrows again.
Tack, tack, tack!
He moved between the trees with ease, always keeping just beyond my reach. With the help of the spirits, he leapt through the trees as if it were his home.
Even though I was closing the distance between us quickly, he still managed to stay just out of range.
After several rounds of this chase, I realized it would be difficult to catch him like this.
Should I fire a sword strike? But he might die.
Unlike named demonic monsters with massive HP pools that could withstand multiple sword strikes, regular NPCs, even high-level ones, tended to be quite fragile.
Should I try cutting down the trees? But the trees here were unusually sturdy. It seemed like a game mechanic—objects you couldn’t cut down. In moments like these, the game’s design became apparent.
Whoosh!
I used a skill reset to close the distance to the next tree, climbing up quickly.
Tatata-tat!
The elf had clearly learned from my previous attempts. He knew that once I got within eight meters of him, I would close the gap in an instant.
He was using that knowledge against me.
When I got within nine meters, he moved to another tree.
A simple yet effective tactic.
In that case, it was time to rely on the system’s power again.
I could use 'Iaijutsu' to climb the tree, but that skill was better suited for closing the distance.
I had already used up my item cooldown reset to approach the elves. It would take another ten minutes before I could use it again.
Chasing him around for ten more minutes? No thanks.
But I had another movement skill.
Tatata-tat!
At thirteen meters, twelve meters, eleven meters below him, he prepared to jump to another branch.
Click.
'Backward Evasion' covered eight meters of distance. Even after using it, I’d still be three meters short of reaching him.
But before he
could move.
I used 'Backward Evasion.'
This time, I aimed directly below him.
Whoosh!
My body disappeared from the tree trunk and reappeared just below his feet.
Three meters wasn’t enough to use a stun skill.
But it was enough to use the skill I had prepared.
Looking up at him, I activated it.
Swish.
The scenery shifted, and I found myself staring at the elf’s white-haired head.
'Reversal.'
A skill that teleports you behind the opponent, turning you 180 degrees.
If you use it from below? You appear above them.
I had never tried using it vertically before, but it worked.
In the split second before he could react, I brought down the pommel of my sword.
"Goodnight, mister."
Thunk!
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