Months since being kidnapped into this dark and gloomy underground.
The Dark Elf boy, Gaizerus, was, as usual, being beaten by the leader of the Dark Elf group, Baraklava, under the guise of training.
“Why...! Until when...!”
Though he was being overwhelmingly pushed back by the captain’s attacks, the boy still managed to land a few sharp counterattacks in between.
“I’m just supposed to be receiving training!”
Clang!
Because of that, even the captain couldn’t continue the sparring with ease.
“...Do you want to take the test?”
“Yeah. I’m sick of this training.”
The boy gripped a wooden training stick.
As he concentrated, a clear magic power rose up the stick.
It was unmistakable—the symbol of a swordsman, the blade energy.
Seeing this, the captain briefly closed her eyes.
‘A boy who didn’t even know how to hold a sword is now wielding blade energy at the expert level in just over 100 days.’
Compared to when he was first dragged into this underground place, his growth was almost unbelievable.
‘No matter how much Elves are blessed with magic, their long lifespan only slows their growth, making their speed of progress even lag behind that of humans. But this boy is different.’
Even the genius swordsmen praised in human lands couldn’t grow this fast.
Not even the unofficial strongest of Darkhood, her.
‘Perhaps this boy... really is.’
The captain opened her eyes again and extended the stick forward.
“Do you think you’re ready for the test?”
“Of course.”
Magic flowed from her hand, covering the stick in a sword-like form.
“Then try cutting this.”
The boy, who had been examining her face for a moment, lifted the magically-imbued stick and swung it with all his might.
Crack!
“What!?”
However, the boy’s stick was sliced cleanly from the opposite direction.
The boy’s face turned pale in shock.
“Not yet.”
‘I’m sorry, but you’ll need to be taught more until you can cut through this level of sword energy.’
The situation on the surface had turned for the worse due to betrayal.
Even though he tried to assassinate the betrayers, he ended up being outwitted, leaving no hope for them.
If things continued like this, not only would the clan’s salvation be impossible, but they could all be wiped out. Probably within a few years, an army would invade this place.
While waiting, the boy, whom they thought of as a mere diversion, ended up becoming the future of the clan.
‘Until you surpass me. Until then, you can’t.’
At that moment, she decided that, no matter what, she would make the boy the new Dark Elf king.
Bang!
“Captain! This is bad, it’s really bad!”
A Baraklava member slammed the door open and rushed in.
“You’re breaking the door! We’re already short on repair materials.”
“Oh, sorry. I’ll take responsibility and fix it... no! This is not the time for that!”
“What’s going on?”
“The White guys have invaded with an army!”
“...What?”
A chill ran down the captain’s spine.
Her head felt hot.
This couldn’t be true.
There’s no way those self-righteous, pretentious White guys could act this quickly.
They take years to mobilize their armies!
The captain scanned the surroundings.
If the invasion from the White side was real, there was no time to waste.
“Kid. You wanted to take the test, right?”
“...Huh?”
“Go straight to the old lady.”
“To Grandma?”
“Yeah. She’ll let you take the test you want.”
“Wait... what’s going on...?”
“No time! Do you want to get out of here? Then move quickly!”
With those words, the captain nodded and began running toward the upper floors with her subordinates.
Towards the connection between the underground city and the surface.
How long had they been running?
“Is everyone here?”
“Of course, Captain.”
“So, the White guys invaded, huh?”
“Those fools don’t even know their place, coming here. We’ll show these peace-rotted pigs a reality check.”
The Baraklava members, some of whom had lived for decades, gathered.
“Ah, right. Sending an army here without knowing their place.”
They arrived at a place where a passage to the surface was visible.
Explosives were set off at the entrance as the Elf vanguard advanced.
“Are you Baraklava?”
A lavishly dressed elf at the forefront asked in a domineering manner.
“Surrender immediately. You’re under arrest for terrorizing the Senate and kidnapping a young sprout.”
“Sorry, but... no, actually, I’m not sorry at all. This place is the domain of us Dark Elves. According to the treaty of Apaturhete signed after the Civil War, no Elf is allowed to set foot here.”
“Enough nonsense. This is an operation by the Elf Senate’s capital defense forces. The treaty with the Dark Elves is nullified.”
“This won’t do. We’ll have to teach you your place.”
As the atmosphere grew tense, both sides began drawing their weapons.
“Fight. Wipe them all out!”
“Let’s go! Show those White pigs what kind of place this is!”
***
Creak, creak.
A single High Elf, wearing a splendid set of armor, walked through the ranks of the army with half-closed eyes.
Several officers followed behind her.
“So, you’re saying we still can’t enter the interior?”
“We apologize, Dictator. The resistance from them is too fierce. Among them, there’s even a Sword Master. The capital defense army’s commander faced the Sword Master, but was decapitated in a single blow...”
“Hm...”
Another official, who had collapsed due to some unknown cause, passed on the emergency authority as the only acting Dictator, and Arcilla Atrie let out a low hum.
“You mean we can’t break through, even with our Sword Masters?”
“Well... that’s the rumor, yes. The commander of our army, the most powerful of us, died in one strike, and now the other commanders have all taken sick leave...”
“Ha.”
A Sword Master is a powerful force, one that few can fight, even in numbers.
At the very least, only another Sword Master of equal level could challenge them.
Given the nature of the battlefield, where mages and spirit masters cannot perform, other Sword Masters should have been able to suppress the enemy...
But they ran away when they were most needed.
“Useless, lazy, and cowardly pigs.”
They’ve always boasted of being Sword Masters, yet they don’t step up in a dangerous battlefield?
This is how I was able to get this far.
Well, no choice.
I wanted to keep my abilities hidden, but...
“Then I’ll step in.”
“...What? Did I hear that right?”
Arcilla received her personal sword from her attendant and drew it.
“I’ll step in.”
There was no choice but to reveal and use it.
“However, no one should be allowed in. Understood?”
***
Entrance to the Underground City
“Ugh, they just keep coming.”
“Are you all still alive?”
“I think I’m done for, Captain...”
“From the way you’re answering, seems like you’re still in one piece.”
They were talking idly, trying to shake off the fatigue from battle when—
Boom!
Someone broke through the barricades and landed right in the middle of their defense line.
“Who’s there!?”
One person?
Did they realize they couldn’t push through with numbers and send the Master instead?
The Baraklava group raised their vigilance sharply.
“It’s been a while.”
The mysterious intruder took off her helmet.
“...You.”
The captain’s face twisted as she recognized her.
“A traitor. What makes you think you can crawl in here? You’ve painted yourself white.”
Arcilla simply smiled with half-closed eyes.
“Sorry about that. I was planning to contact you right away, but there were some issues above.”
Her previously white face had now darkened, blending with the dark skin of the Baraklava group.
“Ha. I’m not falling for your sweet lies anymore. I know exactly what you’ve done—first, you didn’t follow the promises you made to us, and after taking control of the Senate, you started the war to wipe this place out.”
“Hm... really?”
Arcilla looked around.
“The intelligence that found out I betrayed you didn’t seem to anticipate my movements at all, did it?”
“....”
“You probably didn’t think I could move my army so quickly, did you? Always move unpredictably. I haven’t forgotten.”
“You...”
“The captain, who told me that, didn’t just sit around doing nothing, waiting underground. You can tell by the state of the weapons and defenses now. You’ve violated the captain’s principles: ‘If you’re going to do something, do it without leaving any openings, and if you’re not sure, don’t gamble.’ ...Wait a second.”
The captain’s expression stiffened slightly.
“Ah... I see. A Shadow Elf.”
Crash!
The captain swiftly rushed forward and swung her sword, but Arcilla’s blade easily blocked it.
“...Tch!”
“Have you already forgotten, Captain? You told me, ‘If you’re not sure, don’t gamble.’ You said that to me.”
The captain’s sword was sharp, but it couldn’t break through Arcilla’s defense.
“When you were teaching me, you told me that half-breeds, born from different bloodlines, are more superior and stronger than pure-bloods.”
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Arcilla’s sword strike grew in size.
“Trivial High Elves, far inferior to Dark Elves.”
Crash!
Arcilla pushed forward with her sword, and the captain leaped back, retreating.
“Scum like you can’t defeat me.”
“...Tch.”
At the captain’s signal, all the Baraklava members formed a line and charged toward Arcilla.
“Scum like you are nothing but my prey.”
Crack!
***
“I don’t understand what you’re saying, Grandma!”
“So, before it was revealed that Shadow Elves were actually male, there was a child whom we mistook for a Shadow Elf. That child’s name was Arcilla. She was the illegitimate child of the pure-blooded High Elf Atrie family, a hybrid of High Elf and Dark Elf.”
“Are you saying that child was my executioner?”
“She’s at the top of the Senate now, but yes.”
“...No way. I thought the story about Arcilla Atrie being a Dark Elf hybrid or of lowly origin was just a tale created by her political enemies to attack her. Is it really true?”
“Anyone who knew the truth about her probably died under mysterious circumstances, likely at Arcilla’s hand. She’s from here, so she’s thorough about cleaning up her own messes.”
“No, I don’t get it. You said we were kidnapped to collaborate with Arcilla to improve the treatment of Dark Elves. Arcilla returned to the Atrie family with Baraklava’s help and even succeeded in taking control. So why is Arcilla trying to kill us now?”
“That’s... damn it! She’s here! Quickly, get inside!”
The Dark Elf old woman shoved the two Elf children into a hole in the wall.
“Stay quiet inside. If she sees you, she’ll kill you. Understand? Stay silent.”
The old woman hurriedly sealed the hole with magic and turned around.
Boom!
With a loud crash, the wall collapsed.
“Ah! Grandma! Long time no see!”
Arcilla, with her jet-black skin, smiled brightly and waved her hand.
“Good to see you, you damn traitor.”
The old woman straightened her staff, which she carried around with her.
“I came to find a Shadow Elf... and I won’t speak sweetly about it.”
“Our conversations are much easier this way, aren’t they?”
Thud
The old woman slammed her staff into the ground, creating a heavy vibration.
“Did everyone forget my personality?”
Arcilla, who had been twirling her sword, grinned.
“Earlier, those idiots tried to challenge me, but they were nothing.”
Boom!
In the next moment, her sword was stopped right in front of the old woman’s face.
“...Grandma, you’re still the same, huh?”
A hardened barrier blocked the old woman’s path.
Arcilla’s sword was embedded in it.
Being old means surviving.
Surviving means being strong.
Hum, hum, hum
The old woman’s magic surged, and dozens of magical circles appeared behind her.
“Ugh, I really don’t have time for this!”
Electricity, fire, ice, wind, water—
Dozens of elemental streams shot toward Arcilla.
Boom, boom, boom!