Lord of Caldera

Their armor was thin as cloth, adorned with runic inscriptions. They wielded twin swords and wore light but deadly gear.

"Stop them! Don't let them…!" shouted a knight, but he barely finished before blood spurted from his throat as an elf slit it in a flash.

A female elf, likely their leader, scanned her surroundings and shouted in her native tongue.@@novelbin@@

"Se-deban! Lugar van Baha!"

"...?"

Everyone frowned, unable to understand the strange words. They had never heard elvish before, and no one could comprehend what she was saying. Noticing their confusion, the elf clicked her tongue, scanning the area again.

"Kar-Baha!"

"Gah!"

The elf leader's gaze fell on the count, and the realization of being targeted drained the color from the count's face. Knights, sensing the urgency of the situation, quickly sprang into action. As expected, the elves charged toward the count.

"Block them! Don't let them get close!"

"But we're unarmed!"

"Damn it!"

The knights cursed in frustration. While knights carried their weapons everywhere, considering them as essential as life itself, the common soldiers did not. All weapons had been stored away for the feast, leaving only the knights to stand against the elves in a rush.

"You scum! Do you know where you are—ugh!?"

"Be careful! They aren't ordinary—argh!"

But the knights fell almost immediately, struck down by the elves' speed, which was nearly invisible to any who were not well-trained.

"You pointy-eared fiends!" one knight yelled as he swung his sword, taking advantage of a brief opening, his attack seemingly impossible to dodge. Just as he thought he had one, however—

Clang!

"What?!"

His sword ricocheted backward as it met the elf's wrist guard, which shimmered with runic inscriptions. Experience tales at My Virtual Library Empire

"A magic artifact! Damn it—urk!"

Slice.

Before he could even register the shock, the elf's blade traced a deadly arc across his throat. The elves closed in on the count with alarming speed.

"Protect His Excellency!" shouted the knights directly loyal to the Hernig household, stepping in to halt the elves. As one elf struck, a knight's wrist guard blocked the attack, sending the elf's blade flying backward. The same runic glow was visible on the knight's armor.

"Hmph, we're not the only ones with magic artifacts!" the knight declared triumphantly.

The elf's eyes burned with rage as she glared at the knight. She was visibly furious, far more than just from having her attack blocked.

"Good! Let's counterattack now and—wait, what?" Before the knights could advance, the elves whistled in unison. The odd action made everyone pause.

"What in the world are they doing in the middle of a battle?"

Their confusion quickly turned to horror as they realized the whistling's effect. The runes on the knights' magic artifacts began to fade. Within seconds, the enchanted equipment became ordinary items.

"These damned elves!" one knight cursed as the elves, now more aggressive than before, tore through their ranks with renewed fury. With the obstacles removed, the elf leader dashed directly toward the count. Panicked, the count reached for his sword, only to feel nothing at his side.

"Damn…!" he muttered, helpless.

Just as the elf's sword arced toward the count, a goblet came hurtling through the air, striking the side of her blade and throwing it off course. The elf staggered, caught off guard, and looked in the direction of the interruption.

"Sorry, but I can't let you do that," said Sylas calmly.

"Baroi!" she spat, her face twisting in anger as she charged at Sylas. But before she could reach him, a massive fist shot out from behind him.

"Hmph!" the elf scoffed, raising her wrist guard to block the punch, planning to deflect and then cut down her opponent.

Boom!

"Gah?!"

The impact launched her backward, hurtling over ten meters before she finally hit the ground and rolled to a stop. Everyone watching gasped. Deflecting swords was one thing, but to be punched like that without even a weapon?

Toby, the one who had thrown the punch, stretched his shoulders with a frown.

"What a bother. I was enjoying the feast," he muttered.

The elf leader struggled to her feet, glaring at Toby with a mixture of fury and pain, clearly hurt even though her artifact had prevented any bones from breaking.

"Devan-ra…!" she began to shout, but before she could finish, another shadow appeared behind Sylas. A figure with fiery red hair shot toward the elves.

"How dare you!" Rey shouted. The elf leader met her gaze and paled in horror, and other elves quickly rushed in to protect their leader, brandishing their swords. But Rey's blade was faster, slicing through the air like lightning.

Clang, clang, clang!

Seven elves were sent flying, including the elf leader, who managed to block Rey's sword only with considerable difficulty. The elves lay scattered, staring at Rey in shock and fear.

"You dare raise your weapons against my lord! You'll pay for this!" Rey shouted.

"Wait! Don't kill them; capture them alive!" Sylas's voice cut through the air. Rey paused, then nodded, adjusting her grip on her sword.

Toby, who had been preparing for another attack, picked up a nearby spear and swung it with ease, stepping beside Rey.

"Dividing the work seems simple this time—twenty of them, ten for each of us," Toby remarked.

"I could take them all myself," Rey replied.

"No, remember, we're capturing, not killing."

Watching the two knights face off against the elves, the count frowned. As impressive as they were, could only two knights really fend off twenty elves? And these weren't ordinary elves—they were equipped with enchanted gear and skilled enough to infiltrate a fortress like his.

"Sir Sylas, do you really need to take the risk to capture them? Why not just let them kill?"

"Risk? What risk?" Sylas responded.

"Well, it's…!" The count was at a loss. Capturing was inherently riskier than killing—wasn't that obvious? It was an endeavor no one would dare unless the skill gap was immense. Sylas smiled at the count's puzzled expression.

"Just watch. What risk could there possibly be?"

The count's eyes followed Sylas's pointing finger, and he froze in shock. Where Sylas had pointed, a storm and fire were sweeping through the elves, completely overpowering them.