Fina's Imelo clan business spans the entire northeast and even reaches the central imperial capital, so her daily workload is no lighter than mine—and she has to travel constantly to oversee operations. If not for the need to regularly feed the Virgin Gu inside her, we might see each other once a year at most. Fina stayed in my mansion for a few days, then left Febenli City with her retainers and guards after arranging to meet again at the Harvest Festival.
That same day, the Perverted Old Man delivered every item I'd requested. The Empire's top black-market dealer lived up to his reputation—four days' deadline, completed in three. That premium titanium collar was worth every coin.
*(Fresh Emerald Jade, Water God's Ring, Wind Earrings, Golden Pearl, Premium Steel—all acquired!)*
*(Titanium collar—30,000 gold paid!)*
I summoned Alice to my office and dumped all administrative duties on her.
"Alice, starting today I'll be locked in the lab for about three days. You're in charge of Febenli 's affairs."
Alice brushed a strand of soft golden hair from her face, her beautiful features tinged with reproach.
"Young Master, you're the most irresponsible lord I've ever met. How can you abandon work for a woman? And with abnormal movements among the three northern races, you should be personally overseeing things at a time like this."
"My dear Miss Alice, from the day you met Sorola, when have I ever been responsible? If I truly acted responsibly, I'd already have a house full of wives and concubines. As for the three races—don't worry. I've made arrangements. I'll bet my cock they won't cross the border."
She gave a helpless smile and shook her head. She knew I wasn't careless when it mattered. In life-or-death moments, I was always the calmest—and the first to charge. But she also knew I never shared military decisions with her.
"When will you finally drop your glib tongue and womanizing habits, Young Master? One day a woman will stab you in the back."
"Hahaha! 'A man who isn't lewd in his youth wastes his life.' Getting stabbed by a woman is my lifelong dream. Way better than dying on some battlefield wrapped in horsehide. I see nothing wrong with it."
Alice's cheeks flushed; she looked like she wanted to laugh but held it in. The expression was adorable.
"If you want to laugh, laugh. You're too uptight."
She shook her head again with a wry smile, knowing she'd never win an argument against me. When it comes to talking, I'm unbeatable.
With everything arranged, I descended into the underground lab to devote myself to that stunning holy elf warrior.
When I finally emerged three days later, the setting sun's glare stung my eyes after days in darkness.
Three sleepless days and nights spent using medicine and alchemy to treat the female elf. Exhausting, but successful. Now only two things remained: let her wake naturally, and crawl into bed for a one- or two-day coma.
In my bedroom, I slept like the dead for a full twenty hours.
I was still rolling around in bed when a knock sounded at the door.
"Who is it… come in!"
The door opened to reveal Alice—Alice, who never entered my bedroom. Curiosity piqued; even if the sun rose in the west, she wouldn't break that habit. What could have happened?
Alice looked urgent. She sat on the chair beside my bed without hesitation and began reporting. Two major events had occurred while I was in the lab.
"Sorry to disturb your rest, Young Master, but two days ago a mine collapsed. Four workers died, eleven injured. That's not the main issue, though—in the rubble we found strange metals and carvings. I thought it necessary to report to you."
"Carvings?"
"Yes. They appear to be ancient script, but unreadable. Likely ruins. I've handled it secretly—only a few know, and I've posted guards to seal the site."
A sudden flash of unfamiliar yet familiar images crossed my mind—a stunning face among them, stirring intense desire, almost urging me to rush and investigate. But the vision vanished as quickly as it came. Under Alice's curious gaze, I shook my head to clear it.
"Well done. We can deal with that later. Is the second matter the dark elves and orcs jointly attacking the holy elves?"
Alice's eyes widened in shock at my apparent foresight.
"H-how did you…? Yes. Yesterday we confirmed a combined army advancing on the holy elves. They're camped about 150 miles outside Silverleaf Forest. Estimates say they'll reach the forest in five days and head straight for the holy elves' sacred ground—Gaia Ridge. Reports claim over 400,000 troops. This looks like a war of extermination."
I wasn't surprised. From the moment I saved that female elf, I knew the dark elves were behind it. Alice stared at me seriously while I stretched lazily and patted the soft bed beside me, inviting her to sit closer.
Her face changed dramatically. Only then did I casually add, "What, are there mosquitoes on the bed too? Never mind. Have we reported to the capital?"
"Yes, but it'll take at least two days for a reply. The holy elves have been allied with the Empire for fourteen years. If we do nothing, the imperial family might blame us later."
"They won't. They've got 400,000 troops—we have 30,000 garrison. Does the court expect me to rout 400,000 with 30,000? But thanks for sending the report first. Gives me the perfect excuse to 'travel' to holy elf territory."
Alice's big round eyes grew even wider. "Travel? Now?"
"Not yet. I'll wait until she wakes up."
"She…? Young Master, you don't mean…"
A sudden explosion rocked the mansion. Alice and I exchanged glances. She'd woken faster than expected.
By the time we rushed to the inner garden's secret chamber entrance, flames flickered and over a dozen maids lay injured on the ground.
My entire household staff is female, and every maid I hire has formal martial training. Yet they'd all been subdued. The elf was clearly formidable. On the other hand, holy elves usually love peace—this one struck hard against humans. She was furious.
I'd anticipated her reaction. She used the maids as bait to draw out the master of the house. Though she held back from killing them, I was still irritated.
A cold snort sounded behind us. We spun around just as a chilling deep-blue mist surged toward our faces. Alice reacted fastest—she yanked my arm back while chanting. A massive fireball, big enough to hug four people, erupted from her pale hand and hurled into the darkness.
Basic fire magic—Fireball.
I thought it would land, but when the house-leveling fireball met the freezing mist, it instantly froze into an ice sphere, shattered on the ground into frost.
Fireball is the strongest basic attack spell. What we faced was at least intermediate water magic.
The ground around us iced over, temperature plummeting. If that blue fog swallowed us, we'd become a handsome pair of eternal ice statues.
Then the true terror revealed itself.
From the mist that could freeze flames, a shadow burst forth, splitting into five indistinguishable afterimages. Combined with the deadly frost, they aimed to kill. Alice paled, her eyes accepting death.
Hard to blame her—I was surprised too.
I'd thought only muscle-brained high orcs could move fast enough for afterimage techniques. Yet here was a supposedly weaker female elf pulling it off. Unbelievable.
Who the hell is this elf?
Normally, I wouldn't last three moves against her. But right now? I felt no fear.
"Had enough fun yet?"
I waved my hand. The five images merged back into one beautiful figure. She cried out and collapsed, unable to stand. With her pressure gone, I scooped Alice up and retreated until the mist dissipated from loss of magic.
Beautiful Alice struggled briefly in my arms, then quietly let me hold her. If not for saving her life, I'd probably have a palm print on my cheek by now.
"How… she was crippled, wasn't she?"
"If you want the answer, pay with a kiss."
*Slap!*
My cheek didn't escape its fate after all.
After extinguishing the small blaze, sending Alice away, and arranging medical care for the injured maids, I entered a guest room in the inner garden to quietly observe the fearsome female assassin now lying peacefully.
In the middle of the night, I calmly woke her.
"You… it hurts… ah… it was you… you did this to my body… damn you… huh?"
Upon waking, she immediately realized I was admiring her stripped naked form. Shocked, she yanked the blanket to cover herself. Rash, but her voice was sweet and pleasant.
"Who the hell are you? Why did you… to my body…"
"I saved your life. You repay me by setting fires and hurting people. Do I owe you answers?"
"You saved me?"
"Don't you remember that night? You were ambushed by dark elf masters, nearly died?"
"Ah!" Memory flooded back. She pulled aside the blanket to examine her arm, confusion written on her face.
"This golden arm guard on your left arm is the famed water artifact—Water God's Ring. You remember now? Your left arm was severed. Without this fused to the stump, did you think you could still use it?"
The elf looked skeptical—understandable. I might be the continent's most brilliant and low-key alchemist. This level of alchemy likely doesn't exist among elves; they may not have even heard of it.
"Why be shy? I've seen every inch of you while saving you. Come with me."
A little teasing and her cheeks flushed red, the earlier killing intent gone. I pulled her up and led her naked body to a full-length mirror.
"Want proof? Look at your right eye."
At my commanding tone—she clearly wasn't used to it—she brushed aside the silver hair covering her right eye, revealing an emerald-green pupil as captivating as jade. Shock made her forget her nudity; she stared speechless at the stranger in the mirror.
"Your left pupil is crystal-clear lake blue—and your right originally matched. But it was pierced. I used forbidden ancient alchemy to fuse Fresh Emerald Jade into your new pupil."
Incredible as it sounded, the mismatched yet equally stunning blue and green eyes proved my words true.
"Your eardrums were ruptured too. The golden earrings on your pointed ears are Wind Earrings restoring your hearing. And that tiny golden pearl in your navel? No ordinary jewelry—it's a priceless light-element treasure. Without it healing your shattered organs, you'd have suffered lifelong internal damage even if you survived."
The elf grew more stunned with every word. What she thought lewd piercings were actually priceless treasures. Holy elves live simply; even their tribal relics pale compared to what now adorned her body.
As she stared at her reflection, I admired my masterpiece with pride.
She was already breathtaking, but never knew how to enhance it—her beauty had felt a bit plain. Now her elegant body bore a golden arm guard, thin golden earrings framing her long elven ears, and a delicate golden pearl in her navel—all elevating her allure dramatically.
Her heterochromatic blue-green eyes were the finishing touch, giving her an unforgettable, mesmerizing impact.
And then there were the five golden rings I'd pierced through her pink nipples and most intimate places—multiplying her raw sex appeal a hundredfold.
Blushing deeply, the elf covered her nipples with her hands.
"Um… what are these rings for?"
"Oh? Ahem… those are my invention—Thunder Rings. Crafted from premium steel etched with lightning runes. A simple chant from me and they'll shock you unconscious. Backup protection for myself. And clearly the right call—without them you'd have torn me in half by now. I'd be cursing my good heart for saving you even in death."
"Ah! Right… I'm so sorry. I was incredibly rude earlier. Please forgive me, sir!"
"Hm. What's your name?"
"I am the saintess of the holy elf clan. My name is Jenna."