The Siris Forest, located in the lowlands of the southern part of the Saparion Plateau, was already settled by elves long before humans were still in tribal civilization.
The vast swamp area is infested with poisonous insects and is too humid, making it uninhabitable for humans with low magic power. However, the elves have been able to seek a balance with nature through various means, and have lived here quietly and peacefully for generations.
Harmony and tranquility are the eternal pursuit of the elves.
Human beings who have had contact with them always comment on elves as "old-fashioned and inflexible, lacking in emotional fluctuations, numb and cold".
This is a typical irreversible cognitive bias between short-lived and long-lived races.
If the elves were to answer such words, they would probably use a clever metaphor to respond to these distant relatives by saying, "A fire that burns too brightly burns out quickly."
Yes, distant relatives.
Although many humans believe that elves who can live for a thousand years belong to a species such as lower gods, and are hugely different from humans. In stupid tribal times, elves were even worshiped as primitive gods. But in fact, the five major races in the entire Rigal world, including orcs, dwarves and dwarfs, all have the same origin.
The elves with a longer history have a lot of knowledge in this regard, about how the several major races that are now spreading on the continent have developed and evolved so completely different, but tracing back to their roots, they all have the same ancestor.
They have similar body proportions and similar body structures. Compared to humans, the Church of the Unification of God denies all other races as barbarians and swears that humans are perfect objects made by God in his own image. Elves that evolved from the same ancestor will be regarded as heretics. The formal doctrines are obviously as incompatible with human society as they themselves are.
They have a lot in common. But this does not mean that they can intermarry with each other.
It is impossible for elves and humans to have offspring.
There is no such creature as a half-elf in this world.
Reproductive estrangement coupled with various asymmetries in ideas, concepts, and knowledge, the difference between the elves as a race and humans is as sharp as the elite-educated human aristocrats and the lowly, poor, and dirty slaves and paupers.
So when these two races collide for some reason, the conflict will often be as dense and irresolvable as this century-old fog.
"" Horno stood at the entrance of the village, looking at the ground in silence.
"Are you here again?" A arrogant voice that conforms to human stereotypes sounded next to her. That was her mother. She was over six hundred years old, but she still looked like a girl.
The elves in the southern country are not very tall, and Horno can be considered petite and exquisite among them.
"I really don't know how that human got over the fog and cognitive barriers to get here. If you reject him, this kind of thing will never lead to results. Oni, I believe you understand this very well." Mother said on the station He said this while looking down at her from the right side.
"You are carrying something more important. People who inherit the name of Vansalita are not allowed to associate with the same race. You were born for a greater mission."
"Yes, mother, I understand." She lowered her long eyelashes and spoke in a low voice.
"" The mother's expression softened. This is her daughter after all. As the leader of the tribe, she must have strict requirements for her, but her mother's instinct prevents her from being really cruel.
"Let's make it clear to that human being. I'm taking you out for training so that you can experience the vicissitudes of this world."
"There is more than culture between you, my son."
"Okay." She lowered her head, picked up the dried sunflowers on the ground, and threw them aside.
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Humans call this plateau Palohya.
It belongs to a country called Padrosi.
Several port cities where I lived briefly during my travels also had the prefix "Pa".
In human language, "Pa" seems to mean "big" and "great", so they use this word to describe everything that they believe is magnificent and actually exists, and things that only exist in fantasy. .
The elves don't understand what kind of concept the future is.
In the same way, they don’t understand what organizations and countries are.
The elves do not have a country. They do have a racial identity, but that is where it ends. The largest elf village has only three hundred people. They are all relatives and friends, and living together is based on mutual acquaintance.
Just like how humans divide an area into an illusory "country" concept, so that millions or tens of millions of strangers can live together and cooperate with each other, even for most elves It is even more amazing than human beings' ability to reproduce and develop.
So when Horno followed her mother to Parnilla for the first time, she was shocked that there were so many humans here.
People cast curious glances at her, and all kinds of humans kept looking at her as they passed by, but she held her mother's hand tightly and refused to let go.
The crowd of onlookers grew larger and larger, until it was so crowded that Horno began to feel a little frightened.
Then the guards of the city lord's palace appeared, wearing metal armor covered with leather, holding square shields and spears, and drove away these people.
"This is a distinguished guest, you are not allowed to come near!"
Horno understood the words they spoke, and she had the language at her fingertips that was difficult for humans to learn, not only because the elves' long lifespan gave her a lot of time to learn, but also because of her.
Excellent talent.
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"Haha, I heard that elves are very powerful in magic, but this is just a little girl's movie."
Arrogant, arrogant, and lacking in etiquette.
And it's very noisy.
Horno picked out the first impression of this young human with black curly hair from human words.
She was surprised that the man's not-so-huge body could actually produce a voice as loud as a giant's, and she was also surprised by his overestimation of his own abilities.
"I am Pavni. That's right. Just like what the name says, I will one day become a great magician!" He laughed and waved his wand to challenge Horno.
Then by her.
The weakest wind magic released with the tap of a finger.
He was beaten unconscious.
The expression of the human they called the city lord became even more - in human terms - humble. No, maybe the more correct usage is to flatter?
He drove the young man out, and he seemed to hold some important position, thus serving as a standard for these humans to measure elven magic.
Next, the city lord began to talk endlessly about employment and treatment. Although Horno stood there with a blank expression as if he was listening, he was always thinking about the noisy and arrogant young man who was kicked out.
"Pa"
"What does great mean?"
Rare land.
She became interested.
"Don't get too close to humans. The gap between us is not just culture. We are just using them to get what we need." Her mother noticed this and warned her in time.
“Those who gaze into the abyss must remember that the abyss gazes into you as well.”
"Those who fight with dragons will one day transform into dragons themselves."
This is what his mother said. Horno understands its meaning, but he also knows that it is a proverb from the human world.
"If you get too close, you will become them one day."
She asked: "Isn't it bad to become a human?"
Her mother didn't answer her, she just looked into the distance without saying a word for a long time.
She thought of her father, whom she had never met.
Speaking of which, who is the father?
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"Poof -" An unbearable scream sounded in the courtyard in the afternoon, and the pale-faced young man fell to the ground, his limbs twitching.
This was a sign that her magic power was exhausted. Horno frowned her eyebrows in a rare way. Even though it was just a slight arc, it was already a rare expression for her.
"Ha--" Pavni noticed, and even though he was in a state of embarrassment, he still chuckled: "You are surprised! Do you admire my growth?"
He said this with a yell, and Horno's eyebrows relaxed and he responded: "No, I was just surprised."
Horno turned around and prepared to walk towards the back room: "How stupid you are."
"Tch." Pavni got up again.
"What else do you want to do?" Horno turned around.
"Of course, let's play another game. Come on, let me, the great magician, the best elementalist in the world, Master Pavni, break through the defensive magic that your elves are proud of!" He was sweating profusely! , but the voice was as loud as a roaring beast in the forest.
Unfortunately, the power of magic does not increase by shouting louder.
"Dong——"
The pale-faced Pavni fell to the ground on his back again. Fortunately, the ground here was soft lawn and soil, otherwise he would have turned into a big-headed magician in another sense.
"Send away." Horno said briefly to the guards of the mansion.
Two big men carried him out silently.
But before carrying it away, the elf suddenly thought of something. She turned her head, rarely showing her curiosity, and asked Pavni.
"Why are you working so hard?" she asked.
And Pavni seemed to have regained his energy in an instant, and continued to shout with a loud voice: "Of course! Become the greatest magician in the world!"
"Cough, cough, cough, cough, cough -" He curled up and coughed. Horno understood that this was the sequelae of overuse of magic power. Because the mana pool is located near the heart, overuse will not only affect the heart and cause shock. , severe cases can even lead to cardiac arrest and death, and even the best case scenario can affect the lungs and cause coughing.
""For some reason, Horno silently stretched out his hand and healed his injury.
Pavni's face turned rosy, and he stared blankly at the elf's face, speechless for a long time.
"Don't come again." She turned around. "It's a lie."
Pavni called from behind.
"No, it can't be said to be a lie." He rarely made a fuss. Horno turned around for the second time, and the young man said in a slightly shy voice: "Becoming a great magician is indeed My ideal, but that’s why I’m always like this.”
"I want to see your surprised expression."
""
"That day, when we met, you looked wide-eyed."
"Exceptionally cute."
"Boring." Horno turned around and walked towards the house.
"Ah - you are so sincere to me -" and Pavni's voice gradually faded away behind her.
She stood at the door of the house. The back room, which blocked the sunlight behind her, seemed a little dark. But Horno stood here like this, his expression unchanged, but he stretched out his hand to hold down his beating heart. .
"" She raised her face. Her mother standing on the stairs had obviously witnessed all this, and her expression was a little gloomy.
Horno lowered his head.
"I see."
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"Are you dissatisfied with the treatment? If you have any requests, just ask them. I will satisfy you!"
Impatience, greed. Horno judged this from the shouts and actions of the city lord.
"Don't leave, please, stay!" He kept pleading, but his mother's decision could not be changed by anyone's will.
Including Horno.
"Damn trash elf! Eat my food, wear my clothes, and leave without leaving anything behind! Damn trash, all you want to do is put on that arrogant face all day long, as if everyone owes you!!"
After they closed the door, the city lord shouted these insults in human dialect.
He thought they didn't understand. The mother looked at Horno, and the meaning in her eyes was obviously: "You see, this is how humans are."
"Yes, I understand everything." Horno lowered his head.
'But he's different' was not uttered.
The carriage was coming, and after riding it to the vicinity of the forest, they would switch to walking. The closer the Siris Forest is to the elven territory, the more magic there is with various visual impairments. Except for the elves who are also proficient in magic, ordinary humans will only be affected by it and circle around in circles.
"Horno!!"
Pavni appeared, panting. He had obviously just learned the news and came in a hurry.
"I'll come find you!"
"Most definitely!"
"This is our agreement!"
he shouted loudly, and mother closed the carriage curtain.
"Don't overestimate your own capabilities," she said.
"Remember what I said, Oni, you are carrying a greater mission."
"Yes, I understand everything."
she said.
"Mother."
Hidden in the luggage is a fresh sunflower.
Pavni carries it with her every time she appears.
Horno didn't understand its meaning, nor what it meant in human society. She just liked its taste and golden appearance.
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Time passes quickly.
The elves' concept of life is very different from that of humans. They just finished studying the books they should learn, and when they came back to their senses, twelve years had passed.
After all, he failed to fulfill his agreement.
This is not his fault. After all, humans only have so much magical talent. It is natural that he cannot break through the fog.
He also has responsibilities and missions that he should bear. The person who bears the name of Vansalita is the sleepless monitor of the magic lifeline in the world. Use ancient magic that only those with outstanding talents can be selected, and even ordinary elves are not allowed to touch it.
Vansalita.
He is the observer of the world, the one who monitors the destiny of the world.
This is an eternal mission.
It was Grandma Horno’s mission.
It was her mother's mission.
It will also be her mission.
"Intruder?"
"How can it be?"
"What did he do, steal?"
"No, I left something behind instead."
"what?"
"A sunflower."
"Pa-" Horno closed the book in his hand and stood up instantly.
"I hope you reject him." Her mother stood at the door and stopped her.
"I" she hesitated, unable to speak.
"You are grounded. Finish what you should do." The mother left these words and walked out.
"Pa-ta-" Horno sat back on the chair. She felt a little tight in her chest, but she didn't understand why.
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"Are you here again today?"
"yes."
"Every day, withered sunflowers are almost piled up in piles, so human beings are really for their own selfish desires——"
"Shh, she's coming."
"" Her kindred spirits in the village began to discuss her matter. For the emotionally indifferent elves, xenophobia was a rare emotion that they would express strongly.
"Go tell him clearly."
My mother finally couldn't bear it anymore.
She said this, and with her mother's permission, Horno finally left his village.
She followed the path paved with sunflowers and walked, walked, and walked until it finally turned into a small run, thinking about the place that gave off the familiar magic wave.
She ran through the forest and bushes, scaring the little rabbits, and finally came to him after turning around a towering tree.
"Uh-" The bearded Pavni was using fire magic to light a bonfire. He stared at her blankly, and she stared back blankly.
"You become better and older." Horno hesitated and said this sentence.
"You haven't changed at all." He also spoke, not as loud as he was twelve years ago.
At that time, the glamorous young man was nowhere to be seen. His skin had turned bronze and there were horrific scars on many parts of his body. Just imagining what might happen, Horno felt chills running down his spine.
But this only lasted a few seconds.
"Actually, it's all the fault of the beard. Even after shaving the beard, it's still the same as before, hahaha." When Pavni started to argue with a loud voice again, she felt that everything about her had calmed down.
The restless emotions and distracted attention were all soothed at this moment.
If you were by this person's side, it would seem that nothing would go wrong.
'Go and say no to him, go and make everything clear'
Mother's words echoed in my mind.
"I -" "I said it." Pavni interrupted her.
"Rebellion is such a thing, you know?"
"What is that?" Horno shook his head.
"It's an emotion that humans will have when they are young. They have to do the opposite of what others say in everything, but they just don't follow what others say."
"What's the point?"
"It makes no sense. Many people do a lot of stupid things because of their rebellion. In the end, they still have to do what others say, hahahahaha." He laughed, while she frowned.
"That's what I wanted to say."
"Do you want to be rebellious?" Pavni lowered his voice and spoke to her word by word.
"Don't you want to take a look?"
"Is it really happy to always stay in a place like this and always listen to other people's words?"
"It's what you should do. There is no happiness or unhappiness."
"That means being unhappy."
"You are being unreasonable."
"Listen to me, I have been to many places in the past twelve years."
"I rode the wind and waves to the icy open sea, raced horses with nomads on the Abu Serra prairie, and took a sauna with the swordsmen in the extremely cold Suomir."
"Don't you want to take a look, what kind of scenery there is outside the Bao Forest, outside this small place on the east coast."
"With me" he said.
"Together."
""
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The rebellious elf disappeared from the vicinity of his village.
He did not break his promise, just as he had kept the agreement at the beginning, and the two of them traveled throughout the world of Rigar.
She saw what was beyond the place where she lived, and how vast the world was. At the same time, I also saw a lot of human beings, both good and bad.
Surprisingly, there are an unexpectedly large number of people of the same race traveling or even living in the human world, and there are also many other alien races settling here.
Even some of the extremely aggressive orcs coexist peacefully with humans.
This vastness they call “inclusiveness.”
This is a word that does not exist in the elves' dictionary.
The first time she learned to laugh was at a campfire in the savannah of Abu Sera.
That day he wore a sunflower ornament for her.
The first time she became angry was when she encountered the bullying Holy See army in Thoradin, who was at war just because her friend's skin was dark brown.
Horno's expression became softer and softer as he traveled along the way.
But when she woke up one night, she remembered her mother's words.
“Those who gaze into the abyss must remember that the abyss gazes into you as well.”
"Those who fight with dragons will one day transform into dragons themselves."
An uneasy premonition began to linger in my mind.
"My magic power is weakening?" Her fingers were trembling.
"It's okay, just like this, become an ordinary person, become a human being"
That night, Horno learned to fear.
"It's a little late, but I want to say it."
"Please walk with me from now on."
The friends were laughing and shouting, which seemed to be words of unknown meaning, but Horno could feel the sincere blessing from them.
"I do." She said shyly, her heart pounding just like it did that day.
This is the taste of happiness. This is not the first time she has tasted it, but she has already tasted it.
Then.
When the retribution for meddling comes.
The petals of the sunflower were stained with blood, and she understood.
What a grief-stricken person.
"The lifespan of elves is different from that of humans, and so is their vitality."
"You're not supposed to be in contact with them, and you're not supposed to understand their emotions."
"Because if your heart becomes a human being, then because of your long lifespan, the loneliness and pain you will experience will be many times that of a human being."
Her mother was aloof and said to her coldly.
"But I also understood the meaning of life." Horno stood up straight, covering his abdomen and looking straight back.
"You!" Mother understood what she meant and her eyes widened.
"Absurd! You have violated a taboo, even my daughter is not allowed."
"Orno Nidora Vansalita, you are expelled."
"So be it." She sighed, her eyes coldly scanning all the people of the same race present. They all acted as if they were keeping their distance, and there was not even one person who could speak for her. "You claim to be noble, but you are just as ridiculous as human nobles." Horno said softly, walking towards the perimeter.
"Stupid daughter, why do you want to do this?" Behind her, her mother said in a very small voice.
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The gestation period of an elf is measured in centuries.
Inexperienced, she had to seek help from humans.
This is the last memory.
The last memory.
"do you died."
But when she was lying on the delivery bed, sweating profusely and looking pale, she turned her head to look at the doctor, but what she saw was a tragic ending that had been destined for a long time.
The elf didn't know hope originally, but he taught her hope.
And because of this, despair was born.
Born with love.
"I do not accept."
When the whole world denied her all happiness.
Horno.
Denied the world.
"Rewriting the technique."
"If it is because the racial magic power is not strong enough, then use the magic power of the earth to make up for it."
"If the blood is not powerful enough, then use my blood instead."
The relevant knowledge brought by the responsibilities she shouldered was used crazily in this aspect. Her natural talent and intelligence were among the top magical attainments even among the elves. In the spiral entanglement of love and despair, she rose to the top and broke through. boundaries.
She violated a real taboo.
"Wow -" The young newborn life let out its first cry in the magic circle made of flesh and blood.
This "life" filled with the aura of death is just like the short pointed ears of the child, full of chilling meaning.
"Look, this is our child." Horno said with a soft smile, holding a young girl with black hair like his father in his arms, standing in front of the grave with swaying sunflowers.
The wind blew up her clothes.
On the other side of the ocean, her mother broke the magic crystal in her hand.
"How is that possible? There obviously haven't been any recently."
"Why, why did the witch come to the world?"
"No, no, this is-"
"Stupid boy!"
"How can a false life supplied by blood and magic power really come back to life?"
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"You all know what happens next." After the long narration, Horno said to everyone in the cave with a chuckle.
"I gave birth to a stillborn fetus. The union of humans and elves cannot be fruitful, and the forbidden magic I used to awaken is definitely not a cute daughter." Although she smiled, her eyes were expressionless. Fluctuating, as if dead.
"She feeds on flesh and soul and is the enemy of all living things. Those who are devoured, and the things that are devoured, will return after that in a form that does not belong to this world."
"The reason why unicorns don't want to get close to me is because my body is filled with the rancid aura of darkness. And the reason why this person follows me as a guard." She pointed at Barrow: "It's because of the superiority of blood. sex."
"Ghouls are the witch's dependents, and so are other undead souls. They obey the witch's bloodline, and naturally they obey the person who gave birth to the witch."
"Isn't it quite ironic?" Horno shrugged like Henry.
There was total silence in the entire cave.
"It was not born out of hatred and hatred, nor is it some clichéd witch who incarnates for revenge."
"But conceived by love."
"A union that shouldn't happen, when love turns into desperate persistence, the response is not light, but abyss."
Henry said in a calm tone.
"Poetry." And Horno smiled again: "Himirning, you are really narcissistic."
"So you know it too." The sage shrugged.
"Yes, the fate of two people who have a close relationship with the witch is such an irony, isn't it." She said, and this time it was Constantine who took up the conversation.
"So, why is the witch chasing you?" he asked.
"What will a newborn do when he discovers that his mother is missing?" Horno tilted his head.
"And her retreat that night was not because she was afraid of your magic, but because she was angry when she saw her mother. In this way, the witch is actually——"
"Shut up." Horno's eyes glowed blue.
"That thing."
"Don't use human emotions to figure out that thing." She crossed her arms, the electric light in her eyes finally calmed down.
"She ate my mother."
"Eating my mother in front of me and then smiling back at me."
"The whole village is dead."
"Those with high magical quality are used as food for growth, while the remaining ones are transformed into ghouls."
"She has no moral definition and does not understand good and evil. She has no emotions, and all she has to say is the instinct of a living creature."
"Although that thing is covered in a humanoid shell, it is definitely humanoid on the inside."
"It will definitely not be the child of me and that person!"
"That is."
"Evil incarnate in human form."
Horno squatted down with his hands folded, while Mira, Mikhail, Henry, Mingna and Constantine looked at each other with solemn expressions.
