Chapter Thirty-Four: Killing Prisoners and Seeking Protection

Within Ironport City, the knight squires followed closely behind Elina, their eyes burning with fury and hatred.

They loathed their poor performance in the initial skirmish and could guess the grim fate awaiting their gravely wounded companions. They swore to let their blades drink the blood of their enemies, to cleanse the stain upon their knightly honor, and to unleash a roar of vengeance for the fallen.

Elina charged at the forefront, spear in hand, storming directly into the fleet base. The sailors stationed there reflexively launched an assault. The Elven princess moved with blinding speed; she swung her long spear horizontally like a whip, shattering the chests of the sailors within reach and sending them flying backward. With her left hand, she conjured crackling lightning, unleashing a sniper-like spell that pulverized a sailor aiming his bow from the watchtower. The sight chilled the murderous sailors, leaving them stunned and speechless.

In this world of sword and sorcery, magic was a mysterious concept that most had only heard of but never witnessed. Learning to cast spells required intellect and a baseline of magical affinity—two requirements that screened out over ninety-nine percent of humanity. The stereotype of a mage was one of power, mystery, danger, and reckless cruelty. The latter often triggered witch hunts in remote villages, where, ironically, the victims were usually ordinary people without any spellcasting ability.

"Kill the mage first!" a first mate shouted. "Kill that mage!"

The sailors, ignoring the young squires trailing behind, pressed forward in numbers, coordinating their movements to swarm her from multiple angles. To them, the Elven princess’s lightning magic appeared as instantaneous as a crossbow bolt; while lethal, it could not be fired in rapid succession. They believed that by surrounding her, they could compress her space for maneuver.

However, Elina’s spear was far more formidable.

She shifted her grip to the end of the shaft, maximizing her reach. At this distance, the sailors’ scimitars would have to close another step or two before they could even strike her—a short distance that spelled the difference between life and death.

Some tried to sever the spearhead, only for Elina to flick her wrist and pierce their throats first. Others attempted to slide along the ground to evade her thrusts, only to be impaled the moment they tried to rise. The combat experience that had left her with such deep hatred—the experience of slaughtering human slaves—had long since honed her into a battle-hardened killing machine. Even the highly skilled Besaria was no match for her in pure, raw combat.

By the time Kalich and his attendants emerged from the ship’s cabin, they found that this "imposter royal," this High Elf temptress, had already slaughtered every sailor on the deck.

Silence hung heavy with the weight of terror.

Realizing that the situation was hopeless, the men chose to drop their weapons and surrender. The knight squires stepped forward in succession, binding their hands. Elina looked at them coldly until her gaze fell upon Kalich’s face.

"Why did you attack Bloodfort?" she asked, her voice icy.

Kalich seemed stumped by the question. Nobles killing one another—what other reason could there be? Profit, obviously. Did she not know that?

Elina remained silent for a moment, having instantly guessed the answer.

Profit, always profit... Even after a thousand years, nobles continued to trample upon morality for the sake of gain, not hesitating to destroy innocent lives.

She suddenly raised her hand, and a bolt of lightning shattered Kalich’s skull into pieces.

"You killed a prisoner!" the bound attendants roared and struggled.

Elina did not speak. She simply turned and, one by one, used her lightning magic to blow their heads apart.

Among the remaining attendants, a High Elf suddenly knelt, shouting, "Merciful Vladisica! Your noble hands are not worth staining with our lowly, sinful blood! I am willing to disclose all of Kalich’s past crimes and misdeeds in exchange for your mercy and forgiveness!"

Elina glanced at him coldly, finally ceasing her slaughter. She pulled a handkerchief from her robes, wiped her slender, pale hands, and said, "Take them to Bloodfort."

***

At Bloodfort, Ren heard of Elina’s actions and grew increasingly annoyed.

*Elina, if you were going to kill my uncle, why not do it during the battle? Taking him prisoner only to execute him—anyone who doesn't know better would think I gave the order to take no survivors!*

*And furthermore,* he thought, *if you were going to wipe them all out, I could have just pretended to know nothing. What is the point of leaving a few alive?*

"Elina handled this poorly," Besaria said, reading his mood and following his line of thought. "Shall I go and clean up the loose ends for her?"

"The battle is over," Ren said, his expression blank. "She no longer holds supreme command. I am appointing you to take over all her duties—including the interrogation of prisoners and the subsequent training and management of the knight squires."

"As you command, my lord." Besaria performed a courtly bow and departed with graceful poise.

In the dungeon beneath Bloodfort, Elina didn't have to do a thing; the High Elf sailor, who called himself Diamond Dracurion, confessed everything.

The Fahl family was able to smuggle goods with the High Elf Kingdom because they had established a connection with the Dracurion family. For generations, this High Elf family had held the position of Royal Secretary—roughly equivalent to a Prime Minister’s secretary in the human empire—and thus had the power to provide certain "conveniences" to the Fahl family.

Of course, just as there was a power struggle between Kalich and Darian within the Fahl family, the Dracurion family had its own internal conflict between the main line and the branches, with both sides vying for the lion’s share of the smuggling profits.

Diamond had originally been a member of the main line, but after a "mistake" at work—which he later highly suspected was a setup—he was nearly exposed. Pursued relentlessly by the branch family, his own kin were forced to sacrifice and exile him. He had spent time as a pirate before fleeing to the mainland to seek refuge with the Fahl family, only to encounter Kalich’s escort fleet along the way.

Just as Marquis Fahl hoped to use Elina’s identity to open another channel within the High Elf Kingdom, Kalich had hoped to use this member of the Dracurion family to carve out his own slice of the smuggling trade. After all, it was smuggling; as long as you could secure the supply chain, the rest was down to skill. If the family could smuggle, why couldn't he? If he could get the goods to the mainland, he could sell them just fine!

And so, Kalich kept Diamond by his side, ostensibly for protection, but in reality, for surveillance. Now that the traitor was dead, Diamond had finally been freed from his shackles. He was willing to defect to Ren, the Lord of Salt Island, and offer up the ocean current maps from the mainland to the Gem Archipelago, as well as the patrol routes and schedules of the High Elf Navy—all of which were locked in his memory.

Elina listened in silence, knowing well that Diamond’s account must contain many falsehoods.

*But what does that have to do with me?*

*I’ve handed him over to Ren. My mission is complete.*