As a villain, I really don't want to be pursued by the heroine.

The elf girl turned around, opened her arms, and smiled brightly.

“Welcome to my hometown.”

Under a cloudless sky, dense woods stretched endlessly. The buildings that came into view were neither as majestic as the castles of the Kingdom nor as holy as the churches of White Harbor. It was like falling into a strange new world.

The colorful mushrooms, the towering tree houses, and the cascading waterfall in the distance reflect a faint rainbow, outlining a dreamy scene.

The giant eagle soars freely among the layers of vegetation. The three-dimensional city is full of handsome men and beautiful women with slender ears, thin limbs and delicate features, which is pleasing to the eye.

Roy had thought that the place where the descendants of elves lived must be an extremely backward village hidden in the deep mountains and forests.

Unexpectedly, the capital of the Emerald Council, Nia's hometown, Emerald City, was no less impressive than any city he had ever visited.

Nia put her hands on her waist and said with great pride: "Well, our hometown is pretty good, isn't it?"

Roy affirmed: "It's really good."

"Look, let's take you somewhere first...!"

"Don't run around. If you want to go shopping, you should go back and tell Lady Janetia first." Natasha ruthlessly broke her fantasy, grabbed her collar from behind and dragged her away.

The Green Council does not have a castle. Instead, its administrative location is the largest tree house in the city, the [World Tree].

Here, tree houses that are a hundred meters wide are not uncommon, but those tree houses seem much smaller compared to them.

Under the tree house, Janetia had already led people waiting here to welcome them into the [World Tree].

The interior of the house is not all dull wooden walls; instead, it is filled with colorful and exotic plants. The flowers and plants sway in the breeze under the sunlight streaming through the window, filling the air with a refreshing fragrance that soothes both the body and mind.

When they arrived at the reception room and were alone with only three of them, Roy removed his [Phantom Mask] and revealed his identity to Jantia.

Gentia scolded Nia, "You actually let the dragon-slaying knight disguise himself as an adventurer... It's a good thing Roy was so good-tempered that he didn't bother with you."

"Hey, hey, hey, it was Roy who brought it up first!" Nia cried out in injustice.

Ignoring her complaints, Janetia looked at Roy and immediately became friendly: "I knew that apart from you, no other adventurer would be willing to accompany this child."

"Roy, thank you for your hard work in coming all the way here. My Emerald Council doesn't care about extravagance and pomp, so please forgive me."

"You're welcome, Lady Janetia." Roy was actually happy and relaxed without having to deal with a grand welcome.

"But, as expected of Roy, he thought of keeping a low profile, which is why he didn't cause any unnecessary trouble on the road." After sighing, Janetia glared at Nia, who was scattering snacks and dried fruits, with a hint of disappointment: "You should be more careful. When can you be even half as meticulous as Roy? Then I won't have to worry about you anymore."

Nia was numb.

If we keep a low profile, we're just messing around, but if he keeps a low profile, he's just being thoughtful and thoughtful. Isn't that such a double standard?! Whose mother are you, anyway?!

Chapter 22: Janetia's Concerns

Nia stopped pretending and immediately put one hand around Roy's neck affectionately. With the other hand, she casually stuffed some dried fruits into her mouth, not forgetting to put some into Roy's mouth as well. She said proudly, "Mom, you don't understand this. Since Roy is so reliable, why should we use our brains? We don't need to be more careful. Snacks are enough for us!"

The corner of Jantia's eye twitched slightly.

I originally wanted to send Nia to the academy for some training, but now it seems like this kid has been completely wasted...

Roy spoke up for Nia at the right moment: "Actually, Nia is also working hard."

Jantia's expression softened: "I know."

"She's always been lazy, but she's managed to reach Sequence 5 in just two years. It seems she's gained something from the academy." While giving her affirmation, Jantia kept staring at Roy. "I have to thank you on Nia's behalf."

Roy felt a little embarrassed.

"I didn't really help much with the advancement to Sequence 5. It all depended on Nia's own hard work."

No reward without merit. Although Roy was polite, he didn't want to deny Nia's own achievements.

In response, Janetia smiled but said nothing.

As a mother, she knows how casual and lazy her daughter is, but she also knows that Nia will only show her true abilities when she follows her heart.

But only this time, Nia, leaning on the boy's shoulder, silently bit the dried fruit, looked away humbly, and did not refute her mother's words.

"By the way, I'm here not only to ensure Nia's safety, but also to help."

Roy's tone became serious: "Lady Jantia, do you remember what I said before?"

"How could I forget? One day, I will help Nia completely settle her grudge against [Withering All Things]." Janetia murmured with some nostalgia, her eyes full of hope. "Back then, I thought you were young and frivolous, which might have been a good thing, but now it seems that you have far exceeded my imagination."

"Sequence 4...above the Transcendent. In your progress on the path of Transcendence, you have surpassed all descendants of elves since this era."

This is not an exaggeration.

Among the major forces in Vizsea, only a few have high-level extraordinary people.

Since the Fourth Era, the most powerful person in the Emerald Council has only been Sequence 5. No one has been able to cross the line of mythical creatures. In other words, before Nia, even the heirs of the golden bloodline [Forest Elves] were quite rare.

The probability of a silver-level bloodline advancing to a higher level is not much higher than that of a gold-level bloodline. For a long time, the entire council did not dare to hope that someone could advance to a higher level and bring about mythical power.

That's why Nia is regarded as hope by the Green Council.

And now, there is even a high-ranking person willing to help.

Even Janetia, who is usually calm, could hardly hide her excitement.

Roy pretended to be silent. "Unlike back then, I am now capable of fulfilling my original promise."

"I heard from the dean that [Death of All Things] has recently become active again. If there is anything I can help with, please feel free to ask."

Firstly, it was for Nia. Sooner or later, he would have to get rid of these wooden people.

The second reason was personal grudge. Roy had not forgotten that the mother goddess of the [Death of All Things] faith specifically wanted to kill him.

I didn't care about it before because I didn't have the ability to do so. Now I am a high-level person after all. How can I continue to sit and wait for my enemies to come to me?

There are many people who want to kill him.

Now that the dragon clan's grudge has been settled and the demon clan has been isolated outside the [Line of Despair], now is the best time to deal with [Death of All Things].

Unlike Nidhogg, the all-powerful commander of thousands of dragons, the power of [Withering of All Things] is relatively limited. The evil god is powerful but has not yet revived. As the saying goes, you have to pick the weakest persimmon to squeeze. Roy also wants to take advantage of this opportunity to resolve the fate-defying node and completely get rid of these disgusting guys.

"That's right, you're welcome. With Roy's help, all the ashes of those vegetative people will be scattered everywhere!" Nia clenched her fists, feeling very proud.

Although the relationship between the two is already close enough, seeing her daughter being so disrespectful to a high-level transcendent still makes Janetia's blood pressure rise again.

After taking a sip of herbal tea and suppressing the urge to spank Nia, Jantia smiled wryly and said, "Roy, I appreciate your kindness."

"But at this stage, it's not the time to go to war with [Death of All Things]."

"Unlike your Lionheart Kingdom, the situation in the Emerald Council is more complicated. How to deal with [Death of All Creation] and how much effort to devote are not decided by me alone. I'm grateful that you're willing to help, but it will take some time to reach a conclusion on this matter. At least, we have to wait until the Council discusses it in a few days."

After hearing what the other party said, Roy realized that the Emerald Council was not a one-man show of Janetia after all.

[Withering of All Things] is not the invading dragon clan, nor is the Emerald Council the Lionheart who is facing the fate of his country. Janetia also lacks the cohesion of the Lionheart royal family that can unite the country.

The parliamentary system certainly has its merits, but when faced with such major events, it seems a bit sluggish.

Strangely enough, the constitutions of the peoples on both sides of the East and West Continents were mostly similar to the medieval dynasties of his previous life. Why did the elves alone manage to establish a parliament?

As mentioned in history class, the original elves formed a vast empire, and the human political system was modeled after the elves. In a sense, the Forest Elves were the equivalent of the royal family of the Elven Empire. In that era, Nia would have been nothing more than an elven princess.

I always feel that the efficiency of having a parliament in the extraordinary world is a bit too low. It is hard to say whether it is advanced or backward.

Since Janetia is unable to gather strength for the time being, Roy is not in a hurry.

After all, the fate-defying node is the top priority.

They chatted about family matters for a while, and when they were talking about clothing, a maid came.

"Lady Gentia, Lord Valoran requests an audience."

Nia visibly curled her lips, showing displeasure, while Janetia's smile also became a little solemn and not very pleasant.

"Sorry, I won't be with you now. See you at the party tonight."

The banquet that night.

Elves don't have banquet halls; all banquets are held in the open space outside the Sacred Tree.

Melodious music, gorgeous flowers and plants, and colorful magic lanterns floating in the air make the scene look like a dream.

Most of the descendants of the elves wore simple yet elegant robes, and their manners were also very refined. This was completely different from the lively atmosphere of drinking at the kingdom's banquet, which was refreshing to Roy.

At the banquet, Roy put on the [Phantom Mask] again.

The appearance of a high-level foreign transcendent was bound to cause a sensation. Apart from Janetia and people he trusted, Roy didn't want to attract too much attention, nor did he have to deal with complicated social etiquette. He just wanted to leisurely enjoy the delicacies of the descendants of the elves.

Chapter 23 Elf Laodeng

It's worth mentioning that the food of the elven descendants, though light, is not unpalatable. Even with the simplest cooking methods, the excellent flavor of the ingredients is still fully displayed.

Juicy and sour cherry tomatoes, roast potatoes with a charred aroma, and a glass of iced honey wine. This green, healthy and nutritious dinner purified Roy's body and mind, allowing him to bathe in a sea of ​​natural flavors.

Classy, ​​sophisticated, elegant!

After being so used to the kingdom's abundant food, it's nice to have a vegetarian meal once in a while...

The status of the daughter of the chief of the council is indeed noble, but the descendants of the elves do not particularly care about hierarchy. Most of them just smile and nod to Nia, or give her a few helpless instructions. It is more like the care of relatives and elders for the younger generation than the relationship between a monarch and his subjects.

Nia didn't care about her image and treated it as her own home, with grilled food in one hand and honey wine in the other. Roy followed her as she wandered around the tables looking for food.

Well, this is indeed her home.

"Hurry up, the desserts are very popular. If you go too late, there will be no more!"

When they reached the table where the desserts were placed, Nia, who was jumping around, suddenly stopped, and the expression on her face froze, revealing an expression even uglier than when she met her homeroom teacher during vacation.

Following Nia's gaze, Roy found that it was an old man.

An old elf with a stern face, tall stature, long hair draped over his shoulders, and eyes so cold that they seemed not like a living thing.

As everyone knows, the descendants of elves have a lifespan far exceeding that of other races. The face of the old man before him inevitably bore the traces of erosion by time. Although he was not yet an old man, Roy guessed that he was probably an antique from the same era as the Sage.

"I was wondering why the party was so noisy today. It turns out you're back."

Glancing at Nia with a hint of obvious disdain, the old man said mercilessly, "You're still as rude and uneducated as before. Aside from your golden bloodline, you haven't inherited any of the qualities of our elven ancestors. It seems your time studying at the magic academy hasn't brought you much progress, Miss Nia."

"Dirty old man..." Nia muttered softly and glared back at him unhappily.

If it were someone else, Nia would have kicked him long ago based on her experience in brawls in the Adventurer's Guild.

But due to the other party's status, Nia rarely refrained from losing her temper. Not only because the other party was an elder, but also because of his status in the council.

No matter how casual Nia was, she knew she shouldn't cause too much trouble for her mother.

But he is not Roy's elder.

"It's just a casual thing, not to the point of being uneducated. On the contrary, no matter what inappropriate things this lady, the daughter of the chief council member, does, it's not your turn to lecture her, right?"

The old man then turned his gaze to Roy, his serious face trembling slightly, as if with disdain.

"you are?"

"Miss Nia's bodyguard, Roderick." Roy reported the fake name he had used to deceive others along the way.

"But before asking someone's name, it's more polite to first state your own. You seem to be even worse than Miss Nia in this regard."

The old man's expression remained unchanged, but his eyes became a little gloomier.

"You may call me Lord Valoran."

"Mr. Roderick, please remember that you are an adventurer who has the honor of attending the banquet only because of the invitation of the Council."

"I am the second-in-command of the Emerald Council and the oldest person. Not to mention Miss Nia, even if Lady Gentia makes a mistake, I can still teach her a lesson. As an outsider, I advise you to mind your own business."

Although he called them "Miss" and "Sir", there was no respect in the old man's words.

"As a guard, just do your job well."

"Oh, you old man..." Nia couldn't help it anymore.

She was so used to being taught a lesson that she could just bear with it, but it would be a different story if Roy was bullied.

Before Nia could get angry, Roy stopped her and smiled at the old man: "Your Excellency is right."

"However, if it weren't for Lord Valoran, who had nothing better to do than criticize Miss Nia and disrupt her banquet, why would a mere guard like me need to intervene? I also ask you to put aside your unnecessary concern. In your own words...mind your own business."

The faces of the several elf officials behind the old man changed, and they glared at Roy one by one.

But the dark eyes didn't even bother to pay attention to them, and continued to compete with the gloomy gaze, refusing to give in.

After a few seconds, Valoran withdrew his gaze and turned away.

"Vulgar adventurer!"