Chapter 258: The Star Burner

"Star Burner" Alcaste Yanyu, a renowned archmage, clearly isn't a pure orc—his elven-style name gives him away.

"Looks like you're really busy."

The half-elf appeared young, but in truth he was already midway through life—at least three hundred years old.

His fiery red hair was a common elemental trait among top-tier evokers; merely the solid-looking flame elements trailing behind his head proved his strength.

Li En chose him partly because he was, in fact, a "traveler," unlike many local archmages who were backed by powerful clans—something that could spare Li En, with his delicate status, from much trouble.

"Sorry, Master, I should've come sooner, but I've been swamped lately."

Li En felt a bit embarrassed; though there was some element of mutual benefit, failing to visit his master twice after becoming his disciple was truly inexcusable.

"Hero's training? The 'Lift-High Knight'?" the archmage asked calmly.

"Uh—"

Li En was surprised; mages generally had no interest in nobility or politics.

"My situation is unusual. I came here to reside precisely to escape the war—and naturally, I'm keenly interested in such matters. But it seems I still can't avoid it."

Alcaste looked at Li En and spoke softly, yet the content of his words inevitably invited deeper thought.

"War? Where's war? Isn't everything peaceful now?" Li En smoothly took the cue.

"The coming war—the war about to happen—between elves and beastfolk, elves and dark elves, elves and dark elves, elves and dwarves. Yet my own kin remain lost in their false peace."

Instantly, Li En couldn't hold his composure.

He recalled the dossier he'd seen on this elder, particularly the line: "Always alarmist, deeply pessimistic"—now it made sense.

"It shouldn't happen. We've had peace for so many years; another few decades of calm should be normal."

"If you think that way, I think our master-disciple bond ends here."

"The Magic Tide War? It really might be just a few years away."

Li En sighed; he understood the man's implication, and the man knew Li En understood—but Li En had hoped to wait until they were more familiar before broaching such matters. Alcaste, however, seemed unwilling to wait.

The dossier noted he had persistently taken in foreign disciples, seemingly to expand his local network and gain influence.

"For short-lived races, the Magic Tide War is a legend of ancestors or a nightmare that might strike descendants. But for long-lived races, it is an unavoidable calamity."

Watching Alcaste say this, Li En pondered: was he planning to use Li En's connections to reach the royal family?

But why bother? You're an archmage—would Princess Daneya refuse to see you?

Or are you planning to exploit local resources while keeping your distance from the local regime? Pure free-riding?

"What does this mean for you, then?" Li En cut straight to the point, bordering on impoliteness.

"For a half-elf like me, it means being caught between two sides."

Yet the half-elf calmly described his dire situation.

Half-elf lifespans, compared to beastfolk, were vastly longer—typically two to four hundred years—but still considered short by elven standards.

Worse, they aged normally, entering middle age and decline like other races—something that made elves, who only showed age at life's end, instinctively despise them.

Alcaste's open mention of his half-elf identity had already alerted Li En to the trouble ahead.

". am a member of the 'Cross Harp Society.' If possible, could you deliver this letter to Her Highness the Princess?"

"Of course."

Since it involved the royal family, Li En naturally wouldn't refuse.

Whatever they planned—joint preparation for war, relocating refugees—it had nothing to do with him. Let it stay that way.

Seeing Li En agree so readily, Alcaste was surprised.

Delivering the letter carried a subtle implication of guarantee—so easily accepted, did Li En truly believe that even if trouble arose, the Princess wouldn't blame him?

He had clearly underestimated the "Lift-High Knight's" ties to the royal family.

Their first meeting would end here. Though slightly uneasy, it quickly returned to the matter at hand.

"Do this set of questions. Write as we talk."