Chapter 356: Night Elf!

Akari froze, surprised by such an accusation.

Looking at the figure stepping forward from behind the crowd, she felt something was off, but couldn't pinpoint what.

"If you dare say no, I'll kill your lord right now!"

Fortunately, holding a noble hostage, Akari wasn't entirely panicked.

She snarled a threat and swiftly pressed her dagger against the noble's throat.

"Are you certain this is truly our lord?" Gervas smiled faintly.

The moment Akari thought this, she suddenly noticed the noble she was holding—his body glowed with aura.

Then, a hand swiftly clamped down on her wrist.

Akari startled and immediately swung her fist to break free.

Thud.

Her fist struck the man's arm hard, but the arm felt as unyielding as iron.

Not only did he not release her wrist, he seized her left hand with his other, then kicked her calf with brutal force.

Akari tried to leap away, but with both hands pinned, her famed agility was useless.

Crack!

Her calf struck, Akari lost balance and crashed to the ground with a thump.

Instantly, cold blades were pressed against her neck.

"Don't move!"

Akari gritted her teeth but had no choice but to surrender.

"My lord, this is an elf—she came for the War Tree, intending to kidnap you to exchange for it!"

The next moment, the "noble" she had been holding bowed to the young man.

"You're the real lord?" Akari snarled.

At last, she understood what had felt wrong.

It was the young man's innate nobility.

The "noble" she'd held, by contrast, had rough skin and a bulky frame—clearly someone hardened by years of wind and rain.

A pampered noble could never endure such exposure.

"Correct, Elf Lady. Let me introduce myself—I am Gervas Gale, Lord of Stormhold!"

"Now, I ask you to answer my questions truthfully, so I may decide how best to deal with you."

"Hmph! Human noble, since you've caught me, I don't expect to live—just kill me outright!" Akari had seen too much of noble cruelty to believe this one would show mercy.

All she wanted now was death.

"No, Elf Lady. Killing you is easy—but that's not what I want. I want to know why you came, and how you learned of the War Tree's existence."

"Of course, you may refuse. If so, I won't mind selling you to the great nobles of Griffon Capital."

"I'm sure they'd pay handsomely for a female elf."

"You vile human!" Akari's composure shattered. She hadn't expected such a handsome, gentle noble to speak so shamelessly—this was her worst nightmare.

"Elf Lady, remember—you were the one who infiltrated my castle with ill intent. Everything I do is justified."

Akari fell silent, but to avoid being sold, she threatened: "Human noble, I am an elf!"

"If you sell me as a slave and the Elf Kingdom finds out, they'll issue a death warrant against you. So kill me now—then no one will ever know what you've done."

"Is that so?" Gervas smiled slyly.

"Of course, human noble—ask around!" Akari forced calm.

But Gervas only laughed more warmly. "Elf Lady, a normal elf is indeed protected by the Elf Kingdom."

"But if I'm not mistaken, you're a Night Elf."

"So even if I sell you—or abuse you—the Elf Kingdom won't lift a finger."

"You… you know I'm a Night Elf?" Akari's composure vanished.

"It's not hard to guess. Normal elves are rare within the kingdom, let alone sneaking into a human castle."

"Your flawless climbing technique? That's classic infiltration skill for an assassin."

"So aside from being a Night Elf assassin, I can't imagine any other identity for you."

"And Night Elves are considered traitors by the Elf Kingdom—utter enemies."

"The Elf Kingdom has long declared: the lives and deaths of Night Elves are not their concern."

"Enough. Elf Lady, I've said my piece and given you a chance. Since you refuse to cooperate, I won't press further."

"Lei Meng, take her to the dungeon. In two days, contact the capital—this Night Elf should fetch at least a hundred gold coins."

Akari turned pale. "No! Noble, I'll talk—just promise me a quick death afterward!"

Gervas wasn't surprised. "Better to have done this sooner."

He waved his hand, and his men led the female elf into the inner keep.

Using the luminescent pearls in the parlor, Gervas finally saw the elf's true face.

The elf's beauty was indeed legendary.

Exquisite features, pale skin, a tall, perfectly proportioned figure.

In his past life, she'd have been a top model.

The female elf, surprisingly cooperative, quickly began explaining how she learned of the War Tree.

It wasn't due to a leak from Gervas's men—it was her own innate ability.

She claimed a rare few among her people awakened Natural Sensing.

The ability to sense plants or objects saturated with life energy.

Thus, elves could locate unusual lifeforms like the War Tree or Stone Giants.

That's why other races struggled to find them.

She followed her sense to the Stormhold rear garden and confirmed the War Tree's presence.

What followed was as Lei Meng had described.

She planned to kidnap the lord of Stormhold to exchange for the War Tree.

As for why she didn't simply dig it up herself:

She couldn't transplant it.

Night Elves had no Life Spring; if she uprooted the War Tree from the garden, the sapling would wither.

But if she kidnapped Gervas, his subordinates could then seek out a Druid.

Only Druids, besides the Life Spring, could guarantee the War Tree's survival after transplanting.

And she was certain the previous War Tree had also been transplanted here by a Stormhold lord.

So Gervas's men must know how to find a Druid.