"Such a huge elf!"
Liu Xue and Ye Lingxi wore the same stunned expressions as Kurose Akira. This was also their first time seeing an elf towering five or six meters tall.
They had originally thought that elves like Honglian—already standing two meters high—were extremely rare.
But the moment this Dark Elf appeared, all the other elves instantly looked petite by comparison, almost like delicate lolis.
And more than that—
Akira was shocked to discover that her silver-gray skin emitted a faint glow. In the darkness, it flickered softly, as if countless stars were twinkling across the night sky.
Her attire was also unlike that of other Dark Elves. She had wrapped every inch of her body in pure white bandages.
Which made sense—there simply weren't any clothes in a size large enough for her.
Besides that, her long, upright pointed ears drooped backward like rabbit ears, hanging behind her back, making it hard to resist the urge to reach out and give them a gentle squeeze…
"Guests from afar, welcome to the Dark Forbidden Forest. I am Paslo, the leader of these Dark Elves."
The towering Dark Elf slowly walked up to Akira and introduced herself.
At that very moment, information about Paslo appeared in Akira's field of vision.
[Paslo (Mythic)]Level: 94 (?/?)Race: Dark ElfStrength: ? / Agility: ? / Mana: ? / Constitution: ?Growth: 15 (Gains +15 to all attributes per level)Skills: (Expand)Traits: [?][?]Status: [Withered](?)
Level 94?
Seeing Paslo's level, Akira couldn't help but feel a jolt of surprise.
He hadn't expected the Dark Elf leader to be just one step away from demigodhood!
If she were to advance to a demigod and return to the Elven race… wouldn't that mean the elves would possess two demigod-level powerhouses?
As for the [Withered] status in her status bar, Akira immediately understood—this was likely related to the injuries Nilu and the others had mentioned.
The question mark in the brackets probably meant that certain conditions needed to be fulfilled to fully unlock or identify the [Withered] trait.
Still, one question lingered in his mind.
Why was this elf so enormous?
The pressure she gave off was overwhelming… good thing he didn't have gigantophobia.
"Kurose Akira," he said, clearing his throat.
"I'm Liu Xue."
"I… I'm Ye Lingxi."
Paslo slowly crouched down until she was at eye level with Akira. In a gentle voice, she said, "Thank you for rescuing Nilu and the others from the Gloom Prison of the Elven Kingdom."
The moment her words fell, the surrounding Dark Elves erupted into disbelief.
"They actually escaped from the Gloom Prison?"
"How is that possible? Has anyone ever escaped from that place?"
"If they brought Nilu back to the Elven Kingdom, then it must be true—and Lady Paslo would never lie to us!"
"This is unbelievable! These humans are definitely not simple!"
"There's a half-dragon among them… could they be from the Dragon Holy Nation?"
"..."
The Dark Elves buzzed with discussion, utterly shocked that Akira and his companions had managed to rescue Nilu from the Gloom Prison.
Meanwhile, Akira's gaze was firmly fixed on Paslo, who was crouched in front of him.
Because of her massive frame, the snowy vista before him was especially… magnificent.
If her size were scaled down to a normal height, her "strength" would likely be on par with the Elven Queen's.
But Paslo stood nearly five meters tall.
That kind of presence surpassed even the Elven Queen's intimidation.
"You…"
Paslo stared intently at Akira. After a brief silence, she asked, "You have received the blessing of the World Tree, haven't you?"
As soon as she said that, another wave of commotion rippled through the Dark Elves.
"He's received the World Tree's blessing?"
"Is that true?"
"Why would a human be blessed by the World Tree?"
"..."
Faced with their doubts, Akira replied calmly, "Yes. That did happen."
Hearing his confirmation, Paslo remained composed. She glanced briefly at Liu Xue and Ye Lingxi, then returned her gaze to Akira.
In a soft voice, she said, "There is an important ritual the tribe must carry out shortly, so we cannot keep you here long. To express my gratitude, I would like to give you a gift…"
As she spoke, Paslo reached her hand between the layers of snow-white bandages, feeling around inside.
Akira watched the entire process.
Although the white bandages thoroughly concealed her body, for some reason, he still felt that there was something a little…
Cough.
"Found them~"
Paslo withdrew her hand, now holding three dark green fruits glowing faintly with an eerie light. She handed them to Akira and the others one by one.
"These are fruits unique to the Dark Forbidden Forest. They possess miraculous effects."
"Thank you," Akira said.
The three of them accepted the fruits, and their information immediately appeared in their vision.
[Forbidden Fruit (Elite): After consumption, temporarily gain +100% to all attributes (30 minutes). After the effect ends, the user enters a weakened state. (5 hours)]
Of course, the information Liu Xue and Ye Lingxi saw was slightly different from what appeared in Akira's interface.
[Obtained rare trait — Forbidden Fruit!]
Seeing the newly added trait, Akira fell into thought.
[A forbidden fruit blooming with seven-colored rainbow light]?
Just then, Paslo asked Akira, "How is she?"
Akira fell silent for a few seconds.
He knew exactly who Paslo meant.
The Elven Queen had once said that her only friend had left the Elven race and become the leader of the Dark Elves. That person was undoubtedly Paslo.
"She's doing well."
"And her evil thoughts… have they been successfully suppressed?"
"Yes. They've been successfully suppressed," Akira nodded. Suppressing the Elven Queen's corruption had taken an enormous amount of effort on his part.
"That's good."
Paslo finally seemed to relax. A faint smile appeared on her face.
She stood up and bid farewell to the three of them.
"Until we meet again, travelers from afar."
"Goodbye."
With that, Akira and the others mounted their griffin and departed from the Dark Forbidden Forest.
After they left, Paslo turned to the Dark Elves and said, "Dark Elves, continue to grow stronger. Make full preparations for the war that is soon to come!"
"Yes, Lady Paslo!"
...
After returning the griffin, Akira prepared to part ways with Liu Xue and Ye Lingxi.
"Brother Akira, this is for you."
As previously agreed, Ye Lingxi handed him fifty gold coins and a magic scroll.
"Mm."
Akira nodded and put them away.
At the same time, his gaze lingered briefly on the magic scroll, and its information appeared before his eyes.
[Lightning Element Magic Scroll (Epic): Randomly grants one super-tier Lightning-element magic skill!]
...…
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