Xia De grabbed the girl by the back of her collar, pulled hard, lifting her into the air and separating her from his clothes, then looked at her with a hint of disdain.
He then noticed the elven girl's cheeks were as red as ripe apples, and he could almost see steam rising from her head.
Apparently not expecting Xia De to separate them so roughly, her legs, clad in brown short boots, flailed wildly in the air.
“Off you go!”
Ignoring her expression, Xia De tossed her onto an empty patch of ground nearby, as if she were a rubber ball.
“Go wait over there for a bit. I’ll come find you after I change.”
“Ow, ow, ow!”
The elven girl, Hilia, cried out in pain, then rubbed her backside, which had just made intimate contact with the ground.
She could feel it was probably a bit red from Xia De's actions.
She glanced in Xia De's direction and saw him changing clothes, not paying attention to her.
Then she saw Xia De's well-trained upper body, with its clear lines and firm, full muscles.
Then,
A warm trickle flowed from her nostrils...
“Wah!”
Hilia immediately squatted down, covering her flushed cheeks, her pointed elven ears tinged pink. Feeling the heat radiating from her face into her palms, she felt an overwhelming sense of shame, as if she could never face anyone again.
As a princess of the Elven Royal Family, her dignified demeanor was renowned among the elves.
Now, she had been seen by a human youth in her most unsightly state just before death, making an undignified display with snot flying everywhere.
What was even more unacceptable was that she had actually peeked at him and then gotten a nosebleed!
“It’s over, my image is completely ruined!”
However, she didn't get angry and spout harsh words just because her savior saw her in an embarrassing state, unlike many anime characters.
In her heart, she felt only endless shyness and gratitude toward Xia De, mixed with a hint of guilt for having done something wrong.
“Why are you still covering your face? I remember I threw you so your backside should have landed first, right?”
A slightly puzzled voice came from directly in front of her.
You know butts hurt too!
Hilia complained about Xia De inwardly with a touch of grievance, then let out a long breath.
She stood up, brushed the dust off her clothes, and adjusted her posture, trying to appear a bit more dignified and elegant.
She bowed deeply to Xia De and said earnestly, “Thank you for saving me. I will do everything in my power to repay you!”
“Then give me that glowing necklace of yours!”
Without the slightest hesitation, Xia De straightforwardly stated his reward.
In his mind, that necklace had protected the girl from an opponent far stronger than her.
Furthermore, he hadn't seen the girl produce any other treasures of that caliber later, which indicated that the necklace was an extremely valuable item to her.
The girl would definitely be troubled!
Then he could ask for something else as a compromise, and also ask a few questions, thus successfully getting what he wanted.
Xia De was right; the necklace was indeed an extremely precious treasure to Hilia, not just because of the power it unleashed, but also because of its significance.
With the birth of every elf, the Tree of Elves bestows a blessing, which transforms into a symbiotic magic tool that grows alongside the elf.
Each elf's symbiotic item is unique; some elves even have two. However, if a symbiotic item is lost or stolen during growth, it loses its power and reverts to the power of the Tree of Elves.
Unless the elf willingly gives it away!
Moreover, this act in the elven race signifies pledging a lifetime vow with a beloved.
And this necklace was her symbiotic item, accompanying her since birth!
Now, this human youth in front of her was actually asking for it!
Although she knew Xia De probably didn't mean it in that way, Hilia's beautiful face inevitably turned crimson once more.
Her eyes seemed to become a tangled mess of threads, her brain turned into a muddled porridge, falling into chaos.
The atmosphere was silent for a moment. Xia De looked at the girl still bowing before him, his expression a little confused. Then he saw her ears, red as apples.
You’re an elf! Not an apple spirit! Why are you always blushing?!
Immediately, as if he suddenly thought of something, his expression turned a bit strange, carrying a hint of trouble.
Oh no!
Based on my experience, this necklace wouldn't have some special meaning, would it?!
Like, passed down from her parents, who got it from their grandparents, representing a lover’s pact or something?!
Thanks to being baptized by the information explosion era, Xia De inadvertently guessed half the truth!
Trouble! I don't want to be misunderstood for no reason!
Just as Hilia was fantasizing about her married life with Xia De, with cute children surrounding them, sweetly asking to hear their parents’ love story, and she was inwardly drooling and chuckling,
Xia De’s voice came from above her again, pulling her thoughts back to reality.
“Never mind, never mind. Since you’re so silent, I won’t ask for it! Give me something else, and I also have some questions I want to ask you.”
Ah, no! I’ll give it to you!
The girl immediately looked up, wanting to speak, but when her gaze met Xia De's calm, unruffled eyes, she opened her mouth but no sound came out.
His indifferent gaze made her realize.
Yes, he doesn’t have those kinds of feelings for me. He only asked for the necklace as a reward because he thought it was valuable!
For some reason, Hilia felt a sense of loss.
“I still have a mission, and I’ve been delayed quite a bit. Do you want to come with me? We can talk on the way.”
Xia De’s expression changed as he suddenly remembered he still had a mission. If he waited to finish his questions, it would probably take a long time, and he didn’t want to be delayed for so long, so he extended an invitation to the elf.
“Yes!”
Hilia nodded vigorously, her eyes seemingly glowing with brightness. Without the slightest hesitation, she eagerly accepted Xia De's invitation.
The two tidied up a bit, then set off on their journey.
Actually, it was mainly Xia De flying over to restore the enormous, deep crater he had created.
For Xia De a few years ago, he might have only been able to simply fill the deep pit, but the damaged landscape would have been beyond recovery.
But having killed so many people and magical beasts, he felt that if he continued causing such destruction, the surrounding landscape would be completely transformed by him.
Therefore, he had studied Life Magic through Sister Vanessa; after all, the Church had extensive research in this area.
Even Sister Vanessa, who had no cultivation and joined the clergy halfway, became an excellent Healer relying on the information in books.
He filled the deep pit, accelerated the growth of flowers, plants, and trees, and finally, the deep pit once again became a dense forest.
Only after completing all this did he fly back to Hilia, who had been waiting for a long time.
While Xia De was away doing cleanup, Hilia leaned against a large tree, a little distracted. She thought of many things: her parents, siblings, and this recent experience. Then her eyes grew firm, as if she had made some kind of decision.
When Xia De returned, she snapped out of her thoughts, quickly trotted over to him, and said happily,
“Welcome back, let’s go!”
Rate on N.U.
