Chapter 12: Chapter 12: Elf Girl Holds in Contempt
"I say, old man, this second prince is quite interesting, huh?" Lu Hong chuckled, hooking his arm around the old man's shoulder.
"Do you think so, young master? I think so too, quite easy to fool." The old man laughed as well, suggesting that his previous praise of the second prince might have been a tease, and he probably already supported someone else as the next emperor.
"Well then, young master, rest well, I will accompany you hunting monsters early in the morning." The old man seriously checked the inn's room facilities and, finding no issues, stood up to leave.
"No need, I can go by myself tomorrow." Lu Hong pointed to the Engels Mountain Range project list placed on the bedside, "It's written clearly here, the monster hunting is divided into three zones: unranked, first-grade demons beasts, and second-grade demon beasts. Since the zones are clearly divided, I should be safe to go alone."
"Alright then, I'll just wait here for your triumphant return." The old man nodded regretfully; he really wanted to go with Lu Hong, as it would allow him to learn more of the long-lost warrior techniques!
Lu Hong could see the disappointment on the old man's face, so he said, "Don't bite off more than you can chew. Practice 'Fatal Strike' more when you have time, and truly master it first."
"Yes!" Upon hearing Lu Hong's advice, the old man quickly nodded.
"Alright, go on, I need to rest." Lu Hong shooed the old man away and quietly enjoyed the luxurious life of the wealthy in this fancy inn.
However, it wasn't long before he heard a soft knock on the door: "Excuse me, is Mr. Tukuru here?"
"Who is it?" Lu Hong, judging from the voice that it must be a soft girl, said, "Come in." The old man hadn't locked the door when he left, so upon hearing Lu Hong's invitation, a young woman opened the door and walked in.
"Holy crap!" Lu Hong took a good look and almost got a nosebleed, "An elf girl!"
Yes, the person who walked in was an elf girl dressed in a light green gauze dress. The elves lived west of the Sacred Empire, in the vast Elf Forest. Elves were known for their beautiful women and ugly men; any female was sure to be stunningly beautiful, and any male was bound to be painfully ugly. Someone might ask why the male elves were ugly. It was said that the Hell Demon King once invaded the continent, saw the elven males were very handsome, got upset, and used his powerful magic to swap the facial talents bestowed by the Elf God between the Hell demons' males and the elves' males. Afterward, the elven males became as ugly as the former Hell demons, while the Hell demons turned incredibly handsome.
When Lu Hong triggered the reinforcement of the Hell Seal mission in the game 'Sky Bound', he learned this secret and was quite amused. The Hell Demon King, having broken the Hell Seal and come to earth just to do this before happily returning, did it purely for fun. Of course, the human world wasn't so calm about it, leading to the strengthening of the seal on the gates of Hell, and since then, the Hell Demon King had never managed to break through again. Of course, none of this was Lu Hong's concern now.
"Mr. Tukuru?" The elf girl, noting Mr. Tukuru's stunned look, felt a bit disdainful in her heart, clearly a lecher staring wide-eyed!
"Ah?" Lu Hong came back to his senses, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. It's so late, elf girl, what brings you here?"
"Lord An Ze has sent me to serve you for the night." The elf girl, fighting her disgust, slowly walked closer to Lu Hong, her light green gauze dress barely concealing her curvaceous physique. Before she even got near, Lu Hong caught a faint fragrance.
"Hold on, hold on," Lu Hong, quite the virgin, couldn't handle this stimulation and took several steps back to distance himself from the elf girl. "Why are you, an elf girl, in the Human Race territory?"
Ha, acting! The elf girl chuckled internally, her expression remaining calm as she replied, "I was trafficked to the human empire when I was very young; now, I am Lord An Ze's slave."
"Got it!" Lu Hong nodded, understanding that the elf girl was probably one of those taken by human poachers from the Elf Forest, sold into slavery, and then bought and trained by this man named An Ze to serve nobles. It was a sick game indeed. If Lu Hong hadn't been such a fan of older women, he wouldn't have resisted tonight.
"Well, you're not my type. Please thank this An Ze for me. There's the door, left turn, have a good walk home," Lu Hong pointed towards the door, signaling her to leave.
"???" The elf girl was taken aback, having been ordered around for so many years, she had never encountered someone who turned her away like this: "Is Mr. Tukuru gay?"
"You're the gay one, your whole family's gay!" Lu Hong hadn't expected the seemingly young elf girl to know so much, "My orientation is perfectly normal, but my conscience tells me I can't do this!"
Who believes it? The elf girl retorted internally, having seen plenty of hypocrites, and Lu Hong was no exception.
"But, but if Nana goes back like this, Lord An Ze will surely punish me." The elf girl began to cry, having been sent to perform service duties, she never imagined being able to return fully; going back like this would definitely mean a beating.
Lu Hong, seeing the pitiful look on the elf girl's face, pondered and then said, "Alright, you can stay here tonight, I'll sleep in the bed and you on the couch. Just remember, don't sneak up in the middle of the night. I might have to kick you off!"
Ha! So hypocritical! Halfway through the night, who knows if he might lose control! The elf girl internally scoffed but, on the surface, stopped her tears and nodded slightly, displaying a fragile demeanor.
"Alright, alright, keep your distance, I need to take a bath now." Lu Hong shooed the elf girl to the corner and started warming up water for his bath.
"Do you need help, sir?" The elf girl tentatively asked.
"Scram!"
...
"Remember, don't come to my bed tonight!" Lu Hong warned repeatedly before he turned off the magic lamp and went to sleep.
Hmph!
Hmph!
Hmph?
???
It was already very late, why hadn't he pounced on her yet?
She really can play tough! Let's see how long you can keep this up!
By the next morning, as the sun slowly rose and the room brightened a bit, she finally accepted that Lu Hong indeed had no interest in her. The elf girl acknowledged Lu Hong's integrity.
"Eh? Didn't you sleep well last night?" Lu Hong had woken up by now and sat up to look at the tired-faced elf girl.
"Master, I slept very well."
"Then why the dark circles?" Lu Hong asked concernedly, "You should go back and get some more sleep."
"Master!" The elf girl suddenly knelt down, "Please, Master, save Miaomiao!"
"Who is Miaomiao? And stand up when you speak to me." Lu Hong tried to help the elf girl up but she didn't budge.
"I won't get up unless you agree," she said stubbornly.
"Then stay down if you like, I'm leaving, haha!" Lu Hong wasn't going to be manipulated; he didn't even know who Miaomiao was, so save what?
"Master, Miaomiao is the youngest among us elf girls. In three months, she will turn 18, and then Lord An Ze will certainly give her as a gift to be toyed with by those authorities. Please, save her!" The elf girl clung to Lu Hong's legs and wouldn't let go.
"I could save you, how's that?" Lu Hong suddenly became interested and said with a smile.
The elf girl shook her head, "I am already deeply trapped, and moreover, I'm no longer pure, not worth it. But Miaomiao is still innocent, please save her!"
"Very well, I'm satisfied with your answer. Although I would like to save all of you, it's not realistic. I will remember this Miaomiao you speak of, but don't get your hopes up too high, who knows if the old man's influence will be of any use."
Hearing Lu Hong's reply, the elf girl quickly bowed her head repeatedly, "Thank you, Master, thank you."
"No need to thank me; it was your sincerity that moved me. And old man! What are you eavesdropping on out there!" As Lu Hong spoke, a teacup flew towards the door; he then patted the elf girl, signaling her to open the door.
As expected, as soon as the door opened, the little old man came bustling in with a grin, "Good morning, Young Master, I just happened to be passing by."
"Oh, just passing by. Did you enjoy last night?"
"Young Master, you underestimate me. Would I be that kind of man?" The old man said seriously.
"I don't care whether you are or not, but you must have heard what just happened, right?" Lu Hong asked.
The old man nodded, "I'll talk to Lupton about it."
"I hope your old face proves useful." Lu Hong quickly freshened up, grabbed his great sword, and headed out the door, off to grind some monsters!