The Possessor Mistook the Genre for 20 Years

10 – The Second Villainess

In the center of the continent, there was a vast forest called the Great Forest.

It was a place where giant trees, so large that they dwarfed baobab trees, stood densely, a kind of ecological treasure trove.

And in the middle of such a Great Forest, there was an exceptionally large tree, towering as if it would reach the sky.

That was the World Tree, worshipped by the elves.

Elves were born in the Great Forest, lived in the Great Forest, and dedicated their lives to protecting the World Tree.

Because they believed it was a noble mission.

Leaving the Great Forest was not allowed.

It was strictly forbidden by the elves’ rules.

However, amidst all this, a single elf ventured into the outside world.

The elf archer of the Hero Party, Hera of the Root Tribe.

Hera was a somewhat special existence even among the elves.

She was loved by all the spirits of the world.

Until now, no one had ever seen or communicated with a spirit, but Hera could.

And eventually, she was chosen by the Spirit King and could make a contract.

One day, the Spirit King said to Hera.

[The Demon King has resurrected, and the world is on the brink of destruction. The Great Forest and the World Tree are no exception. So, cooperate with the hero and save the world.]

Around the same time, a Hero Party was formed in the kingdom.

Naturally, Hera informed everyone of this and said she would cooperate with the hero.

However, the other elves were not pleased with it.

Hera, who had made a pact with the Spirit King, was a key force among the elves.

If Hera left the Great Forest, it was certain that humans would once again run rampant.

They would come deep into the Great Forest, kidnap elves to use as slaves, and cut down living trees to turn them into scraps of paper.

Moreover, wasn’t the hero party entirely composed of humans?

It was unbelievable to cooperate with such dreadful beings.

Hera knew this too.

So she spoke to the other elves.

She said that in exchange for cooperating with the hero party, she would stop the kidnapping of elves and the cutting down of trees in the Great Forest.

With Hera saying this much, the other elves could no longer raise any objections.

In the end, if one Hera could protect all the elves and nature, so be it.

Before joining the hero party, Hera conveyed the same message to the king.

“Please stop the kidnapping of elves and the cutting down of trees in the Great Forest.”

“Is this a request from the elves? Very well, I promise on my name.”

She even received a promise from the king.

So now, all that was left for Hera was to strive for the elves, the Great Forest, and the world.

However, it was not so easy.

The members of the hero party were all humans.

Humans were enemies to the elves, so she could not see them in a good light.

Worried that they might poison her, she prepared her meals separately every time.

During battles, she could not trust them with her back and even kept an eye on her allies.

It was a hellish time where she couldn’t even sleep peacefully.

Time passed, and one day, an incident occurred.

A party that did not work well together was bound to face trouble, and it finally happened.

In fact, it could be said that they had been lucky to get this far.

Due to Hera’s mistrust of her allies, she positioned herself poorly and missed an enemy.

As a result, the demon army swarmed in, putting the hero party in danger.

They managed to overcome it after much struggle, but the damage was severe.

That evening, the mage of the hero party exploded in anger.

Smack-!

Franz slapped Hera’s cheek.

“Hey, I get that humans have done terrible things to elves! And I get that elves hate humans because of it! But can’t you just take it easy? Everyone is fighting for their lives, and because of you, what is this mess?”

“But you humans…”

“So, did I do those things? Did this hero do them? Did this saint do them? No one here has done anything to the elves, but you’re the one causing us trouble.”

Hera couldn’t respond to Franz’s words. Everything he said was true.

Not all humans were bad, only some were.

So, it was wrong to curse all humans as a whole.

After that day, Hera opened the closed door of her heart and gradually became friends with the hero’s party.

As their hearts aligned, their coordination in battle improved.

Eventually, the hero’s party succeeded in defeating the Demon King.

Having completed all their tasks, Hera returned to the Great Forest, the elves’ dwelling place.

With a sense of pride in having saved the world.

However, what awaited Hera were the cold stares of the elves.

Naturally, Hera was bewildered.

Hadn’t she risked her life to save the Great Forest and the World Tree, and even prevented the elves from being enslaved?

Even if they couldn’t thank her, this was not how they should treat her.

How much time had passed since then?

Hera learned why the elves were acting that way.

Humans, those damned humans, had not kept their promises.

They were still cutting down the trees of the Great Forest and kidnapping elves.

In fact, while Hera was active with the hero’s party, the situation had worsened.

With the main forces of the elves gone, humans had become even more rampant.

However, it was humans who had broken the promise, not Hera.

It wasn’t her fault, so she didn’t deserve such cold treatment.

Hera hated humans.

She wished for the destruction of those who broke their promises and threatened the Great Forest and the elves.

From that day on, she hunted every human who entered the Great Forest.

She showed no mercy.

After all, they were the ones who betrayed first.

But, the problem wasn’t only with humans.

It was another day, some time later.

As Hera returned to the village after patrolling the Great Forest, she heard someone’s voice.

It was her brother and childhood friend’s conversation.

“Brother, I heard Hera killed all the humans who came to trade this time?”

“Ha, because of that foolish girl, we have to find new trading partners. It’s such a hassle.”

“I don’t understand why they’re making such a fuss over a few missing kids…”

“It’s fine. I’ll make it look like she did everything, and I’ll become the next chief.”

“As expected of you, brother…”

Then, the sound of skin touching skin was heard.

Trading partners, missing children, the next chief.

And the cold stares of the elves.

All the words started to interlock like gears in Hera’s mind.

It was then that Hera realized.

The disappearances of the elves, the felling of the trees in the Great Forest, and the cold stares from the other elves.

It was all because of those two, who were in league with the humans.

If they needed the position of the next chief, she would have just given it to them.

If they needed money, she would have gotten it for them.

Why on earth are they doing this…?

As she was thinking this, Hera found herself running towards the outskirts of the Great Forest.

All the efforts to save the world, to save the Great Forest and the World Tree, to save the elves.

All those efforts were in vain.

Eventually, Hera decided to live by rescuing the kidnapped elves after leaving the Great Forest.

If she didn’t do at least this, she felt like she would truly wish for the world’s destruction.

And so, at present.

Hera was looking up at a huge mansion with a list of elf slave buyers in her hand.

Recently, there were rumors among the nobles that those who bought elf slaves were being attacked.

So, the mansion’s owner had no choice but to strengthen the security.

They had hired a rather excellent wizard and set up magical traps here and there.

Hera thought.

“An excellent wizard, huh…”

If that was the case, there was a way on this side too.

Hera’s unfocused eyes slowly turned towards the distant, towering spire.

* * * * *

Haah-.

A sigh involuntarily escaped from Franz’s lips.

It was best not to get involved in matters related to slaves if possible.

One side claimed they bought them with their own money, while the other side claimed they were kidnapped. Both sides were in an unfair situation.

Of course, by the moral standards of the 21st century, the side that purchased the slaves was undoubtedly wrong, but by the standards of this world, slavery was entirely legal, so no crime could be charged.

Except for one thing, elves.

Elf slaves were illegal.

Arian, who had been watching Franz from the side, asked.

“Are you going?”

“I have to. It’s a designated dispatch.”

Franz said so and stood up from his seat.

Then he stretched his arms upwards, extending his body.

Sitting in a chair all the time made his body stiff.

Arian handed Franz a neatly folded robe and said.

“Don’t just fool around… Be careful on your dispatch.”

“Yeah, I’ll be back soon.”

The villainess needed help, so he had to help.