663 Arrival Of The Four-Eared Elves (2)
What kind of scene was this? Were humans now living alongside these terrifying beasts?
Everyone else present had similar thoughts passing through their minds.
"What's happening?"
Suddenly, a familiar voice sounded behind him, breaking him out of his daze.
Leif snapped his head backwards. "Princess,'" he said, immediately rushing towards her position.
"It's dangerous to be out here with the Patriarch. We have already determined that the Patriarch has given us the wrong coordinates, so we must get out of here as fast as possible. Meanwhile, you and the Prince should get back into the boat and hide safely with the Patriarch," Leif hurriedly added.
It seemed that the people or beasts living within this fortress had taken their arrival as though it was some kind of invasion, which Leif didn't blame them for thinking.
After all, if he woke up one morning and suddenly found out that there were hundreds of boats filled to the brim with a particular race heading towards his home, he would also think that an invasion was about to occur without hesitation.
Meanwhile, Isadora, whose eyes were immediately glued to the top of the towering wooden wall and the beasts flying about it, gulped down the air caught in her throat. She instantly nodded her head at Leif's words and followed his instructions.
However, just as she was about to turn around—
'WHO ARE YOU? IDENTIFY YOURSELVES, AND WHAT ARE YOUR REASONS HERE? YOU HAVE FIVE MINUTES TO RESPOND OR LEAVE THIS TERRITORY!!' A loud voice resounded through the air, thundering in everyone's ears.
"Father," Isadora cried out fearfully, her expression becoming pale as she stared at the Patriarch.
The Patriarch refused to budge from his position. Instead of moving back inside the boat, he raised his head and looked at the top of the towering mountain.
"Father, please…" Isadora said again.
She was beginning to get worried that the injury that he had sustained was even more threatening than it seemed and had affected his memories.
"Patriarch—" Leif began, but just as he was about to intervene, the Patriarch immediately interrupted, 'Who said that I gave the coordinates?' the Patriarch asked firmly.
Seeing the Patriarch's firm, questioning gaze, Leif gritted his teeth, "Patriarch, in the destination you gave us, you said that we would arrive at a small village with humans; however," Leif said, "…there is now a fortress there, along with several terrifying beasts, living together with several humans. And by the looks of it, it seems that they think this is an invasion, so I think we should change our course and return to finding out where the Village is," he pointed his head in the direction above the towering wooden walls.
The Patriarch directed his eyes upwards and narrowed them as he observed the scene, then shifted his attention to look at both sides of the river before him.
"Hmm! I get your point; this does look like an invasion, so it isn't surprising why they are trying to imitate us like this. However, you do not need to worry because we are in the right place," the Patriarch said. "Take me forward, dear."
Isadora nodded and began to lead her father towards the boat's edge.
Leif immediately clenched his fists at witnessing this scene. As the one responsible for the safety of their race, how could he not be annoyed at how the Patriarch had dismissed his warnings?
"Captain," one of his teammates called out, handing his weapon over to him.
Leif nodded in response as he grabbed onto a 2-meter metallic sword with various moving mechanisms within it. He held the handles of his sword tightly and patiently observed, hoping nothing terrible would happen.
He also signalled for the others to be ready. However, they already were.
As soon as the Patriarch and Isadora arrived at the boat's edge, Isadora felt her body shiver and suddenly felt countless gazes fixated on her figure.
The Patriarch suddenly placed his hand on Isadora.
"Don't worry and relax; I'll take care of this," the Patriarch said with a warm smile before he shifted his attention towards the top of the towering wooden walls.
The Patriarch took in a deep breath—
"THOUGH IT WOULD HAVE BEEN DIFFICULT FOR ME TO RECOGNIZE THIS PLACE IF I HADN'T BEEN HERE FREQUENTLY IN THE PAST FEW YEARS, HOWEVER, I HAVE TO SAY, I LOVE WHAT YOU'VE DONE WITH THE PLACE!" The Patriarch shouted.
When the Patriarch's words resounded, a sudden pin-drop silence occupied the air.
….....
When Orion reached the edge of the Third Border City facing the river, he was immediately led to where the Village Chief and the others were gathered. Upon arrival, he exchanged greetings with them individually, and they reciprocated.
"You've finally arrived," the Village Chief said with a smile as he looked at Orion.
Orion nodded in response, "Yes, I came immediately after I received the information," he replied.
The Village Chief continued, "We've already found out who the invaders are," and promptly proceeded to the main point.
"Who?" Orion asked curiously.
Surveying the many boats on the river, he estimated there were tens of thousands of them.
"They look closely alike to the Caravans, but the Caravans were never this numerous when visiting the village, so we're a bit doubtful about their identity," the Village Chief responded.
"I've already sent them a message. If they don't respond in the next five minutes, then I will have the warriors forcefully drive them out of the territory."
Orion nodded in understanding. Some of the Prismerions resembled humans closely, except for the crystals on their lower bodies, which made identification easy. However, with no way to confirm whether these were the Caravans, he understood that the Village Chief wanted to avoid taking risks.
Moreover, he had heard the Village Chief's resolute words on his way up to the top of the towering walls, so he waited patiently for their reply.
Suddenly, a loud voice echoed through the air.
Orion furrowed his brows at the words before turning to the Village Chief. Witnessing the surprise on the Chief's face, he sighed inwardly.
From the words he had just heard and the Chief's expression, he deduced that the people on the boat before him were indeed the Caravans.
