As Orion, Stronghold Leader Zogar, and Stronghold Leader Seth walked out of the hall, they immediately spotted the Patriarch Rylan's children and the gods' chosen. They seemed to be patiently waiting for the meeting to end; their expressions were solemn and depressed.
Upon noticing their presence, their expressions immediately brightened. Isadora, Lyndon, and the rest of the gods' chosen hastened towards them.
Orion raised a brow, wondering what they all wanted from him, especially since Patriarch Rylan and the Village Chief were still in discussion inside.
Suddenly, Isadora bowed, pleading, "Please forgive us for everything that has occurred. It's not Patriarch Rylan's fault. We never expected this to happen. Please, don't exile us from the city."
The others beside her gritted their teeth and nodded in agreement.
A look of realisation immediately crossed Orion's face.
"Don't worry, Patriarch Rylan has already explained everything to us, so you can rest assured that nothing will happen to the Four-eared elves' accommodation," Orion reassured, his gaze fixed on the group before him.
A collective exhale escaped their lips, their shoulders slumping in relief.
Witnessing their reaction, Orion attempted to walk around them to meet with Captain Seig and his Lueitenant quickly. However, when he stepped forward, Isadora immediately blocked his path.
Orion frowned, "What is it?" he asked.
Even Stronghold Leader Zogar and Stronghold Leader Seth couldn't help but raise a brow with interest as they watched the woman bravely block their advance.
As Isadora blocked Orion and the other key figures behind him, her eyes couldn't help but trail downwards towards the two gods' chosen Devourer's bracelets hanging from a piece of cloth tied on his waist.
"Warrior Orion, may I please ask that you return Ronan's and Lirien's Devourer's bracelets to us? Considering our current situation, they are our only means to recover our strength. If you take them away, it would be the same as crippling us. So, please, Warrior Orion, I hope you can return the Devourer's Bracelets to us," Isadora pleaded.
Orion furrowed his brows in response before coughing lightly. "I'm sorry, Miss Isadora, but that won't be possible," Orion said, gesturing towards the Devourer's bracelets.
"You see, Patriarch Rylan has given us these Devourer's bracelets as a token of his sincerity to show that he is truly sorry for what occurred. After all, if the Village hadn't succeeded in finding out that there was a traitor in their midst, partly responsible for the sharp decline of the Four-eared elves, he would have been here hiding and pretending everything was okay," he added.
Though he was lying and merely needed a reason to hold the Devourer's bracelets so he could hand them over to Seraphina, he was confident that Patriarch Rylan wouldn't have any problems letting go of the two Devourer's bracelets after what had happened today. If not, he would have mentioned it during the meeting.
Stronghold Leader Zogar and Stronghold Leader Seth, who were behind him, couldn't help but exchange looks with each other.
Though they understood the reason behind Orion's words, since they were also interested in the Devourer's bracelets, they had expected Orion to be more straightforward about it instead of wasting time coming up with such an explanation.
Meanwhile, Isadora, Lyndon, Leona, and the remaining gods' chosen froze in their spots as they heard Orion's words. They were stunned and surprised that Patriarch Rylan had handed over Ronan's and Lirien's Devourer's bracelets to the Village to apologise for everything that had transpired.
"That's impossible! Father would never do that. He knows how important the Devourer's bracelets are for developing the Four-
eared Elves race, so there is no way he would willingly hand them over without offering anything else first," Lyndon responded, gritting his teeth in frustration.
They had already lost Ronan and Lirien today. Now, hearing that they would also be handing over their Devourer's bracelets to the Village, Lyndon couldn't help but feel slightly agitated.
Orion raised a brow in response. "Are you implying that I'm lying and that I've stolen the Devourer's bracelets without Patriarch Rylan's consent?" he asked, narrowing his gaze at Lyndon.
Lyndon, who wanted to respond, immediately swallowed what he wanted to say when he heard Orion's words. Fortunately, Isadora intervened, pulling Orion's attention away from him.
"Please forgive my brother, Warrior Orion. That wasn't what he meant. He meant to say that the Devourer's bracelet is one of the keys to the restoration of the Four-eared Elves. So, it wouldn't be ideal for us to let go of it at such a critical time," Isadora said, her expression firm.
The gods' chosen all nodded in response.
"I can tell you have something in mind. What is it? But before you say anything else, I should warn you that unless you are ready to offer something of equal value in exchange for the Devourer's bracelets, I won't be willing to give them up. Anything less than that won't be acceptable," Orion said, fixing his eyes on Isadora and the others with a smile.
He had already wasted enough time here and decided not to beat around the bush any longer.
Isadora, Lyndon, and the others fell silent immediately. Sure, they wanted the Devourer's bracelets, but did they currently possess anything of equal value to exchange for them?
No, they didn't!
Isadora sighed heavily, her shoulders slumping in defeat as she lowered her head with a dejected expression.
"Since you don't have anything of equal value to exchange for the Devourer's bracelets, I'll be taking my leave then," Orion said, observing their dejected countenances before walking around them and stepping towards the exit.
Stronghold Leader Zogar and Stronghold Leader Seth, who had been entertained by the scene, followed him.
Nobody attempted to block their path this time as they exited Patriarch Rylan's residence and headed towards the Village.
…....….
Twenty minutes later
For someone like Orion, who lacked a shape-shifting gift, it would have taken about thirty-five minutes to travel from the Second Border City to the Leftward Stronghold Main Headquarters at the Village.
However, with the assistance of the two stronghold Leaders, both Four-star warriors, he arrived in less than twenty minutes.
