Then, from amidst the stunned silence, Julius suddenly stepped forward.
His face was twisted in anger—but behind that fury glead sothing else.
Satisfaction.
"You broke the rules!" He shouted, pointing an accusatory finger at Luca. "You broke the rules right now!"
His voice rose over the confused murmurs of the crowd.
"You injured two of my n—two elves who did nothing wrong! You violated the regulations set!"
He puffed up his chest, forcing a righteous tone that couldn’t quite hide his glee.
"And as the appointed healer and elder, I hereby decree—you are to leave the village imdiately! You are not permitted to stay any longer!"
For the briefest mont, a twisted, satisfied smirk crept onto his lips.
Finally.
Finally!
He’d waited for this mont.
Ever since Luca had entered the village, Julius had been desperate for a chance to turn the tables and send him away.
And now, fate had handed it to him.
The hero—oh, the mighty hero—had made a mistake.
He’d hurt Julius’s n, even if by accident.
Now, Julius could strike back.
"Leave." He said smugly, his expression feigning righteous disappointnt. "You’ve disgraced the code of our people, and you will answer for it."
But to his surprise Luca...only looked at him with a puzzled expression, as if he were genuinely confused.
"What are you talking about, Julius?" He asked lightly. "What rules did I break?"
The calmness in his tone threw Julius off.
"You—what do you an what?" He snapped. "You just injured two of my n in front of everyone! You—"
"Wait, wait." Luca said, holding up his hand, as though politely stopping him mid-sentence. "You’re saying I broke the rules, right? Because I hard soone?"
"Yes!" Julius snapped. "Exactly that!"
Luca’s lips curved into a faint smile, and he let out a quiet chuckle.
"Ah, I see. That’s where you’re mistaken."
The elves exchanged glances.
Julius frowned. "What are you talking about?"
"Well." Luca began casually, as if explaining sothing to a child. "The rule states that one must not intentionally harm a villager, yes?"
"Yes—" Julius said slowly, his brows knitting together.
"So tell ." Luca continued smoothly. "When I shot that arrow—what was my intent?"
Julius’s mouth opened, but no sound ca out.
Luca smiled wider.
"It wasn’t to harm anyone, Julius. You saw it yourself. My intent, my reason was to save Luna."
"That was the only goal."
"The fact that the arrows happened to fly off and...well, hit two unfortunate souls over there?"
He shrugged.
"That was an accident. Unfortunate, but not intentional. Which ans..."
He concluded, his tone growing slightly sharper.
"...I didn’t break any rule."
The crowd murmured in agreent.
"That’s true..."
"He was trying to save her."
"It was an accident, wasn’t it?"
Julius’s expression flickered from confusion to fury.
"That’s—ridiculous!" He spat. "Don’t twist words like that! You definitely planned this from the very beginning!"
"You wanted to go after my n, so you orchestrates this entire challenge!"
He turned to the crowd, shouting.
"He’s lying! He’s manipulating all of you!"
But before he could speak further, Lulu stepped forward, glaring daggers at him.
"You’re one to talk about lying!" She shouted. "You almost killed your own daughter! If it weren’t for Luca, Luna would be dead right now!"
The crowd murmured louder.
"Yeah!" Another elf shouted. "He saved her life, you idiot! And you’re trying to bla him?"
"He didn’t break any rules!" Soone else added angrily. "You’re the one who tried to murder your own child!"
"You’re the one wrong here, Julius!"
One by one, the elves turned against him.
The tide of voices grew louder, angrier, until even the males who once followed him were stepping back in discomfort
"Get out of here!" Shouted one of the older elves.
"Enough of your arrogance!"
"You’ve embarrassed yourself and this village long enough!"
The shouts grew into a storm.
Even the wounded Isaac and Rufus, still being tended to by others, turned their faces away in sha. The humiliation was too much to bear.
Julius stood trembling—red-faced, sweating, shaking with impotent rage—as the villagers jeered and spat insults.
The man who once lorded over them now looked like a broken shell.
And through it all, Luca stood calmly, watching everything unfold.
He didn’t say a word.
But there was a faint, unmistakable smirk on his lips.
Because the truth was—every accusation Julius had thrown at him had been absolutely correct.
From the very beginning, Luca had orchestrated everything—the archery challenge, the tension, the stakes, all of it.
He had wanted Julius to take the bait, to shoot first.
And he had wanted the chaos that followed.
Why?
Because this wasn’t just a display of skill.
It was revenge.
Ever since the day he’d seen Isaac and Rufus at Es’s house—seen how they’d treated her, seen their smug cruelty—he’d never forgotten.
He’d wanted to kill them then and there, but circumstances hadn’t allowed it.
So he waited.
And today, he found the perfect excuse.
This entire ’demonstration’ had been nothing more than a setup.
Every shot, every taunt, every ’coincidence’ was part of his plan.
He had forced Julius into shooting, knowing the man’s arrogance wouldn’t let him back down.
And the mont Julius let that arrow fly, Luca had been ready.
His own arrow had been waiting to intercept—not just to save Luna, but to redirect the deadly energy toward Isaac and Rufus.
It had worked perfectly...almost.
If the arrows had been better crafted, more balanced, their fletching precise, both shafts would have struck true—piercing both n through the heart.
They would’ve died instantly.
But the bows were crude, the arrows unrefined, and the deviation in flight caused them to miss by inches.
Instead of killing, they rely injured.
Still, the result wasn’t bad.
Isaac and Rufus lay writhing in pain, their blood soaking into the dirt and watching that sight was rather satisfying for him and the villagers.
But Julius on the other hand, couldn’t take it anymore.
"Soone help them up! We’re getting out of here!"
He shouted, voice cracking with frustration.
A few reluctant elves moved forward, lifting Isaac and Rufus from the ground.
Both n groaned pitifully.
"Ah! Ow, ow—it hurts!" Isaac whimpered. "Please be gentle, it burns!"
"Ahhh, my stomach—!" Rufus scread. "Stop! Not so hard!"
"Shut up!" Julius barked, his tone sharp and venomous. "Be quiet! I’ll treat you later—just move!"
He glared one last ti at the crowd of sneering elves before turning away.
His cloak swished behind him as he marched off, his two wounded n dragging their feet, moaning with every step.
The rest of the males followed silently, their heads lowered in sha.
Behind them, the female elves laughed openly.
"Look at them run." One snorted. "The mighty ’healer’ and his n."
"Good riddance." Another chuckled. "Let them hide in their huts."
Luca folded his arms, watching calmly as Julius disappeared through the trees.
Just then, Nyx stepped up beside him, her arms crossed and an amused smile curling on her lips.
"Well." She said smoothly. "That really was quite the plan, Hero."
Luca turned slightly toward her, feigning innocence.
"Plan? What plan?"
Nyx gave a knowing chuckle.
"Oh, co now. You really expect to believe that all of that was just a happy coincidence?"
She gestured in the direction Julius had gone.
"Two n grievously wounded, Julius humiliated, and you completely untouched by consequence."
"If that’s not masterful, I don’t know what is."
Luca smiled faintly, shaking his head.
"I have no idea what you’re talking about, Nyx."
Nyx smirked and tilted her head.
"Mhm. Sure. Whatever you say, hero."
Before Luca could reply, two familiar figures approached—Luna and Lulu.
"Well, well, look who it is—the star of the show herself." He gave Luna an approving nod. "The bravest elf in the whole village."
He reached out and patted her gently on the head, catching her by surprise.
"I have to hand it to you, Luna. I honestly thought you’d flinch, maybe even take a step back. But you didn’t move an inch."
"I never expected such courage from you."
But instead of Luna replying, Lulu imdiately puffed her chest with pride and threw an arm around her sister’s shoulders.
"Of course, Luca! She’s my sister after all!"
"We Silverleaves aren’t afraid of anything! No matter what cos our way, we face it head-on! This was nothing for us!"
Luna, however, looked a little uneasy. Her cheeks flushed red, and her fingers fidgeted nervously.
"Actually..." She murmured quietly. "The truth is..."
Luca tilted his head. "Hmm? What is it?"
Luna hesitated, then tiptoed closer, her face burning as she leaned in to whisper into his ear.
"I was a little scared...so scared that...I actually..."
"...peed myself a little."
Luca blinked in disbelief. "You’re joking."
She shook her head quickly, her face turning beet red.
"I’m not! I really did! So, um...I’m gonna go ho and change my clothes. But—"
She pointed a finger at him firmly.
"Don’t you dare start teaching without ! I want to be there!"
Before he could respond, she turned and dashed off.
Lulu on the other hand was left baffled.
"Wait—what? Change? What’s she talking about?"
She ran after her sister.
"Luna! Wait! Where are you going? Take with you! I swear if it’s to way sothing yummy by yourself, I’ll never forgive you!"
Nyx, watching them go, couldn’t help but laugh softly.
"She peed herself a little, didn’t she?"
Luca sighed before letting out a chuckle.
"Yeah...she did. She’s going to change and co back."
Nyx smiled slyly before she said,
"Well, in that case...maybe I should change too."
Luca looked at her, startled.
"Wait—you too? Don’t tell you also—"
Nyx gave a low laugh, shaking her head.
"Oh no, Hero. It’s not that." She leaned in close, her voice lowering to a sultry purr. "Just because my underwear is a little wet doesn’t an I peed myself."
"Then what—"
Nyx’s lips curled into a teasing smile as she t his eyes.
"There are...other ways a woman can beco wet without peeing herself, you know."
It took Luca a mont—but then realization dawned on his face.
Nyx’s gaze grew heavier, her voice dropping to a whisper.
"After watching you shoot like that...seeing that power, that control, and then saving my niece so effortlessly..."
She leaned closer, her breath warm against his ear.
"It’s only natural my body would react. You made it very...difficult to resist, Hero."
Luca’s pulse quickened slightly as she whispered the next words.
"And honestly right now, I want to drag you sowhere private...and show you a world of pleasure."
"But sadly, we’re surrounded." She shook her head. "You have an audience, Hero. And I’d rather not give them a free show."
"Well, not exactly." He chuckled lowly.
Nyx raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"
Luca leaned in just enough for her to hear, his tone playful.
"Luna’s gone to change her clothes. It’ll take her a few minutes. And behind that tree..."
He nodded subtly toward a large tree not too far away.
"...there’s a hollow space no one can see through."
He left the rest unsaid, his grin hinting at mischief.
Nyx didn’t need any more explanation. Her eyes glead with heat as she grabbed his hand firmly.
"Co along, Hero." She said with a grin. "No need to waste any ti."
Without waiting for another word, she pulled him toward the tree line, their steps quick and quiet.
The nearby elves watched the two disappear behind the grove, whispering among themselves.
"Where are they going?" One asked curiously.
"Probably to discuss sothing important." another said confidently. "They must be making plans for the village’s next phase."
"Hmm, maybe." One woman said, stretching. "Well, while they handle that, I can’t wait to start learning archery!"
"Now that those nuisances are gone, we can finally enjoy this properly."
The group cheered in excitent.
But Leona, watching from a distance, didn’t believe a word of it.
Her eyes narrowed, suspicion gleaming in them.
She knew her sister far too well—knew that mischievous smirk, that sway in her walk.
’Sothing’s not right.’ She thought, folding her arms.
And, driven by a mix of curiosity and intuition, she began to follow them quietly, her steps light and silent, determined to find out exactly what was going on behind that tree.
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