Divine Kingship

Chapter 599 What is the power of the Elf God?
The battle ended quite concisely.

The priest in the heart of the dilapidated temple was forced to kneel before Rand because thorns growing from the ground pierced his limbs.

After a while, Olena also came in from outside; she had just gone out to deal with the other small fish.

It seems that everything has been resolved now.

Olena took a soft cloth and wiped the tip of the Swift Sword's blade, then gracefully sheathed it.

Then, he picked up the glasses that matched Rand's interests, brushed his hair back, and put them on.

He picked up his pen and notebook and went to Rand's side to fulfill his duties as a scribe.

"What should we do with the prisoners?" Rand wasn't in a hurry to interrogate the priest or inquire about the prisoners.

"We've gathered them together and provided them with some food and water so they can rest on their own. After that, it's up to them whether they want to join the reformists or return to their own villages," Olena asked Rand for his opinion.

"Then let them choose freely later." Rand had no objections.

Then, Rand turned to the priest, whose eyes were contorted in rage and whose body had become monstrous: "Alright, answer my question. What is your purpose in choosing to sacrifice the elves?"

The priest had realized that he was no match for the three men in front of him.

But he just sneered: "Dream on! The great Elf God will punish you."

Rand sighed. Whether the God of Elves was an evil god or not, it wouldn't be easy for him to punish this cult leader who was exempt from sacrifice.

Rand tried various forms of torture, but the priest's pain receptors were probably almost completely destroyed, so the interrogation was not very effective.

It seems we really can't get any more information out of them.

Rand ignored the priest.

They patrolled the dilapidated temple with Olena and Lysa.

Torture is a very comprehensive discipline.

Before coming into this world, Rand was just a college student at an agricultural college, and his knowledge of torture was limited to what he had learned from movies and TV series.

The knowledge presented in these films and television shows is often artistically embellished, so Rand couldn't verify its accuracy.

but.

After arriving in this world, Rand encountered countless enemies, and thus managed to gain some experience in torture.

That is, don't look at problems in isolation.

The information gathered from interrogating only one person is quite limited.

However, if you investigate his surroundings, the people around him, and observe his reactions, you can often learn a lot of information.

In short, everything is interconnected.

After Rand opened the ritual scrolls and some bloody sacrificial items, he learned quite a bit.

"So you're trying to attract the attention of the Elf God by connecting the creator and the created? Have you considered what the Elf God would think if he were actually drawn to your attention?" Rand looked at the priest.

The priest remained silent, clearly content with being noticed, whether with joyful gazes or hateful curses.

Rand probed further, uncovering some of the scale of the Revivalists and their motives.

The revivalists believe that the elves have become so weak because the gods no longer watch over them, which has led to the elves gradually becoming weaker than the human race.

If the Elf God can regain his attention, the elves will surely be able to revive. And to achieve this goal, all sacrifices are worthwhile, and all means are acceptable.

Everything else is insignificant in the grand scheme of things.

To be honest, this idea made Rand feel incredibly stupid.

Although in this world where gods do exist, their influence is not as ethereal as it was in Rand's previous life.

But relying entirely on the power of God, rather than on oneself, is destined to have no future.

By the time Rand wanted to learn more, the priest had already committed suicide.

Rand shrugged. "Looks like he doesn't want to tell us any more. Let's go outside."

Many prisoners had already been gathered together: "Hello everyone, I am..."

Rand hesitated for a moment before saying, "I am a human adventurer employed by the Queen, who is supported by the Reformers. If you wish to fight for the normal life of the elves, you can go south and join the Reformers."

Afterwards, Rand dealt with some of the surrounding traps and dangerous wild beasts and monsters before finally leaving.

Rand didn't pay much attention to how these residents wanted to choose.

But Rand believed that some residents would choose to join the reformists.

the reason is simple.

Now, the once tranquil and peaceful Elf Forest is in turmoil.

Whether it was due to the reformists, the revivalists, or the royal court, the original solidified state of the Elf Forest has been shattered.

Something from outside the Elf Forest, and something within the Elf Forest, is already tearing this solidification apart.

Rand did not act as a babysitter for the elves; after dealing with the dangers and pointing out the way, he left.

On the way, Rand asked Lysa, "What kind of god is the Elf God?"

Rand knew something about the Elf God, but he felt that Lysa, who was suspected to be the Elf Goddess or a messenger, would have some more unique insights.

Lysa didn't mind explaining for Rand: "Actually, there are no errors in those records. The bright moon in the forest, the guide of silent life, the creator of elves, the planter of the golden world tree, is the essence of the elf god."

“There’s a lot of this I don’t understand,” Rand said bluntly.

"The bright moon in the forest refers to two abilities of the Spirit God. It has a certain ability to manipulate plants, while the bright moon refers to another power of the Spirit God—staying, which in a sense can also be called eternity. In short, it can slow down or even stop certain things."

"Silent life refers to plants. The Elf God also guided many tree spirits and other life forms. The following events are all insignificant. The only thing to be careful about is that some elves may find the sacred artifacts left behind by the Elf God and gain some similar abilities."

Lysa quickly finished explaining what needed to be explained.

“There’s another important question,” Rand asked. “Is the Elf God a benevolent deity?”

"Judging gods by good and evil might be too difficult, but at least the Elf God shouldn't be one of those evil gods who crave destruction?" Lysa gently raised her head. It was already night, and the bright moon hung high in the night sky. Lysa's snow-white neck looked even more striking under the moonlight.

……

At this time, Vanilla was leading her army to meet the enemy.

The enemy is an army of elven nobles who are loyal to the Elven Royal Court.

An army of this size is actually insufficient to destroy this elven town.

For some unknown reason, these elven nobles launched a siege despite their small numbers.

Perhaps they wanted to claim credit? Vanilla had no idea.

This elven town was built in the trees, and its walls were very low. However, since it was built on a giant tree, the routes to attack the town were still quite limited.

Vanilla stood atop the low city wall, gazing at the battlefield below.

In such terrain, there is no point in guarding the city walls; the low walls can be easily climbed over.

Therefore, Vanilla's strategy is to hold the crossroads.

The town is supported by trees of unimaginable size, and to reach it, one must traverse paths formed by their branches.

However, the number and width of branches leading to the town are limited.

As long as we hold the crossroads, the enemy's numerical advantage cannot be utilized. Meanwhile, our side also has the advantage of height and fighting spirit.

That makes it much easier to fight.

Many elves clashed at the crossroads set up by the vanilla.

A fierce battle ensued between the two sides.

And then the two sides got into a melee.

Vanilla then ordered archers and mages to attack the enemy's rear.

The elves' arrows and magic rained down on the enemy lines.

The rear troops retreated immediately upon the attack, thus becoming separated from the vanguard.

Vanilla continued to order her troops to surround the enemy's out-of-group vanguard, creating a local numerical advantage.

Soon the attacking Elven royal army began to collapse and then retreated.

Although our side suffered some losses due to the enemy's superior numbers, we still achieved a great victory overall.

In Vanilla's view, the military capabilities of these elven nobles were still stuck in a relatively primitive stage.

After all, elves and humans have been at peace for quite some time.

Large-scale conflicts rarely occur within the Elf Forest.

So while the quality of these elven nobles' soldiers was quite good, their military concepts and skills were rather lacking.

“We don’t need to pursue them,” Vanilla said, stopping the pursuing troops after the enemy had scattered.

He then led his men back to the city.

The next task is to handle matters related to compensation and rewards/punishments.

Vanilla, a seasoned working woman, is able to handle her busy work schedule quite easily and in an orderly manner.

Although her past work was mostly related to church schools, she also worked as an administrative assistant for a period of time when she first joined the Holy Domain.

Moreover, before coming to the Fairy Forest, Vanilla had done a lot of intensive research on related knowledge. In addition, her work and management at school had also allowed her to accumulate a considerable amount of knowledge about the Fairy Forest.

In short, for now, we only need to deal with one town and its surrounding villages.

Whether it's politics, economics, culture, or military affairs, Xiangcao can handle it all.

Vanilla's teacher, Nidhogg, was quite pleased.

He found it quite hard to believe that the seemingly unremarkable and somewhat rebellious elven royal girl had grown into someone so talented.

He, as the teacher, felt honored.

Nidhogg is now even more confident in the reformists' victory.

Under the vanilla strategy.

She quickly gained the support of the town's elves.

The reason why people were not very willing to support Vanilla before was, of course, because Vanilla, a member of the royal family who had been parachuted in, was not someone they could trust at all, as they were elves who were oppressed by the elven lords.

If it weren't for Nidhogg's strong guarantee, everyone might have already adopted a hostile strategy towards Vanilla.

Up to now.

People have realized that vanilla, in any case, will not be a vase to be displayed.

Then vanilla was attacked.

It couldn't be called an assassination, because it happened while the group was surrounded by troops.

Vanilla had only two guards by her side.

Vanilla gazed at the elves surrounding her: "Do you have any strong grievances regarding the current policies?"

Vanilla was somewhat puzzled by the current situation. From her perspective, everything was in perfect order. Within her predetermined framework, the lives of the elves in this town would soon improve, and they would receive more training in military and other areas.

She will soon be able to solidify the model and then expand rapidly.

She certainly wouldn't be conquering the Elf Forest in a strategy of attacking and plundering.

If it were a normal aristocratic war, involving an attack and then conquest.

It may take decades to obtain the throne of the Elf Forest.

"You did a great job." The people surrounding her were not stingy in giving Vanilla an answer.

Vanilla understood immediately.

If vanilla had been a decorative object, they might not have acted so extremely, but now that vanilla is not a decorative object, their rights have been violated.

So it is at this time that they want to kill Vanilla.

They are so short-sighted, ignoring the greater benefits of the future.

But they seem even less tolerant of their current power being taken away and held by vanilla.

"Unfortunately, you are destined to fail," Vanilla said helplessly.

the reason is simple.

Rand entrusted her with Rand's own personal guard.

The silent cavalrymen quickly emerged from the darkness, appearing before the eyes of those who were trying to surround and kill Vanilla.

As for why the fully armored cavalry made no sound of movement, it was naturally because the accompanying mages had cast a silencing spell.

The superior performance of the standard-issue staff saved the accompanying mages a great deal of resources.

Subsequently, these power-hungry elves were dealt with.

Vanilla didn't care, nor did she leave any survivors for torture.

For her, this was just a trivial incident.

There will always be all sorts of enemies on the road to power, and this time it's just a very small part of them.

Vanilla had anticipated all of this.

Lord Rand must have experienced countless similar events on his path to becoming king.

You could even say that for Vanilla, the enemies that can be dealt with by force are actually the easiest enemies to deal with.

The real trouble comes from enemies whose efforts only backfire.

For example, there are still some elves in the city who are thoroughly hostile to the elven royal family.

Even after witnessing Vanilla's abilities, these elves still did not submit to her.

They always believed that Vanilla, the royal fairy, had stolen the fruits of their rebellion.

They also didn't think their lives would change if the current elven royal family remained the rulers of the elves.
Vanilla stopped thinking about it and rubbed her forehead.

Once His Majesty Rand returns, she will request a few days of leave, as she feels she has been working excessively long hours lately.

(End of this chapter)