I follow the strange smell in the air. It is so unnoticeable and subtle I almost cannot detect a whiff of it. In the chaotic mixture of the stench of the dungeon, I persist in tracking that string of smell. I walk deeper into the dungeon.
At the end of the dungeon, I see an altar of a naked woman with fine sculpting. It is only stone, and its workmanship is not that great, but I can recognize that the woman is in pleasure. The sight of the altar disgusts me.
"It is the goddess of fertility, reproduction, and life…" I ignore Zeraya's comment and approach the altar in great strides.
There is burning incense below it. I stomp on them like some kid throwing a tantrum. "If there is truly a god, then that would only be the unspeakable, untouchable, and the unseeable…"
I am yet to see a supernatural existence in this world. Even if I do, and that existence claims to be a God. I won't believe it. It has the same principles as to how I declared myself a King.
"I am starting to hate humanity all the more…"
I am being heavy-handed because we are weak, and all of the odds are against us. I desire perfection in each operation because a single mistake will be our downfall. "I am not cruel enough…" I blame myself with red in my eyes.
"I denounce the gods of humanity and deem them pagan gods. True gods don't need altars and physical representations. They are among us, and with us… watching and judging us in our every little action to each of us."
Tears uncontrollably pour down. I remain turning my back against Zeraya lest she sees my weak form. I cannot have that. I let the tears pour as I really have no choice. That burning incense is really hateful.
I see movement to my left, in the darkness of the cage, come the wrinkled hands of an old man.
"White graying hair… You don't look that old. This is unusual, and a half-elf follower… A weird combination. If it were back in my time, the half-elf should be kowtowing on the dirt. Half-elves would be something like the lowest servant. Is she your servant, boy?"
I hear the arrogant voice addressing me. I take control of my emotions forcefully. Casually wiping my tears, I look over to a cage where a lone old man seats.
"Who are you?" Zeraya draws her steel finding the voice annoying.
The old man grins as he grabs the iron bars separating him from us. I can feel his calm gaze inspecting me with amusement and interest.
"I am a very ancient elf over 600 years and still counting! Unfortunately, I cannot prove it to you." The old man lifts his long white hair and reveals to us where his ears should be. "A crazy bastard cuts off my ears and told me it was for sport… These humans are truly filthy, eh?" He tells me in a jest.
"How are you alive over 500 years when an elf's lifespan should be just 500 years?" I voice my confusion. My wild guess is it would be an elixir.
"Elixir," The old man proudly boasts. "I am a master alchemist, boy! Count Urden sent me to this place as a gift to the baron. That count wanted my elixir so bad, yet he cannot pry my mouth open, so he can only find other use for me!"
I see why the old man is so arrogant. But.
"I don't want your elixir." I get the keys by my waist courtesy of Ririn's cooperation. I open the door of the cage letting the old man out. "Just cure the elves afflicted with the aphrodisiac."
"Is that so? Get me goat piss, and some herbs then. Also a bottle of exquisite wine… It wouldn't be as difficult for such a distinguished elf as you, so please?" The old man grins at me with a dirty smile.
I ask him with a nonchalant gaze. "I didn't catch your name yet. Who are you?"
The old man straightens his back and looks down at me. "I am Allenwood Yore of the Lorekleim Tribe!"
I did receive some shock, but by 'tribe', it is just ancient history now. I hesitate for a microsecond as to how I should introduce myself. In the end, I decided to be 'honest' with him. "I am the King of the Elves, Arthram Fae Zorun… Now, get to work…"
…
Allenwood chokes in his saliva at the gray-haired elf's words. King? What Elf King? Since when? What the fuck? It has only been some decades since his imprisonment, and suddenly, they now have a King?
It has been a very long time ago since his departure from Lorekleim. At that time, he was young and full of anger toward the humans. It is subsiding just a little tiny bit, but he is still angry though.
In his own little bit of adventures, Allenwood travels in the Ezelea continent to exact his petty revenge on humanity. Sometimes, he burns a village or two to the ground. Most often, he cuckolds a random guy's wife if he finds the wife's aesthetics to be likable. He even had a half-elf son once! Of course, he abandons the child to his mother and father.
Allenwood is a bastard through and through. In his own reasoning, if his wood is hard, he should rub it.
Every elf in existence has a reason to hate the humans, and that is the same for Allenwood who doesn't shy into engaging in the darker ways. That is how he finds his passion for alchemy. In fact, Allenwood had good business in the far north in selling his addictive substances.
If not for the emperor restricting his crack, he could have inflicted far more severe damage to humankind. As he was escaping south for Lorekleim Forest, Count Urden stumbles on him. That is how Allenwood ends up in the Beyronald Kingdom.
Allenwood follows the self-proclaimed King, and the Half-elf outside the dungeon to get his ingredients for a cure to stomp out the remaining effects of the aphrodisiac that was responsible for turning the elves in the dungeons into sex-crazed beasts.
That aphrodisiac is quite revolutionary even to Allenwood's standards. Only a master alchemist is capable of creating something like that. It wasn't just the incense. He recalls the often times when the baron uses a bottle of potion to mix with the food he gives.
The baron is very secretive about the elf farm's existence as such he is the only caretaker the dungeon has. Every time he feeds the elves with food, he uses a pink potion.
"I will go look around." He tells the gray hair and black hair.
He doesn't even bother to enjoy his new freedom a little bit more. With spry steps, he navigates the manor. There is blood everywhere. When he sees the dead baron on his path, he just spits at the corpse and moves on. Finally, he arrives at the office of the baron with ease all thanks to his familiarity with human architecture.
Under the drawer, he finds what he is coming for. He takes the potion and hides it under his robes. Suddenly, he tense up as he hears eager and hurrying footsteps at the door just outside the baron's office.
"Was I found out?" He asks himself. "So what?" He concludes.
Just behind the door is an old elf Allenwood reckons to be past 400 years old. He scrutinizes the elf as he finds him quite familiar. "Yirlung, you brat! You are still alive!" Allenwood utters in shock.
Does this mean the so-called Elf King comes from the Lorekleim Forest or was it from another forest trying to unify all of the elf race?
"I should be saying that, you old bastard! And here I thought I heard a familiar name, so it was you!" Yirlung comes to him for a hug, but Allenwood is evasive. Yirlung gives up as he weirdly looks at the old man. "What got into you?"
Allenwood weakly explains. "I am so frail. If you hug me. I might collapse."
"I will be gentle," Yirlung insists.
In the end, the two hug. Allenwood prays in his heart that Yirlung doesn't find he is sneaking a bottle of potion under his raggedy clothes. Allenwood shifts his weight to get the hidden bottle of potion as far away as possible from Yirlung.
Allenwood doesn't know about this King, or how he should approach him. In his eyes, that gray hair is just a brat barely over a century. What would that kid know about leading?
Moreover, Allenwood recalls the bloodthirst of that self-proclaimed Elf King. There is no way he would miss that. King or not, no one should denounce the 'gods' even if it was gods from another race like that.
"Yirlung, stop it already. Go get my goat piss, and herbs, so we can be done already and go home!" Allenwood pushes away Yirlung.
Yirlung nods to his request. "Ok, I will get you what you need. But alchemist, really huh? I recall you being a bastard who had a fancy for pulling the worst pranks and now you are an alchemist!?" He complains while he turns around to get what Allenwood needs.
Allenwood shoo Yirlung away. "Just go already, so that we can go home!"
Yirlung halts his steps and weirdly looks back at Allenwood. "What go home? We and his majesty will need to raid Count Urden's territory after this…" Yirlung says in a matter-of-fact tone.
That shuts up Allenwood for a good long second.
Raid? Since when did elves go crazy!?