"Oh, I see I have some visitors. Welcome, fox of the prophecy."
Aurora's eyes fell on the source of the voice that spoke to her immediately as she took a step inside the strange hut. It was a woman, quite naturally an elf. However, she looked much older than any other elf she had ever seen.
Very similarly to Elaine and Elijah, the woman had silver hair, her eyes being of a much paler shade of blue compared to the two other elves. The woman's face was already full of wrinkles, quite uncommon for a race like elves. Just from her appearance alone, it wasn't hard to guess that this woman was probably one of the oldest elves in the village.
However, even with her wrinkled face, Aurora could easily tell that the woman was at some point very beautiful. Actually, by human standards, she was a beauty in her own right. And while Aurora thought of her as old, she actually had the appearance of a woman in her fifties.
Aurora just got too used to seeing beautiful young women in these last two days. Heck, even Elaine, who was who knows how old, was very, very beautiful. Not to mention young beauties like Elise herself. Yes, these not-even-full two days she had spent here in the village of elves had completely ruined her sense of beauty.
"Oho, I see someone got lost in their thoughts." The elven woman chuckled, bringing Aurora out of her reverie.
Seeing Aurora staring intently and curiously at the woman, as well as the woman staring back at the small white fox, Elise smiled a little and took a step forward.
"Let me introduce you. Auntie, as you could already tell, this fox is Lady Aurora, the descendant of Lady Shinara. Lady Aurora, this is my aunt, Elusia Frös." Elise introduced the two with a small smile.
As the elven girl finished her explanation, Aurora momentarily looked at Elise, then at Elusia, and back at Elise, only to return to Elusia. With her eyes still on the older elf, she blinked a few times, looking completely dumbfounded.
"Hoho, I can basically see your thoughts right now, young lady. And yes, as hard as it may be to believe, I am indeed Elaine's sister. I'm the younger one at that, actually." Elusia chuckled a little when she saw the look on Aurora's face.
And her chuckle only intensified when she saw the fox's jaw drop when she finished her last words. It was quite amusing to see the little fox show so much reaction.
In fact, Aurora couldn't care less about Elusia, who was clearly enjoying her reactions. Right now, she was completely baffled by what she just heard.
This elder-looking elf lady was the sister of Elaine? The sister of 'that' elven chief who liked a perfectly young woman in her early thirties? And in fact, she was the younger one of the two!? Like hell she would believe that!
"You seem to doubt my words, young lady. Well, I can't say I blame you. The difference between me and my sister is very big." Elusia chuckled, her words containing no negative emotions.
"There's actually a very good reason why Elaine looks so much younger despite being at least twice as old as me." Elusia added further, and Aurora's eyes almost fell out of their sockets.
T-twice as old!? Elaine was at the very least twice as old as this woman!? Either she's being taken for a fool, or something extremely weird is going on here!
"Hmm, it seems explanations are necessary. As you probably already know, elves are a long-living race. We age very slowly, so our lifespans are much longer than most other races. However, even among elves, there are big differences in an individual's potential lifespan." As Elusia began to explain, Aurora listened to her very carefully in hopes she'll actually hear a reason for the information she just heard.
"Things like the individual's level, rank, spiritual power, and many other things highly affect how long one can live. With elves, another important thing is their bloodline. The ones with the 'normal' blood have regular lifespans for elves. However, those with what we call the 'royal' bloodline can live much, much longer than that." The more the elven woman said, the more Aurora understood where this explanation was going to end up.
"Now, due to our long lives, it is more difficult for us elves to reproduce, and when we do, the first child we bear inherits most of the properties of its parents. This means bloodline, potential, features, and so on. But if a couple manages to actually bear a second child, well, the difference will be quite palpable. The second child won't receive nearly as many benefits from its parents as the first child." Auroea finally understood why Elusia looked so old compared to Elaine.
While Elaine may be much older in the number of years she had lived for, Elusia, who probably had a significantly shorter lifespan from birth, was already nearing the end of her life.
"It seems you figured it out." Elusia chuckled, basically seeing the gears inside Aurora's head spinning.
"My sister is much older; that is a fact. However, she's not only much more powerful than me, but she also has a more potent blood running through her veins. While she's still at her prime, I'm already nearing the end of the line." Despite her words, Elusia's expression didn't change at all, nor did her tone.
She didn't sound jealous, bitter, or troubled at all. She didn't show the slightest bit of resentment or disdain on her face. Truly, she seemed to be fine no matter how Aurora looked at her.
"Surprised I'm fine despite knowing I'm about to die in a few years?" Elusia asked with a small smile; however, to her surprise, Aurora shook her head.
"Not really. From the way you say it, you are also very old, and with age comes wisdom. I very much doubt you would hate your sister for something she had no control over." Momentarily, Elusia was taken aback when she heard the voice inside her mind.
However, after just a few seconds, the smile on her face widened a bit as she chuckled softly.
"I see. My sister already gave you that scroll. Though, I'm interested in how you figured out I also had a skill like yours, hm?" Elusia asked with the same small smile; clearly, she was quite interested right now.
"It wasn't difficult. I just thought there was a decent chance you might have a skill like my Telepathy, so I gave it a try." Aurora shrugged dismissively, not saying too much.
Actually, Elusia could tell the fox lied to her. Or rather, she withheld most information and dodged the question perfectly.
It might seem like Aurora replied to her question, but she purposefully didn't say anything regarding why she thought Elusia might have a telepathic skill. Yes, she was Elaine's sister, but that didn't mean she had to have a skill like this one. Not even Elijah had a skill similar to Telepathy. There was a decent chance Elusia wouldn't have one either.
Of course, it was possible that Aurora just blindly guessed and tried using her skill on Elusia. However, the elven woman had lived for long enough to know that wasn't the truth. Despite knowing that, Elusia said nothing, nor did she push Aurora for an answer.
"Hmmm, now that I think about it, Elise, are you the younger or the older sibling?" Suddenly, a question popped into Aurora's mind, so she didn't hesitate to ask.
Elise blinked in surprise a few times, not ready to be asked such a question. She didn't expect to even be a part of this discussion in the first place! Still, she quickly composed herself.
"I am the younger Lady Aurora. Elijah is older than me by about a hundred or so years." Elise replied, and even if the last part wasn't important, she wanted to answer to the best of her abilities.
Aurora also appreciated that. Elise could have simply just said 'younger' or 'I am younger', but she went the extra mile to give her a more descriptive answer.
"Asked about her age, didn't you?" Elusia chimed in, accurately guessing the theme of Aurora's previous question.
Although a bit surprised, Aurora wasn't stunned or baffled at all. This woman was just way too good at reading people. Actually, she was good at reading magical beasts as well! Well, that might be just because Aurora shows so much human emotion, since she mentally is part human.
"I did. Since she's younger than her brother, does it mean her lifespan is shorter than his? And what about her bloodline? Is she also weaker than Elijah?" Aurora asked one question after the other, not even giving Elusia time to reply.
The little fox even got really defensive, as her voice grew colder and even carried a threatening undertone. She hadn't even known the elven princess for a day, but she already took a liking to her. She was always so upbeat, kind, and loving. From a certain point of view, she was like a sister to her already.
If her sister was compromised in any way, she didn't care what that way was; she would find a way to solve her problems no matter the cost. If her weaker bloodline was causing her sister problems, then she would find a way to solve that problem sooner rather than later.
"Hoho, no need to get so defensive, young lady. Although it is nice to see how much you care about our little girl, I can assure you, she's much more special than you think." Elusia said with a light chuckle and a smile. She didn't even use a skill to speak this time, so Elise could hear their conversation, or, at least, half of it.
"You see, normally, Elise would have a weaker bloodline than her brother as well as lower potential. But in her case, that couldn't be further away from the truth. Don't you find it interesting that from all four members of our family, only Elise doesn't have blue eyes?" Elusia said with the same small smile she always wore; however, Aurora ignored her expression.
Rather, the fox focused on the last words of the elder elf. Of course she thought it weird that Elise had silver eyes when both her mother, brother, and now even her aunt had blue eyes of various shades. Elise's eyes were just too out of place. However, after thinking about it for a bit, she just didn't bother to think too deeply about it after she couldn't figure out anything.
But Elusia's question brought that thought back, and now, she was more curious about the answer than ever before. And seeing the curious look on the fox's face, Elusia's smile widened ever so slightly, and she continued.
"You see, Elise awakened a rather strange ability right after her birth. Her eyes, they are special. We call them Eyes of True Vision. They are a part of an incredibly ancient bloodline that we only know of one elf ever having in the history of our tribe. Our first-ever ancestor, born out of the world's mana."
"These eyes allow the one who has them to see the world as it is. They will be able to see all the energy that makes up the very fabric of existence. Although we don't know the details, just from what we know, it's easy to guess just how powerful the ability must be. However, Elise hasn't awakened her eyes completely yet, so she can only see a bit." Elusia finished her explanation and took a look at Aurora to gauge her reaction. And she couldn't say she wasn't satisfied.
Aurora had shock written all over her face. Her lips were slightly parted, and her eyes were wide. She couldn't believe what she just heard. Seeing all the energy the world—no, not just the world. Space, time, just everything! Although at first such an ability may not sound as broken, you would immediately reconsider after thinking more carefully.
Seeing all the energy around you means you can see every single change. The smallest movement or change. And when you realize that time itself is made out of energy, that would mean you'll be able to see the flow of time and objects affected by it. And what does that mean? It means you can basically see the future if you are good at reading the changes in the energy!
Seeing the absolutely baffled expression of the small fox, Elusia couldn't hold back any longer, and she burst out laughing. Elise was doing her best to hold back, but she couldn't prevent the corners of her lips from curling up either.
As for the fox in question, she wasn't the least bit bothered by the reactions of others. She was just way too busy being shocked to even notice!