I’ve Reincarnated into an Elf

Chapter 11

Eldmir and his group had spent the previous evening discussing the beastfolk folk girls’ future goals over dinner.

Through this conversation, their plans had become clearer, and Eldmir and Esiria once again promised to do everything they could to help them achieve their objectives.

For the beastfolk folk girls, who had lost their guardian and had no one left to rely on, this was an overwhelming gesture of kindness, and they found themselves in tears once again.

And so, the night passed, and morning arrived.

“Damn it,” Eldmir muttered, cursing under his breath—something he had done far too many times already.

—Will you stop swearing already? Great example you’re setting for the kids, Atir uttered in.

It was one of those moments where hearing the truth just made him angrier.

“By the name of my goddess, protector of the forest, mother of all elves, El Rdarel, Atir, if you piss me off one more time”

Yeah, yeah, I get it. You’ll put an arrow in my mouth or whatever. You’ve said it so much it’s lost all meaning.

Eldmir felt his blood boiling, but Atir uttered those words.

There were four young kids standing right there, and losing his temper like this in front of them wasn’t exactly the act of maturity.

Sure, he hadn’t gone through the Elven coming-of-age ceremony yet, but mentally, he was pushing fifty. He knew it would be better to avoid such behaviour.

“Damn it!”

Seriously, for crying out loud, gave an annoyed expression.

“Grow up, Eldmir. Nobody wanted this, nobody saw it coming, and none of us asked for this mess. You need to chill.”

Atir’s words were half-right, half-wrong. Eldmir wasn’t just mad about the situation itself.

He was mad at himself.

Out of everyone, he had seen this coming first. He should’ve been prepared.

But no—he’d completely ignored that and brushed it off as an unlikely possibility.

He’d let himself forget that the goblins might actually invade the forest, and now here they were.

This wasn’t some unavoidable disaster. This was his failure to act.

His this act made them feel he was blaming them.

“I-I’m sorry… this is all because of us,” came a trembling voice.

Ketrit, one of the beastfolk girls, looked up at him with teary eyes, guilt written all over her face.

Eldmir turned back, snapping out of his anger as he quickly forced a softer expression.

“No, no, it’s not like that. You’ve got nothing to apologize for. This isn’t your fault at all.”

“But if we hadn’t—”

“Stop right there. This isn’t about you, okay? Don’t blame yourselves. I’m mad at me, not you. I knew those damn goblins might come to the forest and still didn’t prepare for it. That’s my fault, not yours.”

Goblins.

Just like Eldmir had predicted, whether it was because they couldn’t suppress their hot-headed nature or because their goal was simply to kill the beastfolk girls

The goblins were spreaded in the forest in small squads.

Even though they seemed somewhat aware that they were in an elven forest and tried to hide their presence, well, goblins were still goblins.

That distinct odor and their terrifying aura couldn’t be masked.

It didn’t take long for them to be discovered by the forest spirits, who spread the news far and wide.

Naturally, Esiria heard about it through the spirits as well.

She’d temporarily left the group to fulfill her duties as a protector, leaving Atir behind to guard the catfolk girls and, in a way, watch over Eldmir too.

Eldmir wasn’t particularly worried about Esiria, but the thought that all of this might’ve been avoided if he’d just handled things a bit better kept him in regret.

If he’d only asked the spirits to scout once more…

if he’d warned the village about the possibility of goblins sneaking in…

if he’d at least told Istain and the other three protectors to stay alert for goblins…

Those thoughts kept circling in his head, tormenting him.

So, how long are you planning to stay in self-doubt?

“…Ugh.”

Atir wasn’t wrong.

This wasn’t the time to sit around criticising himself.

The protectors might be out hunting the goblins right now, but there was no guarantee they wouldn’t run into more trouble along the way.

Pushing his self-doubt aside, Eldmir focused on staying alert as he kept moving.

“Atir, can you check with the other spirits to see what’s going on with the protectors?”

We can’t just communicate freely regardless of distance, you know.

Artir’s clear response earned a click of the tongue from Eldmir.

“What about with your contractor? Can’t you contact my mother?”

Hmm. Hold on a sec.

At least that’s something, Eldmir thought to himself, glancing at the four sisters, who were still visibly uneasy.

He forced an awkward smile.

“It’s fine, really. Don’t worry too much. The spirits said there are maybe ten goblins possibly.

Our village alone has over thirty protectors, so they’ll handle it.”

Not to mention, protectors from other villages would probably lend a hand, too.

He tried to reassure them, giving the sisters some peace of mind—at least for a moment.

Uh, hey, idiot. We’ve got a problem.

“What now? Quit making it sound so alarming.”

Atir’s next words sent a chill down Eldmir’s spine.

It looks like the goblins are launching a full invasion.

Esiria was an exceptional protector and a seasoned hunter.

Unlike her son, Eldmir, she didn’t possess any of those strange, unpredictable skills filled with mysterious powers.

But at least in the forest, there many people who could not dodge or block her arrows.

Despite being a young elf who’d only just passed her first century, her talent placed her among the best protectors in the village, and she was considered a rising star.

Even so, the current situation was overwhelming, even for someone like her.

“Raaaagh!”

“Kill the knife-ears! Slaughter them all! For Ka-Hwaran!!”

The goblins roars were so powerful, they felt almost face-to-face.

It was like facing avatars of raw brutality—creatures who didn’t care how many arrows pierced their bodies.

When one of their comrades fell, they simply stepped over the corpse and kept charging forward.

“Brothers! This is a blood festival! Take every last one of those knife-ears and offer them to Ka-Hwaran as sacrifices!”

“For the glory of battle!!”

Even just hearing their ferocious cries made Esiria’s body tremble. For a moment, she felt the raw intensity of their bloodlust creeping into her bones.

But she quickly shook it off, letting the forest’s energy evenly throughout her body.

This was an elven forest. Their domain.

This was not a place that could simply be overrun by cruel outsiders like these.

Countless invasions had occurred in the past, and the elves had won every single time.

This time would be no different.

“Esiria!”

The desperate shout of a comrade snapped her out of her thoughts.

She dodged just in time as a double-bladed throwing ax crossed near by her head, strucking itself in a tree behind her.

Heart pounding, she calmed herself and knocked another arrow.

“Brothers and sisters of the forest, let us show these arrogant invaders the real power of the protectors!”

The elves rarely gave in to anger, but even they couldn’t suppress their fury in the face of such an daring attack.

Their calm, confident voices echoed through the forest, an obvious response to the goblins’ wild roars.

“Under El Rdarel’s blessing, protectors, protect the forest.”

“For the forest’s protection.”

“For the forest’s oath.”

Their arrows arced gracefully through the air, landing precisely on their targets.

True to their name, the protectors wasted no shots. While some arrows were blocked by shields or deflected, none of the goblins could completely avoid the deadly rain of projectiles.

And yet, the goblins didn’t falter.

The more blood they spilled, the more comrades they lost, the more angry they became.

They were like avatars of anger, launching themselves into battle with no regard for their own lives.

“Scatter!”

The protectors’ precise attacks slowed the orcs’ advance but couldn’t stop it entirely.

Some managed to break through, but the elves didn’t panic.

Using the trees and ground to their advantage, they used hit-and-run tactics, striking swiftly and retreating before the goblins could retaliate.

Frustrated, the goblins bellowed in anger.

“Cut down the trees! Destroy everything!!”

It was a crude but effective tactic against the protectors. At the same time, it enraged the elves.

“How dare they!”

The destruction of the forest triggered the spirits’ anger, which was same with the elves.

Fire, wind, and earth responded to their anger, unleashing nature’s wrath upon the orcs.

Trees burst into flames, gusts of wind knocked them off their feet, and the ground itself opened to swallow them whole.

In just once 300-strong goblin force destroyerd rapidly.

From the start, the goblins’ defeat had been unavoidable.

A mere 300 warriors invading an elven forest was nothing short of foolish.

They knew that’s why they usually hesitated to invade, and history showed that they had never engaged in a battle of burnout of that level.

“What could’ve possessed those filthy beasts to invade our forest?”

The question was on every elf’s mind as they drove the remnants of the orcs back. There was no need for the prtectors to hide anymore.

The remaining goblins were so few that the elves stood openly among the trees, their dominance was clear.

“Hahaha! You should be thanking us, you new bow-shooters!”

The elves frowned at the goblin’s criticising statement.

“What are you talking about? Why should we thank invaders like you for invading our forest?”

“Of course you should. Khurrm.”

Even as they bled out, standing on the edge of death, the orcs continued laughing.

Blood poured from their wounds, yet they didn’t care.

Surrounded by the bodies of their fallen comrades and their own imminent deaths, they looked genuinely delighted.

“Cursed children of Ka-Hwaran, how can you still laugh like Psycho after all the horrors you’ve committed? What could possibly make you this happy?”

“The cursed ones aren’t us, you pathetic forest rats. You are!”

One of the remaining goblins sneered, laughing darkly as he shouted:

“The children of war have fulfilled their destiny! Bow before us, slaves of the forest! Worship us! Worship Ka-Hwaran!”

Before he could say more, an arrow pierced his forehead. Esiria fired the shot.

“Disgusting savages,” muttered one of the protectors.

“What do you think they meant by ‘fulfilling their destiny’?”

“No idea… but if it’s tied to the so-called ‘children of war,’ it’s probably nothing good.”

As the protectors exchanged uneasy words, Esiria broke into a rushed, leaving them behind.

She ran desperately, her heart pounding as a growing sense of anxiety grasped her mind.

“Eldmir…”

His name echoed in her thoughts, heavy with worry