NOVEL NEXT 763. Are The Elves Ok?
Once upon a time, there was a secluded tribe that lived deep in the jungles of Velvori.
The tribe was infamous for their promiscuity. They’d have maps charted of the creatures and people they tasted the pleasures of. 4,300 different entities were recorded by this one tribe of barely a thousand alone. It reached a point where they were running out of things to experiment on.
What was simply lust turned into desperation. It was the natural cycle of tribes that followed the Goddess of Lust Mythra, hence why Elves tended to be nomadic.
However, the lust of these Elves was different.
Intercourse could not cool down their burning desire to release themselves, and they endured it for hundreds of years. The torment made procreation impossible. Decades of constant interrupted concentration and flooded thoughts of release caused them to lose their magical affinity.
The spiral did not end here.
No Elf beyond their tribe drew near out of fear of being infected with their disease. Major settlements exiled them and marked their bodies permanently with a magical tattoo. It depicted a bleeding heart meant to mock them by the more civilized Elves, who believed it was deserved as followers of Mythra.
The 2nd Branch was made up of these outcasted Elves.
Simonia took them under her wing on a calculated whim. The Apostles of Justica Arms were required to construct their own Branches as a test to prove themselves to Galia – the Colorless Incandescent.
The 2nd Apostle had an interest in the followers of Mythra due to their insatiable lust. Weaponizing lust was not unheard of. After all, the Succubus were a prime example, as were Vampires although their desire was closer to thirst.
But these Elves were different.
They reacted to bloodshed with unparalleled pleasure. The mere act of drawing blood and watching the facial expression of their prey was a pleasure a thousand times more than what procreation was capable of.
But more than that, damage inflicted upon them caused them to revel with joy. It did not matter if they had a cut on their finger or had lost a limb. Glee would fill their crazed eyes.
The natural response to a stabbed blade would be to pull it out, but for them, it would be to push it further if it meant getting closer to their enemies.
It was bloodlust in the most literal sense.
As one could imagine, they had a fantastic relationship with the Scarlet Healers.
* * *
Of the 950 Peace Flock, 500 were the original Elves of that same village.
The others were descendants. Thankfully, unlike Vampires, the older generations were not the strongest, though their appetite for bloodshed was certainly more powerful.
They were just not as creative as the newer members. Additionally, the newer generations of their tribe could indeed elevate their bloodlust through traditional lust.
Elves from each Branch had a common ancestor or shared heritage with one another. It was also not uncommon for any random Elf to have a family working for Justica Arms in some capacity.
The 2nd Branch’s numbers were unspectacular because these Elves could only come from a specific bloodline. Elves did not have many offspring, which further contributed to their low numbers.
If there was anyone in the Nexus who would willingly agree to anchoring their soul to the Requiem, then it would be them.
“Oh. Oh! I would love that…” The same short-haired, boyish Captain hummed, salivating at the ability to replicate infinitely. “But all decisions comes from our beloved Apostle.”
“I’ve considered it.” Andra said, causing the Elves to murmur excitedly. “I’m just waiting for Oboros Infinitas to approve us. The Head will also have their hand in it, but from what I gather, they’re respectful of what we want. So long as it doesn’t hurt anyone.”
“Hehehe~”
“Mr. Moon, can you stick close to me? I’ll show you a good sight after this if you can keep me alive.”
“Pass around the healing potions. Keep a few vials underneath your tongue.”
“Surviving this will be worthwhile if we can join the Replication Cycles!”
“Lament, no – Repent Cycles! Would it be called the same for us?”
The 2nd Branch had lost their minds.
Jury was convinced of this. Blood Moons lived through hell because of the Replication Cycles, yet these Elves – who could not even compare to a single Moon – fantasized it.
They wanted to harrow hell themselves.
These were the kind of people that the Impuritas had to face.
* * *
“We’ll send them a gift to see how they’ll respond.” Galia said. “The Repenters and our Impuritas friends. They do not know that Beholders are assisting the assault. As Beholders it should not be a problem to attack them head on. However, I am also suspicious. The pale contours of that city’s walls look all too familiar to me.”
“In what way?” Jury wondered.
“The territory of the Knights of the Pale. The 13th Order had a certain way of flaunting their power through architecture. The more ridiculous their cities were, the stronger their influence was. Bridges on the skies where horse-drawn carriages ran? Logic is lost to those buried so deep in their own hubris that that they can only fault the families that fall. It’s never their own fault for creating such hostile architecture.”
Galia scoffed. Andra immediately reached into her Dimensional Storage to retrieve a cold brew of coffee for her dear Beholder. Every Apostle of Justica Arms had their own specialty brew, and it just so happened that Galia was parched for a cold long black.
“The 2nd Order. Jury.”
“Yes!”
“Prepare yourself.”
“For a Heart of the City?”
Galia shook her head as she extended an arm, halting the march of 1,000 in an instant.
“No, for the 2nd Order. Puritas’ finest. I wouldn’t warn you if I didn’t also think that they were dangerous. Send in a portion of the Repenters and the Impuritas first. Afterwards, we’ll send our regards.”
Why was the 2nd Order so dangerous? At best they would be resurrected husks. A combined attack of [Retrocausality – Smite] and [Heaven’s Fall] would certainly wipe out any stationed force, right?
It was unfortunately not as simple as that.
A sudden prompt flashed before Jury’s eyes the moment she took one extra step forward.
Then, she heard the faint trumpet of a distant Augurist.
//////// < WARNING > ////////
< You have entered a Corrupted Zone >
< Unknown Corrupted >
< Unknown Condition >
Jury had to wonder how Galia knew this before they even received the prompt.
