In Lonely Valley, Elf Messengers in Silver Armor streamed in and out of a small palace that bore the marks of history.

Most of the palace had collapsed, with only one half clearly showing recent, modern-style repairs.

The palace’s interior was not as opulent as one might imagine. Instead, it was unusually simple, containing only a long table draped with a red cloth edged in golden silk lace.

Several handsome Elves in exquisite Leather Armor were gathered around the long table, deep in discussion.

Fulina, valiant and imposing in her Silver Armor, was among them.

Ash Wind Speech was the Elf Queen of the Wind Speech Tribe. A High Elf of unknown age, her skin was still so fair and delicate it looked as if a breath could break it. Her beauty was so absolute that even the stars in the sky would seem to dim in her presence.

Strands of her hair cascaded like golden silk, captivating all who saw them.

But now, Queen Ash’s lovely, arching brows were furrowed, her heart heavy with worry.

"Queen, the Shadow Forest has fallen. The Tree-men suffered heavy losses, and most have retreated into Broken City."

The news, delivered by an Elf Messenger, cast a pall over everyone present.

Just a month ago, an Alliance Army had appeared out of nowhere and attacked the Wind Speech Tribe, catching them completely off guard.

Fortunately, by leveraging the natural geographic advantages of Lonely Valley, they had held the Alliance Army at bay in the Shadow Forest, several miles from the Tribe.

Lonely Valley was situated within a mountain basin. The Wind Speech Tribe was built upon its cliffs, with a deep chasm lying before it. Only the Silver Bridge, ancient and of unknown age, connected them to a gorge running through the smaller mountains opposite.

Beyond this gorge stood a wall over seventy feet high, built entirely of marble.

From atop the wall, one could see a forest on the distant plain, as black as ink. Its trees were massive, and not a single ray of light could penetrate the dense canopy.

Of course, some said the reason light couldn’t enter was that a powerful Mage had cast Magic upon the forest.

But whatever the reason, the reality remained: anyone wishing to enter from the outside had to pass through that gloomy forest, unless they were to climb the sheer cliffs, which towered hundreds of feet high.

And that forest was the Shadow Forest, home to the Tree-man Race and various other Magical Creatures.

The Wind Speech Tribe had long been on good terms with them, which was why the Tree-man Race had taken the initiative to intercept the enemy’s attack.

Normally, an army of several thousand charging into that lightless forest should have vanished without a ripple, like a stone tossed into a lake.

It was the Wind Speech Tribe’s first and most crucial line of defense. But after holding out for so long, it had finally fallen.

The Dark Elves had numerous Priests and had gathered many Wilderness Natives to their side. No matter how elite the Tribe’s Warriors were, or how much aid the Tree-man Race provided, it was not enough.

Its fall had truly been only a matter of time.

"Fulina, have you been able to contact your people?"

Ash turned her golden eyes to Fulina, a hint of hope on her face.

"I just got through to them yesterday, but I was only able to give them a brief overview of the situation here before the Shadow Transmission Magic failed."

Fulina leaned on the table, her arms crossed, her expression grim.

"I’m now one hundred percent certain these Zor Elves have some form of Magic that can block communications."

"That has to be why I couldn’t contact my soldiers before."

As soon as she had arrived and understood the situation, Fulina had tried to contact Fujero and order him north. But the Transmission Stone had been completely unresponsive, as if it had failed, until she finally succeeded yesterday.

Unfortunately, it died after only a few words were exchanged.

In truth, Fulina had other suspicions she kept to herself. ’If the enemy really has Magic or Magic Equipment that blocks communications, then why was I able to get through yesterday?’

’Why not just keep me blocked permanently?’

’Any competent commander wouldn’t make such a mistake.’

’There were too many questions.’

However, she didn’t voice these thoughts. They were already at a disadvantage, and it was best not to say anything that might affect morale.

"It’s good that you made contact. As long as we can hold out until your soldiers arrive, the Wind Speech Tribe’s crisis will be resolved."

Hearing this, Ash breathed a sigh of relief.

The enemy had a rough estimate of nearly thirty thousand fresh troops, with dozens of Casters among them.

In contrast, the Wind Speech Tribe, at absolute most, could only muster three thousand Warriors and a mere handful of Casters.

Their ability to hold out this long was entirely thanks to the Tree-man Race, who had Mastered Tree Magic and used it to ambush the enemy in the Shadow Forest.

But now that the Shadow Forest had fallen, their last line of defense was the Broken City.

If even the Broken City was breached, the Wind Speech Tribe would become the Zor Elves’ personal playground, for them to enter and exit as they pleased.

WOOOOOOOOO~

Just then, the low, mournful sound of a horn echoed from the distance.

It was the call of the Zor Elves’ attack horn.

"They’re attacking again."

Ash was silent.

"Damned Elf traitors!"

"A bunch of god-forsaken degenerates, daring to return to the surface."

"Queen, we’re heading out!"

The few Elf Warriors, who had only just sat down long enough to warm their seats, cursed, grabbed their swords, and rushed out.

Fulina wasn’t surprised by this. Compared to the Minotaur army that had marched south before, these Zor Elves were acting far more predictably.

After all, war was a race against time. Unless a direct assault failed and forced a siege, battles were meant to be won as quickly as possible.

The longer a conflict dragged on, the more variables could come into play.

"Ash, I’m going too. For now, all we can do is hold our ground and wait for Si Kai’s reinforcements. I hope they can get here quickly."

Fulina rose, her hand on the hilt of her sword.

As a Combat Qi Master, her presence in the defense would undoubtedly relieve some of the pressure.

Though a commander should never stand on a wall under siege, Fulina had no time for such conventions now.

"We’ll go together. As Queen, I will not hide in here while my subjects fight and die alone."

Ash rose from her chair, holding a Scepter inlaid with a White Gemstone. In an instant, her white gown transformed into a suit of gilded golden Armor, perfectly accentuating her tall, statuesque figure.

This suit of Armor, one could surmise, was certainly a Magic Item.

The two of them strode out together.

Ash mounted a pure white Unicorn and galloped toward the sounds of battle at the Broken City, leaving a faint, seven-colored ribbon of light in her wake.

Fulina vaulted onto her own Magical Beast mount and followed close behind.

Behind them, the elders, women, and children of the Elf Race watched with worried expressions as their Queen raced to the front lines.

All of the Wind Speech Tribe’s young Warriors, both men and women, had already gone to the battlefield. Only the very old and the very young remained to guard the Tribe.