Chapter 369: Who Came Now?

"I really wanted to bite him and suck him dry." She licked her lips, recalling the young man’s appearance.

"That handsome face, such smooth, fair skin, those unique snowy-white locks, and those charming glacier-blue eyes framed by matching white eyelashes..."

Her smile widened.

"How adorable and charming, Ahhn~"

There was a brief silence before she tilted her head, watching the direction in which Noah had disappeared.

"Well, boy~ Just how long do you think you can keep running away from me?"

Her gaze then shifted toward the distant World Tree.

Far beyond the city, two powerful figures were still clashing in the sky. One was the elven queen, Aelyssa Sylvaine, while the other was a formidable blood elf locked in battle with her.

The shock waves generated by their confrontation occasionally reached the city, serving as a reminder of just how terrifying their power was.

The blood elf woman watched the distant battle for a moment.

"Father is still occupied..."

She smiled faintly.

"That means I still have some time."

Her eyes drifted back toward the city, where countless elves were desperately trying to escape.

"Well, then. Why don’t I hunt a few elves, enjoy a little drink, and look for that handsome boy afterward?"

With those words, she folded her arms and shot downward.

Her figure disappeared between the buildings, leaving the sky behind her.

And somewhere within the city, Noah was still fleeing, blissfully unaware that his pursuer had already decided to make him her next target.

---

"Haah... haah..."

Noah gasped for breath, his chest rising and falling rapidly.

"I’m alive... and safe!"

He leaned against the wall, letting out a long sigh of relief. He was currently inside a random elven house, having broken through a window to escape his pursuer. There were cuts on his both arms, burning pain could be feel. But he drank a healing potion which sooth him.

The room appeared to be the living room. Elegant wooden furniture, neatly arranged decorations, and a few household items suggested that the owners had once lived here peacefully.

Noah closed his eyes for a moment, trying to calm his racing heart. "Who the hell was that woman?"

He shook his head, recalling everything that had happened. That woman was undoubtedly a blood elf, and judging by her blood powers. He had learned about blood elves, who drink blood but that doesn’t mean they all posses blood affinity.

’So, the blood elves are behind the World Tree’s burning.’

His expression grew serious. This was clearly no ordinary attack.

Noah frowned as another thought crossed his mind. There was something else that had been bothering him ever since the chase began.

’My Snow Mist spell...’

He raised his right hand and stared at his palm. ’It was much stronger than I expected. The amount of mist it released was ridiculous.’

He had deliberately poured extra mana into the spell, but the resulting mist had spread over an enormous area. It had been far more effective than anything he had managed to produce during his previous training sessions.

And that wasn’t the only strange thing.

His mana efficiency had improved noticeably. He had also created ice weapons much faster than usual, and his control over the ice sword had been remarkably smooth, even while flying at incredible speeds.

’What’s going on?’

Noah knitted his brows.

Just a few days ago, he had practiced repeatedly, but his spells were not this strong, they were crossing limits of their powers, same goes for his flying technique.

It was almost as if his control over ice creation had improved without him realizing it.

’Is there something I’m missing?’

He fell into thought, trying to recall whether anything unusual had happened recently that might explain the sudden improvement.

Then, a strange smell caught his attention.

Noah’s nose twitched. ’What’s that smell?’

He sniffed the air again. It was faint, but strangely familiar.

His expression changed as he tried to identify it. ’Wait... I know this smell.’

He pushed himself away from the wall and cautiously approached the wooden staircase leading to the upper floor.

The house was dark, with all the lights turned off. Only the faint light filtering through the broken window illuminated the living room.

Noah slowly climbed the stairs. With every step, the smell grew stronger.

He continued down the hallway, following the increasingly pungent odor until he reached a closed door at the far end.

He stopped in front of it. Then he slowly reached for the handle and pushed the door open.

Click.

The moment he looked inside, his face twisted in disgust.

Blood.

The entire room was drenched in it.

The floor was soaked with dark crimson liquid, and two bodies lay motionless on the bed. Their abdomens had been brutally torn open by what appeared to be a bladed weapon. Blood stained the bedsheets, the pillows, and nearly every surface in the room.

The windows were open, and traces of blood could be seen along the edges of the frame.

Noah’s expression turned grim.

’Someone broke in and murdered them...’ He carefully examined the room without stepping inside. ’Probably one of the blood elves hiding in the city.’

His stomach tightened.

How many more houses like this were scattered throughout the capital?

The blood elves had somehow infiltrated the elven capital, slipped past its defenses, and begun slaughtering its inhabitants while the city was already in chaos.

It was difficult to imagine how thoroughly they must have prepared for this operation.

Noah clenched his fists. "No... They must have been planning this for a long time."

He exhaled sharply.

"Dammit."

He had no time to dwell on the gruesome scene. Just as he turned away from the room, he heard something.

Tap.

Tap.

Footsteps, they were coming from downstairs.

Noah immediately froze. His eyes narrowed as he listened carefully.

Someone had entered the house.

He quickly moved away from the doorway and pressed himself against the wall beside it.

His mind raced. ’Another blood elf?’

That was the most likely possibility.

The house had already been turned into a murder scene, and with the city in chaos.

Noah wasn’t about to take any chances.

Mana gathered in his right hand, rapidly forming a sharp ice dagger. Its glacier-blue surface glimmered faintly in the darkness.

He tightened his grip. The footsteps grew louder.

Tap.

Tap.

Noah held his breath and waited.

He considered the possibility that it might be the woman who had chased him earlier. But if that were the case, he suspected she would have already called out to him in that irritatingly playful tone of hers.

Something along the lines of, Where are you hiding, pretty boy~?

Just imagining it made him grimace.

’Please be someone else.’

The footsteps reached the upper floor.

Noah remained motionless, his dagger ready.

A shadow appeared in the hallway. The person approached the room where Noah was hiding, then stepped through the doorway.

The instant they entered, Noah moved.

He lunged forward, intending to seize the intruder before they could react.

But the other person was far faster than he had anticipated.

Before Noah could properly grasp them, his right wrist was seized. His body was forcibly turned, and he was spun around with such ease that he barely had time to register what was happening.

THUD!

His front was slammed against the wall. His right arm, still holding the ice dagger, was twisted behind his back and firmly restrained.

Noah’s eyes widened.

"Noah?"