Odyssey of the Blind God

Even if the Dracos leader was talking calmly to him, it didn't mean that the two parties had reached a consensus.

The Army of Dracos wanted to take the Elven Empress' Divinity Fragment that had been transformed into a portal between the Forest of Life and Yggdrasil, the Sacred Tree.

It was only obvious but the Elves didn't want anyone to take away what rightfully belonged to them. The portal to Yggdrasil was the most valuable asset in their possession right now and losing it would permanently weaken the Elven Empress.

That was not something the Elves could accept, ever!

Nial understood the mindset of the Elven because he wouldn't give anyone what belonged to him either. It was even worse given that the Dracos were acting in an overbearing manner in front of the Elves.

'I really don't want to fight them…I would rather hire them to become my blacksmiths, Instructors, and more…' He thought while still hoping that the things he said had been enough to persuade them from taking an extreme step, at least a little.

"Can't we solve this in a different way? If you guys fight, the casualties will be enormous and many innocent origin humans will die, though I doubt that you guys care about that a lot…" Nial tried to intervene, "The Elves won't simply hand over the Empress' Divinity fragment either. So…is there a way to prevent unnecessary bloodshed?"

The chances were pretty slim because everyone was already extremely tense but Nial was still giving it a try. He couldn't just let war erupt after he had worked so hard to make sure that the Halheim shelter would prosper in peace. Everything would be destroyed the moment an army of 100,000 soldiers attacked.

"Solve this in a different way? We came here because we need the Divinity Fragment of the Elven Empress. Fighting until the bitter end is probably the only way to end this!"

While glaring at the Royal Princess every now and then, the Dracos leader answered Nial. His voice was soothing and warm which was a huge contrast to his tense body and the reptilian eyes that were filled with hatred.

'Something happened between the Elven and Dracos, that's for sure!' Nial told himself the moment he visualized the Dracos leader.

He tried to assess the situation, and the results didn't make things better.

"Nial, there is no need to be worried about us. We will eliminate everyone who dares to come too close to the Forest of Life with ill intentions. There is no need for you to intervene anymore!" The Royal Princess said, her voice ice-cold as she pulled Nial behind her.

It looked like she was trying to protect him but Nial ended up sighing deeply.

'I doubt she realizes that the Dracos are only hostile to the Elven…None of the Dracos looked at me with the desire to kill me even after Ryu landed on the ground…'

The problems were only between the Elves and Dracos, but Nial didn't really feel like witnessing them tearing apart one another.

"Why do you need the Divi–..." Nial was just about to ask the most important question when two High Elves at the Keltia rank appeared behind him. They covered his mouth at the same time and intended to drag Nial further away from the area everyone presumed to turn into a battlefield at any time.

'What the hell?! Ryu, come here and help!' He ordered the Darkness Gryphon who acted instantaneously. Darkness shot out of Ryu's entire body as he shot past the Royal Princess.

Ryu accelerated further as he burst toward Nial whose corners of his lips curled upward moments before his companion smashed into him.

Nial didn't want to hurt anyone around him. Thus, he turned into Ryu's target after coming up with a plan in an instant. The grasp of the two Keltia ranked High Elves on Nial's arms loosened the moment Ryu's head impacted on Nial. They were too astonished by what was just happening.

Nial grasped Ryus plumage tightly and he used Shadow Step in an instant, traveling across the darkness that exuded from Ryu's body.

That way, Nial ended up on Ryu's back in a millisecond. As for the Keltia ranked High Elves, they could only look behind themselves dazedly as Ryu shot in the air, just to dive down at the frontlines once again.

Nial would have loved to leave the Dracos and Elves to figure out things on their own but he could tell that they would end up bashing each other's heads.

"I admire your determination, Wood Princess, but I don't really think that you're at an advantage here. The only reason for us to postpone our attack is that we don't want to pull other races in our fight!" The Dracos leader declared just at this moment.

It was just like Nial had expected. The Dracos merely wanted the Empress' Divinity Fragment. As for everything else of value, they didn't really care about it. A point worth noting here was that they weren't inclined to attack other races because that would inevitably create more trouble.

The Royal Princess was just about to retort to the Dracos leader when Nial intervened.

"Just do whatever you want, but both sides will shed each other's blood unnecessarily. You guys could use different means to 'fight' for what you desire and sign a Soul Contract with all necessary terms and conditions previously agreed upon. Waging war right now will just weaken both sides and make you vulnerable to other races."

Nial had had enough of the Dracos and Elves. If they wanted to fight, they should do that far away from the Halheim shelter. He voiced out his opinion at the end but it was more like a frustrated outburst than anything else.

"You mean they should bet the Empress' Divinity Fragment and both sides should appoint fighters to represent them? The winner will take everything?" The Dracos Leader asked, not opposing Nial's unexpected advice.

He didn't think too highly of the human Original but he was certainly interesting and helpful.

If the Army of Dracos were to attack the Forest of Life, they were not sure of succeeding. The Elven races were said to have formed an alliance to build an Empire on Jundra. They required the Divinity Fragment portal because it was much cheaper to use the portal rather than world bridges.

The cost-efficiency was exceptional. It provided an advantage that was worth taking a risk for.

In the end, it was only obvious, but the Elves would fight desperately until their last Original were to die! The Elves were unlikely to die that easily as well. The defensive mechanism of the Forest of Life was bound to boost the strength of the Elven races drastically and provide additional means of support.

Nial had explained that he met Ophelia when he was working on a mission for the Elven race. He collected the artificially reinforced tear of a Dryad Princess. The Forest of Life had been healed and strengthened through this tear, which meant that the Forest of Life was likely to have various means to obliterate the opponents who dared to enter its proximity while harboring ill intentions.

That was why the Dracos Leader didn't really want to attack the Forest of Life and all Elven because the result wouldn't be pleasing to the eyes.

Even if they managed to get their hands on the Empress' Divinity Fragment, it was uncertain if they could reach back home safely, in the first place.

The vast majority of their people were bound to die needlessly and this was something all members of this army knew about very well.

They didn't want to die but it was not as if they could reject the orders they had been given. The moment they did that, they would be considered traitors, and their families would be imprisoned, tortured and finally killed.

It was cruel but a very efficient way to ensure that most ordinary people of the Dracos race followed the commands they were given.

Thus, Nial's intervention was like a Godsend!

The Elves didn't think like that though! The Royal Princess stared daggers at Nial, whom she wanted to tear apart for butting in unnecessarily.

In the end, the Elves knew that they were at an advantage in their home grounds. Yet, Nial's intervention was enough to destroy it all.

It was only fortunate that the Elves didn't have to agree to his 'advice'. The Royal Princess could just plainly reject it, which would force the Dracos to attack the Forest of Life.

However, instead of doing so right away, the Royal Princess stalled time to make sure that everyone in the Forest of Life was fully prepared to go all out. The Dryads of the Forest of Life were also ready to use the Power of the Forest to provide the necessary support and protect the Forest of Life from the fiery flames that would shroud everything the moment a battle would ensue.

The Royal Princess was sure that Master Crevian would request reinforcement from Yggdrasil as well. They would send a bunch of warriors over to the Forest of Life, strengthening both attack and defense!

"But we're the only ones to lose something then. That's not exactly fair." She thus said, while continuing to glare at Nial. His intervention might have been an inconvenience but he didn't even realize that he was actually helping the Elves stall for more time.

Her head flicked to the Dracos Leader, whom she stared at with killing intent.

"If you want us to consider this battle, we should place bets on things of equal value. That means something as precious as the Divinity Fragment has to be betted by the Dracos!"

It was only obvious that a one-sided bet would never go through. The Dracos leader also understood that the Royal Princess was at an advantage right now.

Thus, for them to even consider betting on the Empress' Divinity Fragment, the Dracos would have to bet something the Elves couldn't reject. It had to be worth more than the Divinity Fragment in the Elven's eyes!

"What is of equivalent value to a Divinity Fragment?" Nial mumbled to himself. He had actually noticed that the Forest of Life was changing rapidly. The life force originating from the Forest of Life was getting much stronger, and more sources of mana appeared as well.

'I wanted to prevent a war from erupting…but if I were to choose between the two, it would probably be better if the Elves were to emerge victorious…'

"The Divinity Fragment portal is our most valuable asset in Jundra, and the Empress paid a huge tribute to make it descend onto the Origin the moment it was possible. You could say that the Divinity Fragment portal is amongst the most prized possession of the Elven races!" Princess Evalyne explained.

She made it clear that the Dracos were unlikely to possess anything valuable enough to make a bet enticing enough.

At first, the Dracos Leader frowned because he knew that it would be quite difficult to make the Royal Princess agree to anything he could offer as bet. The Royal Princess had the authority to bet anything but the Dracos leader didn't possess such high authority.

That was also why he ended up retrieving a large messenger crystal from his spatial ring.

"I have to make a call…" He said after a few moments which caused a smile to appear on the Royal Princess' face.

"Take as much time as you need. We will just wait here…" She responded, 'we will wait and turn the Forest of Life into a fortress before you guys can even think of attacking!'

The Royal Princess was no fool to invite a one-on-one battle because their chances of victory were slim. It was simply not worth the risk, no matter what the Dracos would bet, or so she believed.

After a few minutes had passed the Dracos leader finished his call. He had a mysterious smile on his face.

Clearing his throat he appeared in front of the Royal Princess once again.

"We are in possession of an egg. It looks like the beast within the egg wants to hatch soon," He stated before his smile widened,

"How about you bet the Empress' Divinity Fragment, while we bet the hatching egg of the last Greater Forest Dragon?"

The Royal Princess had just opened her mouth to reject the offer when she froze in her place. She thought that she had misheard something. She could not believe the words that came out of the mouth of the Dracos leader!

"Wait…what?!" She blurted out, which was enough reason for the Dracos Leader to grin pridefully.

"I think you heard me correctly. We will bet the egg of the Greater Forest Dragon, who died thousands of years ago. That's probably its last egg and it's about to hatch!" He said.

"...Make your decision!"

**

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