The Devil's Cursed Witch

Draven woke up in a good mood, though no one could see it from his expressionless face.

He had a good sleep after having quite a thrilling and interesting adventure the previous night. Though the incident had raised many questions in his mind, he welcomed them. After so long, he had got something interesting in his boring life.

That girl was a mystery and he wished to solve her. A new goal was in front of him.

Getting out of the bed, he went to stand in front of the mirror. Looking at his chest, he shifted the neckline of his black sleeping robe to one side and found nail marks on his skin. He remembered clearly how it happened, but the most surprising thing was that they were not healed yet.

His body could heal normal wounds on its own in a matter of seconds, but these simple scratches by that little mouse didn't heal like normal. It was another puzzle he had to solve now.

It had been a long time since he received a wound on his body, and he felt strangely good about it. These nail scratches on his skin looked interesting to him, and he found himself smirking as he touched them with his fingers.

'Finally, there is someone who can hurt me for real,' he mumbled.

At that moment, Erlos entered the King's chamber to start his job as his personal servant, inevitably disturbing Draven's thoughts. He straightened his robe just as the elf lifted his head from bowing.

If his servant had seen those marks on his chest, he was sure this nosy elf would fry his brain with countless unnecessary questions.

However, his servant was distracted and didn't notice it at all.

"Sire, Elder Leeora is requesting an audience with you," Erlos informed him.

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After informing the elder in charge of security and mobilizing the city guards to start investigation, Leeora returned to Ember before leaving for the palace.

The human girl was still asleep, her breathing feeble and her lips pale, a telltale sign of how much blood she's lost.

'Giving her more of my elixirs at once won't be enough. I must request Lady Cornelia to send the vitality potions ahead of the promised date.'

Thinking what else she had to do, the High Elder of the Wood Elves used her powers and set a barrier around the house so no one would enter inside until she returned. She then tapped her staff on the floor of the house to talk to the tree spirit. In response, the tree shook its branches, as if to say it understood her instruction.

Leeora told the tree spirit not to let anyone enter the house, and to call the attention of the patrolling city guards in case a situation was to arise.

After that, she left to go to the palace.

Meanwhile, Draven was outside in the garden of the palace, leisurely basking under the morning sun. He was standing in the center of a circle of flowering trees, his expression less icy than usual . Though Erlos was curious, he didn't know if it was safe for him to ask. He didn't want to be thrown to another faraway human kingdom without warning once more.

The ruggedly handsome king had his arms crossed, seemingly lost in thought, when his servant reluctantly approached him.

'He is not scowling today. I wonder if something good happened? Oh, I hope he remains in a good mood for the rest of the day…'

"Sire," Erlos started, "Elder Leeora is waiting for you in the study."

Upon hearing that, Draven seemed to stare at the sky for a few moments before disappearing from his spot.

Erlos mumbled, "One day, I will be faster than him."

Draven reappeared inside his study, and he walked towards his chair behind the large desk.

"Leeora of the Wood Elf Clan greets King Draven, the ruler of Agartha," the elegant elf said as a formal greeting as usual.

Draven accepted her greetings with a light nod. Even without asking, he could guess that the reason for her arrival must be that human creature, but he still listened to her speak.

"Sire, I am here to discuss about Ember," she started with a worried look.

Draven said nothing, and Leeora was just about to start when the sound of the door opening interrupted her. Erlos hurried to the King's study using his fast speed since he was interested in listening to what these two would talk about, and seeing their expressions, it seemed he arrived on time.

He used some excuse about taking care of the map Draven had freshly drawn, something about needing to make sure the ink was dried so he could later keep it in its place.

Draven ignored his bumbling mess of a servant, simply staring at Leeora, permitting her to continue.

"Sire, seems like the previous night someone has attacked Ember and injured her," she informed cautiously.

Draven's expression remained the same despite knowing the truth. "An attack?"

"We have just launched an investigation, but yes, it seems she's attacked."

Draven leaned back on his chair and folded a hand under his chin. "Are you sure that the human was not trying to create trouble for herself?"

Leeora was confused. "Why would she do anything to harm herself, Sire? I believe there is a second person involved in the incident. My guess is that the person who hurt her showed some mercy on her since he mistakenly injured her, and sewed her wound shut for her."

"What a generous attacker!" Draven commented as he leisurely rubbed his chin.

"The attacker had also stolen the elixirs and potions from her house that I had given to her. Though he had shown mercy on Ember by treating her wound, the act of theft is not acceptable in our clan and—"

"—And we should punish the thief gravely to set an example!" Erlos cut in, his reddened face showing his anger. "It's unforgivable! Not acceptable at all! To hurt a child merely for some elixirs? Shame on him! I will punish the culprit personally when we find him. I will hang him upside down in the middle of the city and won't give him any food and water for days! It will be an example for everyone to not do it again. That person needs to get punished—"

Thud! Clank!

With this sound, a wooden box landed on the King's desk, and upon closer look, Leeora recognized the box of Elixirs that was stolen. Her eyes widened as she stared at the King.

"This? How did Sire get this box of elixirs? Did Sire catch the thief or…?" Leeora trailed off as she realized she seemed to be mistaken.

"Need more explanation?" Draven asked her and then his piercing gaze moved towards Erlos.

He said no words but his gaze was enough for Erlos to feel like the sky had fallen on his head and the floor under his feet had slipped away from him. He recognized that box belonged to Leeora as well and this must be the very box that went missing from the human girl's house.

Remembering how he badmouthed the 'thief' earlier, the elf servant's mind panicked to save himself.