The Elf Journey In The Western Fantasy World
Chapter 171: The Hen and the Elf

Chapter 171: The Hen and the Elf

That was probably what Drow had been trying to tell him, wasn’t it?

But how had Drow known all this in advance? How had he tried so hard to drop him hints—despite being unable to actually say the words?

All of this filled Illiya’s mind with questions.

One day, he would uncover the truth behind the strangeness surrounding the dark elf.

Now that he’d come to this conclusion, Illiya’s expression grew noticeably gentler.

He softened his voice to soothe the still-nervous dark elf. "Thank you, Drow. I’ll take good care of myself, don’t worry. Besides, I’m not facing all of this alone—you’re all still by my side, aren’t you?"

The moment Drow heard the latter part of Illiya’s sentence, his entire body relaxed.

Right—he was by Illiya’s side now. In the previous life, he had been lured away, but this time, he definitely wouldn’t be.

After all, many things had already changed.

Thanks to Illiya’s warning, the spies planted in the Demon Realm had already been rooted out, patrols had increased significantly, and the demons were taking the war very seriously this time around.

In their past life, although the demons had treated the pact with a measure of seriousness, they hadn’t been able to uncover the hidden threats within their borders.

That failure had triggered a series of terrible consequences, including the severe injuries Illiya suffered.

But this time—everything was different.

The infiltrators had been removed in advance, the demons had strengthened their defenses, and they were now fully acknowledging the threat that the Pope posed.

They were preparing to deliver a heavy blow to that arrogant kingdom.

Things were clearly developing in a better direction, and this time it definitely wouldn’t play out the way it had before.

Drow forced himself to calm down, convincing himself with these thoughts.

He saw the concern hidden deep in Illiya’s eyes and didn’t want to add more to his burdens.

"Yes... this time, I—we’re all here."

He changed his words so quickly that he nearly bit his own tongue.

In truth, he had only wanted to say "I," but in order not to make it too obvious, he forced himself to change it to "we." Tch. Just one elf—him—was more than enough, wasn’t it?

But he didn’t dare say that out loud.

Illiya pretended not to notice the strange pause in the middle of Drow’s sentence. Sometimes, playing deaf was best for everyone involved.

After their conversation, Drow found an excuse and left the area, leaving Illiya alone to linger in that quiet, secluded place.

Illiya wasn’t at all concerned about where the dark elf had gone, nor did he try to guess what Drow might be up to.

Still, he didn’t stay there much longer. He remained in place, thinking deeply for a while.

Although no real conclusions came to him, after receiving such a flood of information, letting his mind go blank for a bit felt necessary.

Drow’s "sudden outburst" had truly caught him off guard.

When they first met, he had suspected that the dark elf had approached him with some ulterior motive.

Originally, he planned to slowly expose him over time, but instead, the one being suspected had gone and revealed himself first.

That alone had given Illiya quite a bit to think about during their exchange.

It was now clear to him that the dark elf deeply disliked being here—perhaps even loathed it.

Otherwise, why would he have grown increasingly silent since arriving in the Demon Realm?

Why would he exhibit resistance to every new thing that appeared, especially the demons?

Anyone who didn’t know better would think he’d been grievously wronged by them in the past.

Moreover, the dark elf rarely interacted with the demons. Unless absolutely necessary, he wouldn’t even show up in their line of sight.

Most of the time, he disappeared completely, who knew where to.

As the day of the war drew nearer, Illiya could clearly sense the dark elf growing more and more anxious.

And only today did he realize that the source of all that anxiety... was himself.

Well damn. That was something he hadn’t expected.

With a sigh, Illiya belatedly came to realize that the dark elf genuinely had no defenses when it came to him.

He trusted him completely and deeply concerned for his safety.

They’d been complete strangers before this, and Illiya couldn’t believe that someone as cautious and guarded as a dark elf would suddenly become so warm and attentive toward someone they had only just met.

And yet—this was the reality.

Illiya didn’t know how to describe what he was feeling.

Drow definitely didn’t like him so the idea of romance was out of the question. As for calling them rivals, that was complete nonsense. And calling them companions? That didn’t quite fit either. Given the nature of dark elves, who were notorious for being solitary creatures, even that label felt off. No... this dark elf felt more like he was protecting Illiya.

Wait—protecting him?

Illiya finally realized what had been bothering him all along.

The dark elf’s behavior in the Demon Realm—it was like... like a mother hen fiercely guarding her chicks!

Would a dark elf really be this softhearted?

He doesn’t believe it.

Illiya honestly had no words for the absurdity welling up in his chest.

If he went to anyone else on the continent and said, "A dark elf is protecting me like a doting guardian," people would look at him like he’d lost his mind.

But now, there really was a dark elf standing in front of him, protecting him just like that.

So—do you believe it, or don’t you?

There’s no way a dark elf would go to such lengths to protect someone... unless that person was...

Just then, Illiya suddenly recalled an extremely obscure bit of elven knowledge.

It was something that dated back a long, long, long time ago—so ancient, in fact, that it was practically legend.

You’d never come across this piece of information unless you were actively searching for it.