Chapter 433 - 432: Astonishing Reward
"Problems? I doubt it."
Colin gave them a strange look. "I don’t think what just happened was some kind of diplomatic incident," he said. "I suspect Asvir wanted Edwin to cause a scene on purpose. The Master of the Black Tower needs to deal with nobles in Thousand Masts City, so it makes no sense that she’d be that politically inept.
"Anyway, the final outcome is that our group of Alien Races made an appearance in the Silver Star Court. This forces those more stubborn, xenophobic Day Elves and Wood Elves to prepare for communication and cooperation with the outside world. It seems like everything is heading in the right direction."
Hearing Colin’s long-winded explanation, the others looked as if they only half-understood. Ale, as always, started writing and drawing in her little notebook.
’I guess all those miscellaneous short videos I watched in my past life were good for something after all,’ Colin thought to himself.
「Three days passed quickly.」
That morning, Colin got up and washed up with the others at the time the Day Elves had specified.
Over these past three days, he had been gradually returning to his former routine, resuming his high-intensity studies and training. His daily life was slowly getting back on track.
The group put on their Armor as the Day Elves had instructed.
Just as they were about finished getting ready, there was a perfectly timed knock at the door.
Opening the door, they saw two Wood Elves in green robes standing in the doorway.
They bowed their heads slightly and said, "Please follow me, honored heroes."
Colin immediately led the others and followed them.
The group descended the giant tree and arrived at the small plaza below.
Parked here was a rather large Elven flower float, which looked like a floral pavilion on four wheels. In front of the float were two enormous, pure white moose.
The moose looked quite large, standing over three meters tall.
Colin was a little surprised. He had never seen such a creature before and lacked a direct sense of their scale.
In front of the float were Elf guards wearing Elven Plate Armor and holding flower-wreathed Long Spears.
At the very front of the procession were five Elven Knights mounted on giant stags. They wore silver armor, holding a Riding Lance in one hand and a Magic Staff in the other. A faint Spiritual Light of Magic emanated from them.
’Those must be the famous Silver Knights,’ Colin thought. ’The legendary elites who can perform Casting while wearing Plate Armor.’
Behind the float was a ceremonial guard holding various musical instruments. They were dressed in light gauze, and the instruments in their hands made one feel as if they had arrived in the Celestial Kingdom.
"Please board the float, heroes," said a Wood Elf standing nearby.
Colin nodded and led the group onto the float.
With a few ethereal Horn blasts, the procession began to move forward slowly. The Elves at the rear of the procession started to play a somewhat rousing piece of music.
Colin looked around.
Due to the low population density, it wasn’t a magnificent scene of bustling crowds, but many residents had still gathered on the giant trees and the ground to watch, making it look quite lively.
After a while, a dozen or so Pegasi slowly descended to a low altitude, flying alongside the procession.
Their white wings stirred up flecks of golden light, creating a beautiful sight.
Looking at the surrounding scene, Colin realized that although he knew this parade had a political purpose, he seemed to have underestimated how much importance Asvir and the others placed on it.
’On second thought, for a truly powerful individual, that White Dragon wasn’t a particularly difficult opponent.’
’The welcome they were receiving now was purely for political necessity. It was essentially because Asvir needed this parade as a demonstration for the isolationist Elven nobles.’
This made Colin’s feelings about this parade completely different from when the villagers saw them off. There was a sense of detachment, of emptiness.
Just then, Colin suddenly sensed a stir beside him.
He turned his head and saw that it was Ale, scribbling and drawing in her notebook.
Colin looked around at his companions.
Kase and Dorn stood motionless at the side, like two statues. They had been clamoring all morning about wanting to show the Elves what "real tough guys" looked like.
Orelia, on the other hand, was a bit nervous, but she was gradually getting used to it, looking for all the world like a startled squirrel.
Seeing the companions he spent his days and nights with, Colin felt a sense of relief.
’To hell with all this bullshit politics.’
’At least for this moment, this honor belongs to them. Without a doubt.’
-----------------
After circling the largest oak tree in the center of the Silver Star Court, the procession slowly arrived at its base.
There was a huge plaza here.
The entire circular plaza spread out from the trunk of the great oak, with several gentle ramps extending from the center and connecting to a raised platform at the base of the tree.
Many Elves were standing in the plaza.
The moment the float came to a stop, countless gazes shot toward them.
Colin and the others disembarked from the float and walked toward the central platform.
The Golden Elf from a few days ago hadn’t instructed them on any etiquette or ceremony, so Colin and his group could only brace themselves and walk forward. The farther they went, the more Day Elves and Moon Elves they saw in the surrounding crowd.
The group slowly walked to the circular platform beneath the oak tree.
Here stood several Day Elves and Moon Elves dressed in magnificent robes.
Colin didn’t know much about Elven affairs and couldn’t discern the positions or ranks of these Elves, only that their status must be high.
Colin led the group to a stop before the Elves.
Countless flower petals drifted down from above as melodic music played all around.
Next, these Elves announced the deeds of Colin and his party, followed by some meaningless pleasantries.
After that, several Wood Elves came forward.
They carried trays, upon which were placed various pieces of equipment and some glittering gold bars.
Seeing this, the group, who had been getting a bit drowsy, immediately perked up.
Colin quickly glanced over the items.
The first tray held five gold bars, while the others displayed various pieces of equipment.
A Day Elf who had been silent until now spoke up. "These are the rewards and tokens of gratitude prepared by the Silver Star Court for you heroes. Please accept them, in recognition of your great deeds."
’This authentic, archaic Common Language sounds so familiar,’ Colin griped internally.
He looked over the equipment the Elves presented, one by one.
First was a thick book with a silver-edged cover. In the center of the book were some Runes inlaid with gold thread. The Runes looked like they were in the Elf Language.
[Arcane Secret Manual / Non-Ordinary-Level Spellbook]
[Magic Enhancement: Holder’s Magic attack Damage and hit rate +1]
[Magic Implement: Only an Arcane Caster can use this Magic Item. When Casting with the Spellbook, there is no need to prepare non-consumable Casting Materials.]
Next was a Longbow.
The surface of this bow was quite rough, looking as if it were wrapped in a layer of bark peeled from an oak trunk. A few green leaves even grew from the nocks on either end.
[Oakpact Longbow / Non-Ordinary-Level Magic Weapon]
[Damage: 3-10 (With Hallowed Arrows: 4-14)]
[Hallowed Bough: This weapon’s Damage and hit rate are increased by one.]
[Hallowed Oak Arrow: At dawn each day, the bow automatically generates 15 magical oak Arrows. These Arrows are considered magical ammunition and deal an additional 1-4 points of radiant Damage on hit.]
Finally, there was a pair of black boots.
The boots were outlined with several threads of gold, and the tops were adorned with a soft, golden fleece trim, making them look very beautiful.
[Boots of the Elf / Non-Ordinary-Level Magic Item]
[Elven Step: When wearing these boots, your movements make no sound, regardless of the surface.]