Chapter 17

The system announcement declared the official end of the hero difficulty class change, but the entire incident seemed far from over. In the distance, a sharp bird call echoed, and Mufeng looked up to see a phoenix made of flames flying from afar, landing beneath the Life Tree, which was already in ruins. The phoenix folded its wings and finally transformed into a handsome male elf.

"What's going on? Where's my sister?" The elf, now in human form, frantically asked the people around him, wanting to know what had turned the once beautiful elf capital into this state, even causing the great Life Tree to wither.

"Please calm down, Prince Kael!" Theresa, now the new queen of the elves, had to take on the responsibility of rebuilding the elf race. She gathered her composure and bravely stepped out of the crowd to face the male elf. Prince Kael was Queen Azshara's younger brother, the most powerful mage of the elves, whose fire magic far surpassed that of the court's grand mage, Havish!

"Theresa? Where's my sister? Where is she?" Kael's face was filled with worry. It was well-known that the Life Tree shared its life with Azshara. Now that the Life Tree had fallen, that meant...

"The queen... she has already passed away..." Though it pained her to say it, Theresa had to tell Kael the truth.

"How... how can this be!" Kael staggered, almost falling to the ground, unable to believe what Theresa had said.

"I will explain this!" An elderly elder stepped out from among the elf leadership, dressed in a robe made of emerald plants and holding a vine staff with new leaves, clearly a powerful druid elder.

"Great Elder!" Not only Prince Kael, but even the new queen, Theresa, bowed to the elder, showing his high status among the elves. As for Mufeng, he stood behind Theresa, watching the sudden turn of events.

"It's all true, Kael. The queen has passed away, and now Theresa is the new queen of the elves!" The great elder confirmed Queen Azshara's death once again.

"A new queen? Theresa? How is this possible? This... this must be a coup! You must have killed my sister!" Kael suddenly went mad, angrily accusing everyone present.

"Kael! The queen passed the throne to Theresa, the high priestess of the Moon Temple, in her final moments, and we all witnessed it! Don't make things worse! Cough, cough, cough..." The druid elder, who had clearly been injured in the recent battle, was taken aback by Kael's reaction and began to cough.

"I won't believe you. I want to see Havish! I want to hear what he has to say!" Kael and Havish were both mages and the best of friends. Only he could Kael trust.

"It was Havish who opened the portal that brought in the demon army. He is already dead..." Thinking of the poor mage who had been tormented by succubi for five years, Theresa couldn't help but feel sad. She hadn't expected that her first task as queen would be to deal with such a situation rather than healing the wounds of the elf race after the war.

"Havish is dead too? Ha... Ha... Ha... You still say it wasn't a betrayal! How could Havish betray the elves!" Kael shouted in anger, summoning three red fireballs to circle around him. A smaller flame phoenix was summoned, ready to fight at any moment.

"What? Do you want to rebel?" The great elder glared at Kael, and the powerful elves around them drew their weapons. After just defeating the external enemies, it seemed the elf leadership was about to face another bloody conflict.

"No!" Theresa suddenly rushed forward, standing in front of Kael, her back to him as he gathered flame energy in his hands, and she stretched out her arms to stop the attack from the elf leadership.

"Theresa, do you know what you're doing? This is very dangerous!" Theresa's bold move shocked the great elder. Mufeng, standing nearby, was even more alarmed. What kind of pure girl would protect someone who had misunderstood her?

"No one can attack! Queen Azshara just passed away, and she entrusted the throne to me. I cannot let her brother die here!" Theresa stood firm, refusing to move.

"If that's the case, then let me leave!" Kael understood that if a fight broke out now, he would only be killed.

"Agreed!" Theresa nodded in agreement.

"Theresa, you can't let him go!" The great elder's face was filled with pain.

"I know! I command you, as the new queen, to let Prince Kael leave!"

"You... Yes!" The great elder stared at Theresa for ten seconds before finally stomping his staff in resignation. If he continued to defy Theresa, the new queen's authority would be undermined.

"You'll regret this! I will return to take my revenge!" Kael made a threat, transforming back into a giant flame phoenix and disappearing into the sky.

"It's over..." Watching Kael's departure, Theresa finally lowered her raised arms and collapsed to the ground, tears streaming down her face. From this point on, the elves would decline from their golden age of heroes... and she, as the new leader, had to shoulder the responsibility of reviving the elf race!

"Kael will surely take his loyalists and leave. At this point, we can only try to minimize the damage. The demon invasion has caused such great harm to the elves, and someone must be held accountable! So, it can only be him and Havish!" The great elder said.

"Agreed!" The people around him echoed.

"Does that mean we will declare Kael a traitor in the elf kingdom, making it impossible for him to return?" A discordant voice suddenly rang out. It was Mufeng, who had been standing to the side, observing everything.

"Who are you? You don't seem to have a place to speak here!" The great elder's brow furrowed, as if Mufeng had hit a nerve.

"Am I not worthy?" Mufeng displayed the title of Night Hunter Hero he had just received, its colorful glow highlighting its uniqueness.

"A hero... hmpf!" The great elder, though unwilling, seemed to acknowledge Mufeng's right to speak.

"You've been maintaining Theresa all along, but you were actually guiding the situation. Kael's departure was the result you wanted! With both Havish and Kael labeled as traitors, and with your deliberate smear campaign, most of the elf mages will follow Kael in rebellion. Theresa, representing the temple faction, is the peaceful faction, so you druids will effectively control the elf kingdom!" Mufeng's words were sharp and to the point. He had seen through the great elder's scheme from the start. However, after observing, he felt that Kael's departure was better for Theresa, so he had tacitly allowed the situation to unfold until Kael left, then he revealed the great elder's true intentions, allowing Theresa to see the true nature of these people.

"Hmpf, do you think I didn't see it? In your battle with the demon, it planted a seed of evil in you! Even though you have protected the elves, you must be expelled from the elf kingdom because of the demon's curse!"

"Agreed!" The reputation penalty from the demon's curse made the voices around him almost unanimous.

"Enough!" Theresa roared, interrupting the shouts around her. "Melancholy Wind has protected the elves, but he has been cursed by the demon. For the safety of the elves, I order that Melancholy Wind be imprisoned, with a sentence of... ten thousand years!" Theresa's words took everyone by surprise, even the great elder could not argue.

"I agree." Mufeng smiled, because he saw the look in Theresa's eyes. He knew that Theresa had understood who to trust and would find a way to release him soon. That was enough.

"Very well, take this cursed one away..."

The fall of the Life Tree caused immense ecological damage to Azshara. The cold wind blew, and a person in a cloak stood for a long time, gazing at the distant ruins. Finally, he pulled up his hood to cover his face and turned to leave. Behind him, tens of thousands of similarly cloaked people braved the cold wind, walking across the grasslands. He was Kael, the former elf prince. He swore to return here! The elf race had split into two major factions, each writing a new epic!