>>Amber

The sound of burning and the orange glow made me look up.

Hael had already summoned a fireball. I could feel the heat of it even though it was far from me. I couldn't look at it directly, so I looked at the elf again.

I feel like Hael's being a bit dramatic here, isn't he?

I don't sense any hostility from her, why summon a destructive fire ball?

"Please!" She raised her hands in the air, "I come in peace," She could sense the danger she was in as well, "My name is Lilia!" She stated, "I only want to ask the saint for her help!"

"State your purpose," Hael ordered sternly. He seemed angry, so I chose not to speak between them.

"I'm only here because we need the power of the saint!" She said, "The miasma has spread all the way to the forest of elves!"

"And?" Hael was not amused.

She chose to be wise and state everything in one go, "We elves are strong and possess the power of light but elves do not have holy powers like humans do. We tried to fight the miasma, but many of our brethren were consumed by it, turning into dark elves." She gulped, "We need the saint to help purify them."

The next moment the big ball of fire looming over our head was gone. I let out a sigh of relief as the cool air came back.

Hael smirked, "For an elf to ask help from a human." He chuckled, "How amusing." His words were sharper than they normally are.

Lilia lowered her head, "We have no other option. Lend us a saint. Please,"

"Do you think we have many of them?" Hael's voice held clear signs of mocking. Does he have some personal resentment towards elves or something? Or does he have some resentment towards her.

I stared at them both.

Doesn't look like they know each other though.

"I do realize, you have only two. But the fact is, you have TWO. That never happens." She looked at me, "We just need help to purify the ones that have already turned."

"It won't matter," Hael replied, "The miasma will come back and consume more."

"It'll only come back if we come in contact with it." She replied, "As long as we stay away from the area of origin, we can avoid it."

Area of origin? Do the elves know where the miasma originated from?

"You live in the forest, there is no way for you to avoid it," Hael replied.

"Once you heal us, we'll blockade our entrance." She answered, "We plan on using magic to create barriers and shields to keep the corrupted beings out of our territory."

"How long do you plan on staying there?" Hael folded his arms, "Even we don't know how to take care of this situation. Do you plan on blockading yourselves for years?" He smirked, "Might as well just start killing the ones that turned and move on."

"Hael," I elbowed him, "That's not a nice thing to say."

Lilia's gaze dropped, "I know, but we have no other option." She bowed her head, "Please, help us. Too many elves are suffering."

"No," Hael answered, "Leave,"

"Hael!" I said but he ignored me

"I beg of you!" Her head went lower, "Please, Please, we need you."

"No," Hael answered again without hesitation and I looked at him in shock. He's being hostile, why?

Lilia froze in her stance and there was a moment of silence. Then she dropped to her knees, "Please," Her lips quivered, "My brother is one of the infected." Seeing her made me feel bad, "Please,"

"Hael," I grabbed his arm, "Why do you keep saying no," She looked ashamed of herself. Elves are known for having sky-high pride, her soul must be crushing at the moment asking humans for help. I can see her body trembling.

I grabbed Hael's cloak, "How about we help her?" I whispered

Hael glanced at me, then looked at the elf, "I might think about it if you drop your head to the ground."

"Hael!" I was shocked but Lilia was shocked as well. She raised her head to look at us in surprise, "You don't need to do that!" I told her and then looked at Hael, "What are you doing!? We can just agree to help her!"

Hael looked at me, then at Lilia. Lilia looked at Hael who was looking down at her coldly. Then she dropped her head on the ground, "Please," Her hands and face were on the dirt as she begged. The scene got me angry and I slapped Hael's arm in anger.

He then snapped his finger, creating a barrier around the both of us. All the sound around us ceased.

???

I was confused. "Why did you do that?"

"Because elves have exceptional hearing." He said, "Can't you see their ears?" He shook his head at me, "There's no point in whispering. She can still hear us."

"Oh..." I did not think that far, "So you made a sound barrier?" I looked at Lilia. She had raised her head from the ground but she sat in her place and stared at us from the other side, neither offended nor alarmed.

She quietly waited

"Why do you want to help her?" Hael asked, "You get nothing out of it."

"Hael," I smiled at his question, "Helping others doesn't always need to come with a reward."

"It should," He said, "Or you'll be taken for granted."

I shook my head at him, "You do something nice for someone, they'll repay it in another way."

"I don't get what you're being so cocky about, you don't even have much power. What makes you think you can help anyone out?"

"..." I pursed my lips, "Maybe one person?" I eyed him with one eye as I raised my brow along with it.

"You sure are naive. You magic will run out after one person, and then what? Everyone will know you're not a saint." He looked into my eyes, "Everyone will know you're a fake."

!!!

The way he spoke made something in me tremble. I looked down in shame.

"Well, I'm a saint. You made me into one." Then I felt angry, "You made me eat that weird brownie!" I raised my head to look at him, "What the hell was even in it! You shouldn't have fed it to me!" Thinking about it made me more mad. He's telling me I'm fake when he's the one who started all of this! "Illaris should have been the one to eat it."

"Illaris?" He raised his brow at me, "You really think that she should have eaten a holy artifact?"

!!!??

What?

"You mixed a holy artifact in the brownie?" I was baffled, but then again, it made sense. I let out a sigh, "I never had much mana to begin with but if you gave it to Illaris, her powers might have grown."

"You're being quite stupid. I can't believe you still haven't figured that out." His words made me angrier.

"If she had, she might have solved this problem of miasma by now!" I yelled at him, "This is all your fault!!"

"She can't do it." He replied calmly.

"Why?" I folded my arms and he looked at me like I was some sort of dumb fish, "What?" That look of his unnerved me a little.

Am I wrong about something? Well, maybe I am... The problem of miasma hasn't ended because we haven't found the source of it. So I guess I made a stupid argument.

He looked at me, "What makes you think Illaris didn't consume something to be able to wield holy powers as well?"

My eyes went wide at his words

!!!

"What?" My heart fell as I received a shock, "What are you saying?" I looked at him suspiciously. "Why would you say that?" Wait, he wouldn't say that without any proof. He knew something, "How do you know that?"

"Four years ago, on your engagement. I left to roam about the temple. There was a hidden artifact there which I found by chance."

So that's where he went when I was getting engaged, "And?"

"It's no longer there. The presence is gone, rather-" He smirked, "That same presence comes from Illaris now."

It was a shocker. The whole country thought that Illaris woke as a saint, that her powers came alive. No one doubted it because she was a devoted person of the temple.

"... My God..." But it wasn't hard for me to believe. I had become a saint in the same manner after all. I didn't doubt Hael's words either. He isn't one to lie... I think...

"But what vexes me is that the flower she ate gave her an immense amount of power. And the one I gave you barely did anything."

"Flower?" I looked at him, "You made me eat a flower?"

"What other artifact could possibly be mixed in a brownie?" He shook his head at me, looking at me like I was a dumb gorilla

"True..." I nodded, "The other holy artifacts are things that can't be consumed..." I sighed, "Maybe it would have worked if I had more mana,"

Hael's expression lit up, "Exactly," His smile widened and I got the creeps. I knew he was going to do something weird now.

He turned to look at Lilia and snapped his finger again. The sound barrier around us dissipated and all other sounds came to my ears again

"We've decided," Hael said and I shot my head at him

When did we decide? What did we decide!?!?

"I hope you'll help us," Lilia answered.

Oh God... Hael's gonna say no. I felt bad. I should have convinced him but I couldn't because he's right about me being weak... Moreover he doesn't really under the concept of helping out people just from the goodness of the heart

I looked down in defeat

"We will help you," He answered, catching me off guard. My eyes went wide and I looked at him

WHAT!!?!??! He's actually willing to help her out?!?

"We will?" I said and he glanced at me

"We will," There was something hidden behind his smirk, "But," He looked at Lilia, "We want something in return."

Ah yes, Of course. What was I expecting? That Hael would help someone just because he felt like being kind? I shook my head at myself.

"If it's something we have. We will help." Lilia stood up

"Oh," Hael hummed, "You do have it."

I started feeling anxious. What is he planning???

"What?" Lilia asked

"Your mana core," Hael replied

My eyes going wide in shock were a given but lilia's eyes went wide like crazy.

He wants their mana core?!?! Is he out of his mind!?!

The mana core is what sustains a race!!!!