CHAPTER 285: COLLECTING EARS

The road to the Yanyu capital stretched through countryside that grew increasingly desolate as Grim traveled deeper into the kingdom.

Abandoned carts, abandoned homes and the occasional crater where magical attacks had scarred the earth.

Grim guided his horse carefully around the worst of the damage, noting the destruction.

[The elves know what they’re doing,] Caius observed as they passed a destroyed bridge. [This isn’t random violence. They’re cutting supply lines and communication routes.]

"Conquest," Grim agreed. "They plan to hold this territory."

Suddenly, the rain that was downpouring on Grim slowed down a little. He passed a crested a hill and saw the village below. Or what remained of it.

Most of the buildings stood intact, but something felt wrong about the scene. No smoke rose from chimneys, no people moved through the streets, and an unnatural silence hung over the entire settlement.

Grim dismounted and secured his horse behind a couple of trees, then approached the village on foot.

Moving carefully between buildings, Grim worked his way toward the village center. The first bodies he found were Yanyu soldiers.

"Over here," came a voice from one of the larger buildings. "Bring the water quickly."

Grim froze, listening carefully. The accent was wrong. It sounded like an elf.

Moving closer to the building, Grim peered through a broken window and felt his anger spike at what he saw inside.

Two dozen human civilians sat in the center of the room, their hands bound behind their backs. Men, women, and children huddled together while six elven soldiers stood guard around them.

"The next transport arrives tomorrow," one of the elves was saying to another. "These will fetch good prices in the eastern markets."

"Slavers," Grim whispered.

"The children especially," another elf added with casual cruelty.

Grim had heard enough. He drew Echo silently and moved around to the building’s main entrance. The door stood partially open, giving him a clear view of the room’s interior and the positions of all six guards.

"Aurora Flash," he whispered, releasing the technique at its maximum intensity.

The brilliant light exploded through the doorway, flooding the room with radiance that left the elves completely blind and disoriented.

Their enhanced senses, normally an advantage, became a liability as the overwhelming sensory input caused them to stumble and cry out in pain.

Grim was through the door before their vision cleared.

Grim sliced the nearest elf across the throat in a cut so clean the warrior was dead before he hit the ground.

The second the elf managed to draw his weapon, Grim shattered both the sword and the hand holding it.

The remaining four elves recovered quickly and began casting combat spells. Bolts of green energy lanced toward Grim from multiple directions, forcing him to dodge and weave as he closed distance.

"Celestial Mist: Ethereal Mist," Grim called, releasing fog to obscure their targeting.

But the elves adapted immediately, switching to area-effect spells that filled the entire room with crackling energy.

Grim felt the magical attacks burning through his mist technique, forcing him to abandon the concealment.

"You fight well for a human," one of the elves said, his voice carrying grudging respect. "But you cannot stand against a superior race."

"We’ll see about that," Grim replied.

The elf who had spoken launched himself forward with inhuman speed, his replacement weapon wreathed in the same green energy as their spells.

Clang!

The collision of their blades sent shockwaves through the building’s wooden walls.

The elves moved with fluid grace, their attacks flowing seamlessly between physical strikes and magical attacks.

His speed matched theirs, his strength exceeded what they expected, and his aurora techniques proved surprisingly effective against their magical defenses.

Echo carved through the second elf’s guard, opening his chest in a spray of silver blood.

The third elf’s binding spell shattered against Grim’s aurora aura, the aurora energy consuming the green magic like fire consuming ice.

The fourth elf tried to retreat and call for reinforcements, but Grim’s enhanced speed allowed him to close the distance in a single step.

A thrust through the heart ended that threat before it could develop.

The final two elves fought with the desperation of warriors who knew they were going to die.

Their spells came faster, their blade work became more aggressive, and they began using techniques that clearly came at a cost to their own life force.

It wasn’t enough.

Grim’s cultivation advantage was simply too great. His aurora energy allowed him to power through their magical attacks, while his enhanced physical abilities gave him decisive advantages in direct combat.

Within minutes, all six elves lay dead on the floor, their silver blood pooling among the wooden planks.

"It’s over," Grim announced to the bound civilians, who had watched the entire fight with expressions of terror and hope.

He began cutting their bonds with Echo, starting with the adults who could help free the others. As the ropes fell away, the villagers began speaking in overlapping voices, expressing gratitude and relief.

"How many more are there?" Grim asked an older man who seemed to be some kind of village leader.

"These six have been here for three days," the man replied, rubbing his wrists where the ropes had chafed. "But we’ve seen larger groups passing through. Maybe twenty or thirty in the main force."

"Where are they now?"

"Moved on toward the capital yesterday," a woman said. "They said something about joining other units for a big attack."

Grim nodded, filing the information away for later. Right now, he had other priorities.

Walking back to the dead elves, he knelt beside the first body and drew a utility knife from his belt. The elves’ ears were pointed and delicate, quite different from human anatomy.

But they would serve his purpose.

"What are you doing?" one of the villagers asked with obvious confusion and growing concern.

"Collecting proof," Grim replied, beginning to cut the ears from the first corpse. "Your emperor will want evidence that elven raiders have been in the west district. Every report is have says they’ve only been in the east."

Scrchh! Snip!

The villagers watched with expressions ranging from fascination to revulsion as Grim methodically removed the ears from all six bodies.

He wrapped them carefully in a cloth taken from one of the elves, then secured the bundle to his belt.

"You’re going to the capital?" the village leader asked.

"I am," Grim confirmed. "I suggest you gather what you can carry and head toward the nearest fortified city. This area isn’t safe."

"But this is our home," a younger man protested.

"Your home is a target," Grim replied bluntly. "The elves will be back, probably in greater numbers. Unless you want to end up as slaves in their markets, you need to leave."

"Where should we go?" the woman asked.

"Anywhere with walls and soldiers," Grim said. "The capital if you can make it, or any of the fortress cities that are still holding out."

"Will you travel with us?" the village leader asked hopefully.

"No," Grim said. "I have other business. But I can give you a few hours head start before any reinforcements arrive."

The villagers began gathering their possessions with the efficient movements of people who had clearly thought about this possibility before.

Children were given small bundles to carry, while adults loaded themselves with whatever food and valuables they could manage.

As they prepared to leave, the village leader approached Grim one final time.

"Sir, we don’t even know your name. How can we thank you properly?"

"Grim van Ambrose," he replied. "And you can thank me by surviving what’s coming. Tell others what you saw here. Human cultivators can fight elves and win. Spread that word."

"Lord Ambrose," the man repeated with obvious recognition. "I heard about you in the tournament. You split an elf in half."

"Move quickly," Grim advised. "And stay off the main roads. The elves will be watching those."

As the villagers departed with their children and possessions, Grim retrieved his horse and examined his captured trophies. Twelve pointed ears, proof of six dead elven raiders who would never threaten human civilians again.

[Brutal but effective,] Caius observed. [Though I suspect this is just the beginning.]

"The beginning of what?" Grim asked as he mounted his horse.

[Of understanding what this war really is,] Caius replied. [These weren’t soldiers, they were slavers. The elves aren’t just invading territory. They’re harvesting people.]

"Then they’re going to discover that humans make poor prey," Grim said with cold determination.

The road to the capital stretched ahead, and somewhere along it lay more elven forces, more opportunities to gather more ears. The six slavers had been skilled, but they hadn’t been prepared for someone of his level.

He wondered how the larger elven forces would fare against his aurora techniques. Only one way to find out.

Spurring his horse forward, Grim continued toward the capital, his collection of elven ears a grim promise of what awaited any who threatened the people under his protection.

The hunting had officially begun.