CHAPTER 491: 491. TALES OF ELF ANCESTOR

The snow had stopped falling by the time Tyler and the girls were tucked away inside a warm, cozy inn. The room they rented wasn’t lavish— they don’t even have a TV , only heating arrays and normal stuffs— but it was clean, well-heated, and, above all, comfortable. The wooden beams creaked softly above, a faint scent of pine lingering in the air. The fire which looks like an ordinary fire, but was created by the arrays. It was in the corner hearth filled the room with a gentle glow, pushing back the northern chill that lingered outside.

Tyler leaned back against the wall, turning a flyer over in his hands. The paper was rough, smudged with ink, yet the words were clear enough. "What’s with this whole Lizard Elf gathering?" he muttered, raising a brow.

He had gotten it earlier, from the Lizard Elf in the neighboring room who’d taken more than a little interest in him. She had slipped the flyer into his hand with a coy smile and too much lingering eye contact. Her tail had even flicked against his knee before she walked away.

Myrtle had explained it briefly on the way in, but now another voice drifted in through the half-open doorway. "It’s a celebration in honor of our ancestors," the neighbor replied from across the hall. Her voice was melodic, almost sing-song, as though every word was a line from a practiced tale.

Tyler glanced at her.

"Your Ancestor? Wow must be a big figure back then." Tyler said.

"Like the Whore she was, She fcked the Lizards and gave birth to us.." She said with a smile.

"Woah... Anyways, I am going in... Bye..." Tyler didn’t press for more; he wasn’t in the mood for another flirtatious exchange. After a few polite words, he closed the door and retreated into his room.

Inside, only Mana waited.

"Oh? You’re in your adult form now?" Tyler grinned as he stepped closer. His own scales rippled, then faded back into smooth skin, leaving him looking fully human once again.

Mana tilted her head, violet eyes glimmering as she winked. "Isn’t it because we’re alone this time?"

Her appearance was striking. Gone was the mischievous little-sister version she sometimes adopted. This was her older self —curves, elegance, and a certain knowing charm.

Tyler raised a brow. "You do realize your younger version is still technically of age. Doesn’t matter which form you’re in, really."

She pouted, lips curving downward. "Oh... so you don’t like this me?"

"Turn off the girlfriend mode," Tyler chuckled, "and I’ll switch off the dragon mode."

That earned him a soft laugh. "Fine, fine."

"..."

"So... Do you still feel the resonance?"

Instead of replying immediately, Tyler looked around. The room felt too quiet. "Where are the others?" He pulled out a small copper pot and a matching ladle, setting them carefully on the bed. Their surfaces gleamed faintly even under dim light, and the air around them seemed to tremble.

Mana slid closer, resting her chin in her palm. "Zuzia wanted to look around outside. Lanny followed her just for fun. Myrtle followed her out of panic. They will be probably fine."

"Figures." Tyler nodded, then tapped the rim of the pot. The sound was crisp, clear— and the ladle on the bed vibrated in response.

A subtle fluctuation rippled through the air between them.

"You remember last time, right?" Tyler spoke quietly, as though recalling an old memory. "The pot reacted to the ladle, and I tracked it back to Isha’s place. Her ex-husband—what was his name... Role? Roel? Something like that. He also mentioned that he once felt a resonance in the Dragon King’s territory."

Mana’s hand brushed over the copper pot, her fingers lingering. She closed her eyes, concentrating. For a moment, her body shivered faintly, and then she whispered, "Wow it’s so simple, I can sense the resonance pulling in a certain direction. So this copper pot is still not a full set."

Tyler nodded "That’s great too. This copper ladle Ability to snatch anything from the distance is awesome. So .... I hope the next ’thing’ has something like that too."

"Hmm... If we can feel it," Mana opened her eyes, serious now.

"Then they can also feel these. yub." Tyler nodded.

Silence stretched for a moment, broken only by the soft crackle of the fireplace. Then Mana’s expression darkened. "Why are you shielding your thoughts from me? I can’t hear you the way I used to."

Tyler rubbed his temple with one hand. "Maybe it’s because of my..."

"Loose immortal-level divine sense?" Mana finished for him, arching a brow. "Convenient excuse. Blame everything on it, as always."

He let out a low chuckle, brushing off her scolding. "For now, my thoughts are filled with only you."

Before she could retort, his lips found hers. The kiss was warm, deep, and for a moment the world outside the inn simply ceased to exist. The copper pot and ladle continued their faint hum, but neither paid attention anymore. Both of them tumbled onto the bed, the resonance of artifacts forgotten beneath the resonance of their own hearts.

---

Some time later, the sound of hurried footsteps echoed down the hallway. The door creaked open slightly, then shut again as whispers carried through the wooden frame.

"They’re not coming out," Myrtle’s voice hissed.

Zuzia blurted out, "They are probably coming In—"

Lanny looked confused.

"Those are tasty treats of Tyler’s DNA. I want it." Zuzia groaned again.

"You’re not barging in there! Princess." Myrtle snapped, her usual calm composure nowhere to be found.

Lanny, however, leaned closer to the door. Her eyes glimmered with childlike curiosity beneath her mask. "Maybe just a peek..." she whispered under her breath.

"No peeking!" Myrtle tugged her back firmly, panic rising in her tone.

"But..." Lanny trailed off, tilting her head. "They sound like they’re having fun."

Myrtle’s face flushed bright red. "That’s exactly why you shouldn’t peek!"

Zuzia folded her arms, smirking despite herself. "Honestly, you sound more embarrassed than they are. How about we all join them?"

Lanny hesitated then her ears turned red.

Myrtle sputtered in protest, dragging the two younger girls toward another room. "We’re staying somewhere else tonight. End of discussion."

"How about watching the Lizard elf festival?" Zuzia said.

The three of them disappeared down the hall, their voices fading.

The night outside grew darker, the northern winds howling once more, carrying with them the faint sound of drums from the Lizard Elf festival down the street.

┉┈ ◈ ◉ ◈ ┈┉

In the age of myths, when countless gods walked the Boundless World, there existed a goddess whose name stirred both reverence and unease—the Fertility Goddess. Ancient cultivators and mages carved her likeness into stone and whispered prayers to her under moonlit skies, for she was the embodiment of abundance, union, and endless creation.

The ancestor of the Lizard Elf race was said to have been one of her most ambitious champions. She was once a female elf of striking beauty who dared to compete in the Games of Gods, and there she boldly proclaimed herself the next incarnation of fertility. Unlike the other aspirants who sought Eternity, war, or wisdom, her desire was singular and strange: to create as many new bloodlines as the world could contain.

Her life became a tapestry of unions. It was told she took not tens nor hundreds but thousands of husbands from different races—dragons, goblins, orcs, beastfolk, even mortals. Whenever her womb quickened, she used a forbidden spell to pass the growing child into one of her countless magical clones, who bore the burden of pregnancy in her stead. Through this method, she birthed a flood of crossbreeds: dragon-elves with gleaming scales, goblin-elves with restless cunning, orc-elves with unmatched strength, and the infamous lizard-elves, whose bloodline endured longer than most. From the oceans came octopus-elves and more, from the skies harpy-elves, and still stranger forms besides.

Yet abundance gave way to calamity. A great catastrophe struck, and every race that bore her legacy collapsed with her. Only the Lizard Elves and Dark Elves survived. The Dark Elves, it was whispered, uncovered the cause —a curse laid upon the Goddess’s bloodline by nameless entities who despised her excess. For revealing too much, the dark race was nearly extinguished as well, taking the secret into their graves.

Millions of years have passed since then. Now, only three elven branches remain: the proud High Elves, the weakened Dark Elves, and the enduring Lizard Elves, whose blood runs closer to lizardmen than to their ancestral kin.

---

At present, Zuzia slumbered peacefully on Myrtle’s lap, her breaths soft and even, while Lanny and Myrtle sat amidst the bustle of the festival square, listening eagerly to the retelling of this ancient tale by their neighbour.

At the center of the gathering stood a statue—an elf woman carved in flawless beauty, entirely unclothed, her arms raised as if beckoning. Around her, scores of naked men danced in frenzied circles, their movements wild yet strangely synchronized.

Myrtle’s brows knit together. "So this is why female Lizard Elves despise her..."

Indeed, despite two million years having passed since the Fertility Goddess’s champion perished, resentment lingered. To many women, she remained a thief who had once claimed every mate for herself. Records from her era spoke of her being hated even while alive, a rival to all females.

Yet as the drums pounded and the dancers howled, no one noticed a strange thing that is happening. It’s like they unconsciously avoided this abnormalities.

In the eyes of the naked male Lizard Elves —and even some dragonions and humans —a fanatic gleam burned. It was as though invisible strings extended from the statue’s outstretched hands, pulling them into her rhythm, binding their wills.