22 Meeting Dark Elf Again!

The proud and ferocious laughter of Lily, the Earl's daughter, echoed through the dimly lit forest, sending a shiver down Dick's spine. His right leg, suddenly paralyzed, buckled under him, plunging him into a haze of panic and confusion.

With gritted teeth, he quickly registered the sharp pain in his knee, discovering a thin needle embedded there. Desperately, he yanked it out, attempting to flee.

However, his injury severely hampered his movements, reducing him to a pathetic crawl on the forest floor, his pride crushed under the weight of his own vulnerability.

Dick, now utterly defenseless, found his escape routes effectively cut off by a dark elf adventurer, who moved with lethal grace through the shadows, an unstoppable force closing in.

"Hey hey hey! Finally! My rescue is at hand!" Lily exclaimed with manic glee, watching the adventurers approach. The goblin who had tormented her now lay in the dirt, a pitiful sight.

Her eyes sparkled with malicious delight, a playful chill passing through them. Lily, thrilled beyond measure, entertained a dark thought. She envisioned taking Dick captive, transforming him into her personal slave, subject to her whims and cruelties day and night.

"Hey, adventurer, be you dark elf or forest elf, matter not. You cannot kill this goblin. I have other plans for him. He shall be my plaything, my little slave," Lily declared, her voice dripping with sinister intent. Dick, overwhelmed by fear, understood the grim reality of his situation. Like a human captive, a goblin in human hands stood no chance of strength or freedom.

Kidnapped by Lily, he would not only become an object of her sadistic pleasures but might also meet a premature end at her hands.

Despite his despair, Dick, fueled by a stubborn will to survive, managed to stand, limping forward, each step an act of defiance against his fate.

Lily, now basking in her newfound power, taunted him mercilessly. "You cannot escape your destiny as my slave. I will make you pay for all my past grievances!"

In the midst of her arrogance, the powerful, silent dark elf, who had lurked in the shadows, finally spoke. "Did he harm you?" she asked, her voice cold and detached.

Startled by the question, Lily hesitated, her smile fading as she pondered. "No, this goblin is unlike the others. He's calm, rational, not driven by base desires," she mused, yet her twisted excitement remained. "Such a unique goblin is perfect for my purposes."

The dark elf, absorbing Lily's words, emerged from the darkness. Her dark skin, long white hair, and simple scout attire did little to conceal her tall, graceful figure. She approached Dick with a stern expression, kicking him to the ground as he struggled to escape.

Dick, thrown to the earth in agony, glared at the dark elf who had thwarted his escape. But as he saw her face clearly, his eyes widened in shock.

Could this dark elf be the very mother he saved in a past simulation? The thought was inconceivable, yet the resemblance was uncanny.

"No, it can't be," Dick thought, dismissing the idea as a bizarre coincidence. He averted his gaze, unwilling to entertain the possibility further.

Yet the dark elf's eyes narrowed, a sense of recognition dawning upon her. The more she observed Dick, the more familiar he seemed, deepening the mystery that enveloped them both.

The revelation struck Tina like a bolt of lightning. The hateful Goblin in front of her was none other than her own son, born from a dark past she had tried to forget. He was the result of a terrible violation she suffered in a goblin lair, a place of nightmares.

Now, before her, stood this Goblin Shaman, a living reminder of her most traumatic moment. A whirlwind of emotions – anger, disgust, and a twisted sense of maternal connection – overwhelmed her. The shock of encountering her son, once a helpless infant in a goblin lair, now a formidable Goblin Shaman, was too much for her to bear. Her vision blurred, and darkness enveloped her as she succumbed to unconsciousness.

Dick, taken aback by the dark elf's sudden collapse, watched in confusion. Even Lily, caught up in her own twisted desires, was jolted out of her reverie.

"Hey! Why did you just faint? Wake up, wake up now!" Lily cried out in a mix of panic and frustration.

"What a disaster!" Dick muttered under his breath, summoning two lesser goblins with a sinister chuckle. "Take me away at once!" he commanded.

Hoisted up by the goblins, Dick swiftly retreated into the depths of the tunnel, desperate to escape.

Lily, her plans unraveling, gave chase in a frenzy. "No! Don't you dare run, my precious goblin slave!" But her pursuit was short-lived as she stumbled and fell, tears of frustration streaming down her face as she watched Dick disappear into the shadows.

Meanwhile, other adventurers, drawn by the commotion, rushed into the tunnel, only to find that Dick had already vanished. Lily, instead of expressing gratitude for their arrival, lashed out in a petulant rage. "You're all useless!" she screamed, her disappointment palpable, like a child denied her favorite toy.

"And you, the dark elf, fainting just like that! Worthless!" she spat, directing her anger at Tina, who was slowly regaining consciousness in her companions' arms.

Tina, amid the chaos and Lily's tirade, remained silent, her mind racing. She grappled with the reality of having encountered her son, now a Goblin Shaman. As she gazed into the dark, empty tunnel, her eyes reflected a storm of conflicting emotions.

In her last moments of consciousness in the goblin lair, she had felt herself being dragged toward safety by her son, only to be rescued later by a passing Goblin Slayer. Her son had saved her, yet the implications of this truth weighed heavily on her heart.

With a heavy heart, Tina followed her companions out of the lair, Lily's angry voice echoing behind them.

At the same time, Dick, carried swiftly by the goblin kin, emerged from the tunnel and traversed a mountain pass. He had left the Giant Tree Forest behind, entering the inner regions of the Lion Mountain Range, a domain ruled by griffins, creatures of formidable strength.

And there, confronted by the imposing sight of a griffin cub, massive as a hill, panic seized Dick once again, his fate hanging in the balance in this perilous new landscape.