Volume 9, Chapter 2 – Regarding the Fact that My Queen Mother Found Countless Young Elf Ladies as My Potential Consorts

Within a dark space of about ten square meters, a massive mass of black sludge was brewing on the ceiling. A fruit-like growth, as large as a heart, quivered slightly as if it might drop at any moment. This mass of Chaos had condensed to over two meters in length; even standing at the entrance, Fia could feel the faint mental pulses emanating from it.

This was a subterranean space located a full three kilometers from the Hall of Reverent Light. Its sole purpose was to gestate the slain Milan. To this day, Fia did not know how Milan had merged with the elf god; that was a question only he could answer once he awakened.

Fia turned her head toward a blue-eyed Chaos following respectfully behind her.

“How much longer until Milan awakens?”

“Responding to the Father God: anytime now. Though, if I may be so bold, Milan’s mind was polluted by the traitors. When he wakes, he may very well contaminate the consciousness of others or even stubbornly attack you again. I believe it would be best to strip his consciousness from the collective as soon as possible to eliminate any future trouble.”

“No, I have my own ideas.”

Fia refused decisively.

“If the maddening thoughts were something even Milan couldn’t resist, there is no guarantee others won’t be contaminated if they encounter the same situation. I need to know if Milan can maintain his sense of self after waking. That will help me decide on a countermeasure—whether to immediately sever everyone’s mental connection or adopt a gentler approach.”

“As you command.”

As the words fell, the cramped ten-square-meter space lapsed into silence. The quiet did not last long; as more Chaos flowed from the walls to the ceiling, merging one by one into the massive droplet, the giant fruit finally underwent a visible change. It sagged lower and lower until the sludge could no longer support its weight, hitting the ground with a wet splat .

It did not splash like water. Instead, it coalesced into a humanoid form along an eerie trajectory, like a scene in fast-forward. In less than five seconds, a sturdy Chaos over two meters tall with deep blue antlers appeared before Fia.

The deep blue antlers and eyes were a stark contrast to the crimson seen when he was possessed by the elf god. Fia could clearly feel the mental connection coming from Milan. She shook her head slightly at the blue-eyed Chaos standing between them and took a step forward, her tone steady.

“Milan.”

“I… Father God, I am beyond forgiveness!”

Milan shuddered, then collapsed to his knees with a heavy thud. It was not a simple kneeling; he prostrated himself, pressing his forehead against the floor in a full kowtow. His voice through the mental connection was thick with trembling and remorse.

“I was seduced by the traitors. Not only did I become their accomplice, but I even viewed you as an enemy. I have committed the most unforgivable sin of betrayal. I beg of you, destroy my soul so that I may never be reborn, and let my end serve as a warning to others!”

“Calm down. This isn’t your fault. More importantly, if you still consider me your Father God, then answer my questions honestly.”

Milan did not answer, remaining in his prostrated position. Fia sensed that he still wanted to acknowledge her as Father God, but felt he had no right to even speak her name after his betrayal.

“Looking at you, you seem to remember what happened back then. How did you end up joining with the elf god? Also, do you remember any intel regarding the Overlord?”

Milan remained silent for two seconds, then spoke with great difficulty, as if the words were hard to force out.

“That… shortly after you left, the maddening thoughts I had been suppressing suddenly surged. Before I could react, my consciousness was swallowed by madness, and I lost control. I knew clearly that you were the Father God, yet for some reason, I was possessed by the urge to kill you. A voice kept urging me in my heart, telling me to fight you. I believe that voice belongs to the Overlord you spoke of, but I remember no specific details about her. She only gives me a sense of familiarity, like… uh—”

His words cut off abruptly. This wasn’t due to poor health; he had stopped voluntarily. Hesitation and deep shame flooded through the mental connection.

Rеаd оո ΚatRеаⅾіոɡCafe

“Milan, are you going to hide things even from the Father God?”

“I…”

“Don’t worry. Just speak the truth.”

Having received Fia’s permission, Milan spoke with a strained voice.

“At the time, I felt… I felt as though I had returned to the Mother’s embrace. The Overlord’s voice reminded me of the warmth the Mother gave me in my soul’s memories.”

“The Mother, huh…”

Fia crossed her arms, looking down as she pondered.

When Milan had been her enemy, he claimed the Overlord was the maintainer of the world’s order. Now he said she was like the Mother. Assuming Milan wasn’t lying back then, and combining that with the Sovereign’s claim that Chaos grows whenever an outworlder arrives, it was hard not to link the formation of Chaos with the arrival of travelers.

Briefly sorting it out, one could easily draw a conclusion.

The arrival of outworlders disrupts the order of the world. To protect itself, the world’s order gave birth to a monstrosity like Chaos. Since she was the most powerful individual among all the travelers, the Mother of Chaos—the Overlord—chose to target her.

However, there was a flaw in this conclusion. How exactly did travelers disrupt the world’s order? She had been on the World Tree Continent for over a year and hadn’t brought disaster to those around her. The same could be said for Claire, who had been here even longer.

Moreover, if the Mother of Chaos was the Overlord, the incarnation of the world’s will, then why was Chaos hunted to the brink of extinction by gods and Darkborn in the early stages of the war, only to be saved by a Father God who looked exactly like her?

Most importantly, if the Chaos regarded her as Father God because the person holding the ruby ring saved their Mother, then why had the Mother turned against her, this very Father God?

Temporarily suppressing her chaotic thoughts, Fia nodded slightly.

“Fine. Get up. Go to the Hall of Reverent Light; I have a mission for you.”

“Father God, I no longer have the right to exist.”

“Whether you have the right or not is for me to decide, not you. The task I’m giving you is to find a way to actively sever the mental connection. Since that thing called the Overlord can influence you through it, then this method will fail once the connection is broken. Also, find a way to obtain those Chaos that have turned red. Test how to interact with them without being infected. We need to cut off the possibility of the Overlord controlling you at the source. This is your chance to atone for your crimes.”

Fia hadn’t originally intended to use the phrase “atone for your crimes.” Making mistakes was only human, especially since Milan’s betrayal hadn’t been of his own will. She said it for the benefit of the blue-eyed Chaos standing nearby. His earlier behavior showed he despised Milan’s betrayal; by framing this as a chance for atonement, she could greatly alleviate the hostility the rest of the race felt toward Milan.

“I…”

“This is an order.”

“Yes, Father God.”

“When you go back, relay what I just said to the others. From now on, the Eye infected by the red color are not to be called traitors.”

Rеαԁ оո ΚаtRеаⅾіոɡСαfе

This last sentence was directed at the blue-eyed Chaos.

The air filled with the noisy hum of mental communication. Fia waved her sleeve.

“Alright. Establish yourselves in the Second Abyss as soon as possible. If I find any other abysses that lead directly to the Primordial Continent—which should now be called the Origin Continent—I will notify you. Develop the race well. If necessary, you can even move the Hall of Reverent Light closer to the Abyss. There is no need to live in the inconvenient inland for the sake of so-called ‘commemorating the Father God’ when it hinders the race’s growth.”

“Yes.”

Both the blue-eyed Chaos and Milan answered Fia crisply. However, Fia knew they hadn’t listened to a word of the second half. Previously, when she suggested abandoning the Hall of Reverent Light for the more convenient Second Abyss, all the Eye had been struck with extreme panic. They believed that abandoning or destroying the statues was disrespectful to the Father God. Even if the request came from her, the Father God herself, they didn’t dare breathe a word of agreement. No one wanted, nor had the courage, to be the one to discard or destroy those icons.

How stubborn.

Sighing inwardly, Fia returned to the Hall of Reverent Light with Milan and the other antlered Chaos. After announcing the resolution of the incident to the other Chaos, she used teleport magic to return to the Twilight Palace.

◇

What followed was a hectic banquet.

As a gift from Yelido to his beloved daughter, the Twilight Palace was luxurious to a degree that surpassed all the other consorts’ palaces combined. It featured not only high-cost facilities like a magic testing field and a subterranean research lab but also living areas such as baths, dining halls, and a grand hall for banquets.

The one being used now was the large grand hall located in the side palace.

The floors here were paved with white sub-stone slabs that had the texture of white jade, while the ceiling was made of ivory-colored sky crystals that made the entire hall feel bright and open. With a ceiling height of over five meters, amber crystal lamps hanging above, and colorful suspended lights decorating the walls covered in white curtains, it was no exaggeration to call this one of Blossom’s premier luxury halls.

At this moment, the hall was filled with elf nobles in magnificent attire, either sitting or standing. Even Yelido and Fia’s many consort mothers were in attendance. Naturally, there was also Fia’s group, the foreign envoys she had invited that morning (excluding the few who opposed her), people from the Kingdom of Death, and a large number of young elf ladies. What gave Fia a headache was that she remembered the names of these wealthy, diverse young ladies; they were all noble elves introduced by Yulisha. Whether in lineage or looks, they were top-tier. Fia had even attended tea parties with these young ladies at her mother’s command during her spare time.

The problem was that Fia realized Yulisha was a very traditional elf woman, and her methods were purely elven.

First of all, the height of these young ladies was at least on Nola’s level, and many more were like Claire and Erin Slate—older-sister types who combined beauty with tall, slender figures. There was no shortage of the “slender branch, heavy fruit” type, featuring delicate waists and snowy bosoms that their gowns could barely contain. This was somewhat within Fia’s expectations; after all, Yulisha had long ago started picking “potential consorts” based on the size of their chests and hips.

What made Fia’s head hurt even more was that Yulisha’s range was incredibly broad. On the younger side, there were those who were still minors, only as old as Liti but exceptionally well-developed. On the older side, some were even a few years older than Yulisha herself, and they were all formidable counts in their own right. When Fia attended the tea parties of these elf countesses, she always felt as though she were chatting with people from her mother’s generation.

Though the countesses were truly kind to her and were excellent in both looks and personality, Fia couldn’t see them as girls her own age. Especially when they gave her gifts before she left, she felt the strange displacement of a junior receiving red envelopes from an elder.

It should be noted that Yulisha didn’t recommend elves two or three hundred years older than Fia out of desperation; elves simply weren’t as sensitive to age as humans were. Elves had long lifespans and aged slowly; a three-hundred-year-old elf looked little different from a hundred-year-old one. Yulisha was over three hundred, yet her appearance was similar to a human woman in her mid-twenties. These countesses were the same.

Currently, the hall was a bustle of nobles, aides, and busy servants. The sound of conversation, the clinking of glasses, and the orchestral music played by the band made the entire venue exceptionally lively. The mellow aroma of wine, the scent of delicacies lined up along the walls, and the perfume worn by the nobles pushed the atmosphere to its climax.

Rеaⅾ оո KаtRеаdiոgСαfе

However, Fia was not enjoying herself. Dressed in her formal princess attire, she was doing her best to pull in her massive hoop skirt—she absolutely loathed these puffy princess dresses, even the black ones, as they were inconvenient for moving like a doll—and was hiding behind the three “big sisters,” Claire, Anastasia, and Erin Slate. The group was tucked away in an inconspicuous corner of the hall.

“What is wrong, Your HIghness? You are as beautiful and moving as a night fairy today. You should be standing in a more prominent position to receive everyone’s praise. Besides, I think I saw the Queen looking for you just now.”

“Shh, keep it down.”

Facing Erin Slate in her pale green gown, Fia grabbed the back of Anastasia’s waist and peeked out carefully.

Whether it was the way she peered through the gap between Anastasia and Claire’s waists or her crouched posture, it was clear that Fia was being extremely cautious.

“Don’t you see that Mother Yulisha is surrounded by those countesses and young ladies? If they find me, it’s over.”

“Exactly! Big Sister Erin and Big Sister Ana need to stand firmly in front of Sister. If those women find her, Sister’s ‘reputation’ will be ruined for sure.”

Liti, sitting on a corner sofa, poked her head out from behind the backrest. She was kneeling on the sofa, hiding behind the double barrier of the three older sisters and the sofa itself, just like Fia.

In fact, Liti was facing a similar predicament. Though she was an overlooked princess, she was still royalty, and there were many who had their eyes on her. Ever since Liti’s engagement had been broken, her mother had been scouting for a new fiancé. Normally, Liti could hide in the Twilight Palace, and since her mother had had a falling out with Fia, Liti was able to avoid her harassment. But today, her mother was attending as a royal consort and was currently trying to drag her out to meet people.

“But isn’t it normal for the Princess, as the crown princess, to have several consorts? His Majesty has sixteen. In Her Highness’s case, she should have at least thirty or more to surpass him.”

Despite her words, Erin Slate, her pale green hair tied into twin tails, leaned closer to Anastasia to hide Fia more securely.

“No way! If Sister gets any more consorts, I won’t even rank in the top four! Lately, even that Queen of Death has been looking at Sister like a hawk… By the way, where did Lucitine go?”

“Lucitine and Ruth are on the other side. They are the Queen of Death and the Princess of Death, after all. They need to let the nobles get to know them to get rid of the stereotypes—Gah! Mother Yulisha is coming! I’ll hide with an illusion, Anastasia, whatever you do, tell her I’m not here!”

“Sister, hide me too!”

“Liti is right here~”

Kneeling on the sofa like Liti, Milu made the expression of a little devil, her winged ears fluttering as she cupped her hands to her mouth and fake-whispered.

However, Liti didn’t have time to bicker with Milu because her mother was approaching alongside Yulisha. Since the appearances and hair of Claire, Anastasia, and Erin Slate were so iconic, Yulisha’s group headed straight for them.

This made Anastasia feel like she was sitting on pins and needles.

First, the sensation of Fia lightly pinching the clothes at her waist made her so itchy she couldn’t help but wiggle her hips slightly. Second was the pressure emanating from the approaching Yulisha. Although following Fia’s orders was important, one could not forget that Yulisha was a formidable elder.

“Claire, Anastasia.”

Arriving before the three, Yulisha’s gaze bypassed them to look at the sofa, only to see Milu alone. She immediately frowned.

“Where is Dofi? Why isn’t she with you?”

Reαd оո КаtRеаԁіnɡСαfе

“That… well…”

Anastasia swallowed hard. Although she was now Fia’s fiancée, the pressure Yulisha exerted on her had not decreased; if anything, it grew day by day. She was now stuttering, and she secretly poked Claire next to her, begging for help. But even the usually composed Claire found it difficult to oppose her own mother-in-law in this situation. With beads of sweat on her forehead, she closed her eyes mentally and gritted her teeth.

“I haven’t seen the Princess.”

“Strange…”

“Liti, stop hiding and get out here!”

Immediately following Yulisha’s voice, Liti’s mother, the Third Consort, stepped over to the back of the sofa. She was fuming and grabbed at the empty air next to Milu. Her hand landed with unerring precision, followed by a childish cry from the air.

“How can you even see me through this!”

“The sofa cushion is mysteriously sunken in the shape of a pair of legs. How do you think I see you? How dare you try to trick me with illusion magic! Out with you!”

“Illusion magic?”

Alerted by the Third Consort, Yulisha also realized what was happening. She had already felt that Anastasia’s stiff expression was suspicious. Now, combined with Anastasia’s sweating and nervous look, she was certain she was lying. Her amber eyes gradually filled with parental authority, and her tone turned as cold as if it were echoing from an abyss.

“Anastasia, it’s not too late to come clean.”

“Guh…”

Sorry, Dofi.

Apologizing in her heart, Anastasia moved stiffly toward Erin Slate under the immense pressure from Yulisha, revealing the empty space where Fia was. Under the combined pressure of Liti’s mother and Mother Yulisha, even Fia’s scalp felt numb. While mentally cursing Liti for being a little piggy, she had no choice but to dispel the illusion magic. Like a thief caught in a spotlight, she appeared before Yulisha with a stiff expression.

“Mo… Mother Yulisha, good evening…”

“To think you’d try to trick even me. Dofi, you’re becoming more and more disobedient.”

But this makes her feel more like a daughter.

Yulisha was caught between annoyance and amusement. She put on a stern face and walked toward the sofa.

“Come with me. I have things to discuss with you. It’s rare to hold a banquet, so stop acting so timid. Come and meet your sisters. Claire, Anastasia, and Erin Slate, sit down as well. I have a word for you all, too.”