49 Teachers

49. Teacher Klayr was somewhat dumbfounded...

Because he saw Roy.

Roy stood outside the gates in an ill-fitting outfit, covered in wounds, and badly injured.

He had been stopped by the Elven Guard at the entrance. Although Roy tried his best to explain, the guard refused to step aside and let him into the manor.

Steve, you bastard...

Although Roy had been wrapped in plenty of bandages that morning, he had not looked anywhere near this miserable. He truly looked pitiful now...

Klayr immediately decided that Steve was the culprit behind all this.

That guy was the seed of evil, the source of all wickedness...

"Roy, did Steve have someone beat you up? Damn it, open the gate already!"

Klayr shook the heavy iron gate wildly and shouted at the Elven Guard outside.

The young elves who had been chatting with Klayr also ran over and stood behind him. They had never seen this handsome, almost overly delicate-looking Klayr act so violently before.

The gate was pushed open by the Elven Guard...

Klayr rushed out.

"Klayr, why are you here?"

Roy had not expected to see Klayr here. After greeting him, he started walking inside.

The Elven Guard at the entrance tried to stop him, but Klayr stopped the guard with a single sentence: "He's my friend."

The two Elven Guards following behind did not dare relax in the slightest and continued closely following Roy.

They did not step forward to stop him either. Seeing that an Elven Noble in the manor knew Roy, they were somewhat relieved instead.

Roy did not want to waste time at the entrance, so he hurried inside...

Klayr chased after him and shouted, "Of course I'm here for the ball... Steve is here too. I just saw him. Come on, let's find him together!"

The young Elven Nobles behind Klayr were still utterly confused, but Klayr's words fired them up, and they howled excitedly.

They had never known Klayr had such a violent side.

Roy was somewhat helpless. Despite the pain all over his body, his ragged breathing, and utter exhaustion, he still stopped, placed both hands on Klayr's shoulders, and said very seriously:

"Uh, please listen carefully, Klayr. This time, it wasn't Steve. More precisely, I ran into some trouble. My friend has been detained on a ship by a group of Slave Traders. I hope to see Princess Ophelia. I want to ask her for a favor..."

"Her Highness is dancing inside the manor. I'll take you there."

Klayr grabbed Roy's arm and ran into the manor with him.

Several young elves followed behind them. Upon hearing that there were Slave Traders at the harbour and that elves were being detained aboard a ship, they were filled with righteous indignation and followed as if they had been pumped full of adrenaline.

Castleton Harbour had not seen any decent news in a long time...

Roy rushed all the way to the edge of the Dance Floor and saw a group of Elven Nobles dancing to gentle music. They wore exquisite formal attire, while people gathered in twos and threes outside the Dance Floor to chat.

Some elves standing at the edge of the Dance Floor saw Roy's disheveled appearance and were curious how this human had managed to barge into the manor...

Some noble ladies retreated in fear.

A few young elves immediately stepped forward beside the Dance Floor, intending to stop this uninvited guest...

Looking at the dazzling Dance Floor before him, Roy stood at its edge and could not find the Princess Ophelia Captain Simpson had mentioned.

At that moment, the two Elven Guards following behind also approached him.

They were worried that Roy's story might be a lie and that his real purpose was to cause trouble...

Klayr saw Roy's awkwardness. Seeing him standing at the edge of the Dance Floor, lost and at a loss, he took Roy's arm and said:

"Come with me. Her Highness is over there..."

More and more Elven Nobles on the Dance Floor noticed the commotion.

Even Steve, who was chatting with friends in a corner, craned his neck to look over...

Belle Klayr released the Elven Noble she had been dancing with and stared in surprise as her younger brother brought an injured human into the Dance Floor and headed toward Princess Ophelia...

Her friend Milian.Talis tugged Belle's arm and covered her mouth as she whispered:

"Belle, what is your brother doing?"

Belle shook her head as she pushed through the crowd and hurried after Wagner Klayr.

She was worried her brother would do something irrational at the ball.

A tall, upright young elf stepped out of the crowd ahead of them and blocked Roy and Klayr's path. He eyed Roy unfriendly and asked, "Who are you, sir? Do you have an invitation to this ball?"

"Wolf, this is my friend Roy. He wants to see Princess Ophelia. He ran into trouble at the harbour docks..."

Klayr shouted at the young man blocking their way.

By then, the music had already stopped. All the elves on the Dance Floor turned to look over. No one knew what had happened; they only saw an injured human appear at the ball.

Princess Ophelia heard the shouting as well. She slipped past Count Wilson Griffiths, who was trying to shield her with his body, and lifted her skirt as she walked toward the gathering crowd.

When Princess Ophelia approached, the elves standing in her way stepped aside one after another.

Princess Ophelia did not recognize the young elf from the Klayr family until she reached Klayr and Roy.

But when she saw Roy, she immediately recognized the Half-Elf from the academy who had dared question her teaching methods behind her back—

The note in the roster stated that he was a Half-Elf named Roy. She remembered clearly.

However, Roy was covered in wounds. If Klayr had not been supporting him, he might not even have been able to stand steadily.

"Roy, this is Princess Ophelia!"

Klayr whispered in Roy's ear.

Then he immediately supported his friend as they bowed to Princess Ophelia.

Roy was somewhat dumbfounded as well.

He had never expected Princess Ophelia, whom he had barged into the ball to see tonight, to be his Modern Elf History teacher.

He knew that the academy teacher from the literature and history department was also called Princess Ophelia, but somehow he had never connected the two.

"Princess Ophelia... Teacher!" Roy stammered.

If Roy had merely greeted Princess Ophelia,

no one would have thought much of it.

But that word, teacher, undoubtedly made their relationship seem much closer.

Princess Ophelia stared at the Half-Elf before her...

He truly was her student. It was just that the academy assigned her two hundred students like him every year, and by graduation, she could not remember at least half of their names...

"Roy, you wanted to see me?"

Princess Ophelia asked doubtfully.

Not only was Roy startled, but the Elven Nobles nearby were also shocked that Princess Ophelia actually knew this person's name...

Roy had finally been given such a rare opportunity, so naturally he could not let it slip away.

"Teacher, I encountered... something tonight. Now my companion, Jasper, a Novice Priest of the Goddess of Freedom Temple, is still trapped on that ship."

Roy recounted what had happened that night before everyone.

When they heard that a slave ship was docked at the harbour, the young Elven Nobles around them all changed expressions.

The young elves gathered around began discussing it. They could not understand who had given those Slave Traders the courage to brazenly dock their ship at Castleton Harbour and even abduct elves from Castleton at the docks...

"I understand!"

Princess Ophelia finally understood how this student had managed to force his way into the manor. Then she calmly asked the Elven Guards, "Where is your captain?"

Before her words had even finished, Captain Simpson emerged from the crowd and bowed to Princess Ophelia.

"Danser.Simpson is ready to serve you at any time."

Princess Ophelia nodded and ordered calmly:

"Captain Simpson, take your men to the Castleton Harbour docks immediately!"

Captain Simpson immediately said, "As you command, Your Highness!"

Only fifty Elven Guards had accompanied Princess Ophelia to the Seaside Manor, but every one of them was an Elf Warrior riding a mutated war horse.

At Captain Simpson's command, all the Elf Warriors began gathering swiftly.

The manor descended into chaos as well. Some Elven Nobles even prepared to return home and summon more people.

Princess Ophelia lifted her skirt and stepped onto a raised platform.

A group of Elven Nobles gathered around her. Princess Ophelia wore a stern expression as she said seriously:

"I do not know where these Slave Traders came from, but their appearance at Castleton Harbour is a trampling of the laws of the Silver Moon Elf Kingdom, and an unwarranted insult to every Elf Warrior in Castleton City. Now... I hope the elves of Castleton can unite as one. I call upon all the promising young Elf Warriors here to use the weapons in your hands to defend the inviolable freedom of the elves..."

"I trust none of you wishes to let those hateful Slave Traders escape!"

"Don't let those Slave Traders get away!"

Nearly all the young elves around them shouted loudly.

"Catch those Slave Traders!"

"Hang them from the trees!"

"Exile them to the Eternal Night Forest to mine..."

Young elves were already racing toward the manor gates, heading for the harbour docks.

Roy was also squeezed into the crowd as he watched Princess Ophelia calmly step down from the platform and say in an even tone:

"If you can still hold on, come to the harbour docks with us and take a look!"

Roy quickly straightened up and said to Princess Ophelia with a face full of gratitude, "Thank you, Princess Ophelia..."

"You should call me Teacher. Remember... you must focus and pay attention during class. Otherwise, no matter what reason you have, I will still make you retake Modern Elf History..."

"Yes, Teacher!"

Roy obediently answered as he followed behind her.

Fifty Elf Warriors charged at the front, racing down the manor's sloping road toward the harbour docks, followed by a group of Elven Nobles...