"You lose." The Elf Chief announced suddenly.
The warrior snapped his head to refute but his shoulder pain made him groan loudly from the sudden movement.
The Chief repeated. "You lose, Raze. Return to your wife. Lyra would give you the suitable punishment for your haughty actions."
It set Benign's heart at peace when the warrior accepted, and got helped away by other elves. The Chief turned to him with a sour expression.
"Forgive the disrespect. Please, stay the night here and tomorrow, my daughter will help you with any information and resources. Kiron Station would happily support the protectors to battle the glitches."
With that, the Chief bowed. His people glanced at one another, weighed the situation, and followed in their leader's footsteps.
Benign exhaled in relief, and kept the revolver behind him. It was finally over and he could react to the ache in his bone he felt when he shot himself.
He didn't know what exactly this chief planned by letting him win when they could still get the advantage, but he didn't ask questions and accepted.
"Yes, we'd talk tomorrow. I need to rest too."
Lyra came in front of him and pulled him away. Benign couldn't help but notice how strong her grip was. She must have been a warrior for a long time.
A meal was arranged for him and he gulped it down without thinking of its taste and then, he was taken to a hut which was oddly close to the huts of younger elf women who were laughing and dancing.
Benign stayed in his hut ignoring his curiosity to watch the elf ladies dance in cultural circles, and frequent jumps. He realised how Lyra seemed to jump at every alarm.
But he stayed inside to avoid being under the sun one more minute. He also wanted to avoid the protective glares most of the male elves gave him.
"So Lego, it's been bothering me."
[What is it now?]
"What did the chief mean earlier?" He sat on a wooden seat, carved in a way the arm rests were rabbit legs. "Have I been in this realm before?"
[Have you been in this realm before?]
"Obviously not. I didn't even know this thing could happen, especially to someone who died with no regrets."
[Well, there's your answer. There's no reason to wait here for long. Follow your plan; gather information, resources, and a unit, then set off.]
Benign left where he sat and fell on the soft bed. Lego obviously hid more information from him but truthfully, it didn't affect what he had to do at the moment.
He needed a unit to combat whatever hostiles he'd come across. Gathering the core would also need information on where the pieces were. Resources are essential.
He also had to reach Noria and speak to their Leader about stopping the wars that affected the core. His path was finally following a typical webnovel adventure.
"It'd be easier if I met the actual protectors and worked with them. They'd be more useful and have more information."
He rolled to his side, and closed his eyes. "Wake me up if any vengeful elf tries to kill me."
[Elves are honourable creatures and wouldn't use underhand measures to win. They're not humans.]
Benign opened one eye. The last part wasn't necessary. He shook his head and went back to trying to sleep. "Just alert me if anything comes up."
When the morning came and the sun was high enough in the sky to balance the odd chill of the night, Benign strolled to the chief's cottage.
The elves made way for him as he passed through the village. He reached the Chief's hut and knocked. "Miss Lyra, good morning. A word please."
A soft 'shhh' came from inside. Lyra popped out of the door, wearing a frown. Benign stepped away when he realized she still wore her nightgown. "I have to leave soon. Could you change and let's talk?"
She looked back inside and carefully closed the door behind her, walking out. "If you want to recruit me as one of your team then I'm sorry, I can't. The glitching on my father yesterday had left a shaky incoherent impact on him so I have to stay back and watch him. I can't live in that state."
Benign's shoulders visibly dropped. She'd have been a reliable part of his unit. "I understand. Family is important, and if he sounds too crazy it'd cause disorientation within your station."
The girl chuckled and folded her hands. "Is it about earlier when he said you were stained with blood of other realms? He's old and says random things, so ignore. You're not even the first one who has said it too."
That relieved Benign, but also made him curious.
He knew his case was special as a transmigrator and he'd have assumed what the chief meant was that he was from a different realm and had spilled blood on both realms.
The problem would be only how the Chief knew.
But now, if the Chief told other people those words, did that mean they had special cases like him? They were transmigrators?
Benign knew Lego would not give a clear response but since the system said that skills weren't always available, it heavily suggested other transmigrators who were in the same boat as him.
It roused the competitive spirit in Benign. He didn't really plan on taking everything too seriously but he couldn't fall behind when others were making an effort.
The thought of having more than one transmigrator in this mission rang a bell to Benign, but all his hunches reached a dead end. Something was familiar about all these but he couldn't pinpoint what.
"So, do you have people for me? I need a unit right away. We need to get information from surrounding villages as soon as possible."
The girl looked up to think. "I'd like to join you but as I said earlier, I have to assume a leadership position here. I also need to protect here from the glitched so I can't give you all my men."
Benign folded his arms as she spoke. It would've been really good to have had the pretty and strong elf warrior in his squad. She could also have healing abilities that will benefit the others, but now he had to be thankful for any support.
"I'd give you one of our strongest and one of our smartest. We know almost nothing about glitches here, but ask at the Loran station. Tell them you were sent by Kiron station."
A few minutes later, two hefty men were brought to Benign and he wondered who's supposed to be the smartest one when they both looked like they weighed tons.
In those books, elf men were slender with beautiful faces and only knew magic. The men faced him and he saw their soft features and nodded.
At least they still looked androgynous like books described. One had some scars on his arms and a weapon, so Benign figured he'd be the strongest.
"For the record, my name is Benign Cross." he said to the elf girl while strapping a bag behind him.
The two elf men were ready, each carrying a backpack and steeled rods by their sides.
"I am Lyra." she replied. "I am quite well-known in the capital of Noria so if you meet a member of Two-Winged Sisters, tell them you have the blessing of Sister Lyra."
Sister? Like a catholic sister? "I hear you." Benign answered. "Thank you for the help and take good care of your old man. We'd be setting off."
The entirety of the Kiron station stood by the entrance to tell them goodbye. He sighted the huge warrior he fought earlier, but the warrior walked away when they made eye contact.
Seeing the people at the exit reminded Benign of his little towns wishing him good luck when he was accepted to the military during a war.
He never returned to his town after his first war but he heard they were in good health and that was enough. Their long living and good health was the reason he volunteered for war in the first place.
"Don't worry, soldiers, I'd do my best to make sure you all return to your families." He patted the shoulders of the elf men with him.
They turned to him and slowly nodded.