The army of the Dark Elves moved quietly through the tunnels of the Underdark, more stealthy


    than ever. Free of mercenary ogres and trolls, the elite troops of the Dark Elves float like


    shadows through complex underground caverns, blending into the ever-black background.


    Along the way, no one spoke, no one had the heart or guts to speak. From the depths of the


    distant tunnel came the muffled roar of an animal, and the dark elves did not pause for a


    moment. Their eyes kept moving forward, for so their mother had ordered. Here, in this dark


    world, they are Kings, they are overlords. Even the most brainless creatures would not have


    attacked the dark-skinned creatures -- they were much smaller than the others, but their


    formidable power was imprinted on the memory of all creatures.


    As Vincent walked in the middle of the group, he couldn''t help but admire the military-style


    training of the Dark Elves. Long time changes, so that they have long abandoned the original


    fairy romantic and beautiful style, become harsh and precise. At the same time, they have


    greatly advanced their elven skills, faster, simpler, and deadlier. Whether they were skillful


    warriors or powerful priests, everyone was a killer.


    After about half a day''s walking, the Dark elf party is back where it started. Vincent looked at


    the terrain around him, huge voids and complete platforms. This was where the dark elves


    had been when they first emerged from the portal.


    Mistress Batana took out her family crest and softly recited a mantra. Because of the silence,


    what had been a whisper became audible. The Drow closed her eyes and began to summon


    the portal.


    But when her spell was over, the portal did not appear.


    So Mother Batana recited the spell again. This time, she did so loudly, each syllable carrying


    a great deal of force, echoing like thunder through the empty cave.


    But still, the portal did not appear.


    Batana looked into the line and saw Vincent the Mage. "Counselor Mage! Use your


    teleportation."


    Vincent went up to the mother and nodded in homage, "Dear Mother, I did not prepare that


    spell."


    "Meh! Come on, what mage doesn''t prepare a teleportation spell? Isn''t it your style to flee at


    the first sign of trouble?" Batana gave the mage a look and pulled out a scroll. "Here, it''s a


    teleporter scroll from the Dark Elves. You''re the mage. Use it."


    Vincent took the scroll, but he was in a dilemma. He opened it and looked at it. It was standard


    teleportation magic, but it was clearly coming from the magic Network. If Vincent were to use


    it, it would definitely explode, there would be only a small chance of teleportation, and, even


    if the spell worked, it would be extremely unstable.


    But in this case, Vincent has no choice but to go ahead with it. Holding the scroll tightly in his


    hand, he carefully recited the words, slowly controlling the magical energy of the spell,


    concentrating on making no mistake.


    The two energies oscillate against each other, but for the time being they coexist smoothly


    under the pressure of Vincent''s will. The mage''s head was sweating now, but there was no


    tremor in his voice, nor any aberration in his gestures. Vincent knew in his gut that the spell


    must be ready to work!


    But nothing happened -- only a small explosion of the oppressed energy finally took place,


    which burst into flames with a loud bang in the dark cave and was as fleeting as a shooting


    star across the sky. The silence of darkness was restored.


    Vincent looked at the scroll in his hand. The characters on it had disappeared because of the


    magic that had just been used. They had become a blank piece of paper. He wondered what


    had happened to the transmitted spell.


    "Dear Mother, the transmission has failed." Now he had no choice but to tell the truth.


    The mother frowned and began to consider the seriousness of the matter. First the secret


    portal of the family had failed, and now the sorcerer''s teleportation had failed. And judging


    from Vincent''s expression and actions just now, he is not inactive or playing tricks behind the


    scenes. The Mage has tried very hard just now. "Of course," thought my mother, "I can''t rule


    out the possibility that he is a master performer."


    Batana thought of the legend that in the sorcerer''s arcane, there was a barrier that blocked


    the entire teleportation process. If such a thing existed, it would be possible to temporarily


    nullify all teleportation spells entering the city of Prudence, so that the house doors would


    not be opened.


    If someone did that, it would be a sign that the First family''s residence was under attack, and


    that some family could not stand it enough to sneak in and plunder the First family''s resources


    while the Chapmans were away from the city! Moreover, it is highly likely that members of


    the Mage''s Guild will be involved in this plan.


    Batana glanced at Vincent, who at this point still looked puzzled, looking down at the scroll


    in his hand and looking innocent. Even with hundreds of years of experience and great insight,


    the wise mother was still not sure whether the consultant master had anything to do with the


    matter.


    "Listen to the order! All Chapman family, speed ahead!" Mother had put away the family crest,


    she was now all but dead about summoning the portal. If any other power dares to invade


    the First House, let him know how foolish and arrogant it is to do so! Without teleportation,


    the dark elves would still have legs, and a speedy return to the city of Prudence would not be


    hopeless.


    Upon receiving the order, the whole army revved up, and a torrent of black water sped


    through the rocky passageway toward Dark Elf City.


    Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.Vincent, startled by the sudden movement of the Drow, interrupted his train of thought. After


    gauging the speed of the Dark Elves, and looking at his swollen feet, he finally decided to pull


    a flight-reel from his sleeve and follow the advance from the air. Without the protection of


    the Drow army, the Mage did not want to navigate the treacherous underworld alone, and


    most importantly, he had no idea how he would get back to the city of Prudence from here.


    The mage, flapping over the heads of the dark elves, looks relaxed and comfortable. Ignoring


    the eye roll from Shelley, who was running hard, insinuating that the mage was ungrateful


    and had long since forgotten that the Drow had protected him from slipping, the mage now


    resumed his interrupted train of thought.


    What does the effectiveness of teleportation spell mean? Vincent was thinking about this as


    he flew. He had already encountered the same thing three times today. The first was the


    group of seven men trapped in the rock formation. They could teleport in but could not get


    out. The second was that the mother had just failed to summon the portal; And finally, I


    couldn''t use the teleportation spell. What is it that interferes with the teleportation magic?


    Along the way, Vincent avoided numerous stalactites formed by the obstacles, carrying the


    wand at high speed. In addition to thinking about teleportation, Vincent also had to watch


    out for enemies overhead. In this cave environment, many monsters choose to lurk in the


    roof, hunting for creatures that pass by. Fortunately, however, those creatures probably


    sensed the dark Elf''s scent and had long since run away from the Drow''s presence.


    The dark elves marched through the cave as if they were never tired. In spite of their intense


    march, the Drow seemed to be no different from the horde behind them, moving at the same


    pace as before, except that they were no longer so quiet as before, and gradually heavy gasps


    began to appear.


    Just as Vincent was about to pull out one of the flight-scrolls, the whole procession stopped.


    Using his penetrating eye, Vincent was able to see the black rock walls of the city of Prudence.


    Batana was in no hurry to enter the city now, for she knew that the Chapman family could not


    fall as long as the soldiers and the family sacrifice were still around her. A soldier who had just


    been through a long assault would be suicidal if he could not get some rest before entering


    the possible battle.


    On the other hand, she could not be sure whether the present First family compound had


    been attacked or not; If so, she doesn''t know to what extent. If the attack hasn''t happened


    yet, or is over, then the mere presence of her family in the streets of Prudence would be an


    act of self-inflicted power. It''s certainly going to get the attention of some of the overconfident and those who have been peeking at the throne of the First Family. At that point, it


    would be impossible not to go to war.


    At this stage, the most important thing is to recover our strength quickly. As long as they


    survive this latest period, then with the blessing and care of the Spider goddess, the First


    Family will go one step further and establish its dominance.


    With this in mind, Batana has decided on the next steps to be taken. She looked back at the


    slowly descending Mages -- the only one in the party now who wasn''t a dark Elf, and who


    hadn''t been. She thought about it, about the white fog, about the spider goddess''s interest


    in him, and finally made up her mind.


    "Zeena, lead everyone into the passageway!


    Zeena had been a little distracted the whole way, not sure if her mother knew about the


    assassination. Though she had been paying attention to Batana''s reaction, she did not seem


    to know, but through her dark skin, no one could guess what was going on in her mother''s


    heart that had been beating for centuries. The thought of possible tortures, many of which


    Zena had "invented" herself, could not calm the dark spirit.


    But the last word from her mother, like a lifeline, dispels any fear: ''I, Zeena, am still useful! My


    mother was still the first to command the troops, so she did not know about the assassination


    for the time being. Zeena looked at the counselor and Shelley. ''As soon as you''re both dead,


    it''s over. ''


    At once the high sacrifice came to her senses, and her mind began to work at high speed, as


    it had done before, when she was contemplating plots. She bowed to Matron Batana and


    said in her most humble tone, "Great Matron, no one is allowed in that secret passage who is


    not a Chapman."


    "If I say yes!" Batana was impatient with Zeena''s sudden humility. "Execute orders!"


    ''Yes! Mistress. '' Zeena turned and made a series of gestures. The priests behind her went off


    to lead some of the dead, and the warriors were automatically organized into teams.


    Watching Zeena''s complex series of gestures, Vincent knew that this was the most mysterious


    part of the dark Elvish language -- the sign language. The Drow spoke and wrote words that


    other races could learn, but this sign language was never taught to non-Drow creatures.


    While the Dark Elves moved quickly, Vincent looked around in boredom -- all he had to do


    was keep up, protect himself, and, of course, keep an eye on Shelley. From the looks of things,


    the dark Elves are trying to enter the city in a secret way that no one else has ever known


    before. So Vincent was not surprised when the Drow leaped at the north door of the city of


    Prudence, and killed the First House through an underground tunnel secretly cut into the rock


    face.


    Before anyone knew it, the First family had left the city for the temple, and now they had


    quietly returned. (By Alfred, From the beginning...)