Those Who (Shouldn’t) Hunt Elves

Cheery voices sounded throughout the village as a celebration was held in Roze’s honor. However, the guest herself was being passed around to everyone like she was part of the food and drink.

They all wanted to meet the mighty magician that could bring down their fiercest using only sound. Gideon’s trickery had been pulled off perfectly as no one wondered how a seemingly normal girl could defeat so many hunters.

However, so many scantily clad, muscular women in close proximity was stifling. Roze kept making glances over at Gideon, who had found a nice, quiet place off to the side, away from the action. He was sipping his ale with satisfaction, totally shrugging off the consequences. An invitation to the party had been extended to him as a companion to Roze, but he was mostly ignored.

Roze grinded her teeth at being constantly pulled away from any chances to grill him about his prior knowledge. It wasn’t until the moon was high in the sky that many of the elves had retired for the evening. But by then, she was so full from refreshments and attention that drowsiness was claiming her.

Vaguely, she recalled someone awkwardly picking her up and placing her in a bed inside a tent. The day had been too much on her. Darkness came soon after as the noises of the party filtered out.

Roze woke up to the sound of someone snoring by her bedside. She rolled over and smacked Gideon’s head, who she had grown accustomed to waking up next to. He toppled over from his sitting position against the bed and sprawled across the floor, before springing to his feet in surprise. She sighed at how defenseless he was when not focused on the situation.

“Now that we have a moment together, care to explain why you thought it was best for me to lead a hunting tribe of dark elves, while you get off with none of the trouble?”

Gideon stuttered as he thought about what to say. His face grew a little pale as he became lost in thought, like a trauma rearing its head.

Regardless, Roze reached over and clamped a hand on his shoulder.

“Tell me, or I’ll command every elf here after you.”

v

Gideon was the last one standing upon the battlefield. He had been the only one brave enough to act on the guild request. Convincing the dark elves to forcefully help with clearing the path north was a S-rank job. They said that they would listen if he managed to beat them in combat. It seemed like a cinch with his powers, so he figured that he could make a name for himself.

The first elf to attack him was easy enough to immobilize. Even the fifty or so of them coming at him wasn’t too much if he stopped occasionally to catch his breath. He had as much time as he needed to strike in frozen time.

It soon became clear to the ones remaining that Gideon couldn’t be stopped. He put his hands on his hips, looking quite smug at that fact.

“There, are you going to listen to me now? I have a request for all of you.”

The chieftain, Corazon, jumped down and knelt before him. The others followed as well.

“Human male, you have shown us a strength that we cannot help but respect. We will agree to your demands if you allow us to extend courtesy that aligns with our traditions.”

Gideon couldn’t find any fault in an entire tribe bowing their heads at him. In fact, it was puffing up his ego quite a bit. He was guided back to the village, where a party was thrown in his name.

During the evening, many of the dark elves cozied up to him, their skimpy outfits drawing more than a few reactions from his body. While the women all looked like they could throw him like a javelin, he soon found a couple of the leaner ones that suited his taste. It was obvious they were flirting with him. The sight was a dream fulfilled for someone who had trouble finding a girl that would go out with him more than once.

The night soon became a blur between the affection and hard drinks. Several of the girls started pulling him this way and that. At some point, he fell onto a soft bed. One of them pounced onto his waist and straddled him. The ecstasy took over not long after that.

He woke up the next morning, fully naked and between several bodies. For a moment, he thought that he died and went to heaven. And then, he noticed that one of his legs had been chained.

“Ah crap, I should’ve known it was a trap.”

He grabbed a small object nearby and froze time. Taking aim at the cuff, he smacked it a bunch before reverting time to normal.

SNAP!

“AHHHH!!!!”

A wave of pain erupted from his ankle which had been shattered from his strikes. He had foolishly thought hitting the shackles with time-compressed power would be enough to break free. However, all it did was shake the restraints so violently that it broke the bone held between.

He froze time again. The agony didn’t stop. He cursed out loud as he had hoped it would. Crawling through the pain, he struck the links next, over and over again. Letting time flow again, his heart sank as the chain held up, merely bouncing back and forth, a wave of magic washing over it from the impact.

Several bodies started to stir from the noise, so he froze it, again and again. He struck in desperation, each time seeing that the result was the same and the elves in bed moved ever so slightly toward him.

No matter how long he froze time to hit the links, nothing seemed to break him free. Even ten full minutes in Time Stop had merely sent him crashing across the room, pulled by the shock of the shackles somehow absorbing the impact.

He felt hands cradling him. Devious smirks of pity washed over him.

The door opened as he was wallowing in confusion and agony, no doubt having alerted the entire village of his actions. Chieftain Corazon walked in, a smug expression on her face.

“Those are our special magical restraints. Not even a dragon can break free. Given how impressive you were yesterday, offering only the best is how we honor you.”

“Why am I being locked up?! Is this revenge?!”

“Revenge?” Corazon looked at him oddly. “Do you mean you don’t know of our traditions?”

“I beat one of you and the whole tribe comes after me. But if I prove myself worthy, then I’ll become a champion that you cannot ignore, right? That’s what I was told when I accepted the request.”

Corazon sat down before Gideon, nodding with confirmation.

“And we have designated you as our champion, a champion with skills far beyond our comprehension. As a mixed-blood race of only females, that means you are vital to continuing our future. We are a group that believe in strength from mingling with other races to harness their abilities. It is why we have offered ourselves to you.”

Several more elves entered through the door, a look of eagerness on their faces. The ones that he had spent the night with waved as they passed by to exit, seemingly satisfied. Corazon crawled forward, now acting creepily seductive as well. Gideon’s gaze couldn’t help but stare at the bulging muscles that rippled over her breastplate in anticipation. He wanted to let out a scream.

“Those that can beat an entire tribe of dark elves are few and far in between. As such, we have measures to keep you here for as long as your seed is fertile. Of course, if our children do not wield any of your abilities, then you will be free to go.”

She popped open a potion and poured the contents onto his ankle. In moments, the fractured bones reverted and set, good as new.

“Until our children… that would mean years! I don’t have years! I can’t stay here!”

Corazon smiled, reaching down to grab his leg. She pulled him right under her before sitting on top of him. Her musclebound weight squeezed the breath out of his lungs.

“What’s a few years? We’ll be sure to give you all the care you could have the strength for. Hmm, but I see strength is not the problem here. I’m a little disappointed but preferences are understandable. Fortunately, we have a little elixir for that. You won’t care which partner or how many are in line after this.”

Another bottle was popped open. Corazon licked her lips.

“You are hardly my body type either, but it’s been a while since I’ve felt the possibility of losing. We expect you to conquer us like you did on the battlefield.”

Gideon’s scream echoed across the village as the ‘ritual’ commenced. It would last for ten days straight before he finally gave up and spent the remainder of his time stopped, watching the countdown speed towards the end. There was no escape aside from returning to the beginning.

He couldn’t risk killing himself. There was no guarantee he would return to the start if he did.

v

“From what I understand, you gained a dark elf harem. I’m sure there are people out there that would be thrilled to be in your position.”

“You know what? It wasn’t so bad for the first day or so. But then, being forced to eat nothing but organic and vegan outweighed that eventually.”

“You know what? I think I’ll go tell them all the truth.” Roze started heading for the door.

“No! No way! I was just joking! A little bit of humor to lighten up the trauma. I really don’t want to go through that torture ever again! I made you champion because only women have a say in their laws!”

Gideon ran up to Roze, begging, but then he saw the stifled laugh on her face. Seeing him panic, she let out a hearty laugh.

“Finally! I’ve figured out how to get back at you! It feels so good to have the tables turned!”

Roze, still laughing, spun on her heels in glee. She had been tired of being led on, even if Gideon was doing it for her sake. She wanted him to feel the agony of being played like a fool.

Suddenly, a pair of arms wrapped around her. She froze in surprise.

“Um, Gideon. What are you…”

The arms let go, almost as suddenly as they embraced her. He looked sheepishly away like he didn’t know what came over him.

“I, uh, just didn’t like thinking that you were going to abandon me.”

Roze looked away at the suddenly bashful Gideon, feeling a little warm herself. The door knocked, interrupting their moment of awkwardness.

“Excuse me, I was sent to find the Chieftain Roze.”

It was Milipitas, giving them a discerning look. Roze quickly walked over to address her.

“Yes, Milipitas. What can I do for you?”

“We are waiting for our new leader to address the village and give your first orders.”

“Orders?”

Gideon poked her in the side, pointing to the north. He made a running man motion to remind her of their journey.

“Ah, of course. We came here to clear the path to the capital!”