Chapter 281

Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation

After seeing Thotmudo off, Ji Chen returned to the Lord’s Castle and began inspecting the items taken from the gnome chests.

Naturally, anything that could be locked away in a gnome chest was not ordinary.

Weapons and equipment, blueprints, elixirs, luxury goods, military recruitment camp cores, and some unrecognizable items were spread out on the table.

There were a total of seventy-two pieces.

Gnomes were indeed swimming in riches!

Let’s not even mention these items for now. Just from one chest specifically used to store gold coins, he not only retrieved all the gold coins that Ernesto had cheated him out of before but also gained an additional 350,000 gold coins.

With this newfound wealth, he now had a total of 1,050,000 gold coins, slightly more than what he obtained from Edward’s treasure chest earlier.

Acquiring things for free turned out to be quite a delightful experience.

Especially when it came to robbing gnomes, he had no qualms at all.

Suppressing his inner delight, Ji Chen roughly categorized these items, placing them in different piles based on their types.

After tallying everything up, there were fifteen treasures, nine building blueprints, five skill scrolls, twelve elixirs, eight military recruitment camp cores, twenty-one necklaces, luxury items like gems, as well as a bundle of parchment, and a peculiar metallic creation.

Among these items, he re-evaluated them once more.

Discarding some of the lower-value and lower-tier items, he selected a portion of items that piqued his interest.

After making his selections, Ji Chen picked out two treasures, two building blueprints, five skill scrolls, two elixirs, the bundle of parchment, and the metallic creation.

Just as he was contemplating giving these items a closer look, a guard reported from outside.

“My lord, the elves wish to see you!”

The elves wanted to see him?

The dozen or so elves he had rescued from the gnome merchant ship?

Ji Chen was momentarily stunned. He looked at the pile of items before him, contemplated for a moment, and decided to see what they wanted first.

The saying “love me, love my dog” applied here. After getting to know Elin, an epic-level elf hero, he had become quite friendly towards the elves.

“Bring them to the main hall.”

“Yes!”

Setting aside his current tasks, Ji Chen calmly entered the grand hall and took a seat on the lord’s throne.

The elves were soon escorted here and lined up in front of him.

Looking at these female elves with skin as fair as snow, angelic faces, and devilish figures, Ji Chen couldn’t help but secretly admire how the elves seemed to have it all. They were not only beautiful, but their combat abilities and various skills were also highly advanced. Moreover, their lifespans were ridiculously long. Even an ordinary elf had a lifespan of at least 500 years or more. For those with some level of strength, their lifespans would increase significantly. Elves with a thousand years of life were not uncommon.

Even the likes of Elin, a hag who had lived for thousands of years, could be found among them.

In contrast, humans had much shorter lifespans, typically reaching only a hundred years, and even the most robust among them could expect to live for no more than five hundred years, just barely reaching the average lifespan of other races. How could the pitiful human race even compete?

As for what was seen in Krieg’s laboratory, the two or three humans imprisoned there had long lost all signs of life, leaving only lifeless bodies behind.

Unlike their previously cautious demeanor, these elves now appeared somewhat uneasy. Facing Ji Chen, who sat majestically on the throne, they were momentarily at a loss for words.

In the end, it was Ji Chen who took the initiative to inquire.

“I heard from the guards that you have something to discuss with me?”

“Yes, Your Excellency,” a relatively mature-looking elf stepped forward. “We didn’t intend to disturb you, and we’re very grateful. After all, you rescued us from those filthy gnomes, sparing us from certain unimaginable horrors.” Unimaginable horrors.

Through information revealed by Ernesto and the gnome guide, it was clear that these elves were originally supposed to be transported to the Western Continent along with the cargo, to be sold to human nobles. Therefore, it was easy to connect the dots regarding these unimaginable horrors.

“1 understand, no need to dwell on it. After all, I have some connection with your elven race.”

“I came to see you today for this reason!” Vielya nodded hurriedly and no longer dwelled on the topic. She looked somewhat puzzled as she asked, “Over the past few days, while staying here, I’ve heard the residents of the Crown of the Ocean mention an elf named Elin. Who is she? Has there ever been an elf living here?”

Ji Chen smiled and didn’t hide anything. “Elin did indeed stay in the Crown of the Ocean. We formed a lovely friendship between us. Before she left, she even gave me a few gifts and said she’d come visit when she had the time.”

After speaking, he sighed softly.

A lovely friendship – referring to the fact that Ji Chen forced Elin to listen to his scheme before he was willing to rescue her.

Gifts – referring to the products of his scheme.

Coming to visit – meaning that when Ji Chen felt he was about to collapse, she would come to his rescue.

With these embellished words, it made it seem as if Ji Chen and Elin were truly good friends.

Clearly, the elves before him were utterly fooled.

“I see.” The elves suddenly realized, and even their gazes towards Ji Chen became more friendly. They believed that a human who could be good friends with an elf shouldn’t be a bad person..