I'm Actually Not Overpowered!

His tear-filled eyes caused her heart to ache, and they did ring of sincerity. Thus, she realized it right then and there... that Dustinel felt guilty for all he did.

\'I was going to appeal to him in order to cooperate, but there might be no need for that anymore.\' She smiled softly to herself

Hopefully, this next strategy of hers would work.

"Why did you do it?" With a whisper, she uttered her words.

Her gaze was sent down to the pleasing Elf, condescending and detached.

Asa didn\'t really feel that way, but she had learned a lot from watching the Hero\'s interactions.

\'I have to exert dominance. I have to—!\'

"I was selfish, I know!" Dustinel began, his body trembling.

"I... I didn\'t want to die. You know of my body\'s condition. If I go through any hard labor like the rest, I\'ll die!"

It wasn\'t an exaggeration. Dustinel had been very frail and sickly from birth.

Because of this fact, even his Magic and Skills were in pitiful states, compared to his peers.

He could barely use two Skills before running out of stamina, and any exertion of his physical ability would leave him exhausted after a short while.

\'That\'s most likely why his infected condition is worsening faster than the other Elves.\' Asa recounted what the Hero mentioned to her and the others.

Dustinel was weak, and so he allied himself with the winning side in order to preserve his own life.

That was probably what was also going on at the moment.

"Did you have a hand in my father\'s—?"

"NO! NO, I SWEAR!" This time, his tone was loud and full of energy.

His widened eyes displayed conviction, and it seemed like he was at least being honest about that one fact.

"I never had a hand in your father\'s death, or your mother\'s capture. I never helped Samiel to seize the position of Chief. All I\'ve done is simply to assist his administration of—"

"Simply?" Asa\'s offended voice interrupted his plea.

Her eyes narrowed on Dustinel, and a noticeable frown formed on her face. It immediately sent shivers to his body.

"Eeek! I apologize! I apologize!"

Asa sighed internally, feeling depressed. She was happy that her current method was working, and that Dustinel was bound to cooperate with them.

However...

\'... This is too disappointing.\'

She had known Dustinel to be a noble Elf—a very intelligent and prudent person worthy of admiration.

She knew her people had fallen on herd times, and nothing was how she remembered it to be. However, it seemed her imagination of the kind of person Dustinel was had been false

He was simply a frightened, terrified Elf, hiding his fear in a shell of confidence and elegance.

Just how many things had she been wrong about?

\'This is all too much.\' She thought to herself, wondering how much of a fool she had been for so long in her life.

Fortunately, there was a silver lining to her current state.

\'At least, I know the Hero is true and genuine.\' Asa smiled.

Her uncle, Dustinel, her people... they all showed her how fallible anyone could be. It was in their nature.

However, never once had the Hero betrayed her expectations. He never wavered, and his choices were always the best.

Even though she doubted him concerning their splitting up, he stuck to his ideals and explained the plan exquisitely well.

He showed her that he wasn\'t the one who was wrong, but her.

\'And look at how well things are progressing. It turns out his plan was perfect, after all!\'

Asa could feel the fog lifting from her eyes, and the scales dropping off.

Why had she been so blind to the truth before now? She had no idea.

However, it was too obvious to deny, at this point! Everyone was fallible... everyone except the Hero!

Once she realized this, her disappointment in Dustinel began to fade away.

"Dustinel, I believe you. However, you must already know why I have returned." She smiled at the cowering Elf.

"N-no way! You mean... you\'re going to—?!"

Asa\'s smile grew broader and she nodded in response.

"That\'s right. I\'m going to take the Sanctuary back..."

"T-take it... back...?" Dustinel\'s eyes widened even more than before.

"... And you\'re going to help me!"

"H-help you...?" His eyes were bloodshot at this point.

Sweat drenched his entire body, and he shivered uncontrollably.

"What\'s this? You\'re not giving me the reply I want, Dustinel." Asa\'s voice sent a heavy pressure on him, forcing him to croak.

Even though he knew the only option was to accept, he hesitated—for several reasons, in fact.

Why did he hesitate? What made him tremble and refuse to give his answer, despite having only one choice to do so?

Well...

"B-but what about the Supervisors?"

... He had good reasons.

"S-supervisors?" Asa almost yelped it, but she quickly controlled her voice and her expression.

"Who are these Supervisors?" She asked, drawing her face closer to Elf.

\'U-uh...?\' Dustinel was frankly shocked.

"Y-you don\'t know?"

He had expected his capturers to know about the consequences of their actions. After seeing Asariel, he had surmised that the scary human he had seen earlier was working for her.

That was one of the reasons why he was so frightened, despite also genuinely regretting his actions.

The Elf Chief, the Supervisors—he thought they could handle all the enemies and put an end to everything.

However... what was this surprise he now experienced?

"I don\'t. Who are the Supervisors?"

"T-they are demons. While he won\'t admit it, the Supervisors are the ones who are really in control of the Samiel and the resources.of the Elf Sanctuary. H-he works for them."

Asa\'s eyes remained calm upon hearing all of this. She wasn\'t really shocked, considering the Hero had already mentioned the likelihood of the demons being involved in everything.

She, however, felt disgusted to hear that her uncle really sold her people away to demons to satisfy his lust for power.

"You don\'t have to worry about them. We have a plan to handle the demons." Asa\'s response caused Dustinel\'s fearful face to break into slight relief.

"Haa... thank goodness. I was wondering what you were going to do when they arrived tomorrow."

This time, Asa\'s eyes widened, and her confidence slowly sizzled out. Dustinel just said something she wasn\'t expecting.

Something that wasn\'t in the plan.

"T-they\'re coming tomorrow?!"

Once the truth sank into her head, Asa realized just how ignorant she had been, and how the victory she imagined slowly crumbled in her thoughts.

Beads of sweat slowly began to form on her face, and her heart raced at a faster pace than usual.

\'T-this is bad! Very bad!\'

*

*

*

[The Elf Sanctuary]

Five shadows emerged from the darkness.

They had various shapes and sizes, and their expressions also differed from each other. The only similar features they had with one another were the twisted horns that malevolently emerged from their heads.

They floated in the air, refusing to tread the dirty Elf settlement.

It was night, and all the denizens would be asleep. So, even if they were looming so obviously in the area, no one was awake to see them.

Their glowing eyes took cognisance of everything around them—the Mill, and the Mine included.

Something about how their eyes narrowed showed they weren\'t too pleased.

"Teleport." One of them whispered, and the tall figure beside him nodded in response.

Instantly, black and red flashes of energy appeared, and within moments... the figures were completely gone.

*

*

*

Elf Chief—Samiel Lucielle—was murmuring in his office.

He had grown tired of pacing across the room, so he was now seated. His reddened face of anger, and his bloated form told of his frustration, though.

Unable to do anything but murmur and complain, he continued his harsh whispers.

>VWUUUUUUUUSSHHHHHH<

Crimson flashes of energy suddenly manifested at the center of Samiel\'s office. Space twisted, and a terrifying pressure permeated the room, causing the Chief\'s expression to warp from anger and frustration to something far darker...

... FEAR!

"N-no..." His voice quivered as five beings emerged from the spatial rift that now warbled in the room.

They were demons.

One was fat and short, completely red in color. His horns were also the largest in the group.

Another was tall and very thin. The spatial rift was made by him, and his very bored expression told of his cold nature.

The third was a woman, completely white, with a fade like a serpent, and with the shortest pair of horns in the group.

The fourth was a four armed monster-like demon. His hulky body and dancing tail rang of violence.

Finally, the fifth—also appearing to be the leader of the bunch—was a lady whose red hair was long enough to reach the floor.

Her dark outfit resembled that of an investigator—having a dark cloak and a formal shirt.

Her crimson eyes glowed bright, and her grin was wide enough to display her sharp teeth.

"Oi, fatso..." Her voice confidently echoed in the room.

In response, the Elf Chief shivered and rose from his seated state. His pale face showed just how much these five demons frightened him.

The terrifying demons moved closer to his desk, and his head slowly bent in submission.

"... We need to talk."

*

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[A/N]

I\'m going through a hard time irl currently, so it\'s really difficult to write a chapter. I apologize for all the clone chapters recently

I\'m really not feeling very well with all that\'s happening around me.

Hope you enjoyed the read.