Reincarnated Into A World Of Elves As The Only Man-Chapter 68: The Master Court

The woman on the throne rose with fluid grace, her movement so precise it seemed choreographed. As if triggered by some unspoken command, the six figures seated beside her stood in perfect unison, their movements synchronized with unnerving precision.

She glided forward, each step measured and deliberate. The air around her seemed to shimmer with power, disturbing the very fabric of reality as she moved.

"What took you so long, Veilwalker?" Her voice carried across the chamber like a caress, intimate despite the distance between them.

"Time," Eren replied coldly, the single word carrying the weight of his disdain.

The master’s lips curved slightly at his response, seemingly amused rather than offended. The closer she came, the more Eren felt a peculiar pressure building in his chest—a tightness that wasn’t quite pain but something deeper and more unsettling.

Soon she stood before him, close enough that he could feel her breath—surprisingly warm in the frigid chamber—against his face. Her scent was complex and contradictory: honey and frost, metallic yet floral, both comforting and deeply wrong.

She turned to Kiran, her kaleidoscope eyes softening with something almost like affection. "You’ve done exceptionally well," she murmured.

Kiran’s reaction was immediate and visceral—her pale cheeks flushed crimson, and she dropped her gaze to the floor in a gesture of submission utterly at odds with her earlier manic confidence.

"Everything for my master," she whispered, her voice trembling with fervent devotion. "Always everything for you."

Eren’s jaw tightened as he watched the exchange, rage blooming hot and fierce behind his ribs. His silver eyes turned to molten steel as he stared at the woman before him.

’So this is the bitch who threatened my mother,’ he thought, calculating the distance to his sword. ’I will kill you. It’s now or never.’

As if sensing his thoughts, the woman turned back to him, placing a slender hand on his shoulder. Her touch was light, yet he felt the weight of centuries behind it.

"I hope the journey wasn’t too stressful, Veilwalker," she said, her shifting eyes studying him with unsettling intensity. "Kiran can be... enthusiastic in her methods."

Without warning, Eren knocked her hand away, his fingers already moving toward his weapon.

Before he could blink—before his mind could even register movement—a figure materialized between them. The humic hidden against Eren’s chest trembled violently, its tiny form pressing desperately against his skin as if trying to burrow deeper for protection.

Moving faster than thought, the newcomer’s fist shot toward Eren’s face with deadly precision. Blue-white lightning crackled around her hand, electricity arcing between her fingers and leaving scorched trails in the air itself.

Eren’s combat instincts flared. He shifted his weight, attempting to redirect the incoming blow, but the attacker adjusted with impossible speed. At the last instant, the master’s hand intercepted the punch, her palm sparking with brilliant blue lightning where it connected with her defender’s fist, the collision of energies sending a ripple of power through the chamber that made the very air vibrate.

"I’m fine, Zara," she said, her genuine smile never wavering. "The Veilwalker and I were merely... playing."

The attacker—Zara—immediately lowered her stance, head bowing in immediate submission.

Eren’s breath caught as he realized what had just happened. In the split second of his perceived disrespect, every warrior in the chamber had moved. Kiran had drawn a curved dagger, her earlier adoration replaced by murderous intent. The six numbered elves had shifted positions, weapons half-drawn, bodies coiled to strike. Even the guards lining the walls had arrows nocked and aimed at his heart.

All this movement—all this deadly intent—and the master had stopped it with a simple gesture.

Kiran stepped forward, her predatory smile returning as the tension dissipated. "That’s Zara," she explained, voice laced with that unsettling playfulness. "Master’s number four and absolutely obsessed with her safety." She giggled, a sound like breaking glass. "Well, we all are obsessed with our delicious master in our own special ways. Zara just shows it by breaking people’s faces!" She rocked back on her heels, eyes gleaming with malicious delight. "She can’t hear, she can’t speak, can’t see either... but she’s absolutely crazy at hand-to-hand combat." Kiran’s tongue darted out to wet her lips. "And a lightning element user, too. Sparky, sparky! The things she can do with those electrified fingers... simply divine!"

Eren studied the silent warrior before him. Zara was slight compared to the others—shorter, more compact in her build. Her black hair was cropped close to her scalp, emphasizing the delicate bones of her face. A strip of dark cloth was wrapped tightly around her head, covering her eyes completely, yet she had moved with more precision than any sighted warrior he’d ever encountered.

What struck him most was the absolute stillness with which she held herself now—not the frozen tension of someone ready to attack, but the perfect quiet of someone existing in complete certainty. Despite the cloth obscuring half her face, there was a haunting beauty to her features—the kind of beauty forged through suffering rather than gifted by nature.

"I apologize for Zara’s misunderstanding," the master said, her voice gentle. "She interprets sounds differently than most and perceived a threat where there was none."

Eren forced his breathing to steady, his mind racing behind a carefully neutral expression. ’Stay calm,’ he reminded himself. ’You came here for a purpose. Learn what you can first.’

"My apologies, my lady," he said, inclining his head slightly. "The transition through the portal has left me... disoriented."

The woman’s kaleidoscope eyes studied him for a moment before her lips curved into another smile. "I am Kaida," she said simply, as if the name itself should mean something to him.

"The Great Unifier," she continued, her tone matter-of-fact rather than boastful. "The First Eternal. The Mother of Shadows." She waved a dismissive hand. "Titles accumulate like dust when you’ve lived as long as I have."

Her eyes studied Eren with calm assessment. "Perception is an interesting thing, isn’t it?" she said, her voice measured and contemplative. "The world sees you as the Veilwalker—a being of immense potential. Your family sees you as their lost son—a puzzle piece misplaced. Your companions see you as their leader—a beacon in uncertain times." She circled him slowly, each step deliberate. "But I see something in you that others have missed—power that remains untapped, potential still dormant."

She stopped directly before him, her kaleidoscope eyes reflecting his own image back at him. "The difference between you and me, Veilwalker, is that while you have only just begun to glimpse the true nature of your power, I have had millennia to master mine. What seems like forbidden sorcery to others is merely ancient knowledge they have forgotten or never possessed." Her smile was gentle yet unsettling. "And what brought you here—what drew you to this moment—is far more significant than you yet understand."

Eren’s face hardened, his silver eyes narrowing dangerously. "You speak in riddles," he said, voice low and taut with controlled fury. "As if you know something about me that I don’t know myself."

His hand twitched involuntarily toward his weapon again, though he restrained himself from drawing it. "I make my own choices. I forge my own path. No one—not even an immortal with pretty eyes and sharp teeth—gets to claim they know my destiny better than I do."

Kaida’s eyes flashed with something that might have been approval, or perhaps simple amusement at his defiance. "Such fire," she murmured. "Such conviction in your autonomy. It’s precisely what makes you... interesting."

Her eyes never left his as she extended her hand toward him once more. "You’ve come so far for answers, Veilwalker. And time—despite what many believe—is precious even to immortals. Let me show you truths you’ve been seeking."

Eren hesitated only briefly before taking her offered hand. The moment their skin connected, a shock wave of power surged up his arm—not painful but overwhelming, like plunging into an icy lake. Images flashed through his mind too quickly to comprehend—fragments of memories that weren’t his own.

Kaida’s smile widened, revealing teeth too white and too sharp to be natural. "You felt it, didn’t you?" she whispered, her voice intimate. "The resonance between us. The connection that has drawn you to me across the realms."

Without warning, shadows pooled at their feet, rising up around them like living curtains. Kaida stepped forward, drawing Eren with her into the darkness. As the shadows enveloped them, Eren caught a glimpse of the chamber behind them—the six numbered warriors returning to their seats with military precision.

One figure remained standing—a slender elf with the number 7 etched into her cheek. "Did you see that?" she snarled to the others, her voice shrill with indignation. "He touched the master! Who does this male think he is?" She slammed her fist against the arm of her chair. "I’ll teach him his place, make him understand—"

The others ignored her outburst, their faces impassive as they resumed their positions. Only one—a statuesque warrior with the number 3 carved into her forehead—turned back.

"Be careful not to harm him where he’s needed to perform Tuna," she said, her voice soft yet carrying a lethal edge. "Should that happen, I’ll add your head to my collection without a second thought." Her lips curved into a smile that never reached her cold eyes. "Do we understand each other, Seven?"

Seven’s face paled visibly, but her lips stretched into a tense smile. "As you wish, Three," she replied, her voice tight with suppressed rage. "As you wish."

As the shadows closed completely around Eren and Kaida, his last glimpse was of Seven watching them with naked hatred in her eyes. Then the darkness consumed them entirely, and they were falling through a void where time and space lost all meaning.

’So they expect me to perform TUNA,’ Eren thought grimly as they descended deeper into the unknown.