Taming the Dark Lord - Chapter 22

Chapter 22 – Smaller Than Ever (1)

Amelia was innocent, too.

To be fair, one wouldn’t expect that the murderer would actually be an animal, and she was admittedly guilty for having assumed that the elf did it. She was wrong in her presumptions, and that must be the reason why the dark elf didn’t notice anyone passing by the alley that very day— It was because the murderer came from the sky, and directly flew to the ground.

The elf was still paralyzed in his stunned state, and he mustered all the little energy that he had to choke out a couple of words. “Running. Dog!” In this state, he still didn’t miss the opportunity to provoke Amelia by calling her such name.

Breathing a deep sigh, Amelia sprang into action—she needed to fix the mess that she made. After all, she was the one who casted judgment without any evidence to support her claims.

She cleaned the place up using her magic. She turned the fissured ground back to its original, unbroken state, and fixed the disheveled bushes into a neat pile. After deeming the place void of any clutter, she sneaked back inside the palace with the dark elf— who she had to use her magic on to float him towards her place. It was the only thing she could do since the elf was still immobile.

Fortunately for them, only a handful of people were out during that time of night, so the chances that they were seen were quite slim.

She took the elf back to the basement as a safety precaution, and she could feel him seething even in his paralyzed state. “Come on now, don’t be angry.” Dealing with him made Amelia feel as if she was an old woman, who was chastising her kid to behave.

He was throwing a fit like a child would, and he was always angry. “I told you. The temple is heavily guarded. You can’t just run out whenever you want to. Give me a few more days and I’ll figure it out, okay?” Amelia beseeched.

Ah! Dealing with him was painstakingly frustrating.

In front of her, he was looking at her with eyes full of taunting, as if he couldn’t believe how hard-headed she was being. The woman acted like she didn’t wrong him, irking him to the core. ‘Keep pretending, you vile woman.’

Amelia, who did not back down to the challenge, stared back just as fiercely. After a long while, the silence became uncomfortable as she looked down at the bed she was sitting on, and smoothened the sheets with her palm. “I almost forgot. I want to apologize to you. What do you want to do?”

“Hmmph!” The elf looked sideways, and tried to turn his head to no avail. He wanted her to know that he was still furious with her. He was not in the mood for reconciliation.

A lock of silver white hair fell on his half covered chest upon his fidgeting. Being born as an elf entailed having physical beauty; one could still see his wide shoulders, and a waist so narrow like you could hold it in one hand. His physique was still apparent even if he’s dressed messily in rags.

Amelia brushed her thoughts away, and helped him cover the quilt to his body. It was both humid and cold in the basement, so she had to make sure he wouldn’t go shivering while being here.

“So.” Amelia started as she clasped her hands together. “I’ll think of a way to take you out, so you should stop cursing and speak decently, okay?”

By this, he eyes opened slowly. He glanced at her under his long lashes, and snorted towards her direction.

So he understood, huh? That means he’s old enough then.

He was still looking at her sardonically, and Amelia gritted her teeth, fully exasperated at his antics as she waved him off. “I read in books before that there is a certain magic arrangement that makes people smaller in form. One could be transformed so small he could fit right in the palm of your hand. That magic is very difficult to muster, and only a few people knew about it. I only saw it by chance.”

“Is that why you’re learning it on the spot?”

He squinted and looked down at Amelia who was bent on the ground. She was focusing on what she was doing as she drew indecipherable runes on the ground.

Amelia answered without lifting her head. “Young man, don’t ask for too much. Just make use of it.”

‘Can I really use it?’ He asked internally, seeing the crooked ellipses on the ground.

After a few moments, Amelia shook her hands that were full of ashes and stood up. “It’s done. Come here and try it.”

“I don’t want to. Try it yourself!” The dark elf snapped.

Amelia ignored the elf’s remark. She picked the paralyzed elf from the waist and forced his body down to the ground, right in the middle of the drawn runes.

His eyes grew wide as a flash of brilliant light passed through their surroundings, and it was almost blinding.

The beautiful man’s long limbs disappeared from view, and a tiny, miniature version of himself as an adult stood right in front of Amelia. She could fit him well right into her pocket if she wanted to.

The only difference now is that he had a pair of wings behind his back, and it was thin as a cicada’s wings, almost transparent.

The shape of his wings were like that of a butterfly’s, with a few intricate gold outlines glinting in the pure black background. His wings were fluttering mid air as it emitted a soft, hazy glow.

The elf opened his eyes in surprise. He turned his head sharply, and saw his wings hovering behind him. He clicked his tongue in annoyance.

Amelia was smitten at the sight. She scooped the elf with her hands as she stared at him in admiration. “Look at you! You are even cuter than the first time I saw you!”

“I’ll kill you, you running dog!” The elf, who was now smaller than ever, screeched.