Chapter 14: Raven the Dark Elf

'Looks like battles don't excite me as much as they used to,' Jasper thought as he stirred the large cauldron in front of him.

After adding the necessary ingredients, the cauldron began to bubble intensely.

"If you want to gain something, you have to give something, right?"

Next to him, his golem held a cute, chubby rabbit-like creature. Jasper picked it up and placed it in the circle. The creature desperately tried to escape but hit a red mana barrier that rose from the edges of the circle, falling back onto its bottom.

Jasper lightly cut the creature's paw, drawing some blood, and dropped it into the cauldron. His eyes sparkled as he brought his hand over the cauldron and infused it with some kind of energy.

"I sacrifice this life, grant me the life I desire!"

The liquid in the cauldron entered the creature's mouth. It began to whimper in pain, its flesh and bones contorting and breaking down until only a puddle of blood remained.

Shortly after, the blood pooled together, reforming flesh and bones. The new creature that emerged wasn't too different from its original form, except it was at least twice as large.

Hoping he had succeeded, Jasper relaxed a bit and said, "Now for the final step."

He lifted the creature by the scruff of its neck and set it on the table, placing two plates in front of it. One plate was filled with plants and vegetables, the other with various types of live insects. Jasper placed his hands in front of the plates, palms facing the creature, and said,

"Choose."

The creature hesitated, moving towards the plate with plants, and looked at Jasper with fear. Disappointment was clear on Jasper's face.

Then, the creature changed its direction towards the plate with insects. Excitement and happiness were evident on Jasper's face.

The creature reluctantly began to eat the insects. Jasper exclaimed with joy,

"I did it! I succeeded on the first try!"

Jasper was ready to teleport to Sylvaine's room to deliver the good news. Meanwhile, Sylvaine was chatting with Raven.

"I'm sorry for hurting you. I thought you were going to attack me," Sylvaine said.

Raven smiled slightly to reassure her. "Don't worry, anyone would have thought the same. Besides, you treated my injury, so it's all good."

Suddenly, Jasper appeared in the middle of the room. Excitedly, he took Sylvaine's hands, looked into her eyes, and said, "I did it! On my first try!"

Sylvaine's cheeks turned red, and she stammered, "W-what did you do?!"

"I created a new creature to solve the food problem for your fatass elves!"

"For my fatass elves? Hey, I'm grateful for your help, but I can't allow you to speak about my people that way!"

"Huh? Why not? I'm just stating facts—"

Raven suddenly stepped between them, glaring at Jasper. "Don't get so close to her without permission."

Jasper returned to his usual cold expression and replied, "And who are you?"

"I am the most skilled assassin of the dark elves! Who are you?"

Jasper pointed to the ground and said, "I'm the owner of this castle you're trespassing in."

Raven paused for a moment and then continued, "Being the owner of this place doesn't mean you can approach her like that!"

"Hmm, you're part of the 'hero's' group that entered the castle. You must have just met Sylvaine. How well do you know her to defend her so fiercely?"

Raven grabbed her dagger with one hand and pointed at Sylvaine with the other. "I know her well enough to know she's the princess of the elves, and you can't behave like this in her presence!"

Sylvaine, taking Raven's hand, intervened, "Hey, calm down. I'm the one who asked him to help my people."

"But your Majesty, obviously that this man's rude behavior is making you furious even your face turned red in anger"

Sylvaine touched her cheeks and said, "I-is it that obvious?!"

Jasper seemed a bit down. "Anyway, I'm leaving. Don't forget to stick to our agreement."

Sylvaine, panicking, said, "No, wait! I-I'm truly grateful for what you've done for my people and... um, your familiar manner doesn't really bother me that much..."

She turned her head away, embarrassed. Jasper looked at Raven with a mocking expression and said, 

"Hooo? So I wasn't bothering you, but someone else seems to be bothered for some reason."

Raven's cheeks turned red, and she stammered, "I-I already told you, it's because she's the princess of the elves, um..."

"Hmm, I see. But I thought elves and dark elves don't get along. After all, elves look down on you, don't they?"

"Are you trying to ruin the relationship we mended 200 years ago?"

Jasper was surprised and said, "So, dark elves and elves have started getting along well, huh..."

Sylvaine said hesitantly, "Um, Jasper, can you teleport me to our forest? I have to decline a proposal, and I don't have much time left."

"Oh, of course. I was starting to get quite annoyed by someone myself. I'll go back to my room to relax."

As Raven looked at Jasper with discomfort, Jasper continued, "I'll explain the features of the necklace I gave you another time, then. See you later."

With a snap of Jasper's fingers, he teleported himself to the alchemy room and Sylvaine to the forest, leaving Raven alone in the room...

Returning to his room, Jasper's eyes widened in surprise.

The creature had eaten all the plants he had placed on the plate and was now curled up on the plate, sleeping. The insects on the other plate, remained completely untouched and were still moving around...

"Uhmm... I may have informed Sylvaine a bit too early."

Jasper looked at the creature with a mixture of frustration and curiosity. "Guess I'll need to tweak the formula a bit," he muttered to himself.

*The Forest of Elves*

Sylvaine appeared in the middle of a lush forest, her people bustling around. She quickly made her way to the council chambers where her father, King Aelthar, and the elders were waiting.

King Aelthar greeted her with concern. "Sylvaine, have you decided about the marriage proposal from the human kingdom?"

Sylvaine nodded resolutely. "Yes, Father. I have decided to decline the proposal. The Great Alchemist has found a solution to our starving problem."

Before King Aelthar could respond, the door burst open, and the prince of the human kingdom, Prince Edwin, stormed in with an angry expression.

"This is an outrage!" Edwin shouted. "If you reject our proposal, we will consider it a grave insult and act accordingly."

Edwin was a tall man with sharp grey eyes and dark hair streaked with silver. He wore a dark blue coat adorned with arcane symbols, a velvet shirt underneath, and sturdy leather boots. Around his neck hung a glowing pendant, and he wore silver rings with runes on his fingers.

King Aelthar stood tall, his voice firm. "Prince Edwin, our decision is made. We will not be intimidated by threats."

Edwin glared at Sylvaine. "You will regret this, mark my words."

*Back to Jasper*

Back at his room, Jasper felt an unusual pang of hunger. It had only been a few days since he last drank blood, but he felt drained, likely due to night I mean entire day with the succubus, Velrith.

"Velrith... She really took it out of me," he grumbled. "I need to find some blood soon."

*Meanwhile, Raven and Her Group*

Raven met with her party members at the entrance of the castle. There were three women in her group: a swordsman with red hair and red eyes, and a healer with blue hair and veiled eyes. They had been exploring the castle in two separate groups and were relieved to see Raven.

"Raven, we were worried about you," said the red-haired swordsman. "Where have you been? And where's Aric?"

Raven sighed. "I don't know. I followed him into a room, but he was gone when I got there. I met someone named Sylvaine instead."

The healer with blue hair looked concerned. "Did anything happen to you?"

"No, but we need to find Aric and figure out what's going on."

*Back to Jasper*

Meanwhile, Jasper pondered his options. He needed blood, but he didn't like talking to new people. The red-haired swordsman was human, and the healer's divine power made her blood unappealing. Unwillingly, he realized he had to ask Raven...

Raven and her group had regrouped near the castle entrance. They were discussing their next steps when Raven suddenly felt a strange sensation, as if someone was watching her. She glanced around but saw nothing unusual.

"Psst... Raven," a voice echoed in her mind, startling her. It was a voice she didn't recognize, calm yet insistent. "Follow me. We need to talk."

Raven's brow furrowed in confusion, but she trusted her instincts and quietly excused herself from her companions, slipping away into the shadowy corridors of the castle.

Jasper, cloaked in invisibility, led her into a secluded chamber. When he revealed himself, Raven's hand instinctively went to her weapon, but she relaxed slightly upon seeing his non-threatening stance.

"You," Raven said cautiously, "what do you want?"

Jasper, his demeanor unusually vulnerable, took a moment before speaking. "I need your blood."

Raven raised an eyebrow, a mixture of surprise and skepticism on her face. "You need my blood? Why should I trust you?"

Jasper hesitated, then explained, "I don't have time to explain everything. Just know I wouldn't ask if I had another choice."

Raven crossed her arms. "And why should I agree to this?"

Jasper sighed, his frustration evident. "I don't know if you want to I can give you lot of gold coins"

Raven considered his words, then nodded slowly. "Fine. But on one condition."

Jasper narrowed his eyes. "What?"

"I don't need your gold but you'll owe me a favor," Raven stated firmly. "And I'll collect when I need it."

Jasper hesitated, then nodded in reluctant agreement. "Alright. I owe you a favor. Now, let's proceed."

Jasper snapped his finger,

Raven felt a strange sensation as they teleported through space and time. They materialized in Jasper's alchemy room, filled with mysterious devices and potions. A big hamster-like creature was sleeping on a plate. 

Raven looked around the room, intrigued and cautious. "What is all this?" she asked, gesturing to the devices.

Jasper pointed to a chair and sat down in front of her, she continued after sitting down, ''since you want my blood so bad, here'' Raven rolled up the neck of her dress, closed her eyes and said, slightly embarrassed, "Here you can bite.''

Jasper looked at her blankly and said, "What the hell are you doing?''

Raven snapped slightly annoyed, "Isn't that obvious what I'm doing, come on and bite me, it's embarrassing to stand like this.

"Hoo, you want me to bite you?''

"What do you mean, you're the one who wanted my blood!''

"I never said I'd bite your neck'' Jasper covered his mouth with his hand and continued, "You pervert!''

Raven's cheeks reddened and she got up from her seat and shouted, "Then how are you going to get my blood!''

Jasper glanced at his surroundings, then focused on the metallic device on the table. "This," he said, picking it up, "is a tool to facilitate the process. It will extract your blood cleanly."

Raven examined the device with renewed curiosity, recognizing its purpose. She took a deep breath and prepared herself, placing the device on her wrist as Jasper instructed.

As the device extracted her blood into the glass, "Thank you," Jasper said sincerely.

Raven nodded, her demeanor softening slightly. "Just remember our deal."

Jasper nodded in acknowledgment. "I will. And if you ever need my help, you know where to find me."

With a nod of farewell, Jasper teleported Raven back to her group at the castle entrance. After a little discussion they decided to leave...

After they left the castle Raven thought, 'I could have used that favor to ask where Aric was...But to be honest I don't want to waste it for that fool'