"Lis, did you find anything unusual at the time?"
After pondering for a moment, Ricardo looked at Lis and pressed on.
"Forgive my intrusion, but this matter is indeed very important to the Illiser Family?"
"Could you kindly let me know why you all are so concerned about this?"
"Why exactly were those people attacking Cecil? Has something similar happened before?"
Facing Lis's inquiry, Ricardo fell into silence for a while, seemingly struggling with whether or not to divulge these secrets to Lis.
In the end, Ricardo gripped his right hand tightly, his wrinkled face painted with a serious expression.
"Lis, since you are recognized by Goddess Fenrir and have become involved in Cecil's affairs—"
"I will no longer keep these secrets from you. However, these secrets are connected to the safety of the Illiser Family, so I hope that after hearing them, you will not share them with anyone else."
Seeing Ricardo's earnest demeanor, Lis didn't mind and nodded in agreement to the promise.
Ricardo sighed, leaned back in his wicker chair, and after a moment of silence, as if it was difficult to begin, he said:
"It happened half a year ago; a shocking case took place at the Elf Royal Court."
"A member of the Illiser Family went missing, vanishing without a trace for over a dozen days. At first, no one paid much attention, until someone went to visit that person and found him dead at home."
"Was there something not right about the elf's death?"
Lis nodded and asked softly.
Ricardo's expression grew grim as he continued:
"When the elf was found, he had a terrified look as if he had faced something extremely horrifying. His body was withered, all blood drained from his veins."
"All the blood drained..."
Lis muttered to himself, recalling the Source Blood Crystal he had obtained from the storage ring of the Gold-level Assassin; it seemed that both incidents involved the same power targeting the bloodline within the Day Elves.
"Are you implying that similar incidents occurred afterward?"
Ricardo nodded, his face grim as he said:
"After all, it was the death of a Day Elf, and the cause of death was unclear; the Elf Royal Court naturally had to conduct a thorough investigation."
"But no matter what, they couldn't find the perpetrator, nor any clues."
Ricardo's face showed a look of frustration, which Lis also noticed.
But it made sense; as the Illiser Family held sway over the Elf Royal Court, they were undoubtedly the most powerful force within the city. Yet, here was someone bold enough to attack the Illiser Family's Day Elves and take their blood, utterly humiliating the family.
"Since that incident, the Pompey Clan Leader convened most of the forces of the Elf Royal Court to search, but they returned empty-handed."
The Elf Elder before him spoke helplessly, having been one of the participants himself and having been angered by it.
Every individual of the Illiser Family was a precious entity; the Day Elves in the Elf Kingdom were akin to royalty, lofty and revered. Who could have imagined that someone would dare to attack someone from the Illiser Family?
And yet, the Illiser Family was out of options, unable to unearth a single clue whatsoever, no matter the methods employed.
Even Legendary strength wielders came up empty-handed, as if the elf had committed suicide.
"Just one month later, when everyone in the Elf Royal Court was about to give up, another similar case emerged."
"Again, it was a descendant of the Illiser Family. When found, he was hanging from a large tree beside the path of the Elf Royal Court, and just like before, all the blood in his body was gone."
"After that, the same thing happened many more times, with the perpetrator never being caught."
"The person attacking the Day Elves, are they after their bloodline?"
Listening to Ricardo's description, Lis nodded.
If that was truly the case, no wonder the Illiser Family's reaction was so extreme.
Although the Illiser Family was a Sun Elf Family, the uniqueness of their bloodline meant that the family wasn't large in number, even being considered scarce.
The mysterious deaths of many Day Elves were a direct affront to the Illiser Family and had a significant impact on the family's strength and future.
Ricardo's face did not look good, but he still responded.
"If someone truly wanted the Day Elf Bloodline of the Illiser Family, there would be no need to kill so many."
"Moreover, doesn't he fear being discovered by us?"
Ricardo said angrily, his complexion reddening in a way unbefitting of an elderly man.
It appeared that this series of attacks had indeed infuriated the Illiser Family.
There had been previous attempts by outsiders to obtain the Day Elf Bloodline; such incidents were not unusual in the history of the Elf Kingdom.
It wasn't just Alien Races; even within the Elf Kingdom itself, there was no unity, and some coveted the Legendary Day Elf Bloodline.
It was for this very reason that the Illiser Family, upon discovering the first incident, did not panic. But as the situation uncontrollably deteriorated, they too became highly tense.
The most critical issue was the inability to find the mastermind behind these crimes, causing the Illiser Family great distress.
This was an extraordinarily magical affair; in the Elf Royal Court, the stronghold of the Illiser Family and where Legendary strength wielders were present, someone dared to kill numerous Day Elves in broad daylight without leaving any trace whatsoever.