"Why don't they want to go back? Only in the Wind Forest can they receive the blessing of the God of Life and the protection of the powerful Elven race. Wandering outside, they will be threatened by other races everyday. Even survival is a problem. What joy and freedom can they have?" Sally said to Bluer with a firm tone.
"Although I have only left the Wind Forest a few times, but in my eyes, this world is not the same as what you see. The elves who wander outside the Wind Forest do not often suffer threats from other races. On the contrary, many elves are able to integrate smoothly into local life. Just like in this Chaos City, the elves have joined the City Lord's Mansion and the Gray Temple, becoming the city's administrators. Their lives are stable and free." Bluer shook his head.
Looking at Sally's furrowed brows, he curled his lips into a slight sneer and said, "Besides, do you really not know why they left the Wind Forest? After the racial war, Lady Helena initiated reforms for the elven race, and the number of elves leaving the Wind Forest increased year by year. They weren't abandoned by the God of Life, it was their own choice. What they needed wasn't protection, but freedom. Elves are naturally protected by nature, and the God of Life won't abandon them just because they left the Wind Forest, because she also cherishes freedom."
"I believe what I've seen. In the Wind Forest, the elves' lives are at least peaceful and stable. Moreover, in recent years, very few elves have left the Wind Forest. On the contrary, more and more elves are returning to the Wind Forest. Doesn't this show that the Wind Forest is getting better and better?" Sally said after thinking for a while, but her gaze was no longer so firm.
"They don't leave because they've been shackled, an invisible wall has sealed off the Wind Forest. As for those elves who returned to the Wind Forest, do you think they all voluntarily returned to become servants of the various families? The freedom and comfort you enjoy in the Wind Forest, how many elven servants were exploited on the basis of that? Besides stability, do they have any freedom at all?" Bluer's smile grew increasingly mocking, looking at Sally as if she was a naive young girl, a young lady born into a prominent elven family, raised with orthodox family values.
If it were anyone else, Bluer would have turned and left by now, but Sally's identity is special, and he saw in her a sense of pity for the elves.
From her perspective, Helena's reforms made the Elven race stronger and more stable. The major families appeared glamorous on the surface, each fulfilling their duties, making the entire Elven race more efficient. This was a tangible benefit of the reforms to the Elven race.
He used to think of the elves the same way, and for a time he even admired Helena, who led the reforms, believing that she made the elves better and allowed them to live a comfortable and peaceful life.
It wasn't until he began to interact with the elves living at the bottom of society, and those elves who supposedly voluntarily returned to the Wind Forest, that he slowly discovered the darkness hidden beneath the glamorous facade of the various families. Helena's reforms were nothing short of a disaster for the elves.
Therefore, Bluer saw a reflection of himself in Sally, and he also hoped that the wandering elves could return to the Wind Forest and live a peaceful and comfortable life.
Now, all he wants is to help more elves escape their former sacred land and go to a wider, freer world to fight for their own lives.
Sally looked into Bluer's eyes and felt his words resonate in her mind like drumbeats, reminding her of the busy servants in her family who never seemed to have a moment's rest, always on the go, and who could be scolded for the slightest mistake.
"Are they really happy?" a voice echoed in Sally's mind. Thinking of those tired faces, Sally shook her head inwardly. She rarely saw smiles on their faces, so how could they be happy?
Yes, having become slaves, they lost their freedom and were not even allowed to leave the territories of the various families.
Although the various families accepted the elves who became servants according to the Elven Codex, but when Sally calmed down and reflected, she realized that the reason why those elves, who had not done anything wrong and had become servants simply because they had mistakenly entered the territories of the various families, lost their freedom was so ridiculous.
At this moment, Sally's worldview, which she had held onto for over twenty years, began to show signs of collapse. She began to doubt whether the powerful elves were what most elves truly desired.
"For elves, the last thing they need is stability. Nature is our home, and without freedom, we will lose our souls." Bluer looked at Sally earnestly and said, "If you want me to help you stay in the Chaos City, then promise me one thing: in the future, whether you become the patriarch of the Brewster family or the Elf Queen, you will fight for the true freedom of ordinary elves, not so-called security and stability."
Sally looked at Bluer, pursed her lips, but remained silent.
"I'll be back at Restaurant Mai Mi tomorrow night. I hope you can make your choice." Bluer didn't urge her, nodded slightly, and turned to leave.
"What is true freedom?" Sally stood there, the cool moonlight falling on her, casting a long shadow on the grass. She gazed at her shadow, lost in thought.
…
"Daddy, can we go see the little stars?" In the restaurant, Amy, who had just finished taking a bath and changed into her bear pajamas, was wide awake and asked Mai Ge with her bright eyes.
"Okay." Mai Ge, who was originally planning to lie down early to learn how to cook, couldn't help but nod when he saw Amy's adorable appearance.
"Yay! Ugly Duckling, let's go see the stars!" Amy happily picked up the Ugly Duckling and ran towards the third floor balcony.
Mai Ge smiled and turned on the stairwell light, following Amy upstairs.
"The moon is so round and beautiful tonight, like a big pancake! I really want to take a bite!" As soon as they stepped outside, Amy looked up at the moon and exclaimed happily.
Mai Ge looked up at the bright moon in the sky, which was almost a perfect circle. Hearing Amy's words, he suddenly felt nostalgic for the Mid-Autumn Festival, the days of admiring the moon and eating mooncakes. Those days are truly gone forever.
"Daddy, can we eat the moon?" Amy turned to Mai Ge and asked, her little face full of curiosity and anticipation.
"According to the time conversion of this world, the Mid-Autumn Festival is in three days. Although this world doesn't have a Mid-Autumn Festival, but why don't we eat a mooncake and have a Mid-Autumn Festival celebration?" An idea suddenly popped into Mai Ge's mind and then spread uncontrollably.