Volume 5, Chapter 12 – Conspirators and Opportunists

As planned, after nightfall, Nola, with her fiery red cat ears and a head of red hair, along with her four companions, arrived at the vicinity of Count Yureidon’s castle. Normally, infiltrating the castle wouldn’t be a major problem for them. Although the castle was heavily guarded, it couldn’t stand against powerful individuals like them. This was especially true for Nola, the Holy Son. Even though she had just stepped into the Seventh Tier, this strength was enough for her to walk openly through the main gate without anyone being able to stop her.

However, today, they encountered a small problem.

The Yureidon territory was hosting the Eldest Princess of Silvar, the magic caster renowned throughout the northern continent for her wisdom and power. Her achievement of reaching the Seventh Tier before the age of one hundred sent a chill of dread through the hearts of the surrounding nations.

It was a known fact that even short-lived elves could normally live for three to four hundred years, while long-lived ones could live for as long as eight hundred. For the Eldest Princess to reach the Seventh Tier before coming of age was an unprecedented feat, even among Holy Sons. She was certain to reach the Eighth Tier in the future, and if her fortune was good, attaining the Ninth Tier was not impossible.

Faced with such a potential enemy, even Nola, as a Holy Son, felt the situation was tricky. The Cold Night had already declared war on Silvar. If they were discovered by the Eldest Princess, a conflict would be inevitable, and the outcome would be hard to predict.

For this reason, they had only gathered in a tavern near the castle, whispering among themselves while pretending to be passersby.

Pulling down the brim of her hat, the half-snake girl called Ying spoke in a low voice.

“I heard the Eldest Princess didn’t come here alone. She’s accompanied by four magic casters from the Elf Tower—one young man and three old men. They don’t look simple. They might be high-tier magic casters. Things have gotten complicated. If Tilulu falls into the Eldest Princess’s hands, Silvar might use this opportunity to make a deal with the Royalist faction using her.”

“We don’t even know if the Eldest Princess has found Tilulu yet, right? It’s too early to draw conclusions. Besides, where did you get this information, Ying? Is it reliable?”

Her companion’s doubt made Ying frown. She could accept someone saying she was weak, but she could not accept her deductions being refuted.

“I bought the intelligence from one of the guards defending the castle. He not only told me he saw the magic casters from the Elf Tower, but also that a half-dragonoid leading a group of beastfolk entered the castle this morning. Although the guard didn’t see Tilulu, it’s a well-known fact that the half-dragonoid is her protector. We can be certain that Tilulu is in the castle. The only question is whether the Eldest Princess has discovered her.”

“If the Eldest Princess uses Tilulu for a deal, that’s a small matter. It would be far more fatal for us to miss our chance with Tilulu. The other royals are not as easy to control as she is. If they ascend the throne and then oppose us, things will be disastrous.”

Another beastman, his face hidden under a hood, looked at Nola.

“Lady Nola, I believe we shouldn’t let this opportunity pass. Even if the Eldest Princess of Silvar is in the castle, we should still try to get in. Besides, our people have never fought her, and she rarely leaves Silvar. Who knows if the rumors of her being at the Seventh Tier are true? What if it’s just an exaggeration passed from person to person, turning a Fifth Tier into a Sixth, and a Sixth into a Seventh? We might just be scaring ourselves.”

This statement made another man in the group’s eyes light up, and he chimed in.

“The war was decided by Chazo and that group from the Royalist faction; it has nothing to do with us. If our infiltration is discovered, we can just be open with the Eldest Princess and talk. We could even team up to deal with Chazo. Silvar would surely be happy to see us in internal conflict. Maybe the princess will even be pleased to help us.”

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“You’re too optimistic. The Eldest Princess has always been clever. You can see it from how she predicted the Milcandis Holy Kingdom’s declaration of war on Silvar. Her foresight is far beyond ordinary people, and her control of information is beyond our reach. She will not allow people like us to control the future of the Cold Night. To put it more bluntly, she will not raise a tiger that will one day turn around and bite Silvar.”

Ying flatly rejected her companion’s optimistic scenario, but in the end, she still looked at Nola, who had been listening to everyone’s opinions, and explained with a solemn expression.

“Whether we go in or not is entirely up to you, Nola. I’ve laid out all the pros and cons. You’re the Holy Son. We’ll follow your lead.”

“Hah…”

Feeling the tense gazes of her companions, Nola, who had been silent, let out a long sigh. A look of helplessness appeared on her delicate yet slightly wild face.

“Tilulu must be saved. Her bloodline is the closest to the orthodox royal family of the Cold Night. No one is more qualified to be king than she is. And her age is the youngest among all the remaining royals, making her easy to satisfy. We must protect her. As for the Eldest Princess, we can first sneak into the castle to observe—”

“Hurry up, hurry up!”

“If we can’t kill that woman, we’re all done for!”

“Anyone who dawdles will be executed immediately!”

Due to the commotion outside the tavern, Nola had to turn and look at the entrance. She saw a group of soldiers holding torches, frantically running towards the castle under the command of a noble. Although the figures only flashed past the doorway, everyone could see that these soldiers were wearing armor and holding spears, ready for battle.

Realizing that an unexpected situation had occurred, Nola’s group’s expressions turned serious, and they lowered their heads even further.

“Are these Count Yureidon’s private soldiers? Have we been discovered?”

“Impossible. We’ve been in the inn the whole time. Besides, Yureidon territory is close to the Cold Night, so many beastfolk live here anyway. Do they think every beastman they see is a spy? Something else must have happened.”

“Let’s go out and see.”

With Nola’s word, they all blended into the crowd of onlookers at the tavern’s entrance. Then, their gazes froze for a moment. In the time they had been talking, the entire street had filled with the private soldiers of nobles, running at a jog. Men in noble attire stood on the sides of the road, waving their arms and shouting at the soldiers to hurry up. They didn’t even lower their voices, shouting out their intentions directly.

Although it was only bits and pieces, Nola could still make out that this group of nobles was attempting a rebellion. Phrases like “charge into the castle in one go,” “someone has already opened the gate,” and “deal with the Eldest Princess before the Lord Count is hanged,” all revealed their objective.

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I’ve actually witnessed an assassination attempt, and the target is the renowned Eldest Princess of the Kingdom.

These nobles are insane. They have no idea what the Seventh Tier truly means!

Her mind racing and pupils trembling, Nola began to consider her options. She could help the princess here and earn a favor, making it easier to contact her later. But she could also take this opportunity to fish in troubled waters, slip into the castle to find Tilulu, and if she was lucky, she might even be able to kill the princess and eliminate a future threat to the Cold Night.

In any case, the responsibility would surely fall on these rebellious nobles. Even if that quasi-Eighth-Tier Elf King Yelido became enraged, the blame would not fall on her in the end.

Ying had realized the same thing. She looked up at Nola with a solemn expression.

“Nola, what’s the choice?”

“To the castle. We’ll sneak in. If there’s a chance, we’ll help these nobles. Let’s split up and be careful.”

Placing hope in the Eldest Princess, who would become an enemy, was a foolish move. Rather than earning a favor that might never be repaid, it was better to get what she could while she had the chance.

“Alright!”

Once the decision was made, there were no more objections. The group of five split up and blended into the crowd as if they had done it countless times, quickly disappearing from sight.

…

It didn’t take long for Nola, clad in a linen cloak, to arrive alone near the square, which was filled with the light of torches. The square was already surrounded by soldiers, but they seemed to be afraid of something, merely encircling the area with fear in their eyes. To get a clear view of the center of the square, Nola had to use the cover of night to jump onto a nearby roof.

Then, her brows furrowed slightly.

Standing in the center of the square was an elf maid holding a sword. Although they were far apart, with the excellent night vision of the Fire Cat Tribe, Nola’s fully dilated cat-like pupils could still make out the sharp, furious gaze of the young woman. The torchlight reflected off her long golden hair, creating a magnificent golden-red glow.

On the gallows next to the elf maid, Count Yureidon, with a rope around his neck, hung like a sack, his body swaying in the wind. His face was filled with terror, his eyes bulging in a gruesome expression, no different from the miserable captives hanged on withered trees.

She’s strong.

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Nola quickly came to this conclusion. Even without seeing what had happened before, she could guess. This elf in a long maid’s dress had likely hanged the Count, then ran into the soldiers who were trying to storm the castle to kill the princess and rescue him. A conflict had broken out.

As a result, the ground around the maid was littered with the bodies of slain soldiers. They were either missing limbs or had their intestines and blood spilled all over the ground. The bloody and terrifying scene was chilling, naturally striking fear into the hearts of these private soldiers. After all, no one wanted to become a corpse.

This is probably the Eldest Princess’s personal maid, Nola guessed. She had long heard that the high nobles of Silvar had powerful and trusted servants as personal attendants. This maid was likely one of them.

Should I go down and help these nobles? Only if they succeed in storming the castle will my group and I have a chance to fish in troubled waters. But I can’t discern this maid’s strength. I might have to use my divine weapon to defeat her, and once I do, my identity as the Holy Son will be exposed. The Elf King will definitely find out I participated in this assassination, and the Cold Night will face a calamitous disaster.

“Her Highness did not settle the score with you, yet you came here to die. Very well, today I will send you to where you belong. The Kingdom has no need for nobles who oppose Her Highness!”

“You can’t even beat a single maid? Kill her!”

“But my lord, she… she’s already killed more than a dozen of our men! Everyone who charged in is dead!”

“Even Captain Desans of the Third Tier was beheaded with a single sword strike! She might be a Fifth-Tier warrior! We’re no match for her!”

“We have no choice but to fight to the death! We’ll all die when the Eldest Princess gets here anyway!”

“Sh-she’s using magic, ahhhhh!!!”

With a soldier’s terrified scream, a golden-red storm coalesced on Anastasia’s longsword. Even if these soldiers were inexperienced, they could feel the biting killing intent rushing towards them. This was clearly an attempt to annihilate everyone with the upcoming spell. They had stumbled right under a dragon’s foot.

Their morale quickly approached the breaking point. If their masters weren’t standing behind them with swords at the ready, they would have already fled in terror.

As expected, not everyone has the resolve to fight to the death like the beastfolk. Elves and humans alike are cowards who retreat after a few deaths, Nola couldn’t help but sneer. It was better for her to find another way to slip into the castle and not think about using the main gate.

However, just then, Nola suddenly noticed a green figure flash in a corner of the square. Her brows quickly furrowed, because that green figure was her companion, Ying. From what she knew of Ying, she was most likely going to ambush the maid. Ying was probably creating an opportunity for her and the others. If the soldiers didn’t rush into the complex terrain of the castle, it would be easy for them to be exposed after entering.

I should cherish the effort Ying is making and get into the castle quickly.

Taking a deep breath, Nola quietly waited for the moment Ying would strike. And Ying did not make her wait long. She didn’t let Anastasia unleash [Golden Storm]. At the moment Anastasia’s defense was at its most lax, Ying, holding a spear, ambushed her from behind.

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At the same time, the already prepared Nola quickly activated [Flight], crossed the square at top speed, and landed on a castle windowsill.

Although she was seen by many people on the way, in the chaos, no one would pursue her for a short while.

I hope Ying can delay her for a little longer.

Praying in her heart, Nola began to search for Tilulu inside the castle. The treatment of beastfolk in the elf kingdom was not good. Generally, captured beastfolk would be locked in the dungeon, so Nola headed straight for the castle’s basement.

Although the corridors of the entire castle were only lit by dim torches, cat-like races could see very clearly with just a little light. Not only that, but their combat effectiveness was higher at night than during the day. Nola relied on her keen hearing to evade countless servants along the way. What she found strange was that despite the soldiers openly charging the castle outside, it was incredibly peaceful inside, as if nothing had happened. She thought that either these servants were colluding with the attackers, deliberately pretending not to see, or the incident had been so sudden that they were truly unaware. In any case, either situation was beneficial to her.

In just a minute, evading servants, Nola made her way to the second floor of the castle. Then, she saw a scene that made her eyes widen and her steps falter.

A group of shabbily dressed beastfolk were sitting on the corridor floor, devouring toasted flatbread and meat stew, even laughing and talking loudly. It wouldn’t be strange if this were a banquet held by a noble of the Cold Night, but this was Silvar. The elf nobles would never allow beastfolk to be so brazen in their homes, let alone give food to this group of disheveled and poorly dressed refugees. She could clearly see oil and meat floating in the stew. It was an incredible sight.

No, now is not the time to be marveling at this. Finding Tilulu is the priority.

Wait.

Nola connected some things.

The intelligence said that the half-dragonoid had brought a group of beastfolk into the castle. This meant that these beastfolk were likely Tilulu’s followers. So, the reason they were being treated to good food and drink, could it be related to the Eldest Princess having already found Tilulu? Were they gathered at this door because Tilulu was behind it? But with Tilulu’s power, there was no reason for the princess to treat the beastfolk so well. What exactly had happened here?

Nola pursed her lips, her brows tightly knitted. She began to wonder whether she should enter this great hall. Then, she suddenly heard footsteps coming from inside. She quickly hid behind a corner and peeked at the people coming out. Then, her pupils shrank slightly.

Two elves and a Stellacryst Beast girl walked out of the door. Judging from their magnificent clothes, they were nobles of very high status. Even upon seeing the beastfolk sitting on the floor at the entrance, the three of them did not reprimand them, but walked straight past as if they hadn’t seen them.

Am I dreaming…?

Since when did the elf nobility become so tolerant of beastfolk?