Volume 5, Chapter 13 – An Unexpected Encounter

The way these people were dressed, they were clearly refugees. Even if they were placed among the nobles of the Cold Night, those nobles would not give them a second glance. Other than dreaming, Nola couldn’t think of a second plausible explanation.

If only I could find out the identities of those three young women from earlier.

Unfortunately, the Cold Night had been in a state of civil war for years and was a backward country divided by tribes. They had never even heard of the term “intelligence network,” let alone have a thorough understanding of the nobility of other countries. She did know about the elves’ Eldest Princess’s unique black hair and red eyes, but none of the three who had walked out earlier had black hair. What if the princess was in this very hall? Wouldn’t she be walking right into a trap?

Thinking of this, Nola’s gaze fell on the group of beastfolk sitting in the corridor at the entrance of the great hall. There were more than a dozen of them, and judging by the sounds of eating coming from inside, there were probably dozens more within.

With so many beastfolk refugees, if she pretended to be one of them and just passed by the entrance, she probably wouldn’t be discovered. And she could use this opportunity to confirm whether Tilulu was in the hall. Since these refugees were being well-treated, it meant Tilulu was here as a guest of sorts and would surely be seated in a prominent position.

Furthermore, even if she were discovered, she could rely on her Seventh-Tier strength to force her way out. That would also attract the attention of the Eldest Princess and other powerful combatants, drawing them away and creating an opportunity for her other companions in the castle.

Ying was still outside, fighting that elf maid of unknown strength. Nola didn’t have much time to waste. She pulled down the hood of her linen cloak, covering the iconic fiery red cat ears of the Fire Cat Tribe. Then, she hunched her body slightly and walked step by step towards the entrance of the great hall.

As for her disguise, it was difficult for those who had not experienced hardship to pretend to be a real refugee. But she was someone who had been freed from slavery; feigning weakness and exhaustion was effortless for her. Her linen cloak had been deliberately aged and worn, covered in dust and stains. As long as people didn’t see her fair and healthy face, anyone would assume she was a refugee who had suffered greatly from fleeing.

In just a few steps, Nola walked across the dark stone tiles to the noisy entrance of the great hall. As she had guessed, no one noticed her. The beastfolk in the corridor were completely focused on their food and treated her as a passerby. Taking this opportunity, Nola bent her waist even lower. She clutched the front of her clothes with one hand, trying to make herself look as small and weak as possible. Then, just as she was about to reach the entrance, she quietly turned her head to peek into the spacious hall.

—It was a dim hall lit only by torches. Near the entrance, many beastfolk were sitting on the floor, enjoying their food and the warm bonfire, just like the ones in the corridor.

Further inside, she could see nobles sitting at small tables. On the left were the three old men and the young man Ying had mentioned. On the right were the half-dragonoid and Tilulu.

She really is here.

Nola’s steps faltered slightly.

Before becoming the Holy Son, she had seen Tilulu with her white beast ears and mysterious purple eyes. Therefore, even though half of Tilulu’s body was blocked by the half-dragonoid, she could recognize her at a glance.

Then, all that’s left is the Eldest Princess…

Nola’s gaze swept towards the person seated at the head of the hall.

Then, her mind went completely blank, as if it had been struck by a heavy hammer. She froze on the spot.

There sat an elf who seemed to have transcended the mortal world, her entire body radiating a transparent and holy light, as if she were born from the pale white moonlight.

Her silver hair flowed like mercury, and her gentle, exquisite features exuded a soul-capturing charm. Paired with a snow-white shawl and a dark gray cotton dress that perfectly complemented her figure, the very first sight of her made it impossible to look away, as if she were the moon goddess herself descended upon the earth.

This woman has a special meaning to me.

Abruptly, crystalline tears began to well up in Nola’s eyes. The missing pieces of the puzzle in her mind all fell into place at this moment, and the blurry parts of her memory surfaced along with them. She not only superimposed the name “Claire” onto this woman’s figure but also remembered all the things that had happened between them, from when she was a dying slave, all the way until she forgot Claire, treated her as an enemy, and drew her sword against her.

“Claire…”

Involuntarily, Nola softly called out Claire’s name. Her legs moved uncontrollably towards the hall. She knew that if Claire hadn’t helped her in her most difficult time, she would never have become the revered Holy Son. Claire was not only the person she had dreamed of, but also her mentor, and even a mother to her.

Finally unable to control the emotions of a long-awaited reunion, Nola’s mind went blank, her eyes seeing only this silver-haired moon elf. Disregarding the gazes of those around her, she strode towards Claire. Although her face was covered in tears, her expression was one of excitement and ecstasy.

“Claire… Claire!”

The sudden shout quickly silenced the great hall. Everyone looked on with curiosity as this sudden beastfolk refugee walked step by step towards the head seat. Nagg and his group were the first to react. They stood up and warned Nola to step back, but she acted as if she hadn’t heard, instead accelerating towards Claire.

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As for Claire herself, she first looked puzzled. It wasn’t until she saw the face under the linen hood—much more mature, but still retaining a shadow of its past childishness—that she seemed to remember something. Her clear, emerald eyes widened, and her beautiful face was filled with surprise and hesitation.

“…Nola?”

“Miss Claire, you know this reckless beastman?”

Nagg, who had been ready to act, asked in confusion.

Claire stood up and gave Nagg an apologetic look.

“Yes, a friend I met a few years ago…”

But Nola shouldn’t remember me.

While Claire was still confused, Nola had already rushed to her side. Although six years had passed since their last meeting, and Nola had grown from a twelve-year-old girl into a beautiful young woman, she was still a little shorter than Claire. She excitedly gripped Claire’s arms, and due to the overwhelming emotions, she temporarily lost the ability to speak, only asking in a trembling voice full of joy.

“Finally… I finally found you… Claire, do you still remember me? I’m Nola, the cat-folk slave you picked up seven years ago…”

However, the first to answer Nola was not Claire, but the Moon Dragon Radric from the side.

“The Fire Cat’s Holy Son? What are you doing here!”

◇

After leaving the great hall, Fia immediately sensed an unsettling atmosphere in the air. A faint smell of blood drifted from outside the castle, along with a hint of something burning. Although Count Yureidon’s castle did have a mixture of various strange smells, it shouldn’t have been to this extent.

Something has definitely happened.

Fia’s relaxed heart instantly tensed, and her hands holding Liti’s and Milu’s tightened.

“Sister?”

“Someone died. A lot of them.”

It was Milu who answered Liti, her expression grave. The sense of smell of a Stellacryst Beast was more sensitive than that of a canine beastman. The moment Fia had led her out of the hall, she had already sensed the danger.

“Where?”

“Outside. In the square.”

“I see. Liti and Milu—no, you two stick close to me.”

Fia had originally wanted Liti and Milu to go back, but on second thought, there was probably no safer place than by her side. She quickened her pace and headed straight for the castle gate. She saw that the gate was open, and the soldiers who should have been guarding it were gone. There was no one at the entrance. Looking out, she could see countless soldiers in chainmail with bloodstains on their leggings, stealthily rushing towards the gate.

Both their nervous expressions and their appearance of having just been in a great battle told Fia that they did not come in peace.

Another rebellion?

Seeing that there were well-dressed nobles among the people in front, Fia quickly figured out their purpose. Count Yureidon’s treason and embezzlement of the Kingdom’s disaster relief funds had been exposed, and these nobles were also involved. The Count might be able to survive thanks to his status as a hereditary noble, but these minor nobles would surely face death.

They had only two choices before them: one was to renounce their noble status and flee to the Cold Night with whatever wealth they could carry in the shortest amount of time. The second was to, while the matter was still in its early stages, kill everyone who knew about it, including herself, the Eldest Princess.

As for whether they would then use this to coerce the Count into taking the territory and joining the Cold Night to seek their protection, or simply blame her death on “assassins from the Cold Night,” that was their choice.

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From her perspective, these people had undoubtedly made the worst decision. Originally, if these minor nobles had fled, she would have just left the matter to the Kingdom’s military to handle. But now, they had served themselves up on a silver platter. There was no reason for her not to oblige them.

“Sister, it looks like they’re coming for us…”

“Kill them all.”

“No, leave it to me.”

Milu’s chillingly cold voice made Fia give a wry smile. It wouldn’t matter if Liti and Milu were adults, but they were still children. Children shouldn’t kill, or they would have nightmares.

“I want to help Master.”

Milu pouted like a sulking child.

Fia had no choice but to pat her head.

“Children shouldn’t be fighting and killing. You two cover your eyes.”

“Then…”

“M-Milu! Sister didn’t tell you to cover my eyes!”

“Children shouldn’t watch.”

“Aren’t you a child too!”

“You are, I’m not.”

With extra stubbornness, Milu covered Liti’s eyes from behind, then looked up at Fia with a disgruntled expression that seemed to say “Hmph.”

Although I used to think Milu’s mental age was much more mature than her appearance, looking at her now, isn’t she clearly still a child?

However, considering that Milu had already witnessed many bloody scenes in Aurora City, and that she was not only a warrior but also a Stellacryst Beast who could dragonize, she probably had an immunity to gruesome sights. It was better not to be too picky.

Without further hesitation, Fia walked out of the castle gate and onto the small square in front—a little further away was a large, open-air square where she could see Anastasia fighting a green figure. Next to them was the body of Count Yureidon, hanging from a rope.

“The E-Eldest Princess?!”

“To think she’d appear here alone!”

Seeing Fia walk out of the gate alone, the nobles holding cruciform swords stopped in their tracks and shouted with ferocious expressions. It was clear they were just putting on a brave face; not only were their breaths ragged, but their hands were also trembling.

Facing the soldiers and nobles who had formed a human wall, their weapons pointed at her, Fia raised her chin with a blank expression.

“Are you committing treason?”

“Y-you forced us to do this! If you hadn’t insisted on investigating, we wouldn’t have come to this!”

“Don’t waste time! She’s a magic caster, don’t let her chant!”

“The Eldest Princess is just an elf who will die if you kill her! All of you, charge! The one who gets her head gets a hundred gold coins!”

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“Hraaaaaaah!!!”

Emboldened by the nobles, the fear in the soldiers’ hearts quickly dissipated, especially after hearing the reward of one hundred gold coins. With the nobles themselves charging forward to lead the way, greed and courage instantly filled their eyes. They hurriedly gripped their spears and thrust them at Fia, afraid that a moment’s delay would let someone else claim the head.

And then—

[Flame Storm]

A bright and dazzling pillar of fire instantly erupted from within the crowd.

Giving them no chance to resist, Fia engulfed all the charging soldiers in the raging flames in one breath. The slowly rising fireball soon turned into a ring of fire, and the shockwave from the explosion, carrying a heatwave with it, blew her skirt and hair from side to side.

When the black smoke cleared, only charred corpses were left scattered across the square. The soldiers and nobles engulfed by the pillar of fire hadn’t even had time to scream. Only those who were crowded at the back and thrown back by the heatwave barely survived.

“Arghhhhh! My leg, my face!!!”

“Hmm?”

The sudden scream made Fia tilt her head slightly. She subconsciously looked over and saw a man in a corner with scorched skin, clutching his face. Fia remembered him as one of the nobles who had been shouting earlier.

He probably escaped to the edge of the explosion at the last moment and had a high-level defensive magic item on him, which was why he hadn’t died instantly. Fia pursed her lips and condensed an [Enchanted Blade] in her hand. But before she could act, the man rolling on the ground was stabbed in the neck by Milu, who had appeared behind her.

If Fia hadn’t deployed [Bee-Shield Forcefield] in time, she would have been splattered with blood.

“Milu.”

“He was too noisy.”

“That’s not what I meant.”

Fia sighed helplessly. Milu might be just like her, feeling nothing when it came to killing.

Indifferent to Fia’s helplessness, Milu, who had already taken out [Blessing of the Vampire Princess] ¹ hmmmm this is the half of The Undead Princess’s Hatred & The Vampire’s Blessing maybe, that weapon can split into two and the author choose this name… mhm should be it , puffed out her chest proudly as if seeking praise.

“Leave the rest to me.”

“I want to help too! I am a noble of the Kingdom, and I have a duty to suppress rebellions! Milu and I will guard the gate!”

Liti, holding a short staff in both hands, looked up and demanded strongly.

Putting Milu aside, Liti doesn’t seem like the kind of girl who is numb to killing, so why does she want to get involved? Is it because of the sense of responsibility of being a princess of the Kingdom, so she isn’t afraid? Or is it because she has experience hunting monsters and has seen dead people before, so she has resistance?

Fia used [Wind of Exploration] to scan the remaining nobles and soldiers. The highest level among them was only at the Second Tier, posing no great threat to the Third-Tier Liti and Second-Tier Milu.

She had dealt with the most dangerous ones herself, and Liti and Milu were volunteering. It was probably best to go along with their wishes. They had to grow up someday. These rebels had not only colluded with the traitorous Count Yureidon but had also committed the crime of treason, which was punishable by death. Not implicating their families was already a mercy.

Fia nodded and agreed to their request. After reminding them to be careful, she used [Flight] to head straight for the large square outside.

The reason Anastasia hadn’t returned to the hall was surely because she was holding back these rebels. It was just unexpected that among the private soldiers of these border nobles, there was someone who could fight on par with Anastasia. Although Anastasia was only at the quasi-Fifth-Tier, as a person who served the Eldest Princess and was once the captain of the second team of the Imperial Guard, she had access to far more resources than others. Her mastery of magic and accumulated combat experience far surpassed opponents of the same level.

Wait, is that a beastman?

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Her excellent dynamic vision told Fia that the greenish-blue figure was a half-snake woman. The feedback from [Wind of Exploration] indicated that her magic power, like Anastasia’s, was at the Fifth Tier.

I should deal with her quickly.

Wait.

Before she could act, Fia’s gaze suddenly sharpened.

She noticed that the movement of Anastasia’s left hand was abnormal, as if she was injured. Although from the looks of the fight, where Anastasia had the upper hand, her injury was not serious, and the half-snake girl opposite her, covered in blood with many of her scales stripped away, was clearly more heavily wounded, it still angered Fia.

Anastasia meant something special to her. No one was allowed to harm her.

[Thunder Spear]

Crackling blue-purple lightning spread out in Fia’s hand. In just a moment, a Thunder Spear brimming with explosive magic power appeared. And as if sensing the danger, Anastasia and the greenish-blue half-snake girl both slowed their movements and looked up at Fia in the air.

“Your Highness!”

“Anastasia, get out of the way!”

Anastasia quickly leaped to the side. Although the half-snake girl also wanted to escape, a golden pillar of light symbolizing [Light Binding] had already enveloped her. She felt as if she were stuck in quicksand, facing immense resistance with every step.

I can only risk it all.

Under the threat of death, the half-snake girl rapidly chanted a spell, but Fia had already thrown the Thunder Spear at her.

The crackle of lightning instantly tore through the sky. A total of three blue magic shields appeared in front of the half-snake girl, but they were shattered by the Thunder Spear without holding for even a moment. Finally, the blue-purple spear easily pierced through her abdomen, leaving a charred hole the size of a wrist in her serpentine body.

“Urgh—”

Intense paralysis covered the excruciating pain of being impaled. The half-snake girl convulsed on the ground, unable to move. But Fia didn’t even glance at her, landing directly next to Anastasia and grabbing her left arm.

“Anastasia, are you hurt?”

“It’s just some bruises, Your Highness need not worry. Her strength is inferior to mine…” Fia’s concern made Anastasia quite embarrassed. She shyly pulled back her left hand, which Fia was gripping tightly, and instead pointed to the downed half-snake girl. “She is not a soldier of Silvar. The combat magic she uses is of the Cold Night’s style, and her style is not their traditional one. A Fifth-Tier powerhouse is not a minor figure in the Cold Night. We might be able to get something out of her.”

“Someone from the Cold Night?” Fia frowned unkindly. “We can beat them even without this intelligence.”

“But her combat style is not the traditional style of the Cold Night. She might be from the emerging Holy Son Faction. You need to find the Holy Son to learn the whereabouts of the two goddesses. If you kill her, and then want to ask the Holy Son…”

“If she is one of the Holy Son’s people, then I won’t spare the Holy Son either.”

“Your Highness…”

Anastasia’s expression was a mixture of joy at Fia’s concern and distress at her recklessness due to the injury. Like an older sister, she rolled up her sleeve to show Fia her arm, which only had a single purple bruise, and said with a wry smile.

“It’s just a small injury. You can’t lose your reason over something so minor. We should capture her and use her when needed in the future. If worst comes to worst, making her a war slave to work in the mines would yield more benefit than killing her directly.”

“Umm…” Looking at Anastasia’s wryly smiling, azure eyes, Fia finally lost the staring contest. She sighed. “…If even you say so, Anastasia, alright. Let’s take her back first. [Beginner Water Healing].”

Reluctantly casting the simplest healing spell on the half-snake girl, Fia used [Telekinesis] to grab her and drag her back to the castle.