Volume 5, Chapter 46 – The Wandering Knight of Blood

“That Stellacryst Beast is your companion, right?”

As the battle between the Bear-man warrior and Milu was more intense than the others, it naturally attracted Ying’s attention. However, a snake’s eyesight was not as good as an elf’s, so she couldn’t see Milu’s appearance clearly.

Fia nodded lightly, her white side ponytail swaying along.

“Yes. Her name is Milu. She’s my… my younger sister?”

“Why the question?”

“Because Milu doesn’t like it when I say she’s my younger sister. She prefers the title of master.”

With those words, Fia felt Ying’s greenish-blue snake eyes change, a clear hint of “being impressed” in them.

Fia, of course, knew what she was thinking and explained helplessly.

“I already have a younger sister, the Third Princess of Silvar. And Milu doesn’t like to be called the same as others, so it ended up like this.”

“She must like you.”

“Of course she likes me,” Fia puffed out her chest proudly. “If she didn’t, she wouldn’t choose to stay by my side. This child has never felt what it’s like to be loved since she was born. Now that someone cares for her, it’s only natural for her to feel attached.”

“Are you pretending to be dumb or are you really dumb?”

Ying looked Fia up and down with an expression that said she was looking at an idiot.

Fia frowned.

“What do you mean, pretending to be dumb or really dumb?”

“Looks like you really are dumb. That exceptionally wise Eldest Princess isn’t better than me in every aspect.” Saying this, Ying’s gaze fell on Claire beside Fia, her tone full of teasing. “It must have been difficult at the beginning, right?”

Claire just gave a radiant smile.

“Little Fia is smarter than you imagine, Ying.”

Instead of a queen and a consort, the two of them look more like an older and a younger sister.

Ying complained in her heart.

“It’s the final blow!”

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A shout from the audience outside the room.

As the audience had said, the battle between Milu and the Bear-man warrior was about to end. The Bear-man was out of breath, his simple armor covered in cuts. In contrast, Milu was only breathing lightly, her white hair slightly disheveled. If one were to describe their battle, “playing with” would be more appropriate.

Although the Bear-man was powerful and his body was three or four times Milu’s size, his movements were far less agile. Milu could even step on his back and onto his shoulders to evade attacks and counterattack. Especially after she had used [Mist] to blind him, the battle had completely become a one-sided affair. He could only take hits and couldn’t even touch the corner of her clothes.

With Milu combining her two single-handed swords, one gray and one red, into one, the two-handed sword, longer than her height, began to emit a dazzling red light. And the Bear-man, as if sensing the final blow was coming, crossed his brown-furred arms in front of him.

Under the expectant gazes of the crowd, the flying two-handed sword finally collided with the Bear-man. However, it did not cut into his arms, but at the last moment, changed from a chop to a slap, and struck the side of his neck. In Anastasia’s words, only a fool would go head-to-head with a power-type enemy. To use skill at a critical moment and strike the enemy’s weak spot was the choice of a smart person. The battlefield only cared about winning or losing, not the method. So from the very beginning, Milu had only been thinking of attacking his neck.

The unexpected dull and heavy blow made the Bear-man’s eyes widen. He opened his mouth to say something, but his dizzy brain and extremely heavy eyelids did not allow him to react. His four-meter-tall body staggered to the side a few steps and finally, with a dull thud, he fell face down on the ground.

The referee’s announcement followed.

“The winner is the Stellacryst Beast, Euphimilu!”

“Ohh! She beat the three-time champion, Star Bear!”

“I’ve never seen this Stellacryst Beast before. She looks like she hasn’t even grown all her fur!”

“So the body of a Stellacryst Beast is so much stronger than ours…”

“It’s because her weapon is good. It has nothing to do with race. Didn’t you see the red light from that sword at the end? It must be an orichalcum-grade magic weapon. If I had a sword like that, I could beat Star Bear too!”

“It was clearly her superior martial skill! That’s the Silvar royal sword technique. Although Star Bear is strong and can take a beating, how can he be a match for a magic swordsman?”

A heated discussion erupted in the audience. At first, because of the height difference between Milu and the Bear-man, these beastmen had all been rooting for the Bear-man and had even hoped he would be gentle. Now that Milu had won in a one-sided fashion, it naturally left them dumbfounded. In their view, the twelve or thirteen-year-old Milu could not have defeated the Bear-man through normal means. She must have used an unknown secret weapon.

Very much in line with the identity of an amateur.

“In terms of combat skill, magic proficiency, and physical flexibility, Milu is superior. As expected, a professionally trained warrior and a self-taught one who only relies on talent are from two different worlds. If our Holy Son Faction also had such a professional martial arts teacher, a large number of outstanding warriors would surely emerge.”

Ying intentionally or unintentionally looked at Claire. Since Nola had remembered Claire, she had often heard her say that Claire was her magic tutor. That magic, which was different from any school of magic on the World Tree Continent, was a novelty to Ying.

It was with the magic Claire had taught her that Nola had completed her revenge. And she had personally seen her defeat opponents with her strange magic countless times. If Claire were willing to teach her knowledge to the other outstanding warriors of the Holy Son Faction, just as she had taught Nola, then their strength would surely be greatly enhanced.

Unfortunately, Claire had become the elf princess’s consort. With this status, it was impossible to think of having her teach magic anymore.

How pitiful, Nola.

Her eyes reflecting the doting gaze Claire gave Fia, Ying quietly looked away and sighed inwardly. Although Nola had never said what kind of feelings she had for Claire, Ying and Nola were good friends who had known each other for five or six years and had gone through life and death together. She knew what Nola was thinking.

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Not to say that Nola saw Claire as the only one in her life, but she was definitely a figure comparable to a god. Not only was there the attachment of a family member, like a mother or an older sister, but also an ambiguous, lover-like feeling. It was just that she herself had not realized it, or did not dare to be sure.

Now, to have her love stolen by an elf princess who was countless times stronger than her, and the two of them were even in love with each other, with no possibility of her coming between them, made one lament that a childhood friend was indeed no match for a fated encounter.

But then again, even without the elf princess stealing her love, it would have been difficult for Nola to be with Claire. A Holy Son should not be with someone who was cursed, otherwise Claire’s existence would tarnish the Holy Son’s divinity in the eyes of the world. Furthermore, the Cold Night was not Silvar. The Cold Night allowed polygamy, but would never tolerate same-sex love. This was not only a matter of public morals, but also a crime that would anger the Ancestral Spirits. If Nola insisted on being with Claire, the result would either be her being denounced by the public, or the two of them could only maintain an underground relationship.

The fact that Claire and the elf princess were in love with each other was actually better for everyone. Anyway, Nola was still not clear about the complex feelings she had for Claire. Before she could face this feeling, it was better for it to die a natural death. Everyone could have a good ending.

Not knowing what was on Ying’s mind, Fia continued to watch the competition. It was now Liti’s and Tilulu’s turn. Amusingly, the two of them had drawn each other, turning it into a civil war.

My younger sister and my daughter are fighting, and they’re both magic casters. I really don’t know who to root for.

“Isn’t that Tilulu and Her Highness’s sister? How did those two end up together?”

“You should ask your staff. Didn’t they say it was a draw?”

“It was indeed a draw, but there are fifty contestants today. For them to be drawn together is too much of a coincidence…”

As if she had thought of something, a mischievous smile appeared on Ying’s face.

“So who does Your Highness support? Your daughter? Or your sister?”

Hey, don’t ask such a sharp question.

Fia thought for a moment.

“I’ll support whoever wins.”

“You should at least think about it seriously. If Tilulu wins, won’t she receive everyone’s praise and become king more smoothly?”

“That’s too utilitarian. Liti and Tilulu are equally important.”

“Eh.”

If Claire wasn’t sitting next to her, Ying would have wanted to wrap her snake tail around Fia’s neck and poke her cheek with the tip of her tail to tease her.

“By the way, since elves can have offspring with their Mana Surge, instead of being a mother, wouldn’t it be better to marry Tilulu when she grows up and become the regent of the Cold Night? There are many such examples in human countries, and the elves have also had examples of merging with neighboring countries through marriage in the past ten thousand years.”

“You beastfolk…”

Before Fia could finish her retort, the three of them heard an exceptionally noisy sound from outside the door. If it were just a simple argument, it would be fine, but Fia heard Radric’s questioning voice in it. Thinking that he had gone to find Tilulu’s brother, it was not difficult to guess what had happened.

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It must be that Radric was trying to drag Tilulu’s brother to see her, but he was unwilling to lose face, so the two of them had a dispute.

Ying shot up, her expression serious.

“Your Highness, Miss Claire, I’ll go and see. Please wait a moment.”

“I’ll go too.”

Fia followed her to the door.

Soon, the two noisy people appeared before Fia. However, the scene was slightly different from what she had imagined. A tall Tiger-kin man was standing shoulder to shoulder with Radric, and opposite them, with his back to Fia, was a person of unknown gender, completely hidden in dark red armor. If she had to describe him, she would think of the deceased General Greyan. Both of them were covered in armor from head to toe.

In addition, this person hidden in armor also exuded a strong aura of death and blood. The dark red on the armor was like congealed, blackened blood. Even though Fia was several meters away and his back was to her, she could feel a faint sharpness coming from him, as if his very existence was death. The stifling pressure made the air thick.

Fia had not been without encountering strong people. Not to mention Radric and the Demon General of Despair, she had even seen the Elf God. But these people had never given her a special feeling. Now, the situation was slightly different.

[Wind of Exploration]

[See Through]

[Mana Vision]

Three detection spells were cast at the same time, but the result surprised Fia. The person in front of her was only at the Sixth Tier and was not using any magic to conceal their identity. The result from [See Through] was consistent with what she saw with her own eyes.

To be able to make me feel a hint of sharpness with only Sixth-Tier strength. A strange person.

Silently memorizing the dark red armor, Fia stopped Claire, who was about to follow Ying, and decided to observe what was happening first.

“Radric, Clest, and the Wandering Knight? What are you doing here?”

As soon as she saw the three of them, Ying directly called out their names. She had met Radric in Count Yureidon’s castle. Clest was the name of Tilulu’s brother. As for the Wandering Knight, it was the contestant who was about to fight Nola, completely hidden in dark red armor.

“Lord Strategist? You’re here?”

Seeing Ying walk in, Tilulu’s brother’s eyes lit up. He pointed at the Wandering Knight in front of him and quickly said.

“We want to go out, and this guy is blocking our way.”

“Blocking the way? It’s clearly you two who are deliberately making things difficult for me.”

Before Ying could speak, the Wandering Knight, completely covered in dark red metal armor, explained in a teasing tone. From the voice, one could tell that it was a young man under the armor, probably between twenty-four and twenty-eight years old.

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“May I go now? I still have a duel with the Holy Son later.”

“Wait,” Radric frowned his non-existent eyebrows and reached out to stop the knight. “Take off your armor.”

“Sorry, I am wandering the continent in search of my faith. This heavy armor is both my protection and my punishment for losing my own faith. I cannot obey your command. In the end, I have never met you, Lord Half-Dragonoid. Why do you say you sense a familiar aura on me? Ah, if it’s because you’re short of money…”

The knight reached into his waist pocket and made a gesture of taking out money. This instantly enraged Radric. He took a step forward, his dragon claw going straight for the knight’s neck. However, as if he had known he would attack, the knight caught his wrist with his other hand, which was covered in a metal gauntlet. His grip was like a vise, making Radric’s hand unable to move an inch.

Even though Radric’s strength was greatly reduced in his semi-dragonoid state, this scene was too exaggerated. Radric was a Seventh-Tier Moon Dragon. His strength was by no means something a Sixth-Tier human could withstand.

Fia couldn’t help but use magic to confirm the knight’s strength again, and there was still no problem.

“Both of you, stop!”

A hint of coldness appeared in Ying’s voice. She walked between the two of them.

“If you don’t let go, I’ll have to ask someone to send you out. No matter who you are, the Hunting Ground is not a place for you to cause trouble!”

“That’s right, that’s right,” the knight was still in that frivolous tone. “For Miss Ying’s sake, please don’t make things difficult for me any longer. I will take my leave first.”

Though his words were respectful, he unceremoniously threw Radric’s hand back. The knight turned and walked in Fia’s direction. Although Radric wanted to chase him, Ying timely stood in his way.

Soon, the knight passed by Fia—or rather, did not. As he walked past Fia and Claire, he suddenly stopped and looked up at their faces with curiosity.

It was only then that Fia noticed the strange thing about the knight’s armor. Greyan’s full-body armor was already exaggerated, but the knight’s was even more so. Not only was it covered in metal spikes and strange black patterns, but the helmet was also completely sealed, with not even a hole for ventilation or viewing, as if this was not a human, but an armored creature that did not need to breathe or eat.

“Oh my, oh my, this is truly something. I didn’t expect to meet a destroyer of order here—no, it would be more appropriate to say an apocalypse? To have let you two ladies see such an unharmonious scene, I am deeply sorry. If we can meet again, I hope you can give me a chance to show myself. I will surely not disappoint you. Well then, farewell.”

Without giving Fia a chance to ask, the knight strode away with the joyous mood of having discovered a treasure. As he was about to leave the corridor, they could even hear his hearty and cheerful laughter, like a madman.

Radric clicked his tongue with anger. He took a hasty step forward.

“I’ll go and catch him! This guy has a familiar aura on him. He must be one of the Darkborn! Elf princess, please protect Tilulu!”

“Wait, Radric. That guy still has to fight Nola later. Don’t be in such a hurry. Tell me what happened first.”

“Huh? Ying, and Claire?! What are you all gathered here for?”

Before Fia’s voice had completely disappeared, a young girl with fiery red cat ears and long hair appeared behind her.

It was the Holy Son, Nola.