Volume 5, Chapter 53 – An Unexpected Encounter

With the bright daylight, one could see countless beastfolk cutting down trees and setting up camp in the snow-covered wilderness. The rising smoke from cooking fires showed no concern for the risk of exposure. With the dense, endless line of troops, an experienced general could estimate their numbers at a glance—at least fifteen thousand. This was a number that chilled the heart even more than the cold weather.

Admittedly, in terms of numbers, this army led by Chazo had nearly half the men of the army that attacked the Snake-folk city. But anyone with eyes could see that Chazo would definitely keep his elites by his side. And barring any surprises, this army was the main force, the one intended to launch a surprise attack from behind the Holy Son Faction. Even though their plan had failed, this army was still a force to be reckoned with.

Standing on a hillside several kilometers from the army camp, the heavy-hearted Nola took a deep breath. The cold wind blew her fiery red hair. If not for the cover of the trees, her red figure would have long been exposed.

“That old bastard Chazo really did have a backup plan.”

Nola took another deep breath. The cold air filling her nostrils invigorated her, clearing her mind considerably. She exhaled a puff of white mist and clicked her tongue heavily.

“He knew we wouldn’t have time to react at this distance. Setting up camp right here is a deliberate show for us.”

“They’re already cutting down trees and building siege engines, you know.”

With the spirit of someone who enjoys watching a show regardless of the consequences, Fia teased from the side.

After hearing Anastasia say that Chazo had arrived, Fia had immediately gone to search for his whereabouts. She had happened to run into Nola, who had also come to scout. For speed considerations, Fia hadn’t brought her companions, and similarly, Nola hadn’t brought Ying. Thus, it had become a private moment for the two of them. However, there was no ambiguity here, because neither Fia nor Nola wanted to see the other at all.

Nola snorted defiantly through her nose.

“Hmph, let them prepare. He wouldn’t have thought that we happen to have assembled a large army, ready to move out at any time. Also, why did you come here? Let me say this first, even if you eliminate Chazo from the standpoint of an elf princess, I won’t feel like I owe you a favor. I admire your strength, but the matter with Claire is separate.”

“I never said I was going to help you. You’re too narcissistic,” Fia shrugged indifferently. “I just came to see how strong Chazo, who has been suppressing your Holy Son Faction, really is.”

“Me, narcissistic? I’m just being cautious. If you want to watch, feel free. I’m going over first. If there are people from the Multi-tailed Fox Tribe hidden in their ranks, things will be troublesome.”

Nola took out a snow-white cloak from her storage item and hid her conspicuous red hair and cat ears under it.

“Multi-tailed Fox Tribe? Is there anything to be wary of about them?”

“They are one of the few races among the beastfolk who are skilled in magic. If they appear in groups, it’s a fatal blow to ordinary warriors. In addition, they are skilled in astrology and are known as the Sage race. Their very existence represents stability. If they suddenly appear on the battlefield, it will dampen the soldiers’ morale.”

Nola gave Fia an extra glance, a strange look in her eyes.

“You’re the Eldest Princess of Silvar. Don’t you even know these things?”

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“I only know a part. I met a friend from the Multi-tailed Fox Tribe before, but she didn’t tell me this much.”

“What about the scholars in your country? You’re the administrator of one of the Three Main Towers. You shouldn’t be ignorant of these things.”

Fia put one hand on her hip and sighed.

“Hah, it seems you still don’t know. I’ve actually lost my memory.”

Although Fia maintained a lukewarm attitude towards Nola, these minor matters were not worth hiding. The entire kingdom of Silvar knew that the Eldest Princess had lost her memory. The news would reach here sooner or later. Hiding it was meaningless.

“Lost your memory?”

As if she had heard something important, Nola, who was tucking her red hair into her hood, suddenly stopped her movements and looked up at Fia in surprise.

“But you don’t look like someone who has lost their memory at all.”

“That’s because by the time I appeared before you, it had already been four or five months since I lost my memory.”

Attracted by Fia’s words, Nola continued to ask.

“You’re the Eldest Princess of the Kingdom. How could you just lose your memory like that? When did it happen?”

“Don’t think I’ve become weak just because I lost my memory. I still have all the magic abilities I should have. As for how I lost my memory, it was when I entered the Milcandis Holy Kingdom. I was hit by their national treasure, and then I became like this. I know what you want to ask. I met Claire after I lost my memory. At that time, she was living in Aurora City. I went out for a walk in the middle of the night and happened to meet her.”

“I… I wasn’t asking about that.”

Blushing and retorting stiffly, Nola began to intentionally or unintentionally observe Fia. Fia wasn’t sure if it was her imagination, but she felt there was a hint of care, like that for a younger sister, in Nola’s purple cat eyes.

“…You haven’t had it easy either. As a princess, you have to go to the front lines to kill enemies, and you were even ambushed with a national treasure, causing you to lose your memory.”

What kind of wind blew this in?

Question marks popped up above Fia’s head. It wasn’t that she couldn’t accept others’ goodwill, but when this person was Nola, who had always maintained a stiff attitude towards her, she couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable, like something was strange. Her attitude towards Nola had always been that of a wife’s unruly younger sister—not quite liking her, but not hating her either, the kind of relationship where they would tease each other given the chance.

She couldn’t help but ask.

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“What are you trying to say?”

“Nothing. I just suddenly realized that your life isn’t as easy as I imagined. Looking at you, you probably haven’t reached adulthood yet, right? It reminds me of when I was your age. I was forced to go to the front lines to kill enemies just like you. To be honest, I don’t like the feeling of killing at all.”

“Hey, don’t lump us together. My life is much easier than yours.”

This was not showing off or bragging, but expressing that Nola shouldn’t lump her, who lived in an affluent environment, together with herself. That would be demeaning Nola’s efforts. Although the Eldest Princess was not accepted by her biological mother, there were many people who loved and cared for her. Whether it was the consorts, the Elf King, or Anastasia and Erin Slate, they all took meticulous care of her. In contrast, Nola had almost nothing, and even bore the heavy burden of revenge. Their starting points were worlds apart.

To avoid being misunderstood by Nola, Fia added another sentence.

“At least being a royal of Silvar is easier than being an acting chieftain of the Cold Night. Life is much more prosperous. You should have been to Silvar and know what kind of place it is. Putting you and me together is demeaning yourself.”

“…That’s true.” Nola did not refute, but shrugged. “You see things quite clearly.”

“Of course.”

A look of natural pride appeared on Fia’s face. Nola’s sudden concern was surprising, but it also lessened the resentment in Fia’s heart. Nola wasn’t incapable of understanding others’ feelings. Although she had misunderstood the person, it was undeniable that her heart was in the right place.

She put away her previous indifferent attitude towards Nola and pointed with her chin at Chazo’s army setting up camp in the distance.

“Aren’t you going to take this opportunity to launch a surprise attack? With your Seventh-Tier strength, few people can stop you.”

“But if someone can stop me, the situation becomes dangerous. Even I can’t figure out Chazo’s strength. What if he’s only slightly weaker than me? If I go in alone, I might not come back. You should understand this—”

Before she could finish, Nola’s exotic-looking, enchanting face stiffened. The disdainful expression quickly faded, and her eyes looking at Fia became increasingly helpless, finally turning into a long sigh.

“Hah, you’ve lost your memory, so it’s understandable that you don’t understand. The tactic you mentioned, of launching a surprise attack alone, is only suitable when the enemy does not have a strong general leading them. Since they dared to come, it means they have the confidence to deal with me. What if there are magic items hidden in the army specifically targeting me, just waiting for me to walk into their trap? Wouldn’t that be troublesome?”

“Battles between nations on the World Tree Continent are basically like this. The enemy won’t give high-tier warriors and magic casters the opportunity to slaughter ordinary soldiers. Someone will always tie you down. Those countries that can’t spare the manpower to tie down high-tier combatants have long been annexed by their neighbors. By the way, how strong are you?”

Nola tilted her head, a hint of curiosity in her raised cat ears.

Fia had originally planned to say “just annihilating several hundred thousand monsters in one go,” but after thinking about it, she chose a more modest answer.

“Guess.”

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“It’s fine if you don’t want to say. You were able to defeat me, so you’re at least at the Seventh Tier. I have a question for you. This morning, the Wandering Knight told me that last night, he encountered someone who attacked him in the city. That person’s strength was so great that he didn’t even have time to react. Was that person you?”

“Why do you suspect me?”

“I saw him harassing your few fiancées in the rest room yesterday. Plus, your strength is obvious to all, so I thought of you. He was indeed a bit impolite, but he is already my subordinate. Just tell me directly, and I will give you a more reasonable disposal. Attacking someone in the street will make the residents uneasy.”

Nola said casually. Fia hadn’t taken the Wandering Knight’s life, just taught him a lesson. She wasn’t angry enough to lose her temper. Besides, this was the Cold Night. Although the status of women was low, it depended on the type. Among the beastfolk, if a man harassed a married woman, it wouldn’t be strange for the husband to cut down the harasser in the street. Fia’s reaction, in Nola’s view, was even quite polite.

Fia spread her hands, feigning innocence.

“Attack? There was no such thing. And Liti and the others are not my fiancées. They are my companions.”

This was, of course, a lie. Last night, taking advantage of the rain, she had gone to test the Wandering Knight’s limits.

His strength was indeed only at the Sixth Tier, as reported by [Wind of Exploration]. Both his reaction speed and his strength were consistent with the characteristics of the Sixth to Seventh Tier. Especially the final sword strike where she had cut off his right arm. Not only had she hidden her entire body, but she had also used [Flight] and [Flowing Wind’s Blessing] to increase her speed, aiming straight for his neck.

However, even at the last moment, he had no intention of defending or retreating. If he wasn’t an excellent actor, betting that she wouldn’t kill him, then his strength was indeed only at this level, and he hadn’t caught her movements at all.

Compared to the former, Fia believed the latter more. People have subconscious reactions when facing danger. For example, when facing an oncoming fist, people always think of dodging or blocking. If he had seen her movements clearly, even if reason told him not to dodge, his body would have subconsciously made him turn his head. But at that time, he had shown no reaction.

Nola pouted unhappily and turned to hide her fiery red tail under her short skirt.

“Fine, don’t say it.”

“It’s not that I don’t want to say it. It’s just that I really don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“I’m leaving.”

“Wait. Are you really just scouting? If you beg me now, holding my leg and calling me ‘mom’, I might consider helping you capture Chazo alive.”

Although Fia had never met him, she didn’t think he could defeat her. If, as Nola said, his strength was comparable to hers, then Fia could wipe out his army right now. The reason she didn’t was because she had her own considerations.

One was that Tilulu’s foundation was unstable. Easily annihilating Chazo would make the Holy Son Faction dominant. According to Ying, before suffering a real loss, Nola would not agree to submit to Tilulu. At that time, it would turn into a civil war among their own people. The other was that letting Chazo’s army live a little longer could force Tilulu to realize that she was only one step away from becoming queen. That teardrop pendant should also be guiding her to make a choice by now.

Once King Chazo died, and the main force of the Royalist Faction was destroyed, the time for change in the Cold Night would come. The new queen would be born at that moment. Tilulu would not fail to understand this. Although she was timid, she was not ignorant.

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“You want me to beg you? What a joke.”

Nola exhaled heavily through her nose, her upright ears pushing up her cloak, her tone filled with disdain.

“I, Nola, ask no one for anything. Not to mention you took advantage of me being tormented by the forgetting curse to snatch Claire away from me. Even if I die, I will not ask you to help me deal with the enemy. This is my bottom line.”

“Since she’s already been snatched away, there’s no need to be so stubborn, right? If you live, you can see Claire a few more times.”

“You—! Hmph! I haven’t said I’ll admit defeat. You could snatch Claire away from me, and I can snatch her back. I’m going over. You can do whatever you want.”

Unwilling to argue with Fia, Nola quickly tied her cloak strings, chanted a spell that could somewhat evade outsiders’ detection, and then leaped onto the treetops. With just a few leaps, her figure disappeared into the dense forest.

As expected of the Fire Cat Tribe. Her movements are as agile and swift as a cat’s.

Clicking her tongue inwardly, Fia also took out the Cloud Moon of the Illusory Sea.

Unlike Nola, who only observed the army from afar, Fia had some things she wanted to confirm and had to go deep into the camp to find the answers.

The disgusting man she had met under the Snake-folk city had been teleported away before he died. Fia still didn’t know who had cast the spell at that time. Now that she knew Chazo had actually sent two armies to attack the city, Fia had a guess.

This world had no radio and no magic capable of long-range communication. To simultaneously send two armies to attack the same target, and even formulate tactics of feinting and surprise attacking from the rear, without a means of communication, it was almost impossible to achieve such a coordinated tactic. But if there was teleportation magic, then messengers could be teleported back and forth, thus achieving the function of long-range communication.

In other words, the person who had teleported that disgusting man that day was very likely in Chazo’s camp. If she could capture him alive and bring him back for interrogation, she might be able to learn the spell for teleportation from him and make it her own.

Fia had experienced the convenience of teleportation magic many times. However, the item she had obtained from the Witch Sanctuary only allowed her to set fourteen anchor points, and the maximum distance between each point was only two or three hundred kilometers, which couldn’t even cover the entire territory of Silvar. If she could master teleportation magic herself, she wouldn’t have to worry about not having enough anchor points.

Moreover, Fia was also curious about who exactly was using teleportation magic. Anastasia had once said that the teleportation magic of this world could only cover a distance of less than a hundred meters. Only the magic of the Darkborn could teleport further. Fia had also asked the Demon General of Knowledge, wanting to learn the Darkborn’s teleportation magic from him. However, his answer was that even people from their Absolute Evil camp couldn’t teleport more than ten kilometers. Only the magic of the Sovereign’s camp could teleport more than fifty kilometers.

The Snake-folk city was a good two or three hundred kilometers away from here. In other words, the person hidden in Chazo’s camp was very likely a member of the Sovereign’s Darkborn, and a very powerful one at that. The former Eldest Princess had always been dealing with the Sovereign. Although Fia didn’t know why, continuing her actions was surely the right thing to do. When dealing with people from the Sovereign’s camp, kill one whenever possible.

Her body quickly dissolved into the air. Fia looked up at the sun in the sky.

“I’ll just take a quick look and come back.”