Volume 2, Chapter 12 – A Misunderstanding

“Eeeeeeeeeeh!!!”

“What’s that!”

“L-let me go!”

The soldiers suspended in the air struggled, but their bodies were trapped as if by a fortress of steel, unable to move a single millimeter. Even when they exerted all their strength, they only added pressure to those around them. Because [Telekinesis] was completely transparent, to outsiders, their performance looked incredibly comical.

Although [Telekinesis] also had its magical limits—for instance, very heavy objects, or large crossbow bolts like those from a siege crossbow that focused on penetrating power, could break the arm formed by [Telekinesis]—it was more than enough to deal with a dozen First-Tier soldiers.

“N-no… impossible… how so easily…”

Deliberately letting Norton see that he was no match for her, Fia slightly relaxed the force in her hand. The words Norton spoke while commanding his soldiers revealed some information. The reason he had suddenly attacked the three of them was that he had mistaken them for Darkborn.

As for the reasons, it was likely a combination of them being on edge from the Darkborn attack, the fact that a princess of a nation had come without sending a messenger in advance, and her claim of having amnesia. Combined, these three points had led Norton to conclude that she was a Darkborn in disguise.

Thinking this way, Norton might have been testing her from the very beginning. His words about them being “new faces” and “not only have I forgotten your appearance, but you have also forgotten mine” were all tests. If she were the real elf princess, she would have shown a look of surprise. However, she had used amnesia as an excuse.

If she were Norton, encountering an elf princess who only had one attendant and claimed to have amnesia at this critical time, she would also become suspicious. She would have led her away from the crowd and captured her for questioning. It was already merciful that Norton hadn’t directly stabbed her with a dagger, considering that she, with the appearance of the elf princess, could very well be a Darkborn.

It was nothing more than a misunderstanding.

Fia maintained her hold on Norton with his arms twisted behind his back. She first gestured for Liti to stand behind her, then addressed Norton in a lecturing tone.

“If I wanted your lives, none of you would have left here alive. You are no match for me. My point is, if I were a Darkborn, you would all be dead before you even had a chance to speak. Do you understand?”

Norton’s face was distorted with rage. He opened his mouth as if to argue, but with the facts laid out before him, and the soldiers still hanging in the air, he couldn’t say a word. Norton could only clench his teeth and ask resentfully.

“Then who are you?”

“Dofilia Alexia Yushir, the Eldest Princess of the Elf Kingdom, Silvar. I did not deceive you. We genuinely came to see the camp because we happened to encounter it on our way back to our country. Tell your men to cease their resistance. Everything is just a misunderstanding.”

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“How… How can you prove it? You are completely different from the Fia I remember!”

Even with his life in Fia’s hands, Norton had no intention of giving in.

Anastasia had said that the Mana Flow in her hand was the most exquisite, with the restrained crimson glow that only royalty possessed. But Anastasia had also said that the Mana Flow should not be casually shown to others. Even Liti knew to cover her Mana Flow with a sticker, let alone her, who was supposed to be a mature, rational eldest princess in the eyes of outsiders.

Fia thought for a moment.

“Then how can you prove that you are the real Norton and not a Darkborn in disguise?”

Norton’s whole body stiffened. He endured the pain in his arms, his eyes squinted, and he said angrily.

“You are twisting the facts!”

“Isn’t that the point? You can’t prove you’re Norton, and I can’t prove I’m the elf princess. We’re even.”

Fia let go of Norton in a timely manner, and her knee also moved away from his neck. She stood up and casually patted her dress.

With her dress on, pressing her black-stockinged leg against someone felt a little improper to Fia. Some perverts might even consider it a form of reward and take a deep sniff—which was disgusting.

“You’re not a child. You should know the difference in strength between you and me—”

Poof.

Just as Fia thought the matter was over, Norton, who she had released, suddenly turned into a swarm of bats and flew straight towards Fia’s face. The sharp sound of their wings cutting through the air left no doubt that these bats were lethal.

What a pain.

[Mental Shock]

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The air vibrated violently. All the bats flying towards Fia fell one after another like kites with their strings cut, and a series of pained squeaking sounds followed. Since Fia had controlled her strength, these bats were not knocked out but tried to use their wings to get up from the ground. However, [Mental Shock] had robbed them of the strength to fight, making it extremely difficult for them to even crawl.

When the last bat fell to the ground, a blood-like red mist emerged from its body. Gradually, the red mist condensed into a human figure. In just two short breaths, a girl in a dark red dress with golden hair tied back by a black ribbon appeared before Fia.

Of course, she was in the posture of having been defeated and was now lying on the ground.

A woman?

Where’s the Norton from just now?

A question mark appeared above Fia’s head.

This attire was, without a doubt, that of Estelle, the third daughter of the House of Oro, her “old friend,” who had just been standing on the stage.

As surprised as Fia was, Anastasia rushed forward and turned the groaning girl over.

The moment she saw the girl’s fair face, Fia and Anastasia’s breaths caught in their throats.

It was indeed Estelle herself.

Helping Estelle sit up, Anastasia’s expression was complicated.

“Your Highness, this is Miss Estelle.”

“Wasn’t it Norton? Anastasia, you saw it too, right?”

“Pure-blooded vampires have the ability to change their appearance. Not only can they control the flow of blood in their bodies, but they can also change their appearance to that of their blood relatives. Perhaps the Estelle on the stage just now was the real Norton. They swapped appearances.”

Liti explained.

Fia’s expression instantly became subtle.

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If she had known it was Estelle, she wouldn’t have been so heavy-handed. The [Mental Shock] from just now was at least enough to cause a splitting headache, not to mention she had deliberately twisted Estelle’s arms and pressed her leg against Estelle’s neck. It was already remarkable that Estelle wasn’t wailing in pain. An ordinary person would have been screaming by now.

Stepping out from behind Fia, Liti raised her chin and snorted impolitely.

“Hmph, she got what she deserved. Why didn’t she trust sister and had to pretend to be a man? Serves her right. If she had just trusted us, she wouldn’t have gone through this. I thought she was a strong contender, but it turns out she lost her candidacy from the very beginning.”

Candidacy for what?

Although she wanted to ask Liti what that meant, given the circumstances, Fia did not ask.

She paused awkwardly, then let go of the soldiers held in her spatial hand. Because Fia had displayed supernatural power, these soldiers no longer dared to charge forward. However, the current situation did not allow them to retreat directly, so they could only exchange glances, not knowing what to do.

Fia looked at a soldier standing not far away, who looked like he wanted to say something.

“Hey, what’s going on?”

“Uh,” The soldier who was called on never expected Fia to pick him. He was on pins and needles. Under the pressure of his comrades’ gazes, he swallowed hard and answered with difficulty. “The Third Miss deliberately swapped appearances with Young Master Norton to see how many nobles in the camp were unhappy with her leadership. She never expected you to visit, so she mistook you for a Darkborn. We were informed by the Third Miss through a vampire secret language, so we followed her. You… are you the real, Seventh-Tier elf princess?”

Ugh.

She had just beaten up the leader of the refugee camp, and in front of her subordinates no less. Estelle would definitely hate her to death for making her lose so much face.

Fia secretly stuck out her tongue inwardly.

I can’t be blamed for this. It was Estelle who put herself in harm’s way, and she insisted on pretending to be a man. Otherwise, I would have at least been a little lighter-handed.

Under the dumbfounded gazes of the soldiers, Fia raised her hand and used a glowing blue [Elementary Hydration Spell] on the groaning Estelle. After that, Anastasia also took out a red fruit from her pouch, crushed it, and let the juice drip into Estelle’s mouth.

This was a fruit with a calming effect that could relieve Estelle’s headache.

A full minute passed before Estelle stopped groaning. With Anastasia’s assistance, she recovered from her daze and stood up shakily. Although Fia’s [Elementary Hydration Spell] had healed the injuries on her arms, the faint headache still made her wince, and the front of her dark red dress was covered in mud and grass.

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Clearly, Estelle was in no state to talk to Fia properly for a while.

“What happened?”

As soon as Anastasia spoke, a strong, male voice echoed from behind the soldiers.

It was the real Norton.

From the way the soldiers parted to the sides, Fia could clearly see Norton’s face—with his long, dark blue hair freely hanging, a slim swordsman’s uniform, and a handsome face, Norton was a classic beauty from any angle. In terms of age, Norton should have been younger than Estelle, but his physique and facial features made him look more mature.

The soldiers immediately ran to Norton’s side to explain what had happened.

Norton first frowned with dissatisfaction, then raised his eyebrows and looked at Fia, a wry smile and an apologetic look on his face.

He waved his hand, gesturing for the soldiers to leave. Then he came before Fia, placed his right hand on his left side, bowed deeply, and politely saluted Fia.

“I have a general idea of what happened. The strength the Eldest Princess displayed has convinced me. I sincerely apologize. My sister was rude to the two princesses. I apologize to both Princess Dofilia Alexia Yushir and Princess Liti Alexia Yushir, and I hope you can forgive my sister.”

“It was just a misunderstanding. I’m not taking it to heart. It’s just that your sister seems to be in a lot of pain. Can you take her to rest? We can wait a little longer in the tent. We originally came to visit you all, and I’m sorry that this happened.”

Speaking with a wry smile, Fia gestured for Anastasia to take Estelle to Norton’s side.

“There is no need for Your Highness to apologize. I am the one who should say sorry. My sister was a bit too agitated. I will have a good talk with her when she is better. I hope Your Highness can give us some time.”

“No problem.”

“Thank you very much.”

Saluting Fia’s group of three gracefully once more, Norton arranged for them to enter the spacious tent to rest. Four maids in servant attire also followed, preparing tea and refreshments.