Currently, Bella and her team of knights were residing in the central area of Ombia, a city in the outskirts of Michael’s Plain located at the center of the Octavia Empire. In a small hotel in this city center, Bella had requested for Dragon Knight General Olya and Knight King Liath to look after Snow Dragon Queen Eli Shelley and the former pope of the Radiant Church, Pope Clamantha, before leaving the room.
Once out of the room, Bella searched for a location to set up a Magical Teleportation Array. Even though this city was close to the headquarters of the Radiant Church, the Holy City Slyvia, there had yet to be any Magical Teleportation Array that was set up here. Hence, she wanted to create one herself in order to transport the first-generation pope, Pope Goldsmith, and the fifth-generation pope, Pope Roxanne, from the Olsylvia Academy, as they were both still at the Manasvir Empire.
Bella thought the best way to persuade Clamantha was to ask for the assistance of the two previous popes. She suspected that the event of disposing of the pope over thirty years ago had the approval of an earlier pope who supported the rebellion plan of the current Pope Croft the Sixth. The only way to set things straight was to have the first few generations of Popes overrule the decision.
At this moment, Bella had the pope of the first-generation, Pope Goldsmith, and the fifth-generation pope, Pope Roxanne, in her grasp. During the tomb robbery, she had also successfully stolen the Radiant Cross Necklace, an exclusive identity cross of the second and fourth-generation Radiant Popes. To add to this, she had also previously obtained the Radiant Cross Necklace of the third-generation Radiant Pope from the Holy Spirit. Adding it all up, Bella could call up the support of five generations of the Radiant Popes.
In regards to the three Radiant pope that would not be able to attend, as long as Bella was able to produce the Pope’s Radiant Cross Necklace, she could pretend to be speaking on their behalf. In the presence of these five Radiant Popes, even the holy spirit of the hundreds of Radiant Popes would not dare to defy the will of the first few Radiant Popes. In fact, Bella also had the support of several goddesses on her side, like the Goddess of Light. It would have been more convincing if the goddesses themselves were to defend them, but she was wary of asking for their assistant. She had yet to fully confirm the intention of the Twelve Ancient Demon Kings.
When Bella left the hotel, she had only brought her Lisha and Kriss with her while she left the rest of them at the small hotel. Ombia was a small city that was sustained by horse-trading. Bella, Kriss, and Lisha pretended to wander around as traders interested in purchasing some horses. They went to the market to collect some information, as well as look for a suitable place to set up the Magical Teleportation Array.
Since the leading trade of the market of this small town was horses, the supplies for other things were scarce. Furthermore, the long-term blizzard made it difficult for the transportation of goods throughout the Octavia Empire. It also made the cultivation of livestock extremely tough. As such, many of these traders active in the market spent most of their time in the wild. They hardly entered the city more than several times a year. So, it was not odd that the traders here in the market could not recognize the three princesses.
“Sister Bella, did you do something bad again last night? Why didn’t Natasha and the rest show up after I woke up this morning?”
“Sister Lisha, Natasha and the rest of them are just lazing around. You don’t have to worry about them.”
“Bella, your country is really cold. It’s so different from the south where it’s summer all year long.”
“Kriss, it must have been hard for you to come all the way over here in the North. Once we are done, let’s find a warmer place to live in. Preferably by the beach.”
Neither Bella nor Kriss were the proper candidates to pick a horse since Kriss was only a swordsman and Bella had never learned about a knight’s “ethics education”. Hence, they left the horse picking to the younger sister, Lisha. Lisha led at the front as she looked at the horses while Bella and Kriss walked hand in hand behind her. The portrait of the three of them was a warm scenery of a couple taking their daughter out on a stroll.
Since the Octavia Empire was the birthplace of the knights, there was an abundant resource of horses here. Their price was also much more affordable in comparison to a similar horse in the other empires. Warhorses, like many other things, were graded by their quality. The higher quality of horses would not be on display here and would need to be pre-ordered. The general traders here would only showcase the lower to medium quality horses.
As Bella and her companion searched for information in the market, they were also here to help Mathilde and her group of law enforcement from the Radiant Church to secure some fine horses. After all, Mathilde’s primary objective here in Ombia was to buy some horses for the Knights of the Radiant Church. However, Bella made them unable to leave their bed, so as compensation, she would help them secure some horses.
It seemed that Lisha had been to this market before since she was familiar with the traders here. She ignored the drunken bargaining of the vendors along the road and instead made a beeline towards the best warhorse shop in the market. This particular shop was flourishing, as it was packed with people. Those seeking to buy a horse from them would need to line up first. Basically, only knights were eager to purchase a horse here because most of them would personally select their battle companions. The only exemption in this scene was Bella and Lisha; both of them were actually Dragon Knights instead of an ordinary knight.
“Have you heard? The demons have come over again to invade us, and this time around, they have managed to capture some of our forefront positions.”
“Well, the empire seems to be in trouble now. Most of the Dragon Knights have already been transferred over to the North. Even then, it seems that they still need more support.”
“Those old antiques in the Imperial Union are busy battling against the Red Sea Demonic Beast Army. Are they not helping the North?
“Aside from horses, the North is only packed with ice and snow. We don’t produce food supplies. Since the old antiques are conservatives, they don’t know how to value the North.”
While queuing to buy some horses, Bella had managed to gather some negative information from the conversations between these knights. Apparently, the demons had taken advantage of the freezing surface of the sea and surfed over to the human continent in the North. The demons might lack the skills and experience when battling in the sea, but it was a totally different matter on land. Their expertise on land actually surpassed that of the Beast Race. If the humans did not have the support of a Dragon Knight, they would not be able to defend against the attacks of the demons.
This time, the demons that came to the battle were well prepared. Since the Octavia Empire used naval catapults as their primary defense system, they were caught off guard when the demons came through the frozen surface of the sea. As a consequence, they had lost almost all of the coastline in the North Sea. Luckily, God Chosen Knight Scott, one of the survivors of a previous battle, was able to rush over in time from the south to defend the last line of the Octavia Empire, the Jeremiah Fortress. Hence, the empire did not entirely lose to the demons. They at least had one last fortress to defend the mainland.
All the other empires in the human continent were unable to send support to the North. The Nation of Arcana, the Aldridge Magic Empire, was busy fighting off the Red Sea Demonic Beast Army, while the Nation of Sword, the Gabriel Empire, which had just gone through the historical moment of enthroning a female ruler, Empress Kriss, was busy handling their own domestic political power division. At the same time, they had also sent their troops over to the Manasvir Empire to assist with empress Manya Felan’s succession of the Manasvir Empire. Since these two countries were dealing with their own internal power struggle, they could not lend their forces to the Octavia Empire.
The only empire that could have lent a helping hand was the Nation of Assassins, the Kristoff Empire. But they remained silent. Since this empire believed in the Darkness Church, it was unlikely that they would send out any of their troops to support the Octavia Empire, believers of the Radiant Church.
According to the latest information, the vanguard of the demons had already infiltrated the south during the snowstorm. Most of the soldiers did not dare to stand against the demons because of the long-term propaganda of the Radiant Church. The Radiant Church had fed them with misinformation to induce fear among the humans against the demons. Most of the humans now believed that the demons were mainly made up of beastmen with a height of five to six meters. They were also made to believe that only the priests of the Radiant Church could fight against these demons. Hence, the fighting morale of the soldiers greatly diminished even before they could face the demons.
Since Ombia city was located within the Radiant Church’s territory, the people here believed that they should be safe from the infiltration of the demons. However, Bella disagreed. She felt that the demons were a courageous race. Moreover, Ombia city was a small place where the guards were a lot more lenient. It would be easier for the demons to sneak in. Currently, there was one savior at the northern defense line, God Chosen Knight Scott. With his support, the defensive line should be able to hold on for a while.
“Move aside, a Knight of the Radiant Church is looking for war horses. Give way!”
At that moment, a few knights of the church suddenly appeared on the scene. Horses were not only used by the law enforcement of the Radiant Church but also by the knights. Not everyone was as reasonable as Captain Mathilde. Due to the influence of the Radiant Church, most people associated with the Radiant Church expected privileges from others.
After realizing that the people who had just jumped ahead were the Knights of the Radiant Church, the knights whose queue had been disrupted restrained their anger. The old-timer knights that frequented here knew that this was the territory of the Radiant Church, and they should not provoke the people of the Radiant Church. So, they just let the Knights of the Radiant Church do as they wished. However, a few young knights were also standing in the queue. Just as they were about to tell the Knights of the Radiant Church off, the old knights quickly got a hold of them and “educated” them on the people they should not provoke.
Lisha was also about to teach the unruly Knights of the Radiant Church some manners. However, Bella stretched out her hand and stopped her sister. She signaled to her that two people in front of her were already rebelling against the said knights, so she didn’t have to take things into her own hands. Just ahead of them stood two women in black cloaks. They were much taller than most average human girls.
The others might not have realized it, but Bella suspected the two women were demons. These two did not let the Knights of the Radiant Church get ahead of them and simply stood in their spots. Things were silent for a while. The Knights of the Radiant Church never imagined that someone would dare stand against the members of the Radiant Church, considering that they were in their territory.
“You two, why aren’t you giving way? Don’t just stand there. Otherwise, we will take you away for inquisition as heretics. You—”
“We are heretics. We don’t need your nonsense.”
A purple sword shadow accompanied the voice. Before the Knight of the Radiant Church knew what happened, he had already been butchered. His head rolled on the ground, and the blood from his body stunned the other knights. To attack a member of the Knights of the Radiant Church within the territory of the Radiant Church was challenging the authority of the Radiant Church.
As for the remaining Knights of the Radiant Church, even before they could draw out their swords, they were massacred by the other demon girl. Not only were the swordsmen of the demon race able to attack faster than a human descendant, but they were also deadlier in the sense that they already had the intention to kill right from the start. It was a stark difference from the normal human swordsmen, whose first few strokes were meant to gauge the ability of the opponent.
With the death of Knights of the Radiant Church, the peaceful ambiance in Ombia city shattered. The sound of people fighting rang throughout the city as the guards stationed at the city gates were killed by the demons. Some of the guards were so scared that they no longer had the courage to fight back. They fled away after discarding their helmets and armors. Just like that, the city of Ombia fell into chaos.
No one knew how the demons had advanced and reached Ombia. The guards here were not from the imperial army; they normally fought separately. Since many of them were not skilled in fighting, as soon as the situation turned unfavorable, their first instinct was to run away instead of defending the city. Even though the humans could have easily outnumbered the demons here, sadly, they were the ones chased and killed by the small team of demons.
“Sister, you are acting too rashly. You should have been more patient. Sister, Mathilde, the captain of the law enforcement team, is also in the city.”
“Sister, I will never make way for the people of the Radiant Church. Moreover, Mathilde didn’t bring along that many people, as the church is busy with the ceremony for the goddess. Furthermore, there are no guards outside the city. Mathilde is only a Holy Knight instead of a fearsome Dragon Knight.”
The two girls who had killed the Knights of the Radiant Church were not only members of the demon race, but they also had a higher status. Their long hair was purple in color, and the violet-colored eyes were evidence that they were of a royal family of the demon race. Bella had only ever seen the magical violet pupils in the eyes of Sky Demon King Doris, who was the descendant of an original princess of a demon clan. Underworld Demon King Cornice was also a descendant of a princess of a demon clan, but she didn’t share her eye color. It indicated that there was more than one empire in the demon continent.
Bella felt a little regretful that the two demons were wearing masks and only exposing their magical violet pupils. The rest of their faces were kept hidden. Although she could guess that they were beautiful, Bella still found it a shame that she couldn’t see their real faces to judge their level of beauty.
“Why aren’t the three of you running away? I see that you have more guts than those men. We won’t harm girls. The three of you should run!”
The two demon princesses finally realized the presence of the relaxed-looking Bella and her two companions. All the other male human knights were already so scared that their heads were hung low. It made these unfazed ladies stand out, especially the one with silver hair. The exotic ambiance that surrounded the beautiful Kriss stunned the two demon princesses, as they did not expect to find such beauty among the human race.
Kriss had initially put on a hood to cover her hair before going out to avoid any trouble. Since most of the people had run away in fright, she simply took off her hood without much thought, presenting herself to the eyes of the two demon princesses. Bella, who was neglected on the side, felt a little embarrassed for being left out. Even though her appearance as Princess Felia was not a beauty of the century, she was at least still considered as a beauty. She refused to be neglected.
“The two of you should stop ogling my girlfriend. She is already claimed.”
“Girlfriend? Aren’t you a female as well? Since when can two females develop those types of relationships?”
“Hold on, Sister. You, the female knight over there. You speak the language of the demon. How is it possible for a knight of the human race to speak the demon language?”
“There is nothing strange about it. Why is it that you can speak the language of the human race, but a human can not speak your language? We are all a family. Let’s put down our weapons and talk it through.”
The two demon princesses could speak the language of the human race. In a hurry to talk to them, Bella had, in that instance, forgotten this, so she had accidentally conversed with them using the demon language. She had learned it from Demon King Doris. Since she was caught in the act, Bella simply stuck with her excuses. Furthermore, her sister, Lisha, and Kris were already well aware of her identity as a Demon King. She didn’t have to hide it from them.
The two princesses did not regard Bella as one of their own simply because she could speak the demon language. While they were keeping quiet, the demon warrior nearby was heading towards them. These demon warriors were here with the intention to fight against the human race and would not simply stop just because the opponent was a female. In the eyes of these demon warriors, there was no gender involved, and all enemies were the same.
Bella didn’t fight back. Instead, she signaled to Magic Dragon Knight Lisha, who released the aura of a Dragon Knight. It instantly shook the demon warriors around them. This extraordinary aura was unique to only the Dragon Knights, and the Demon race was well aware of it. There were only a few armies of the human race that could pose a threat to the Demon Warriors. The Dragon Knights had always been at the top of the list.
“There is a Dragon Knight. Quickly surround her, and don’t let her summon her mount!”
“What is with that dragon knight? How could she be so strong even without her dragon mount?!”
The two demon princesses were shocked by Lisha’s strength. She hadn’t even summoned her flying dragon, nor did she use any weapons. All she did was simply use her fist and managed to penetrate the chest of several elite demon warriors, killing a large number of them at once. The mischievous smile carved on her face was terrifying to behold. It seemed that she was fooling around without even exerting her full strength.
“Two devil sisters, your subordinates are useless. The demons that used to train with me could at least stand a few punches.
“Retreat, retreat. That girl is at least a Dragon Knight Captain!”
The demons that had practiced with Lisha were called from the Darkness Sacred Region. Those demons that were summoned from the abyss were on a different level from these demon warriors. It was normal for the demons of the abyss to be able to withstand a few of her punches. The two demon princesses were horrified by Lisha’s aura. They mistakenly thought that Lisha was a Dragon Knight Captain, so they immediately ordered a retreat. They could never match up to a Dragon Knight Captain.
“The two of you, don’t run away. Tell me where the travel passage is located.”
“You… When did you get here!”
